How do you use you GP?

[andersw]

I generally settle great prophets.
The first scientist i sometimes settled instead of academy if the Capital doesn't yet produce that much science.
Merchant settle or (later) trade mission.
I use Artists for Golden Age or in rare occasions for great work on newly concered cities.
I try to avoid spies.

 

[Bleys]

In my opinion worrying about wasted beakers from a bulb doesn't matter - techs are what matter, not beakers. Beakers have no value apart from their ability to get techs. If you look at it as what fraction of a tech you get from a bulb rather than how many beakers you get from a bulb then bulbing late is more wasteful than bulbing early!

I agree with you in general, however, there are conditions where the "beaker value" should be considered. At higher levels, being able to bulb a tech for its trade value is almost as important as the techs usefulness. If you can bulb a higher beaker tech, then trade it for a number of other techs, you have essentially doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled the value of the bulb.

 

[Zeestein]

as a general rule, settle if before 300AD, save for golden ages or bulb an undiscovered tech etc otherwise

 

[LiberiGlacialis]

Bulb early (though, if I'm way past Polythesim, I'm not popping a GA for it), settle/save late. For me, anyways.

 

[AmazonQueen]

GE: Usually rush a wonder
GM: Usually a trade mission, possibly settle in WS city
GS: Found an academy or settle in OU city
GP: Bulb a religion, found a shrine or settle in WS city
GA: Ocasionally bulb, usually Golden Age, settle if going for a cultural victory, try and avoid getting them
GSpy: 1st settle in OU city, 2nd found Scotland Yard, try and avoid getting them

I will also save some as appropriate for founding corporations

In my current game I've had 2 GSpies , 3 GS used to found academies, 1 GP used for a shrine, and a GA from Music that I'm saving for a Golden Age

 

[CmdrGoob]

I read somewhere that the keyword for the Civilization IV creation team were "choices". I think there should be a way to use the great work ability other than to achieve cultural victory. Maybe the Great Work could give some kind of revenue also (like Mona Lisa is a tourist attraction) or something similar.

But maybe Im just hijacking the thread, sorry.

In addition to the instant border pops in a key enemy city as Eunomiac pointed out, I also hear that doing a great work will end the civil unrest in a newly captured city (I've never had a great artist at the right time to test it myself). I imagine that could be very useful sometimes, for example in a late intercontinental invasion getting the first city you capture out of revolution so you can rush buy an airport for quick reinforcement could be excellent for the invasion.

 

[Winston Hughes]

I also hear that doing a great work will end the civil unrest in a newly captured city

That was changed in BtS (iirc).

But while we're on the subject of culture bombs and their potential uses...

In one rather memorable game I popped an unlikely GA whilst conquering Monty, and used it to culture bomb his capital. Thus, I secured most of his land and resources, without having to keep a load of his crappier cities.

Similarly, on several occasions I've dropped a culture bomb in the new world on a Terra map, and so grabbed several cities-worth of land and resources without incurring those nasty colonial maintenance costs, or having to ship more settlers over.

Also, a while back, I did some experiments with an early culture bomb gambit using a Philosophical leader: Oracle->CoL asap, run Artists via Caste System, settle and culture bomb second city, settle and culture bomb third city.

It isn't reliable (thanks to the priest GPP from the Oracle) or, in the vast majority of cases, especially helpful. But there were a couple of starts where I managed to block off most of a continent for myself, pretty much guaranteeing a win if I had played on.

Finally, I suppose there might be times when the instant 60% cultural defence could come in handy, though I can't say ever had it happen in one of my games.

 

[CmdrGoob]

That was changed in BtS (iirc).

Yes, I think something happened to it in BtS. I seem to remember someone saying that it was removed in BtS but added back in a later patch? I might give it a test when I get home.

 

[CmdrGoob]

Confirmed it with BtS 3.13 - a great work will instantly end revolution in a captured city.

 

[Winston Hughes]

Confirmed it with BtS 3.13 - a great work will instantly end revolution in a captured city.

Ah, that's good to know. I'm not really sure why they changed it in the first place.