How much do you value the Great Wall?

[André Alfenaar]

I like the Great Wall. It is a good way to defend your empire after the early expansion. A nice strategy would be to build the Pyramids and the Great Wall in your capital. This way you can get an early GE. The Great Wall provides 4 culture. Half of Stonehenge. So if I have to choose between Stonehenge (though a bit cheaper) and The Great Wall it is definately the Great Wall!

I see it like this: when I build the GW I have to spend less resources (and maintenance) on units.

 

[Thyrwyn]

I haven't built it in a while, though I typically (King Level) settle/expand pretty aggressively. I will say this, though: In my experience, Pacachuti loves to build it and given his start bias (a choking mess of hills and mountains) I hate seeing him do it. If I start near him, I try to build it so he doesn't.

Kamehameha likes to build it, too, but I find that less problematic.

 

[Atlas627]

I play multiplayer against myself or my friends. Mostly myself. And the Great Wall is excellent at the right time (as is the "useless" Angkor Wat, but that's a different story).

The Great Wall makes it extremely difficult for an enemy to invade your territory, and if that land is open terrain, your archers can kite all day. And if it is hilly, then you have plenty of time to harass before the siege hits your cities (because the siege weps need to be adjacent due to hills).

If you are playing a turtling game, there are certainly other wonders that you need. And you still need units to defend yourself. In multiplayer though, I don't think anybody cares about how much you win by, only that you win. So if you need the Great Library, you don't need to rush it and use your super engineer combo to hurtle down the tech tree, grabbing the Hagia Sophia and using that for the Porcelain Tower. You don't need to get there as fast as possible, you just need to get there before your opponents. That gives you time to build the Great Wall, which thereafter provides enough safety that you can go back to your tech-crushing strategy (or whatever peaceful turtle you do).

Human players are competent enough to use terrain, but the Great Wall makes it impossible for them to fight. And even if they could conquer you, it would be easier to take 3 other civs and all of their stuff. And the human knows it. Once you turtle for a bit, then you might be worth it. But by then, hopefully you're unstoppable!

 

[TPQ]

I play multiplayer against myself

How often do you win?

 

[terminus467]

Usually the only wonder I spring for is the Pyramids... It's just so consistently useful and also gives me two free workers. Win?

 

[krc]

I play multiplayer against myself...

How often do you win?

It's worth digging out this quote again: "I would even play against myself and I would almost always win." -- Bobby Fischer

 

[krc]

Most of the posted comments seem to support my original (pre-duel) opinion. The Great Wall seems to rarely be worth targeting specifically. It might be useful in multiplayer, especially with civs like China or England whose UA is ranged. And it also seems a most natural fit for a wide strategy, slowing down invaders while you move your troops to confront them. But there are real "opportunity costs" in going after it.

I went back to get some more data, trying a couple of standard-map games and looking for the Great Wall. First conclusion: it is almost impossible in a standard game (at least on king) to use the Liberty finisher Great Engineer to get the Great Wall; it is almost always gone by them (especially if you have gone wide and increased the culture costs too quickly.) The only way to ensure that you get it is to beeline Construction and start hard-building it early. This approach almost certainly sacrifices the Great Library. So I'm back where I started. I won't make the great Wall a priority. I might take it if it remains available (but more for the GE points and culture it provides than the defensive property).

 

[André Alfenaar]

If I have to choose between GL and GW, GW clearly wins! What is the point of a free tech early in the game? I admit that for example early pikemen are strong, but one doesn't loose much if they come a couple of turns later. Meanwhile it allows you to grow your cities and produce them at a faster rate when they are available.

 

[Caldazar]

Today I faced China's Cho-ko-no behind the great wall. Despite having a stronger and more advanced army, I had to retreat more times than I'd like to admit. Admittedly, I tried to capture the capital, but it mattered little.
With one highly promoted Cho-ko-no in Bejing she held me at arms length. She had more than one, but one was clearly enough. (I don't like the prospekt of losing 1 unit per turn, while advancing).

 

[_hero_]

Usually I avoid it. I'm actually most likely to get it if I'm a warmonger, simply to prevent the AI from getting it. Doing Duel maps against 1 AI that effect is amplified of course.

 

[tomaalimosh]

I like the Great Wall. It is a good way to defend your empire after the early expansion. A nice strategy would be to build the Pyramids and the Great Wall in your capital. This way you can get an early GE. The Great Wall provides 4 culture. Half of Stonehenge. So if I have to choose between Stonehenge (though a bit cheaper) and The Great Wall it is definately the Great Wall!

I see it like this: when I build the GW I have to spend less resources (and maintenance) on units.

This is one of the best reasons. You can wonder rush with a lot of GE early.
Also, Great Wall is better the slower the game pace and the higher the difficulty. On deity marathon it's a must, no matter how aggresive you plan to be. At some point some warmonger is sure to sneak attack you when you're not prepared, and they pack a mean punch on deity.

 

[danieladler]

No, there are other way more valuable wonders to choose from at that point so Great wall is no priority for me.