Make the Great Library useful

[playshogi]

You might want to build the Great Library for the 2 works of writing slots, but because Drama & Poetry is a prerequisite for Recorded History, you already have access to amphitheaters. So my suggestions are:

1) eliminate the Drama & Poetry requirement for Recorded History.
2) +2 science -- increase to scale with era
3) Replace the tech boost feature with the ability to select specific tech boosts provided by future GS recruited, instead of the random ones they normally provide. The GS must be expended in the Great Library location.
4) allow the Great Library to hold any kind of great work of writing, art or music.

 

[Boris Gudenuf]

You might want to build the Great Library for the 2 works of writing slots, but because Drama & Poetry is a prerequisite for Recorded History, you already have access to amphitheaters. So my suggestions are:

1) eliminate the Drama & Poetry requirement for Recorded History.
2) +2 science -- increase to scale with era
3) Replace the tech boost feature with the ability to select specific tech boosts provided by future GS recruited, instead of the random ones they normally provide. The GS must be expended in the Great Library location.
4) allow the Great Library to hold any kind of great work of writing, art or music.

An easier, and historically arguable 'Fix' for Great Library would be to simply make the Tech Boost apply to not only all Ancient and Classical Era Technologies, most if which you will already have by the time you build the Library, but also all Medieval and Renaissance Technologies. This makes the Wonder very useful for about twice as long in the average game.
After the Renaissance, you could make a case for the Great Library to provide Culture Points instead of or in addition to the Science points, to prolong its usefulness...

 

[UWHabs]

An easier, and historically arguable 'Fix' for Great Library would be to simply make the Tech Boost apply to not only all Ancient and Classical Era Technologies, most if which you will already have by the time you build the Library, but also all Medieval and Renaissance Technologies. This makes the Wonder very useful for about twice as long in the average game.
After the Renaissance, you could make a case for the Great Library to provide Culture Points instead of or in addition to the Science points, to prolong its usefulness...

Well, given the actual great library burned down well before the medieval period, I don't think it really makes sense to have its bonuses spread that late.

As it stands now, I find that I can never get the culture to get that far in the tree without also having the science to finish the classical era. And then to also have finished a campus, and have a tile that it's useful for, that's virtually impossible unless if I started nearly completely isolated, since usually by that point I've had to fight off a couple barbarian or AI hordes.

I would say a better change would be to simply make it available at writing, the same time as campuses. If it was available there, then I could see a path to try to rush to get an early campus/library up, and get the library up before you finish the classical era. Anf yeah, if you did extend it to also give the eurekas for the medieval era, or maybe have it give the inspirations for ancient/classical as well, then it might be more useful, while not being too OP.

 

[Boris Gudenuf]

Well, given the actual great library burned down well before the medieval period, I don't think it really makes sense to have its bonuses spread that late..

If you allow someone to pillage your Wonder, you cannot expect to get much out of it.
The destruction of the Great Library/Museum at Alexandria does not mean you have to do the same in a game. Had it not been destroyed, it would have remained the largest collection of books/manuscripts in the world until the 19th century - well after the "Renaissance" Era.

But you are correct in that the construction of the Great Library should be possible much earlier. Right now it comes with the Recorded History Civic, which is in the second 'tier' of Classical Civics. As usual, the designers chundered their history. Greeks, Romans, Israelis and others were 'recording history' several hundred years BCE - that is, in the early Classical Era, not the late Classical. And, of course, the Library itself was built and flourished in the 3rd to 1st centuries BCE, also in the first 'half' of the Classical Era.
Right now, the Recorded History Civic requires both Political Philosophy and Drama & Poetry. Between them, these two Civics require you to obtain 5 other Civics to get them, so that Recorded History requires a total of 7 Civics before you can start 'researching' it. Political Philosophy alone, one of the direct antecedents, requires 5 Civics.

So, making the least change in the game, simply require only Drama & Poetry for Recorded History. Thus, Recorded History would only require 4 Civics, not 7, to research, throwing the Great Library back to the early Classical Era where it belongs.

 

[steve_indy]

If it's left as-is, it should be available earlier. Otherwise, it needs to be useful a little longer. Both Medieval and Renaissance sounds a little strong - but maybe an inspiration and a eureka for each new age as it's entered...?

Another thought I had just after posting this. Why only 2 slots for great works? It's the Great Freakin' Library. Just have it add a great works slot at each age from Medieval on - that alone would probably be enough to make it worthwhile.

 

[Abraxis]

I agree, I think it would be perfectly fine if it were available at writting.

 

[megabearsfan]

I think it would be cool if the Great Library literally made a copy of the first 2 Great Works of Writing. If 2 writings don't already exist, then it gives the owner a free copy of the next one or two writings that are created by other civs. Those works cannot be removed from the Great Library and are destroyed if the Great Library is captured.

 

[Paramecium]

Wouldnt be the easiest buff for the Great Library to move it back to Writing? Everything you need to construct it is given with Writing but itself comes way too late. Unlocked with Writing, its boni will be actually helpfull. But it could be overpowered if you unlock all those Eurekas/Inspirations of the Ancient and Classic Era that early. But honestly, most of those Eurekas/Inspirations you will get nevertheless so it might give you the possibilty to get out of that corset to max out those...