Right now the end of the tech tree is populated by Future Tech, which one can research over and over for points. What do points do? I think it does something for end game scores but that's only really relevant for Time Victory, right? In any case at least the tooltip for Future Tech explains this.
However, the end of the civic tree is populated by Globalization and Social Media. Both of which can be researched over and over. They do provide tangible benefits outside of score, but they don't seem to do anything useful beyond the first time they're researched, and this behavior is not explained by their tooltips.
I would like to propose an alternative; in place of Future Tech, we instead have some technologies that give a benefit upon being researched and which can be researched over and over again. Similar techs should be available in the civic tree, but should just come after Globalization and Social Media, instead of replacing them. This was thrown around in the general discussion forum but I would like to further substantiate on this idea. Having a strong science and/or culture output would then still matter going into the end of the game, and your choice in which tech you pursue will also matter. Here are some examples I have in mind:
For tech tree:
<Automation>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in science cost each time. Each time Automation is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +1 production.
<Modern Agriculture>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in science cost each time. Each time Modern Agriculture is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +1 food.
<Arms Race>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in science cost each time. Each time Arms Race is researched, your military units gain a permanent +0.5* combat strength.
*Fractional bonuses don't do anything; your units only get the actual +1 combat strength every 2 times you research Arms Race.
For civics tree:
<Enterpreneurship>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in culture cost each time. Each time Enterpreneurship is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +2 gold.
<Models of Inspiration>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in culture cost each time. Each time Models of Inspiration is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +2 faith.
<Multicultural Studies>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in culture cost each time. Each time Multicultural Studies is researched, your empire gets a permanent +5 Influence per turn.
However, the end of the civic tree is populated by Globalization and Social Media. Both of which can be researched over and over. They do provide tangible benefits outside of score, but they don't seem to do anything useful beyond the first time they're researched, and this behavior is not explained by their tooltips.
I would like to propose an alternative; in place of Future Tech, we instead have some technologies that give a benefit upon being researched and which can be researched over and over again. Similar techs should be available in the civic tree, but should just come after Globalization and Social Media, instead of replacing them. This was thrown around in the general discussion forum but I would like to further substantiate on this idea. Having a strong science and/or culture output would then still matter going into the end of the game, and your choice in which tech you pursue will also matter. Here are some examples I have in mind:
For tech tree:
<Automation>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in science cost each time. Each time Automation is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +1 production.
<Modern Agriculture>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in science cost each time. Each time Modern Agriculture is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +1 food.
<Arms Race>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in science cost each time. Each time Arms Race is researched, your military units gain a permanent +0.5* combat strength.
*Fractional bonuses don't do anything; your units only get the actual +1 combat strength every 2 times you research Arms Race.
For civics tree:
<Enterpreneurship>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in culture cost each time. Each time Enterpreneurship is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +2 gold.
<Models of Inspiration>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in culture cost each time. Each time Models of Inspiration is researched, all cities you control gain a permanent +2 faith.
<Multicultural Studies>
This technology can be researched multiple times and increases in culture cost each time. Each time Multicultural Studies is researched, your empire gets a permanent +5 Influence per turn.
