organized religion vs. theocracy

[Icepowder]

Which is better for a warmonger?
Theocracy bonus (increased exp points) is quite apparent, but when you fight a lot, you don't have much time left to build, so 25% more hammers come really handy.

 

[Innawerkz]

Theocracy.

The 25% bonus is solely for buildings and not units. Typically you would like a war to end as quickly as possible because of the high cost of armies in foreign territory and, as you pointed out, you aren't building.

More experienced troops - which implies better - will get the war over with quicker allowing you to revert to 'Infrastructure/Peace' time civics again.

My $0.02.

 

[Bast]

Theocracy for war. Hands down.

 

[Gen.Rommel]

Lol i keep theocracy on all the time, never use anything else

 

[Shillen]

Organized religion is too costly. I'll only use it if I'm spiritual and every one of my cities is building buildings. Then I'll turn it off as soon as I switch some cities to units.

 

[bonscott]

I'll be in Organized religion when not building military units and Theocracy when I am. That simple really.

So if I'm gearing up for war and having most of my cities build military units then I'll switch to Theocracy. Once I'm back to building mostly buildings then back to organized religion it is.

And if you add in a barracks and Vassalage every new unit gets 8 XP which is 2 free promotions and you are one (maybe two) wins away from 10 which is yet another promotion. Get the Pentagon and now you come out with 10XP and 3 promotions to start! Very powerful....

 

[automator]

I generally avoid Org Rel. Too expensive, and the cities in which I really need buildings usually don't have my state religion until they are done with the buildings (unless I'm going whole hog about my religion by churning out Missionaries, but if that's the case, I'm in Theocracy to keep other religions out). Even for defense, those extra experience points are nice: a free city defense upgrage, for example.

 

[Scholastic]

Which is better for a warmonger?
Theocracy bonus (increased exp points) is quite apparent, but when you fight a lot, you don't have much time left to build, so 25% more hammers come really handy.

I only use theocracy.

 

[Khift]

~snip~ but if that's the case, I'm in Theocracy to keep other religions out).~snip~

Is there any bonus to limiting your cities to only one religion? The only thing I can see is depriving your opponents of shrine income -- which is a pretty petty reason for it, considering that monasteries are cheap and when you weigh it out I'd gladly let my opponents have +1 GPT if I can have +10% SCI.

 

[Draetor24]

I like Organized Religion better, but if I'm at war, I'm churning out units and I will have Theocracy on. When I'm not at war, I usually have Organized Religion on.

 

[Sahkuhnder]

Wow, it looks like I'm in the minority here, but I really like the organized religion civic. The +25% for new buildings can really help your new cities get started, and can help when all your cities build universities, power plants, etc. It does cost extra, but the drag on your economy can be carried by your large cities for the benefit of getting your small starter cities up and productive themselves. I try really hard to have a missionary go with my settler whenever possible in order to get the state religion benefit (+1 culture, +1 happy, +25% hammers) right from the very first turn. This also allows any city at any time to crank out a missionary (vs. just monastery equipped cities) to send out with the new settler or to go to a newly conquered city and spread to them the enlightenment of the one true faith, whatever it may be this game.

Theocracy is O.K., but the extra experience points aren't as important to me as the increased city building output, and the experience points can often be gotten from other places as well. As for stopping the spread of non-state religion I don't like that at all. Actually sometimes have a second or third religion allows you an extra temple to build if you have an unhappiness issue to deal with.

 

[Scholastic]

I dunno, i could be at a personal bias insofar as theocracy is concerned. A Christian theocracy just sounds cool.

 

[CivCorpse]

Early on, I tend to run OR until i can switch to passissississism never can spell that. Theocracy is only used when some idiot...usually named montezuma attacks me

 

[xyourxmomxcorex]

Lol i keep theocracy on all the time, never use anything else

I do what i can to max out on exp points. Heroic Epic, Red cross, Pentagon, Barracks and Ironworks all one city baby!

 

[xyourxmomxcorex]

Early on, I tend to run OR until i can switch to passissississism never can spell that. Theocracy is only used when some idiot...usually named montezuma attacks me

Montezuema is my homie...i always play as aztecs.

 

[Artanis]

I do what i can to max out on exp points. Heroic Epic, Red cross, Pentagon, Barracks and Ironworks all one city baby!

Heroic Epic, Red Cross, and Ironworks are all National Wonders, so you can only have 2 of those in a city.

 

[Invisible Rhino]

Lol beat me to it Artanis!

Anyways, I use Organized for early peace, Theocracy for early war, and Pacifisim and Free Religion as appropriate later in the game.

 

[Memphus]

I only use organized religion. Get it, switch to it and never change.

Barbarians can be used to those 2 xp real quick.

I play for domination 95% of the time

But I only use one city/maybe two near the end to build units (unless of emergency)

OR lets my other cities as I capture them pump out a
theater to expand borders (caste is also used)
forge so this city is now useful
new wonder
all done with chop rushing since AI doesn't really cut trees

Basically chainf of events is
Turn 1 Capture city
Turn 1 install Relgion
Turn X when out of anarachy have chops timed for instaneous
Forge, or Theater(helps with happyness too)
Then change to Forge or theater and chop rush
Then wonder if need be and trees left.

As for the high cost or Organized Religion, I'm running in the red no matter what, so once you start capturing cities it can't stop.

It is like a chain gang going accross the world
Army==>Missionary(which by the way doesn't need a monastary with OR)==>Defence==>workers

By the time city X is set up with a forge and theater city Y is captured and the workers are comming

 

[Shillen]

considering that monasteries are cheap and when you weigh it out I'd gladly let my opponents have +1 GPT if I can have +10% SCI.

I don't think monasteries are cheap at all considering how quickly they go obsolete. I only build monasteries if I need to build missionaries in that city or if I run out of things to build in a high commerce city (which is rare).

 

[playshogi]

Organized religion is too expensive, plus you have to declare a state religion which might have diplomatic penalties leading to early war. It's only 25% for buildings which is only a few hammers per city, but the cost of the civic is high. Also, you need monotheism which is a tech path I rarely use, nor do I want to trade for it.