Rate the Social Policies Part III: Commerce/Exploration/Rationalism

[Endovior]

6 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben.
2 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.
5 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%.
5 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster.
9 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange.
8 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource.
6 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era."

6 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre.
7 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities.
7 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse.
4 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster.
6 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse..
8 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes.
6 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era.

7 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower.
9 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist.
6 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster.
7 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities.
5 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings.
3 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%.
9 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era.

 

[peterka]

Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): should be +4 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.

Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster. Should add an extra trade route!


Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre. Should get a 50% faster archeologist building

Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): _ - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster. Should have an Extra movement for naval units.



and it will equal the rationalism!

 

[joelzhl]

Commerce (Medieval Era)

8 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben. (Big Ben + Mercantilism and potentially Autocracy for units or Order for buildings)
3 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes. (This is a joke)
8 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%. (Can save quite a bit for landlock nations, for coastal civs, it's worth 1)
(-1) - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster. (Great Merchants dilute my pool of scientists and engineers, it's actually a counter productive SP)
9 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange. (Combos with opener wonder and ideology)
8 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource. (Moar happiness, would be better if the left side is the tree is not complete bad)
6 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era." (Trade post is good for domination games, but the left side of the tree sucks so much)


Exploration (Medieval Era)

7 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre. (naval sight is always good, Louvre is excellent for culture games)
9 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities. (Jump start those low hammer coastal into industrial powerhouse, liberty + this = 5 hammer base city tile)
9 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse. (Moar happiness for essential buildings? Moar please)
1 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster. (Trollolol Great Admirals...)
6 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse. (Luxury = 6gpt = 4 happiness, so 1.5gpt per happiness, compare to Naval Tradition, this is less effective)
7 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes. (Not bad)
4 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era. (If you need this, you are in a bad spot for the cultural race since you will likely want to complete Aesthetics to be competitive)


Rationalism

8 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower. (10% science and PT, very good opener)
9 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist. (Great synergy with freedom, if you go order or auto, it's worth a bit less)
7 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster. (Yes, moar GS)
8 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities. (3 science jungle tiles)
6 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings. (considering you'll probably build all of them for tall or at least library+university for wide, this isn't too bad)
10 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%. (One of the Best SP in game)
8 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era. (Good for a double slingshot)

 

[mrwho]

Great Merchants dilute my pool of scientists and engineers, it's actually a counter productive SP)

How does one GP dilute the frequency of other GPs? They're independently generated aren't they?

 

[joelzhl]

How does one GP dilute the frequency of other GPs? They're independently generated aren't they?

GS, GE, and GM are all linked. GWAM are the independent ones.

 

[Law Lord]

I'm aware of the issues around the trade route policies, but I'm just going to pretend that everything works as intended and judge accordingly.

Commerce (Medieval Era)

7 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben. (Nice gold bonus as the capital is almost always your biggest gold city at this stage of the game. Big Ben is a good wonder.)
4 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes. (I don't like to advocate too much for buffs/nerfs, but this needs a buff. The concept is fine, but it needs to make land routes more competitive with sea routes)
5 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%. (It's nice if you're expansionist, but considering how the other game mechanics are working hard against expansionists, this isn't that good.)
3 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster. (If Merchants weren't so weak, this would be fine.)
8 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange. (This is a great bonus and mitigates against the pain of foregoing some of the Rationalism policies)
9 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource. (One of the best happiness bonuses in the game.)
5 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era." (The TP bonus is nice, but again, this is better if you're expansionist and the game tries to prevent that. Merchants are mediocre. There is very little incentive to finish this tree.)

Commerce is worth considering on a Pangea map, but probably not worth considering in any other circumstance. I think this tree would get far more attractive with a buff to the land trade routes bonus and fewer 'big picture' penalties to expansion.

Exploration (Medieval Era)

7 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre. (I like this more than most I think: the Louvre is a decent wonder and the movement/sight bonuses are really handy in a lot of circumstances. It can be worth dipping into this tree sometimes, even on a non-Archipelago map.)
5 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities. (Only good if taken very early on, as 3 hammers becomes a progressively worse bonus pretty quickly).
4 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse. (Totally situational, and in most games I'm not building a lot of Harbors or Seaports anyway. This is a weak happiness policy)
6 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster. (Good on water maps as admirals can be tough to get early on, and then they hold up your navy movement).
3 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse. (At most this usually provides 10-15 GPT, more typically 8-10 GPT. Should come earlier in the tree.)
7 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes. (This is a nice bonus, but we're maxing out at +36 GPT I think. It's not world beating, but it's good).
3 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era. (Possibly the worst finisher. It has little synergy with the rest of the tree, and is highly circumstantial. You also usually don't need more than a couple of Admirals in a game.)

Exploration is the worst tree in the game. The finisher doesn't promote naval empire building in any meaningful way, and there are just too many weak policies. It is only useful for the opener, and should be avoided unless you're playing an Archipelago map.

I'd like to see this totally re-worked in the fall patch to have strong naval/coastal bonuses on one side of the tree, and archaeology/exploration bonuses on the other half (perhaps a policy allowing your Archaeologists to cross international borders without a treaty, increased bonuses from landmarks/artifacts, or increased sight for units).

Rationalism

8 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower. (Good wonder, good passive bonus. Hard not to like.)
10 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist. (In my view, the best policy in the game before ideologies. Completely flexible, helps every victory type, virtually no downside. Statue of Liberty makes this a monster.)
6 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster. (Only a 6 compared to the rest of the tree. GS are good, and faster is better)
7 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities. (This bonus was stronger without BNW's bias against expansionism. A score of 7 says it's still pretty darn good.)
4 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings. (Well, something has to be weak in this tree. GPT is always nice, but this doesn't net you that much).
6 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%. (It's good, but situational as some games the AI just won't make DOFs with you. The synergy with Porcelain Tower is nice)
9 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era. (A free tech and the ability to purchase GS either wins the game for you or keeps you in the late game tech race. It's almost essential).

Rationalism is still the king. I think getting Secularism is practically essential for most games. There is really only one weak policy, and everything else gives you a serious benefit to what is still the most essential system in Civ 5: science. You can try not going Rationalism, but it's a high risk proposition.

I'd rather see the other trees brought up than Rationalism brought down, but this still needs some balancing work. It's just too good.

 

[Resipsa]

Commerce (Medieval Era)

6- Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben.
4- Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.
6- Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%.
4- Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster.
8- Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange.
6- Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource.
6- Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era."


Exploration (Medieval Era)

6- Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre.
4- Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities.
4- Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse.
4- Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster.
4- Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse..
6- Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes.
6- Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era.


Rationalism

6- Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower.
8- Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist.
6- Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster.
8- Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities.
4- Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings.
6- Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%.
8- Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era.

I really wanted to Rationalism lower and did rate the opener lower based on opening in the renaissance but I just couldn't lower anything else there aren't many games that you shouldn't be dipping into the left or right side before your tenets.

 

[mikeg]

Commerce (Medieval Era)

5 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben.
6 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.
5 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%.
3 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster.
9 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange.
10 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource.
7 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era."

Mainly average policies but with a couple of absolute gems which are amongst the very best in any policy tree. Overall hard to recommend unreservedly though as it isn't geared to a specific victory condition unlike three of the policies surrounding it, but a good all rounder.


Exploration (Medieval Era)

4 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre.
7 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities.
7 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse.
8 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster.
3 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse..
7 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes.
5 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era.

Yes that is an 8 . The reason I have rated NS so high is partly to offset the zeros and ones for a policy that, when understood and used well, can be hugely important. The ability to travel the oceans way before Astronomy can be enormous on some maps, allowing for more lucrative trade routes, meeting all civs first, lots of new potential luxury trades for happiness, new city states to find and deal with, and some previously missed ruins. Overall Exploration is situational and certainly not the most powerful tree but I have found ways to make it work pretty well in certain games. Depending on the situation it's not a bad choice for just dipping into, either left side or right side, if you're short of production or happiness on water maps.

Rationalism

8 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower.
8 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist.
6 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster.
9 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities.
5 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings.
7 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%.
8 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era.

A nicely balanced tree now, with the direct and indirect nerfs applied in BNW. I find DoFs to be much harder to keep now, lessening the overall effect of the PT and of SR. Rationalism is no longer a no-brainer for any non-Culture victory games, leading to some juicy choices late on in the game. Free thought is still pretty sensational though!

 

[Brutha2]

Commerce (Medieval Era)

8 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben.
7 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.
4 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%.
4 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster.
8 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange.
9 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource.
8 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era."


Exploration (Medieval Era)

5 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre.
8 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities.
6 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse.
4 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster.
4 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse..
9 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes.
7 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era.


Rationalism

8 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower.
9 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist.
7 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster.
8 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities.
6 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings.
6 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%.
9 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era.

 

[joncnunn]

My overall comment is that the first two compete directly with each other. But both of these are also somewhat competing with Rationalism below and the policies that open with Classical in the previous poll.

Commerce (Medieval Era)

6 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben.
This would be a 4 if not for Big Ben, which moves the opener from below par to above par

0 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.
Each caravan is a waste of a cargo ship spot

3 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%.
If there actually is a puppet empire attached, harbors are more efficient than long roads thru empty territory. If its a tall empire, few roads.

0 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster.
Each Great Merchant slows down the next Great Scientist due to being on the same counter.

4 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange.
This one works better with a puppet empire attached (since this are the buildings that puppets will build and you'll get some science.) However even then the rate will be less than expected due to the 25% puppet cut and that cut being coded as truncate (75% original); 25% of the time, the last 1 point science boost was pointless for a puppet due to being mapped to the same final value.

6 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource.

4 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era."

The trade post section will be used; the rest of it not so much.

Exploration (Medieval Era)

7 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre.
It's worth while to open just for the Louvre even if you don't spend any more points.

6 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities.
Helps the weaker cities more than the others.

8 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse.
This is 3 happiness per city, which is really solid.

4 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster.
Not as useful due to not being much to do with a second Great Admiral (unless playing Sweden)

5- Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse..
This basically eliminates the maintenance cost of the Lighthouse, halves it for seaport (but note the seaport itself also adds gold yield to resources), and reduces the maintenance of a harbor.

7 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes.
That rating is even if you're NOT playing Venice,; if you are playing Venice that is a 10.

4 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era.
It's not that the hidden ones are bad, it's just that there are so many normal ones you are likely to run out of room even without this tree.


Rationalism

10 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower.

PT attached makes this a 10. You don't even need to rush the PT with a GE unless Korea (or some other science AI) is in the game.

8 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist.
You'll be running every science slot and all guilds slot at a minimum

10 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster.

Faster final academy along with faster bulbed science? And this will also ensure I don't waste a GS spot by an accidental GE? Yes, please.

9 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities.
Again, science is king

4 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings.
This is reducing their maintenance costs by 1 each.

3 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%.
Problem is that a DOF is required; and by the time you can reach this policy you may yourself already be an era ahead of all AIs.

10 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era.
Both of these are really good; so much I'd rate the free tech by itself a 10 and the Great Scientists with Faith as an additional 8.

 

[Tiggurix]

Commerce (Medieval Era)

6 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben. - The Commerce Opener is only really exceptional if your Capital is a city which already produces a lot of cash, obviously, although Big Ben is pretty good wonder, which is especially awesome if combined with Mercantilism.

4 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes. - Meh. While extra gold is always nice, you can only have a max of 10 (unless you're Venice, for which this Policy is pretty good), so that amounts to an extra 20 gold... Besides, I've heard this Policy and its cousin, Treasure Fleets, is quite buggy.

8 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%. - An awesome policy, and one of the main reasons to pick Commerce, in my opinion. Reduced upkeep for Roads and Railroads effectively means more Gold for City Connections, especially for land-locked cities, and lets you support a larger army, more buildings, etc, without this being at the expense of your (rail)road network, and really just makes it easier to support a larger empire, especially on a Pangaea map.

5 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster. - A rather average Policy, as Great Merchants are not the most impressive Great Persons around, but they are good for a sudden influx of money and a large opinion boost with City States. This Policy, again, is especially awesome with Venice, for obvious reasons.

9 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange. - Reduced purchase price is awesome, especially combined with Big Ben, as mentioned. The other part of this Policy is less impressive, though a little extra Science never hurts.

10 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource. - Pretty much the reason to pick this Policy Tree (although, obviously, there are many good reasons). 50% extra Happiness from all your Luxury Resources is pretty significant, for many reasons, and this is an especially relevant policy if you're trying to go for a Domination victory.

9 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era. - One of the main reasons Trading Post spam is worth it. +1 Gold from ALL your Trading Posts can add up to a HUGE amount of Gold. The ability to purchase GMs with Faith and get more money from them in Trade Missions is rather "meh", but, again, as Venice, you could get an enormous pile of money when using your Merchants of Venice in this way, and you would have access to MoVs on demand, to steal City States or give you giant pile of cash, if you have the Faith.


Exploration (Medieval Era)

8 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre. - This Opener is obviously good for those with a fleet. If you managed to get the Great Lighthouse, by building it or by conquest, your fleet would be very quick, ESPECIALLY if you were to be England. On the other hand, if you were to go for a Culture Victory, you would often want to pick this Opener JUST for the Louvre, even if you were land-locked.

8 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities. - +3 extra, free Production is pretty significant for new cities in my experience, as they have the most to build and the least population to do it. As the game goes on, this bonus becomes less impressive, though never irrelevant.

7 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse. - As mentioned, extra Happiness is important, as any relatively experienced Civ 5 player would tell you. And extra happiness for buildings that you usually want to build anyway is not a bad thing.

4 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster. - Even though this Policy has a LOT of features, it's usually not a priority, as you usually get GAs quickly enough if you do a lot of naval warfare, and I've had games where the free GA sits at home in the port the whole game. The extra movement is kinda nice, especially with how fast the late-game fleets get, but, again, not essential.

5 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse. - If you have a wide empire, the extra Gold you get for this Policy could add up to a good amount, and it's just a pretty decent Policy, all in all.

5 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes. Similar to its "cousin" Policy in the Commerce tree, the Wagon Trains, this Policy is made worse by the limited amount of Trade Routes one can have. But as mentioned, for Venice, this is a pretty awesome Policy, as +80 Gold, at the most, is a pretty good sum. Again, though, this Policy is rather buggy.

5 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era. - It may just be that I should play on a higher difficulty, but the one time I got this Ender, I didn't end up picking up a lot of the "hidden" Antiquity Sites, as I usually prioritised those that were available to everyone, naturally, and usually got them by just parking my Archaelogists on top of them. Again, though, this Ender may be better on higher difficulties.


Rationalism

9 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower. - +10% Science for your ENTIRE empire can be pretty substantial, needless to say, but, more importantly, this unlocks all the goodies in the rest of the Rationalism tree, and the Porcelain Tower.

8 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist. - Making your Scientists even better at producing beakers, and making all those Engineers, Artists, etc, give extra, "free" beakers makes for a pretty good Policy.

7 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster. - Great Scientists are easily the most important Great Persons, and earning them faster is a good thing, m'kay?

10 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities. - This Policy is the other reason Trading Post spam is worth it. Commerce, Rationalism Trading Posts on jungle makes for a pretty awesome tile, as most Civ 5 players know. The extra Science modifier from Universities is also pretty nice.

5 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings. The "worst" Policy in the Rationalism tree, the only problem of Sovereignty is that it is rather underwhelming compared to the other Policies in this tree, and that it doesn't help in giving you extra Science. You'll usually want to build all the science buildings in all of your cities, though, so you'll end up with a bit of extra money from this Policy, I guess.

8 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%. - I'm personally a little bad at making Research Agreements, but there's no denying this Policy is awesome. If you manage to get this and Porcelain Tower, you're pretty much set.

9 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era. - While not nearly as awesome as it was in G&K, the Rationalism Finisher is a pretty good one, although now the best aspect of it is that you have GSs at demand in the later part of the game, so that you can effectively trade Faith for a massive amount of Science.

 

[black213]

For your information, Wagon Trains and Treasure Fleets policies DO work.

But as with everything related to trade routes, you only get the bonus for "new" routes after you picked the policy (or improved the luxury, or build a market etc.).

Income per trade route is a static value for a set amount of turns. It can only improve after it finished its current route.

Oh, okay. I had the suspicion they would only affect new trade routes but never got to testing it.

 

[roee1982]

Commerce (Medieval Era)

7 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben.
7 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.
8 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%. (6 for tall, 10 for wide )
5 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster.
6 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange.
7 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource.
6 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era."


Exploration (Medieval Era)

7 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre. (7 only coz of Louvre)
3 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities.
3 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse.
2 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster.
4 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse..
8 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes.
5 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era.


Rationalism

9 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower.
6 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist.
8 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster.
6 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities.
4 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings. (usually play tall... not much use for it)
9 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%.
8 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era.

 

[Colin]

GS, GE, and GM are all linked. GWAM are the independent ones.

This, plus the separate counter for Great Prophets, Admirals and Generals is so convoluted and counter-intuitive. AFAIK it's not even mentioned in the civipedia how all the great people being generated fit together and influence each other.

 

[Enrico Swagolo]

I like how Wagon Trains, which are unlikely to give you more than 4 gold (because you're a smart man and will be using Cargo Ships) are typically rated higher than Sovereignty which is going to pretty much give you 4 gold per city late game. Shows that some should meet the Count who likes to count to show them how bad this policy is.

You only need 5 cities with all science buildings if you're tall to equal maximum Wagon Trains benefit assuming you used ALL 10 routes from very late tech, Petra and Collosus on land routes, which would be an incredibly foolish thing to do (there's a reason why Cargo Ships are used if available - they're twice as good. Why are you even using Caravans if you're not forced to?).

20 science buildings are very, very easy to get if you're going wide, and to equal Wagon Trains you probably just need 4 - who in their right mind would use more than 2 Caravans if they have any coastal possibilities? Since it's late mid game by the time you're getting this, you obviously have a well-placed city on coast.

I can understand liking Treasure Fleets more, but seriously - a policy that gives max 40 GPT ultra late game assuming you got 2 wonders is getting 7's, 8's left and right? It didn't even work for me, and I don't think it works on internal trade routes (you want at least 2 of those to make your capital truly monstrous - it pays off if you went Tradition, because Cargo Ship at this point gives 10+ food, feeding 5-6 citizens and netting you gold from Monarchy, as well as Production)

 

[Teaf]

Commerce

7 - Opener
3 - Wagon Trains
5 - Trade Unions
3 - Entrepreneurship
6 - Mercantilism
8 - Protectionism
7 - Finisher

Exploration
4 - Opener
7 - Maritime Infrastructure
5 - Naval Tradition
2 - Navigation School
2 - Merchant Navy
3 - Treasure Fleets
6 - Finisher (personally, I think this should be in Aesthetics)

Rationalism
9 - Opener
10 - Secularism
7 - Humanism
10 - Free Thought
3 - Sovereignty
8 - Scientific Revolution
9 - Finisher

 

[StrideColossus]

Commerce (Medieval Era)

5 - Commerce Opener: Boosts Gold output in the Capital by 25%. Unlocks Big Ben.
1 - Wagon Trains (leads to Entrepreneurship): +2 Gold from all your Land Trade Routes.
3 - Trade Unions (leads to Mercentilism): Maintenance paid on Roads and Railroads reduced by 50%.
4 - Entrepreneurship (requires Wagon Trains, part leads to Protectionism): Great Merchants are earned 25% faster.
8 - Mercantilism (requires Trade Unions, part leads to Protectionism): Purchasing items in Cities requires 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange.
5 - Protectionism (requires Entrepreneurship and Mercantilism): +2 Happiness from every Luxury Resource.
8 - Commerce Finisher: Grants +1 Gold for every Trading Post and double Gold from Great Merchant trade missions. Can purchase Great Merchants with Faith from the Industrial era."


Exploration (Medieval Era)

10 - Exploration Opener: +1 Movement for Naval units and +1 Sight for Naval Combat units. Unlocks the Louvre.
9 - Maritime Infrastructure (part leads to Merchant Navy): +3 Production in all coastal Cities.
7 - Naval Tradition (leads to Navigation School, part leads to Merchant Navy): +1 Happiness for each Harbor, Seaport, or Lighthouse.
1 - Navigation School (Requires Naval Tradition ): A Great Admiral appears. +2 Movement for all Great Admirals. Great Admirals are earned 25% faster.
3 - Merchant Navy (Requires Maritime Infrastructure and Naval Tradition): +1 Gold for each Harbor, Seaport or Lighthouse..
8 - Treasure Fleets (Requires Merchant Navy): +4 Gold from all your sea trade routes.
0 - Exploration Finisher: Allows you to see Hidden Antiquity Sites. Can purchase Great Admirals with Faith from the Industrial Era.


Rationalism

10 - Rationalism Opener: +10% Science while the empire is Happy. Unlocks building the Porcelain Tower.
8 - Secularism (leads to Sovereignty): +2 Science from every Specialist.
7 - Humanism (leads to Free Thought): Great Scientists are earned 25% faster.
5 - Free Thought (requires Humanism): +1 Science from every Trading Post and +17% Science from Universities.
3 - Sovereignty (requires Secularism, leads to Scientific Revolution): +1 Gold from Science buildings.
10 - Scientific Revolution (requires Sovereignty): Boosts Science gained from Research Agreements by 50%.
7 - Rationalism Finisher: Grants a free Technology. Allows the purchase of Great Scientists with Faith from the Industrial Era.

 

[Tachii]

This, plus the separate counter for Great Prophets, Admirals and Generals is so convoluted and counter-intuitive. AFAIK it's not even mentioned in the civipedia how all the great people being generated fit together and influence each other.

How is Great prophets, generals, and admirals generation convoluted? o.O

 

[Quineloe]

Judging from most people's comments here, there is very little incentive to complete the exploration tree. The benefits are underwhelming compared with all other policies. I would suggest the finisher bonus should be a one time gold bonus for meeting unknown city states analogous to Spain's UA gold bonus for finding Natural Wonders.

by the time you have 6 policies in the medieval era, you really should have met almost all ciy states. Exploration is downright terrible on pure land maps and the best policy in it is not even working. A significant buff to Great admirals would also help.

 

[joncnunn]

How is Great prophets, generals, and admirals generation convoluted? o.O

I think it's just Great Prophets before Industrial era:

Starting with X points, a chance for a great prophet to be born, which will be a forced upon you when it happens. Starting with Industrial era, you can buy at those thresholds, but are also free to hold on to the faith points (even if you have more faith than the most expensive item)

Generals & Admirals: They are each on separate counters. Land yields yield general points, Naval units get Admiral points. Points awarded for combat against both civs & the barbs.