Secret Societies Synergies

[Some Random Guy]

Am i doing something wrong or do leylines don't give adjecency to unique districtcs (like seowon or observatory?)

that would make sense since Sewon doesn't get any other adjacency bonuses anyway and the Observatory doesn't get standard campus adjacency bonuses

 

[Equilin]

Am i doing something wrong or do leylines don't give adjecency to unique districtcs (like seowon or observatory?)

If I were you I would file that as a bug. These districts are like every other districts, just without some of the usual rules (mountains for these two campus UD in this case), they should still get bonus adjacencies (government plaza, for example).

 

[Pfeffersack]

I started as well a Korea game with HO plans today - only to found out that Ley Lines don't give the Seowon a bonus. Consulting the civilopedia, I found this confirmed - while any other special district (including unique ones, e.g. Mayan Observatory) has an entry "+1 Science from each adjacent matching resorce class tile", that one is missing for the Seowon:

Spoiler :

Not that I really think Korea would need another bonus - but this clearly contradicts what the readme for the secret societies says ("to all specialty districts"):

Level 1 - Reveal the Ley Line resource on the map. Ley Lines give standard adjacency to all specialty districts.

 

[inquisitive_otter]

Voidsingers is very synergitic with Ethiopia ! It's insane.

Yes, they are ridiculous together! First of all you have Ethiopia unique council of ministers bonus provides each city founded on a hill 15% of their faith generation towards science and culture. With voidsingers, you can build the old god obelisk, which provides +4 faith and can hold the relics which you can create later in the game. Plus the voidsingers ritual bonus in the medieval era provides additional science, culture, and gold equal to 20% of your faith generation within the city. I just had a playthrough were I was able to get 170 science per turn by turn 100. With only one or two campuses.

 

[Pietato]

I disagree. I think the better way to think about the HO is that they spend the first half of the game searching and preparing for the third promotion, which is like a sudden discovery of mini, but supercharged, natural wonder tiles. Sure the tiles are very weak initially, but your goal should be charging them up.

Ideally, you would have a core of cities generating as many great people as possible, and also have a massive colonization effort to claim leylines as early as possible, especially the ones in deserts and tundra which tend to have more workable in an area.

The beautiful thing about the leylines is that they don’t need a high population or district infrastructure in their city to benefit from. A 2-pop city that can work 3 15+ culture/science tiles (counting city center) is very powerful. You could find several of these out in the tundra. If you go for engineers, these tiles can also add massive production.

The way I see it, their first promotion is meant just to help you find them, not getting the adjacency.
The second promotion is meant to help generate GPP for the third promotion. Everything leads to that third promotion.

Nope, they suck. Getting a great tier 3 bonus means nothing if you are already dead or so far behind you might as well be. A useless and often detrimental tier 1 bonus kills them, and tier 3 is gained around turn 180ish, which is far too late in the current game. I mean seriously, their YIELDS bonus is tier 3? Did they even balance test this stuff?

 

[newbie2]

I was very underwhelmed by the HO as well. Ok the alchemic institute is nice, but Ley lines never seem to spawn in a decent location, and only become usefull very late. I'll rather have the free policy slots + spies + envoys from minerva for a science game

 

[EmJayLambert]

Ley Lines + Pedro = incredible yields.

 

[Datian]

Ley lines with Japan can be interesting if you settle on them, they will give a +2 adjacency to your first district if it's near your city, and in the end game you'll have a superb city center.

 

[Kwami]

Ley lines with Japan can be interesting if you settle on them, they will give a +2 adjacency to your first district if it's near your city, and in the end game you'll have a superb city center.

Well, sure, but I don't think that you can settle on exposed ley lines. You would have to just get lucky and have one spawn under your city, right?

 

[Datian]

I checked and you can, and the yields remain

 

[ferenginar]

Sanguine pact work well with the Menelik, Great bath, soothsayer floods too. Work your flood plains up to a high yield then plonk your vampire castle next to a couple of them and immediately double up the the faith of adjacent tiles. Only problem is that it then doesn't go any higher with further floods, unlike the floodplains tiles it just says fixed at the value it was when contsructed.

 

[kryat]

Well, sure, but I don't think that you can settle on exposed ley lines. You would have to just get lucky and have one spawn under your city, right?

I can confirm what @Datian said. Leylines are perfectly safe and allowable to settle on an will retain all yields.

 

[Bast]

No one thinks Russia synergises with Voidsingers? Current game, I'm putting up Obelisks in every city and it gets a ton of faith in addition to what Russia already gets. Plus with the Oracle which I usually get as Russia and with or without I'm usually swamped with Great People as Russia, there are now places to put the great works even very early in the game and once the theatre squares are up you can just move them.

I echo that Hungary would be great with Owls of Minerva, might try that next.

I think Secret Socities is fun. I've never tried Apocalyptic mode, I think the disasters are enough.

 

[BlueGoop]

I just finished a Pericles and Owls run with a diplomacy victory. It was fun.

 

[CoconutTank]

Trying Eleanor of Aquitaine (France) with Voidsingers right now. I went so hard into faith I think I might end up doing a religious victory instead, but I do want to try winning a dom victory (without taking cities with military units) with that combination at some point.

Edit: loool, got too greedy and left myself very defenseless I would've been fine if I picked Grand Master's Chapel instead of Intelligence Agency, but oh well. That will be rectified next time.

 

[Equilin]

No one thinks Russia synergises with Voidsingers?

No one talked about it because it's probably too obvious (and have been cited way too many times elsewhere compared to every other examples). Converting Faith to other yields? Russia can really use that. All-around GW slots? Russia can REALLY use that.

 

[Deadly Dog]

As someone pointed out Dido being a good candidate for the Owls of Minerva, I thought I'd apply the same logic to Poundmaker. Haven't got far, just the classical era, but I have 14 envoys already and Suzereignty of Geneva, Taruga, and Cardiff. I like it, it works well, just doing what I'd normally do with Poundmaker, beeline techs for trade routes and use those to boost my expansion.

Usually with Poundmaker I focus on internal trade routes but this assumes at least one city with a few pastures/camps. In this map no such luck so I'm not even torn between going internal vs external trade routes. And ironically having traders pillaged TWICE by barbs allowed me to set up 2 more trade routes to get another 2 envoys. And of course with Poundmaker you can get a lot of extra tiles from that.

So far, so good!

 

[MisterBoomBoom]

In the Ethiopia livestream one of the Firaxians said that the secret societies buildings replace UBs, that it is intended this way and no change is planned (reason: you are free to decide , if you want to go that certain secret society anayway or to pick another). So I think if it fairly safe to say that the Grand Bazaar will get replaced.

So I was actually able to build BOTH. I was able to build the Bazaar first get the bonus for that then built the Vault and triggered its bonus as well. I also saw that both were available to build in cities that had neither. I was able to built whichever I wanted and in whichever order I chose. The bonuses seemed to stack. Very lucrative from what I see.

 

[Pfeffersack]

So I was actually able to build BOTH. I was able to build the Bazaar first get the bonus for that then built the Vault and triggered its bonus as well. I also saw that both were available to build in cities that had neither. I was able to built whichever I wanted and in whichever order I chose. The bonuses seemed to stack. Very lucrative from what I see.

Interesting find, though I can't believe that this is WAI. It raises also the question if it works out that way for the Madrassa, too.

 

[Ticio]

It seems that some civs can have very good synergies with some societies!

I just tried with victoria, and I think the owls is the best as they increase the natural economic strenght of Great Britain and their unic docks.

I'm starting now a new game and I think I will try Hungary with owls too, as their bonus for city states trade seems to be OP!


I want to try Spain in multiplayer, but I'm not sure what would be better; Owls or voidsinger. Which one do you think would be better?
In one hand, Owls will allow Spain to have more traders > more yields from intercontinental trade / Adjacency bonus from CH gives culture > being competitive in culture and reaching fast missions

In the other, Voidsinger allows more faith > great chapel units and a lot of cultural, gold and science % thanks to missions (I'm assuming they would count for the city production and the bonus).

So which one do you think will be better?