Tech Discovery Slownes - help

[Rosicrucian]

It seems like after the patch, I discover tech SO SLOWLY. I mean I am just getting monarchy / republic in the 100s BC!

Also I can't outdistance the computer on tech as easily as I used to.

Why, for both of these?

Also, what are some good ideas to have strong tech EARLY on?

 

[Psychlone]

Some of the tech research times were increased in the patch, it was intentional. I won't go into details, there are plenty of other threads discussing it.

In early game, trade techs like crazy, and aggressively seek out goody huts. If you play the goody huts right, you can frequently have 5 or 6 techs under your belt before you even encounter your first alien civ.