Trouble finding focus

[HailoArrows]

I like to play a coastal strategy with financial civs, like Willem, Pacal or Victoria, and try to get both the Colossus as well as the Maoi Statues (for extra commerce and production on sea tiles). This allows me to build high population cities relatively easily, and keeps money from being an issue.

I am having trouble, however, finding a way to leverage this into a victory. Any ideas?

 

[Lexicus]

Lots of money? Bribe people to vote for you for a diplomatic victory. Or save up and rush-build spaceship parts later on.

 

[Ripped]

there are a lot of leverages for money i think, although difficulty has some affect on that i think.

i'm a horribad noble player only.

for all eras of the game, being able to keep your research slider at a resonalbe rate is very important to all phases of your development trajectory.

also,

early game:
- fund expansion (offset maintenance costs)
- keep a big enough military to appear resonably disouraging to your warmonger neighbors in the early years

mid game:
- again, power ranking
- funding taken-over cities, they can cost, especially if distance-from-seat-of-government is significant
- be able to buy with cash happiness and/or health resources if you have no resource to trade

industrial:
- upgrading of experienced units (can be the difference of losing and winning a war)
- close your borders to a rival to rob him of you as a trading partner (this can actually be pretty powerful if the trade routes between you and him are of high value)
- ability to run a tick of the culture and/or espionage slider in time of war and still keep research up

and, if you're really rich, you can bribe a moron like ragnar into fighting your enemies for you, just pure cash.

the more i play BTS, the more it seems to me that money - especially during the first two eras - is everything to my ability to compete later in the game.

 

[frekk]

The best way to leverage money into a victory is to build the Pyramids. You will be able to go to Universal Sufferage very early and rush buildings and Wonders with gold. Works especially good with Mansa Musa - Financial and Spiritual (so you can swap civics easily, going into universal sufferage for short periods to spend your gold, then back to something else) plus he has the Mint for an income bonus.

You also have a little more latitude about where you want your Wonders to be, when you're rushing with gold ... you're no longer dependant on production or population as much. This works beautifully with Versailles, which you can easily situate overseas.