Unique Ability Elimination Thread

[Tabarnak]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 23
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 19
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 8
Bushido: 10
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 3
Dutch East India Company: 24
Barbary Corsairs: 6
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 10
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 23
River Warlord: 19

Monument Builders : Can make a difference between getting a wonder or not before your opponents. National Wonders are more easy to achieve too. Combined with Tradition and maybe marble you can go wonder crazy and still have time to build other stuff.

Wayfinding : Too much...passive. Only worth on large islands game and have no access to other civs by trireme.

 

[Snoopaloop]

Patriarchate of Constantinople, which was taken out really fast without counter-arguments.

I don't seem to recall you making a compelling argument, which would have swayed people to vote for it? People must not like the fact its becomes terribly weak as the difficulty increases I guess.

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 23
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 19
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 10
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 3
Dutch East India Company: 24
Barbary Corsairs: 6
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 23
River Warlord: 19

I don't play archipelago games, as I feel the AI is somewhat incompetent on them. -2 Wayfinding just doesn't help much on large land-based maps.

+1 Great Warpath. I don't think its the greatest, but I'm going to give it a little love for the synergy with the UB. I have a few fun, forest production heavy games with the Iroquois.

 

[Tabarnak]

I don't play archipelago games

Now i really know why you massively downvoted the Dromon!

 

[Skibbi]

You're still pissed at that, aren't you!

 

[Petiscator]

I didn't upvote it because I don't think it is the best UA in the game. On the other hand, I also don't think it is the worst UA in the game either. I just don't understand one thing: on this thread, you downvoted PoC because it is hard to get a religion on higher dificulties and you give up on that, but on the UUs thread you downvoted the Dromon because you are putting effort in founding a religion by that time. I don't get it: if you can't get the religion, use the UUs then. I agree, though, that this UA is a little fragile when it comes to getting to it - hopefuly the addition of the Grand Temple might help those guys

I know it doesn't seem to compare well, but playing with Byzantium against the Mayans/Celts/Ethiopia on a really high difficulty (because on emperor and above, it is easy to get one) is like (and I say like because it is not really accurate) playing with England on Great Plains, Siam with no City-States or Rome OCC; it is against the uses of the UA. I agree, though, that the presence of a civ in-game shouldn't decide if the UA is effective or not, but it is really awesome to use it, as it can become any bonus you desire. It is almost impossible to have a situation where you find NO religious city-states, NO faith natural wonders, got NO desert/tundra/NW heavy map, have NO production for Stonehenge or NO culture for a liberty GP.

Oh, one more thing, I believe there are a lot of worse UAs than that. This, though, is about opinion, but I think Patriarchate of Constantinople is much more useful than, lets say, Scourge of God/Population Growth/Druidic Lore/Spirit of Adwa. Those are only my thoughts.

(I know it is too late, but I just wanted to make my counter-argument then

 

[Skibbi]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 23
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20 City States are useful, make use of them!
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 10
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 3
Dutch East India Company: 24
Barbary Corsairs: 6 It can convert Barbarian ships. That's nothing mate! Privateers do that to all civs. What's the point?
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 23
River Warlord: 19

 

[ThisNameIsTooLo]

You also forgot to give an explanation to your downvote.

 

[Skibbi]

Woops! Gonna fix that! Accidentally deleted part!

 

[Lordleoz]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 10
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 1
Dutch East India Company: 24
Barbary Corsairs: 4
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 23
River Warlord: 19

Sun Never Sets: +2 movement is a especially great bonus for embarked units, allowing you to move your units throughout your empire quickly and making amphibious invasion much faster. The extra spy can do many things.

Mongol Terror: city states are easy to crack. Time for you to leave.

 

[Skibbi]

Mongol terror gone, now for Barbary Coirsairs.

 

[Wabango]

Manifest Destiny: 15
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 26
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 10
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 1
Dutch East India Company: 24
Barbary Corsairs: 4
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 23
River Warlord: 19

 

[Lordleoz]

*sigh*

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 10
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 1
Dutch East India Company: 24
Barbary Corsairs: 4
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 23
River Warlord: 19

 

[adsin15]

Voting down: Nobel Prize

Why would you gift a GP to a CS ever? 90 influence isn't worth it.

Voting up:

Bushido

Totally awesome ability. It even makes you more likely to decided to sacrafice a wounded unit in order to kil another unit which is a very Bushido like move to do.

 

[SnowKomodo]

I don't play archipelago games, as I feel the AI is somewhat incompetent on them. -2 Wayfinding just doesn't help much on large land-based maps.

They don't help on pangea maps for sure, but they are pretty useful on continents maps where you should almost always settle coastal cities (actually forcing yourself to do this makes for some fun strategies) and are only crippling in unusually poor spawn points which from my experience rarely happens. After playing Polynesia so much it seems like I'm handcuffed when I'm exploring without being able to take shortcuts. I know it isn't suitable for a lot of specific game play styles but I think they are severely underrated and shouldn't be gone before, say, Bushido or Spirit of Adwa. And people seem to overlook the other part of their ability. I know this is a thread for abilities but the UU (-10%, spam them at the beginning and get them XP from barbs/enemy civs - NEVER LET THEM DIE) and unique Moai (+10%, culture, gold) blend so well together you can't ignore it. It's subtle but the difference is definitely there and it lasts all game, especially when you're on the defense (why I don't like Spirit of Adwa - essentially the same thing but no strategy needed, yawn)

tl;dr Polynesia highly underrated, but understandable why not for everyone

 

[Sake]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 12 (+1)
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 1
Dutch East India Company: 22 (-2)
Barbary Corsairs: 4
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 21
River Warlord: 19

Upvote: Bushido is great. Japanese army is almost unstopable if it grows too big. You can take down enemy range units even if they get first strike.

Downvote: 2 happiness from last piece of luxuries. It's not that useful. Firstly, you have to play peacefully to have trading partners and they must have enough money. Secondly, only good in SP.

 

[woodshadows]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 5
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 12
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 2
Dutch East India Company: 22
Barbary Corsairs: 2
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 21
River Warlord: 19


barbary - won't be so great after the patch

mongol terror - great on deity where city states are often more fierce than other civs

 

[ThisNameIsTooLo]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 3
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 6
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 12
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 2
Dutch East India Company: 22
Barbary Corsairs: Eliminated
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 21
River Warlord: 19

Barbary Corsairs: To elaborate on woodshadows' reason, the Prize Ships promotion currently guarantees that you'll capture enemy ships. With the Fall Patch, it is no longer guaranteed, but instead a 28%-80% chance, depending on the situation.

Spirit of Adwa: I think this ability is a bit underrated. It's certainly useful when you're trying to build a tall empire, as it helps to nullify the military advantage of your neighbors.

 

[Seabastian Civ]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Druidic Lore: 1 (-2) First choice of pantheon is hardly a valuable UA.
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 6
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 25
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 12
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 2
Dutch East India Company: 22
Barbary Corsairs: Eliminated
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 22 (+1) Why would one ever gift a great person to a city state? Well, firstly, some great people aren't that great. Admirals, Merchants, and surplus great generals come to mind. Secondly, 90 influence is a TON of influence. Before the modern era, AI almost never carries more than 100 influence with CSs, in my experience. Thirdly, not all city states are created equally. You can ally with CSs on your enemy's flanks and rear- making him divert frontline forces to deal with this annoyance. Or, you could focus on getting all the cultural, mercantile (especially helpful when playing Sweden as a warmonger) or religious CS (Can really catapult you to the fore in religion early), or even maritime (Sweden is great for going tall early then expanding through war.) And please don't forget that this is a two-part UA: you generate more Great people than anyone else!! If you're going to knock it for being difficult to use properly, fine, but don't say its not fantastic when used well.
River Warlord: 19

 

[black213]

Manifest Destiny: 17
Trade Caravans: 9
Diplomatic Marriage: 17
Sacrificial Captives: 21
Ingenuity: 14
Phoenician Heritage: 30
Art of War: 22
Viking Fury: 15
Monument Builders: 24
Sun Never Sets: 24
Spirit of Adwa: 6
Ancien Regime: 24
Hellenic League: 20
Great Andean Road: 26 (+1)
The Great Warpath: 9
Bushido: 12
Scholars of the Jade Hall: 21
The Long Count: 18
Mongol Terror: 2
Dutch East India Company: 22
Achaemenid Legacy: 26
Wayfinding: 8
The Glory of Rome: 31
Siberian Riches: 20
Father Governs Children: 25
Seven Cities of Gold: 12
Nobel Prize: 22
River Warlord: 19

Great Andean Road: Might be bit of a biased vote as Incans are my favorite civ but the part I like the most of them is the UA. The faster movement in hills is very useful and applicable for any victory condition. Also free roads in all hills, see civ 4's road spam

Druidic Lore: Extra faith is always good but the effect has a very short lifespan (although depending on the player's actions). I already removed it from the list since it had 1 point.

 

[black213]

Nobel Prize: 22 (+1) Why would one ever gift a great person to a city state? Well, firstly, some great people aren't that great. Admirals, Merchants, and surplus great generals come to mind. Secondly, 90 influence is a TON of influence. Before the modern era, AI almost never carries more than 100 influence with CSs, in my experience. Thirdly, not all city states are created equally. You can ally with CSs on your enemy's flanks and rear- making him divert frontline forces to deal with this annoyance. Or, you could focus on getting all the cultural, mercantile (especially helpful when playing Sweden as a warmonger) or religious CS (Can really catapult you to the fore in religion early), or even maritime (Sweden is great for going tall early then expanding through war.) And please don't forget that this is a two-part UA: you generate more Great people than anyone else!! If you're going to knock it for being difficult to use properly, fine, but don't say its not fantastic when used well.

What I like to do as Sweden is spread my religion with Prophets only and gift them to a CS before using their last spread