When and where do you build government plazas?

[DontTread]

I have no strategy for how best to use these districts and no clue what building to build. Can you help me out here? I always neglect them.

 

[nauberry]

You should not neglect Government plazas, as the added governor titles and the buildings are very powerfull. I usually try to put the goverment plaza so, that as many as possible other districts can surround it. If I choose the building for free builders on new cities, I usually try to put the government plaza in a production rich city, which is usually my second city.

Another bonus is the added loyalty. If you have a border city near another civs border, the added loyalty might help a bit.

 

[Bliss]

After 2/3 new cities are settled, usually on my capital or maybe 2nd city, as a second district in that city and also after I have a long-term plan.

 

[Alexander's Hetaroi]

If I don't build the Govt. Plaza in my capital I will build it in a city that's far enough away for these reasons:
1. the added loyalty bonus
2. where I can surround it with district for added adjacency bonuses towards the other districts.

After that these are the buildings I usually get:
1. Ancestral Hall (cheaper settlers and free builder in new cities)
2. Intelligence Agency (spies) or Grand Master's Chapel (only if I've founded a religion) and produce a lot of faith)
3. Royal Society for Science Victory or National Museum for Cultural Victory.

These are just my opinions but if you are playing a warmongering game you would definitely need to go for the Warlord's Throne for the first building and then War Department for the last.

 

[Zdarg]

Me, always in my second city and always ASAP.
About which building to build, see here: https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/why-ever-pick-ancestral-hall-over-warlords-throne.650947/

 

[BenitoChavez]

I place it in any city with good growth and production. Gov plaza buildings take a lot of hammers to build so you want the production. You want to surround the gov plaza with other districts for adjacency bonuses so a high pop city or another nearby city is ideal. I tend to build it in either my capital or 2nd city.

For the tier 1 building I go with the one that lets you build settlers faster and founded cities start with workers most of the time. If I have little room to settle that means I need to go conquering in which case I take the extra production when conquering a city. I almost never use the 3rd building.

For tier 2, I take the building that grants you a free spy most of the time. If I'm going domination I'll take the one that allows you to buy units with faith. The third building for cheap levying of units I only use as Hungary.

For tier 3, it depends on what victory type you're going for. Workers to hurry city projects is good for science. The building with great work slots is good for culture. The building that heals units on a combat victory is good for domination.

 

[Leucarum]

One frustrating thing about the government plaza is that state workforce is boosted by building a district. Early game, I really want to avoid building districts but getting one for that eureka is often worth it. Ironically the gov't plaza would be an ideal one to build to get that Eureka as it gives multiple options to help with early expansion if it wasn't locked away behind it :/

I think changing that Eureka to something else would open up a few different early game openings and be quite a positive change.

 

[UWHabs]

One frustrating thing about the government plaza is that state workforce is boosted by building a district. Early game, I really want to avoid building districts but getting one for that eureka is often worth it. Ironically the gov't plaza would be an ideal one to build to get that Eureka as it gives multiple options to help with early expansion if it wasn't locked away behind it :/

I think changing that Eureka to something else would open up a few different early game openings and be quite a positive change.

I think that's part of the struggle. It kind of forces you to chase an early district or delay your cultural progress. Same reason why you need the pop count inspiration before you get the +50% settlers policy card.

As for the government plaza, I tend to delay it too often, I think. I need to start valuing it more for the governor slot, which is often going to be another promotion on Pingala, meaning it's worth probably 5 or 6 science/culture per turn, and so is actually better for science/culture even than a campus or theatre. But yeah, it's a bit expensive, so you need it in a fairly strong production city.

 

[Leucarum]

I think that's part of the struggle. It kind of forces you to chase an early district or delay your cultural progress. Same reason why you need the pop count inspiration before you get the +50% settlers policy card.

As for the government plaza, I tend to delay it too often, I think. I need to start valuing it more for the governor slot, which is often going to be another promotion on Pingala, meaning it's worth probably 5 or 6 science/culture per turn, and so is actually better for science/culture even than a campus or theatre. But yeah, it's a bit expensive, so you need it in a fairly strong production city.

Yeah, I am guilty of the same. On higher difficulties delaying an expansion push to get the advantages of a gov't plaza is just going to cost you too much prime real estate one way or another.

 

[bengalryan9]

I used to try to build it in a city where the loyalty boost would be useful, but that's tough unless you're really crowded or you delay building it for awhile.

I used to never build it in my capital, but over time I came to realize that the capital was generally where I was pumping out settlers or putting my curator governor in cultural games.

Nowadays I just try to put it wherever I can take advantage of it's adjacency bonuses the most, preferably in the middle of an area where nothing else nearby would grant bonuses.

I do always try to build it before I make my big settler push just because those free builders are so nice, but if I'm crowded or if I'm planning on going to war I won't even do that.

 

[Archon_Wing]

Build it quickly, even in a subpar location; those promotions and buildings are too useful to delay.

Ideally you want to build towards the center of all your cities so more districts can be next to it.

 

[The googles do nothing]

I was able to forward my friend Gilgamesh with the loyalty of the government plaza.

 

[SammyKhalifa]

If the

Build it quickly, even in a subpar location; those promotions and buildings are too useful to delay.

Ideally you want to build towards the center of all your cities so more districts can be next to it.

Yeah in either the second or third ring if you can manage.

 

[UWHabs]

Yeah in either the second or third ring if you can manage.

Although I've also resigned myself to not needing the "perfect" location for it. As long as I can find a spot to fit maybe 3 districts nearby, I'll take it. Rare to actually find a spot that you can fully surround it and your districts don't get the same bonus elsewhere (ie. no point to building a +2 campus next to the GP when I can build a +2 next to a couple mountains).

 

[Victoria]

The plaza gives an additional adjacency point and this can come in handy.
Cheap and quick to build it also gives +1 production to trade routes I like.
The two above alone make me want to build it early and the capital is very soon 4 pop.
Ancestral hall is very handy providing +50% prod to settlers and a builder on settling so managing to get this early is very helpful once again encouraging use of the capital but it is if I get an envoy at 1-2 military city states then there is more benefit in having it in the capital.
So yeah, often earlyish and capital based. Depends on where I want to get later settler popped out... or sometimes for a whimsical adjacency.

 

[bite]

i build it for when I am about to do my big city explosion so I can get them up and running right away with workers

 

[Mr. Shadows]

It's worth building for the governor titles alone. The earlier you can start leveraging Magnus and Pingala the better. The adjacency bonus is nice but I always regret it when I delay building it to maximize that aspect. Delaying your expansion for the AH is foolish but it sure can help if you have the hammers (chops/harvests) to make it happen quickly. The WT is a no-brainer for a Dom sweep and might well be the better choice if you intend to make war or even if you just don't intend to build a very wide empire. Faith buying units with the GMC can be very effective but otherwise the Intelligence Agency is always a strong choice. It can make for some extremely fun come-from-behind spy games with Cathy.

 

[ShakaKhan]

ok. I STILL haven't picked up Gathering Storm, so there may be some rule changes that overrule my criteria. For me, it's all about the trade routes. (Pre-GS at least), 4 of the specialty districts add 1 food each and the other 4 add 1 hammer each, and the gov district adds one of each. This game is all about the hammers. So I build the gov plaza in a city that can make use of a harbor (the other three are always at least a minor help everywhere), and has the housing potential to reach size 13. It then builds the gov plaza asap and the other four specialty districts that add hammers. ALL of this cities chops are devoted to getting these districts up. Then, each city has the potential to create one additional trade route, and every city sends it's trade route to this city, receiving 2 extra food and 6 extra hammers in every city. This is enough to make the hammer-poor cities get their necessary infrastructure in place a little faster, and the hammer-rich cities to thrive that much more. I'll often rename the city to "trade" to help remind me of this, and constantly check the available TR screen to ensure that every city that can have a trade route reach this city has one.

 

[konokono]

I'm curious to hear people's opinion on Ancestral Hall. By the time I build government plaza there usually isn't that much land left to settle. (I usually play standard maps). Am I just building government plaza too late or is my experience common?

 

[Victoria]

I'm curious to hear people's opinion on Ancestral Hall. By the time I build government plaza there usually isn't that much land left to settle. (I usually play standard maps). Am I just building government plaza too late or is my experience common?

Playing deity, sure it gets crowded and is is of less value. If you are not going to settle more, not going to war much and have enough governors then there is no point? It does cost a fair r amount of production and cannot be bought with gold.