Financial, Stonehenge, Code of Laws

[trev]

This is the strategy I am now using a lot and successfully on Monarch, trying now on Emperor and also very successfully in mp games on larger maps.
Basically I build worker while researching tech required for improvement of food special (agriculture, animal husbandry), then learn bronze working (go to slavery) and mysticism before archery and pottery techs( order varies here depending on game need). On completion of worker I build 4/5 warrors who usually explore briefly before fortifying on forested hill on or next to a good city build site. These intecept all barb attacks if well placed around city, gives you security.
Then the worker farms/pastures several squares for quick growth,and mines for production, followed by chopping of forests. Stonehenge which is produced after the 5 warriors is quickly finished (small wonder that it is)
The beauty of Stonehenge is twofold, first the culture boost to all cities which are now being rapidly founded. Also the Great Prophet which appears many turns later, right on schedule for the Code of Laws (confucianism) religious gambit. So Confucianism founded and immediately its shrine built, monasteries built and religion spread. Along with the courthouses available with Code of Laws, it is the most valuable tech for many ages for my strategy and allows for significant further expansion of city via settlement or conquest.
As I am financial, I will build cottages everywhere, allowing enough farmland for cities to grow only. Libraries are built everywhere for culture and learning and monastries as well. Later in the game my research ability is massive and gives me the tech lead and through keeping modern units in my army I can deter and hold off aggression from others while planning my own.
Why the later religion? I am unwilling to sacrifice early growth, and military techs for religion, I know from experience prioritizing religions means you often are not defending yourself well enough early against barbs and AI's, or do not have techs like agriculture, animal husbandry, wheel that are essential for fast early growth and health and productive use of a worker.
This strategy gives me the great prophet at the right time to make a religion truly useful and financially beneficial. I do not use specialists so a great prophet is the only thing that will come from my city, I never have enough surplus food for specialist, money from towns do far more than a specialists will ever do.

[Cort Haus]

trev, have you tried throwing an academy into that mix? You might not like GP's , but an Academy in the capital can be as valuable as a Shrine. For many players their two key GPs are the early Prophet and the early Gt. Scientist.

[trev]

As the game progresses I watch my cities management less closely and as a result computer will sometimes put scientist in my cities which produce great scientists. These I do use for academies in major commerce cities, so I agreee acadamies are very useful, just generally do not hae many scientists until later in game as cities grow to size 20+, but usually also I may found or capture a city with large numbers of floodplain/grassland with a food resource so there is still rapid growth with no irrigation, only cottages, so these cities may be given a scientist. But they are a low priority, but used where justified.

[El Conquistador]

Great scientist/ great prophet most useful? I usually aim for great artists. The cultural nuke is tha bomb. Music is one of my primary goals on the tech tree.

[ghen]

That sounds like an interesting strategy. I've never actually played to spread a late religion before, sometimes I get one and just use it internally in a super-war game, but never on a large scale.

[trev]

One great prophet is essential for each religion you have founded, so that its shrine can be built. Additional great prophets are useful particularly early in the game when used as superspecialist as the 5 gold they supply can help fund futher expansion. Great artists have less use and the culture bomb is a short term fix only, with its benefits evaporating with time. I have had culture bombs used against me in both sp and mp games. The result was some city squares were stolen from me BUT over time my cities which were generating good culture gradually claimed the squares back. So I never use them, but instead place them in border cities as a super specialist, this giving better long turn culture boundary benefits and some additional science? (i think from memory, but may be money) as well.

[Blake]

I'm of the opinion that it's usually best to only have a shrine for one, or maybe two, religions. Prophets are generally better in the wallstreet city, because secondary religions don't spread much, and the +2 hammers are nice.
There are exceptions ofcourse, one compelling reason is that a shrine allows you to create 3 Priests, great if you can rig your GPP pump to found a religion.