2 Civs and One Wonder

[KenderBane]

I have a question about an unusual situation that occured to me (for the first time in MANY games).

I was playing India and building the Oracle; the AI running the Sumerians was also building the Oracle. Somehow, the AI got a three turn headstart on it and that left me to play 'catch-up. Despite my best efforts to pass him, I couldn't 'beat the clock'.

Both the AI and I ended up with exactly one turn left to complete the wonder. (I know because I was using espionage to keep track of their progress; and try to speed up my production so I could 'win').

Both civs were going to build the same wonder one the same turn. I thought I was screwed; I figured the AI would build the wonder, and I would have a huge waste of shields. Luckily, I got the Oracle and the AI had a huge waste to deal with.


Question : Does anyone have a definite knowledge of how a situation like this arbitrated ? If two civs are both building the same wonder, and they are set to complete it on the same turn, how does the game determine which civ gets it ?

[Arnelos]

I believe it goes strictly based upon play order. The player earlier in the play order (if both complete on the same turn) will get it first. The reason is very very simple: shields are calculated at the start of your turn, not the start of the ROUND of turns. So as each player starts their turn, they get that turn's production and any items under production with enough shields complete their production. If you're building the same wonder as someone else and they complete it earlier than you, even within the same round, you still 'lose'.

As for how this works in single-player, I believe the human is always the first player - therefore the human will always complete the wonder rather than the AI if the completions are due in the same year.

I could be wrong about that, but I'm reasonably sure that's how it works.

[Chilean Presidentâ„¢]

I think Arnelos is right. I have been in that situation several times and most of them I beat the other(s) civ(s), but sometimes they beat me. IIRC in Civ2 the player's civ always won against an AI's civ in this situation. Can anyone confirm that?

[Kloreep]

Production is all calculated in one go in SP; it's PBEM (and MP? Haven't played MP) where each player gets their production just before their moves.

The order of a SP turn is, IIRC

All production, starting with the player then going through the AIs in turn order
All moves (Again going down through turn order, starting with the player)

[spy14]

I believe the player would be given the nod in civ2. Just as well after all that hard work

[Last Conformist]

The all production, all movement order is pretty annoying sometimes - it allows the AI to capture a city and rush-buy something in it before you have the chance to move, while the AI always gets to move before anything you've rushed finishes.

[Arnelos]

Ah. I'm so used to playing PBEM that I forgot how it works in SP.

[Vince278]

Originally posted by Arnelos
As for how this works in single-player, I believe the human is always the first player - therefore the human will always complete the wonder rather than the AI if the completions are due in the same year.

That has always been my experience. I've always seemed to win in a tie.
(I'm exclusively single player)

[Arnelos]

Originally posted by Vince278
That has always been my experience. I've always seemed to win in a tie.
(I'm exclusively single player)

Well, that's good to know.

[Last Conformist]

The human indeed always wins ties.

[Chilean Presidentâ„¢]

and how was it in Civ2?

[pedrojedi]

IIRC, it was the same way.

[Ljube]

Same in civ2 and in civ3 and in civ1. For MP same, the play order determines the civ which will build the wonder.

[gunkulator]

In Civ2, your civ's color denoted your turn order. IIRC, white was always first while purple was last. Civ2 also gave you a heads up one turn before an AI finished a wonder. On that turn, you had the option of rushing the wonder which always guarenteed you would get it regardless of turn order.

Given that wonders are supposed to be these large impressive things, it would be nice if Civ3 gave you a turns to complete estimate for the AI.

[Kloreep]

If you see the city the AI is building it in on the map, you can get that estimate; it'll just cost you some gold for the city investigation. (And more for the embassy if you don't have one.)