Tech Tree

[JellyDonut]

The epoch thing is definitely a good idea. It was kind of odd that you could choose between researching Polytheism or the Superconductor at the same time.

Hmm...it appears the direct path to Monarchy is going to be longer.

[Laszlo]

I've lost my tech tree map for Civ 2 by now, but I remember that some technologies blended from one age into the next. It was a subtle transition of the background colors, so I didn't notice it at first. I remember seeing it on Philosophy, Literacy, Invention, Industrialization, and Automobile I think, and maybe a few others.

When I discovered it, I thought that they were "key technologies" that unlocked the next age's techs. When that didn't seem right I thought it was the driver of the smaller time increments (20 to 10 to 5 to 1 years). I never really checked that out...but I had forgotten I thought about it anyway. (Could somebody tell me when the switches do occur? Thanks in advance!)

I just now realized that they just probably signify the new era by changing the faces of your cities, population, and advisors. Anyway, these "key" or gateway technologies could be used in some way like that.

[Laszlo]

Technological Cohesiveness?

Maybe in Civ 3 they tried to implement some sort of technological cohesiveness. What I mean by that is every avenue of reasearch would be explored more evenly than would be required in previous versions where you just had prerequisites connecting stuff.

When you pushed too far in one direction it takes longer to reasearch, but lagging sectors catch up to the general trend more rapidly.

Imagine a sort of membrane spread over all your most recent techs. Anything conspicuously ahead is slowed down, while the valleys are given a break. Like a research push ahead of it's time is expensive, but a societal pull that instantly adopts latent technology.

It's a bit of a stretch to fit it over the Civ3.com Science Advisor's screen, but it looks like it just might be it. Writing takes only 3 turns b/c there's five technologies waiting on it. Polytheism only has Monarchy waiting, so it's 15 turns (plus Writing may have been worked on for a while in the screenshot). And last come Construction and Currency because they're the last of their line for the ancient age and overstretching a lot! Just look at the vertical alignment of techs to see what I mean.

Hope we get this riddle worked out soon.

Laszlo