Tweet
Andrew 1999 has posted what each Wonder grants, according to the strategy guide, in his excellent thread. I noticed some very interesting difference from Civ 2:
Great Wall: Doubles effects of walls in cities that have them. Doubles attack strength vs. barbarians. Expires with Metallurgy.
Shakespeare's Theater: Makes 8 unhappy citizens in that city content
Sistine Chapel: Doubles the effect of Cathedrals
Smith's Trading Company: Free maintenance for Marketplaces, Banks, Harbors, and Airports
Whenever I aimed to be a peaceful developer in Civ 2(which was often), I depended heavily on the Great Wall to ensure mostly peaceful co-existence with my neighbors. Now it will not ensure peace but only protect cities; double city walls is very good indeed, but only small cities will have city walls in Civ 3, and, in any case, this does not protect resources, fortifications, and other units.
I almost always depended on Shakespeare's Theater to create one super-city to double as an incredible science city and a good production city. Of course, 8 unhappy citizens made happy is still a very nice benefit, but it is no longer an overwhelming thing. And it looks like cities will more often grow larger in Civ 3, so this wonder could really have gotten out of hand in its impact.
The Sistine Chapel does NOT provide a cathedral in every city -- it doubles the effects of each cathedral you build. Many of us had wondered whether this wonder would give each city the cultural benefit of a cathedral along with the contented population benefit. This answers the question. However, this still looks like an extremely good wonder, since it is a way to achieve a very large number of contented citizens in a city -- essential for these large Civ 3 cities. This also means that the "religious" civ attribute is better than it looked, because you are going to be building a lot of cathedrals during the game, and they are expensive.
Smith's Trading Company always single handedly solved all my concerns over gold, at least until very late in the game. It is very noticeable that libraries and temples, two of the most common city improvements (and even more central to the game now that culture has been added), are not covered, which will weaken the impact of this wonder. At least at first glance, I think I would now pass on this wonder.
None of this is a complaint. I think all of these are probably gameplay improvements. These four wonders were so good in Civ 2 as to be abusive, and I think this will be more balanced. With these changes, I lose some of my favorite tricks that ensured victory almost every time I played. But, of course, there's no surer way to become bored with a game than to know you are going to win from the start.
Great Wall: Doubles effects of walls in cities that have them. Doubles attack strength vs. barbarians. Expires with Metallurgy.
Shakespeare's Theater: Makes 8 unhappy citizens in that city content
Sistine Chapel: Doubles the effect of Cathedrals
Smith's Trading Company: Free maintenance for Marketplaces, Banks, Harbors, and Airports
Whenever I aimed to be a peaceful developer in Civ 2(which was often), I depended heavily on the Great Wall to ensure mostly peaceful co-existence with my neighbors. Now it will not ensure peace but only protect cities; double city walls is very good indeed, but only small cities will have city walls in Civ 3, and, in any case, this does not protect resources, fortifications, and other units.
I almost always depended on Shakespeare's Theater to create one super-city to double as an incredible science city and a good production city. Of course, 8 unhappy citizens made happy is still a very nice benefit, but it is no longer an overwhelming thing. And it looks like cities will more often grow larger in Civ 3, so this wonder could really have gotten out of hand in its impact.
The Sistine Chapel does NOT provide a cathedral in every city -- it doubles the effects of each cathedral you build. Many of us had wondered whether this wonder would give each city the cultural benefit of a cathedral along with the contented population benefit. This answers the question. However, this still looks like an extremely good wonder, since it is a way to achieve a very large number of contented citizens in a city -- essential for these large Civ 3 cities. This also means that the "religious" civ attribute is better than it looked, because you are going to be building a lot of cathedrals during the game, and they are expensive.
Smith's Trading Company always single handedly solved all my concerns over gold, at least until very late in the game. It is very noticeable that libraries and temples, two of the most common city improvements (and even more central to the game now that culture has been added), are not covered, which will weaken the impact of this wonder. At least at first glance, I think I would now pass on this wonder.
None of this is a complaint. I think all of these are probably gameplay improvements. These four wonders were so good in Civ 2 as to be abusive, and I think this will be more balanced. With these changes, I lose some of my favorite tricks that ensured victory almost every time I played. But, of course, there's no surer way to become bored with a game than to know you are going to win from the start.
I always wondered, what kind of spell did those engineers use when they made hills from grassland... 
Comment