[spoilers] Commodore rolls it lolrandom.

[Commodore]

The Taj Mahal with Poker is fitting, at least

Poker's been quite the RNG this game. Just yielded a Great Prophet, which would have annoyed me in a race but since nobody else has Education yet, the more-efficient single bulb was better anyway. Just over 2000 beakers into the 2900 beaker tech.

3T to Liberalism, it's pretty nice. Need to put all hammers into galleys->galleons in the coast.

Add Universities to the list of buildings this combo gets bonuses on. I'll actually make MORE than the five required for Oxford with this +35% bonus, it's very nice. 

Yes, yes, two workshops will go down here of course, don't want Hold 'Em to take INFINITY turns to make all the culture buildings. This is probably city #3 for the CV.

[Commodore]

Caravels have found an ESSTENTIAL FIND. It's a worthless snowy dead zone, but, it's close to the capital and it's intercontinental, which is going to net us +23 commerce per turn base. Quickly banging out a 3t settler to freeze some victim colonists.
   
Need to be able to actually communicate with the colony, though, so...let's Liberalize Astronomy. The only other strong contender was Constitution with my heavy specialist usage, but Representation would make all five of my top-pop cities unhappy, I'm too luxury-poor to do otherwise...
   
...so of course immediate after, I pop gems at the capital. The spirit of Ottawa is strong with this one, holy smokes. This coupled with Optics opening up my whales means I actually can swap to Representation, so I'll be doing that after the first stint. As painful as unit costs are, I will be taking 6t in Pacifism. When we get out, it's Rep time.
   
Oh, also, completed Taj Mahal. BEFORE:
   
AFTER:
   
I'm going to be vroom vrooming to try and hat trick with Economics, Constitution, Printing Press, AND most of Rifling before ending the GA chain.

[Tarkeel]

Caravels have found an ESSTENTIAL FIND. It's a worthless snowy dead zone, but, it's close to the capital and it's intercontinental, which is going to net us +23 commerce per turn base. Quickly banging out a 3t settler to freeze some victim colonists.

That's got to be one of the highest value worthless cities. It can barely work 5 tiles!

[Commodore]

Caravels have found an ESSTENTIAL FIND. It's a worthless snowy dead zone, but, it's close to the capital and it's intercontinental, which is going to net us +23 commerce per turn base. Quickly banging out a 3t settler to freeze some victim colonists.

That's got to be one of the highest value worthless cities. It can barely work 5 tiles!

It might be just 3 tiles...those oceans are pretty worthless, so settling on the eastern half of the island might be preferred just to shave that .3gpt off the distance maint and to give it a little more security.

Amusing, so while caravels no longer get to trespass in closed border, I have been banking a workboat on the other side of Yuri a long time. Now with Astronomy landed, the plucky little WB is rumbling east to meet my westward-traveling caravel(s) for c-nav.

[Commodore]

Cute event. Doesn't do much here, but hey, free hammer.


My preferred RNG goodies were this EoT pairing, free +2h and free +2gpt (with market/bank/grocer). I need to work on spread Taoism to six cities, by the way, to get my minimum three cathedrals.


Krill's crop yield is definitely a worry. There's...some nutty cities in this area of the map, and he's not even near done developing this stuff.


Craps is getting developed a bit during the Golden Age. Happy is going to be particularly tricky in this monster, balancing with the need for Taoism-spreading too...

Painfully expensive to run Pacifism right now. I might run Free Religion for a stint in the third golden age, just to allow cheaper running and to appreciate the +10% beakers on my absurd commerce. Thrilling stuff.

[Commodore]

Did a little math. With 24 cities in mercantilism plus the few extra specialists here and there, Constitution is the better 2t tech compared to Printing Press, although I'm getting each before anything else. After, I'll get Economics (GMerch), Gunpowder, Rep Parts, Rifling, MilTrad, Chemistry, Steam Power, Steel, Railroad, SciMeth, Combustion, Assembly Line.
   
This is my revolt in a couple turns. 3b per specialist is good, and the unit cost savings for free religion will be huge.  Since Theocracy will be the end-of-double-golden-age civic, I need to spread Taoism to the six minimum cities ASAP.
   
I do miss Printing Press. It's good for almost 50 villages and towns ALREADY. How about all those moneybags STAYING moneybags when the GA ends?
   
I am just farming right now, but I don't think this counts as a Farmer's Gambit. 

[Commodore]

MECHANICS QUESTION
I'm going to launch a great person golden age at the end of this one, what were the mechanical differences between firing it now versus waiting until the first one ends and starting that the next turn?

[Tarkeel]

MECHANICS QUESTION
I'm going to launch a great person golden age at the end of this one, what were the mechanical differences between firing it now versus waiting until the first one ends and starting that the next turn?

IIRC; None.

It does matter for Taj though; usually you get 8 1/2 (whatever cities are after the build site), but 9 full turns if you're in a GA when you build it.

[Qgqqqqq]

Isn't there something re half a turn of golden age if you take a turn off? I've no idea what the parts were but I recall reading that years ago.

[Commodore]

Confidence: Low there. I landed a scientist, so it'll be pretty much whatever for GA #3 and #4.

On the plus side, I never expect to exceed size 1 on this newest city, but it's already massively paying for itself.