Great Engineer/Scientist question.

[Fables]

How do these work, do their bonuses only go towards the current research/production or does it transfer to the next if they complete the task?

Do you want to save them for late game when they have a bigger impact?

[FatalCharm]

I really wouldn't save them (unless it's for a few turns so that you can use them to complete some really critical build).

The question is really to use them or turn them to improve a tile. In general, it's best to improve tiles with them early in the game because you'll get so much more out of them of over the course of 100's of turns. Later in the game -- in general -- it's best to use them to rush a project.

[KingRichard]

Great Scientists add points towards your total science. If you have your currently researching project up in the top left and hover your mouse over it, it will show you the total science points you have / the total you need to complete the research. If you use a great scientist a huge pile of science points is added, and if there are any left over it will carry over to your next research project.

Great Engineers basically do the same thing but instead of your overall science output vs science needed, its a city's production output vs production. Using a great engineer will add a big pile of production onto whatever your are producing, but to my knoweledge will not carry over to whatever you make next.

So basically, use great scientists whenever and save your great engineers for the starting turns of a big production like a wonder.

Somebody correct me if was wrong about anything here

[Ryika]

Production doesn't carry over - neither "normal" production nor production done by the great engineer. (/edit: That's nonsense. Normal production does of course carry over.)

Using them up immediately or saving them is a hard question, that depends on your strategy. Generally: If you really need "that one special wonder" for some awesome strategy, you might want to save him, even early on, in most other cases it'll be extremely useful to stack some tile improvements in your capital, "macro it up" and benefit from it the rest of the game.

Just keep in mind that an inactive engineer costs you gold every turn just like every other unit.

[Mazey]

Originally posted by Ryika:

Production doesn't carry over - neither "normal" production

Excess "normal" production most definitely does carry over from one build on one turn to the next build on the next turn.

[Ryika]

Yes, of course it does. I really don't know what made me post such nonsense. Sorry about that.

[abonamente]

Going through an entire social policy tree allows you to buy a great engineer (Tradition), general, admiral, scientist, merchant or artist with faith, once you entered the industrial age. Early in the game, if I'm close to starting a wonder I want, I save the engineer for several turns. Later on - never. I prefer to save the necessary amount of faith. 1000 for the first engineer, 1500 the second and so on.

The production excess resulting from using a great engineer doesn't carry on, so if I can't buy with faith immediately, or I'm far from getting an engineer from the specialists, I begin building something else. When I finally get one, I add that wonder in the queue, bring it up front and use the engineer. Putting on hold the previous work, in a queue, saves the production already put into that specific building or unit and after completing the wonder (usually 1 turn), the city will continue where it left.

So, there is no point in saving a great engineer for more than several turns. On a large map, standard speed, if I need to keep it zzz more than 5-6 turns, I prefer to let him build his workshop. With various policies, ideologies and the World Congress, that could be a great investition (+ production, culture, gold).