How long will it take to build NC?
Assume we do wheel->writing->calendar. That's 13 turns at current rates. Cap (13h/turn now) takes 6 for its library, so it is done same time (t63). Devotion will be size 3 then, cap is growing slowly and probably still size 5, so lets say we are at 13 BPT then, so ~16 more turns to research Philo (longer than Devotion's lib build). So we start NC ~T79, probably about 17h/turn (cap will grow about then, so 15 base hammers + 2 from the policy), so done around T90. I don't see much way to speed that up, we have some gold and good income but buying devotion's library is not the long pole and will only speed research a tad. (I'm assuming we farm the hills at cap not mine, so it could be built a bit faster with hill mines, but not change much.)
That seems like a long time to not build those cities in the south. Remember they also make the capital better by getting those deer/wheat that are too far to buy over the ocean.
Note this also assumes no sailing for TR anytime soon, or BW to see iron. The payoff of NC is big - would be +10.5 BPT when cap at size 6, 12 at size 8 - but Philo itelf is a pretty big investment techwise if you don't shoot it with Great Library. If we build the NC at 4 cities, we can delay Philo until about the time when we want to build temples (after the Piety opener).
Assume we do wheel->writing->calendar. That's 13 turns at current rates. Cap (13h/turn now) takes 6 for its library, so it is done same time (t63). Devotion will be size 3 then, cap is growing slowly and probably still size 5, so lets say we are at 13 BPT then, so ~16 more turns to research Philo (longer than Devotion's lib build). So we start NC ~T79, probably about 17h/turn (cap will grow about then, so 15 base hammers + 2 from the policy), so done around T90. I don't see much way to speed that up, we have some gold and good income but buying devotion's library is not the long pole and will only speed research a tad. (I'm assuming we farm the hills at cap not mine, so it could be built a bit faster with hill mines, but not change much.)
That seems like a long time to not build those cities in the south. Remember they also make the capital better by getting those deer/wheat that are too far to buy over the ocean.
Note this also assumes no sailing for TR anytime soon, or BW to see iron. The payoff of NC is big - would be +10.5 BPT when cap at size 6, 12 at size 8 - but Philo itelf is a pretty big investment techwise if you don't shoot it with Great Library. If we build the NC at 4 cities, we can delay Philo until about the time when we want to build temples (after the Piety opener).