◬ Ansible
- Cost: 1500 Production
- Yield: Energy +4, Science +4, free feedsite hub
- Prerequisite: Exotic Matter (Tech)
The Ansible is a costly wonder that doesn't have especially high bonuses in a global sense. It's not something that you should construct without thinking about its location. You need to put this in a city that is already going to be very high on Energy and Science. That way, later-game buildings can magnify the decent base bonuses to these resources.
◬ Archimedes Lever
- Cost: 1250 Production
- Yield: Culture +1, City Combat Strength +50, Production +4
- Prerequisite: Seismic Induction (Tech), Geothermal (Resource)
If you'd like to make a nasty defensive city, this is a good wonder to build. The bonus it provides to City Strength is extremely high, especially if combined with normal defensive buildings. Look into this if you have a city that is in a critical chokepoint on the map. Make sure that your enemies go through hell if they ever try to siege it.
◬ Armasail
- Cost: 1250 Production
- Yield: City Hit Points +100, Production +4
- Prerequisite: Synergetics (Tech)
The Armasail is the sister wonder to the Archimedes Lever. This wonder adds immense survivability to a city. If you ever get the chance to put both of these into the same city, you end up with a place that is almost invulnerable. Provide a worthwhile ranged unit to fire out from there, and use terrain to keep people from easily going around it. So nice.
◬ Bytegeist
- Cost: 1250 Production
- Yield: +4 Culture, +2 Science, -15% Culture cost for virtues
- Prerequisite: Swarm Intelligence (Tech)
The Bytegeist is a powerful global wonder because it lowers your virtue costs. The sooner you construct it, the more you get out of it for securing late-game virtues. Swarm Intelligence is a leaf in the second circle of Research, so you can't rush it too easily. However, someone who makes this a priority and also takes Knowledge virtues can do wonderful things with their civilization. They get fast virtues and can expend well without taking big hits to their Science or Culture efficiency (because of the Knowledge bonuses).
◬ Crawler
- Cost: 1250 Production
- Yield: +1 Culture, +25% Production for wonders
- Prerequisite: Mechatronics (Tech)
Late-game wonders take forever to construct, so any bonuses you grab are a very good thing. If you're heavily interested in wonder building, you must ensure that you get this before your rivals. If the PAC gets it and you're not playing them, you can kiss multiple additional wonders goodbye.
◬ Cynosure
- Cost: 1550 Production
- Yield: +7 Science, allows 1 additional level of Veterancy
- Prerequisite: Synthetic Thought (Tech)
Despite the large bonus to Science, this is a conqueror's wonder. The more important bonus here is one that is much nicer for militant players while only defensively useful to anyone else. Make sure that you have a good range of units in the field before completing the Cynosure. It upgrades your existing military immediately, though it does not upgrade units that are created after the construction of this wonder.
◬ Daedalus Ladder
- Cost: 1550 Production
- Yield: +3 Health, +2 Food
- Prerequisite: Augmentation (Tech), Geothermal (Resource)
The Daedalus Ladder doesn't have any amazing bonuses; it's best to grab this wonder if you have a massive city that has completed its building construction period (at least for the moment). If you're still working on major construction, let this one go. It's not a game changer, and you can finish multiple late-game buildings in the same amount of time.
◬ Deep Memory
- Cost: 1450 Production
- Yield: +7 Culture, gain 2 free virtues
- Prerequisite: Human Conservation (Tech)
Deep Memory is a very powerful wonder; the sudden jump in virtues can solve quite a few problems, whether you need military bonuses, better Health, or whatever. This is a great thing to have no matter what style of play you're using, and denying those virtues to other players is a smart move, too.
◬ Drone Sphere
- Cost: 650 Production
- Yield: +2 Science, free surveillance web, +10 Healing for military units in friendly territory
- Prerequisite: Swarm Robotics (Tech)
Extra Healing can be a massive shift in the tide of war. The Drone Sphere lets you fight defensively and still keep your units topped off on Health. Faster Healing means that you can rotate people out of the front, heal, and get back in there that much sooner. You end up with more veterans and a more effective force, if you're careful.
Even on offense, this has some value. Once you've taken an enemy city, you extend your territory. That's the exact time when you need more Healing; your people are tired and beaten up from the siege. With the Drone Sphere in place, you won't need as long to get everyone ready for the next attack.
◬ Ectogenesis Pod
- Cost: 300 Production
- Yield: +3 Food, +3 Production, your farms produce +1 Food
- Prerequisite: Genetic Design (Tech)
This wonder has a low Production cost, solid local bonuses for a city, and very cool global bonuses for your civilization. Unless you're avoiding major Growth, this is close to a must-have wonder. Genetic Design gives you decent expansion potential already, so the Ectogenesis Pod is a perfect companion to the gene gardens and cloning plants that you unlock at the same time.
◬ Gene Vault
- Cost: 205 Production
- Yield: +1 Culture, +4 Food, +10% Growth in your cities
- Prerequisite: Genetic Mapping (Tech)
Here is another killer wonder. Its low cost to construct, strong local bonuses, and major global effect make it highly contested. Expect Purity players to be especially fast to grab this, as Genetic Mapping gives you bonus Purity Experience.
◬ Holon Chamber
- Cost: 1050 Production
- Yield: +5 Science
- Prerequisite: Hyperconductors (Tech)
The Holon Chamber is nice for a massive Science city that is trying to collect every possible base Science bonus that it can. Otherwise, you're not looking at much return on your investment. Don't build this anywhere that isn't willing to dedicate to all tiers of Science buildings (and maybe some academies on your tiles nearby).
◬ Human Hive
- Cost: 1150 Production
- Yield: +3 Production, maximum Intrigue reduced by 4 for this city
- Prerequisite: Euthenics (Tech)
The Human Hive is interesting, but it doesn't have any particular value for your civilization that can't be gained through surveillance webs. Any Intrigue below 4 is mostly benign for your cities, so limiting Intrigue to 1 instead of 3 isn't that critical, especially because it's for a single city.
◬ Markov Eclipse
- Cost: 1050 Production
- Yield: +1 Culture, +4 Science, military units gain Experience 50% faster
- Prerequisite: Artificial Intelligence (Tech)
Major Domination players should push for the Markov Eclipse and get it as quickly as possible. When combined with the appropriate Might virtues, you get a civilization with very dangerous military units.
◬ Mass Driver
- Cost: 950 Production
- Yield: +25% City Strike Strength, +5 City Orbital Strike Range
- Prerequisite: Ballistic LEV (Tech)
Mass Drivers offer another defensive city upgrade, much like the Archimedes Lever and Armasail. As with those wonders, you should look for a city in your nation that has a natural chokepoint to prevent intruders from getting around it. Construct the Mass Driver there, and blast anything that gets close during a time of war. Don't neglect normal defensive buildings and military units; they still provide way more power than the Mass Driver would on its own.
◬ Master Control
- Cost: 225 Production
- Yield: +1 Culture, workers gain +1 Movement, provides a network in that city
- Prerequisite: Autonomous Systems (Tech)
Master Control ends up saving hundreds of wasted worker turns throughout the game. Get onto rough terrain, and still start an improvement on the same turn. Bonus! Move even faster and farther along roads, and get where you're going sooner. Great!
Large, expansive land nations have the most to gain from the Master Control.
◬ Memetwork
- Cost: 700 Production
- Yield: +2 Health, +4 Culture, +25% Culture in that city
- Prerequisite: Orbital Networks (Tech)
Use the Memetwork in your best cultural city to give yourself a boost in virtue acquisition. Maximize the bonus you get by installing domes around that city and shifting artists into available specialist slots. That one city can soon generate way more Culture than anything else in your nation. Supplement their food with trade routes and terrascapes, as needed. Though costly, terrascapes both keep your population fed and produce additional Culture. This can get pretty incredible if you manage that city carefully.
◬ Nanothermite
- Cost: 1050 Production
- Yield: City Strength +30, +4 Energy
- Prerequisite: Nanotechnology (Tech)
Nanothermite provides a moderate defensive boost for a city. Go after Nanothermite around chokepoints, and enjoy the base Energy bonus it provides. Neither of these provides huge swings in power for that city, so this wonder is more of a target of opportunity.
◬ New Terran Myth
- Cost: 750 Production
- Yield: +4 Culture
- Prerequisite: Human Idealism
This is only a good wonder if you're adding it to a massive Culture city or if you have a city that isn't constructing anything else at the moment.
◬ Panopticon
- Cost: 250 Production
- Yield: +1 Culture, +1 Sight for military units
- Prerequisite: Defense Grid (Tech)
Your military units get a decent upgrade out of the Panopticon. Seeing farther means that it's easier and safer to scout, and your ranged units have a slight edge in combat because they can see enemies sooner and prepare themselves. This is so much fun when you rely on fast rovers to scout and pillage enemy territory.
Defensive and offensive players benefit well from this, so there aren't many players who won't try to get this wonder at some point. The key issue is when you want to research Defense Grid, a Technology that isn't as useful in the early game unless there is a sudden war during the expansion period. If you're willing to sacrifice some of your Research time, you can usually grab Defense Grid early and construct the Panopticon before anyone else has the chance to try.
◬ Precog Project
- Cost: 450 Production
- Yield: +2 Health, +2 Culture, 15% Combat Strength vs. military units in friendly territory
- Prerequisite: Collaborative Thought
The Precog Project is a defensive dream. The bonus you get during defensive campaigns is quite worthwhile, so your defenders dish out tons of damage and won't go down easily. Combine this with Healing bonuses to make your nation agonizing to campaign against. Aggressors are likely to go elsewhere when they realize how much their war is going to cost them.
◬ Promethean
- Cost: 950 Production
- Yield: +4 Health, +2 Culture, gain 1 free virtue
- Prerequisite: Transgenics (Tech)
You can never complain about instant free virtues. They allow your nation to get ahead of the game with any type of bonus that you need. Promethean is always a solid choice for a wonder, regardless of your playstyle.
◬ Quantum Computer
- Cost: 1050 Production
- Yield: +5 Science, gain 1 free Technology
- Prerequisite: Field Theory (Tech)
More free stuff! Construct the Quantum Computer to get a sudden jump in your Research. Because you can pick the exact piece of tech to gain, it's worthwhile to prepare for this wonder ahead of time. Look through the tech web to see what you need the most but can't afford to research yet (because it would take too long). Grab Technology close enough to unlock the Research potential for your target tech, and use the Quantum Computer to score the free Research.
Don't simply get something because it's expensive. Make this count! Find something that is going to give you a major edge in affinity, a building that you desperately need, a victory project, etc.
◬ Resurrection Device
- Cost: 1350 Production
- Yield: +8 Health
- Prerequisite: Artificial Evolution (Tech)
Your current game will make it very clear if your civilization needs this wonder. Players with heavy Prosperity investment are likely to say, "I'm healthy enough already" by the time that this wonder is available. Others might be wrestling with poor Health, and this could be the exact shot in the arm that they need.
◬ Stellar Codex
- Cost: 225 Production
- Yield: +3 Science, +10% Production for orbital units, +4 Orbital Coverage for that city
- Prerequisite: Ballistics (Tech)
The Stellar Codex is useful for making one of your cities into a major orbital producer. Grab other Production buildings and coverage enhancers, and then shoot satellites far and wide while either developing your territory or setting up orbital bombardment to help with warfare.
◬ Tectonic Anvil
- Cost: 1550 Production
- Yield: +9 Production
- Prerequisite: Metamaterials (Tech), Geothermal (Resource)
Though too costly to be efficient at your leisure, this wonder is excellent for Production cities that have already finished their major buildings.
◬ Xenodrome
- Cost: 750 Production
- Yield: +4 Culture, adds a Xeno Sanctuary to that city
- Prerequisite: Alien Ethics (Tech), Geothermal (Resource)
This is another good wonder for creating a massive Culture city. Ensure that your lower-tier Culture buildings are in place, get your Xenodrome, and add domes if you want even more cultural power.
◬ Xenomalleum
- Cost: 1050 Production
- Yield: +7 Energy, +2 Energy for generators
- Prerequisite: Bioengineering (Tech)
This is one of the best economic wonders in the game. Construct this in a major financial city, and watch your income jump when it completes. If you succeed, generators become very lucrative financial improvements instead of just being nice.
◬Xenonova
Cost: 1150 Production
Yield: +2 Health, +7 Food
Prerequisite: Alien Materials (Tech)
Useless globally but powerful in a local sense, the Xenonova gives one of your cities a major Growth boost. Use this in a high Production city to compensate for any lack of Food. You can afford to have more mines and manufactories around with this much base Food generation.