Money
Money in 7WD, like life in general will not win the game, but a lack of it can really hamper your chances.
Age I
The starting pool of 6 coin is enough to get some things done, but other than burning cards, there is only The Tavern for 4 coin which is also a linked build to the Lighthouse in the Third Age. The tension between buying, hoarding in the First Age is a tough one to address. You need resources and/or science builds and/or you need to wage war and your starting cache only goes so far.
The only things that are free, are a set of 3 single brown resources, 2 blue civic cards, the Guard Tower and the Tavern. Everything else will cost or needs an existing, built resource. A little luck helps, but the reality is, you will likely need to choose what you will favour and what you will discard for coin within the first few turns.
Age II
Things open up here quite a lot.
The Gods may provide up to 19 coin, Wonders even more (but spread wider) and The Brewery with 6 coin can also appear. Things do of course start to get dearer and with fewer freebies on offer (1 each of the grey resource builds, The Brewery and anything you can already build), it is still possible to come out of this age well balanced and cashed up.
The Progress tokens become a genuine possibility in the Second Age. Urbanism, Economy, Poliorcetics and Engineering all offer ongoing income or build savings, some even make building and waging war profitable. These are best taken earlier rather than later. Agriculture is a mediocre choice as it is a one-off (weaker in the long run than an ongoing source), so is often best left for the Third Age.
Do not ignore warfare here either. The easiest way to bleed your opponent of money is with aggression. Defensively paying 1-2 coin to avoid a 5 coin hit is a wise economy or take Neptune and cut off the option.
Age III
Depending on the path(s) you have chosen, money may or may not be vital for victory in this Age, but a lack of it can cripple your plans. The reality is though as the Age goes on, money will likely head off an enemies quick victory and stem the flow of easy points. The best civil builds, the remaining Gods and science cards can all turn the game here, made super frustrating if you cannot afford them.
Forward, ever forward, takes your opponent further from victory.
The Gods
The Gods have changed the balance of 7WD, in our opinion for the better.
They offer several new features to the game, even changing the core turn structure.
Purchasing a God allows you to in effect skip a turn. This means if you look ahead, you can avoid a poor build or burn by buying a God even if the God’s effect is negligible.
Gods have added effectively double the options to gaining 12 coin, a re-draw of a discarded card, 9 VP, or replace a science token with a “wild” icon. They also offer new features like messing with the war track, changing the Age deck, stealing builds and science icons and even taking or un-building Wonders.
Ishtar. My personal favourite. If Ishtar is in play, a science victory or a pairing is more likely. She has single handedly opened up the science path as she can be taken outside of the progress token path.
Nisaba. A slow one to “get”, Nisaba is equally a good thief of a needed science icon or a spoiler of sets.
Enki. Probably the weakest of the three, Enki provides another path to progress tokens, weaker than the Great Library, but often easier to get.
Mars. Having 2 shields in the Pantheon can make bursts of aggression easier. If you see one or two good Third Age war cards looming, have a Wonder in the wings and Mars to buy or the Strategy token, a run of 6+ shields over a couple of turns is on the cards. War is now much less predictable or controllable than the Godless pathways of the base game. Ideally you could also play him to guarantee one of those looming warfare cards.
Minerva. Minerva offers a potential 2 shield defensive hit (three shield card spent to take her space), which is weaker than Mars who guarantees 2 shields. She is wasted early on a 1 or 2 shield card, but at game end she can save the day (and has). We almost house ruled that she stay on the board making a “dead” space for your enemy who is forced to use a 2 or 3 shield card to pass over her and has to “jump” back over her if repulsed into her space. We may still revert to this as it makes her immune to 1 shield cards and it makes 1 shield cards are effectively 2 shields for the defender in reverse and the pretty counter stays on the board.
Neptune. Quickly becoming a favourite of the defensively minded. The ability to hit your (winning) opponent for 5 coin and save you 5 coin you may be likely to lose if not winning the war is a great tactic. It can take the wind out of a warlike opponent’s sails.
Aphrodite. Pretty straight forward, 9 VP which only the Pyramids can match and she may be free with offerings. This is one of the most thieved cards in our games. Even at 7 coin she is worth it, because you just swung the game 18 points in your favour.
Zeus. Still a puzzler, Zeus has in theory a very powerful ability, but in reality we have used him only once and for mediocre effect (Meg trashed a Temple card, denying me a possible 7 points). Really only of value in the last Age, being forced to use Gods when taken makes you sweat on the timing for their best use. We would probably prefer if this one was “remove any card from the game, be it discarded, in play or in a players city" (but not from an unplayed Age), but maybe we are missing something.
Hades. This one is a better option. The ability to re-draw war or science cards can be part of a clever master plan, and he can also be a cheap way of re-claiming a un-buyable discarded (I once used him to buy the Arsenal for free using a sacrifice token the turn after I discarded it).
Astarte. Astarte is better than you might think. Money or VP, she is good value either way. Almost as good as Aphrodite or The Pyramids in VP and more coin than all but two other sources, with the option of being spent somewhere more lucrative.
Tanit. 12 coin! One of only two sources.
Baal. Baal can be the one who breaks that build deadlock or can be just a bit of a spoiler. Suddenly you are one up, your opponent one down. Used with Economics and Anubis would be fun. Break your opponents Wonder, then take the 2 brown needed to make it, then charge for the privilege.
Anubis. Likely the most self inflicted effect in the game. Destroy your own Wonder just to build it again? Why not if you have the resources for a free or cheap build you can re-gain shields, coin, repeats or other one off features (making 3 re-draws, 2 God deck choices and an extra progress token possible). Some effects are pointless, like VP and resource allowances so be careful. If the opportunity comes to tear down an opponent’s hard to build Wonder, or even better take it out last turn so there can be no re-build, then go ahead, but I will wager most uses for Anubis will be self inflicted.
Isis. This one is a game flipper. In one of our games, she built the one unbuildable Wonder that caused a domino effect, single handedly building 4 wonders in a turn! Sure other factors may have had a similar effect, but each time she comes up only Aphrodite is more coveted.
Ra. Only played once and in a losing game, Ra will likely have a great game some day soon. The chance of building 5 Wonders and leaving your opponent only 2 left to build seems pretty inviting. He can be especially useful if your resource pool is at odds with your Wonders, which can easily happen.
The Gate. At double cost, this one tends to be a filler, but think about it’s power. If you have placed the bulk of the Gods, then you are likely aware of the front God on several decks. Ishtar and Nisaba double play? Minerva or Neptune and Mars to ruin someone’s war plan or Baal, Zeus or Hades at the right time. You have effectively a surprise God card to play when needed. If it is on your side of the track, it will almost always be too dear for your opponent. If the Gods have opened up the game, The Gate has opened up the Gods.
Desirable; We feel Ishtar, Aphrodite, Isis, Tanit, Mars, Astarte and Hades are the stronger and less situational options, but are also the most predictable.
Situational; Zeus, Ra, Nisaba, Baal, Minerva, Neptune, Enki, Anubis and The Gate can all turn a game, but are less of an automatic choice.
The situational Gods can be the dangerous ones. There is a lot to watch in 7WD, so it is often the less commonly used elements that turn games out of the blue and I feel that getting to grips with these less common ones can be the key to consistent success.