Civilization IV/World Wonders

Angkor Wat

 * Cost: 500 (double production rate with stone)
 * Requires: Philosophy
 * Expires: Computers
 * GPP: +2 priset
 * Effect:
 * +8 culture
 * +1 hammer from priest
 * 3 more priest slot

A wonder geared towards Great People Strategy. This wonder tends to make your cities produce prophets in the mid to late game when you really want something else. Therefore you should avoid it. However, its effect is not bad if you want extra production for your military.

Chichen Itza

 * Cost: 500 (double production rate with stone)
 * Requires: Code of Laws
 * Expires: Rifling
 * GPP: +2 priset
 * Effect:
 * +6 culture
 * +25% defense in all cities

Never build this wonder if you're the aggressor, and you have enough prophets. +25% defense might seem like a significant advantage, but if you consider that it still can be negated by siege units, you realize that it is a waste of hammer that can be used to produce units that actually do the defenses. The only reason you would like to build it is to prevent the AI from building it.

Church of the Nativity

 * Note: Can only be built in a holy city with a Great Prophet.

The Dai Miao

 * Note: Can only be built in a holy city with a Great Prophet.

Eiffel Tower

 * Cost: 1250 (double production rate with Iron)
 * Requires: Radio, Forge
 * GPP: +2 Merchant
 * Effect:
 * +6 culture
 * Free broadcast tower in every city

A rather late wonder. If you're dominating, you can build it with relative ease and little competition. The broadcast tower +25% culture, add happiness with the cultural slider and double happiness from movies, musicals and hits. The broadcast tower is not expensive, and you should build it just to reduce micromanagement. If you are facing fierce competition, turn your attention to Hollywood, Rock n' Roll instead.

The Great Library

 * Cost: 350 (double production rate with Marble)
 * Requires: Literature, Library
 * GPP: +2 Scientist
 * Effect:
 * +8 culture
 * 2 Free scientist

It should be noted that the two free scientist also generate +3 scientist points each. Therefore, a total of eight scientist points are added to your GPP pool. You would find that great scientists would be pumping out of it soon. If you want to avoid too many scientists, build the national epic elsewhere. In terms of beaker generation, this wonder is not bad, great on small maps (few cities), and wonderful if running Representation with Pyramid. One of the must-build wonders.

The Great Lighthouse

 * Cost: 200
 * Requires: Sailing, Masonry, Lighthouse
 * Expires: Coporation
 * GPP: +2 Merchant
 * Effect:
 * +6 culture
 * +2 trade route in all coastal cities

The Pharos provides a decent bonus if you are playing on islands or sneaky continents. If you build it early on, be sure to send out your Galleys to scout open up foreign trade routes, or you would be wasting the bonus. Try to build coastal cities as much as possible, and prepare yourself to go for the Colossus. You would then have an economic powerhouse. If you start in the middle of a big continent, forget about it.

Hagia Sophia

 * Cost: 550 (double production rate with Marble)
 * Requires: Engineering (vanilla and warlord) Theology (BTS)
 * Expires: Steam Power
 * GPP: +2 Engineer
 * Effect:
 * +8 culture
 * +50% worker work rate

The Hagia Sophia simply provides the steam power worker bonus earlier. Although not overly appealing, it can be argued that in conjunction with serfdom, you get ultra fast workers! It seems good if you have a bunch of Jungle to clear. It might be better to build troops to capture more workers, however. But since it produces engineer points, it's not that bad.

The Hanging Gardens

 * Cost: 300 (double production rate with Stone)
 * Requires: Mathematics, Aquaduct
 * GPP: +2 Engineer
 * Effect:
 * +6 culture
 * +1 health in all cities
 * +1 population in all cities

No one can say no to extra health, and Hanging Garden is cheap if you get stone. It also adds one more population in every city once it is built, which goes a long way to boost your economy and production, although it's strange that every time you build it, your treasury income decreass. It also produces engineer points.

Internet

 * Note: Considered a World Project.

Kashi Wishwanath

 * Note: Can only be built in a holy city with a Great Prophet.

Kong Miao

 * Note: Can only be built in a holy city with a Great Prophet.

The Kremlin

 * Cost: 800 (double production rate with stone)
 * Requires: Communism (vanilla and warlord) Theology (BTS)
 * GPP: +2 artist (Vanila and Warlord)/ +2 spy (BTS)
 * Effect:
 * -33% hurry production cost

This wonder is only effective under democracy or slavery. Running representation and emancipation is better, but this wonder is good if you don't like waiting. Hurrying production is useful in the early games, but not as effective in the late game where you have so many cities. Don't plan to build it, but occasionally you may want to if the AI is really backwards.

Mahabodhi

 * Note: Can only be built in a holy city with a Great Prophet.

Manhattan Project

 * Note: Considered a World Project.

Masjid al-Haram

 * Note: Can only be built in a holy city with a Great Prophet.

Notre Dame

 * Cost: 550 (double production rate with Stone)
 * Requires: Music (vanilla and warlord) /Engineering (BTS)
 * GPP: +2 artist
 * Effect:
 * +10 culture
 * +1 happiness in all cities on same continent

Free happiness! They don't come very often, especially during times of war. Wouldn't it be nice if you could reassure the masses of people that they will go to heaven when they die on the battlefield? The only downside is that it might not be so cost-effective on small maps or islands.

The Oracle

 * Cost: 150 (double production rate with Marble)
 * Requires: Priesthood
 * GPP: +2 Prophet
 * Effect:
 * +8 culture
 * 1 free tech

This early wonder offers some interesting game plays, gambits and strategies. One of the most common and easy one is to get Confucianism through Code of Law. Others involve getting Longbowman early on by Monarch → Feudalism. One elaborate strategy involves getting metal casting to build a forge, which allows an engineer and produces a great Engineer to hurry a Pyramid. Seems complicated, but it works. Even without a long term strategy, a free tech could give you a decisive advantage.