Technology reflects the advancement of your faction through new ideas and techniques, allowing you to construct advanced buildings, new unit types or greatly improved equipment. A faction can develop technology along three paths of specialisation, each consisting of three interlocking modules. While each technology has its own inherent benefits, researching all technologies within a module has an overall effect that is greater than the sum of its parts. To begin, simply select the item you wish to research. There are no buildings required in order to do this, although there are some buildings that require certain technologies before they can be constructed. Mouse over a technology for a short description, details of effects, and the length of time needed to research it.
Setting a research goal is a useful feature whereby you specify a technology you wish to acquire and the game will then highlight any pre-requisites, selecting the shortest route and researching them one at a time until your goal has been reached. If a goal has not been selected the game will warn you at the end of each turn until you do so.
The technology panel enables the research of new ideas that may give you a technological or cultural advantage over your rivals. To begin, simply select the item you wish to master. Mouse over an art for a short description, details of effects, and the length of time needed to research it. Longer descriptions for each technology can be found here. Certain mission or dilemma rewards, certain skills, and household members or objects enable you to decrease research times. In this title it is only possible to research one technology at a time. If you change your mind after starting work your progress will be saved so you don’t have to begin again when you go back to it later.