Civ V Handbook for Despots & Dictators

[zephyrtr]

Note: This handbook supports the Gods & Kings version of Civilization V. If you do not own this expansion, the information below will not be entirely accurate to your version of the game.

See Nebular's unofficial Online Civilopedia for additional on-the-go information!

America
President George Washington
(1732 - 1799)
Protestantism

America is the Civ to pick for a big yet flexible empire. Their bonuses are very straightforward so if it's your first time playing, this might be a good Civ for you. Manifest Destiny's Sight bonus allows you to scout locations for early-game expansion much faster. It will also help keep you from accidentally bumping into a barbarian encampment, or a rival's army. The discount to buying tiles can be great if you give more elbow room between your cities.

The Minuteman has a great ability that will help you beat Civs like the Incas and Iroquois that habitually settle near rough terrain. They shine the most on defense, but don't discount their offensive potential. Paired with America's Sight bonus, they’re like scouts on steroids. And don't forget about America's unique Bomber. Their bonus against Cities makes late-game conquest a snap. Honoring the B17's nickname, the “flying fortress,” their defense bonus VS Interception means you don't really need Fighters to sweep for interceptors.

America's ticket to victory is left mostly blank. The B17 suggests, after several eras of fast expansion and skirmishing, late-game domination is a good way to go. All those cities will probably net you a lot of gold and science, too, so diplomacy or space race isn't a bad option either. Really, it's up to you.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Rationalism, Order
Suggested Wonders: Forbidden Palace, Machu Picchu, Pentagon
Suggested Beliefs: Tithe, Feed the World, Just War

• Manifest Destiny
  Land Military Units gain +1 Sight
  Gold costs for expanding borders reduced by 50%
• Minuteman (Renaissance Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Musketman)
  Cost 150
  Strength 24
  Move 2
  +15% combat bonus in Rough Terrain (Drill I)
  Ignore Terrain Movement costs
• B17 (Atomic Era Air Unit, replaces Bomber)
  Cost 375
  Requires Oil
  Strength 70, not 65
  Range 10
  +25% combat bonus VS Cities (Siege I)
  +50% combat bonus VS Interception (Evasion)

Arabia
Abbashid Caliph Harun Al-Rashid
(763 - 809)
Islam

Arabia has a great economy and good boosts to wide growth. Their gold bonus from Trade Routes can get you a modest chunk of change if you can expand to over twenty cities. Bonus copies of luxuries acquired from the Bazaar can get you a huge amount of money from trading with Happiness-hungry rivals. Also, the bonus to Oasis tiles makes settling in less-favorable Desert areas much more viable, so you may not have to fight for territory as much as you may think. These features combined means Arabia has the potential for a very impressive economy.

It’s not a bad idea to use that extra gold to buy favor with City-States, since they can supplement what you need and eventually lead to a Diplomatic victory. Just be sure to pick which ones you befriend wisely, so you get the best bang for your buck: will they give you extra Culture you need? Do they have a Luxury Resource you want? Is their location strategically advantageous?

The Camel Archer has completely re-purposed the Knight into a mobile Crossbowman. It's a very strong unit, and perfect for harrying enemy armies: move 'em in, fire, then run away. The Camel Archer's Melee Strength is nearly half of the Knights, so they cannot be left vulnerable, but their superior speed shouldn't make this too hard to accomplish.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Big Ben, Machu Picchu, Petra
Suggested Beliefs: Church Property, Pagodas, Religious Texts

• Trade Caravan
  Trade Routes yield a bonus +1 Gold
  Oil Tiles provide double quantities
• Bazaar (Medieval Era Building, replaces Market)
  Cost 120
  Maintenance 0
  Specialist 1 Merchant
  +2 Gold
  +25% Gold
  Provides an additional 'stock' of Improved Luxuries near the City
  Oil and Oasis Tiles yield a bonus +2 Gold
• Camel Archer (Medieval Era Mounted Archery Unit, replaces Knight)*
  Cost 120
  Requires Horses
  Strength 17/21, not 20
  Range 2
  Move 4
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  Cannot Melee attack
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities removed

* The Camel Archer is doubly unique in that it is a Mounted Archery Unit. However, it still upgrades to the Cavalry.


Assyria
Ashurbanipal
(668 – c. 627 BCE)
Ashurism

Requires the Brave New World Expansion Pack

Write-up coming soon!

• Treasures of Nineveh
  When you conquer a rival City, you steal one of that Civ's Technologies
• Royal Library (Ancient Era Building, replaces Library)
  Cost 75
  Maintenance 1
  +1 Science for every 2 Citizens
  Great Work 1 Writing
  +15 XP to all Military Units, while its Great Work slot is filled
• Siege Tower (Classical Era Siege Unit, replaces Catapult)
  Cost 75
  Strength 7/8
  Range 2
  Move 2
  +200% combat bonus VS Cities
  Nearby Units gain a +50% combat bonus VS Cities
  No defensive bonuses
  Cannot Melee attack
  Must set up to attack
  Limited visibility

Austria
Kaiserin Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina
(1717 - 1780)
Catholicism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

If you're in the habit of spending all your Gold soon as it comes in, don't! If the City-State calls for investors, you could ally and marry them for around 1,000 gold easy, especially after taking the Patronage Policy. Trade away extra luxuries as often as you can for gold, and it should be easy to keep your coffers full. When you Marry a City-State, it does not count as an aggressive act: no buildings or citizens are lost, all their units are handed over to you, and the City-State wasn't technically 'conquered' so it won't require a Courthouse if you decide to Annex it. Consider Marrying a City-State just for their troops, effectively buying a standing army at a bargain, but don't buy everyone: the population of the City is untouched so Marrying a City-State can really hurt your Happiness.

The Coffee House's boost to building production is great, since Austria is all about sweet, sweet marriage. You could go an entire game without personally building any more than a Scout, so it's not a detriment at all that the building's Production boost only helps infrastructure. The extra Great Person generation is great for keeping a constant flow of Great Merchants.

If your neighbors are getting rowdy mid-game, or if they've just been particularly annoying through the middle ages, your Hussar can put things to rights. The extra Move makes flanking really very easy, and once they have a +45% boost, on top of probably a Great General and some promotions, it's all over.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Big Ben, Forbidden Palace, Machu Picchu
Suggested Beliefs: Papal Primacy, Swords to Plowshares, Holy Order

• Diplomatic Marriage
  Pay 500 gold* to Puppet or Annex a City-State that is Allied with you†
• Coffee House (Renaissance Era Building, replaces Windmill)
  Cost 250
  Does not require Open Terrain
  Maintenance 2
  Specialist 1 Engineer
  Production +2
  +5% Production, not +10% Production only when constructing Buildings
  +25% Great Person generation
• Hussar (Industrial Era Mounted Unit, replaces Cavalry)
  Cost 225
  Requires Horses
  Strength 34
  Move 5, not 4
  +15% combat bonus for each Flanking Unit, not +10% (Enhanced Flanking)
  +1 Sight (Extra Sight)
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities

* The price changes depending on your speed setting for the game, and how many units the City-State controls.
† You must have been Allied with the City-State for at least 5 turns. Because the City-State was not 'Conquered,' no buildings or citizens are lost and, if Annexed, the City will not generate additional Unhappiness. You gain control of all of the City-State's units. If you Marry a Mercantile City-State, you gain ownership and therefore may trade their unique Luxury even though it has no corresponding Tile. Married City-States cannot be 'Liberated' and the amount of Votes needed to win diplomatically will be recalculated as if the City-State was never in the game.


Aztec
Tlatoani Moctezuma I
(1398 - 1469)
Teotlism

Aztecs are about upfront benefits: both the Jaguar and the Floating Gardens are unlocked in the Ancient era. This Civ doesn't want to take their time, so keep moving and be efficient, always. Jaguars are odd units, but very fierce. When going for the kill, remember they'll get healed a bit immediately after, so strikes that may be risky with other units are less so with the Jaguar. They're very handy to build and level early on, because they retain their unique traits once promoted.

Your cities will build up very fast with Floating Gardens; be sure you can deal with the amount of Unhappiness that will generate. Gaining bonus food from Lake tiles is great, but Lakes are kind of rare. You have to take what you're given. Don't get so determined to have a lake that you fail to expand.

Remember, if you're not killing someone, you're not taking advantage of Sacrificial Captives. With Honor, killing a Barbarian gives double the unit's Strength in Culture, so that's 12 for a Warrior and 42 for a Longswordsman, so Aztec has a lot to gain from creeping. Especially after you get the Honor tree finisher, you get gold on top of Culture for making a kill. If Barbarians dry up, make war with a neighbor. Try to nab an early Domination victory but if this proves too difficult, dig in, sweat your neighbors and push Culture.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Piety, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Alhambra, Statue of Zeus, Brandenburg Gate
Suggested Beliefs: World Church, Holy Warriors, Just War

• Sacrificial Captives
  Destroying enemy units provides a one-time Culture bonus equal to the Strength of the destroyed unit*
• Jaguar (Ancient Era Melee Unit, replaces Warrior)
  Cost 40
  Strength 8
  Move 2
  Ignore Terrain costs from Forest and Jungle Tiles (Woodsman)
  +33% combat bonus in Forest and Jungle Tiles
  Heals 25 damage when it destroys an enemy Unit
• Floating Gardens (Ancient Era Building, replaces Water Mill)
  Cost 75
  Requires River or Lake
  Maintenance 1, not 2
  +2 Food
  +1 Production
  +15% Food
  Lake Tiles yield a bonus +2 Food

* This Culture reward stacks with the Honor Policy opener.


Babylon
Sarru-Kinu Nebuchadnezzar II
(634 - 562 BCE)
Mardukism

Requires the Civilization Pack: Babylon

Obviously, Babylon leans towards the Sciences, which is funny because both their Bowmen and their Walls of Babylon come in the Ancient Era. The Walls of Babylon are obviously to give your cities some added security, since most of your focus won’t be towards units. The Bowman is also a defensive unit. They field just as strong as Warriors, but hit even harder from a distance. Once you have them, there’s no reason to make a Warrior, unless you want to take out a city.

Neither of these Uniques are show-stoppers, so don't sweat it. It's all about Great Scientists, but you can't set Scientist Specialists until Education, so tech fast to Universities. You'll also want to nab any Ancient and Classical Wonder that has Scientist points, and that will probably net you a handful of Great Scientists before the Medieval Era's out. It might be tempting but don't rush techs with these guys. Making Academies early on will net you far more science in the long run.

Science benefits greatly from population, so Babylon will want to expand—but where to? Mountains will get you Observatories and Jungles are boosted by Universities. Trading Posts will net you even more Beakers with Rationalism’s Free Thought, so favor Grasslands over Plains. You can spend your gold on Maritime City States to further inflate your population; Patronage’s Scholasticism will make City-States even more beneficial. Once you finish the Apollo Program, you’ve got to build the rocket. Great Engineers can't rush spaceship parts, but they can rush a Spaceship Factory, so keep at least one on hand.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Rationalism, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Porcelain Tower, Statue of Liberty, Tower of Pisa
Suggested Beliefs: Interfaith Dialogue, Guruship, Reliquary

• Ingenuity
  Birth rate of Great Scientists increased by 50%
  A free Great Scientist appears at your Capital after you research Writing*
• Bowman (Ancient Era Archery Unit, replaces Archer)
  Cost 40
  Strength 7/9, not 5/7
  Range 2
  Move 2
  Cannot Melee attack
• Walls of Babylon (Ancient Era Building, replaces Walls)
  Cost 65, not 75
  Maintenance 0
  +6 City Strength, not +5
  +100 City HP, not +50

* Unlike other 'free' Great People, Babylon's free Great Scientist does not increase the cost to produce your next Great Scientist.


Brazil
Imperador Dom Pedro II Bragança o Magnânimo
(1825 – 1891)
Catholicism

Requires the Brave New World Expansion Pack

Write-up coming soon!

• Carnival
  Golden Ages double your Tourism and increase Great Artist production by 50%
• Brazilwood Camp (Classical Era Tile Improvement)
  Unlocks with Construction (?)
  Adds +1 Gold to Jungle Tile yields
  Adds an additional +1 Culture to Tile yields after you finish researching Acoustics
  Adds an additional +1 Gold to Tile yields after you finish researching Economics (?)
• Pracinha (Modern Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Infantry)
  Cost 375
  Strength 70
  Move 2
  Destroying enemy units provides a one-time Happiness bonus equal to half(?) the Strength of the destroyed unit*

* More precise details on this feature coming soon.

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Byzantium
Hagios Theodora I
(c. 500 - 548)
Orthodoxy

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

This Civ is defined most by what it doesn't have. You get a bonus belief when founding your religion, but no unique bonuses to Faith generation. This means obviously that you need to be spamming Shrines and Temples quickly to enjoy your bonus as soon as possible. Nearly always you'll find yourself taking a second Founder or Enhancer Belief as your bonus Belief: you normally only ever get one of each, Enhancer beliefs come the latest and are very strong, and Founder Beliefs only benefit you.

The Cataphract is not the swift army killer you normally expect from your Horsemen. While true it has a slightly lower penalty VS Cities, its effective Strength VS Cities is roughly equal to a Spearman's so, if you do take them on the offensive, don't expect it to be an exceptionally good siege unit. What they have is a higher natural Strength than Swordsmen and the ability to Fortify so, if you can't get to Iron, Cataphracts will easily be able to keep you safe against invaders.

The Dromon is similarly defensive. It can shoot down enemy Triremes quite quickly but can also target enemy units near the coast. Unfortunately this means you won't get melee Naval Units until the Caravel in the Renaissance, so your potential for an offensive coastal attack is lessened quite a bit. Try leaving the offense to your Missionaries; they'll be able to win you more gold and culture than you think.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Piety, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Hagia Sophia, Great Mosque at Djenne, Leaning Tower of Pisa
Suggested Beliefs: World Church, Religious Texts, Itinerant Preachers

• Patriarchate of Constantinople
  Choose a bonus Belief when founding your Religion*
• Dromon (Ancient Era Ranged Naval Unit, replaces Trireme)†
  Cost 56, not 45
  Strength 8/10, not 10
  Range 2
  Move 4
  +50% combat bonus VS Naval units
  Cannot Melee attack
• Cataphract (Classical Era Mounted Unit, replaces Horseman)
  Cost 75
  Strength 15, not 12
  Move 3, not 4
  -25% combat penalty VS Cities, not -33%
  Can move after attacking
  Benefits from defensive bonuses

* You may choose your bonus Belief from any category, even Enhancer, so long as it's still available.
† The Dromon is doubly unique in that it is a Naval Ranged unit, not Melee. It upgrades to the Galleass instead of the Caravel.


Carthage
Hmlkt Elissa Dido
(c. 356 - 260 BCE)
Ba'alism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

With free Harbors in every City, you'll want to eat up as much of the coastline as possible when you play Carthage. This is made easier with the Quinquereme, especially if someone's snagged a spot you wanted. Though the Quinqereme is fierce, unless the City's very exposed to the water, you'll need land support to take it, or at least some Galleasses. But do take them; your Harbors have no Maintenance, so settling the coast keeps your expenses way down by not needing many Roads, if any at all. Be picky where you settle: not all coasts are created equal and if there aren't Fish or Crabs or something, don't bother. You want to get as much out of your Harbors as possible.

Your ground force is immensely strong when backed by the African War Elephant: it's stronger, gives a penalty to nearby enemy troops and helps you spawn more Great Generals, which will be great for putting down Citadels to help protect your far-flung empire. They're not suited for taking cities and are slower than the standard Horseman, so be sure they have backup.

The especially interesting thing about Carthage is their ability to run over mountains. If the Incas are on the board, this is especially good as you can surprise attack them from over the many mountains they're likely to settle near. Don't stay on top of the mountains as this is very harmful to your troops. Just fly over and lay waste to your enemies. After an early game of warring and expansion, settle into defense and possibly more expansion as the game goes on. With all the productive sea towns you'll have and the money you'll save without tons of Roads, you can consider a Science or Diplomatic victory pretty easily.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Great Lighthouse, Forbidden Palace, Machu Picchu
Suggested Beliefs: Church Property, Feed the World, Itinerant Preachers

• Phoenician Heritage
  All coastal Cities automatically gain a free Harbor*
  After the first Great General is born, units can pass through Mountain Tiles†
• Quinquereme (Ancient Era Melee Naval Unit, replaces Trireme)
  Cost 45
  Strength 13, not 10
  Move 4
• African Forest Elephants (Classical Era Mounted Unit, replaces Horseman)
  Cost 100, not 75
  Does not require Horses
  Strength 14, not 12
  Move 3, not 4
  Very likely to spawn Great Generals
  -10% combat penalty to adjacent enemies‡
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities

* Even with Harbors present, Trade Routes cannot be formed until you finish researching The Wheel.
† It costs 1 Movement to enter a Mountain Tile. Units that end the turn on a Mountain Tile lose 50 HP.
‡ This combat modifier does not stack if multiple African War Elephants are present.


Celtica
Boudīka
(c. 25 - 62)
Druidism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

Not that this isn't true with anyone, but the Celts need Scouts immediately. Especially if Edinburgh has three forests next to it, that means you'll have a Pantheon on Turn 15, so be quick about having a good look around or you won't know which one to take! If you prioritize Pictish Warriors (you should) and crack some Barbarian skulls, there's no reason you can't be first to found a Religion, even without building a single Shrine.

The Picts are aggressive, albeit not as strong against Horsemen as the usual Spearman, so once Barbarians have dried up and you've got some Catapults, turn your eye on your neighbors. Even if you don't take a city, you can still pillage fast for some easy gold. Their standing Strength outside your borders is a little over 13 so they can easily go toe-to-toe with enemy Swordsmen, and since your Picts are much cheaper and don't require Iron, there's no reason why they can't outnumber your enemies. Keep them alive since that 20% bonus stays after they're been upgraded.

By the Medieval Era, you'll be itching to get some Lumber Mills down on your Forests, which will kill your bonus Faith. By then you should have had time to get Shrines and Temples down so the hit won't be too bad. If you can keep at least one forest open, and just put your Citizen elsewhere, the extra Faith is really worth it. You'll get Celidh Hall soon with that lovely extra 3 Happiness, and then the focus will be more on Culture, with Faith supporting that — so be conscious of how you're using your Faith.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Piety, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Oracle, Sistine Chapel, Terracotta Army
Suggested Beliefs: Ceremonial Burial, Religious Community, Religious Texts

• Druidic Lore
  Cities next to an unimproved Forest Tile produce a bonus +1 Faith
  Cities next to three unimproved Forest Tiles produce a bonus +2 Faith
• Pictish Warrior (Ancient Era Melee Unit, replaces Spearman)
  Cost 56
  Strength 11
  Move 2
  +20% Combat bonus outside Friendly Territory
  Destroying enemy units provides a one-time Faith bonus equal to half the Strength of the destroyed unit
  No Movement cost to Pillage Improvements
  50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units removed
• Ceilidh Hall (Renaissance Era Building, replaces Opera House)
  Cost 200
  Requires Amphitheater
  Maintenance 2
  Specialist 1 Artist
  +4 Culture
  +3 Happiness

China
Wu Zetian Huanghou Junlin
(624 - 705)
Confucianism

China carries both military and economic might. The Paper Maker makes for stellar economy and science, so long as you expand. Warring is the only way to really take advantage of Art of War so you should always find an enemy worth warring with. Extra Great Generals can be used to build Citadels and steal Tiles from your rivals, so don't think just because you have one General, that's all you need.

If you can make it to Machinery before everyone else, you can get your Chu-Ko-Nu long before enemies can deal with them. Build extra Archers early on, get them ranked up, and then have a storehouse of gold ready to upgrade them immediately. Their reduced Strength is a bit of a blow, but with a Chinese Great General nearby (which is easy to always have) their Ranged Strength is restored back to a full 18 anyway. Along with shooting twice, Chu-Ko-Nus also get twice the experience per turn because they engage in combat twice. This not only helps them rank up faster but it fills the Great General ticker faster as well.

Given the excess Gold China can produce, they can easily fund Alliances with Maritime City-States, thus reducing the amount of Farms you'll need. Cultural City-States can also help get you policies you'll need to reign in the amount of unhappiness you'll produce by becoming so huge. Be wary not to grow too fast or you may soon find yourself too big for your own good.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Rationalism, Autocracy
Suggested Wonders: Forbidden Palace, Machu Picchu, Temple of Artemis
Suggested Wonders: Church Property, Holy Warriors, Religious Texts

• Art of War
  Birth rate of Great Generals increased by 50%
  Great Generals grant a +30% combat bonus, instead of +15%
• Paper Maker (Ancient Era Building, replaces Library)
  Cost 75
  Maintenance 0, not 1
  +2 Gold
  +1 Science for every 2 Citizens
• Chu-Ko-Nu (Medieval Era Archery Unit, replaces Crossbowman)
  Cost 120
  Strength 13/14, not 13/18
  Range 2
  Move 2
  May attack twice*
  Cannot Melee attack

* This promotion is not Logistics, but if the Chu-Ko-Nu does acquire the Logistics promotion, Movement costs prevent them from being able to shoot more than twice per turn.


Denmark
Konge Harald Blåtand Gormsen
(c. 935 - 986)
Forn Sidr

Requires the Civilization and Scenario Pack: Denmark

Denmark is the Vikings of Civ 5 in all but name. While they don't have any real bonus to their naval power, Viking Fury enables their units to swiftly jump across oceans, and they storm beaches like nobody else. Disembarking for Denmark doesn't end their units' turns, so they can mass outside an enemy's field of vision and then storm in onto the shore and ravage their whole countryside—all in one turn. And I mean ravage: Denmark's melee units Pillage tiles for free. Nobody smash-and-grabs like Denmark.

The Berserker is a lovely little scoundrel that works perfectly with Viking Fury: they can attack amphibiously without penalty, and they can move almost as fast as a Knight, but can still fortify and have no penalty against Cities. When the age of the Berserker comes to a close, you can promote them into Norwegian Ski Infantry, preserving all their experience and inherent Amphibious promotion. They lose their bonus Move, but N.S.I. have a move bonus of their own: they can speed through hills, tundra and snow at double speed, meaning Inca's got nothing on you. They also get a combat bonus in these tiles, so your enemies will really have to watch out.

There isn't much to Denmark, except perhaps that it's best to stick to the coastline, ransacking as you go. Pick up Commerce's Naval Tradition for extra speed as you make your way along the water. When you're ready, you can do it all over again on other continents, but be sure not to overextend yourself. Denmark's not Mongolia. Troops will need time to heal up before the next raid.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Commerce, Autocracy
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Great Lighthouse, Statue of Zeus
Suggested Wonders: Ceremonial Burial, Holy Warriors, Itinerant Preachers

• Viking Fury
  Embarked Units gain +1 Move
  Disembarkation does not incur a Movement penalty*
  Land Melee Units pay no Movement cost to Pillage Improvements
• Berserker (Medieval Era Melee Unit, replaces Longswordsman)
  Cost 120
  Requires Iron
  Strength 21
  Move 3, not 2
  No combat penalty for fighting across Rivers or from the Sea (Amphibious)
• Norwegian Ski Infantry (Industrial Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Rifleman)
  Cost 225
  Strength 34
  Move 2
  +25% combat bonus in Hills, Snow or Tundra Tiles†
  Double Movement rate through Hills, Snow and Tundra Tiles†

* This means Embarked units may move and attack after Disembarking. Extra Movement granted for being Embarked at the start of the turn is preserved once on land.
† This bonus does not apply to Forest or Jungle Tiles, even when Tundra or Hills are present.


Egypt
Pharaoh Ramesses II
(c. 1303 - 1213 BCE)
Amunism

Egypt is a great Civ for showing you the power of Wonders. They’re likely to give you the push up the tech and policies trees you’ll need to maintain superiority late-game. Since all Wonders can give Culture, and Burial Tombs cost no maintenance, you'd be remiss not to pursue Culture with Egypt. Each city will also get 2 extra Happiness, so you can puppet with impunity. In this way, Honor's Legalism can give a +8 Happiness and Culture swing, a very strong early-game move. Bear in mind Burial Tombs double the gold your enemies get if they pillage your City, so be on your guard.

Given the War Chariot’s phenomenal speed, you can defend more cities with less units—especially after you get roads set up. Keep in mind the War Chariot has awful defense and is tripped up by Rough Terrain. Keep them safe, and they can dole out a lot of damage, but when unprotected, they’ll just be a waste of time and money.

If you can keep from getting out-teched, there's little chance of another Civ successfully building a Wonder you want and these bonuses can be massive for your cultural ambitions. Rival Civs will get angry with you for scooping up so many wonders, but that's the burden Egypt bears. Especially if you score the Himeji Castle or Kremlin, that should be all the defense you'll need. Keep focus on spawning Great Artists, and use Walls and Castles where you can to keep your cities safe, and the Utopia Project will be yours in no time.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Piety, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: The Great Wall, The Louvre, Sistine Chapel
Suggested Wonders: World Church, Divine Inspiration, Reliquary

• Monument Builders
  Cities gain a +20% Production bonus while constructing a Wonder*
• War Chariot (Ancient Era Mounted Archery Unit, replaces Chariot Archer)
  Cost 56
  Does not require Horses
  Strength 6/10
  Range 2
  Move 5, not 4
  Cannot Melee attack
  No defensive bonuses
  Rough Terrain Movement penalty
• Burial Tomb (Classical Era Building, replaces Temple)
  Cost 100
  Requires Shrine
  Maintenance 0, not 2
  +2 Faith
  +2 Happiness
  City will give double Gold if Pillaged

* This bonus also applies to National Wonders, but not Projects.


England
Queen Elizabeth I Tudor
(1533 - 1603)
Protestantism

England is obviously stacked for the oceans so if you can’t start near water, you better expand there quickly. Both their superior units come mid-game, so it might be good to lie low early on, tech fast, then spring into action during the Medieval Era. Stay away from early aggressors like Rome and the Huns.

Given this Civ’s superior long-range units, you should be able to play most battles safely. Just remember that cities can be brought to the brink by Ranged Units, but they cannot be taken by them. Knights are the Longbowman's natural enemy—build lots of Pikemen to fend them off. They can also play cleanup once your ranged units have had their fun. Longswordsmen are also great, assuming you have the money to upgrade them to Muskets and free up your Iron for Ships of the Line. The Longbowman himself is ferocious and mostly inescapable. Just keep them defended and your enemies will be crushed before they can reach your melee units.

Your Harbors are likely to be the linchpins of your trade network so park a boat at each of your Cities, lest barbarian naval units undermine your economy. Good thing the Ship of the Line is cheaper than the standard Frigate! It's even got superior damage for blowing up Barbarians before they become a problem.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Great Firewall, Great Library
Suggested Wonders: Ceremonial Burial, Holy Warriors, Itinerant Preachers

• Sun Never Sets
  Naval and Embarked Units gain +2 Move
  Receives 1 bonus Spy at the Renaissance
• Longbowman (Medieval Era Archery Unit, replaces Crossbowman)
  Cost 120
  Strength 13/18
  Range 3, not 2 (Range)
  Move 2
  Cannot Melee attack
• Ship of the Line (Renaissance Era Ranged Naval Unit, replaces Frigate)
  Cost 170, not 185
  Requires Iron
  Strength 30/35, not 25/28
  Range 2
  Move 5
  +1 Sight (Sentry)
  Cannot Melee attack

[zephyrtr]

Ethiopia
Emperor Haile Selassie I
(1892 – 1975)
Rastafarianism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

Probably the best defensive team in the game, Ethiopia is perfect for the 'true' Cultural player who likes to forgo a puppet empire. The Spirit of Adwa sets the tone quickly for this team as a tall and impregnable nation. You get a hefty bonus when fighting rivals so long as you're the underdog, and that works out just fine for playing culturally. Ethopia's Unique Monuments, called Steles, gives twice the faith of a Shrine with no drawbacks, so they often have the problem of making a Pantheon before you'll know what to take. To avoid this, be sure not to build your first Stele until after one or two Scouts have been trained.

Pumping lots of Faith goes hand in hand with Cultural victories, since Piety boosts both so dramatically. Keep a standing army of Missionaries and Inquisitors as the only Cultural Founder Belief, World Church, gets better the more followers you have. Four or five cities each with Steles, Shrines and Temples will ensure you're making enough Faith per turn to have the most popular Religion out there.

The Mehal Sefari will ensure your Capital's safety later in the game. Having your other cities close by will help make this unit more useful near the borders of your nation but, since you will build tall, try not to set them all too close to each other. If the map favors this, since the Mehal Sefari make taking your Capital a serious challenge, you can choose to settle the majority of your other cities abroad if there's better tiles available there. Just don't be lazy about Walls and Castles, especially if you're building on the coast.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Piety, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Angkor Wat, Great Mosque of Djenne, Stonehenge
Suggested Beliefs: World Church, Cathedrals, Reliquary

• Spirit of Adwa
  Military units gain a +20% Combat Bonus when fighting rival Civs that own more Cities than you
• Stele (Ancient Era Building, replaces Monument)
  Cost 40
  Maintenance 1
  +2 Culture
  +2 Faith
• Mehal Sefari (Modern Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Rifleman)
  Cost 200, not 225
  Strength 34
  Movement 2
  +15% combat bonus in Rough Terrain (Drill I)
  Variable combat bonus when fighting near the Capital*

*This combat bonus is at its most powerful, +30%, when the unit is inside the Capital and becomes weaker the further away the unit is.


France
Emperor Napoleon I Bonaparte
(1769 - 1821)
Catholicism

France is a very solid Civ that can shoot for a Culture victory through sheer number of Puppets. 2 additional Culture per city is a great early-game advantage, but also makes your puppets really lucrative. Assuming you’re teching militarily, and you should, Steam Power is on the opposite side of the tree, meaning Ancien Régime will deactivate later than you might think, if it deactivates at all...

Both French unique units have big offensive boosts. Pushing into Gunpowder and picking up Musketeers fast can bring great results. They don't need Iron, but has the most Strength out of any unit, unique or not, before the Rifleman! Prepare by building some Trebuchets ahead of time so your cities can focus on cranking out Musketeers once you have them teched. With your army assembled, go forth and steamroll neighboring nations, flipping them into puppets that will generate a great amount of Science, Gold and Culture for your empire.

Take a break around when your Musketeers are being promoted to Riflemen. Build infrastructure and ensure your empire doesn't go Unhappy. Once you get Foreign Legions, you can get back on the road and start doing even more severe damage to those around you, especially once you have Artillery. If you can't win before Mech Infantry, why not just pick up the Utopia Project?

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Piety, Order
Suggested Wonders: Forbidden Palace, Machu Picchu, Sistine Chapel
Suggested Beliefs: Church Property, Choral Music, Religious Texts

• Ancien Régime
  Cities yield a bonus +2 Culture; goes Obsolete after you finish researching Steam Power
• Musketeer (Renaissance Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Musketman)
  Cost 150
  Strenght 28, not 24
  Move 2
• Foreign Legion (Modern Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Great War Infantry)
  Cost 320
  Strength 50
  Move 2
  +20% combat bonus when outside Friendly Territory

Germany
Bundeskanzler Otto von Bismarck
(1815 - 1898)
Lutheranism

Germany is all aggression all the time. Starting the game by sacking as many Babarian Encampments as possible can give you a gigantic lead in gold and units. If you're smart, your immediate competition will be conquered before they can ever really get going! It's okay to run in deficit for a while, but disband parts of your army if it's beginning to bankrupt your empire.

The Landsknecht doesn’t look like anything special until you see its cost: half that of the normal Pikeman, and every bit as effective. Especially if you’re against Civs that have unique mounted units, crank these out to stop their party before it starts. Spain, Mongolia and Songhai have no chance against you. They're a very effective way to stall for time while you build infrastructure and tech into the Industrial era, when Germany really starts to shine.

With a 20% base strength increase and one of the fastest overland move rates in the game, Panzer tanks are a sight to behold. Pair them with machine guns so they don't get surrounded, and appropriate siege units to soften up your targets first. Germany will want to clear parts of the board, as you’ll be taking your win when Strategic Resources become the most valuable. More oil equals more tanks, so that should be where you strike first. Watch out for Anti-Tank Guns, Artillery as well as Bombers, but anything else doesn’t stand a chance.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Rationalism, Autocracy
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Pentagon, Porcelain Tower
Suggested Beliefs: Ceremonial Burial, Holy Warriors, Just War

• Furor Teutonicus
  Land Unit Maintenance costs reduced by 25%
  Defeating Barbarians within an Encampment has a 50% chance of converting the unit to your side and giving a 25 Gold bonus*
• Landsknecht (Medieval Era Melee Unit, replaces Pikeman)
  Cost 45, not 90
  Strength 16
  Move 2
  +50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units
• Panzer (Atomic Era Armored Unit, replaces Tank)
  Cost 375
  Requires Oil
  Strength 80, not 70
  Move 6, not 5
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses

* The Unit comes under your control at full strength with Movement points at 0.


Greece
Basileus Megas Alexandros III
(356 - 323 BCE)
Orthodoxy

Greece boasts upfront power with long-term Diplomatic incentives. Since they gain their superior units in the Ancient and Classical eras, its best to make a big early push. Companion Cavalry are absolutely devastating and, while Hoplites may seem like a modest improvement, they’re actually very effective and very economical. Consider taking out Civs with late-game advantages before they can be teched to. If you can’t, keeping nice with the City-States will give you all the friends you’ll need to make up the difference after you enter the Medieval Era.

A diplomatic victory is very economical when playing as the Greeks since investments in city-states last much longer, and are recovered much easier. While it’s a long victory to make happen, it’ll be made easier if your opponents are militaristic, and you can liberate some city states from occupation. Just don’t get stuck in prolonged war with their conquerors. Remember after a city-state is liberated, it will always vote for you in the UN.

While you don’t have to go diplomatic, as the Greeks, it’s in your better interest to make allies with City-States that will give the best turnaround: resources you need or strategic 'heal stations' perhaps. If you decided to rush a victory other than Diplomatic, consider what kind of City-States you’ve become friends with. If they’re mostly cultural, perhaps that’s a good route to take. If they’re militaristic, consider using their help in removing your rivals. Don't let enemies make friendly with City-States near your territories or it can act as their forward operating base. Of course, this strategy works both ways...

Suggested Policies: Honor, Patronage, Order
Suggested Wonders: Eiffel Tower, Great Library, Statue of Zeus
Suggested Beliefs: Papal Primacy, Holy Warriors, Religious Unity

• Hellenic League
  Diplomatic relations with City-States degrade 50% slower and are recovered 50% faster
• Hoplite (Ancient Era Melee Unit, replaces Spearman)
  Cost 56
  Strength 13, not 11
  Move 2
  +50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units
• Companion Cavalry (Classical Era Mounted Unit, replaces Horseman)
  Cost 75
  Requires Horses
  Strength 14, not 12
  Move 5, not 4
  Likely to spawn Great Generals
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities

Huns
Attila
(unknown - 453)
Tengriism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

The terror of the east, do not expect to make friends with any of your immediate neighbors: none will trust you. What is there to say, really? Extra Production from pastures will make raising an army easy work. With Animal Husbandry already teched, you can get started right away, and know immediately where to place your second city so it has access to Horses. The start of the game goes fast for Atilla, and it goes well.

The difficult task of taking down cities is made nearly effortless with the introduction of the Battering Ram. It outright replaces the Spearman in both spirit and function, but you won't miss your early anti-Horse unit very much. The Ram does quadruple damage against Cities and, since they strike at melee, they're capable of personally taking the city for you. Backed by the Horse Archer, a tougher Chariot Archer with Accuracy I and no movement penalty, you can be sure your Battering Rams aren't bothered while they get down to work. This is good because the Ram won't last long against enemy units: they can't fight back and their 10 Strength is pretty iffy against Horsemen and Swordsmen.

Try not to completely annihilate your neighbors. Take their capital and hobble their armies, but let them keep planting cities for you to take later on. Get your Heroic Epic done early and puppet everything you find or you'll never enjoy Autocracy later on in the game. Also, be sure you watch your Happiness and Gold as big offenses can bankrupt you in more ways than one. Just because you can eat everything at the buffet doesn't mean you should.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Patronage, Autocracy
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Great Pyramids, Statue of Zeus
Suggested Beliefs: Church Property, Religious Community, Just War

• Scourge of God
  Begin the game with Animal Husbandry already Teched
  Pastures yield a bonus +1 Production
  Conquered Cities are Razed twice as fast
• Horse Archer (Ancient Era Mounted Archery Unit, replaces Chariot Archer)
  Cost 56
  Does not require Horses
  Strength 7/10, not 6/10
  Range 2
  Move 4
  +15% combat bonus VS units in open terrain (Accuracy I)
  No defensive bonuses
  Rough Terrain Movement penalty removed
  Cannot Melee attack
• Battering Ram (Ancient Era Melee Siege Unit, replaces Spearman)*
  Cost 75, not 56
  Strength 10, not 11
  Move 2
  +33% combat bonus VS ranged attacks (Cover I)
  +300% combat bonus VS Cities
  +50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units removed
  -33% combat penalty while defending
  No defensive bonuses
  Limited visibility
  Can only attack Cities

* The Battering Ram is doubly unique in that it is a Melee Siege unit. It upgrades to the Trebuchet, instead of the Pikeman.


Inca
Sapa Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui
(1438 - 1471)
Viracochaism

Requires the Civilization and Scenario Pack: Spain and Inca

Similar to the other pre-Columbian Civs, the Incas are rather unique. Their benefits for being near Hills and Mountains will help choose for you where you want to expand. The nice thing about having bonuses from Hills is that, unlike the Iroquois' bonus from Forests, Hills can't be removed by your rivals. Not everywhere you'll want to settle will be immediately next to each other, but Inca's waived or reduced Road and Railroad costs makes settling far apart much cheaper. All these Hills, don't forget will also grant a lot of Production.

The Terrace Farm makes hills even more valuable, netting you absurd amounts of Food, if it's adjacent to more than one Mountain tile. Your increased vertical growth may mean limiting your horizontal growth won't hold you back like it might with other Civs, meaning more Golden Ages and more Policies.

The Slinger is a real strange unit. If it ever sees melee combat, its sure to instantly die, but it usually won't. Its chance to automatically flee combat means a Slinger can be left out in the open on purpose in order to goad the enemy into attacking it. Pair this with moving over hills without penalty, a huge boon all Incan units benefit from, you're a guerrilla fiend. There's countless scenarios where this is a huge help, from retreating to advancing. You'll be surprised how often being able to reach the other side of the hills will save your unit from near-to-certain death.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Notre Dame, Machu Picchu, Temple of Artemis
Suggested Beliefs: Tithe, Religious Community, Itinerant Preachers

• The Great Andean Road
  Units ignore Terrain costs of Hills Tiles*
  Roads and Railroads not built on Hills have their Maintenance costs reduced by 50%
  Roads and Railroads built on Hills have their Maintenance costs removed entirely
• Slinger (Ancient Era Archery Unit, replaces Archer)
  Cost 40
  Strength 4/7, not 5/7
  Range 2
  Move 2
  Chance to automatically retreat one Tile if attacked at Melee†
  Cannot Melee attack
• Terrace Farm (Classical Era Tile Improvement)
  Unlocks with Construction
  Adds +1 Food to Hill Tile yields
  Adds a bonus +1 Food to Tile yields for each adjacent Mountain Tile
  If adjacent to fresh water, adds an additional +1 Food to Tile yields after you finish researching Civil Service
  If not adjacent to fresh water, adds an additional +1 Food to Tile yields after you finish researching Fertilizer

* Units will still pay no additional Movement cost on a Jungle or Forest Tile if Hills are also present.
† The percent chance of successfully retreating decreases against higher-Move enemies and with fewer empty adjacent tiles.

[zephyrtr]

India
Mahatma Mohandas Gandhi
(1869 - 1948)
Hinduism

While not immediately apparent, India was built for wide expansion. Their unique trait makes Cities cost more Happiness to maintain, but your population creates very little Unhappiness, so little that you can 'export' Happiness from Colosseums and Theaters to support other cities. The flip side of this is if you stay small, you can have huge populations kept very happy very easily. This makes Culture wins much easier, since you'll have population to spare for Specialists.

Indian defense is superb, both early and mid-game; even when built small, they're a hard nut to crack. While India’s offense is nothing special, it’s important to remember if your military is too small, you run the risk of being warred upon by other countries. That makes opening Honor wiser than one might immediately think: Military Caste gets you free Happiness and +2 Culture, and eventually Honor policies will wipe the Maintenance of Garrisoned units. When you'll be expected to want a Mughal Fort in every City you own, Honor is definitely worth it.

Units like the War Elephant set the tone for India’s strategy: quality over quantity. While they cost more, it’s important to have the most efficient army so you're not wasting too much Gold and time on a big slew of Units. War Elephants aren't going to move very fast, but they don’t need to. They can hold their own against Warriors, but deal big early-game damage from range. And they still move faster than Archers. Even with you Mughal Forts, a standing army is necessary for defense so build those units and be ready to fight for the best land on the board.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Piety, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Great Mosque of Djenne, Neuschwanstein, Sistine Chapel
Suggested Beliefs: World Church, Cathedrals, Holy Order

• Population Growth
  Unhappiness from Population is halved; Unhappiness from Cities is doubled
• War Elephant (Ancient Era Mounted Archery Unit, replaces Chariot Archer)
  Cost 70, not 56
  Does not require Horses
  Strength 9/11, not 6/10
  Range 2
  Move 3, not 4
  Cannot Melee attack
  No defensive bonuses
  Rough Terrain Movement penalty removed
• Mughal Fort (Medieval Era Building, replaces Castle)
  Cost 150, not 160
  Requires Walls
  Maintenance 0
  +2 Culture
  +7 City Strength
  +25 City hit points
  +3 Gold after you finish researching Flight

Indonesia
Mahapatih Gajah Mada
(c. 1290 – 1364)
Hinduism

Requires the Brave New World Expansion Pack

Write-up coming soon!

• Spice Islanders
  Your first three Cities settled on landmasses different from your Capital are each provided with unique Luxuries*
• Kris Swordsman (Classical Era Melee Unit, replaces Swordsman)
  Cost 75
  Requires Iron
  Strength 14
  Move 2
  Gains a random Promotion after its first battle
• Candi (Medieval Era Building, replaces Garden)
  Cost 120
  Requires River
  Maintenance 1
  +25% Great People generation
  +Faith

*If captured, these Cities cannot be razed. The new owner takes control of the Luxury.


Iroquois
Hoyaneh Hayo’wetha
(Unknown)
Hahgwehdiyuism

Iroquois have a very strong production base, probably the best in the game. The Great Warpath will make you want to always build in Forests, or Jungles which might make Universities especially appealing. Doing so will make you pretty much unmatched on your home turf, but will also pose some real tough calls on where to send your settlers.

Be sure to rush Engineering fast since you won't want to build Trading Posts on every single Forest. Building Longhouses will net you obscene amounts of Production, as well as Great Engineers. This will also mean Trade Routes will be easy as pie to set up, and for half or less the usual maintenance, if any at all. Remember Forests or Jungles outside your borders will require a road built on them, or you can just buy the tile. When your borders expand culturally, be sure to remove roads on such tiles, as they’ll have become a waste of money.

The Mohawk is where the Iroquois get scary: a Swordsman with no dependence on Iron, and a big home-field bonus is superb. You'll need Iron to upgrade them to Longswordsmen, of course, so if supply is scarce, send Mohawks to conquer some Iron-rich territories. The Iroquois have so much stacked on Forests that it almost seems not worth it to settle again if you can’t find a locale surrounded by Forests. Because of this, you need to let the map decide for you where you're going to expand to, and if everyone else has control of the forested areas, that means war. If domination doesn't pan out, shoot for Science; your production will be a huge help.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Rationalism, Order
Suggested Wonders: Angkor Wat, Forbidden Palace, Machu Picchu
Suggested Beliefs: Initiation Rites, Religious Community, Itinerant Preachers

• The Great Warpath
  Friendly Forest and Jungle Tiles provide a Movement bonus equal to that of a Road
  After the Wheel, Friendly Forest and Jungle Tiles serve as if they had a Road built on them when determining Trade Routes*
• Mohawk Warrior (Classical Era Melee Unit, replaces Swordsman)
  Cost 75
  Does not require Iron
  Strength 14
  Move 2
  +33% combat bonus in Forests or Jungle Tiles
• Longhouse (Medieval Era Building, replaces Workshop)
  Cost 100, not 120
  Maintenance 2
  Specialist 1 Engineer
  +2 Production
  Forest Tiles yield a bonus +1 Production, not +10% to the City's total Production

* In this way, you may have a trade route between two of your cities without building a single road by ensuring there's an unbroken chain of Forest and Jungle tiles connecting both of your cities; note these tiles also have to be within your borders. If there's a gap in this chain, only the missing 'link' needs a road built on it in order to complete the trade route.


Japan
Oda Nobunaga Daimyo
(1534 - 1582)
Shintoism

Built for war, nobody has the stamina Japan does. Bushido’s hidden benefit is that boats, one of the most difficult units to heal, remain strong on the go. Units on faraway islands don’t need to sit around and fortify much either. Basically it makes prolonged exploration and invasion both safer and faster. Since Japan’s unique units are mid and late game, early game should concentrate on building your sciences and filling out Honor.

And Japanese special units are frightening. The Samurai is upgraded to have an inherent bonus to fighting in open terrain. This not only gets your units to Blitz and March faster, it also makes Samurai a terror in any situation. No matter how you come at them, they’re ready for it. And their higher chance of producing a Great General means they can be accompanied by one at all times. Use the others to fortify your front lines.

The Zero is great at what it does, but Fighters in general have a very specific purpose. They're not worth building, really, until you start seeing air activity from your opponents, or if you see helicopters roving around. Even so, they're exceptional at their primary function: clearing out enemy intercepting Fighters so your Bombers can fly in without contestation.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Rationalism, Autocracy
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Statue of Zeus, Pentagon
Suggested Beliefs: Pilgrimage, Holy Warriors, Just War

• Bushido
  Units fight at full Strength even while injured
• Samurai (Medieval Era Melee Unit, replaces Longswordsman)
  Cost 120
  Requires Iron
  Strength 21
  Move 2
  +20% combat bonus in Open Terrain (Shock I)
  Very likely to spawn Great Generals
• Zero (Atomic Era Air Unit, replaces Fighter)
  Cost 375
  Requires Oil
  Strength 45
  Range 8
  Interception (100)
  Air Sweep
  Air Recon
  +150% combat bonus VS Bombers and Helicopters
  +33% combat bonus VS Fighters

Korea
Sejong Daewang
(1397 - 1450)
Confucianism

Requires the Civilization and Scenario Pack: Korea

The only true science Civ besides Babylon, Korea receives a Tech boost equal to finishing a Research Agreement whenever you build a science building in your capitol, so expect that and try to time them with expensive techs. Your Specialists and Great Person Improvements all give extra Science, too, which is a lovely bonus. Academies will supercharge your Tech speed, but plop down Landmarks, Manufactories and Customs Houses as well. Given all the bonuses to Specialists and Great Person Improvements, Korea is capable of building some of the most impressive cities possible.

Korea is aided by some very strange unique units: a Trebuchet that's weak against Cities, and a Caravel that can't explore across oceans. The Hwach'a is superb at sitting inside a city and decimating besieging enemies. They don't require Iron, which means you won't have to waste your time trying to find it. In truth, Hwach'as are slower but stronger Crossbowmen so, especially after they get the Siege promotion, there's no reason you can't use them in an offensive campaign.

Turtle Ships defend your coasts exceptionally well. They're more like indestructible and extra-deadly Triremes than they are Caravels. This isn't such a great improvement since Caravels are your main mode of exploring the map, and foreign friends are most likely to sign Research Agreements with you. Also one more tech brings you Frigates which are flat out better than Turtle Ships, with the exception that Frigates need Iron. This is the one drawback of Korea, but at least your coasts will remain pirate-free.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Rationalism, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Temple of Artemis, Statue of Liberty, Tower of Pisa
Suggested Beliefs: Interfaith Dialogue, Guruship, Reliquary

• Scholars of the Jade Hall
  Specialists yield a bonus +2 Science
  Great Person Improvements yield a bonus +2 Science
  A tech boost is awarded whenever a Science Building or Science Wonder is completed at the Capital*
• Hwach'a (Medieval Era Siege Unit, replaces Trebuchet)
  Cost 120
  Strength 11/26, not 12/14
  Range 2
  Move 2
  +200% combat bonus VS Cities removed
  Cannot Melee attack
  No defensive bonuses
  Limited visibility removed
  Must set up before attacking
• Turtle Ship (Renaissance Era Melee Naval Unit, replaces Caravel)
  Cost 120
  Strength 36, not 20
  Move 4
  Extra Sight removed
  Chance to automatically retreat one Tile if attacked at Melee removed
  Cannot enter Deep Ocean Tiles

* Wonders that trigger this bonus include the Great Library, National College and Oxford University—not the Porcelain Tower. Buildings that trigger this bonus include the Library, University, Observatory, Public School and Research Lab. The Great Library's free Library does grant a second science boost, assuming a Library isn't already present in the Capital. These science boosts are identical to completing a Research Agreement, and so are affected by the Porcelain Tower and the Scientific Revolution Policy.


Maya
K'inich Janaab' Pakal
(603 - 683)
Itzamnaism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

The upfront bonuses of the Mayans can give a real leg-up during the most crucial part of the game. You begin being able to make Atlatls instantly, which actually makes Archery a real awful Tech, even though it's required to get The Wheel and therefore Roads and Trade Routes -- but that's okay! Mayans are about efficiency and security. Don't feel the need to expand as often as you might. Having scores of cheaply built Atlatls will mean anyone who messes with you early on will be regretting it.

The extra Science from Pyramids will dramatically improve your Tech rate, especially if you turn that faith into more Science with Beliefs like Interfaith Dialogue. Remember, if you open up Rationalism, you can use Faith to buy more Great Scientists. It's a very valuable resource! By the time the Renaissance hits you'll be in sore need of Spies to protect all the advanced Technologies you've grabbed, so keep them in your highest Science-producing Cities and prioritize Constabularies.

The prize is Theology. Afterwards, you'll notice your calendar isn't marked in years but in Mayan baktuns. Each time the leftmost number increases, you get a free great person of your choice. You must take each kind of great person once, so consider what you need early game compared to mid game: probably an Engineer for rushing a Wonder, a Scientist to get an early Academy or a Prophet for building up your Religion. An Artist for a Landmark can wait, and hold off on a Merchant until you get to know your neighboring City-States a bit better. Once everybody's picked, the process starts all over!

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Rationalism, Order
Suggested Wonders: Great Firewall, Great Mosque of Djenne, Porcelain Tower
Suggested Beliefs: Interfaith Dialogue, Asceticism, Holy Order

• Long Count
  After researching Theology, a Great Person of your choice appears at your Capitol every baktun* (394 years); each Great Person type can only be chosen once†
• Atlatl (Ancient Era Archery Unit, replaces Archer)
  Unlocks with Agriculture, not Archery*
  Cost 36, not 40
  Strength 5/7
  Range 2
  Move 2
  Cannot Melee attack
• Pyramid (Ancient Era Building, replaces Shrine)
  Cost 40
  Maintenance 1
  +2 Faith, not +1
  +2 Science

* When playing as the Mayans, your in-game calendar is measured in Mayan baktuns, not years, so when the leftmost digit goes up, a Great Person is born. Since each turn covers fewer years as the game progresses, this Attribute provides bonus Great People quite quickly at the start of the game, but more slowly as turns progress. Like the Liberty finisher and the Leaning Tower of Pisa, these 'free' Great People do increase the cost to produce your next Great Person.
† Once you have chosen every kind of Great Person through the Long Count, the selection will reset itself.

[zephyrtr]

Mongolia
Borjigian Temujin Genghis Khan
(1162 - 1227)
Tengriism

Downloads automatically for free with all versions of Civilization V

The destroyer of Greece, Siam and Austria, the Mongols will certainly put a damper on anyone's day who likes to play nice with City States. A 30% combat bonus against them is too ripe not to utilize, and City States are nearly always placed in areas high in Strategic or Luxury Resources. Just try not to attack City-States friendly with rivals, as it will force you into a war you won't want to deal with.

The Keshik is frightening, in many ways similar to the Camel Archer, only more so. It's a completely reworked unit, which deals slightly less damage than the Knight, only at range. Keshiks also have a doubled likelihood of spawning a Great General, and Upgrades twice as fast. It also has an increased Move, on top of Mongol Terror, making its final speed a whopping 5! Stampede across the world, but be careful! The Keshik has a piddling 8 Melee Strength. He'll get wrecked if even a Spearman gets close to him, let alone a Pikeman. But conquering is a snap with these guys: move 'em in, attack, move em back. Rinse and repeat. Once the city's soft enough, send in your melee. It really is that easy.

Since all your units are moving so fast, the Great General has been improved into the Khan, which can keep up with your Keshiks. It not only has more than double the speed of a normal Great General, but it also helps adjacent (but not overlapping) units gain an additional +2 Health each time they fortify! You have every excuse to always have one of these bad boys rolling with your raiding party.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Commerce, Autocracy
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Great Library, Statue of Zeus
Suggested Beliefs: Initiation Rites, Holy Warriors, Just War

• Mongol Terror
  Military Units gain a +30% combat bonus VS City-States and their Units
  Mounted Units gain +1 Movement
• Khan (Great Person, replaces Great General)
  Move 5, not 2*
  Nearby Units gain a +15% combat bonus
  Adjacent Units heal an additional +15 health per turn†
• Keshik (Medieval Era Mounted Archery Unit, replaces Knight)‡
  Cost 120
  Requires Horses
  Strength 15/16, not 20
  Range 2
  Move 5, not 3*
  Double Experience from combat (Quick Study)
  Likely to spawn Great Generals
  Can move after attacking
  Cannot Melee attack
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities removed

* This includes the Movement bonus from Mongol Terror.
† The Khan will not give its Healing bonus to a Unit that is on the same Tile as the Khan.
‡ The Keshik is doubly unique in that it is a Mounted Archery unit. However, it still upgrades to the Cavalry.


Morocco
Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur Eddahbi
(1549 - 1603)
Islam

Requires the Brave New World Expansion Pack

Write-up coming soon!

• Gateway to Africa
  You gain a bonus +3 Gold and +1 Culture for each International Trade Route you make with different Civs or City-States
  Rival Civs gain a bonus +2 Gold from each Trade Route sent to one of your Cities
• Kasbah (Medieval Era Tile Improvement)
  Unlocks with Chivalry
  Adds +1 Food, +1 Production and +1 Gold to Desert Tile yields
  Grants a +50% combat bonus to units defending the tile, in a manner identical to the Fort Improvement
• Berber Cavalry (Industrial Mounted, replaces Cavalry)
  Cost 225
  Requires Horses
  Strength 34
  Move 4
  +15% combat bonus while in Desert tiles
  +15% combat bonus while within your borders
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities

Netherlands
Prins Willem van Oranje de Zwijger
(1533 - 1584)
Protestantism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

Those captains of industry, Netherlands has very good bonuses that seriously help you build into a huge empire. Retaining +2 Happiness when you trade out your last copy of a Luxury means you'll be trading twice or even three times as much as you're used to. If you can trade Luxuries 1 for 1, even if it's your last copy, that's a net +2 Happiness to your empire and it builds up foreign relations. Do that twice and you just traded for a full Luxury's worth of Happiness for twice the diplomatic favor. With even just ten Luxuries in your Trade Network, Commerce's Protectionism will give you a bonus 20 Happiness!

The Polder is nothing fancy to start: +4 total Food from the Tile. Since you're likely going to have Civil Service at this point, you'll be expecting +5 total yield from your farms, so it actually looks kinda bad. Once you have Economics, those Polders will bloom (literally) to a +7 total yield Tile, almost as good as a Bonus Resource. So be sure you're beginning to expand into Wetlands- or preferably Flood Plains-heavy areas before the Renaissance, and you'll be in quite a shock to see how much of a leap your Cities suddenly make.

Privateers are so good you might feel a little disgusted with yourself for using them. Ignore those feelings. Not only can you steal your enemies' ships (free navy anyone?) they're devastating against Coastal Cities, especially after Coastal Raider III with a total +100% bonus VS Cities. Even if someone beats you there, you'll be expanding onto new shores with ease.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Chichen Itza, Great Lighthouse, Porcelain Tower
Suggested Beliefs: Ceremonial Burial, Peace Gardens, Defender of the Faith

• Dutch East India Company
  Luxuries you trade away still grant your empire 50% of their usual Happiness*
• Polder (Medieval Era Tile Improvement)
  Unlocks with Guilds
  Adds +3 Food to Marsh or Flood Plain Tile yields
  Adds an additional +1 Production and +2 Gold to Tile yields after you finish researching Economics
• Sea Beggar (Renaissance Era Melee Naval Unit, replaces Privateer)
  Cost 250
  Strength 25
  Move 5
  Defeated enemy Naval units have a chance† of joining your side (Prize Ships)
  +20% combat bonus VS coastal Cities; steals +33% of damage dealt as Gold (Coastal Raider I)
  +20% combat bonus VS coastal Cities; steals +33% of damage dealt as Gold (Coastal Raider II)
  May heal outside Friendly Territory (Supply)

* The empires you export Luxuries to benefit normally from the trade. The Protectionism Policy grants an additional +1 Happiness per exported Luxury. Since you cannot trade City-State resource gifts, Dutch East India Company does not interact with Cultural Diplomacy.
† 50% chance of conversion VS equal-strength units; as low as 28% against tougher units, and as high as 80% against weaker units.


Ottomans
Kanuni Sultan Suleyman II
(1494 - 1566)
Islam

The Ottomans are a rare Civ which get both of their unique units in the same Era. This can make them very powerful if prepped for properly. The early Ottoman game ought to be solidifying your naval dominance while there are Barbarians to turn to your cause. Pushing onto the seas early is smart since Barbarian boats are a virtual goldmine. Get free units off the high seas, as well as gold, and nobody will be expanding to new continents without your say so. And with Naval units costing only a third of their usual Maintenance, you'll be hard-pressed to find yourself with too many boats, but if you do, just delete them for some fast cash.

As you near the Renaissance, be ready to switch to a full offensive. The Janissary takes a rather weak and inexpensive unit and turns it into a bit of a powerhouse. As long as they can hit killing blows, they’re immediately healed up again. Use the Sipahi’s superior move to go in, see what’s happening and take out enemy Cavalrymen or Siege units if you can catch them by surprise. This way you can ensure you don't accidentally walk your Janissaries into a death trap. Conquer fast, and if you can’t win before the industrial era, set yourself in a far enough lead that you can’t lose.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Commerce, Autocracy
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Great Lighthouse, Pentagon
Suggested Beliefs: Interfaith Dialogue, Pagodas, Just War

• Barbary Corsairs
  Naval Unit maintenance costs are reduced by 67%
  All Naval Units gain the Prize Ships Promotion
• Janissary (Renaissance Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Musketman)
  Cost 150
  Strength 24
  Move 2
  +25% combat bonus while attacking
  Heals 50 damage if it destroys an enemy Unit
• Sipahi (Renaissance Era Mounted Unit, replaces Lancer)
  Cost 185
  Requires Horses
  Strength 25
  Move 5, not 4
  +33% combat bonus VS Mounted Units (Formation I)
  +1 Extra Sight
  No Movement cost to Pillage Improvements
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities

Persia
Kshayathiya Kshayathiyanam Darius I
(550 - 486 BCE)
Zoroastrianism

Persia gains huge benefits from a Happy empire. Golden Ages not only last longer, but also increase offensive potential; it’s important to always be high on the Happiness charts as Persia. Circus, Colosseum and all that aren’t just buildings for staying out of the red; Persia’s Golden Ages are horrifically good—and lengthy too! This effort is paired well with Satrap’s Court, which not only boosts Happiness but can help pay for these Colosseums. If you can keep yourself in a Golden Age for much of the game, and play smart, there’s no way your enemies will out-pace you. Pair that with their unique military bonus, and your offensive campaigns become that much easier.

Persia enjoys an early game militaristic advantage from their Immortals. Their slight strength advantage and speedy heal rate means they can rush across the map taking out other cities faster than your rivals can prepare for it. If a Golden Age can be sparked during the reign of your Immortals, it only makes early-game domination that much more certain. It's tough since getting the Chichen Itza means making your Immortals obsolete, so build up your army before you reach Civil Service.

Pushing for Golden Ages means Persia won’t want to get too big, since the Happiness bucket gets deeper with each new City. Policies are also very helpful in keeping 25+ surplus Happiness. Many Policies also spark Golden Ages. Try to save these for after you've built the Chichen Itza, and you may pile up over even 100 turns of Golden Age. If you can snag the Taj Mahal as well, it's really not that hard to do!

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Piety, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Chichen Itza, Eiffel Tower, Taj Mahal
Suggested Beliefs: Peace Loving, Peace Gardens, Reliquary

• Achaemenid Legacy
  Golden Ages last 50% longer
  During a Golden Age, all Units gain +1 Move and a +10% combat bonus
• Immortal (Ancient Era Melee Unit, replaces Spearman)
  Cost 56
  Strength 12, not 11
  Move 2
  +50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units
  Double healing rate
• Satrap's Court (Renaissance Era Building, replaces Bank)
  Cost 200
  Requires Market
  Maintenance 0
  Specialist 1 Merchant
  +2 Gold
  +2 Happiness
  +25% Gold

Poland
Król Kazimierz III Piast Wielki
(1330 – 1370)
Protestantism

Requires the Brave New World Expansion Pack

Write-up coming soon!

• Solidarity
  A free Social Policy is granted each time you advance into a new Era
• Ducal Stables (Classical Era Building, replaces Stables)
  Cost 100
  Maintenance 1
  +15% Production when training Mounted Units
  +15 Experience to all Mounted Units
  Horse, Sheep and Cow tiles yield +1 Production and Gold
• Winged Hussar (Renaissance Era Mounted Unit, replaces Lancer)
  Cost 185
  Strength 28, not 24
  Move 5, not 4
  Chance to automatically force Enemies to retreat one Tile*
  +25 combat bonus VS Mounted Units (Formation I)
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities

* More precise details on this feature coming soon.


Polynesia
Kalani Paiʻea Wohi o Kaleikini Kealiʻikui Kamehameha
(c. 1758 – 1819)
Ioism

Requires the Civilization and Scenario Pack: Polynesia

While America's not too shabby and Spain's pretty darn good, Polynesia's truly the king of early-game exploration. All units, be they Trireme or Horseman, Scout or Settler, can immediately Embark and cross into Ocean tiles. This can offer some serious Diplomatic possibilities, as you're more than likely to be first to have met all Civilizations. It also means you can, if the map favors you, settle on an island where no other Civ can go until the Renaissance. All this exploration is likely to net a lot of bonus Gold from meeting City-States. It's a good idea to roll this into Research Agreements with far-off rival Civs since your small and far-flung empire might not get you the beakers per turn you'd like.

The Moai, once you get it, act as mini Monuments—with tiles producing a bonus +3 Culture easily, and sometimes +4. They'll often be going where you'd normally place your Trading Posts, so try to use Harbors over Roads to offset this. Since so many of your Tiles will be devoted to Culture already, instead of making Landmarks with your Great Artists, why not start some Golden Ages?

The Maori Warrior is helpful more on defense than offense, because the combat penalty they give nearby enemies goes hand-in-hand with the combat bonus Moais give to your troops. With a strong navy, you could take your rivals' coastal cities, but Polynesia often lacks in Production and Gold early on because of their need to settle coastlines, so you may find this to be a bit tricky. It's probably in your best interest to hole up with four to six strategically placed cities and wait out the Utopia Project.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Eiffel Tower, Sistine Chapel, Sydney Opera House
Suggested Beliefs: World Church, Swords into Plowshares, Itinerant Preachers

• Wayfinding
  Units can immediately Embark over Coasts and Oceans*
  Embarked Units gain +1 Sight
  Moais you control grant a +10% combat bonus to nearby Units†
• Maori Warrior (Ancient Era Melee Unit, replaces Warrior)
  Cost 40
  Strength 8
  Move 2
  -10% combat penalty to adjacent enemies†
• Moai (Classical Era Tile Improvement)
  Unlocks with Construction
  Adds +1 Culture to Coast-adjacent Land Tile yields
  Adds an additional +1 Culture to Tile yields for each adjacent Moai
  Adds an additional +1 Gold to Tile yields after you finish researching Flight

* The ability to travel over Oceans extends to Triremes, Galleasses and Work Boats as well.
† These combat modifiers do not stack if multiple Maori Warriors or Moais are present.

[zephyrtr]

Portugal
Rainha Reinante Maria I Bragança o Piedoso
(1734 – 1816)
Catholicism

Requires the Brave New World Expansion Pack

Write-up coming soon!

• Mare Clausum
  Resource diversity* grants your International Trade Routes twice as much Gold.
• Feitoria (Medieval Era Tile Improvement)
  Unlocks with Navigation
  Built inside the borders of a City-State to gain access to their Luxuries as if you were Allies†
• Nau (Renaissance Era Naval Unit, replaces Caravel)
  Cost 120
  Strength 20
  Move 5, not 4
  Can'trade exotic goods' with a foreign City for a one-time lump Gold and XP payout‡

* Trade Routes provide bonus gold if you have Luxuries your trading partner does not; Portugal doubles this bonus.
† If you are allied with the City-State, you gain two copies of each Luxury.
‡ More Gold and XP are earned the farther the unit is from your Capital. This ability may only be used once per unit.


Rome
Imperator Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus
(63 BCE - 14 CE)
Catholicism

Rome is strong aggressor. Both a high-power Melee unit and a high-power Siege unit all during the same era means serious conquering power. There’s no reason not to push scientifically straight for Iron-Working and Mathematics. This militaristic advantage will make you pretty much unstoppable for a short while. Ballistas to weaken cities, and Legions to take them.

After you’re done conquering, use the Legions to build out roads to more easily transport new units and to get trade routes going. If a City-State wants a road, it’s not a bad idea to spare a Legion and build it out. They won’t be in danger of Barbarians, and the free Influence may be quite a boon! Just remember that while Legions can build roads, they cannot remove them!

The Classical Age will come and go very fast. What does Rome do after? It kind of depends on what you got during your conquering turns. It also depends on what you’ve chosen to build in your capital. Since Roman settlements get a staggering 25% Production bonus on buildings you already have in your capital, so let your capital focus on infrastructure. Build your armies elsewhere. Do that, and nobody will be able to raise a powerful city faster than you.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Machu Picchu, Statue of Liberty, Statue of Zeus
Suggested Beliefs: Ceremonial Burial, Divine Inspiration, Just War

• The Glory of Rome
  Cities gain a +25% Production bonus while constructing a Building that has already been built at your Capital
• Ballista (Classical Era Siege Unit, replaces Catapult)
  Cost 75
  Strength 8/10, not 7/8
  Range 2
  Move 2
  +200% combat bonus VS Cities
  Cannot Melee attack
  No defensive bonuses
  Limited visibility
  Must set up before attacking
• Legion (Classical Era Melee Unit, replaces Swordsman)
  Cost 75
  Requires Iron
  Strength 17, not 14
  Move 2
  May build Road and Fort Improvements*

* This ability functions exactly as if the Legion were a Worker, so they benefit from The Great Pyramid Wonder and the Citizenship Policy.


Russia
Czarina Yekaterina II Velikaya Bol'shoy
(1729 - 1796)
Orthodoxy

Russia has a strong hold on Resources and the potential for an impressive infrastructure and army. If you look closely the Krepost allows them to snag large swaths of land very cheaply. This affords you the ability to be wide AND tall, just be sure to build Aqueducts so your population growth doesn't slow down so much. Also, don't forget to build your Heroic Epic earlier on, before it becomes a real labor to finish.

Cheap border expansion is quite a boon, since Russia won't know right away where the strategic resources are. It’s a strong strategy to resource choke your rivals by gaining a monopoly on certain resources, then trading them only to your allies ... for a price. Going to war to maintain your monopoly is a good motivation, just be sure you don't piss off everyone so much they're unwilling to trade with you.

The Cossack is very strong so long as it's paired with speedy ranged units. Let a Gatling take some shots at an enemy, then let the Cossack go to work with significantly increased Strength. Just be mindful of Lancers as their bonus to mounted units means even Cossacks need to think twice.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Brandenburg Gate, Himeji Castle, CN Tower
Suggested Beliefs: Ceremonial Burial, Feed the World, Defender of the Faith

• Siberian Riches
  Strategic Resource Tiles yield a bonus +1 Production
  Horse, Iron and Uranium Tiles provide double quantities
• Krepost (Ancient Era Building, replaces Barracks)
  Cost 75
  Maintenance 1
  +15 XP to all Military Units
  25% lower Culture and Gold costs for expanding borders
• Cossack (Industrial Era Mounted Unit, replaces Cavalry)
  Cost 225
  Requires Horses
  Strength 34
  Move 4
  +33% combat bonus VS damaged Units
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities

Siam
Pho Khun Ram Khamhaeng
(c. 1242 - 1298)
Buddhism

Siam is a truly unique Civ with very powerful bonuses, if you know how to play them. They’re the only Civ other than Greece that has natural bonuses to City-State diplomacy, and while you need lots of money to do it, the payoff is pretty huge. The amount of food you get from Maritime City-States is superb for much needed Specialists, and you can easily gain policies or build a religion if Siam keeps a few allied Cultural or Religous City-States. Make sure you have enough gold coming in to keep up with bribes and Siam is pretty unstoppable. Also, the sooner you hit new eras, the bigger the payoffs from your City-States, so teching unevenly is advisable.

The Naresuan’s Elephant is a powerhouse. It’s likely you’ll build towards science or culture, and so high mobility, offensive units really aren’t what Siam will be looking for. The Naresuan’s Elephant is slow, but it can take on pretty much anything else that will be around in the Medieval Era. Even Pikemen will have to worry about them, and if rival Knights come in range, they're dead.

The Wat helps boost not just your Science but your Culture as well. This is important because this makes your Unique Universities count as a Culture building as far as Tradition's Legalism is concerned. Build Monuments, Amphitheaters and Libraries in your first four cities, unlock Wats and then take Legalism as your next Policy—it will instantly build four Wats in those cities, which will give you a huge instantaneous boost to your Science. Turn on some Specialists and watch the Techs and Great Scientists fly in.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Patronage, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Hagia Sophia, Great Library, Statue of Liberty
Suggested Beliefs: Papal Primacy, Cathedrals, Religious Unity

• Father Governs Children
  Culture, Faith and Food gifts from City-States are increased by 50%
• Naresuan's Elephant (Medieval Era Mounted Unit, replaces Knight)
  Cost 120
  Does not require Horses
  Strength 25, not 20
  Move 3, not 4
  +50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units
  Can move after attacking
  No defensive bonuses
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities
• Wat (Medieval Era Building, replaces University)
  Cost 160
  Requires Library
  Maintenance 2
  Specialist 2 Scientists
  +33% Science
  Jungle Tiles yield a bonus +2 Science
  +3 Culture

Songhai
Askia Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr Ture
(c. 1442 - 1538)
Islam

The Songhais are another Militaristic Civ that seeks a Culture win through Pupetting. Playing as the Songhais promotes behavior that will anger just about all other Civs and City-States. The Songhais are conquerors -- no question about it -- but playing them effectively nearly guarantees that other Civs will band together against you. To win, you’ll need to maintain militaristic superiority.

Songhais get triple the gold from pillaging and Puppet Cities don't raise the cost of Policies, so it’s worthwhile to have someone building cities you can conquer and Puppet, as opposed to settling your own. Rush across a Civ, sack everything they've got, but let them live; they may build more cities you'll want to steal! The Mandekalu Cavalry’s lack of penalty VS Cities make doing this a breeze. Considering the Culture you get from Honor for killing Barbarians, and you also get triple gold from Barbarian Encampments, be sure to spare a unit or two for creeping—it's definitely worth your time. You may want to use this extra gold to build Research Agreements with other Civs so you don't get pulled into wars you don't want. You may just want to buy more units and crush them!

The Mud Pyramid Mosque is a phenomenal building for Puppets to raise your culture without bankrupting you. Even if Songhai goes full militarism, you still need good policies to increase the effectiveness of your troops and keep your people happy. Be sure your Puppets have lots of food so they don't stagnate, and when you do settle a city be absolutely sure it's worth your while.

Suggested Policies: Honor, Piety, Order
Suggested Wonders: Cristo Redentor, Hagia Sophia, Sistine Chapel
Suggested Beliefs: World Church, Mosques, Holy Order

• River Warlord
  Gold from pillaging Cities and clearing Barbarian Encampments is tripled
  Embarked Units gain +1 Sight and a +100% defensive combat bonus
  Land Military Units gain the Amphibious Promotion
• Mud Pyramid Mosque (Classical Era Building, replaces Temple)
  Cost 100
  Requires Shrine
  Maintenance 0, not 2
  +2 Faith
  +2 Culture
• Mandekalu Cavalry (Medieval Era Mounted Unit, replaces Knight)
  Cost 110, not 120
  Requires Horses
  Strength 20
  Move 4
  Can move after attacking
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities removed
  No defensive bonuses

Spain
Reina Isabel I Trastámara
(1451 - 1504)
Catholicism

Requires the Civilization and Scenario Pack: Spain and Inca or the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

Spain is a tricky Civ, and requires fast scouting and smart teching to succeed. Their primary expansion may be forced to play second fiddle to things like the Great Library or Universities, but their second expansion is the one that packs a wallop. Spain gets a huge gold boost for discovering Natural Wonders. 500 gold early on can be used for a lot of things and, since many wonders lie on or off the coast, Triremes can make you serious cash, the Caravel even more so. You'll get double Yields from National Wonders so once they're found, settle them. Cerro de Potosi is a 20 gold yield tile to Spain. That one tile makes the whole city worth it.

The Knight has been remolded into the Conquistador, which will help this effort of rapid and faraway exploration and settlement. They have no penalty against Cities, can see farther and can even defend while Embarked. Shockingly, Conquistadors can also make cities just like a Settler, with one stipulation: the city can't be on the same continent as your Capital. Not much of a drawback, really.

If the Conquistador's meant to quickly turn new continents to your side, the Tercio's meant to hold them. Their improved strength and Spearman promotion make them near-instant death to just about anything on four legs. They trump just about anything until Riflemen, so post several at each of your colonies before the natives come to reclaim their land.

Suggested Policies: Liberty, Commerce, Order
Suggested Wonders: Alhambra, Great Lighthouse, Kremlin
Suggested Beliefs: Initiation Rites, Religious Community, Missionary Zeal

• Seven Cities of Gold
  Discovering a Natural Wonder provides a reward of 100 Gold, or 500 Gold if you are first to discover it
  Happiness and Tile yields from Natural Wonders are doubled
• Conquistador (Medieval Era Mounted Unit, replaces Knight)
  Cost 135, not 120
  Requires Horses
  Strength 20
  Move 4
  +2 Sight
  Double defense while Embarked
  May found Cities as if it were a Settler*
  Can move after attacking
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities removed
  No defensive bonuses
• Tercio (Renaissance Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Musketman)
  Cost 160, not 150
  Strength 26, not 24
  Move 2
  +50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units

* The Conquistador cannot settle new Cities on the same landmass as your Capital.


Sweden
Kung Gustaf II Adolf den Store
(1594 - 1632)
Protestantism

Requires the Gods & Kings Expansion Pack

If you're a late bloomer, Sweden's the team for you. Play the first three or four eras peacefully. With Nobel Prize, make five Declarations of Friendship and you'll have a bonus to all Great People birth rates equal to Babylon's bonus to Scientists! And that's not to say you can't get it even higher! Now, the gut-wrenching part: do you use your Great Persons normally, or do you gift them to key City-States for a whopping 90 Influence? That's enough for an alliance and a half so you really should consider it, but if diplomacy's not your thing, well, Sweden's flexible like that.

Certainly amassing wealth and science and culture and friendships will anger someone. Those sleights you might experience throughout the middle ages can be rectified with the combined power of the Carolean and the Hakkapeliitta. If you built your Heroic Epic, you can easily churn out Riflemen with two upgrades, Morale and March straight out of the gate, which means your army will be fearsome despite not having warred much or at all the first 250 turns.

The Hakkapeliitta is nothing special unless you have a Great General with them, so you may want to snag one in preparation through Warrior Code or the Liberty finisher or the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and let your Hakka escort him around the front lines with a total +30% Great General bonus, as much as China's albeit only on one unit. Let them make swift work of enemy Crossbowmen and Knights so your Caroleans can get down to work. Conquering your corner of the world by the end of the Industrial Era will be a snap.

Suggested Policies: Tradition, Rationalism, Freedom
Suggested Wonders: Leaning Tower of Pisa, Brandenburg Gate,
Suggested Beliefs: Peace Loving, Swords into Plowshares, Religious Texts

• Nobel Prize
  Gifting a Great Person to a City State grants 90 Influence
  When making a Declaration of Friendship, Sweden and their friend gain a +10% bonus to Great Person generation*
• Hakkapeliitta (Renaissance Era Mounted Unit, replaces Lancer)
  Cost 185
  Requires Horses
  Strength 25
  Move 4
  +15% combat strength when sharing a Tile with a Great General†
  Shares Movement with Great Generals‡
  +33% combat bonus VS mounted units (Formation I)
  Can move after attacking
  -33% combat penalty VS Cities
  No defensive bonuses
• Carolean (Industrial Era Gunpowder Unit, replaces Rifleman)
  Cost 225
  Strength 34
  Move 2
  Heals every turn (March)

* This 10% bonus stacks for Sweden with each Declaration of Friendship they make.
† This bonus stacks with the combat bonus Great Generals normally give.
‡ Great Generals that begin the turn sharing a tile with a Hakkapeliitta gain a bonus 2 Movement.


Zulu
Shaka kaSenzangakhona
(c. 1787 – 1828)
Amadhlozi

Requires the Brave New World Expansion Pack

Write-up coming soon!

• ??????
  Units accrue Experience 25% faster than normal*
  Melee Unit Maintenance costs reduced by 50%
• Ikhanda (Ancient Era Building, replaces Barracks)
  Cost 75
  Maintenance 1
  Grants an Era-specific Promotion to all Military Units, not +15 XP
• Impi (Medieval Era Melee Unit, replaces Pikeman)
  Cost 90
  Strength 16/?
  Move 2
  +50% combat bonus VS Mounted Units
  Performs a bonus Ranged Attack prior to attacking at Melee

* It is unclear if this bonus XP is added to Great General and Admiral generation, but likely not.

[Onandoga]

Good Strat. Id make note that on china it would be a good idea to get the Honor Policy, as if you get the +15% combat next to a friendly unit + GG in a wall of chu-ko-nue, you can really DESTROY ****.

Overall, good strat!

[MadDjinn]

Good Strat. Id make note that on china it would be a good idea to get the Honor Policy, as if you get the +15% combat next to a friendly unit + GG in a wall of chu-ko-nue, you can really DESTROY ****.

Overall, good strat!

add double XP and very quickly the chu's are power units.

[ManOverGame]

Great guide, this sure will help a lot of people out.

[Freygea]

Very nice of you to share this with us. Thank you!

[Bohemians]

Wow... great work there!! Thanks a lot.

Just a quick question... is it me, or the Babylonian are NOT in the game? I have only 18 civs.. u mention 19? Or did I miss something somewhere...
Thanks again for both of you.
At your service, Bohemians

[Dreamer]

Babylonians are included in the Digital Deluxe version of the game.

Oh, and yes, nice guide!

[Welk]

Good read. Gave a nice insight into nations I haven't played yet and am now even more curious to test.

[Mythdracon]

Wow! Great read, lots of useful stats as well as analysis here. Someone should sticky this thread.

[zephyrtr]

Thanks everyone -- updated the guide so it's much easier to read. Hope you all enjoy trying out new Civs!

[zephyrtr]

Good Strat. Id make note that on china it would be a good idea to get the Honor Policy, as if you get the +15% combat next to a friendly unit + GG in a wall of chu-ko-nue, you can really DESTROY ****.

Overall, good strat!

Fixed thank you.

[I<at]

Great write up for newbies - midlevel gamers.

PS:
"Strength 6/10, not 6/12" of Cho Ko Nu should be in red bold as a drawback.

[zephyrtr]

PS: "Strength 6/10, not 6/12" of Cho Ko Nu should be in red bold as a drawback.

Fixed thank you.

[WorldWarIV]

What improvements do you guys suggest if I want to be an efficient warmonger? Another player was suggesting to only use trading posts, since they give a +2 bonus instead of a +1 for farms and mines. Are the lumbermills worth it at some point, or should I cut down any jungle and forest tiles I have?

Thanks!

[zephyrtr]

I'm bored so I'll try to help. By warmongering, I assume you mean playing militarily. That has less to do with your cities and more to do with what units you field and how, but you're asking more about city management.

If you want city ruling suggestions, the argument "Trading posts give +2 where farms only give +1" is malarkey. The Civil Service tech makes Farms adjacent to a River give a +1 additional food, and then once you have Fertilizer, all other farms gain +1 food. If the farm's on a flood plains, the food production can get even higher.

But besides, saying 2 gold is better than 1 food is comparing apples and oranges. What if I'm trying to make an apple pie? Then 1 apple is still better than 2 oranges. Follow? Gold doesn't win games (though it does help).

Jungles are amazing, because after you get Universities, they start producing +2 Science for you. Don't chop them down unless you have to to get at a luxury. Build a Trading Post instead.

Chopping forests give a one-time +20 Production to the city so doing that while you're building a Wonder is very smart, but it's difficult to raise a city's production, especially if it's surrounded by grasslands and not plains or hills. If that's the case, lumber mills are an asset -- otherwise the city cant build anything fast and will become dead weight.

Hope that helps?

[WorldWarIV]

Yes, thanks for the help

[zephyrtr]

Glad I could be of use. I don't mind giving advice about the game -- got it pretty well broken down at this point, though theres some intricacies I'm still working out.

[tonyagen]

Great guide.

Thank you.

[ManOverGame]

I think you should remove the diplomacy victory option for now, it's unachievable with the current state of the AI unless you can prove me wrong, just post a picture of a diplomatic victory.

[zephyrtr]

I think you should remove the diplomacy victory option for now, it's unachievable with the current state of the AI unless you can prove me wrong, just post a picture of a diplomatic victory.

I won Diplomatically very easily as Greece, and in my current Siam game, I could do so again if I wanted. Winning the UN vote is determined by how many City-States you have allied with you. Civs always vote for themselves no matter how friendly they are. It all comes down to your ability to maintain allegiance with city-states and your effectiveness at defending/liberating them. Then, of course, you gotta build the UN, wait 10 turns, and vote!

[zephyrtr]

Set up a tier list to help point out imbalances between Civs. I'd love to know what other people think about it, and am very open to pursuasion.

[dvang]

I keep seeing America being listed as just mediocre. People listing America always mention Manifest Destiny, which I admit isn't the most useful ability ... but people keep forgetting to mention the second part of their ability, and IMO, the much more useful and beneficial ... +1 sight for all land military units.

Early game this bonus is amazing for exploration and finding ruins before others. It is also extremely useful in early-mid game, when there are lots of barbarians running around, to keep them away from your cities (or at least from surprising you). In all eras, it is extremely useful to give you a bonus in intelligence against any enemies you are at war with. You can see deeper into their territory, and see layers of enemy units while potentially they cannot see you.

With the coming fix to minutemen's movement, minutemen are most mobile infantry unit in the game except for scouts. Sneak them through wooded and hilly tiles, and you an outmaneuver your enemies and perform hit and run tactics.

Honestly, I'd put America at least as a B civilization.

[Onandoga]

Iroquois -- Great Warpath saves a bit of gold/time, and useful for defense but that's all. Longhouse is situational, but exploitable. Mohawk Warrior improvement situational, but serviceable and is kept after promotion. Overall the Civ lacks flexibility.

i disagree completely.
http://forums.2kgames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=89367
http://forums.2kgames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94203

I hope this defended my point.

[MadDjinn]

I keep seeing America being listed as just mediocre. People listing America always mention Manifest Destiny, which I admit isn't the most useful ability ... but people keep forgetting to mention the second part of their ability, and IMO, the much more useful and beneficial ... +1 sight for all land military units.

Slightly more useful:

siege units. They all have short sight and their range tends to be further than their sight. So more sight = more useful units.

[zephyrtr]

Well... like I said above, I do find minutemen to be an investment. Since they have apalling strength to start, you gotta make them, then upgrade them to riflemen so they still have the buff but can actually attack somethin without dying.

You both make good arguments about the benefits of having extra Sight early game. And B17 is great -- just it takes a LONG time to get there. I feel inspired to expriment more with them.

[zephyrtr]

Onandoga, I totally love Iorquois. I think they gave me the most fun game I've had yet. I just find their necessity to be near forests to gain any benefits from their unique traits is a detriment.

They CAN be horrifically powerful, if left unchecked, but in a multiplayer game, I can easily see players taking forested areas intentionally to screw them over. And there's no way to hide what Civ you picked.

[Mythdracon]

Bump. This ought to be stickied in the least.

[kaybeebiscuits]

Sticky this and 5 stars.

[Nathadir]

Just wanted to say - nice guide.

[zephyrtr]

Sicky wut wut!!! Guess I'll have to make the strat even better now...

[Onandoga]

I can easily see players taking forested areas intentionally to screw them over. And there's no way to hide what Civ you picked.

Thats why the mohawk warrior has a forest attack bonus! so you can take whats rightfully yours. Plus there is start bias. But i understand your point. Guess ill hafta convert more mp players to the iroquois, mwa hah hah.

[zephyrtr]

Oh trust I'll play them anyways. Its super fun to create my forest-empire. Its like I get Great Wall without ever building it. And you raise a strong point about the offensive implementations of the Mohawk forest bonus -- but what if they chop the trees down before you get there?

[Onandoga]

but what if they chop the trees down before you get there?

then i will find another forest! (cuz honestly there are always huuuuuuuuuuge forests on everymap and noone ever cuts them all down.)
And if that doesnt work, theeeeeeeeeeeen..... SOL

[Black Gate of Mordor]

then i will find another forest! (cuz honestly there are always huuuuuuuuuuge forests on everymap and noone ever cuts them all down.)
And if that doesnt work, theeeeeeeeeeeen..... SOL

Well... China will always chop forests! (we need it for our big wall)

[NTense]

This is very helpful, I often refer back to it. Well worth a sticky!