There is no doubt that Civilization VI is one of the pinnacles of the strategy genre, while reflecting and amplifying the exceptional legacy of Sid Meier’s series. Consequently, veterans of Civilizationand especially those who come from Civilization V, they will happily embrace the vast majority of its changes and novelties. But what about the newcomers?
Firaxis Games’ proposal is, in essence, an extension of traditional board games. something like the Risk but with many more nuances that give it a unique richness and greatly expand the variety of each game. A formula that, furthermore, is a terribly addictive succession of turns that gradually materialize the common goal of each player: world conquest, no less.
That’s not to say that, unlike other strategy games, we should focus on deploying and nurturing our military force. Sometimes you win by brute force, yes, but science, politics or reason are just as effective. Or more. In other words, the big fish always eats the smallbut the size of the fish is measured by how far we have evolved our civilization.
Thinking so much about the newcomer to Civilization As in those that come from other strategy games, including the first installments, in iGamesNews we have listed a series of points that intend to guide, from the basics, to this well of hours that opens before us. Logically, the first question asks itself: what kind of game is Civilization VI?
The basics: what is the strategy in 4X
As we discussed, the playable base of Civilization born from traditional board games, the long-term objective being the conquest of the world and the short-term the maximum use we can give each turn.
In other words, in Civilization VI There are a number of actions that we can do before giving the turn to the next civilization, and despite the fact that there is a wide range of possibilities, essentially our priorities are the 4 Xs:eXplore, eXpandir, eXploit resources and eXterminate our enemies.
To explore it is the way in which we discover everything that surrounds our base and our units. But also the way in which we are aware of the location of other civilizations. Some of them will be friendly and may even be looking for a business ally. Others will seek confrontation.
to expand it is the way we decide to grow our civilization. What technologies are our priority, what kind of culture will we offer our people, what defenses will we have on hand to resist invasions, and how will we improve our military strength.
On Civilization VI, In addition, it is also possible to grow through agreements and establish convenient trade routes. Something we will see below.
Exploit resources is the direct consequence of the two previous factors. We will need to have basic elements with which to feed our citizens and materials to continue to prosper. The way in which we manage the exploitation of resources will decide our role in the world of civilizations over time and, logically, the control of resources will be a frequent source of disputes.
Finally, our great objective is to impose ourselves on other civilizations. the Extermination. Sometimes we will have to exterminate our enemies with military force, but we can also make their own civilizations join ours. As long as we achieve some prosperity and the political climate is conducive to it. Which, by the way, is not very common.
In Civilization there is more than one way to win
With the above ahead of us and our objective set on conquering the world, it is the key moment to adopt a strategy, which implies an obligatory question: how do we plan to break the rest of the Civilizations?
Unlike other strategy games, especially real time strategy games, there are different ways to win in Civilization VI. And despite the fact that having an enormous military potential will open many doors for us, it can also be very expensive for us if we have not paid the same interest in other aspects of our civilization.
Thus, the original version of Civilization VI offers four paths to world conquest: victory by domination, cultural victory, scientific victory and religious victory.
- win by domination It’s playing in the style of the classic Risk: create a really strong army and little by little occupy all the cities on the map. Which, on the other hand, can create many enmities and cause alliances between enemies.
- Win by scientific victory, on the contrary, does not imply that we should have military forces, although doing without them will make us vulnerable. Achieving it is turning completely every turn to promote technological advances, so that if we are the first to start a space program and it reaches Mars, we will have won the game.
- Finally, cultural and religious victory they are more or less similar. The first implies making our civilization the maximum tourist attraction and the center of attention of the entire world, and the construction of monuments or that great personalities form part of our cities will be the key.
- The religious victory is more or less similar, achieving victory by getting the rest of the civilizations to adopt our religion.
Logically, that there are several civilizations pursuing world conquest It will promote alliances and quarrels. The former will allow us to obtain favorable treatment and exchange of resources and knowledge, but also the possibility of stopping a larger enemy by force.
Quarrels, on the other hand, can be stopped through diplomacy. However, the deals we make during a turn can be broken brittle. Even from us.
How to start a game
With the theory on the table, it was time to start our conquest of the world. Of course, we will start with what we are wearing and little else: a settler, a warrior, some resource and the advantages of the civilization that we have adopted to start. Now what?
- Do not build your first city when starting the game the terrain. Study the surroundings until you find a place close to resources for its Food and Production. Being close to water is always a good idea and Mountains, Deserts or Rain Forests offer bonuses.
- Send your Warrior out for a spin and start exploring the surroundings of your city, but don’t move it too far from your city until you have more units. Think that you can be attacked in these early stages.
- Perhaps you want access to scientific, cultural or religious victories, but you are interested in quickly creating more warriors as a defense your city. Also, you want to clear the barbarian camps near your city as soon as possible, as they can jeopardize your initial expansion.
- Take advantage of the new district system. One of the star novelties of Civilization VI is that each city is divided into zones (districts) in which we can concentrate a specific activity. Study very well where you place these districts and how you strengthen them for your conquest strategy.
- Constantly expand your knowledge: on Civilization VI The Technology and Philosophy trees have been separated so, added to the district system, you can emphasize your primary objective and settle it with new districts, improvements and wonders (monuments).
- In addition, certain actions such as a conducive placement or a good streak in battles will trigger the eureka momentswhich reduce the amount of time needed to investigate.
From here, you must decide what your strategy is in the game. Of course, in addition to the location, what will make each civilization different is the leader chosen. After all, the main protagonists will be the leaders of each civilization.
The importance of choosing the right leader
The original version of Civilization VI puts us ahead 19 civilizations, many of them centered on the figure of a historical leader. And while they’ll all start out basically the same at different points on the same map, picking the right leader matters.
Roosevelt, Gandhi, Felipe II… Depending on who we choose, we will receive or have at our disposal unique bonuses. A way to give diversity to the experience, of course, but also to streamline our priorities. To which must be added that each civilization has exclusive combat units and construction.
That is to say, in the case of Europe, for example, it will be much easier to obtain a victory by religion. And Trajan’s Rome and its unique ability to All roads lead to Roma will offer us more facilities when it comes to expanding.
In the end, the leader and civilization we choose should be an extension of the experience we want to have in the game. But also a way to explore other different styles and get all the varieties of victory that are offered.
Keep your allies close, and your enemies closer
Beyond the empire under construction that you have in your hands, you will find other civilizations that, sooner or later, will want to interact with you. Some of them will have a warlike attitude while others will seek diplomacy. Do not get confused, the goal of all is the same: the conquest of the worldwhich does not mean that you can take advantage of this.
through emissaries it is possible to obtain from other civilizations resources, science or culture, speeding up your progress. You can reciprocate by making deals or promising that there will continue to be peace between the two civilizations. A promise that can be broken by both sides.
As well you are interested in allying in order to reduce common enemies. Even financed the war of other allied civilizations so that they consume their war resources while you focus on evolving in technology. But keep in mind that after many turns, those same favors can be used against you.
Finally, it is possible to annex nearby city-states to your own, or your empire, if your influence in the vicinity is great. It may not sit well with the original civilization, but any source of resources, units and culture is always welcome.
The Civilopedia, is the perfect manual for beginners
One last piece of advice that is very simple but really effective for beginners: if you are just starting out, spend as much as you can on the Civilopedia from the menu at the top. It is a sort of compendium of information in which you can delve deeper into the Civilization universe and the novelties of this installment.
It never hurts, even if we have already played several games, to stop by the civipedia and see what are the bonuses and skills of the leaders who share a game with us or against us. It is a good way to anticipate their actions and, incidentally, understand their strengths and weaknesses in case of alliances and betrayals.
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