Civilization V Nations and Leaders Guide Civilization V: Gods & Kings Nations and Leaders Guide designed for Gamefaqs.com by user Death_by_Smiley Version: 3.1 Last update: 5/7/13 Using the find function: Use CTRL+F to open find box. Refer to the table of contents and highlight the text inside the square braces and paste it into find. Hit next, and you'll jump to the section. ==================================================================== Table of Contents ==================================================================== 1. Introduction [1xx] 1.1 - What this guide is..[1.1xx] 1.2 - Contact/Contribute [1.2xx] 1.3 - Legal stuffs [1.3xx] 1.4 - Version History [1.4xx] 1.5 - Terms and Buzz Words [1.5xx] 2. The Launch Date Civilizations [2xx] 2.1 - America [2.1xx] 2.2 - Arabia [2.2xx] 2.3 - Aztecs [2.3xx] 2.4 - China [2.4xx] 2.5 - Egypt [2.5xx] 2.6 - England [2.6xx] 2.7 - France [2.7xx] 2.8 - Germany [2.8xx] 2.9 - Greece [2.9xx] 2.10 - India [2.10xx] 2.11 - Iroquois [2.11xx] 2.12 - Japan [2.12xx] 2.13 - Ottoman [2.13xx] 2.14 - Persia [2.14xx] 2.15 - Rome [2.15xx] 2.16 - Russia [2.16xx] 2.17 - Siam [2.17xx] 2.18 - Songhai [2.18xx] 3. Non Launch Civilizations [3xx] 3.1 - Babylon [3.1xx] 3.2 - Mongols [3.2xx] 3.3 - Spain [3.3xx] 3.4 - Inca [3.4xx] 3.5 - Polynesia [3.5xx] 3.6 - Danish [3.6xx] 3.7 - Korea [3.7xx] 4. Gods & Kings Expansion Pack [4xx] 4.1 - Austria [4.1xx] 4.2 - Byzantium [4.2xx] 4.3 - Carthage [4.3xx] 4.4 - Celtica [4.4xx] 4.5 - Ethiopia [4.5xx] 4.6 - Huns [4.6xx] 4.7 - Maya [4.7xx] 4.8 - Netherlands [4.8xx] 4.9 - Sweden [4.9xx] Special Thanks [SPTHX] ==================================================================== 1. Introduction [1xx] ==================================================================== This guide is meant to give all information on the various countries in Civilization V. This is my first In-Depth guide, and this is likely a stepping stone to a more full guide for the game. This guide assumes you have a basic knowledge of the mechanisms of Civilization V. Note: It is likely that Civ V expansions in the future will feature multiple leaders per civilization. When this happens, I will make changes to this guide, and make sure to note which leaders are in which versions of the game. ==================================================================== 1.1 What this guide is... [1.1xx] ==================================================================== This guide is meant to first give you all the information about each civilization combo. This guide will explain each unique ability, each unique unit, etc. Also, there is ongoing work to develop various strategies for each civ as well as some subjective rankings that probably shouldn't be taken too seriously. Note: As new official civilizations are added, I will update this Guide. I however will not include mod-created civilizations (for example, you can download a custom mod which includes the Gaellic Empire. This will not be covered in the guide). Contact me: email-> p-m-c-b-u-r-n1@g!m!a!i!l.c!0!m (remove all hyphens and exclamation points) If I receive any e-mails not relevant to this guide, I will block all future e-mails from you. You do NOT have permission to send me offers, deals, or any sales items. ==================================================================== 1.2 - Contact/Contribute [1.2xx] ==================================================================== Much of this guide was written on the Civilization V Boards on Gamefaqs.com, and I am forever appreciative of the boards being there. You can see me on the boards (username: "Death_By_Smiley"). If you want to contribute a strategy, a ranking, a correction, or something I've missed, send me an e-mail at: email-> p-m-c-b-u-r-n1@g!m!a!i!l.c!0!m (remove all hyphens and exclamation points) With "Country Guide" in the subject line. Make sure to include either your name or screenname. If it's useful, I will post it to the guide with you receiving credit, and thus a small piece of Civilization immortality. ==================================================================== 1.3 - Legal stuffs [1.3xx] ---Copyright Notice ==================================================================== Sid Meier's Civilization V is a game developed by Firaxis Studios that you should buy. It is awesome and I love it. All credit goes to them. All information in this guide is for that game. This game is Copyright 2010 2K Games and Firaxis. All Copyrights are held by their rightful owners as well as any Trademarks used. Gamefaqs.com/Gamespot is the only website I have given permission to for posting this guide. If you wish to post this guide on your website, please ask me using the e-mail below. All content in this guide, unless explicitly stated otherwise, has been generated by me. You may not copy this guide and claim it as your own, regardless whether your motive is profit or otherwise. If you would like this guide posted on another site, e-mail me at: email-> p-m-c-b-u-r-n1@g!m!a!i!l.c!0!m (remove all hyphens and exclamation points) This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. (Thank you GFs for the cookie cutter legalese) ==================================================================== 1.4 - Version History [1.4xx] ==================================================================== Version 0.1 (10/20/10)- All basic information on nations up to Iroquios (alphabetically) Version 0.5 (10/21/10)- All basic information about all 18 civs, with corrections made from Version 0.1 Version 0.5.1 (10/21/10) - Error corrections to Version 0.5 Version 0.7 - Added DLC civilizations (Babylon, Mongols), some more corrections. Version 1.0 (1/23/10)- Added DLC civilizations (Spain, Inca)--Nobody told me this had come out :( Version 1.1 (3/3/11)- Added DLC Civilization Polynesia (which should be Hawai'i, since that is who the leader represents). Fixed some errors with Spain and Inca. Version 2.0(3/11/11)- Massive update including my personal opinions on civilizations that you will disagree with. Version 2.01(5/3/11)- Added Danish DLC (which release 5/3/11) Version 2.1(6/18/12)- Updating after a year in preperation for Gods and Kings. Fixing some errors or things that were changed with game updates. Added Korea. Version 3.0(6/20/12)- Gods & Kings update. Added all 9 new civilizations for Gods & Kings. Version 3.1(5/7/13)- Updating to fix numorous errors and update for patches. Update from basically a year ago that should have been done sooner, but I've been crazy busy. Removed numeric ratings until I get more a chance to play each civ. ==================================================================== 1.5 - Terms and Buzz Words [1.5xx] ==================================================================== This guide is not written for idiots. It assume you have played Civilization V. That said, for those newer to the series, here are some buzz words you should know. Also, I use some phrases which may not be typical for Civilization. Early game- Stone Age, Classical Age. This stage of the game is characterized by exploration and expansion. If you are playing aggressively, trying to "nip in the bud" an opponent by taking out their first city quickly isn't uncommon, but it is a risky gambit. It requires rapid military development, which limits your exploration and expansion to resource heavy areas. During early game, I find it better to not worry too much about city-states yet. Mid game- Late classical period to early industrial. This stage is where the game is usually settled, and whoever dominates here likely is just cleaning up in the late game. The Mid Game can be played however you want. There will still be land to expand, city-state loyalty becomes affordable, and the tech tree offers a lot of specialization focus. Depending on the map type, Astronomy could be the most important technology if you want to expand overseas. It is very important to keep your army up to date in the mid game. It's better to delete a warrior and get the extra gold per turn than it is to keep one around, since he won't be useful in combat. Late game- Modern/Future Era: By late game, exploration is no longer a factor. There is likely nowhere to expand, or the expansions are too far away to warrant the cost. War is common (especially since you've had a whole game for the leaders to learn to hate each other). Cost-For the purposes of this guide, when I say cost, I am referring to production cost (Hammers), usually not gold cost. Maintenence-In Civilization V, maintenence plays a much larger role. Units are more expensive to keep in the field, and thus you shouldn't just spam weaker units. Also, almost all buildings have a cost attached. These makes specialization even more important, lest you end up in debt by games end. Vision/Sight- How far (in hex tiles) a unit can actively see (active meaning you can see units on the tile, see changes, etc). Movement- How many hexes a unit can move across their base medium (Plain for land units. Seas for naval units) Combat/Combat Strength - A number representing the effectiveness of melee combat (the number affects both attack and defense). Ranged Attack- An attack performed by ranged units that allows the attacker to fire multiple tiles away (measured by the units "range"- Range =2 means the unit can fire either 1 or 2 hexes away). There is no counter attack to a ranged attack. Ranged attacks can be blocked by terrain such as hills. Ranged/Range Combat - A number representing the effectiveness of ranged combat attack (not defense). Strict Military Nation - A phrase I use to refer to a country who has no unique building and whose abilites are solely military focus. (Includes: England, Germany, Japan, Ottoman, Mongols, and Denmark). If you play as one of those, conquest is likely going to be your best option. Great People Factories - A city whose job is to create Great People as quickly as possible. This can be done with wonders, Gardens, etc. Fun Factor - Some nations are more fun to play than others, even if they aren't that good (case in point, Aztec). I try not to take this into account when I assign ratings, but I make a point to mention it. Synergy - SushiSquid, a poster on the Gamefaq boards, pointed out that a civilization is only as good as it's synergy. For example, Germany can build a very large amount of ground units, and gets a slight reduction in the maintence of ground units, and can convert barbarians. All these abilities reflect having a massive ground army. However, compare this to the Rome, who has two good unique units, and an excellent unique ability. However, these two don't feed off one another. So while a good civilization, you wouldn't say Rome is a top tier civilization. ==================================================================== 2. The Launch Date Civilizations [2xx] ==================================================================== 18 Civilizations were included with the game at launch. Babylon was also included, but only in a special edition. I am putting Babylon and all other official civs after this section, in section 3. They are organized alphbetically. Sample Country Guide: Country: X Leader: Mr. X Unique Unit 1: Unit x (replaces unit y) - +4 strength, +1 move (this means that the unique unit x has 4 more strength and 1 more movement range than unit y), Free PROM (Free PROM details)--This means unit starts with the promotion PROM. Unique Unit 2: Unique Building: (It is worth noting no civilization has 2 unique units and a unique building). Unique Ability: Comments: Any special statement I want to make to clarfiy an ability. My Take: My take on how I like to use this Civ. I'm not an online player, since Online play is mostly focused on Combat. Also, I'm not the best CIVer out there, so take with a grain of salt. Victory Goal: My Take on which victory goal best suits the civilization. If you have a good strategy for another goal, let me know. (Note, you can win anyway with any Civ, these are just the ones I would personally say the Civ is best at.) ==================================================================== IMPORTANT NOTE: All production costs are measured using Standard Time. Different times (quick, marathon) have different production costs. However, they scale linearally, meaning the proportions of cost will all be the same. ==================================================================== 2.1 - America [2.1xx] ==================================================================== Country: The United States of America Leader: George Washington Historical Relevance: Commander in Chief of Colonial Armies during American Revolution; First President of the United States of America Unique Unit 1: Minutemen (Replaces Musketman) - Traverses All terrain at cost =1. Travels on roads normally. Free (Drill 1) +20% on Rough Terrain. Unique Unit 2: B17 (replaces Bomber) - Free Evasion (reduce damage from intercept by 50%), Free Siege 1 (+33% vs. Cities), +5 Ranged Combat. Unique Building: None Unique Ability: Manifest Destiny All land military units have +1 Vision. -50% cost to purchase tiles. Comments: Note about the Minutemen: there was a design flaw at launch where traversing all land, including roads, costs 1 movement, like heli- copters. This was a confirmed bug with Civilization V. The musketman should be able to use roads at less than 1 movement, like scouts. This has been fixed by patch. My Take: A civilization that is underrated, in my opinion. Sure, it isn't amazing, but I actually think the Minutemen are one of the better unique units, as is the B17. Getted added vision is both a great defensive and offensive ability. Being able to buy up contested land for cheaper has limited usefulness, but can be the difference between getting a good resource and not getting it. Sure, it's not a stand out, but I've had good success using it. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== 2.2 - Arabia [2.2xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Arabian Empire Leader: Harun Al-Rashid Historical Relevance: 5th Abbasid Caliph (A.D. 786-809) Unique Unit 1: Camel Archer (replaces Knight) -3 Melee Combat Strength, cannot initiate melee attack. Has ranged attack, Strength 21, Range 2. No penalty for attacking cities. Unique Unit 2: None Unique Building: Bazaar (replaces Market)- +1 luxary resource for ever improved luxary resource near this city. +2 Gold for nearby Oil and Oases. Unique Ability: Trade Caravans +1 Gold from each Trade Route. Double output from Oil Resources (if a well produces 2 oil, Arabia gets 4 oil). Comments: The trade route bonus use to only apply to the capital city. Now it applies to all cities. Meaning each city you connect to your trade route gives (n-1) additional gold where n is the number of cities you have. Example, at 3 cities, you have 3 gold (each city connected to the others). However, when you add a fourth city, you add 3 more trade routes, meaning you get 6 gold total. My Take: The Camel Archer is a very solid unit, since ranged is a tad overpowered in this game. Getting the extra luxary resource with bazaar can be fantastic for trade, and allows you to acrue friends and money faster. Double oil isn't game breaking, since oil units usually comes well after a game is decided. Some people think Arabia is extremely good. I'm not as convinced, but it isn't terrible either, as I used to believe. Interested to see how better diplomacy in Brave New World changes things. Victory Goal: Diplomatic ==================================================================== 2.3 - Aztec [2.3xx] ==================================================================== Country: Aztec Leader: Montezuma I Historical Relevance: Atzec leader from 1440 until his death in 1469. (Note: Montezuma I's grandson Montezuma II was the one who was ruling when the Spanish dismantled their empire). Unique Unit 1: Jaguar (replaces Warrior) +33% strength while fighting in woods or jungle. Heals 25 HP upon defeating an enemy. Double Movement rate through woods and jungle. Unique Unit 2: None Unique Building: Floating Gardens (replaces Water Mill)- -1 Maintenence, can be built next to lakes as well as rivers. +15% Food genereated by city. +2 Food for each lake tile worked by the city. Unique Ability: Sacrificial Captives Receive culture for each enemy unit killed proportional to the killed unit's strength. Comments: Floating Gardens +15% bonus is affect by Maritime city-states and food-boosting buildings like the Granary. [Thanks KJ456] My Take: The AI plays Montezuma like a mad man ready to kill everything that dares stand up right on a sunny day. You shouldn't even wait for a sunny day. Spam units, find enemies, get culture. Use your early culture to focus on Honor, which lets you have stronger military, which lets you get more culture. Barbarians? Sacrifice them to the sun god. Other civs? Sacrifice them to the moon god. City-States? Sacrifice them to Sid Meier. If you aren't at war with someone, you are wasting one of the most fun unique abilities in the game. It's not as good at culture as, say, France, but it isn't too far behind. The key is to invest as much as you can in military abilities in culture. Be very aggressive early, especially since the CPU tends to cave in front of early aggression. Note that with G&K, the ability was kind of nerfed by proxy, in that other civs can kill barbarians for culture via honor Keep your jaguars and upgrade them so they keep their perks. Victory Goal: Conquest, Culture via Conquest ==================================================================== 2.4 - China [2.4xx] ==================================================================== Country: China Leader: Wu Zetian Historical Relevance: The only woman to ever become Emperor of China Unique Unit 1: Chu-Ko-Nu (replaces Crossbowman) -4 Ranged Attack Strength, can attack twice during turn. Unique Unit 2: None Unique Building: Paper Maker (replaces Library) - +2 Gold. No maintenece cost, so really it's plus 3 gold. Originally boosted great Scientist generation, but it appears this was removed. Unique Ability: Art of War Spawn Rate of Great Generals increased +50%. Chinese Great Generals provide +30% combat bonus within two squares, compared to +15% of normal Great Generals. Comments: None. My Take: Use the Honor Tree to get a great general, and do whatever you can to build generals quickly. If you can find a good choke point, I have seen a general assisted Chu-Ko-Nu hold off multiple Industrial Age units.Chu-Ko-Nu is also good for bombarding cities early on. With China, just a few front line units can be supported by Generals and Chu-Ko-Nu to destroy everyone else. The Paper Maker is one of my favorite Unique Buildings. Victory Goal: Conquest, long shot at Science ==================================================================== 2.5 - Egypt [2.5xx] ==================================================================== Country: Egypt Leader: Ramesses II Historical Relevance: Ruled as pharaoh for 60 years, widely considered the greated pharaoh. Unique Unit 1: War Chariot (replaces Chariot Archer) +1 movement. No horse resource required. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Burial Tomb (replaces Temple) 0 maintenence, +2 Happiness, If city is capture, x2 gold plundered. Unique Ability: Monument Builders +20% Production when buidling Wonders Comments: None. My Take: Even with the Bonus to Wonders, it's never recommended to be building more than one wonder at a time in the early game. Wonders can be very powerful in this game, however, as it lets you customize your empire. You can focus on wonders that boost great people, military, production, commerce, etc. I would recommend focusing on only one or two types of wonders, since specialization is the name of the game. Burial Tomb is nice if you go for a high population build. The Unique Unit is trash compared to others, in my opinion Victory Goal: Whichever you build wonders towards. ==================================================================== 2.6 - England [2.6xx] ==================================================================== Country: England Leader: Elizabeth I Historical Relevance: The Virgin Queen, ruled over one of the most dynamic periods in European history. Established Church of England. Unique Unit 1: Longbowman (replaces crossbowman) Free Range (+1 range for ranged attack) Unique Unit 2: Ship of the Line (replaces Frigate) -15 production cost, +2 ranged combat strength, +5 melee, +1 sight. Unique Building: None Unique Ability: Sun Never Sets +2 movement to all naval vessels. +1 Spy Comments: None. My Take: I'm personally disspointed that Elizabethan England has no culture abilities. This strict military nation is damn near unbeatable in island style maps. They really boosted the usefullness of naval units between Civ IV and Civ V, and no one can compete with England's Navy. Still, on continent style maps, the only thing England has is Longbowman, which are useful, but not game changing. Your best time to attack is the Renaissance, where you will have the most benefit. If you can be the first to circumnavigate, you will have +3 movement on all other navy. England's biggest weakness is that you more or less have to go military, since they have no Unique Building and their ability is strictly military. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== 2.7 - France [2.7xx] ==================================================================== Country: France Leader: Napolean Bonaparte Historical Relevance: Overthrew French government, eventually crowning self Emperor of the First French Empire. Unique Unit 1: Musketeer (replaces Musketman) +4 combat strength. Unique Unit 2: Foreign Legion (replaces Infantry) +20% combat strength outside of friendly territory. Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Ancien Regime +2 Culture per city per turn before discovering Steam Power. After Steam Power, you lose all bonus culture per turn. Comments: None. My Take: Musketeer can dominate the late renaissance period. +4 strength is huge. Foreign Legion will have a huge firepower advantage if you are invading. When it comes down to it, at the beginning of the game, decided if you are going to focus on culture or military, and stick with it. Use your social policies to align towards that. If you focus on military, there isn't much a reason to hold off on teching up to Steam Power. If you are going culture, expand as fast as possible, and use your Musketeers to take weak neighbors. The earlier you expand, the better. Basically, military focus France users will want to build up (have a small number of cities optimized for rapid production), culture focus means you want to build out (get as many cities as possible, don't worry about optimizing the cities). Victory Goal: Cultural, Conquest ==================================================================== 2.8 - Germany [2.8xx] ==================================================================== Country: Germany Leader: Otto van Bismarck Historical Relevance: Chancelor of German Empire. Unified Germany. Unique Unit 1: Landsknecht (replaces Pikeman) -50% production cost. (-45 hammers on Standard). Unique Unit 2: Panzer (replaces Tank) +1 movement, +10 strength Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Furor Teutonicus Upon defeating a Barbarian unit inside an encampment, you have a 50% chance to receive +25 gold and a free unit of the same type. Pay 25% less for land unit maintenence. Comments: Landsknecht costs about half the cost of a pikeman with no penalties. My Take: Germany can be very powerful early game, and will build up an army very quickly when compared to other units. However, by mid game, their ability starts to become obsolete as civilization spreads out. I once played online with Germany, and had a lot of early success. You want to tech-up to get to Landsknecht quickly when playing online, especially if you are playing Greece, Songhai, or Mongals given their powerful mounted units. However, this guide focuses on the single player aspect, and the A.I. doesn't seem to notice that spamming Companion Calvary makes you nigh unbeatable. Still, I'm definitely a fan of being able to put 2 Pikeman out for every 1 your opponents have. Panzers have a 20% firepower advantage over normal tanks, which is huge in late-game scenarios. Like England, Germany is pretty much straight military, and if you see Germany as an AI, expect him to be aggressive (though not as much so as Montezuma). This is one of the strict military nations. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== 2.9 - Greece [2.9xx] ==================================================================== Country: Greece Leader: Alexander of Macedonia Historical Relevance: Alexander the Great. Conquered almost every civilization he could reach, including Persia, Egypt, and parts of India. Unique Unit 1: Hoplite (replaces Spearmen) +2 Combat Strength. Unique Unit 2: Companion Calvary (replaces Horsemen) +2 Combat Strength, +1 Movement, Great Generals 1 (Combat with this unit produces double Great General points). Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Hellenic League City-State relations degrade at half the normal rate, and recovers at double rate when the City-State is angry. Comments: Great Generals 1 and Great Generals 2 are the same thing, but 2 generates at a higher rate. I think only Samurai have 2. Hellenic League offsets trepassing penalties. Also, for clarity: gifts do NOT give double affections points. Recover strictly means when a city state is mad at you (below nuetral). At launch, Hoplite was more expensive to produce. Not anymore. My Take: Greece uses to be broken when calvary units were OP at launch. Now they are good, but not great. Still, the vast variety of city states give them a fair amount of options. Victory Goal: Diplomatic, Cultural, Conquest, Science (in that order) ==================================================================== 2.10 - India [2.10xx] ==================================================================== Country: India Leader: Mahatma Ghandi Historical Relevance: Led nonviolent independence movement against British Empire. Widely considered one of the greatest champions of civil disobedience in history. Unique Unit 1: War Elephant (replaces Chariot Archer) +14 Production Cost, -1 Movement, +2 Melee Combat Strength, +1 Ranged Combat Strength. No required resource. Doesn't have movement penalties of chariot archer. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Mughall Fort (replaces Castle) -10 Production Cost, +2 Culture. +3 Gold after flight researched Unique Ability: Population Growth Unhappiness from population is halved. Unhappiness from number of cities doubled. Comments: Any city with population 4 or higher benefits from Population Growth due to a net loss of that city's unhappiness. I am still researching the Gold Bonus after flight. My Take: With Ghandi, you're goal should be peaceful victory conditions. You should aim for very large cities, trying to turn them into Great People factories (this means commiting to wonders early on. If managed correctly, Ghandi can very quickly build up Science, Commerce, and culture. Keep golden ages going longer with Great People sacrifice. I've seen people do really well with Science victory and Diplomatic Victory (via buying off City-States). Cultural victory is within reason if you focus on Great Artists and keep your city counts small (though against an expansionist France, India tends to lag behind). Try to avoid war as much as possible, since that means you have to focus on cranking out large numbers of units instead of Great People builders. Victory Goal: Science, Cultural ==================================================================== 2.11 - Iroquois [2.11xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Iroquois Conferederation Leader: Hiawatha Historical Relevance: Chief of the Onondaga tribe, formed the Iroquis Confederation. Unique Unit 1: Mohawk Warrior (replaces Swordsman) +25% combat strength in forests and jungles. Do not require iron. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Longhouse (replaces Workshop) -20 Production Cost, +1 Production per forest tile in city's radius. No +10% production for buildings that comes with normal workshop. Gives points towards Great Engineers. Unique Ability: The Great Warpath Forests and Jungles in friendly territory behave as roads, for movement. After the Wheel is researched, woods can also function as trade routes. Comments: Trading Posts and Lumbermills leave the forests they are built on intact. So you can improve the tiles and use them as roads. My Take: You are really at the mercy of the map and other players. As Iroquois, with proper planning, you can avoid removing forests, focusing on Lumbermills rather than Mines for Production, making sure to leave paths, etc. However, when it comes to attacking other players, those players will usually have removed most forests in their lands, removing all benefits you have. Still, this is a great civilization for early game aggression, since forests will still be around, and that +50% combat with Mohawk Warriors is HUGE at that point. The Longhouse is nice, but I would frequently rather have that +20% building production. Still, being able to get Great Engineers can help you get some good wonders. Also, if you use lumbermills, it's basically +1 Hammer for that mill. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== 2.12 - Japan [2.12xx] ==================================================================== Country: Japan Leader: Oda Nobunaga Historical Relevance: Daimyo of fuedal Japan, laid groundwork for his two lieutenants to unify Japan for the first time in a century. Unique Unit 1: Samurai (replaces Longswordsman) Free Shock 1 (+20% combat in open terrain), Great Generals II (Contributes points to Great General at triple the normal rate) Unique Unit 2: Zero (replaces Fighter) +33% vs. Fighters Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Bushido Combat Strength is not affected by the amount of damage a unit has. Comments: Bushido isn't as overpowered as it seems, in that a normal unit with 50% health doesn't fight with 50% strength, but somewhat stronger. My Take: I have found that the best way to go is to tech rush Steel and spam Samurai. Once you get a couple Great Generals, Samurai can basically take on the entire world. The longer it takes you to get the Steel, the less effective you will be. Bushido makes taking cities easy, since even damaged units do full damage. Bushido isn't as overpowered as you might first suspect, but in the stone age when most battles are one on one without support nearby, it's huge. If you actually get to the point where you have Giant Death Robots, and Bushido' GDR is pretty much unbeatable. Since the AI almost never uses air units, Zero is pretty much worthless. Even in online games, I rarely see someone use air heavily. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== 2.13 - Ottoman [2.13xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Ottoman Empire Leader: Suleiman Historical Relevance: Caliph of Islam, Sultan of Ottoman Empire, oversaw period of great expansion. Unique Unit 1: Janissary (replaces Musketman), Heals all damage upon defeating a Non-Barbarian Enemy, +25% Combat Bonus when initiating attack. Unique Unit 2: Sipahi (replaces Lancer), +1 movement, +1 sight, no movement cost to pillage. Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Barbary Corsairs All naval units have the prize ships promotion (meaning defeated enemies) may join your side. -33% usual cost for maintenence. Comments: None. My Take: At launch, this civilization was pretty bad. It has steadily gotten better with each major update, and is now a very good invasion civilization. Strict military nation. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== 2.14 - Persia [2.14xx] ==================================================================== Country: Persia's Achaemenid Dynasty Leader: King Darius I Historical Relevance: Considered one of the greater rules of the Persian Emptire, ruling from 522 B.C. until his death. Initated attempt to conquer Greece, but his son Xerces failed to do so after Darius's death. Unique Unit 1: Immortal (replaces Spearmen), +1 Combat Strength, Heals damage at double normal rate. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Satrap's Court (replaces Bank) +2 Happiness, +2 Gold Unique Ability: Achaemenid Legacy Golden Ages last +50% more turns. During a golden age, units receive +1 Move and +10% Combat Bonus Comments: None. My Take: A lot of people love Persia. If you can get a few cities to be Great People factories, you can basically maintain a constant golden age, which should be your goal. Persia is countered by Egypt well, since Egypt can rush wonders, which Persia needs to make Great People factories. The Immortal is a good aggressive unit that can heal quickly and be back in the fray. Satrap's Court plays perfectly intoDarius' Unique Ability, giving you a quick boost to happiness when you use it, and it's one of my favorite Unique Buildings. Keep in mind, being effective as Persia requires a lot of discipline, making sure to keep an eye on your Golden Age counter while still making sure to have a standing military while balancing wonders. Chichen Itza is, I dare say, a must have. Victory Goal: Kind of like Egypt, you can go different ways with this depending on how your use your Golden Ages. Extra Production means you could go culture, military, or science, extra gold is nice for diplomacy. I most prefer military, since that +1 movement range is useful throughout the entire game. ==================================================================== 2.15 - Rome [2.15xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Roman Empire Leader: Caesar Augustus (also known as Octavius) Historical Relevance: First Emperor of Rome, brought about Pax Romana (200 years of Roman Peace). Unique Unit 1: Ballista (replaces Catapult) +2 Ranged Strength, +1 Melee Strength Unique Unit 2: Legion (replaces Swordsman) +3 Combat Strength, can construct roads and forts. Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: The Glory of Rome +25% Production towards buildings if they already exist in the Capitol City. Comments: None. My Take: Glory of Rome is a great ability for managing a large empire. Your goal should be to have a large production powerhouse for a capitol. This will allow you to expand quickly without worrying about having low production cities. Your goal should be to use your expansions primarily for resources. Ballista are a city destroyer in the latter early game. Very powerful at what they do. Legion being able to build roads can keep your workers focused on improvements. Be aggressive in the Classical Age. Victory Goal: Can go many ways. I personally like Science, since getting libraries, universities, and schools in all your cities give you a massive science bonus. ==================================================================== 2.16 -Russia [2.16xx] ==================================================================== Country: Russia Leader: Catherine the Great Historical Relevance: Tsarina of Russia during late 18th Century, oversaw great expansion of Russia. Unique Unit 1: Cossack (replaces Calvary) - Receives +33% combat bonus when attacking an enemy who is not at full health. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Krepost (replaces Barracks) - Reduces culture cost to acquire new land by 25% in the city it is built. Unique Ability: Siberian Riches Strategic Resources provide +1 production. Horse, Iron, and Uranium plots generate double the output. Comments: I.e., if a plot of iron typically produces 2 Iron, Russia can get 4 iron out of that same plot. My Take: If you get an unlucky map generation without much iron and horses nearby, the ability is useful. However, I typically haven't had resource problems, since I usually can't even afford to build units for all my resources. Iron and horses are obsolete in the late game, but Uranium is a game changer. Having two atomic bombs for 1 resource can let you wipe out another country's military very quickly, or destroy it's major cities. Still, as I said, you usually won't need the double resources. If you use the Krepost, you can afford to spread your cities out a little more to cover more ground. Support your Cossacks with anything ranged (even horse archers can help in the mid game). The goal is to injure the target, even slightly, then go in for the kill. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== 2.17 Siam [2.17xx] ==================================================================== Country: Siam (more specifically, the kingdom of Sukhothai) Leader: Ramkhamhaeng Historical Relevance: Inherited small kingom of Sukhothai, and greatly expanded to make it a Southeast Asian power using diplomacy as well as military might. Unique Unit 1: Naresuan's Elephant (replaces Knight) +5 Combat Strength, -1 Movement, +50% Combat Bonus vs. Mounted Units. No Horse Requirement. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Wat (replaces University) - +3 Culture. Unique Ability: Father Governs Children Food, Culture, and faith received from friendly city-states increased by +50% Comments: None. My Take: Plays very similar to India. You should build more trading posts instead of farms and use the money to befriend maritime and cultural city-states. Definitely use the Patronage policy tree. Siam does better on spreadout maps since they aren't a military nation. You goal should be to have a small number of cities with natural chokepoints so you can minimize your army. Keeping your city count small makes cultural victory easier to obtain. If you don't think you are going to make cultural victory in time, build the United Nations, and use your allegiances to try to get a diplomatic victory. Victory Goal: Cultural, Diplomatic as a fallback. ==================================================================== 2.18 Songhai [2.18xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Songhai Empire Leader: Mohammad I Askia Historical Relevance: Unified and conquered much of CEntral Africa. Received title of Caliph of West Africa during a pilgrammage to Mecca. Unique Unit 1: Mandekalu Cavalry (replaces Knight) -10% Production cost. No penalty when attacking cities (all other calvary have -33%). Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Mud Pyramid Mosque (replaces Temple) Zero Maintenence, +2 culture Unique Ability: River Warlord All pillaged cities and encampments provide double the normal gold. All land units receive free Amphibious and War Canoe promotions. Amphibious removes all penalties from attack across a river or from the water. War canoes doubles the defense while embarked and increases the sight of embarked units. My Take: I get this civ all the time when I go random, which gets annoying. The Songhai spawn bias usually gives you nearby horses. It is very important to have a lot of horses, and get Mandekalu Calvary quickly. Mounted units are overpowered in this game, but are usually weak against cities. The Mandakulu Calvary isn't penalized. (It used to have an additional bonus, but this was patched out). Use this to your advantage and play aggressive. The Mud Pyramid Mosque is a great building, since you can get a lot of culture for free. It's not enough to make Songhai a Cultural contender, but it's great to get some key policies in place. Still the ability isn't very worthwhile. The small gold bonuses are nice for early gold expansion, but isn't extremely helpful in the long term. Being able to have your units not immediately die would be nice if the CPU ever build Navy, which they rarely do. Victory Goal: Conquest ==================================================================== ==================================================================== 3. Non Launch Civilizations [3xx] ==================================================================== All these cilivizations are not in the standard version of the game. However, you can download these. Note that I am only including official Firaxis Civs. User generated civilizations won't be included for now. They might be added at a later date if a particular Civ gets very popular. Note: All of these nations are included in the civilization V Gold Package available on Steam. If you haven't already bought them, get them through that. It includes Gods & Kings as well, so a good deal. Additionally, you can get the "Gold" upgrade for just 20 bucks if you already have the base game through Steam. ==================================================================== 3.1 - Babylon [3.1xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Babylonian Empire Leader: Nebuchadnezzar II Availability: At launch for those who purchased deluxe edition, and for $4.99 as a Downloadable Content available October 25th, 2010. Unique Unit 1: Bowman (replaces Archer) +2 Melee Combat Strength, +2 Ranged Combat Strength Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Walls of Babylon (replaces Walls) +1 City Combat Strength, -10 Production Cost, city HP+100 (Walls only give +50) Unique Ability: Ingenuity Free Great Scientist upon invention of Writing. Produce Great Scientists at double the rate. Comments: None. My Take: The only nation whose ability focuses on Science. Both the Unique Unit and building are early game, which is unfortunate in my mind. But this ability is key. Your goal should be to create farms for Great Scientists. Fight for those wonders accordingly. Also, in the early game, rather than use free techs, Use your Scientists to build Science improvements, since those points will, in the long run, help you improve faster than the early techs. G&K nerfed the hell out of Babylon by making scientists only give a boost to research, not insta-discover one. Victory Goal: Science. ==================================================================== 3.2 - Mongols [3.2xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Mongolian Empire Leader: Genghis Kahn Availability: Free DLC released October 25th, 2010 Unique Unit 1: Keshik (replaces Knight) Ranged Unit (cannot directly Melee) with 13 Ranged Combat Strength, 8 Melee Strength, +2 Movement, Great Generals I (produces Great Generals at double rate), Quick Study (gains promotions in half the time, effectively). Unique Unit 2: Khan (replaces Great General) 5 movement range, heals adjacent units 15 HP per turn. Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Mongol Terror +30% combat against City-State units and cities. +1 movement to mounted units. Comments: None My Take: Strict military nation, don't try to make friends. You want to play very aggressively, taking what city-states you can. Once you have Keshiks and Khans, form battle teams (usually 3 Keshiks and one kahn per team and 2 teams will let you take out quite a bit of enemies). You'll want some infantry and siege units for grabbing the stronger cities. Basically, the only way to defend that rush is for an AI to focus all nearby forces on one unit, since they heal quickly. However, given the ranged combat, they usually won't get close. A good military nation. You really want to spam Keshiks and attack quickly. The longer you wait, the worse off you will be. Very easily countered by Pikeman, so Germany will probably destroy you given half the chance. Victory Goal: Conquest. ==================================================================== 3.3 - Spain [3.3xx] ==================================================================== Country: Spain Leader: Isabella Availability: DLC Released December 16th, 2010 (Double Civilization and Scenario Pack: Spain and Inca) Unique Unit 1: Tercio (replaces Musketman) +10 Production Cost, +2 Strength, +50% versus Mounted. Unique Unit 2: Conquistador (replaces Knight): +15 Production Cost No penalty attack cities (Knight has 33% penalty), +2 Vision Range, Embarkation with Defense (x2 defense while embarked). Can found cities on another landmass. Unique Building: None Unique Ability: Seven Cities of Gold Gold bonus when discovering Natural Wonders (larger bonus when Spain is the first to discover a particular Natural Wonder). Culture, Happiness, and all tile yields (production, food, commerce) are doubled on Natural Wonder tiles. Comments: The Conquistador can only found cities on a different landmass than the capitol. This consumes the Conquistador. My Take: A Great Civ to use against mounted rushes because of the Tercio. However, the computer usually isn't smart enough to do mounted rushes. Oh well. With 2 Unique Units, this is an aggressive civilizaton. You definitely want to push during the Renaissance Era to take most advantage of your units. Still, the ability is terrible. Just terrible. Victory Goal: Conquest. ==================================================================== 3.4 - Inca [3.4xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Incan Empire Leader: Pachacuti Availability: DLC Released December 16th, 2010 (Double Civilization and Scenario Pack: Spain and Inca) Unique Unit 1: Slinger (replaces Archer) -1 Melee Combat Strength, Can Withdraw to adjacent hex if attacked at melee range. Chance of withdraw is decreased against "fast enemies" (like horseman). Unique Unit 2: None Unique Building: Terrace Farm (tile improvement): +1 Food, +1 Food if adjacent to mountain. Can only be built on hills. [Requires Construction] Unique Ability: The Great Andean Road No movement penalty in hills. No maintenence for constructions in hills, half maintenence elsewhere. Comments: The Terrace Farm is not built in cities. It is basically a more powerful farm on a hill. My Take: Both the unique unit and unique building are very... well...unique. The Slinger being able to withdraw in the early game means you likely won't get hit by much, since early game is known for wide open combat rather than terrain fighting. Given Incas start bias, the Terrace Farm will usually be useful in your capitol and first expansion. After that, mountains are rare (though not as rare as lakes, making Inca better than Aztec). Low maintenence is very nice. Victory Goal: Inca will have a bit more money, so maybe Diplomacy. ==================================================================== 3.5 - Polynesia [3.5xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Kingdom of Hawai'i (Kamehameha I united Hawai'i. There wasn't a Polynesian Empire) Leader: Kamehameha I (Yep. That's how it is pronounced). Availability: DLC Released March 3rd, 2011 (Civilization and Scenario Pack: Polynesia) (Initial Steam Price $4.99) Unique Unit 1: Maori Warrior (replaces warrior). Starts with "Haka War Dance" promotion (any enemy on an adjacent tile receives -10% combat strength). Does not stack. Unique Unit 2: None Unique Building: Moai (tile improvement) (+1 Culture) [Requires Construction] Unique Ability: Wayfinding Units can embark and move over oceans immediately. +1 Vision Range for embarked units. +10% Combat Strength if within 2 tiles of a Moai. Comments: Like Inca's Terrace Farm, the Unique "Building" (Moai) is actually a unique tile improvement. The bonus from Moais and Maori Warriors do not appear to stack. My Take: If bonuses from Moais and Maori Warriors stacked, you could really hold chokepoints well. However, they don't. Wayfinding is a really nice ability if you want to expand quickly, meaning you have and advantage in resources. Unfortunately, the Unique building, which would lend itself to culture, is offset by the fact that this is an expansionary civilization. Nice early on, but after Astronomy is acquired by others, you lose your advantage. Victory Goal: Culture ==================================================================== 3.6 - Denmark [3.6xx] ==================================================================== Country: Denmark Leader: Harald Bluetooth Availability: DLC Released May 3rd, 2011 (Civilization and Scenario Pack: Denmark - The Vikings) (Initial Steam Price $4.99) Unique Unit 1: Berserker (replaces Longswordsman) +1 Move, free Amphibious (no attack penalty when attacking over a river for from the sea. Unique Unit 2: Norwegian Ski Infrantry (replaces Rifleman) +25% in Snow/Tundra/Hills (unless Forest or Jungle is present) and half movement cost. Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Viking Fury Embarked units have +1 move and only 1 movement cost for moving from sea to land. Melee units are charged no movement cost for pillaging improvements. Comments: None. My Take: Another strict military nation. Comparing to other Strict Military Nations, these units are a lot more specialized. Vikings could do well on Islands maps due to the advantage of attack via sea (amphibious assaults). Being able to pillage the s*** out of everyone is a double edged sword. Yes, it can weaken your opponent, but if you are trying to capture a city, you are trading a temporary small benefit for a long term cost (at least, until you get workers in). Victory Goal: Conquest. ==================================================================== 3.7 - Korea [3.7xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Chosaon Dynasty of Korea Leader: Sejong the Great Availability: DLC Released August, 11, 2011 (Civilization and Scenario Pack: Korea) (Initial Steam Price $4.99) Unique Unit 1: Turtle Ship (replaces Caravel) - +16 Melee Combat. Cannot enter deep ocean tiles. Doesn't have the +1 sight bonus or withdraw ability of the Caravel. Unique Unit 2: Hwach'a (replaces Trebuchet)- +12 Ranged combat. No Vision Penalty. No Bonus against cities. -1 Melee Combat Strength Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Scholars of the Jade Hall +2 Science for all Great Person Tile Improvements (including non- Scientist improvements) and specialists. Receive a research bonus towards your current research goal every time a science building or Wonder is built in the capital city. Comments: Doing some quick math, the Hwacha will do roughly 60% damage to a city of a Trebuchet. My Take: A small empire with a strong capital city is key. That said The units are, in my opinion, no better and possibly worse than what they replace. The caravel is supposed to be an exploration unit. The Turtle Ship, therefore, delays expansion so you can have a better unit to defend the shoreline, which against CPU, is pretty unneccessary. The Hwach'a is great against infantry, but you lose a seige weapon. Basically, both these units fail to serve the purpose of what they replace. I know different isn't always worse, but in the case of the Turtle Ship, it's unquestionably a step down. I honestly don't know why Firaxis though the Turtle ship was a good idea. Victory Goal: Science. ==================================================================== 4. Gods & Kings Expansion Pack [4xx] ==================================================================== Gods & Kings is the first major expansion pack to Civilization V. It released on June 19,2012 in North America, and June 22, 2012 elsewhere. This expansion pack adds in 9 civilizations (11 if you count the previously released Spain and Mongolia). Gods and Kings will bring 27 new units, 13 new buildings, and nine new wonders in addition to the 9 new civilizations. In addition, religion has been implemented. Unlike Civilization IV, where real-world religions were used, Civilization V has a player found ther on religion which they can grow and spread. Espionage, a feature from Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword, has also returned. Additionally, religious and mercantile city-states will provide new bonuses. This major update will also improve the Computer AI, add an early modern era to expand the timeline, and allow enhanced naval combat featuring a new Great Admiral unit as well as melee naval units (before this update, all naval units were strictly ranged). Below are all the new civilizations and the standard fare of information. ==================================================================== 4.1 - Austria [4.1xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Holy Roman Empire (which wasn't Holy, wasn't Roman, and was barely an Empire). Leader: Maria Theresa of the Habsburgs Unique Unit 1: Hussar (replaces Calvary) +1 movement, +1 sight, +50% bonus to flank (that is, attacking a unit already attacked). Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Coffee House (replaces Windmill) - +5% production in addition to +2 production. +25% great people generation. No +10% production to buildings. Can be built on hills. Unique Ability: Diplomatic Marriage Can spend gold to annex or puppet an allied city-state that has been an ally for at least 5 turns. Comments: A coffee house replaces a windmill. No, I don't know why. I've been to Austria; there were windmills everywhere. My Take: A great unique unit (though it comes fairly late) and a useful unique building. Diplomatic Marriage is more of an investment. Once you puppet or annex a city-state, you still need to build a courthouse. However, you don't have to deal with espionage anymore, nor do you have to continue spending money to buy loyalty. So useful, but the civ's biggest downfall is a lack of focus. Of course, if you puppet a city state, they no longer vote separately in a diplomatic victory. Victory Goal: With Great People, really anything except diplomacy. ==================================================================== 4.2 - Byzantium [4.2xx] ==================================================================== Country: Byzantine Empire Leader: Theodora Unique Unit 1: Cataphract (replaces Horseman) - +3 combat. Can use defensive terrain bonus (Horseman cannot), and only gets penalized 25% against cities (Horseman get 33%). -1 Movement Unique Unit 2: Dromon (replaces Trimere) - +11 Production. Cannot melee attack. Range Unit with 10 ranged combat strength and 2 range. -2 Direct Combat strength. +50% Strength vs. Naval Units. Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Patriarchate of Constantinople. Choose one more Belief than normal when you found a religion. Comments: You'll notice that every civ has a third "bonus" slot for founders that is reserved for Byzantine. Do they have to really throw that in everyone else's face? Also, for clarity: Naval combat is reworked in Gods and Kings. In vanilla Civ V, the Trimere is a ranged combat unit. But in Gods and Kings, the Trimere is a direct combat unit. This means that the Trimere cannot fire on ground units. The Dromon, however, can. My Take: The Dromon is beastly. The Cataphract is quite good. Getting a bonus belief, when the beliefs aren't THAT powerful is quite mehh- worthy, but in the right circumstance, can be game changing. Still, because the Dromon gets +50% against naval, even when it is attacked by Trimeres, it actually has 12 direct combat strength, meaning it has the advantage. I like the idea of religious warfare, if you set your belief perks up correctly. Victory Goal: Conquest with religious focus. ==================================================================== 4.3 - Carthage [4.3xx] ==================================================================== Country: Carthage Leader: Dido Unique Unit 1: African Forest Elephant (replaces Horseman) +25 Production; +2 Combat Strength, -1 Movement. -10% Combat Strength to any adjacent enemy unit. Great Generals 2 (produces Great Generals at, I believe, triple the usual rate). No horse resource required. Unique Unit 2: Quinquereme (replaces Trimere) - +3 Combat Strength Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Phoenician Heritage All coastal cities get a free Harbor. Units may cross Mountains after first Great General, but they take 50 damage if they end turn on mountain. Comments: None. My Take: Free harbor is very nice if you have a coastal capital, or at least a coastal city connected to your capital. It basically allows much quicker colonization. I'm not sure mountains are really common enough to warrant a huge plus to this ability, but it does force your opponent out of defending just key chokepoints in some instances. Unique units aren't exceptional, but aren't terrible either. Victory Goal: Almost a strict military nation, so I'd say Conquest ==================================================================== 4.4 - Celtica [4.4xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Celtric tribes. Leader: Boudica Unique Unit 1: Pictish Warrior (replaces Spearman) - +20% Combat Strength when outside of friendly lands. No movement cost to pillage. Earns 50% of opponents strength as Faith. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Ceilidh Hall (replaces Opera House) - +3 Happiness. Unique Ability: Druidic Lore +1 Faith per city with an adjacent unimproved forest. Bonus increases to +2 in cites with 3 or more adjacent unimproved forests. Comments: The faith bonus for kills does not preserve with promotion, but the pillage and foreign lands bonus do. Still, faith is kind of the main reason for this unit. My Take: I'm not a fan of the ability, because it's usefulnees is short lived. That said, it will all but guaruntee you getting the first religion. The Pictish Unit has to be in the top 5, if the not the best unique unit in the game. Great for early rushes, and since you can buy units with faith, you can use them to build up your army further. Unique Building is uninspiring, but useful (even though it comes late in the game) Victory Goal: Conquest by religious warfare. ==================================================================== 4.5 - Ethiopia [4.5xx] ==================================================================== Country: Etheopian Empire Leader: Haile Selassie Unique Unit 1: Mehal Sefari (replaces Rifleman) - -25 Production. +30% Combat Bonus when fighting in Capital. This bonus decreases the further from the Capital you are. Free Drill 1. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Stele (replaces Monumnet) - +2 Faith. Unique Ability: Spirit of Adwa +20% when fighting against civilization with more cities than Ethiopia. Comments: The Stele is better for faith than a shrine, at the same cost and still gives the same culture as an obelisk. My Take: Right now, my favorite Civ from Gods and Kings. If you are disciplined and keep a small empire, you can be excellent defensively while you focus on a goal of culture. With the Stele you are almost certain to be a religion founder, and you'll be able to generate 2 faith and 2 culture for the same cost as someone else who just gets either 2 culture OR 1 faith. Keeping a small tight knit empire can really make your defense strong. One of the best designed civilizations I've seen in regards to synergy. Victory Goal: Culture. ==================================================================== 4.6 - Huns [4.6xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Hun Leader: Attila the ... uh ... Hun. Unique Unit 1: Horse Archer (replaces Chariot Archer) - +1 Combat. Free Accuracy 1. No Rough Terrain Penalty (Chariot Archers use up all movement on any single rough terrain). No horse resource required. Unique Unit 2: Battering Ram (replaces Spearman) - + 19 production. -1 Combat Strength. 33% Penalty when attacked. No defensive terrain Bonus. -1 Visibility. Can only attack cities. +300% against cities.(That isn't a typo. +300%). Free Cover 1. Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Scourge of God Raze Cities at double speed. Borrow City names form other in-game Civs. Start with Animal Husbandry. +1 Production per pasture. Comments: The Battering Ram is the most specialized unit of all time. My Take: Okay, so in early periods, the Battering Ram simply destroys cities. Now, you have to defend it with warriors, but if you get it to an enemies city, you win. Period. Still, you lose a pretty important unit in spearmen. You can then raze the city quickly to avoid unhappiness. Horse Archer isn't excellent. Starting with Animal Husbandry is actually useful, since the start bias puts horses nearby frequently. I find it very strange though that you start with the ability to find horses when you don't need them for your unique unit. Very low synergy. Victory Goal: Conquest. Very very quickly. ==================================================================== 4.7 - Maya [4.7xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Mayans. Leader: Pacal Unique Unit 1: Atlatist (replaces Archer) - -4 Production, available without researching Archery. Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Pyramid (replaces Shrine) - +1 Faith, +2 Science. Unique Ability: The Long Count After researching Theology, receive a free Great Person at the end of every 394 years. (Each type of great person can only be selected once). Comments: Note: it's 394 Years, NOT 394 Turns. Meaning you'll get the great people more often early. My Take: Rush Theology quickly, and you can get a nice early upperhand. However, because you can't get multiple free Great People of the same type, a lot of specialization potential is wasted. Once you get towards modern times, the Unique Ability becomes 2 steps shy of worthless. Once you leave the ancient era, the unique unit becomes worthless. The Pyramid is nice though. Victory Goal: Science, with the right religious focus. ==================================================================== 4.8 - The Netherlands [4.8xx] ==================================================================== Country: The Netherlands Leader: William of Orange Unique Unit 1: Sea Beggar (replaces Privateer) - Free Coastal Raider II (Additional +20% vs. Cities, addition +33% of damage received as gold). Free Supply (can heal outside of friendly territory at 15 hp per turn). Free Prize ships (convert fallen enemies to your side occasionally) Unique Unit 2: None. Unique Building: Polder (a unique improvement, NOT a building) - +3 Food improvement. Can only be built on marshes and flood plains. Unique Ability: Retain 50% of happiness benefit from a Luxary Resource if you trade away your last copy. Comments: None. My Take: At first glance this country looks terrible. But look again. Okay, it's still really bad. But look once more. The Sea Beggar is pretty damn good. A total of +40% damage to cities plus raiding 66% of the damage (since it stacks with Coastal Raider I) and the ability to convert enemies is pretty cool. Polder would be amazing if it weren't for the fact that it can only be built on relatively rare tiles (one of which slows movement speed). The ability is just trash, though. So basically, you have one really good unit, one below average building, and arguably one of the worst abilities in the game. In my opinion. Victory Goal: Diplomacy if I had to pick one. ==================================================================== 4.9 - Sweden [4.9xx] ==================================================================== Country: Sweden Leader: Gustavas Adolphus Unique Unit 1: Hakkapeliitta (replaces Lancer) - 15% bonus with Great General in same tile. Great General that starts stack with this unit gets movement bonus to match this unit. Unique Unit 2: Carolean (replaces Rifleman) - Free March 1 (Unit heals every turn, even if action taken). Unique Building: None. Unique Ability: Nobel Prize Gain 90 influence with a great person gifted to a City State. When declaring Friendship, gain a 10% boost to Great Person generation. The friend also receives this boost. Comments: None. My Take: Honestly, I'm wholly unimpressed. Gifting Great People would be nice, except espionage completely prevents holding onto a City-State's trust. So it's not worth losing the great person. +10% for friendship is nice, except no one will give it to you late game, and you actually help your opponents out too. The units are pretty much garbage (Hakkapeliitta is barely better than vanilla lancer, which is a weak unit for the period you get it, and free March is nice but FAR from game changing). Arguably the worst ability in the game. Unit has decent ability synergry, but you can only get one bonus per great general, so it's weak sauce. Victory Goal: Focus your great people generation to science or culture, and go from there. ==================================================================== ==================================================================== ==================================================================== Copyright 2010-2013 Paul "Will" McBurney
