The Civilization series has offered me endless enjoyment through its turn-based strategy gameplay. However, each new installment introduces significant changes that may require some adjustment. If you’re new to the game and struggling to develop a strategy, this guide to Civilization 6 will serve as a helpful introduction. I will outline the key innovations in this version and share fundamental strategies to help you achieve victory!

Civilization VI provides a solid introduction to the fundamental concepts, such as map navigation, city founding, and production mechanics. If you’re a newcomer to the series, these elements may be unfamiliar. However, this guide won’t focus on these basic aspects; I recommend completing the tutorial and playing a few games on the easiest difficulty with the adviser activated to quickly grasp the essentials. Instead, the aim of this guide is to address the missing information in the Civilopedia and the adviser—details that should be clarified but often aren’t.

There are numerous similarities between Civilization 5 and Civilization 6, meaning that if you’re well-versed in the latter, you’ll have an advantage in this latest version. For those who are seasoned players of the series, I’ll highlight the key changes that have occurred since Civilization 5.

Urban Areas, Regions, and Their Arrangement

In the Civilization series, the primary objective has historically been to establish a city on a single tile and utilize the nearby terrain to generate resources for the city’s development and expansion. In both Civilization 5 and 6, the terrain is depicted as hexagonal tiles. A city is capable of utilizing hexes that are located within a three-hex radius from its center.

Helpful Hint: Unsure whether a city can utilize a specific tile? Begin at the city center and navigate towards the tile in question. Each time you cross a tile boundary, add one to your count. If you can reach the desired tile before your count reaches 3, the city is capable of working that tile.

In Civilization 6, cities utilize the tiles around them to construct buildings that were once confined to the city center. Each city can assign a specific hex to function as a “district,” allowing for the construction of particular structures, such as the “Theater Square,” which is designated for cultural buildings. The total number of districts a city is able to create is influenced by its population size.

Wonders can only be constructed on designated tiles, and each wonder typically has particular conditions regarding its placement. Overall, I believe that numerous wonders in Civilization 6 lack sufficient power, and I often find myself hesitant to prioritize their construction, unlike in earlier installments. While they do offer beneficial bonuses, the constraints on their placement, combined with extended construction periods and modest rewards, somewhat diminish their overall effectiveness.

The Civilization franchise has frequently faced challenges in addressing the issue that overseeing a vast empire can devolve into a tedious micromanagement experience in the later stages of the game. In both Civilization 4 and Civilization 5, game mechanics were introduced to restrict the number of cities a player could establish, in an effort to prevent the empire from becoming unmanageable.

Civilization 6 significantly moves away from previous mechanics, opting instead to focus on making each city self-regulating. The concept of global happiness has been replaced by local “amenities”—as a city expands, it demands more amenities to sustain its growth. If the amenities balance falls into the negative, the city may revolt, leading to the emergence of enemy military units in the vicinity that you’ll need to confront.

Expert Advice: If a city has surpassed its available resources and is facing potential unrest, you can curb its growth by neglecting food supplies. When you select the city in the lower right corner of the screen, you’ll see a row of small buttons above the city’s name. Locate the button for “food” and click it until it turns red. Additionally, you can create settler units, which will decrease the population by one, or dismantle enhancements such as farms.

An additional simple method to acquire additional amenities is by engaging in trade. If the AI possesses luxury resources that you lack, you can negotiate a trade for their surplus. Often, the AI will suggest these trades on their own, but it’s worth exploring if you are facing significant happiness challenges.

Another constraint on a city’s expansion in Civilization 6 is housing availability. Insufficient housing will hinder a city’s development. During the early stages of the game, farms and plots adjacent to fresh water can offer a limited housing boost. As the game progresses to the mid-stage, constructing an aqueduct and/or specialized buildings within districts can increase housing capacity. Ultimately, in the late game, any tile can be transformed into a “neighborhood,” significantly enhancing housing options.

Expert Advice: The “appeal” statistic of a tile plays a crucial role in determining its effectiveness for neighborhoods. A tile with a higher appeal will lead to increased housing opportunities for neighborhoods situated on it.

When embarking on the journey of establishing and growing a city, the inquiries you will probably consider include:

What characteristics should an ideal location possess for establishing a new city?

In contrast to earlier installments of the Civilization series, the significance of terrain in Civilization 6 appears to be diminished. Areas that would typically be deemed unproductive, such as deserts, mountains, or tundra, can now be utilized more effectively than in the past. However, there are several factors to keep in mind:

  • A tile encircled by multiple hills can be an advantageous location for settlement, as the mines on the hill tile offer production enhancements, along with an additional +1 production boost for a neighboring industrial district.
  • Constructing a city on a tile with access to fresh water, typically those located next to rivers, provides a +3 housing bonus, which can be quite impactful during the early to mid-game stages.
  • Luxury resources that you haven’t acquired yet can enhance the amenities in your most underserved cities. By establishing your settlements close to these resources and upgrading them, you can avoid numerous issues related to amenities. After the initial acquisition, luxury resources primarily serve as trade items and offer no additional advantages. The AI frequently seeks to exchange your surplus luxury items for theirs, creating a mutually beneficial situation.
  • In the same vein, strategic resources can provide a significant advantage in military capabilities and should be given high priority. However, it’s crucial to understand that only two units of a strategic resource are necessary to produce any unit that depends on it, no matter how many units you intend to create. For example, possessing two units of iron allows you to produce up to 50 swordsmen. Additionally, if a city features an encampment district or the appropriate late-game policies, it can manufacture an unlimited number of units using just a single unit of the strategic resource.

A frequently asked question regarding city placement in Civilization 6 is, “What is the ideal distance between my cities?” In earlier iterations of the Civilization series, it was crucial to minimize the overlap of tiles between cities to optimize land usage. However, Civilization 6 introduces certain districts and wonders that gain advantages from proximity to several city centers. For example, an industrial district featuring a factory can provide additional production to any city center located within a 6-tile radius. Consequently, I often find it beneficial to allow a slight overlap between my cities to fully capitalize on these advantages.

What is the most effective way to make use of my tiles and arrange my districts?

Civilization 6 introduces a new approach to managing and balancing tile improvements. Unlike earlier installments where you would make a single decision on how to enhance a tile and then leave it unchanged for the duration of the game, this version requires a more gradual and strategic development of tiles. Players must now consider the evolution of tile improvements over time.

For example, you could begin with a woodland area on a tile adjacent to your city. In earlier Civilization titles, forests were typically valuable to maintain, but in Civilization 6, I’ve noticed that I frequently clear them away right away. The minor production benefit from a tile usually pales in comparison to the instant production gain from their removal.

In the initial stages of the game, consider placing a farm on that tile. This will yield a modest supply of food and a little housing. When farm tiles are positioned to connect with two other farm tiles, they can generate additional food bonuses. Therefore, aim to create triangular configurations of neighboring farm tiles whenever possible.

With the growth of the city’s population, the need to establish additional districts will arise. As the game advances, the productivity of farms will rise, potentially reducing the number of farms required to sustain the city’s food supply. Consequently, a farm tile could transform into a commercial district, or, in the later stages of the game, it could evolve into a residential area to provide extra housing.

Expert Advice: You can often eliminate resources from tiles, allowing you to reuse the tile once the resource bonus is no longer advantageous. Deploying builders to clear forests, rainforests, or marshes, or to gather outdated resources, will yield instant advantages for the city. In contrast, constructing over the tile from the city production menu will remove the resource but will not grant you the bonus.

Every district offers “adjacency bonuses” that are particularly valuable to keep in mind, especially during the initial stages of the game. The key bonuses to focus on are:

  • Industrial zone districts gain the greatest advantage when located near mines situated on hill tiles. Whenever possible, aim to position industrial districts adjacent to several hill tiles.
  • Districts that serve as commercial centers gain significant advantages when a river borders at least one side. Typically, when you establish your city near a river, you’ll have numerous tile choices to take advantage of this benefit, so be sure to capitalize on it!
  • Campus districts gain the greatest advantages from neighboring mountain tiles, providing an additional +1 science per turn, while they also receive a smaller boost from adjacent rainforests, contributing +0.5 science per turn. In the initial stages of the game, preserving rainforests for these benefits may be advantageous, but as the game progresses, the advantages from the buildings within the district tend to overshadow these bonuses.

This is certainly not an exhaustive list, as many districts offer additional bonuses that may also be relevant. Nevertheless, I have noticed that these bonuses tend to be the most frequently applicable. Therefore, I will consider them when establishing a city in the vicinity and when designing the layouts for districts in new cities.

Another aspect to take into account for industrial areas and entertainment hubs is that these two types of districts allow for the construction of structures that can serve several cities, as long as the city centers are located within a 6-tile distance from the district. This implies that by positioning your cities in close proximity, you can establish your districts in the spaces between them and maximize the advantages.

What is the best approach for arranging your industrial zone districts? Should you establish an industrial zone close to several mined hills, or is it more advantageous to position it in an area where multiple cities can benefit from the bonuses provided by factories and power plants?

I believe that during the initial stages of the game, it’s beneficial to focus on maximizing the adjacency bonuses of mines. As you establish cities later on, the advantages of expanding the bonuses from factories and power plants become more significant than the advantages of having mines in close proximity, particularly when the increase is just +1 or +2.

In the case of entertainment complexes, there are no adjacency advantages. I recommend positioning them at a distance from your main city hubs, while ensuring they are as near as possible to multiple other city centers.

Tactics and Triumphs

Certain victory conditions in Civilization 6 have been inherited from earlier installments in the series. Nonetheless, there are also some highly effective strategies for achieving swift victories, which we will explore in this section.

General Recommendations

Establishing new cities is a frequent occurrence. There’s hardly any justification for holding back on city founding. Areas of the map that were previously considered uninhabitable in earlier Civilization titles—such as deserts, tundras, and mountainous regions—are now excellent spots for city development. Creating a settler will reduce a city’s population by one, which means that in the initial stages of the game, you might hinder the expansion of your main cities by producing too many settlers. However, as your city’s growth begins to plateau due to insufficient housing or amenities, the decision to create settlers and establish new cities becomes a clear and advantageous choice.

Act promptly in creating districts. They offer numerous advantages for both your cities and your entire civilization. While there are ideal configurations for their placement and choosing one district may temporarily focus a city’s capabilities, don’t let this hinder your decision-making. The advantages of adding a new district typically surpass the drawbacks of placing it on a suboptimal tile.

Consider investing in tiles. The demand for tiles is greater than ever for expanding cities—tiles for establishing districts, constructing wonders, and enhancing farms, mines, and more. Don’t hesitate to acquire that “ideal tile” for your district. Additionally, while builders may be consumed and tile enhancements can be fleeting, it’s still worthwhile to invest in builders. The benefits of farms, mines, and other improvements justify the time and effort needed to develop them!

Utilize your current cities to expand and develop new ones. Establishing trade routes from these new cities to your existing ones can significantly enhance both production and food resources. You can quickly transfer your trade units between cities, so while you’re preparing to settle, consider creating a trade unit in a well-established city. Additionally, you can prepare builders in your existing cities, where they can be constructed more rapidly, and dispatch them as soon as it’s safe.

Prioritize religion during the initial stages of the game. It will soon become evident that while religion can be a straightforward path to victory, it can also lead to a quick defeat. Ensure that you establish Holy Sites in your initial cities; accumulating additional faith and a solid religious foundation early can be crucial for your success!

Industrial zones and entertainment complexes are a great addition to nearly any city. No matter the city’s development plans, the presence of additional production and recreational facilities can significantly enhance its appeal. Typically, after the initial stages of the game, these are the first two districts I establish in a new city. Following these, I usually construct a Commercial Hub to increase trade routes, which helps in boosting new cities. After that, I take time to thoughtfully decide on the specialization of the new city before proceeding with further development.

Be mindful of technological and civic enhancements, although they may not always provide significant benefits. Many of these upgrades are straightforward to achieve, particularly in the initial stages of the game. However, if you allow your current boosts to dictate your future research, you may find yourself following an unusual trajectory through the technology and civic trees. The essential technologies and civic upgrades differ based on your gameplay approach, the nation you are playing, and the specific circumstances of the game. Generally, I prioritize advancements in siege technology, industrial output, and the expansion of districts or overall city development.

Pay attention to the smaller city-states. These entities can serve as valuable partners. By dispatching a single envoy to a city-state, you typically gain a minor advantage for your capital. Reaching three and six envoys will provide benefits for all your districts of a specific type. If you possess more than three envoys at a city-state and surpass all other players, you achieve the status of “Suzerain,” akin to being an ally. This status comes with various perks, including a unique bonus specific to that city-state. The number of envoy points you can earn depends on your government and policies, and you automatically receive one envoy for being the first to encounter a city-state. It’s unlikely that you will become the Suzerain of every city-state, so it’s essential to determine which ones to focus on based on the advantages they offer. Reaching the milestones of 1, 3, and 6 envoys can also be beneficial if you can manage it.

Victory through Domination

Military triumphs and the tactics employed remain largely unchanged from Civilization 5. The AI continues to struggle with conducting successful warfare, frequently surrendering any advantages due to its complete absence of strategic planning.

One of the simplest strategies at the onset of a conflict is to adopt a defensive stance. Position your ranged or siege units within your border cities, while reinforcing the adjacent hexes with melee units, facing the borders you share with the enemy. Allow the enemy forces to charge in, where they will be decimated by your ranged units, while your heavily fortified defenders withstand their assaults. This will enable you to gain valuable experience for your troops, setting the stage for a powerful counteroffensive.

When the AI halts its troop deployments, take the opportunity to recover and prepare for the next move. Position support units alongside your frontline forces to expedite the siege of AI-controlled cities and minimize losses. Maintain a few backup units to replace any frontline troops that sustain damage. At this stage, the AI is likely pleading for mercy, but the extent of territory you choose to seize before agreeing to their surrender is entirely your decision.

At the most challenging levels, you’ll need to adjust your tactics. The AI is expected to produce units rapidly, resulting in increased opposition as you near the enemy cities, and their technological advancements will be noticeably superior. Simply adopting a defensive strategy won’t lead to victory, and achieving domination will take significantly more time.

The dynamics of diplomacy and war declarations have evolved, yet the changes are not substantial enough to create a major impact. To mitigate the penalties associated with warmongering, it may be wise to issue a denunciation a few turns prior to initiating conflict. However, the AI frequently reacts with aggression and declares war, placing the burden of penalties more on them than on you. Don’t be misled by the terminology; “casus belli” simply refers to a sophisticated way of saying “reason to engage in combat.”

Cultural Triumph

Achieving a cultural victory in Civilization 6 closely resembles the mechanics found in Civilization 5 with the Brave New World expansion. Essentially, the goal is to produce a significant amount of tourism to surpass the cultural output of your rivals. On the defensive side, it’s crucial to generate sufficient culture to prevent your opponents from overpowering your own.

A fresh element is the recognition of culture as an independent tech tree, distinct from science. Now, you can “advance” using culture in addition to science. This tree also enables the unlocking of governments and social policies.

Tourism is most effectively created through exceptional artistic endeavors, which mainly depend on talented artists, musicians, and authors. Construct Theater Squares and enhance them to boost your cultural production and accumulate the necessary points for great individuals.

Expert Advice: You can organize impressive artworks across your different cities and structures, and specific pairings can enhance your total tourism revenue. If you have surplus great people, think about selling or trading some of your great works to free up space for additional ones.

Triumph through Scientific Achievement

Achieving a science victory necessitates a blend of substantial scientific output and, in the final stages of the game, significant production capabilities. You need to advance through the necessary technologies to construct the different space missions, and subsequently, execute them in the correct sequence to secure victory.

In truth, this aspect has remained fairly consistent throughout the years, even though Civilization 6 offers fewer components for construction compared to earlier versions. By ensuring your campuses and industrial zones operate at their best, you can achieve this goal quickly. However, it does necessitate reaching a later stage in the game and advancing further along the technology tree than most other victory conditions.

Triumph of Faith

Religious victories are a fresh addition to Civilization 6, offering one of the quickest paths to triumph. You can initiate this strategy early in the game, and if your rivals are not paying attention, you can achieve victory in a short amount of time.

To achieve a religious victory in Civilization 6, your religion needs to be the dominant faith in over 50% of the cities belonging to other civilizations. For instance, if a rival has 3 cities, your religion must represent the majority of the population in at least 2 of those cities.

Apostle and missionary units can seamlessly access the territories of other civilizations as long as there is no ongoing conflict, providing a straightforward and non-violent method to achieve victory. Even if the AI requests that you refrain from converting their cities, they usually refrain from declaring war over the violation of this agreement or if you choose to disregard their request entirely.

There are several new gameplay mechanics to take into account. Missionaries are inexpensive religious units that are unable to engage in combat with other religious units, though they can provide defense. They are effective for spreading religion at a low cost, but they do not possess the unique abilities that apostles have.

Apostles have the ability to promote faith, but their contributions to your religion extend beyond that. If they possess at least two charges for spreading religion, they can promote a belief, granting your religion an additional perk (up to a maximum of two extra perks). Alternatively, they can initiate an inquisition, enabling the creation of inquisitor units that can eliminate competing faiths from your cities. Additionally, they begin with a complimentary upgrade that allows you to choose from two random abilities.

Expert Advice: Certain upgrades for apostles are incredibly potent, allowing them to simultaneously promote their own faith while eliminating rival religions. This capability significantly simplifies the task of wiping out an opponent’s belief system!

A potential issue has been highlighted by /u/soontobeabandoned, who notes that in their game, utilizing an additional apostle charge followed by an attempt to evangelize is ineffective. This contradicts the in-game tooltips, suggesting it may be a bug. While I’ve had a positive experience with this feature, it’s advisable to be cautious.

The advantage of winning through religion has its drawbacks as well. It’s crucial to develop your religion early and disseminate it across your cities. This makes it more challenging for opponents to invade and dominate your territory. Additionally, establishing your religion in a city that has a holy site well within your borders is vital. If you lose all your cities to a rival religion and lack religious units, reclaiming your faith becomes nearly unfeasible. This scenario places you in a dire situation, where declaring war is often your only option for recovery.

If you spot an opponent dispatching religious units towards you in a timely manner, you can try to repel them. Apostles can confront opposing missionaries and apostles, hindering their ability to convert your cities. Additionally, Inquisitors can eliminate the religious sway of your adversaries, making it a good strategy to hold a few in reserve. Allow your opponent to expend their religious units on converting a city, and then you can intervene to reverse their efforts.

Expert Advice: Positioning a damaged religious unit close to or on a city’s sacred site aligned with their faith will facilitate their healing process. Ensure that you eliminate any injured enemy units instead of letting them escape; this will prevent them from recovering and rejoining the fight, while also diminishing their religious impact on adjacent cities.