One of the biggest concerns for developers at Firaxis and fans of the franchise is a reduction in micromanagement tasks forSid Meier’s Civilization 7compared toCiv 6and previous installments. So far, through their various Civ Streams and Dev Diaries, Firaxis has revealed many ofCiv 7’s gameplay updates and new featuresaimed at reducing micromanagement, either by simplifying previous systems or re-imagining them entirely.
Some of these updates are pretty major, such as the three-Ages structure, while others are more subtle - though likely just as impactful. These changes come at a cost to some players who very much enjoyed particular aspects of previous games, like Religion’s role inCiv 6,for example. Here’s a look at ten features inCivilization 7that will reduce micromanagement.
10Civ 7 Is Broken Into Three Distinct Chapters Called Ages
A New Age
The biggest change by far toCivilization 7that will ultimately reduce micromanagement and other pain points is the remodeling of the game into distinct chapters, or Ages:the Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern Ages. Compared toCiv 6’snine Eras (with theGathering Stormexpansion), changes across Ages function differently than an Era change, and each Age starts somewhat fresh with only certain features carrying over to the next Age.
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A new Age “resets” things to a certain extent. For example, if a civilization is at war at the end of the Antiquity Age, all their units will be relocated (presumably in their own territory), and the war is effectively ended,although diplomatic relations with opponents will carry over.Further,only certain units are available in certain Ages, such as Naval units becoming available in the Exploration Age.
9Builders Are Replaced With City Growth Events
Bye Bye Builders
Instead of meticulously improving each tile in a city three Builder charges at a time, like inCiv 6,a new City Growth system is at play inCiv 7thatreplaces Builder unitswith a mechanic based on population growth. Builder and Worker units from the past twoCivgames had to be micromanaged from turn to turn, making small improvements or constructing unique buildings.
The City Growth events inCiv 7allow players to construct buildings and create urban districts or place improvements on rural districts. Growth Events also function toexpand the city’s borders with a Culture Bombthat spreads to all adjacent tiles. Replacing the Builder units is part of an overhaul to city development inCiv 7that also serves to enable “tall play,” or the ability to improve yields without necessarily expanding the empire outward.
8There Is No Religious Victory In Civ 7
Losing Your Religion
One major change that will dramatically reduce micromanagementis the wayReligion works inCiv 7, which completelyremoves the Religious Victory condition and allocates Religion’s relevanceto the Exploration Age, which developers argue tracks more in a historical sense. InCiv 6,Religion and Faith were integral to each campaign and added a layer of micromanagement on the same level as a Domination Victory.
Players are actually not able to lose their Religion inCivilization 7, unlikeCiv 6, and every player is guaranteed a Religion. There is no longer a race to acquire the final Great Prophet.
InCiv 7, Religion plays a relatively smaller role, with the Exploration Age’s Cultural Legacy Path being where it is most prominent.This Legacy Path requires spreading a Religionto urban and rural populations to acquire Relics, which are needed to reach milestones along the Cultural path in pursuit of a Golden Modern Age. By allocating Religious Units to one-third of a campaign, the overall unit management across an entire match is greatly reduced.
7Commander Units Move Multiple Troops At Once
Support The Troops
As part of reducing micromanagement across the board, a new combat system inCiv 7includes a new Commander unit that can load up and stack troops and carry them across long distances.This serves to lower the number of clicks taken while waging war, and implements better siege warfare mechanics that involve deploying troops strategically in hexes surrounding the Commander.
The addition of the Commander unit also removes the need to promote individual military units. Commanders will have five different promotion trees that can be added to throughout all three Ages, as Commanders are one of the only units in the game that can stand the test of time. This adds a fresh layer of strategy to military combat, both offensively and defensively, andremoves the more menial aspects of combatfrom previous games.
6Naval Units Can Heal On Any Coast
Land, Ho!
One tedious aspect ofCiv 6naval combat and exploration is thatships have to be in home territory to heal.When playing on massive maps or attempting to cross expansive oceans, this feature can become very frustrating. InCiv 7,this mechanic became implausible because of a new mechanic causing Oceans to inflict damage on ships automatically each turn, presumably to imitate the rough seas experienced on early exploration voyages.
InCiv 7, it’s possible for naval units to spend a turn on any coastal tile to heala certain amount of health, removing the chore of navigating ALL the way back to home territory just to then spend a few turns stretching those sea legs back to full capacity. This will dramatically reduce the amount of time and number of clicks needed to heal naval units throughout a campaign.
5The Military Legacy Path Isn’t Just About Domination
Making Military Sense
In previousCivgames,a Domination Victory could become incredibly daunting, requiring players to move an overwhelming number of units each turn as they painstakingly attempt to capture every opponent’s capital city.Civ 7’s Military Victoryrequires a bit more nuanced strategy and fewer units - or at least fewer units that players have to manage each turn thanks to the aforementioned Commanders.
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A Military Victory inCiv 7does not require complete Domination, but instead builds through the Military Legacy Path across the Ages, culminating in the Modern Age Victory Condition project, Operation Ivy. In the Modern Age, players need to accrue 20 Ideology points bycapturing or reclaiming any Settlement for the first time, meaning it’s no longer necessary to conquer every opponent’s territory and players can wage more targeted and focused wars.
4Towns Do Not Have Production Queues
Talk Of The Town
One extremely tedious feature of previousCivgames is the numerousProduction queues for each city that require players' attentionas they grow their civilization over time. InCiv 7, this is mitigated to some extent through a restructuring of how Settlements work.
Civ 7’s starting unit is called a Founder and is the only one of its type in the game; this unit establishes a starting Capital city and is the jumping off point for a campaign. Therein, Settler units are created to venture out and establish Towns. These Towns actually do not have Production queues, and insteadallow players to select a Focusthat will automatically develop that Town in a certain direction. The Focus persists through that Age, and Towns can be upgraded to cities with Gold.
3Soft Settlement Cap
Strategic Growth Over Unchecked Sprawl
Civ 7will introduce a soft Settlement cap that encourages"strategic growth over unchecked sprawl"and increases over time and with resource investment.This cap is intended to encourage more efficient civilization growththat requires more thoughtful planning.Civ 6has no such cap, and allows unchecked growth that eventually becomes cumbersome. The Settlement cap inCiv 7is a soft cap, so when a player exceeds it, they receive a –5 Happiness penalty for each Settlement over the limit.
“With fewer Towns and Cities, there are more options for growth and development within the existing borders that will encourage a return to tall play.”
This will ultimately reduce over-settling into a sprawling empire that becomes unmanageable, or require some serious diplomatic skills to balance the Happiness penalty. With fewer Towns and Cities, there are more options for growth and development within the existing bordersthat will encourage a return to “tall play” strategies from earlierCivgames.
2There Are No Specialty Districts In Civ 7
A District Delighted
The specialty districts fromCiv 6required pre-builiding a particular type of district and constructing the associated buildings within each one, such as a Theater Square district and its Amphitheater, Art Museum, etc.These specialty districts add an unnecessary layer of complexity and micromanagementthat will no longer exist inCiv 7as it has reworked the entire district mechanic from the ground up.
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Districts inCiv 7are now established as soon as a building is placed on an urban tile. According toDev Diary #3,“each Urban tile has two Building slots that can hold any type of Building,allowing you to customize each District to suit your strategy.“The removal of specialty districts allows a more flexible city-building approach, and will reduce the micromanagement and tedium of placing each specialty district in the perfect location.
1Railroads Allow All Units To Fast Travel In The Modern Age
All Aboard!
A key feature of the Modern Age that will enable quickly traveling between settlements is the new railroad mechanic inCiv 7.This feature will essentially allow fast traveling between cities and towns with established rail stations, and willgreatly reduce the number of clicks requiredfor moving units across the map. Railroads can be established early in the Modern Age between any two settlements (i.e. cities or towns) that have a rail station, and having an active railroad enables factories to be built in that location, which are a major element of Modern Age Legacy Paths.
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While these are just some of the examples of major changes toCiv 7that will ultimately decrease the tedious elements of Civ gameplay, there are bound to be many more small features throughout the game that will serve the same purpose. These tenCivilization 7features will definitely reduce micromanagement throughout each campaign, and give players a more balanced experience overall.
Sources:Civ 7 Dev Diaries, Civ Streams (1,2,3)
Sid Meier’s Civilization VII
Sid Meier’s Civilization VII empowers players to guide their empires through three distinct Ages—Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern—each offering unique civilizations and challenges. For the first time, leaders and civilizations can be mixed and matched, allowing unprecedented strategic combinations.
