Can Cities Defend in Civ 6? A Comprehensive Guide to Urban Warfare

Absolutely! In Civilization 6 (Civ 6), cities are far more than just places to build districts and generate resources; they are formidable defensive strongholds capable of repelling invaders and serving as crucial anchors for your empire. A well-defended city can withstand sieges, deter aggressors, and allow you to project power elsewhere. Let’s dive into the mechanics of city defense and explore the best strategies to make your urban centers virtually impenetrable.

The Fundamentals of City Defense

City defense in Civ 6 is a multi-layered system that combines inherent city strength, fortifications, garrisoned units, and strategic positioning. Understanding each component is essential for maximizing your city’s defensive capabilities.

• Base City Strength: Every city possesses a base combat strength, which increases with population. The larger your city, the tougher it is to conquer.

• Walls: Constructing Walls is the cornerstone of city defense. They provide significant bonus hit points (Health) that an attacker must deplete before directly attacking the city center. After researching the Steel technology, all cities automatically gain defenses equivalent to Ancient Walls. Subsequent technologies unlock stronger wall types: Medieval Walls and Renaissance Walls, each providing increased health. In the Gathering Storm expansion, the base health of cities with Steel increases to 400 HP.

• Buildings and Districts: Certain buildings and districts directly enhance city defense. Barracks, Armories, and Military Academies provide combat strength bonuses to units trained in that city. Encampment districts add their defensive strength to the city’s combat strength.

• Garrisoned Units: A military unit garrisoned within a city provides a combat strength bonus, further bolstering its defenses. The strength of the garrisoned unit contributes to the city’s overall defensive power. It’s crucial to choose the right unit for garrison duty (more on this later).

• Terrain: The surrounding terrain plays a significant role. Settling on a river or hill provides a combat strength bonus. Forests and jungles can hinder enemy movement, providing an advantage to defenders.

Strategic Considerations for City Defense

Beyond the basic mechanics, strategic planning is key to building truly resilient cities.

• City Placement: Choose defensible locations. Consider terrain features like rivers, hills, and natural chokepoints. Placing a city on a peninsula or island makes it harder to attack from multiple directions.

• Fortifications: Invest in walls as early as possible. The sooner you have walls, the more protected your city will be from early-game aggressors. Upgrade your walls as new technologies become available.

• Garrison Optimization: Select the appropriate garrison unit. While any unit provides a bonus, ranged units are generally superior for defense. They can attack approaching enemies without taking damage themselves. Archers, Crossbowmen, Field Cannons, and later-era ranged units excel in this role. Melee units are also useful to absorb damage and protect the city center.

• Supporting Units: Position supporting units outside your city to provide additional firepower and delay the enemy advance. Anti-cavalry units can be particularly effective against mounted attackers.

• City-State Alliances: Cultivating alliances with militaristic city-states grants access to unique units and bonuses that can significantly strengthen your defenses.

• Policy Cards: Utilize policy cards that enhance city defenses, such as “Levy En Masse” (increased production towards city defenses) or “Military Organization” (increased combat strength for units trained in cities with a Barracks).

• Governors: Appoint Governors to your cities, especially those with defensive specializations like Victor the Valiant. Victor can provide significant combat strength bonuses and other defensive advantages.

• Emergency Alliances: If a city is targeted for conquest, an Emergency can be called by other civs to band together and defend it.

Why Ranged Units Dominate City Defense

As mentioned earlier, ranged units are typically the best choice for garrisoning cities. Here’s why:

• Safe Attacks: Ranged units can attack approaching enemies without exposing themselves to melee attacks. This allows them to inflict damage while minimizing their own losses.
• High Damage Output: Ranged units generally have high damage output, especially when targeting fortified units.
• Strategic Positioning: Ranged units can be positioned on high ground or behind walls for increased defensive advantage.

While “siege” units like catapults and artillery can damage enemy units, they are more vulnerable to counter-attack and less effective at repelling a sustained assault on a city. They are better suited for offensive operations.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about City Defense in Civ 6

1. After developing Steel, all cities acquire defenses automatically (without the need to construct Walls), and their Health goes up to 200 (400 in Gathering Storm). What does this mean? This means that even if you haven’t manually built walls, your cities get a base level of defense after researching the Steel tech. This helps defend against later-era attacks but building stronger walls provides even more protection.

2. Can city-states declare war in Civ 6? Yes, City-States can engage in war with major civilizations or other city-states. Their actions are independent, adding another layer of complexity to the game. They are an important feature for diplomacy. To learn more about these features, consult the Games Learning Society at https://www.gameslearningsociety.org/.

3. How do you increase city defense in Civ 6? Increase city defense by increasing the population, constructing walls and other defensive buildings, settling on beneficial terrain (rivers, hills), and garrisoning a military unit.

4. Is it better to have a lot of cities in Civ 6? Generally, yes. More cities mean more production, science, culture, and faith. Managing many cities can be challenging, but the overall benefits usually outweigh the drawbacks.

5. Should I destroy or keep a city in Civ 6? In most cases, keep captured cities. They provide a valuable base for further expansion and resource acquisition. Razing a city should only be considered if it is in a strategically unfavorable location or has very low loyalty.

6. Is it bad to have too many cities in Civ 6? It’s difficult to have “too many” cities, but poorly managed cities can become a drain on your empire. Focus on developing your cities efficiently to maximize their output.

7. Can you peacefully take over a city-state in Civ 6? While extremely difficult, it’s theoretically possible through loyalty pressure. However, city-states have a strong resistance to foreign loyalty, making it an unlikely scenario.

8. How many cities should you aim for in Civ 6? Aim for at least 10 cities by turn 100 on standard speed. This will give you a strong foundation for a successful campaign. However, the ideal number depends on map size and game settings.

9. Can archers take a city in Civ 6? No, archers (or any other ranged unit) cannot capture a city on their own. You need a melee unit to deliver the final blow and occupy the city center.

10. Can you be communist in Civ 6? Yes, Communism is a Tier 3 government option in Civ 6, unlocked by the Class Struggle civic. It provides bonuses to production and citizen management.

11. What happens if you liberate a city-state in Civ 6? Liberating a city-state restores it to its original state. All envoys from other civilizations are removed, and you become its Suzerain, gaining its unique bonuses.

12. Is it bad to declare war in Civ 6? Declaring war carries a warmonger penalty, affecting your diplomatic relations with other civilizations. Choose your wars carefully and consider the long-term consequences.

13. What is the best city setup in Civ 6? A good city setup includes placing cities close enough to share districts, prioritizing strategic resources, and building a mix of production, science, and culture districts. A good rule of thumb is spacing them 4-6 tiles apart.

14. Can you destroy districts in Civ 6? No, once a district is placed, it cannot be removed unless you raze the entire city. This underscores the importance of careful city planning.

15. What happens if a city doesn’t have fresh water in Civ 6? Cities without fresh water receive less housing, limiting their growth potential. Building Aqueducts and other water-related infrastructure can mitigate this issue.

Conclusion

City defense is a critical aspect of Civilization 6. By understanding the mechanics, strategically planning your city placement, and optimizing your defenses, you can create urban centers that can withstand even the most determined assaults. Remember, a well-defended empire is a thriving empire!