Maximizing Your Empire: The Art of City Spacing in Civilization VI
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So, you’re staring at the map in Civilization VI, itching to expand, but the big question looms: How far apart should I plant my precious new cities? The short answer is: aim for approximately 4-5 tiles between city centers. This spacing provides a sweet spot, balancing territory acquisition with efficient resource exploitation. However, the complete answer is far more nuanced and depends heavily on your strategic goals, the terrain, and even your chosen civilization. Let’s delve into the intricacies of city placement to help you build an empire that will stand the test of time.
The Core Principles of City Spacing
While a 4-5 tile separation is a great starting point, it’s crucial to understand why this works and when to deviate from it. This spacing allows for minimal tile overlap between cities, ensuring that each city can work a substantial number of tiles within its 3-tile radius. Remember, a city can only directly work tiles within 3 hexes of its City Center.
However, tile overlap isn’t always bad. Some degree of overlap can be advantageous, especially when dealing with strategic resources or valuable terrain features. For example, two cities placed closer together might both be able to work a cluster of hills, maximizing production in the early game.
Furthermore, consider these essential factors:
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Resources: Are there key strategic resources (Iron, Horses, Niter) or luxury resources (Cotton, Furs, Incense) that you need to claim? Settle to secure these resources, even if it means adjusting your spacing. Remember, a city only needs to be within the 5-tile radius of a resource to claim it; it doesn’t necessarily need to work the tile.
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Terrain: Is the land predominantly plains, hills, desert, or tundra? Hilly terrain, while providing production bonuses, often constricts city placement. Desert and tundra, on the other hand, may necessitate closer cities to efficiently utilize the limited fertile land.
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Freshwater: Access to freshwater (rivers, lakes, oases) is crucial for early city growth, providing valuable Housing. Prioritize settling near freshwater sources, even if it compromises optimal spacing.
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National Parks and Wonders: Strategic placement near natural wonders opens up potential for high adjacency bonuses for Holy Sites and Campuses. Preserve these locations when possible. Furthermore, the ability to create National Parks later in the game means that strategically located cities can unlock significant tourism yields if they have appealing (Charm +4 appeal) tiles.
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Strategic Importance: Consider locations with strategic value, such as mountain passes, coastal areas, or choke points. Securing these locations can provide significant defensive advantages.
Wide vs. Tall: The Eternal Debate
The optimal city spacing is intimately linked to the “wide vs. tall” debate. In Civ VI, the prevailing wisdom favors a wide strategy, emphasizing numerous cities over a few highly developed ones. This is because the global production, science, culture, and faith advantages gained from multiple cities typically outweigh the potential benefits of hyper-specialized, densely populated centers. More cities mean more districts, more specialists, and more opportunities for growth. This contrasts with previous Civ games where Tall was a very viable strategy.
Going wide requires more frequent city placement, often resulting in slightly closer spacing. Don’t be afraid to pack your cities in if it means securing valuable land and resources.
Governors: The Key to Efficient Expansion
The Governor system in Civ VI plays a crucial role in managing a sprawling empire. Certain governors, like Pingala (for culture and science) and Liang (for city infrastructure and resource management), are invaluable for maximizing the output of your cities. Assigning the right governor to the right city can mitigate the drawbacks of closer city spacing, such as increased amenity costs or reduced loyalty.
Optimizing City Placement with Governors
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Amani: This governor is very strong when attempting to acquire City-States. She will not be able to outright make a City-State flip over, but she can secure influence.
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Reyna: Placing Reyna in your highest gold city can provide you with substantial amounts of gold as she is an incredible economic generator.
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Viktor: Stationing Viktor in a city near other civilizations will help keep loyalty in your city.
City-States: Friend or Foe?
Interacting with City-States adds another layer of complexity to city spacing. Should you settle near them, become their suzerain, or conquer them outright? The answer depends on the specific City-State and your overall strategy.
City-States provide unique bonuses that can significantly boost your civilization. For example, a Scientific City-State can provide Science boosts, while a Religious City-State can boost Faith generation. However, a City-State in a prime location can also be a tempting target for annexation.
Deciding Whether to Annex City States
If a City-State is blocking a strategically important area, or if its bonuses are not particularly relevant to your victory condition, annexation may be the best option. However, be aware that annexing City-States incurs a warmonger penalty with other civilizations, potentially impacting your diplomatic relations.
Ultimately, the decision to settle near, befriend, or conquer City-States depends on your strategic priorities and your tolerance for diplomatic consequences. In many scenarios, if a City-State has great land to take over, the best option is to take over the City-State.
Conclusion: Mastering the Art of the Settlement
Finding the ideal city spacing in Civilization VI is an iterative process, requiring careful consideration of terrain, resources, strategic location, and your chosen victory path. While a 4-5 tile separation provides a solid foundation, don’t be afraid to adapt your strategy based on the unique challenges and opportunities presented by each game. Embrace the wide strategy, utilize your governors effectively, and make informed decisions about City-States to build a powerful empire that can dominate the world. To learn more about game based learning, consider reviewing the work of the Games Learning Society. For more information, please visit GamesLearningSociety.org.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Is it bad to have too many cities in Civ 6?
No, generally, it’s not bad to have many cities in Civ 6. The benefits of additional production, science, culture, and faith from multiple cities usually outweigh the downsides.
2. What happens if a city doesn’t have fresh water in Civ 6?
A city without fresh water receives a reduced amount of Housing, limiting its growth. However, you can build an Aqueduct to provide fresh water if other conditions are met.
3. How far away can districts be in Civ 6?
All your districts can only be built as far as 3 tiles away from city center – except for Encampments, that can’t be built adjacent to city centers, so only in the outer 2 rings. Anything can be built on jungle (rainforest) tiles after researching Bronze Working.
4. Is it better to build tall or wide in Civ 6?
In Civilization VI, the wide strategy (numerous cities) is generally more effective than the tall strategy (a few highly developed cities).
5. How many cities should I have in Civ 6 by turn 50?
Aim for around 3-5 cities by turn 50, depending on the map size and your starting location.
6. Where is the best place to build a city in Civ 6?
Ideally, settle near freshwater, strategic resources, and productive terrain such as hills. Plains hills tiles give the largest production and food bonuses for cities and are often located near other productive tiles.
7. Can cities sink in Civ 6?
Yes, with the Gathering Storm expansion, coastal tiles can be submerged due to rising sea levels, although City Centers are safe from submergence. This essentially destroys the tiles, along with not only improvements and districts on them, but also any natural features and resources!
8. Should I open my borders in Civ 6?
Opening borders can increase tourism output, beneficial for a Culture Victory. However, it also allows other civilizations to explore your territory. It’s strategic decision.
9. What is the warmonger penalty in Civ 6?
The warmonger penalty is a negative diplomatic modifier incurred for declaring wars or conquering cities. It affects relations with other civilizations.
10. Can you peacefully take over a city-state in Civ 6?
While difficult, it is possible to peacefully take over a city-state by exerting enough loyalty pressure to cause them to join your empire. Loyalty is a key game mechanic.
11. Should I destroy or keep a city in Civ 6?
Generally, it’s better to keep captured cities unless they are in a completely undesirable location or are severely hindering your progress. Captured cities provide production, resources, and population.
12. What is the city radius in Civ 6?
A city can work tiles within a 3-tile radius of its City Center.
13. What is the most important thing in Civ 6?
The most important thing is to understand your surroundings. Look for Resources or sources of water, ideal city spots; find Mountains or Rainforest tiles for district bonuses; explore the seas for new settlements.
14. Is monarchy good in Civ 6?
Monarchy can be a very good government if you can’t slot more policy cards. Monarchy may remain viable well after it is unlocked, since it provides greatly relevant bonuses to a Diplomatic Victory.
15. Who is the best governor in Civ 6?
There are a variety of great governors in Civ 6. Some are better in specific scenarios. Overall, the two best governors all around are Pingala and Liang.