Civilization VII — Civilizations and Leaders
Civilizations in Civilization VII belong to an Age: each is playable only in its own Age, and at each transition you pick a new civilization from the next Age. History, your leader and what you did in the last Age unlock which civilizations you can choose.
How civilizations work
- Each civilization has unique abilities, units, a unique quarter or buildings, and its own civics.
- Some choices follow history — Egypt can become Abbasid in Exploration — and some follow what you did, such as owning enough horses to become the Mongols.
- Your old civilization's buildings and bonuses stay in your cities as you move on.
Leaders
- A leader has one ability and stays for the whole game, so pick one whose ability helps the plan you have for all three Ages.
- Leaders can be paired with any civilization; pairings that share a theme (science, culture, war) are strongest.
- Several leaders come in more than one version, called personas.
The roster grows with every update. Tier lists change with each balance patch; see the Civilization tab of our Useful Links page.