In Civilization VI, a Cultural Victory is one of the most complex and nuanced paths to victory, requiring a combination of strategic planning, diplomacy, and an understanding of the game’s deep mechanics. Achieving a Cultural Victory means generating more visiting tourists than any other civilization has domestic tourists at home. This victory condition revolves around the culture and tourism mechanics, and it can often be more challenging than military or scientific victories. Here’s a guide to help you master the art of culture and achieve a Cultural Victory in Civ VI.
1. Early Game Focus: Cultural Infrastructure and Wonders
To set yourself up for a Cultural Victory, it’s essential to build a strong cultural foundation early on. Begin by focusing on key buildings and districts that will increase your culture output.
- Theaters and Great Works: Your first step should be constructing Theater Squares and generating Great Works, as these are the backbone of your culture output. The more Great Works you can accumulate, the better your chances of generating tourism later on.
- Wonders: Certain wonders can provide massive boosts to your culture and tourism, making them essential in the early to mid-game. Prioritize wonders such as:
- The Oracle (Great People points and a culture boost)
- The Colosseum (Tourism and amenities)
- The Eiffel Tower (Tourism bonus to all cities within 6 tiles)
These wonders not only give a culture and tourism advantage, but they also help create a stronger foundation for your later game strategies.
2. Maximizing Your Tourism Output: Use Great People Wisely
Great People play an incredibly important role in your cultural strategy, particularly Great Writers, Artists, and Musicians. These individuals can create Great Works that increase both your culture and tourism output.
- Great Writers: Focus on securing early Great Writers who can generate Great Works of writing. Great Works of writing are crucial in your effort to create more cultural influence. Civics like Humanism and Nationalism help you gain more access to these Great People.
- Great Artists and Musicians: Once you have Theaters and Museums in place, Great Artists and Musicians can fill your museums with paintings and artifacts. Great Musicians, especially in the late game, can generate significant amounts of tourism with their Music Tracks.
To generate as many Great People as possible, prioritize policies and wonders that boost Great People points in the early to mid-game. As your empire grows, try to maintain a balance of cultural and scientific output to support your tourism needs.
3. Focus on Civics and Policies that Promote Culture and Tourism
Your Civic Tree plays a vital role in your ability to achieve a Cultural Victory. Be sure to focus on unlocking civics that boost culture and tourism:
- Humanism: This civic unlocks access to Museums, where Great Works of Art, Music, and Artifacts can be displayed for both culture and tourism. It’s one of the most important civics for culture-focused players.
- Cultural Diplomacy: Use policies like Heritage Tourism and Scripture to increase your tourism output. Heritage Tourism boosts tourism from Great Works, while Scripture gives you culture from religious buildings, helping you make the most out of your religious infrastructure.
- The Civilized Society Civic: When this is unlocked, you’ll gain a big boost to your cultural output, enabling you to expand your tourism production even more effectively.
- Merchant Republic: If you aim for a more flexible approach, this government type offers policies that help boost tourism, as well as slots for great person points.
4. Leverage the Power of Foreign Relations and Trade
Diplomacy can be an often-overlooked aspect of the Cultural Victory. To maximize tourism, you need to foster positive relationships with other civilizations.
- Open Borders: Always try to establish Open Borders agreements with other civilizations. This increases the tourism output between your empire and theirs. The more civilizations you have Open Borders with, the more tourists you’ll attract.
- Cultural Alliances: A Cultural Alliance increases tourism between you and the allied civilization, as well as providing a variety of diplomatic benefits. The stronger your ties, the more tourists you can draw from these nations.
- Trade Routes: Boost your tourism with trade routes. Certain Great People and wonders can increase tourism output with every trade route, so maintaining an efficient trade network can give you a significant edge.
5. Maximize National Parks and Seaside Resorts
As you reach the later game, National Parks and Seaside Resorts become powerful tools to increase your tourism.
- National Parks: These provide a large boost to tourism and can be created by placing Naturalists in specific locations. Be sure to plan ahead and look for areas with multiple appeal tiles (such as near mountains or coastal areas) to maximize your National Parks’ tourism output.
- Seaside Resorts: Once you unlock Flight technology, Seaside Resorts are an excellent source of tourism. Look for high-appeal tiles along the coast and make sure your cities are equipped with necessary infrastructure like Seaside Resorts to boost your tourism per turn.
6. Keep an Eye on the Culture Victory Threshold
The key to winning a Cultural Victory is making sure you can generate more tourists than any other civilization has domestic tourists at home. Keep an eye on the Culture Victory screen to track how close you are to victory. The moment your tourism output exceeds the number of domestic tourists of your nearest rival, the game will notify you that you are approaching a Cultural Victory.
However, keep in mind that some civilizations like Japan, Greece, and France can be quite competitive on the cultural front. Stay ahead by keeping your culture and tourism output high, while preventing them from overtaking you.
7. Defend Against Cultural Pressure
Finally, it’s important to manage cultural pressure from your rivals. If they are generating more culture than you, they can exert cultural influence over your cities, potentially causing unrest or flipping your cities. To defend against this:
- Create more Great Works and improve your cultural infrastructure: This will increase your culture output, making your cities more resistant to cultural influence.
- Cultural Pressure Resistance: The Nationalism civic gives you an early boost to resisting cultural pressure, while later technologies like Computers can give you additional resistance against foreign influence.
Conclusion
Achieving a Cultural Victory in Civilization VI requires a delicate balance of culture, diplomacy, and tourism management. The key is to prioritize culture and tourism from the early game, focusing on the right wonders, districts, and Great People, while keeping strong relationships with other civilizations to maximize your tourism potential. Remember, a Cultural Victory doesn’t happen overnight, but with careful planning and strategy, you can create an empire that becomes the envy of the world and attract tourists from every corner of the globe.
Good luck, and may your civilization stand at the forefront of the cultural world!
