The Egyptian Exodus

I'm curious if anyone else tried this before...

After much trying I managed to let Egypt live into the modern age without collapsing as the leader of the pack in science, culture and overall points. Think I'll go for space race victory. Anyway, while settling further down in Africa I found an insanely ressource-rich spot, but it will take a while for a city placed there to live up to its potential. So I thought, what if I settled there earlier? Like, way earlier?

Thus I started a new game and sent my starting settler and warrior on an exodus that would make Moses blush.



It was easier than I expected to get all the way down. I had to stop once or twice so as to not risk getting attacked by animals on open terrain, but overall I could found my capital in turn 22 or 23. I just traded Calendar so now I know I'm in the year 890. This is the current state of my unconventional Egyptian empire. I'll probably settle Madagascar next.



I'm behind where I would be if I stayed in my starting location, but still this is a very fun game so far Plus down there I can probably avoid the plagues but I fear collapse in the future, I believe you get penalties for other people having cities in your core area.
I can give a more detailed report of the game so far if anyone's interested, but I'd feel kinda foolish if it turns out such an exodus is an old hat.

I tried this once and collapsed quite early due to stability

How early is that? I'm in the 15-hundreds now and my stability lingers on shaky but only dropped to unstable once for a short time. My main problem now is that I fall behind in techs because almost all AIs don't want to trade theirs. Think the mistake was going for Free Religion with the Shwedagon Paya for the research boost; at the time it didn't look like any religion would spread that far south anytime soon. Would have been better to hold out a bit longer and join the large Christian block for the relationship bonus.

I did it quite some time ago so I don't remember exactly when my empire collapsed, but I guess somewhere around 1000 BC - 1 AD. Not sure though...

I gave this "challenge" another try... and had to deal with huge stability problems. Stability at it's highest point was -23, but sometimes it went down to -40,-41. Madagascar declared independece twice, and after the second time I didn't recapture it as it would declare independence again anyway. Started at the same tile as Sinsyne, 2nd city at the middle of the most southern tiles of South Africa and the third city NW of the city called "Imu" on Sinsyne's screenshot. Some time later I build a city on Madagascar, one in central Africa to get the 2 banana's, copper and gems and captured Mbanza Kongo from the Natives. Converted to Christianity, which was a bad decision because Jerusalem (where Christianity was founded) has been razed by someone causing Europe being Islamic Impi's are hardly a problem since you get acces to copper and Iron to build Axemans and Macemans. Currently it's 1670 but I'm going to give up soon: plague start spreading to my cities, stability is -40... Egypt is almost in a civil war.

Only one point of light in the game, I was tech leader since the beginning of the game until now, thanks to some good tech trades, high trade route income (build the Great Lighthouse), researching the techs that others didn't research etc.

Good luck everyone trying this

A second attemp went much better. Most of the time the stability was shaky and sometimes unstable. Didn't change civics until I had a golden age from the Taj Mahal. Half way the 19th century the stability went down to -48 collapsing. The picture shows the turn of the civil war. I never managed to play Egypt this far until now

Since your main problem with stability is Arabs holding cities in your core, and since you have access in metal ores, why don't you just build an army and move it in the Sina peninsula ?

When the Arabs try to cross it, attack them an kill them. Then send settlers to your core and build cities to boost your stability!


This sounds like a fun game! I ll start one too

Zaanzie said:

I never managed to play Egypt this far until now

Click to expand...

I just achieved a 2013 Space Race victory in my 'conventional' Egypt game

But back to the Egyptian Exodus! Since others are trying this fun challenge I'll share some of the experiences and pitfalls I encountered.


First, something where I expect disagreement: I switch from Slavery to Tribalism while travelling south when the Anarchy doesn't matter. Unlike in your intended location your cities have good production but little food surplus so there's not that much point in whipping. Others would probably still go for Slavery for the occasional whip and slight Stability boost but I prefer saving some Civic Upkeep and avoiding the risk of a slave revolt.

Strange as it may sound, Barbarian Triremes start roaming South African waters really soon. Your cities are dependent on sea tiles/ressources for food and health so the first time around this really messed things up for me. Be prepared. You'll likely have to swarm the first few Triremes with Galleys. Park three of them on the ressource, let the barb attack to benefit from tile defense then on your turn sink the damaged Trireme.

Watch out for Impis! Oh, you'll have no trouble beating them. You can churn ouf Axemen at a frightening pace and there are enough animals around to get a good number of them to 5 EXP before any Impis spawn.
No, the problem with those annoying little natives is their ability to traverse inconveniently placed swamps and jungles where you can't attack them.

Sometimes, luckily not always, the AI is smart enough to use this path to get into your heartland and loot a tile with your axes unable to do anything about it. By now I'm used to building some Explorers to block their way.With Woodsman II and the tile defense bonuses they do really well.

Maintaining contact with the Mediterranean factions can be a hassle. I thought I'd be safe parking in Carthage. I was wrong.

This guy from my second attempt was a serious badass. In his time he killed three or four Impis, two Horse Archers and THREE Camel Archers! Half of that in defense of Carthage's capital. It's a pity the AI doesn't recognize I repeatedly saved their sorry asses, at the very least they could have coughed up a technology for my heroic efforts. I guess it was preemptive justice a goodie hut dropped a tech in that game...


Anyway, I started over recently. Zaanzie reminded me I really should have built the Great Lighthouse which I back then didn't, focusing on expansion rather than wonders in the early game. That is now rectified and my capital built the Maoi Statues, Great Lighthouse, Pyramids, Great Library, Leaning Tower and Statue of Zeus. That plot is a wonderful wonder factory even if you lack the Double Production ressource. This is the current state of the game.


The Plague swept through the world couple turns ago. I just now used a Great Engineer to hurry the Forbidden Palace up in Djedet. That Stability boost will hopefully get me through the next centuries without collapse and I always have the option of building a Summer Palace too.

Sinsyne said:

I just achieved a 2013 Space Race victory in my 'conventional' Egypt game

Click to expand...

In this thread you should post that space race victory as Egypt! It is a challenge to win a space race victory with a production poor civ, and Egypt is definitely one of those civs. Actually, I think no-one managed to win a spaceship victory playing as the Egypians.

Are you sure that's up to date with last post from four years ago? I'm no competitive Civ player so I would be surprised if I accomplished something nobody else did.
Although I did try my hand at Egypt a lot, almost exclusively in fact. First RaF Civ I played and wanted to master it before trying another. It was only much later I learned how difficult letting Egypt live into modernity is regarded

Further updates from the exiled Egyptians!

Steam Power gave my production a tremendous boost. Biology let my population explode, farms everywhere. I started removing jungle with extreme prejudice. By switching some production to science I managed to hit Medicine before the projected arrival of the final Plague in 1850. None of my dangerous rivals even have Biology yet so if the Plague messes them up good this could catapult me into the score lead.


Or so I thought. I'm to 1924 now and the Plague still didn't come I fear for some reason it won't happen at all or far too late. This gave England and Russia a chance to expand their point and tech lead so wresting victory from them will be a piece of work. Not that in the beginning I expected victory even to be possible with the Exodus, mind.

State of my empire at 1880.



Those two former Ethiopian cities I received through international congresses by the way.

My capital, the whole reason for this Exodus, lives up to its expectations and is an absolute beast.

And that's from before I added Channel Tunnel, Wall Street, a factory and a coal plant So worth crossing the entire African continent for!

Annoyance of the non-Plague aside something good happened in 1918: Turkey, who held the actual Egyptian lands, collapsed so I'm about to move in and claim my homeland.


Gallabad flipped to my culture only a few turns later. I'll probably raze the remaining independent cities where they are in my way and found Niwt-Rst myself.


And that's where things are currently at! I'm trying to be the first to the Internet and then achieve a second Egypt Space Race victory, only this time starting with the Exodus.

Also, a screenshot of my Stability from before I got Democracy since I think I remember someone saying 5 star Economy is impossible as Egypt. It's possible, just move to South Africa

Hmmmm .... raze cities in your core wouldn't be a good idea imo. Just found a couple more cities in your core!

Great play! Bravo!


I did another thing some days ago. I started an Aztec game and found my 1st city on Denver! I kept my cities away from coastal LoS so to keep conquerors away from me ! And it worked! Slowly I built a great empire in the US and started expanding in my core to boost my stability! I managed to win a score victory literally in the last few turns

I can scarcely believe it. I did it. The Egyptian Exodites won.







Couple Civs had their Apollo Program well before me. Germany as soon as 1930, but they were already toying with collapse and did soon after. Stalin was more concerned with nuking and conquering and joined the space race fairly late.
Meanwhile I made a beeline for the Internet which immediately eradicated my tech deficit. My capital finished Apollo Program in a mere 7 turns.



The Space Elevator followed soon, aided by a Great Engineer since I couldn't built it in my best production cities due to latitude.



I now have two Egyptian Space Race victories under my belt, one with Niwt-Rst as capital, one with the Exodus to South Africa I wonder what Rhye would say to that.

Sitalkas said:

Hmmmm .... raze cities in your core wouldn't be a good idea imo. Just found a couple more cities in your core!

Click to expand...

Why, because of Stability? Stability ceased being a problem a long time ago, I didn't even bother looking at my score anymore. The one time I did Economy was at +151. Even the inexplicably bad Foreign rating you always have as Egypt can't overcome that.
Founding Niwt-Rst less than a hundred turns from the end of the game probably wasn't worth it, but I love that city plot so I had to Egypt's center by the way was strangely empty, not even ruins. Curious.

I did another thing some days ago. I started an Aztec game and found my 1st city on Denver! I kept my cities away from coastal LoS so to keep conquerors away from me ! And it worked! Slowly I built a great empire in the US and started expanding in my core to boost my stability! I managed to win a score victory literally in the last few turns

Click to expand...

Score victory with Aztecs sure sounds respectable! The Exodus concept really seems to work for Civs that usually struggle in the later game. I can see Carthage or Ethiopia doing the exact same move to South Africa I did. With the later start I probably wouldn't manage another victory but I'm confident I could make them survive until the game ends.

Just... amazing! Really, this is awesome! Congratz

I think I'll do this again sometime later and make a proper story out of it in the Stories & Tales section, it might have a comedy focus given the insanity of it all. I'll probably use DoC instead of vanilla RFC though.

Holy crap that is incredible....