I like your choices here. Should make it interesting.
Thanks. I wanted to consider a different leader from Civ5, but they've already revealed that Hannibal and Hamilcar are Generals, so I can't really imagine anyone else. Besides, bonuses appropriate to them didn't seem to fit the overall vision for Carthage.
Mongolia
[Mongolian Design]
We had similar ideas for Genghis' ability (and I like your agenda idea), and had similar themes for the Civ overall. I like it
I really like [your Carthage design].
Thanks!
So I was going to do a Pueblo Civ next, but there's just no Leader, and also no options for a Unique Unit. So instead I'll make something entirely different, and just design a Pueblo City-State.
City-State: Chaco Canyon - Cultural
Unique Sovereign Bonus - Allows Civ to build the "Cliff Dwelling" improvement.
Cliff Dwelling - Must be built adjacent to mountains. Provides +1 housing and a defensive bonus on the tile. Gives +1 food if adjacent to a farm.
And now for something completely different! Another Civ! I really enjoy the process of researching the Civs and trying to come up with appropriate gameplay mechanics for them. Looking at each of the official Civs, I feel like my designs are still a little too complex. I'll probably go over them all again later and try to make them more elegant. For now, I'll just try to keep this one simple.
Gran Columbia
Leader: Santander
Leader Ability: El Hombre de las Leyes - While maintaining a government, its % bonus is doubled. All cities receive +1 "Federalist Rule" amenity.
Santander was a law student and he, as acting president of Gran Columbia, implemented several policies to strengthen the government. He believed in the need for a strong, consistent, and law-abiding government with checks and balances. Compared to Bolivar's supporters, who wanted a strong leader, Santander's supporters wanted the government itself to have the power, even delegating it to more local branches of government.
Staying in the same form of government is much stronger than switching, due to the active % bonus being much better than the Legacy bonuses and the fact that you can't switch back to an old government without a period of anarchy. Establishing cities far and wide is encouraged since they will all have an extra amenity. These are both flexible abilities.
Agenda: Principled Federalist - Likes Civs more the longer they stay with the same government. Dislikes Civs with autocratic rule (Autocracy, Monarchy, Fascism), and instead dislikes Civs more the longer they stay in those types of government.
This agenda will cause Gran Columbia to fight against strong military powers and cooperate with peaceful allies.
Unique Ability: Megadiverse Melting Pot
Tiles that border at least 3 of the following terrain types (including its own tile) get an additional +2 appeal and produce +1 tourism when worked.
- Rainforest
- Coast
- River
- Flat Land (Grassland/Plains)
- Mountain
Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador have all been declared "Megadiverse" countries. This means they have incredible biodiversity, which is mainly due to the variety and extremeness of terrain they possess. As a multi-state union, Gran Colombia would have been a diverse cultural melting pot as well.
We aren't entirely sure what appeal does yet, but it appears to affect Housing for Neighborhoods, the ability to place National Parks, and probably something to do with Resorts. This ability should hopefully encourage the player to seek out areas with changing terrain, which should help make the flexible playstyle of Gran Colombia come into play more effectively. We also don't know what early game Tourism affects, but hopefully that makes this ability useful earlier in the game as well.
Unique Unit: Llanero
Unlocks with the Enlightenment civic; replaces Cavalry. In addition to the normal abilities of Cavalry, this unit ignores terrain requirements and heals every turn (even if it takes action).
The Llaneros, or cowboys of the Llanos grasslands in Venezuela and Colombia, were cattle herders. In the Wars of Liberation, Simon Bolivar used them to great effect. Their mobility was incredibly useful, and their ability to keep the army fed as they traveled allowed great flexibility. In his most decisive battles, the Llaneros allowed him to either outmaneuver the enemy on the battlefield or surprise his opponents by arriving from "impassible" routes and catching them by surprise.
Unique Building: Plaza Mayor
Unlocks with the Pottery tech. Replaces the Granary. In addition to the normal Granary effects, the Plaza Mayor counts as an extra generic District for adjacency bonuses
All Spanish colonial cities were planned with a Plaza Mayor, a gathering place for a variety of purposes. Often, the government buildings were located on the Plaza, and fiestas or military musterings took place here.
This ability comes early and doesn't give much on its own, but it is incredibly flexible and works in every city. The City Center plus Plaza Mayor will be enough to give a Standard adjacency bonus to all districts next to the City Center.
Playstyle
As an amalgamation of different cultures and geographies, and also a country that didn't last very long as a whole, Gran Colombia is designed to be a flexible Civ that desires variety in its play. The Llanero can be used in any terrain, the Plaza Mayor can make any districts work somewhat in any terrain, the Leader Ability can work with any government, and the Civ Ability encourages the player to seek out a variety of terrains.