Worst civilization incl. BNW

[Strategist83]

Byzantium is the only civ I find dubiously balanced and which I believe requires patching off the top of my head. They are certainly by no means terrible but it is true that they receive absolutely zero help in founding a religion to unlock their UA and even when they do, it's just one extra belief, picked from whatever wasn't already picked by someone else already. While religion is strong, just one extra belief is a benefit that completely pales compared to something like Poland receiving an extra policy every era.

I don't agree with any of the criticism I see posted for the other civs. With Iroquois, it's worth mentioning that the Longhouse costs a fair bit less than the regular Workshop. Indonesia is solid; their UB is very strong and the Kris' promotions are so powerful they more than make up for the occasional Enemy Blade. I do agree it's silly just how many promotions the Minuteman has been loaded with over time - a case of Firaxis overreacting to community complaints, same as the Zero with no oil requirement.

 

[Paszczak]

There is nothing wrong with Byzantium UA per se, it's just that you get screwed over on religion on higher difficulty levels because of all the bonuses given to the AI. The real killer is their first prophet costing only 100. And there's waaay more.

There's a number of civs that have strong traits and don't fare so well against high level AIs and their ridiculous handicap.

Egypt, France and Greece come to mind.

 

[Melchizedek]

Compare Byzantium to the more indirect religious buffs of Maya, Ethiopia, Egypt, Celts, and Spain. Then compare their one potential free follower belief to Poland's guaranteed six free policies. Finally, notice that Byzantiums UUs are boring and not that strong. It's easily the worst combination of passive gameplay and underpowered attributes in the game.

 

[Princeofnigeria]

I might have to say that Byzantium is the worst. It's attributes are all fine and dandy on there own but really have no synergy which is what kills them. All Civs need synergy to get the most out of there bonuses, and a good combo can really make a civ even if they have subpar individual components (Songhai for example has mediocre individual components, but together they have low cost city crushing amphibious knights which build up gold and allow you to set up a cost effective religious empire that maintains culture well despite its size allowing you to sack more and gain more money, good stuff!) and Byzantium lacks that to a severe extreme.
Indonesia is another side I think is possibly the worst. They have synergy but rely too heavily on luck. Spain has a luck based ability but there uniques are very specific in there usage. Spain is one of my least FAVORITE sides but I wouldn't call it the weakest.

 

[Navelgazer]

I don't want to really defend Byzantium, because religion isn't strong enough to make their UA worthwhile even if there were some way to ensure them a religion (The Celts, as the flipside of this problem, are also one of the weakest civs) but I'll say that, outside of any context, the Dromon is one of the best UUs, and is in that regard the best reason to play as Byzantium.

 

[beetle]

I wish founder benefits were not so weak, but the extra pantheon/follower/enhancer belief -- even when you are picking among leftovers -- still rivals certain other UA. The Dromon is icing on the cake IMHO. I wish I could get more out of the Byzantium horse unit though, as it never seems to work for me.

 

[Loucypher]

I don't want to really defend Byzantium, because religion isn't strong enough to make their UA worthwhile even if there were some way to ensure them a religion (The Celts, as the flipside of this problem, are also one of the weakest civs) but I'll say that, outside of any context, the Dromon is one of the best UUs, and is in that regard the best reason to play as Byzantium.

This is contestable. There are a few civs with a faith-boosting bonus (Celts, Ethiopia and the Maya), and each of them is considered at least decent due to that. Religion IS a rather strong tool, but only if you get it fast. And only if you can pump out more faith then any others. The Celts aren't top tier but they're certainly in the upper half due to their capabilities. The problem with Byzantium is not that religion is weak (au contraire). It's just that on higher levels, good luck getting the good beliefs.