Greece - Antiquity Age Civilization Discussion
- Thread starter Laurana Kanan
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Acropolis means upper city. In most cases, it is true that it was on a hill or on the highest part of the city. Athens or Corinth are most iconic for this, but most Polis had an Acropolis (which makes it a good unique district). However, in some cases, the acropolis is just a walled district of the city and not on top of a hill. Flatland Acropolis can exist, or be barely atop the lower city. But Greece is one of the most hilly/mountainous countries on earth, so there‘s plenty of opportunities to have a district on a hill. As for temples, they stood on all kinds of elevations and positions. In the sacred district of Delphi, the Apollo Temple is not at the top (the stadium is), nor is the Temple of Zeus in Olympia on a hill, etc.
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Boris Gudenuf
Deity
"Acro" or "Akro" as a prefix originally meant High or Above, as in Acropolis = Above the or the High City. The use of the term for the Acropolis of Athens dates back as far as there were Greeks in Greece: Athens is not a Greek word, and the city both Above and Below was occupied under that name for centuries before there were any Greeks around.
However, as noted, the word Acropolis began to change meaning sometime after the Greek Dark Ages (ended around 7th - 8th centuries BCE). Before that, both the Dark Age Chieftains and the previous Mycenean 'Kings" were primarily interested in building High Up for defense: "neighbors" too frequently meant "People close enough to attack you" and 'neighborly' had an entirely different meaning than it has now. By the time of the city states, the Acropolis, however, meant less a High Place than simply the Heart of the City: the religious and administrative center of the Polis. Consequently, 'Acropolis' after the beginning of the Classical period is much less associated with high, defended places than it was originally, but it almost always included some of the most important buildings and institutions of the city.
It was not, and that was not the Epitaph of Seikilos; that's the First Delphic Hymn to Apollo!
BuchiTaton
Emperor
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By the way, a hot take. Temples should take the role of Libraries.
For most ancient cultures libraries were part of palaces and temples, for the former mainly for administrative and legitimacy recording while for the later the mystic traditions time to time mixed with the search to understand the natural world. So temples were a more universal place where knowledge was gathered.
Meanwhile the libraries in civ seems to represent something closer to the Greco-Roman Bibliotheca, material for a unique building.
Boris Gudenuf
Deity
Also among the earliest manifestations of Literacy were Temple Schools in Sumer and other Middle Eastern civs where pupils were taught to read and write, to keep records for the Temple as well as the Government. I've always wanted a "Temple School" add-on to Temples as a Science Bonus source in Ancient Eras, but no takers so far.
And, at least in Classical Greece, Temples could also stand in for Banks: they were depositories for valuables and cash. The Parthenon, in fact, held the treasury of the entire Delian League and the Temple of Artemis particularly was famous as a 'protected place' for gold and other personal treasure.
I feel if you look across all different cultures, temples could provide every single sort of yield, even production and happiness. Best to keep it either a religious or cultural building and customize it to your liking depending on your beliefs in game.
moysturfurmer
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Oh fun, a tile feature I don’t recognize. Curious about those camps. Is that one of the art assets for Discoveries/goodie huts?
Looks like part of the animation for Sentry or Fortify. Note the figures working in the lower right.
I am kinda surprised they didn't go with some particular Greek city state or subculture, such as Athens, Sparta, Macedon etc etc. For two reasons:
1) It would encourage modders adding more ancient Greek states to the game
2) It would finally allow the inclusion of modern Greece under that name, solving my eternal pet peeve of "classical" civs never having post-classical incarnations (see also Egypt, Persia and Rome).
In fact, this was the prime opportunity to include Mycenaean civ for once, as we are not tied to a personal leader; I am a little bit sad it was squandered, even if classical Greece was obviously more accomplished and offers more interesting gameplay.
Anyway, I find the prospect of sooner or later (hi mods) arriving pipeline of ancient Greece -> Byzantium -> modern Greece very exciting
1) It would encourage modders adding more ancient Greek states to the game
2) It would finally allow the inclusion of modern Greece under that name, solving my eternal pet peeve of "classical" civs never having post-classical incarnations (see also Egypt, Persia and Rome).
In fact, this was the prime opportunity to include Mycenaean civ for once, as we are not tied to a personal leader; I am a little bit sad it was squandered, even if classical Greece was obviously more accomplished and offers more interesting gameplay.
Anyway, I find the prospect of sooner or later (hi mods) arriving pipeline of ancient Greece -> Byzantium -> modern Greece very exciting
stealth_nsk
Deity
I don't think we'll see modern Greece as official civ. With all respect, there are too many other candidates with larger footprint in history.I am kinda surprised they didn't go with some particular Greek city state or subculture, such as Athens, Sparta, Macedon etc etc. For two reasons:
1) It would encourage modders adding more ancient Greek states to the game
2) It would finally allow the inclusion of modern Greece under that name, solving my eternal pet peeve of "classical" civs never having post-classical incarnations (see also Egypt, Persia and Rome).
In fact, this was the prime opportunity to include Mycenaean civ for once, as we are not tied to a personal leader; I am a little bit sad it was squandered, even if classical Greece was obviously more accomplished and offers more interesting gameplay.
Anyway, I find the prospect of sooner or later (hi mods) arriving pipeline of ancient Greece -> Byzantium -> modern Greece very exciting
Mycenaean civ could still be included at some point in expansions, but again - the competition is hard and Mediterranean region is usually very well represented.
I know, I count on the modded moderm Greece.
Boris Gudenuf
Deity
- And remember, the way they are modeling Leaders in Civ VII, we could get Lord Byron as a Leader with Modern Greece. To quote Python:
"And now for something completely different . . ."
The Fanatical
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While Byron loved Greece and died there, he was British and stayed barely a year in Greece before dying. There are more fitting leaders for modern Greece that I can think of. Dionysios Solomos (the writer of the Greek national anthem), Ioannis Kapodistrias, Theodoros Kolokotronis, Otto of Greece (despite not being Greek he was the first King of modern Greece), Constantine I of Greece, Eleftherios Venizelos.
I think the point was that even Confucius can lead Greece if you wanted to. Eastern philosophy meets Western philosophy.
The Fanatical
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Definitely, but I believe if Byron ever appears, he will be a leader paired with the British civilization than modern Greece. Although I'm not against the idea of pairing him with a modern Greek civilization since he was a poet and modern Greece will focus on culture mostly.I think the point was that even Confucius can lead Greece if you wanted to. Eastern philosophy meets Western philosophy.
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