Make your predictions: civs & leaders in base game + early DLC

[Ornen]

Hey everybody, thought it might be fun to do a little predictions thread before they reveal any additional civs or leaders.

The question at hand: what leaders do you expect to ship in the base game? What civs will populate each era? How about the announced DLC (Right to Rule & Crossroads of the World), each of which will include 4 civs and 2 leaders?

Confirmed leaders as of 9/8:

• Amina
• Ashoka
• Augustus
• Ben Franklin
• Confucius
• Hatshepsut
• Himiko
• Napoleon
• Tecumseh

Confirmed civs as of 9/8 (eras in parentheses):

• Aksum (A)
• Egypt (A)
• Maurya (A)
• Maya (A)
• Rome (A)
• Abbasid (E)
• Chola (E)
• Mongolia (E)
• Norman (E)
• Shawnee (E)
• Songhai (E)
• Buganda (M)
• France (M)
• Japan (M)
• Mughal (M)
• USA (M)

I'll try to keep this list updated with dates as new civs are announced. If including a civ that has already been announced on your list, I would encourage you to * it.

To keep the thread focused (and distinct from existing threads), let's try keep commentary fairly limited and put the emphasis on predictions.

 

[Ornen]

I'll go first. My predictions as follows...


Antiquity civs

• Rome *
• Goths
• Greece
• Achaemenid Persia
• Assyria
• Babylon
• Egypt *
• Aksum *
• Maurya *
• Gupta
• Han China
• Silla (Korea)
• Maya
• Tiwanaku
• Mississippi

Exploration civs

• Norman *
• Castile
• Novgorod
• Holy Roman Empire
• Abbasids *
• Safavid Persia
• Songhai *
• Chola *
• Majapahit (Indonesia)
• Tu'i Tonga
• Tang China
• Edo Japan
• Mongolia *
• Aztec
• Inca
• Shawnee *

Modern civs

• Britain
• France *
• Russia
• Germany
• Qajar Iran
• Morocco
• Buganda *
• Mughal
• Indonesia
• Qing China
• Meiji Japan *
• Mexico
• Brazil
• Comanche
• USA *

Leaders

• Augustus *
• Napoleon *
• Catherine the Great
• Socrates
• William the Conqueror
• Isabella
• Hatsheput *
• Xerxes
• Harun-al Rashid
• Hammurabi
• Sayyida al Hurra
• Amina *
• Ashoka *
• Gajah Mada
• Confucius *
• Himiko *
• Genghis Khan
• Frida Kahlo
• Huayna Capac
• Tecumseh *
• Ben Franklin *

Right to Rule

• Celts (A)
• Francia (E)
• England (E)
• Zulu (M)
• Shaka
• Elizabeth

Crossroads of the World

• Nabatea (A)
• Ottoman Turkey (E)
• Turkey (E)
• Oman (M)
• Kösem
• Ashurbanipal

 

[Xandinho]

I won't try to guess leaders, as the options they can choose from are very large. However, I believe we will have at least one leader per continent.

Antiquity:

Achaemenid Persia
Aksum
Assyria
Egypt
Goths
Greece
Han China
Khmer
Maurya India
Maya
Mississippi
Nazca
Rome
Silla Korea
Tu'i Tonga

Exploration:

Abbasids
Aztec
Byzantines
Chola India
Edo Japan
Inca
Majapahit
Maori
Mongolia
Normans
Ming China
Shawnee
Songhai
Spain
Viking Norway

Modern:

America
Brazil
Buganda
France
Germany
Great Britain
Hawaii
Lakota
Meiji Japan
Mexico
Mughal India
Qajar Persia
Qing China
Rattanakosin Siam
Tsarist Russia

I tried to create a historical/regional progression for each continent. I think we'll see some kind of nonsensical transitions at launch, such as Byzantines > Russia, Viking Norway > Germany, Inca > Brazil, or Silla Korea > Ming China. These gaps will certainly be filled with new content releases.

Right to Rule:

Gauls (Antiquity)
Goryeo Korea (Exploration)
Guarani (Exploration)
Zulu (Modern)

Here I have placed civs with a history of resistance or that have suffered frequent attempts at domination by some foreign power.

Crossroads of the World:

Ethiopia (Modern)
Novgorod Russia (Exploration)
Phoenicia (Antiquity)
Safavid Persia (Exploration)

I have listed nations that have benefited greatly from trade due to their favorable locations.

 

[j51]

I’m not going to even try and guess the leaders, but I bet there will be 21 including Napoleon and Tecumseh.

As for civs, based on what I’ve seen analyzed on this site (I’m counting civs with buildings, units, or banners spotted with the star, but not wonders), here goes:

Antiquity:
Egypt*
Aksum*
Assyria
Babylonia
Achaemenid Persia
Greece*
Rome*
The Goths
The Maurya*
The Xiongnu
Han China^ (a caret indicates rumored)
Silla Korea^
Tu’i Tonga
The Maya*
The Nazca (I’d rather see another classical Andean but that’s my guess.)
The Chavín

Exploration:
Songhai*
The Abbasids*
The Ottomans
Spain (Castile)*
The Normans*
The Holy Roman Empire
Byzantium
The Chola*
The Mongols*
Ming China^
Edo Japan
The Khmer*
Majapahit*
The Shawnee*
The Aztecs
The Inca*

Modern:
Buganda*
Great Britain*
France*
Germany
Russia
Safavid Iran
The Mughals*
Qing China^
Joseon Korea
Meji Japan*
Siam
Hawaii*
The Lakota
The United States*
Mexico
Brazil

I’m not gonna try and guess the dlc either lol.

Edit: I removed the Nazca and added the Chavín because it just ‘felt’ better. I don’t know why. I also removed the Assyrians and added the Safavids. There’s probably only going to be one Mesopotamian civ at launch and the Babylonians have been in the game since the original. (Would love to see the Assyrians though.) I also have a theory that there will be more modern civs at launch than from antiquity, because as far as I remember they said that the number of civs will increase in the game with each age. In fact I wouldn’t be shocked if the ratio turns out to be something like 12 antiquity, 15 exploration (+ the Shawnee), 18 modern. But we shouldn’t derail this thread talking about that theory.

Spoiler :

Further edits that I undid: I think they might just call it Iran and have it included aspects from the Safavids, Afsharids, Qajars, etc. through the fall of the Shah. I gotta stop editing this though! So I went back to “Safavid Iran.”

 

[j51]

Note: These are my guesses at which civs got picked, not who I think would be the best initial 46.

 

[Bast]

Any possibility for Tibetans and/or Burmese to be in the game?

 

[Thormodr]

I believe the Nazca (Ancient Age) most likely will be the precursor Andean Civ for the Inca. (Exploration Age)

The Nazca used terrace farms for agriculture so that could provide some continuity. They are also fairly well known in pop culture and have already been in the Civ series as a City State.

The Nazca flourished between approximately 200 BC to 600 AD so the time line roughly works out for what they are doing with the age transition.

I am, of course, hoping for multiple Andean Civs such as the Chavin culture, the Moche, Wari/Huari, Tiwanaku, etc. They all could focus on slightly different things.

The Wari/Huari are especially good as they were militaristic and prolific road builders. They were really South America's first centralized government. Perhaps they arrive too late to qualify as an Ancient Civ by their mechanics, however. (Flourished from 500 AD to 1,000 AD) Roughly the same with Tiwanaku.

I would think the Inca would have a leader as they have a good list to select from. I am not sure that they'll have a leader for the Andean precursor Civ(s), sadly.

 

[IdiotStyle]

Any possibility for Tibetans and/or Burmese to be in the game?

I would love exploration age tibet but i think that may get the game banned in a certain country

 

[Bast]

I would love exploration age tibet but i think that may get the game banned in a certain country

Maybe. Tibet exists in Victoria 3 though?

 

[Lord Lakely]

My guesses for the unrevealed leaders are Liliuokalani, Plato, Genghis Khan, Cyrus, Olga of Kyiv, Ram Kamhaeng, Sejong, Martin Luther and Zenobia.

Edit as for Civs: (not including the Shawnee DLC civs)

Antiquity Civs: Rome, Egypt, Aksum, Maya, Maurya, Greece, Han, Silla, Yamato, Goths, Tonga, Achaemenids, Babylonia, Assyria, Nazca, Mississipians & Khmer.
Exploration Civs: Abbasids, Mongolia, Songhai, Normans, Chola, Majapahit, Aztecs, Ming, Heian, Joseon, Inca, Kievan Rus, Habsburg Empire, Castile, Frankish Kingdom & Byzantium
Modern Civs: United States, Buganda, Mughal, France, Germany, Great Britain, Russia, Korea, Qing, Meiji, Siam, Mexico, Hawaii, Lakota, Safavids & Ottomans.

Maybe we'll get more than 15 per era. 15 feels so restrictive with the different paths you can take?

 

[notNamed]

My guesses for the unrevealed leaders are Liliuokalani, Plato, Genghis Khan, Cyrus, Olga of Kyiv, Ram Kamhaeng, Sejong, Martin Luther and Zenobia.

Genghis Khan is in the teaser trailer with Hatshepsut. His inclusion is almost definitively certain.
Olga will definitely not have that adname, the game wants to sell both in Russia and Ukraine and either amounts to a political statement.

We know that leaders speak historically accurate languages so you can kind of skirt it if you really do your research thoroughly...
At the time of Olga, she rules the city of Kyev/Кꙑевъ (Kuyevu) in the Land of the Rus'/Русь (Rusi) with whom she identifies and her subjects are Slavs/Словѣньнъ (Slověninu).
... but even with all that you can easily step on a landmine and lose a limb or two with this topic. I have an extremely hard time seeing 2K allow it and risk not just Civ but also GTA6's reception with that audience.

 

[Lord Lakely]

Olga will definitely not have that adname, the game wants to sell both in Russia and Ukraine and either amounts to a political statement.

We know that leaders speak historically accurate languages so you can kind of skirt it if you really do your research thoroughly...
At the time of Olga, she rules the city of Kyev/Кꙑевъ (Kuyevu) in the Land of the Rus'/Русь (Rusi) with whom she identifies and her subjects are Slavs/Словѣньнъ (Slověninu).
... but even with all that you can easily step on a landmine and lose a limb or two with this topic. I have an extremely hard time seeing 2K allow it and risk not just Civ but also GTA6's reception with that audience.

Civ is a history-based game. The moment you have to alter or sidestep history to appease contemporaries or politics, you might as well pack up and try something else.

If anyone doesn't like history, they should play some other game.

edit: also, i'm pretty sure there's not a single person in Russia OR Ukraine that doesn't acknowledge the Kievan Rus' as the origin point for both Ukraine AND Russia. That is something they should both agree upon.

 

[Xandinho]

I believe the Nazca (Ancient Age) most likely will be the precursor Andean Civ for the Inca. (Exploration Age)

The Nazca used terrace farms for agriculture so that could provide some continuity. They are also fairly well known in pop culture and have already been in the Civ series as a City State.

The Nazca flourished between approximately 200 BC to 600 AD so the time line roughly works out for what they are doing with the age transition.

I am, of course, hoping for multiple Andean Civs such as the Chavin culture, the Moche, Wari/Huari, Tiwanaku, etc. They all could focus on slightly different things.

The Wari/Huari are especially good as they were militaristic and prolific road builders. They were really South America's first centralized government. Perhaps they arrive too late to qualify as an Ancient Civ by their mechanics, however. (Flourished from 500 AD to 1,000 AD) Roughly the same with Tiwanaku.

I would think the Inca would have a leader as they have a good list to select from. I am not sure that they'll have a leader for the Andean precursor Civ(s), sadly.

I agree that Nazca could end up happening, and I don't even think it's a bad choice (Moche might be a slightly better choice, but not as popular, although I'd like to see them do Moche in the future). Nazca would have some easy infrastructures to think about: Nazca Lines, Puquios, and Adobe Mounds. Its associated wonder could be the Great Pyramid of Cahuachi. Unique military units would be a bit more difficult, but I can see them going for the Headhunters.

 

[Ornen]

Civ is a history-based game. The moment you have to alter or sidestep history to appease contemporaries or politics, you might as well pack up and try something else.

If anyone doesn't like history, they should play some other game.

agree with you in spirit but unfortunately the design direction since Civ 4 has been to steer further & further away from controversial topics and moments in history, no matter how important they were

 

[Verified_Confection_Being]

My guesses for the unrevealed leaders are Liliuokalani, Plato, Genghis Khan, Cyrus, Olga of Kyiv, Ram Kamhaeng, Sejong, Martin Luther and Zenobia.

Edit as for Civs: (not including the Shawnee DLC civs)

Antiquity Civs: Rome, Egypt, Aksum, Maya, Maurya, Greece, Han, Silla, Yamato, Goths, Tonga, Achaemenids, Babylonia, Assyria, Nazca, Mississipians & Khmer.
Exploration Civs: Abbasids, Mongolia, Songhai, Normans, Chola, Majapahit, Aztecs, Ming, Heian, Joseon, Inca, Kievan Rus, Habsburg Empire, Castile, Frankish Kingdom & Byzantium
Modern Civs: United States, Buganda, Mughal, France, Germany, Great Britain, Russia, Korea, Qing, Meiji, Siam, Mexico, Hawaii, Lakota, Safavids & Ottomans.

Maybe we'll get more than 15 per era. 15 feels so restrictive with the different paths you can take?

It looked like there were 12 slots for possible civs in the exploration era choice screen from today's livestream, so I think the earlier eras may have fewer civs, in line with the fewer available player slots compared to the modern era.

 

[Bast]

Civ is a history-based game. The moment you have to alter or sidestep history to appease contemporaries or politics, you might as well pack up and try something else.

If anyone doesn't like history, they should play some other game.

edit: also, i'm pretty sure there's not a single person in Russia OR Ukraine that doesn't acknowledge the Kievan Rus' as the origin point for both Ukraine AND Russia. That is something they should both agree upon.

Yeah I mean can we say that about Tibet then? Because there is no doubt that the Tibetan empire has played a huge role in world or at least Asian history. There has never been a representation of Tibeto-Burman peoples or cultures or civilizations in the Civ series. I'm talking Tibet and Burma. Both have had significant empires and histories, literatures.

 

[Bast]

Could the Goths make it in in antiquity? They could lead to Spain, Sweden etc.

 

[Thormodr]

I agree that Nazca could end up happening, and I don't even think it's a bad choice (Moche might be a slightly better choice, but not as popular, although I'd like to see them do Moche in the future). Nazca would have some easy infrastructures to think about: Nazca Lines, Puquios, and Adobe Mounds. Its associated wonder could be the Great Pyramid of Cahuachi. Unique military units would be a bit more difficult, but I can see them going for the Headhunters.

Yes, I agree. I think they will likely go with Nazca but there are a lot of good choices here. Moche would be great, as well.

Hopefully, there will end up being multiple Ancient Andean Civs when all is said and done. That and really allowing modders free reign to create.

 

[Siptah]

Could the Goths make it in in antiquity? They could lead to Spain, Sweden etc.

While not officially confirmed, they are highly likely. We've seen the Mausoleum of Theodoric as a wonder. And even in Ravenna itself, I could think of several buildings that I would consider more "wonderful" (although some, like the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, wouldn't look great on the map). The best reason to choose the Mausoleum of Theodoric seems that it is the associated wonder of the Goths.

 

[CrackerJack45]

I feel like the base roster will look something like this, though I have no clue where to even start with Leaders.

Antiquity
1. Rome*
2. Egypt*
3. Greece*
4. Maya*
5. Maurya India*
6. Han
7. Silla
8. Aksum*
9. Achaemenid Persia
10. Assyria
11. Goth
12. Khmer
13. Teotihuacan
14. Tonga

Exploration
1. Abassid*
2. Chola India*
3. Mongolia*
4. Inca
5. Norman*
6. Songhai*
7. Spain/Castille
8. Ming China
9. Majapahit
10. Edo Japan
11. Aztec
12. Byzantium
13. Maori
14. Safavid Persia
15. Shawnee (DLC)

Modern
1. America
2. Britain
3. France*
4. Buganda*
5. Meiji Japan*
6. Mughal India*
7. Qing China
8. Russia
9. Germany
10. Mexico
11. Hawaii
12. Siam
13. Morocco
14. Ottomans