pre-release info New Civ Game Guide: Siam

[Archanist]

Would that one even be possible?

Each exploration and modern era civ have a gameplay unlock, so possible

 

[AriochIV]

"Et cetera, et cetera..."

 

[tedhebert]

Is there a nuance between being suzerain and being allied to a city-state ? Or is it one and the same ? Because the civ description sure makes it feel like it's not exactly the same thing ?

 

[BackseatTyrant]

The reveals are coming hot and fast now!

I guess the marketing people are coming back from their well-needed holiday break

 

[Leucarum]

Given their start bias... Presumably these guys are unlocked by having access to elephants...

 

[Navelgazer]

Oh, this is looking likely to be one of my go-to civs for sure.

 

[SupremacyKing2]

Does this mean you instantly upgrade a Independent people to a City-State?

Yes.

Basically, as I understand it, a civ normally has to spend influence over many turns to improve the relationship with independent people until eventually, once the relationship is high enough, then the civ can make them a city-state. The Siam ability means they can spend more influence but directly make them a city-state immediately.

IMO, this is a pretty powerful ability because you can get more city-states under your control faster than other civs.

 

[SeelingCat]

Siamese Uniques!

Itsaraphab	Ability	อิสรภาพ "Freedom; Independence"; earlier meaning of "supreme power" and kingship?	Perhaps a reference to Siam's avoidance of European colonization? Also written as Itsaraphap
Nine Gems	Civic		The Order of the Nine Gems, the highest order granted to Thai citizens. Originally, referred to a gold ring given to successful generals and part of the royal coronation insignia.
Mandala	Civic	"circle" [Sanskrit]	A political model for understanding power distribution in Southeast Asian history encompassing the overlapping, non-exclusive authority that radiated out from political centers.
Sriwilai	Civic	ศิวิไลซ์ siwilai "civilized?"	"The name given to the foreign idea of 'civilization' as a strategy of rule... It was under Chulalongkorn that the policy of refashioning Siamese institutions and practices along Western lines was lines was labelled as siwilai."
State Railway	Tradition		The State Railway of Thailand (SRT), established in 1890 by King Chulalongkorn.
Sakdina	Tradition	ศักดินา "social class; rank" lit. "field prestige"	A system of social hierarchy that "assigned a numerical rank to each person depending on their status."
Prathetsarat	Tradition	ประเทศราช "tributary state; vassal state"	Term for a tributary state to the Rattanakosin Kingdom (and for vassal states in general?)
Mueang	Tradition	เมือง "city-state; polity; urban area"	Term for pre-modern city-states in mainland Southeast Asia, which served as the actors in the Mandala model.
Bang	Infrastructure	บาง "small watercourse; community or polity located near such a watercourse"	A community located near a watercourse, which describes many cities in Siam and Southeast Asia. Related to the informal name for the capital of modern-day Thailand, Bangkok.
Uparat	Civilian	อุปราช "viceroy; a high royal title given to the person second in rank to the monarch" See Uparaja for more info.	A title given to the person second in rank to the monarch, usually a son or brother of the current king. Also known as the Front Palace (วังหน้า) after their residence. Known to Europeans in the Rattanakosin period as the "Second King," they controlled their own private and army. Abolished during the Front Palace Crisis of 1874
Chang Beun	Military	ช้าง ปืน? Chang Puen "Gun elephant"	A gun-toting war elephant. Siam used "war elephants armed with jingals up until the Franco-Siamese conflict of 1893."

Uparats

Chakrabongse	1883-1920	EDIT: 40th child of King Chulalongkorn/Rama V. Instrumental in the development of aviation in the Kingdom of Siam, and the father of the Royal Thai Air Force's predecessor. (Had the wrong Chakrabongse at first I think!)
Itsarasunthon	1767-1824	Ruled as King Rama II; served as Uparat for his father, Rama I. His reign was known as the "Golden Age of Rattanakosin Literature."
Phibun	1897-1964	Thai politician, revolutionary, and military officer. Served as Prime Minister for Thailand from 1938-1944 and 1948-1957. Established a military dictatorship that allied Thailand with Japan during World War II and instituted the Thai Cultural mandates, which among other things switched the name of the country from Siam to Thailand.
Pinklao	1808-1866	Uparat for his brother, King Mongkut/Rama IV. Played a great role in the negotiation of the Bowring Treaty between the British Empire and Siam.
Pridi	1900-1983	Thai lawyer, activist, and statesman who served as Regent of Thailand from 1941-1945 and Prime Minister of Thailand briefly in 1946. He was one of the leaders of the 1932 pro-democracy coup.
Dara Rasmi	1873-1933	Princess of Chiang Mai and one of the princess consorts of King Chulalongkorn/Rama V.
Sakdiphonlasep	1785-1832	Uparat for King Rama III. Led Siamese armies during the Lao Rebellion from 1826-1828 and ordered the construction of the Bowonniwet Temple.
Senanurak	1773-1817	Uparat for King Rama II. Notable for his leadership during the Burmese-Siamese War from 1809-1812.
Vajravudh	1881-1925	Ruled as King Rama VI. Was Crown Prince from 1895 to 1910. Notable for military reforms as well as reforms to the monthon system of administrative subdivisions.
Wichaichan	1838-1885	Eldest son of Pinklao and nephew of King Mongkut/Rama IV; Uparat for Chulalongkorn/Rama V. His power as Uparat was great, culminating in the Front Palace crisis, which abolished the office.

Hopefully I did Andrew Johnson justice this time around!

 

[B0RDERL1NE]

The Guide didn't mention a base yield or placement restrictions.

Can we assume it needs to be adjacent to a river?

We're getting this addressed as well. This is the correct text:

Bang: Unique Improvement. Culture and Happiness base. Must be placed on a Navigable River.

 

[Lord Lakely]

The Bang seems... underwhelming? It doesn't improve with any civics as well. So, it's main reason in Age 3 is to pay for specialist maintenance?
I didn't expect Great People for Siam. And I know why. Looking at the list, I have to admit to my shame that I don't know any of them.

Looking forward to my "get the most out of city states" game in which I am going to use Siam.

I dunno, stacking happiness on every Urban district via an improvement that can be spammed seems VERY strong to me.

Looks like this is the capstone Civ for empires that went with a high number of specialists. (kinda how Russia is the capstone civ for empires with large amounts of towns and sprawl)

 

[evonannoredars]

New image for the Siam guide! Not as pretty as the previous one but less bugged and we get a nice look at the bang improvement.

 

[Eagle Pursuit]

New image for the Siam guide! Not as pretty as the previous one but less bugged and we get a nice look at the bang improvement.

(I think the one in the OP may not be Siam)

 

[TheGhostEnthusiast]

• Dara Rasmi: Activated on an allied City-State to turn it into a Town under your control.

Is it just me, or would you never want to use this ability? You get so much from having City States that wiping one off the map would be actively detrimental.

 

[evonannoredars]

(I think the one in the OP may not be Siam)

Haha you're right, noticed it had the Qing wonder but somehow didn't clock that the architectural style wasn't right.

 

[Archanist]

Is it just me, or would you never want to use this ability? You get so much from having City States that wiping one off the map would be actively detrimental.

I can see it working on a heavily contested city state

 

[Seek]

Ok. Well. Modern civs continue to be more interesting than I expected them to be. France, Russia and Siam all have me more interested than I thought I would be. I'm beginning to think it was just exploration which disappointed me in Civ design, and that may have been down to how the systems in that era have shaped what the civs needed to be.

Especially after I'd been very underwhelmed by Khmer's abilities, and whelmed by Majapahit's, it's nice to see a SEA Civ which I actually want to play! Plus from the snippet of music in the youtube clip, not bad.

I must say, the SE Asia line looks like my favorite "regional" line of civs, all three look both strong and interesting!
No doubt thanks to Andrew Johnson's influence

Looks like this is the capstone Civ for empires that went with a high number of specialists.

Funny that, coming out of Khmer and Majapahit, both with very strong specialist perks!

 

[Guandao]

Welcome back Siam! Hopefully we won't get Ramkhamhaeng as a leader this time.

 

[Lonecat Nekophrodite]

View attachment 715142New Civ Game Guide: Siam
Our next modern-age civilization boldly enters center stage — give it up for Siam! Siam slowly took in and adapted colonial governance, incorporating parts of Laos, Lanna, and Malaya. It walked a delicate line between adopting Western norms and maintaining its own Buddhist traditions and developing into the Thailand of today.

Attributes:
Cultural
Diplomatic

Unique Ability:
Itsapharahab: Grants a Diplomatic Action to immediately become Suzerain of a City-State at a higher Diplomacy Cost than Befriending Independents.

Unique Infrastructure:
Bang: Unique Quarter. Increased Happiness on Urban Districts in this City.

Unique Civilian Unit:
Uparat: Unique Great Person Unit. Can only be built once you are Suzerain of at least one City-State, and the specific Uparat received is random. Each Uparat can only be received once. Cost increases per Uparat built.

Unique Military Unit:
Chang Beun: Unique Ranged Unit. Has increased Movement and Combat Strength. Can move after attacking.

Associated Wonder:
Doi Suthep: Influence Base. Increased Culture and Gold for each City-State of which you are Suzerain. Must be built on a Rough tile.

Starting Biases:
Ivory

Check out the full game guide for more info & civic trees: https://civilization.2k.com/civ-vii/game-guide/civilizations/siam/

Someone's gonna beat me on this.
Here's my glossary

Term	Local Scripts	Meanings and Description
Itsarabhap	อิสรภาพ	This is the loanword from Old Sanskrit (Ishrabhava). Modern meaning is Freedom. Originally it means 'Sovereinity'. (Siam since Ayutthaya until King Mongkut's era was one of the three giants of Continental Southeast Asia, the other being Dai Viet, and Burmese Empires). This represents that how Siam, and the other two giants dominate continental Southeast Asia through vassalages, rather than outright conquest. Later with the rest of Southeast Asia being colonized. Siam was the only uncolonized Southeast Asian polity (and ALMOST being colonized by British Empire if not of a British defect named Henry Alabaster who preveneted all colonization efforts to his last breath at young age. And shortly later, it means 'emancipations of slaves'. a policy famously done by King Chulalongkorn as a part of Kingdom modernizations. One is to gain his reputations, the other is to erode nobility power as his plan to consolidate his power, eventually formed a basis of Absolute Monarchy that lasted for roughly 30 years here. There's good thing to be free. 'You can do what you want'. this fits well with Civ7 motto. 'Build something you believe in'.
Bang	บาง	A village. This is a native Tai word. This is a common prefix of settlements here in Central Region of Thailand (where it was once called Siam). Usually a 'bang' is a settlement build astriding or on either bank of any waterways (natural or manmade ('Klong'). Up North, this word has a different meanings, and pronounciations '(ปาง), it means traveller's waystation. where a land based caravan stops for a night before continuing a trip in the morning. (and thus usually located along the road and not by any waterways, but Central 'Bang' can serve the same functions as well. This is where famous 'Talat Nam' (Floating Market) usually locates.
Uparat	อุปราช	Pali or Sansakrit origin (Ubharaja), means 'Viceroy'. Sometimes a person who successfully staged a palace Coup d'Etat used this title before formal coronations. But usually means any blueblood (either son, or junior brother... Primogenitor succession system is weak here) of a reigning king who earned Voiceroyalty. But in special cases a person who's not from royal family but being a close associate to the king can earn this title as a reward of doing the King's favor. Originally an Uparat resides at 'Wang Nah' (Front Palace). The place that has since become the first National Museum (i've even posted a pic of that place, well a naval cannon located there.) Due to Europeanization policy enacted by King Chulalongkorn. Uparat was (almost being) replaced by Crown Prince, and Primogenitor succession system is used, it was rarey pursued however, as many successors since King Vajiravudh did not have sons (The Palace Law never permits women to reingn as 'King' here until recently, though it never has been pursued either.), and so did his successors. so hiers chosen were brothers, or half brothers. so this system stood as backups. In Rattanakosin history, only five royal successions were done 'from father to son'. Why they're so important? Many of these were useful assistances to the King during Rattanakosin period. Such as 'Phra Pin Klao' (who 'Co-Reigns' as King) was actually military commander, (he's very much Americanophille, he even intended to name his first son 'George Washington'!). This because King Mongkut reigned very late in his life and Army (as per definitions of his reign) did not respect him much. (And above all, military reforms was already initiated, with Royal Guards being the first units of the New Army, also one of the first to wield repeaters--Cowboy Henry Rifle). The other Viceroy(s) was (were) a regent (Chuang Bunnag, he should be one of PCs actually). Some was a 'great merchant'.
Chang Beun	ช้างปืน	A native Tai word means 'Gun Elephant'. a very descriptive word of this UU. Siam was not the only user, however they use Gun Elephants longer than anybody else because of bad roads here before 1980s (Highway systems began much earlier, well almost after 1932 Revolutions, but many of these 'Highways' before 1960-80s were dirt roads, gravel roads, or 'Early McAdams'. By 1980s paved roads started to become standard feature but still only in Mid 90s did Tarmacs (the other alternative is reinforced ferrocrete paved road) became national standard to all Highways of all grades (including Rural roads supervised by the Provincial Administrations), this hampered the usefulness of standard 'horse drawn' field artillery. Much of Siamese Field Artillery specifications were mountain guns (or pack guns). The reason is that not only to be movable at the rough terrain, but also to mount guns directly from a top of howdah. (either by a swivel mount, or later using the whole gun carriage astriding elephant's head!) and these were generally lighter weapons,
Doi Suthep	ดอยสุเทพ	A reliquary cheti/stupa dominating Chiangmai landscape. This is quite a wrong choice here because 1. Doi Suthep is associated with Lanna Kingdom, built long before Siamese Annexation by several centuries. (bascially when Lanna 'was equal to Ayutthaya'.) 2. There are better candidates located all around Menam basin. one of the two was The Golden Mountain of Wat Saket, located at the very heart of Bangkok, the other was Wat Arun. (used in Civ6 mod)

My review is that it almost what I wanted Siam Kingdom to be in this game.

 

[Krikkit1]

Would that one even be possible?

Tecumseh and the search for Ivory

 

[Archanist]

My review is that it almost what I wanted Siam Kingdom to be in this game.

Interesting, what was missing from what you wanted?