pre-release info New Civ Guide: French Empire

[Zaarin]

I liked France more than I liked the original Catherine. Both Elaenor and Magnificence Catherine were interesting and fun!

Yes, I generally treated both France and Persia as leaderless since I essentially got no benefit from them.

 

[SeelingCat]

French Uniques!

Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité	Ability	"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity"	The national Motto of France (and Haiti), born out of the French Revolution.
Belle Époque	Civic	"Beautiful Era"	The period of French history from 1871 to 1914, coinciding with the French Third Republic. Seen as a bright spot compared to the Napoleonic Wars and World I that bookend the period. Associated with advancements in technology and culture, including cinema and Art Nouveau.
Voie Triomphale	Civic	"Triumphal Way"	More commonly known as the Axe Historique, refers to a series of streets and monuments in Paris that include the Louvre, Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elysées, Tuileries, and Place de la Concorde.
Grande Armée	Civic	"Great Army"	The "main military component of the French Imperial Army" during the Napoleonic Wars. Boasted 600,000 men at its peak strength in 1812.
Code Civil des Français	Civic	"Civil Code of the French"	More commonly referred to as the Napoleonic Code. The French Civil Code of law that serves as the basis for modern French law as well as in many other countries' legal systems. Served to make laws clearer and more accessible.
Style Empire	Tradition	"Empire Style"	An art movement that flourished in the early 19th century, influencing architecture, furniture, and other media. Based in Neoclassicism, the most iconic example is the famous Arc de Triomphe. Also associated with the Empire waist dress style.
Cocorico	Tradition	"cock-a-doodle-doo"	The call of the rooster, one of the national symbols of the French Republic. Used as a victory cry.
Bataillon-Carré	Tradition	"Square Battalion"	A military formation employed by Napoleon "whereby corps marched in close supporting distances and became vanguards, rearguards, or flank forces as the situation demanded."
Avenue	Quarter	"avenue"	Strictly speaking, a road lined with trees or shrubs to accentuate a sense of arrival (although this called an allée in French). More broadly, a grand street akin to a boulevard. The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a prominent example of a French avenue.
Jardin à la Française	Building	"garden in the French Style"	A French formal garden. A style of garden that is constructed on the basis of order and symmetry (as opposed to the more 'natural' English style). The Gardens of Versailles, Peterhof, and Caserta are all in the French style.
Salon	Building	"reception room"	A hosted gathering meant to pursue social or intellectual discussion, particularly in the realms of literature and philosophy.
Jacobin	Civilian		A member of the Jacobin Club, an influential political club during the French Revolution, and, by extension, a political radical. Jacobin politics advocated for secularism, strong government, and revolution.
Garde Impériale	Military	"Imperial Guard"	The elite guard of the French Imperial Army, directly commanded by Napoleon. Had 100,000 men by 1812, and had its own artillery, infantry and cavalry components.

Jacobins:

Paul Barras	1755-1829	The main leader of the Directory, the five-member committee of the French First Republic from 1795-1799.
Jacques-Nicolas Billaud-Varenne	1756-1819	Known as the Tiger and the Righteous Patriot, he was a French Lawyer and one of the most militant members of the Committee of Public Safety during the Reign of Terror.
Jacques Pierre Brissot	1754-1793	French journalist who was a leading member of the Girondists, who opposed the monarchy but resisted the more radical parts of the Revolution.
Etta Palm d'Aelders	1743-1799	A spy and revolutionary who spoke out for women's rights, addressing the National Convention in 1790 and founding the first female-only organization in French history.
Georges Danton	1759-1794	A lawyer who became the French Minister of Justice and was allegedly responsible for inciting the September Massacres. The first president of the Committee of Public Safety.
Camille Desmoulins	1760-1794	French journalist best known for giving a call to arms that sparked widespread unrest in Paris, culminating in the Storming of the Bastille. Later was a vocal critic of the Reign of Terror.
Olympe de Gouges	1748-1793	Playwright and activist best known for writing the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen. She was also a noted abolitionist and campaigned for a variety of social issues.
Jean-Paul Marat	1743-1793	Political theorist, scientist, and journalist who was known for his fierce and radical style of journalism. Also implicated as an instigator of the September Massacres. After his famous assassination he became a revolutionary martyr.
Maximilien Robespierre	1758-1794	Lawyer and statesman who was president of the National Convention and served as a member of the Committee of Public Safety. Commonly viewed as the face of the Reign of Terror.
Louis Antoine de Saint-Just	1767-1794	Revolutionary and political theorist who was renowned for his eloquence, as well as in shoring up the French Army. Was influential in the creation of the Constitution of Year I and the Declaration of the Rights of the Man and of the Citizen of 1793.

 

[Leucarum]

Firaxis does a great job of creating a non-memey France... Then just adds a wine start bias for giggles. I really hope that's not how you unlock them

 

[AlexByrde]

I’m thinking (hoping) they might be saving it for the exploration age. Although it feels unnecessary with the Norman’s honestly.

I'm of the mind that more redundancy is best for the civ switching system, although preferably once there's good geographic representation worldwide first. Put the Soviet Union and Russian Empire in the same age, throw in more Chinese dynasties across all three ages, etc. It'd be good gameplay variety. It's also why I don't mind Han and Ming both getting versions of the Great Wall. It's a good precedent for overlap, so future civs aren't locked out of having, for example, unique Cathedrals or Mosques just because Mexico and Abbasids have them.

France/Franks for the Exploration age seems like a natural choice later on.

 

[Siptah]

Firaxis does a great job of creating a non-memey France... Then just adds a wine start bias for giggles. I really hope that's not how you unlock them

I willing to bet money on that this is exactly how you unlock them: have three wine resources connected to your cities.

 

[Leucarum]

I willing to bet money on that this is exactly how you unlock them: have three wine resources connected to your cities.

I know. I just don't want to manifest that into existence.

 

[Zaarin]

Firaxis does a great job of creating a non-memey France... Then just adds a wine start bias for giggles. I really hope that's not how you unlock them

Obligatory reminder that you can thank the Phoenicians for spreading wine to the Western Mediterranean.

 

[Leucarum]

Obligatory reminder that you can thank the Phoenicians for spreading wine to the Western Mediterranean.

Phoenecia into France confirmed.

 

[Zaarin]

Phoenecia into France confirmed.

Although the Phoenicians never settled or interacted much with France; the Greeks beat them to it and the Phoenicians seem to have been pretty content to let them have it. Sicily was a different story...

 

[Leucarum]

Although the Phoenicians never settled or interacted much with France; the Greeks beat them to it and the Phoenicians seem to have been pretty content to let them have it. Sicily was a different story...

Still closer than the african "historical" civ transitions...

 

[Siptah]

Obligatory reminder that you can thank the Phoenicians for spreading wine to the Western Mediterranean.

To be fair, the wine of old isn't really comparable to what we cultivate and drink these days. So, the credit is to the hard working people that made it the drink(s) it is today over the past 200 or so years. Or rather past few decades tbh. Which includes quite some Frenchmen, which I - as a wine lover who very rarely drinks french wine - I can easily acknowledge.

 

[Jkchart]

Starting Bias: Wine.

My spirit animal for sure

Love the design tbh

 

[Jkchart]

I'm the only person in the world who liked Civ6 France. Châteaux were fun, but they were overshadowed by the much-better Pairidaeza.

You’re not! I loved them

 

[Gori the Grey]

I willing to bet money on that this is exactly how you unlock them: have three wine resources connected to your cities.

So far there is only one other civ that has only a resource as a starting bias, Mongolia with horses; and Mongolia is unlocked by horses.

Maybe a little bit of evidence that your bet is a safe bet.

 

[Zaarin]

To be fair, the wine of old isn't really comparable to what we cultivate and drink these days. So, the credit is to the hard working people that made it the drink(s) it is today over the past 200 or so years. Or rather past few decades tbh. Which includes quite some Frenchmen, which I - as a wine lover who very rarely drinks french wine - I can easily acknowledge.

Wouldn't know; I'm a teetotaler myself, by taste not principle. I do understand some of the wine verbiage from being a coffee nerd, though. Back to the Phoenicians, the Indo-Europeans certainly brought a form of viticulture with them, but DNA evidence has confirmed that the Phoenicians introduced Levantine varieties of wine to Western Europe as well as Levantine viticulture techniques. Even in Roman times, Lebanese wine was considered some of the finest. As another aside, it seems that the Phoenicians also introduced Western Europe to that most Roman of monstrosities, garum. I like Worcestershire, but I'm afraid to try garum...

 

[Lord Lakely]

Well the wording of "French Empire" and the uniques very clearly leave room for the Franks or the Capetians.

Maybe one of those two IS the exploration Civ in Rise to Rule (with Notre Dame as the wonder)

 

[Siptah]

As another aside, it seems that the Phoenicians also introduced Western Europe to that most Roman of monstrosities, garum. I like Worcestershire, but I'm afraid to try garum...

It's better than you might think. I mean, if you're into SEA food, you can get a tame variant of it everywhere nowadays. If you ever happen to be in Trier (which isn't at all a bad place to be for someone interested in history), there's a restaurant that cooks food according to Apicius and they also make their own garum.

 

[CivKirk64]

LEFT TURN! Thought for sure we were getting Himiko today!! NOPE Frenchy Frenchness.
My Children need Wine!
EDIT: Oh and France seems really cool, lots of Culture for everything you do and, UU is even stronger with commanders, and also culture.

 

[Zaarin]

It's better than you might think. I mean, if you're into SEA food, you can get a tame variant of it everywhere nowadays. If you ever happen to be in Trier (which isn't at all a bad place to be for someone interested in history), there's a restaurant that cooks food according to Apicius and they also make their own garam.

I'd probably like it. I hate fish, but I do have a history of liking fermented fish sauces. Maybe not on patinized pears...

 

[Captain Lime]

Why are their attributes Diplomatic and Militaristic? Just based off the abilities, there's hardly anything diplomatic here. It would be way more appropriate to be Cultural and Militaristic, no?