What if the cultural prowess of Eleanor of Aquitaine was combined with the solid foundation of the Roman Empire in Civilization VI? This guide explores the powerful synergy of using Eleanor of Aquitaine to lead Rome, focusing on a loyalty-based domination strategy. We will delve into the mechanics of loyalty, how to maximize its effects, and provide a step-by-step guide to achieving a peaceful, yet dominant, victory.
The Core Strategy: Loyalty as a Weapon
Loyalty, a mechanic introduced in the Rise and Fall expansion, is the cornerstone of this strategy. Instead of conquering cities through military force, we will use cultural and political pressure to make them join our empire willingly. This is achieved by reducing a foreign city’s loyalty to zero, at which point it becomes a Free City and can be absorbed into our civilization.
Eleanor of Aquitaine is the master of this strategy. Her “Court of Love” ability is the engine of our loyalty-flipping machine. It causes Great Works in her cities to exert -1 Loyalty per turn on all foreign cities within a 9-tile radius. This effect stacks for every Great Work, meaning a city with ten Great Works will exert a staggering -10 loyalty per turn on nearby enemy cities.
When combined with Rome’s inherent strengths, this ability becomes even more potent. Rome’s “All Roads Lead to Rome” ability grants a free Monument in every city, providing an early culture boost and an additional +1 loyalty. Furthermore, the Roman Bath unique district provides extra amenities, which are crucial for maintaining high loyalty in our own cities and exerting maximum pressure on our neighbors.
Setting the Stage: Early Game Strategy
The early game is all about building a strong foundation for our loyalty-flipping machine. We need to focus on culture, expansion, and securing key resources.
Prioritizing Culture and Expansion
Our first priority is to generate as much culture as possible. This will allow us to unlock key civics, governments, and policy cards that will boost our loyalty pressure. We should build Theater Squares in as many cities as possible, and prioritize the construction of Amphitheaters and Museums to house our Great Works.
Simultaneously, we need to expand our empire and settle cities strategically. We should look for locations that are close to our opponents’ cities, as this will maximize the effect of our “Court of Love” ability. We should also prioritize settling near luxury resources, as these will provide the amenities we need to keep our own cities happy and loyal.
The Voidsingers: A Crucial Alliance
If playing with the Secret Societies game mode, the Voidsingers are an essential component of this strategy. Their unique unit, the Cultist, can be used to directly reduce a foreign city’s loyalty. This ability is incredibly powerful, and when combined with Eleanor’s “Court of Love,” it can flip even the most loyal cities in a matter of turns.
The Voidsingers also provide a significant boost to our faith, culture, and Great Work generation, further accelerating our progress towards a loyalty-based victory.
The Mid-Game: Unleashing the Loyalty Machine
The mid-game is where our strategy truly comes online. By this point, we should have a number of cities with well-developed Theater Squares, filled with Great Works. We should also have a strong economy and a steady stream of Great People.
Maximizing Loyalty Pressure
Now is the time to start actively targeting our opponents’ cities. We should focus on cities that are already experiencing low loyalty, such as those with low populations, few amenities, or those that are far from their capital.
We can use a combination of methods to reduce a city’s loyalty:
- Great Works: As mentioned, each Great Work in a nearby city will reduce a foreign city’s loyalty by -1 per turn.
- “Bread and Circuses”: This city project, available in the Entertainment Complex, can be used to exert a significant amount of loyalty pressure on nearby cities.
- Governors: The Governor Amani, with her “Emissary” promotion, can be used to reduce loyalty in nearby foreign cities.
- Spies: Spies can be used to foment unrest in a city, which will also reduce its loyalty.
- Cultists: If we have allied with the Voidsingers, we can use Cultists to directly reduce a city’s loyalty.
The Art of the Flip
Once a city’s loyalty drops to zero, it will become a Free City. At this point, we need to ensure that our civilization is exerting the most loyalty pressure on the city. If we are, the city will join our empire on the following turn.
It is important to note that flipping a city with Eleanor’s ability does not generate any grievances with the original owner. This means we can continue to maintain friendly relations with our neighbors, even as we are taking their cities.
Late Game: The Inevitable Victory
By the late game, our loyalty-flipping machine should be an unstoppable force. We should be able to flip multiple cities per turn, and our empire should be expanding at an exponential rate.
Managing a Large Empire
As our empire grows, it will become increasingly important to manage our amenities and keep our cities happy. The Roman Bath will be a huge help in this regard, but we may also need to build Entertainment Complexes and Water Parks in our larger cities.
We should also continue to generate as much culture as possible. This will allow us to unlock the most powerful policy cards and governments, which will further boost our loyalty pressure.
The Path to Victory
There are two main paths to victory with this strategy:
- Domination: We can continue to flip cities until we have conquered the world. This is a slow but steady path to victory, and it is very difficult for our opponents to stop.
- Cultural: We can also use our massive cultural output to achieve a cultural victory. This is a more passive path to victory, but it is just as effective.
The Power of Peaceful Domination
The combination of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Rome offers a unique and powerful playstyle that is both challenging and rewarding. By mastering the mechanics of loyalty and leveraging the strengths of both the leader and the civilization, you can achieve a dominant victory without ever having to declare war. This strategy requires patience, planning, and a deep understanding of the game’s mechanics, but the results are well worth the effort. According to the player community, this is one of the most satisfying ways to play the game, and many professional gamers suggest that it is a top-tier strategy for achieving a peaceful victory.