The path to a Culture Victory in Civilization 6 is a nuanced dance of diplomacy, artistic achievement, and strategic tourism. For America under the leadership of Bull Moose Teddy Roosevelt, this path is not just an option; it’s a masterfully crafted journey paved with breathtaking landscapes and monumental achievements. His unique abilities fundamentally reshape the traditional approach to a Culture Victory, transforming the very terrain into a wellspring of cultural and scientific power. This guide delves into the strategic depths of Bull Moose Teddy’s abilities, offering a comprehensive framework for achieving a dominant Culture Victory by turning your empire into a global icon of natural beauty and artistic expression.
The Roosevelt Corollary: Understanding the Foundation of Power
At the heart of Bull Moose Teddy’s strategy lies his leader ability, “Antiquities and Parks.” This ability provides a direct and powerful incentive to maximize the Appeal of your tiles. Specifically, tiles with Breathtaking Appeal (a rating of +4 or higher) gain +2 Science if adjacent to a Mountain or Natural Wonder, and +2 Culture if adjacent to a Wonder or Woods. This seemingly simple bonus is the engine that will power your civilization from the early game to the final victory screen. It encourages a playstyle that is deeply intertwined with the natural world, rewarding careful city planning and a keen eye for pristine landscapes.
Many professional gamers suggest that the key to mastering Bull Moose Teddy is to internalize the concept of Appeal as a primary resource. It’s not just about aesthetics; it’s about tangible yields that will accelerate your progress through the civics and technology trees. Furthermore, his ability provides +1 Appeal to all tiles in a city with a National Park, a bonus that becomes increasingly potent as your empire grows and you establish more parks. This creates a powerful feedback loop: high Appeal generates more Culture and Science, which in turn unlocks the tools to further enhance Appeal and generate even greater yields.
Early Game Strategy: Laying the Foundation for a Cultural Empire
The early game with Bull Moose Teddy is a delicate balance of expansion, exploration, and careful city placement. Your initial settlers are not just founding cities; they are scouting locations for future National Parks and identifying tiles that will become the cultural heart of your empire.
Settling for Success: The Art of City Placement
According to the player community, the single most important decision you’ll make in the early game is where to settle your first few cities. Look for locations with a high concentration of features that boost Appeal: Mountains, Woods, Rivers, and Coastlines. A starting location with a mix of these features is ideal, as it will allow you to immediately begin generating bonus Science and Culture from Breathtaking tiles. Don’t be afraid to move your initial settler a few tiles to secure a more advantageous position. A little patience in the beginning will pay massive dividends later in the game.
Analysis on forums shows that a popular strategy is to prioritize settling near Natural Wonders. Not only do they provide a significant boost to Appeal, but they also offer unique bonuses that can further enhance your civilization. A city settled near a Natural Wonder with a few adjacent Woods and Mountains can become a powerhouse of early-game yields, giving you a significant advantage over your rivals.
Early Tech and Civics: Charting a Course for Cultural Dominance
Your early research path should be tailored to support your long-term cultural ambitions. Prioritize the following technologies and civics:
- Astrology: This is essential for building Holy Sites, which not only provide Faith but also boost the Appeal of adjacent tiles. Faith generation is crucial for purchasing Naturalists to create National Parks in the mid to late game.
- Writing: Unlocks Libraries and the path to Great Writers, an important source of early-game Culture and Tourism.
- Masonry: Allows you to build ancient walls, which increase a city’s defenses and provide a small boost to Appeal. It also opens the door to building early-game Wonders.
- Code of Laws and Foreign Trade: These early civics are standard for most civilizations, but for Bull Moose Teddy, the extra trade route from Foreign Trade is particularly valuable for establishing early diplomatic ties and generating income.
The Power of Appeal: A Deep Dive into a Core Mechanic
To truly excel as Bull Moose Teddy, you must become a master of Appeal. It is the central mechanic that underpins his entire strategy, and understanding its nuances is critical for success.
Maximizing Appeal: A Practical Guide
Numerous factors influence a tile’s Appeal. A popular strategy is to actively manage your landscape to create as many Breathtaking tiles as possible. Here’s a breakdown of what to look for and what to avoid:
Positive Appeal Modifiers:
- Natural Wonders and Mountains: +2 Appeal to adjacent tiles.
- Woods, Coast, Rivers, Lakes, Oases, Holy Sites, Theater Squares, Entertainment Complexes, Water Parks, Dams, Canals, and Wonders: +1 Appeal to adjacent tiles.
- City Parks: +2 Appeal to adjacent tiles.
- Preserves: This district is a game-changer for Bull Moose Teddy. It increases the Appeal of adjacent tiles by 1, and its buildings (the Grove and Sanctuary) provide bonus yields to adjacent unimproved Charming or Breathtaking tiles.
Negative Appeal Modifiers:
- Industrial Zones, Encampments, Aerodromes, Spaceports, Mines, Quarries, Oil Wells, Offshore Oil Rigs, Airstrips, Rainforests, Marshes, and Floodplains: These all reduce the Appeal of adjacent tiles.
Careful planning is essential. Designate specific areas of your empire for high-Appeal development and keep your industrial and military districts far away from these pristine landscapes.
The Preserve: Your Secret Weapon
Many professional gamers suggest that the Preserve district is the single most powerful tool in Bull Moose Teddy’s arsenal. When placed strategically, it can transform a mediocre landscape into a vibrant tapestry of high-yield tiles. The key is to place Preserves in locations where they can boost the Appeal of multiple tiles that are already adjacent to Mountains, Woods, or Wonders. This creates a cascading effect, pushing tiles from Charming to Breathtaking and unlocking a flood of bonus Science and Culture.
A popular strategy is to create “Preserve triangles,” where three cities are settled in a triangular formation, each with a Preserve district that boosts the Appeal of a central cluster of tiles. This can create a super-park of Breathtaking tiles that will generate enormous yields throughout the game.
Mid-Game Transition: From Cultural Growth to Tourism Dominance
The mid-game is where your carefully laid plans begin to bear fruit. You’ve established a strong foundation of high-Appeal cities, and now it’s time to pivot towards a full-fledged Culture Victory.
The National Park Rush: Your Path to Victory
The cornerstone of your mid-game strategy should be the creation of National Parks. These unique tile improvements generate Tourism equal to the total Appeal of their tiles, making them your primary engine of cultural dominance. To create a National Park, you’ll need a Naturalist unit (purchased with Faith) and a diamond-shaped area of four unimproved tiles, all owned by the same city and with at least Charming Appeal.
Analysis on forums shows that the most successful Bull Moose Teddy players are masters of National Park placement. They plan their cities and districts with future parks in mind, leaving diamond-shaped areas of unimproved land in high-Appeal locations. The Conservation civic, which unlocks the ability to plant Woods, is a critical technology to beeline in the mid-game. Planting Woods can transform a landscape, pushing tiles to the Charming or Breathtaking level required for National Parks.
Key Wonders for a Cultural Icon
While Bull Moose Teddy’s abilities are powerful on their own, certain Wonders can amplify their effects to an astonishing degree. Prioritize the following Wonders in the mid-game:
- Eiffel Tower: This is the “must-have” Wonder for any Bull Moose Teddy Culture Victory. It provides +2 Appeal to every tile in your empire, instantly transforming your landscape and making it significantly easier to create National Parks. Many professional gamers suggest that you should be prepared to “drop everything” to build the Eiffel Tower as soon as it becomes available.
- Cristo Redentor: This Wonder provides a significant boost to your Tourism output from Seaside Resorts and prevents other civilizations from using the Enlightenment civic to counter your cultural influence.
- Broadway: A powerful Wonder for generating Great Writer, Artist, and Musician points, helping you to fill your museums and generate more Tourism from Great Works.
Late Game: The Final Push for a Culture Victory
The late game is all about maximizing your Tourism output and overwhelming your rivals with your cultural influence. You’ve built a beautiful and powerful empire, and now it’s time to share it with the world.
The Power of Flight and Radio
The discovery of Flight and Radio unlocks two powerful tools for your Culture Victory: Seaside Resorts and Rock Bands.
- Seaside Resorts: These tile improvements can be built on coastal tiles with Breathtaking Appeal and generate a significant amount of Tourism. With the Eiffel Tower and careful planning, you can create entire coastlines of Breathtaking tiles, each one a potential location for a lucrative Seaside Resort.
- Rock Bands: These unique units can be purchased with Faith and sent to other civilizations to perform concerts, generating massive amounts of Tourism. A popular strategy is to use Rock Bands to target the civilizations with the highest cultural output, effectively blunting their own victory ambitions while accelerating your own.
The Film Studio: America’s Unique Advantage
Bull Moose Teddy’s unique building, the Film Studio, replaces the Broadcast Center and provides a powerful boost to your late-game Tourism. It doubles the Tourism pressure from that city towards other civilizations in the Modern era and beyond. Building Film Studios in your cities with National Parks and a high concentration of Great Works will create a tidal wave of cultural influence that will be difficult for any rival to resist.
Conclusion: A Legacy of Natural and Cultural Grandeur
Achieving a Culture Victory with Bull Moose Teddy Roosevelt is a deeply rewarding experience. It’s a journey that requires careful planning, a keen eye for natural beauty, and a deep appreciation for the power of Appeal. By transforming your empire into a stunning panorama of National Parks, breathtaking landscapes, and monumental artistic achievements, you will not only secure a dominant victory but also create a civilization that is a true testament to the enduring power of culture and nature. The path is clear, the strategy is sound, and the world is waiting to be captivated by the grandeur of your civilization.