Embarking on a Science Victory as Teddy Roosevelt in Civilization 6 presents a unique and rewarding strategic challenge. While many associate America’s Bull Moose leader with Culture Victories due to his appeal-based bonuses, a carefully orchestrated governor strategy can pivot this cultural powerhouse into a scientific juggernaut. This guide delves into the nuanced art of leveraging governor titles to transform breathtaking landscapes into the launchpad for humanity’s journey to the stars.
Analysis on forums shows that the key to a Roosevelt science win lies in a delicate balance: harnessing the raw science and culture from high-appeal tiles while simultaneously building the industrial and academic infrastructure necessary for the space race. It is a path that requires foresight, careful city planning, and, most importantly, the strategic appointment and promotion of governors.
The Bull Moose Scientist: A Unique Approach
Before diving into the specifics of governor titles, it is crucial to understand the foundation of this strategy: Teddy Roosevelt’s “Bull Moose” ability. This unique leader trait grants +2 Science to tiles with Breathtaking appeal adjacent to a Mountain or Natural Wonder, and +2 Culture to tiles with Breathtaking appeal adjacent to Woods or a Wonder. This ability is the cornerstone of your scientific ambitions.
A popular strategy is to create “science parks” – sprawling areas of high-appeal land that generate immense yields. This is achieved through the careful placement of Preserves, a district that enhances the yields of adjacent unimproved tiles. When combined with Teddy’s ability, a Preserve’s Grove and Sanctuary buildings can transform a simple mountain-adjacent tile into a powerhouse of science, culture, gold, and production.
Many professional gamers suggest an early-game focus on settling near mountains and natural wonders to maximize these appeal-based bonuses. The Earth Goddess pantheon is a common choice, providing a faith engine from your high-appeal tiles that can be used to recruit Great People and Naturalists later in the game. However, this appeal-based strategy creates a fascinating tension: the need for pristine, unimproved tiles clashes with the traditional science victory’s demand for production-heavy districts like Industrial Zones and Mines. This is where your governors come in.
The Indispensable Governor: Pingala, the Educator
According to the player community, Pingala is the single most important governor for any science-focused civilization, and for Teddy Roosevelt, he is nothing short of essential. His abilities to directly boost science, culture, and Great People generation make him the ideal candidate to lead your primary science city.
Phase 1: The Early Game Foundation (First 3 Promotions)
Your first governor title should, without question, be used to establish Pingala in your capital or a city with the highest potential for early science generation (ideally, a city with strong Campus adjacency and access to high-appeal tiles). Your promotion path for Pingala should be laser-focused on maximizing your scientific output.
- Researcher: This is your first promotion for Pingala. It provides a crucial +1 Science for every citizen in the city and a 15% boost to all science generated in the city. This immediately amplifies your early-game science, allowing you to accelerate through the tech tree and secure key technologies like Writing and Apprenticeship.
- Connoisseur: Your second promotion should be Connoisseur. This provides +1 Culture for every citizen and a 15% boost to culture generation. While this may seem counterintuitive for a science victory, the additional culture is vital for unlocking key civics like Political Philosophy (for more governor titles) and Rationalism (a powerhouse science policy card).
- Grants: With your third promotion, take Grants. This doubles the Great People points generated in the city. For a science victory, securing Great Scientists is paramount. Their “Eureka” moments can shave dozens of turns off your research, and their other abilities can provide invaluable boosts to your infrastructure.
Phase 2: The Mid-Game Acceleration (Promotions 4-5)
As you enter the mid-game, your focus should shift to preparing for the immense production demands of the space race. Pingala’s next promotions will help you build the necessary infrastructure.
- Librarian: This promotion provides +1 Science from districts in the city. While not as impactful as his earlier promotions, it provides a solid boost to your science output, especially in a well-developed city with multiple districts.
- Arms-Length Transactions: This promotion provides +1 Gold from districts in the city. The extra gold will be crucial for purchasing buildings, units, and, most importantly, Great People.
Phase 3: The Late Game Push (Final Promotion)
Pingala’s final promotion is the capstone of his scientific support.
- Space Initiative: This is arguably Pingala’s most powerful promotion for a science victory. It provides a massive +30% production bonus towards all space race projects in the city. This is a game-changing ability that can dramatically accelerate your path to victory.
The Engine of Progress: Magnus, the Steward
While Pingala is your scientific mastermind, Magnus is the engine of your empire. His abilities are focused on production and expansion, two critical components of a successful science victory. Many professional gamers suggest a “Magnus-first” strategy, where you use his early promotions to rapidly expand your empire before transitioning him to a production-focused role.
Phase 1: The Expansionist (First 2 Promotions)
Your second governor should be Magnus, and his first two promotions are all about growing your empire.
- Provision: This promotion is a game-changer for early expansion. It allows the city to train Settlers without losing a population. This means you can churn out settlers from your capital without stunting its growth, allowing you to quickly claim valuable city locations.
- Surplus Logistics: This promotion provides +20% food growth in the city and +20% production towards Industrial Zone and Harbor buildings. The food growth helps your cities grow faster, while the production bonus helps you establish your industrial backbone.
Phase 2: The Industrialist (Promotions 3-4)
Once you have established a solid number of cities, Magnus’s role shifts from expansion to production. A popular strategy is to move him to a city with high production potential (ideally, a city with many hills for mines and a well-placed Industrial Zone) and promote him to become your industrial foreman.
- Industrialist: This promotion provides +2 production for each strategic resource in the city. This is a significant boost to your production, especially in a city with access to iron, coal, and other key resources.
- Vertical Integration: This is Magnus’s most powerful production-focused promotion. It provides a massive +10 production to the city for each adjacent Industrial Zone district, and another +2 production for each building in those districts. When combined with a well-placed Government Plaza and the Ancestral Hall building, you can create a “super-production” city that can build wonders and space projects in a fraction of the normal time.
The Supporting Cast: Liang and Amani
While Pingala and Magnus are the stars of the show, Liang and Amani play crucial supporting roles that should not be overlooked.
Liang, the Surveyor: A popular strategy is to use your third governor title to recruit Liang. Her initial promotion, Guildmaster, provides an extra build charge to all Builders trained in her city. This is an incredibly powerful early-game tempo boost, allowing you to improve tiles, chop resources, and build districts much faster. Many professional gamers suggest placing her in your capital to churn out super-charged builders, then moving her to other cities as needed.
Amani, the Diplomat: Amani is your key to unlocking the power of city-states. Her initial promotion, Emissary, allows you to immediately place two envoys in a city-state, making it much easier to become its suzerain. For a science victory, you should prioritize scientific city-states, as their suzerainty bonuses can provide significant boosts to your science output. A popular strategy is to use Amani to secure the suzerainty of a key city-state, then move her to another to repeat the process.
Governor Synergy and Mid-Game Decisions
The true power of governors lies in their synergy. In the mid-game, you will need to make strategic decisions about where to place your governors and how to specialize your cities.
A popular strategy is to designate a “science city” (usually your capital) where Pingala resides permanently. This city should have a strong Campus, a University, and eventually, a Research Lab. You should also aim to build the Oracle and Oxford University in this city to maximize its Great Person generation and science output.
Your “production city,” where Magnus will eventually reside, should be a city with high production potential. This is where you will build the Ruhr Valley wonder and your Spaceport. The goal is to create a city that can churn out space projects at an incredible rate.
The rest of your cities should be focused on supporting your two primary cities. They should all have Campuses and Libraries, and they should be used to generate gold, faith, and other resources.
The Late Game Push: Governors and the Space Race
As you enter the late game, your entire empire should be focused on the space race. This is where your governor strategy will truly pay off.
Pingala’s Space Initiative promotion will provide a massive production bonus to your science city, while Magnus’s Vertical Integration will do the same for your production city. You should use Magnus’s chopping ability to clear forests and rainforests in your production city to further accelerate the construction of space projects.
A popular strategy is to use the Royal Society government building to allow your builders to contribute their charges to space projects. When combined with Liang’s extra builder charges, you can create a workforce of super-builders who can dramatically speed up the final stages of the game.
Conclusion
Achieving a Science Victory as Teddy Roosevelt is a testament to strategic planning and a deep understanding of the game’s mechanics. It is a path that requires you to think outside the box, to see the scientific potential in a breathtaking landscape, and to leverage the unique abilities of your governors to their fullest potential. By carefully appointing and promoting Pingala, Magnus, Liang, and Amani, you can transform America’s cultural heartland into a scientific powerhouse, proving that the path to the stars can be paved with both production and beauty.