Sid Meier's Civilization V: Gods & Kings/Empire of Smoky Skies

In a world much like ours, the Industrial Revolution has forever changed the way people lived, but history is about to travel down a very different path. The discovery of fantastical materials have given rise to wondrous inventions, and massive, elaborate steam-powered vehicles rule land and sky. Old kingdoms have collapsed, and a slew of new empires have risen to lead the masses to a glorious future. Thus, the League of Empires was created, a coalition between multiple states to encourage development and progresss of individual empires. Your objective is to attain and retain three or more Honourable Titles bestowed by the League of Empires, gaining enough influence in the league to rule the world!

Scenario details

Unlike other scenarios which were modeled after notable historical periods, Empires of the Smoky Skies takes place in an alternate timeline with a heavy steampunk theme. Players start out with all technologies up to Steam Power researched, and a whole new tech tree has been created with new technologies to grant you interesting buildings and units. All games take place on a small map of your choosing at a set game pace that increments by one year every turn. Every player starts with three Settlers, two Scouts, two Land Ironclads, two Workers and three Spies. Settlers take a very long time to produce in this scenario, so make sure to keep your initial Settlers well-protected and pick city locations carefully. Scouts are best used for embarked naval exploration, as they are very weak to Barbarian units at this point and Land Ironclads are needed for early defense. All cities start out with some preexisting infrastructure.

Two new strategic resources have been introduced. Aetherium appears as Aluminum on the map and is required for building airship-type units, while Luboric replaces Uranium and is needed for landship-type units bar the Land Ironclad. Coal is still an essential Strategic Resource for Factories, while Oil has been relegated to a bonus resource that provides +1 Production to its tile yield. As the scenario starts after the Industrial Era, religion has been disabled entirely, as are religious City-States. Barbarians are now called Luddites and can only produce units up to Rifleman and Gatling Guns, making them easy to take out. City-States are also unable to produce any of the newly-added units, and thus militaristic City-States have been disabled as well. City-States ARE able to produce buildings that provide Luboric and Aetherium resources, so there is an additional benefit to allying with them outside of their innate improvements. None of the AI particularly prioritizes befriending City-States, which makes them a reliable place to spend your Gold on.

To win the scenario, a civilization has to get three or more Honourable Titles recognized by the League of Empires, then maintain ownership of the titles for 5 turns. Titles are locked until a civilization researches a particular technology, after which every civilization will be able to compete for it. You can see how many titles you have and the current owner of the titles by checking the League of Empires. Upon getting 2 or more titles, you will incur a diplomatic penalty with every other empire in the League, as they will try to undermine you through war or double down on their efforts to overcome you, so be prepared to defend your titles staunchly.

Defender of Progress

There are many savage Luddites and lesser nations that might try to resist the march of progress. A Defender of Progress boasts both technological innovation and military might, keeping a massive fleet of modern units to defeat the enemies of science. To get this title, you need to own the greatest total number of the most advanced landships and airships. Units in the landship category are the Land Ironclad, the Landship and the Land Leviathan, while Airships and Sky Fortresses belong in the airship category. The moment a newer model of landship or airship is built by any civilization, all older models are rendered obsolete, so a tech lead and good economy for upgrading will give you an edge. This title is unlocked by researching Landships. Given its focus on building plenty of military units, this title works well with a conquest-based approach, as you'll be building lots of strong units any way, and you may need to grab territory for Aetherium and Luboric to build the corresponding units. By warring, you can whittle down the enemy's army, which also helps eliminate competition for the title. Peaceful strategies can also attempt to get this title by pouring out units from high Production cities, and staying out of wars will mean less chance of your landships and airships getting destroyed. Unit maintenance could be problematic, and turns spent building units are turns not spent developing infrastructure for constructing wonders.

Grand Philanthropist

Every powerful empire grew as large as they did thanks to their people, and the leaders can give back to the people by constructing inspirational wonders and state-of-the-art facilities, which a generous Grand Philanthropist will certainly focus on. This Honourable title is granted to the empire with the most World and National Wonders, with either type of wonder having equal weight in the scoring. This title is unlocked by researching Noblesse Oblige. Available World Wonders are in short supply and AI civilizations are quite competitive at wonder building, so it is best to save any Great Engineers you spawn for a timely Production boost to wonder production. National Wonders are more numerous, provided you can construct their prerequisite building in every city. If you were busy building units instead of wonders, you can simply conquer the cities of other empires with Wonders in them. Just remember to always puppet conquered cities, as annexing will make it harder to build National Wonders, a key contributor to your score.

Captain of Industry

With industrialization and automation, many items can be produced faster and cheaper than ever before. A Captain of Industry develops exemplary cities that display ruthless efficiency at constructing anything. To get this title, you must have the city with the highest Production per turn in the game. This title is unlocked by researching Automata. This title shares many of its requirements with Grand Philanthropist, requiring you to have heavily-developed cities suitable for constructing lots of wonders. Make sure to concentrate all Production-increasing National Wonders in one city, and build mines on any hills you have nearby. If you are close to victory but is barely upstaged by another civilization's city, you can go to your selected Production city and divert all of your citizens to working Production tiles or buildings to maximize your yield long enough to win the game.

Lord of Refinement

It is not just advanced technology that separates a civilized empire from the savage nations, but also the social attitudes of its people. A Lord of Refinement elevates his empire's society to greatness, leading his people to enlightenment through powerful idealogies. A player has to adopt the most Social Policies of any empire to hold this title. This title is unlocked by researching Technocracy. Obviously, high Culture generation is needed to grab social policies quickly, so Culture buildings and wonders are a priority. Social Policies are generally quite strong in this scenario, so you can focus on Culture and stay competitive for other titles if you pick the right Social Policies. Like with Grand Philanthropist, expansion isn't encouraged as it increases the cost of each policy, so puppeting conquered cities is the way to go for anyone playing warmonger.

Master of Wealth

A prosperous economy is a certain indicator of a strong empire, and a Master of Wealth must be an expert at managing the land's resources as well as trading with fellow states. It is bestowed to the civilization that has the highest gross Gold income in the game, so even if your Gold per turn is low due to maintenance or trade deals, you can still compete for the title if your cities are good at pumping out Gold. The score is accumulated from the start of the game, so it can be hard to catch up to other empires if you fall behind. This title is unlocked by researching Perpetual Motion. There's not much to getting this title, just make sure you have Gold increasing buildings in all of your cities and trade away extra luxuries for more income. A wide puppet empire is a great contender for this title, as puppet cities will prioritize Gold in their production queues.

Tech Tree

The tech tree beyond the Industrial Era has been completely redesigned, with prexisting units moved around and new units and buildings available.

Steam Era

Tier 1

• Analog Computation: Lets you build Difference Engines and eventually the Analytical Engine that increase Production and Science. Also lets you build the Eiffel Tower, which provides a hefty bost to Happiness that increases with Social Policies.
• Economic Imperialism: Lets you build Great War Infantry, the strongest infantry unit in the game. Also lets you build Grand Mansions and the Biltmore House to increase Gold and Culture.
• Propulsion: Lets you build Destroyers and Flyers. Destroyers rule the seas, while Flyers defend the skies. Also lets you build the National Intelligence Agency for improved espionage and defense against enemy spies.
• Eruptives: Lets you build Battleships, powerful naval units that require Coal. Reveals sources of Luboric on the map.

Tier 2

• Vertical Integration: Lets you build the Stock Exchange to boost gold output, as well as the Pentagon wonder for cheaper military upgrades. Requires Analog Computation and Economic Imperialism.
• Expedition: Lets you build the Submarine, a naval unit adept at sneak attacks. Also lets you build Trade Colleges that generate Culture and Science. Reveals Aetherium on the map. Requires Economic Imperialism and Propulsion.
• Landships: Lets you build Landships, mobile Luboric powered land units. Also lets you construct Patent Offices and an Inventor's Hall for more Gold and Production. Unlocks the Defender of Progress title. Requires Propulsion and Eruptives.

Airship Era

Tier 1

• Noblesse Oblige: Lets you build the Stadium to increase Happiness and the Neuchwanstein wonder if your city is next to a mountain. Unlocks the Grand Philanthropist title. Requires Vertical Integration.
• Airships: Lets you build Airships, Aetherium-aided flying units that can traverse any terrain and has the advantage over Landships. Requires Expedition and Landships.
• Infernal Combustion: Lets you build the Luboric Refinery to create extra Luboric resources. Also lets you build the Statue of Liberty wonder for increasing Production in high population cities. Requires Landships.

Tier 2

• Gospel of Wealth: Lets you build Philanthroporiums that increase Happiness and Culture. Also lets you build the Cristo Redentor for faster Social Policy adoption. Requires Noblesse Oblige.
• Galvonomagnetism: Lets you build Tesla Coils to boost Science and Gold. Also lets you build the Sydney Opera House for a free Social Policy and increased Culture. Requires Noblesse Oblige and Airships.
• Automata: Lets you build Aetherium Fabricators to create extra Aetherium resources. Unlocks the Captain of Industry title. Requires Airships.
• Uranography: Lets you build Airship Hangars to increase the experience of air units. Requires Airships.
• Land Leviathan: Lets you build the mighty Land Leviathan, the most advanced landship unit. Requires Infernal Combustion.
• Civil Defense: Lets you build the Military Base for City Defense and the Anti-Aircraft Gun for stopping Flyers and airships. Requires Infernal Combustion.

Tier 3

• Radio: Lets you build Broadcast Towers to increase Culture, as well as the Carnegie Hall, the National Wonder tied to Philanthroporiums. Requires Gospel of Wealth and Galvanomagnetism.
• Robotics: Lets you build the Automated Factory to increase Production and Happiness. Requires Galvanomagnetism and Automata.
• Sky Fortress: Lets you build the magnificent Sky Fortress, the most advanced airship unit. Requires Uranography and Land Leviathan.
• Subterranean Exploration: Lets you build Subterranean Outposts to increase Production and Science, culminating into a Subterranean Colony. Requires Land Leviathan.

Future Era

Tier 1

• Technocracy: Let you build the CN Tower for a strong Culture boost. Unlocks the Lord of Refinement title. Requires Radio and Robotics.
• Perpetual Motion: Lets you build the Perpetual Motion Engine, the national wonder associated with the Automated Factory. Unlocks the Master of Wealth title. Requires Robotics and Sky Fortress.

Tier 2

• The Grand Idea: A repeating technology that converts your excess research into Culture. Requires Technocracy and Perpetual Motion.

Social Policies

Most social policies are taken from the main game, just heavily rearranged. There are no opener and finisher policies in any of the branches, so you can pick any unlocked policies you like and there's no special reward for focusing exclusively on one branch. You get a large bit of Culture that lets you grab at least 3 policies on the second turn, so picking your initial policies wisely can result in a strong start.

Labor

The Labor branch is a generally useful branch that provides a variety of benefits, with a slight focus on the Grand Philanthropist title. Go down the left path for boosts to wonder production, and the right path for bonus to Great People generation, either through specialists or City-States. Overall, Labor benefits a small, well-developed empire that can support massive amounts of citizens.

• United Front: +10% Production when building wonders and +1 Population when settling new cities. This is the first boost to wonder production you can get. Since Settlers come at an exorbitant price, this policy is best taken early on before your starting Settlers have made cities.
• Aristocracy: +15% Production when building wonders and +1 Happiness for every 10 citizens in a city. Requires United Front. The boost to wonder building is slightly stronger than United Front, while the extra Happiness can offset some of the unhappiness caused by population growth.
• Secularism: +2 Science for every Specialist. This policy lets you improve your Science output alongside other resource generation, particularly when assigning Specialists as Engineers for the Great Engineer points, or just for a sizable boost to your Scientist's output.
• Democracy: Your cities' Specialist population only generates half unhappiness. Requires Secularism. This is another great social policy for populous cities, serving to reduce the Happiness reduction as cities grow larger.
• Educated Elite: Allied City-States occasionally gift Great People. Requires Democracy. You will gain a random Great Person every set amount of turns, which decreases slightly the more City-States you're allied with. The Great Person will increase the number of Great People Points needed for generating the next Great Person in your empire, so it's not entirely free either. Great People are always appreciated for their strong abilities and tile improvements, though the random nature of Educated Elite doesn't make it very appealing.

Culture

The Culture branch is pretty self-explanatory. Its policies either increase the culture you gain or decrease the culture needed for more social policies. Taking policies in this branch is usually only advised if you're competing for the Lord of Refinement title. However, some of the policies start Golden Ages, which can be very handy for a well-timed Production or Gold boost, such as for a war or to secure the Captain of Industry title during the endgame.

• Mandate of Heaven: 50% of the excess Happiness added to the Golden Age counter every turn is also converted into empire-wide culture. This means that the bonus granted is meant to help you get Social Policies faster, and doesn't contribute to border growth. It's not too hard to have positive Happiness by focusing on Culture, since you're unlikely to have a need for aggressive expansion, and the many buildings and occasional wonders can also keep your citizens happy, so it's a nice additional source of Culture.
• Reformation: Every city with a World Wonder gains 33% Culture. Also starts a Golden Age. Requires Mandate of Heaven. The AI is extremely competitive for World Wonders in this scenario, but if you have strong generation of Great Engineers, use them to spread World Wonders out among your cities for a sizable Culture boost. It is one of two Golden Age starting policies, handy if you want an instant Production boost.
• Legalism: Free culture buildings in your first 4 cities. This policy can not only give you Museums, but also Broadcast Towers, Grand Mansions, Trade Colleges or Philanthroporiums. A timely adoption of this policy could immediately unlock a National Wonder.
• Representation: Every new city founded increases the cost of Social Policies by 33% less. Also starts a Golden Age. Requires Legalism. Due to the exorbitant Settler costs and how much the scenario encourages you to puppet conquered cities, you won't have many cities to raise Social Policy costs in the first place. It effectively helps you get Social Policies quicker, with a neat addition of starting a Golden Age if you need a strong instantaneous power-up.
• Religious Tolerance: Decreases the cost of future Social Policies by 10%. Requires Reformation and Representation. As you'd have completed the Culture branch by the time you take this policy, it helps you adopt policies from other branches you might have missed out on to focus on Culture.

Industry

Industry is all about boosting your civilization's Production and has various bonuses to encourage you to develop city infrastructure. It is an obvious boon for any empire looking to snatch the Captain of Industry title, but the Production boosts are quite strong in general no matter what playstyle you employ, making it consistently one of the best branches to invest in.

• Socialism: Gold maintenance costs of buildings reduced by 15%. Building maintenance will be one of your main expenditures in this scenario due to the raising Production and unlocking National Wonders, so having less maintenance will increase your gold per turn a good amount.
• Republic: +1 Production in every city and +5% Production when constructing buildings. This is one of the two straight Production boosts you can take from the start. Republic has a smaller boost than Communism, but it helps you get National Wonders since they require constructing certain buildings in every city, as well as general development. It also lets you access some very strong policies lower in the Industry branch.
• Planned Economy: Factories boost city Science output by 25% and halves building time for Factories. Requires Republic. Available from the start and giving a considerable Production boost, Factories are key buildings to produce early on if you have the Coal to do so. Halving their build time is immensely useful for getting Factories into every city, while the Science boost will have a lasting impact throughout the game.
• Fascism: Doubles quantity of Strategic Resources produced. Great Generals receive +2 Movement. Requires Planned Economy. An incredible policy for militaristic playstyles or for purely getting the Defender of Progress title. Fascism not only affects yields from your Mines, but also the extra resources granted by refineries and fabricators, making them extra handy if you lack Aetherium or Luboric in your territory. The Great General bonus is strictly for war, letting your Great Generals keep up with your mobile landships.
• Communism: +2 Production per city and +1 Production to every Mine or Quarry. A minor Production boost that increases with every city you have. The effect is not big, but the added Production for Mines, an improvement you'll definitely be building, is helpful in any case.

Commerce

Commerce boosts Gold generation. The obvious advantage of this branch is helping you amass wealth, but oddly only one policy actually directly contributes to the Master of Wealth title. Other policies simply reduce Gold maintenance, which isn't counted for your gross income, or to encourage earning gold the standard ways: through city connections, trade and buildings. Nevertheless, increasing your net income has many flexible benefits, whether to buy City-State alliances or purchase units and buildings.

• Trade Unions: Gold maintenance of Roads and Railroads reduced by 33%. Harbors and Seaports gain +1 Gold. There's plenty of reason to build Railroads to connect your cities, both for the additional income from connected Roads to the Production bonus of connected rail lines. However, these roads also cost considerable amounts of maintenance, which Trade Unions reduce. The Harbor and Seaport bonus effectively only reduces their high maintenance, but actually contributes to your gross gold income.
• Free Speech: 8 units are maintenance-free. Requires Trade Unions. Due to quirks in how unit maintenance is calculated, the effects of this policy will save you money the more units you build and the longer into the game. It helps when you're fielding a large army, particularly if going for Defender of Progress.
• Meritocracy: +1 Happiness for every city connected to the Capital and -5% Unhappiness from citizens in non-occupied cities. Like with Trade Unions, this policy encourages you to connect your cities to the capital using railroads, giving Happiness for doing so. The unhappiness decrease applies only to annexed cities without a Courthouse, which you're unlikely to have since annexing is not recommended in this scenario.
• Mercantilism: Purchasing items in cities require 25% less Gold. +1 Science from every Mint, Market, Bank and Stock Exchange. Requires Meritocracy. Discounts when purchasing from cities are always useful when you have a large treasury and need to hurry a unit or building, and the effect stacks with various other policies. You'll gain +2 Science in each city from the pre-built Market and Bank the moment you adopt it. The Science it adds to the Stock Exchange is small and there are better buildings like the Tesla Coil that provides a nice amount of both, but it's a neat improvement if you're already focused on developing financially.
• Protectionism: Luxury Resources grant +2 Happiness. Requires Mercentilism. This policy increases Happiness with every unique luxury your civ has access to, so be sure to trade excess luxuries for your opponents' own luxuries to greatly increase the Happiness of your empire.

Military

As advertized in its name, the Military branch provides bonuses to help with war. The top row strengthens the units themselves while the bottom row is meant to maintain your economy while warring. While improvements to the military is certainly helpful for getting Defender of Progress, powering-up the legoins of advanced units you may build.

• Discipline: +15% combat bonus for melee units with a military unit in an adjacent tile. This is a useful policy if you can keep your army tightly packed, as most units, including the new landship and airship type units, get the boost. Any adjacent friendly military unit will suffice, so your Airships will still get the boost whether you have a Great War Infantry beside them or an Artillery.
• Military Tradition: Military units gain 50% more experience from combat. Gaining more experience lets you upgrade your unitss more often, either to supply powerful promotions or for a timely instant heal. The scenario doesn't last long enough for you to promote your units into unstoppable machines of doom, but getting an extra promotion like Cover, Sentry or +1 Movement can go a long way to improving your units' combat ability.
• Nationalism: +15% combat bonus within friendly territory. This is a strong defensive policy that suits more peaceful civs with aggressive neighbors, and it is much more helpful here than in the main game since it can be adopted from the start of the scenario. You can also use your home field advantage for wars you start, inviting enemy units into your land and eliminating them with the help of your combat bonus before launching a counteroffensive.
• Professional Army: Gold cost of upgrading units reduced by 33%, +1 Happiness from Walls, Castles, Arsenals and Military Bases. Requires Discipline and Military Tradition. Lowering the upgrade costs of your landships and airships can be very useful for maintaining the Defender of Progress title without a strong economy, since only the most advanced units in the world will be counted. As Walls and Castles come pre-built in this scenario, you'll be getting an immediate +2 Happiness per city the moment you adopt the scenario.
• Militarism: Cost of purchasing units in cities reduced by 33%. This policy benefits you whether you're in need of instant extra units for a war or for the Defender of Progress title. The strongest units in the scenario can cost more than 1000 Gold to purchase, so a large dicount will soften the blow to your treasury.

Units

Land Ironclad

• Production: 375
• Type: Landship (Armored)
• Combat Strength: 60
• Movement: 3
• Obsoletes with Landships
• Upgrades into Landship
• No defensive bonuses, can move after attacking

Your first land units are decent armored combat vehicles that serve as vital early defense and for taking out any nearby Luddites. 3 Movement isn't much compared to later units, but it makes the Land Ironclad mobile enough for fighting in open areas. You'd want to wait until you get Luboric or Aetherium units before you start an offensive campaign, though. As you start off with Barracks in your cities, you'll always get a free promotion with every unit you produce, so taking out Luddites can quickly get you close to strong promotions like Charge and Blitz.

Landship

• Production: 450
• Type: Landship (Armored)
• Combat Strength: 70
• Movement: 4
• Requires 1 Luboric
• Requires Landships, obsoletes with Land Leviathan
• Upgrades into Land Leviathan
• No defensive bonuses, can move after attacking

The Landship is noticeably stronger than the Land Ironclad and gains +1 Movement. Having superior strength to most starting and early units and relatively accessible in the Tech Tree, they will likely be the dominant military unit in the game until Airships start arriving. If you have a lead in tech or numbers and want to subdue a nearby empire, an quick Landship rush can be quite effective. Watch out for Airships, as they have a considerable advantage over Landships, even capable of winning against Land Leviathans with some promotions. The Airship has the same movement, potentially more, and it can freely move through terrain unlike the Landship, giving it a further advantage. Invest in some Airships of your own as well as other non-armored units to defend against them.

Land Leviathan

• Production: 525
• Type: Landship (Armored)
• Combat Strength: 85
• Movement: 4
• Requires 1 Luboric
• Requires Land Leviathan
• No defensive bonuses, can move after attacking

The Land Leviathan is the strongest type of landship there is, but it features no significant improvements, just a large increase in Combat Strength. The Land Leviathan can confidently take on any other land unit in the game, heavily wounding if not outright killing them if they are not armor units as well. Airship units still have the advantage, but by then you should have many more means of aerial defense, from airships of your own to AA guns and moving Flyer bases.

Flyer

• Production: 400
• Type: Fighter (Air)
• Ranged Combat Strength: 18
• Movement: 2
• Range: 3
• Can intercept enemy aircraft or trigger enemy interception units, 150% bonus against Flyers, 300% bonus against Airships

Flyers are awkward air units based on fighter jets from the main game, but their strength is extremely poor. Having a measly 3 range heavily limits their targets, and attempting to take out any land units will only result in heavy damage for next to no damage to the enemy in return. The one advantage Flyers do have is against other air units. They have a massive combat bonus against airships, and a sizable bonus against other Flyers as well, making them a fair defensive unit when stationed in a city. Once Sky Fortresses come around, you can carry one of these units on each Sky Fortress for more offensive uses, targetting other airships, intercepting enemy Flyers and performing Air Sweeps.

Airship

• Production: 475
• Type: Airship (Air)
• Combat Strength: 65
• Movement: 4
• Requires 1 Aetherium
• Requires Airships, obsoletes with Sky Fortress
• Expend 1 movement point for traversing any terrain, 100% combat bonus against Landships, no defensive bonuses, cannot capture cities

The Airship is a very unique unit best compared to the Helicopter Gunship from the base game. They can fly over any terrain without incurring movement penalties, including over mountains, ice, and across seas without the need to embark. In terms of damage, they are always slightly weaker than Landships when attacking most units, but have a great advantage against the landships themselves. They can even get Ambush promotions for further combat bonuses against landships. Typically, you will use Airships much like you use Landships, as mobile units to fly around the battlefield and pick off vulnerable foes, with a specific emphasis on targeting landship units. They can also be used to weaken cities, but you'll need landships or other land units to capture them.

Sky Fortress

• Production: 575
• Type: Airship (Air)
• Combat Strength: 80
• Movement: 4
• Can carry 1 Flyer, expend 1 movement point for traversing any terrain, 100% combat bonus against Landships, no defensive bonuses, cannot capture cities

The Sky Fortress is the strongest aerial unit in the game, but unlike the Land Leviathan, Sky Fortresses aren't just more powerful Airships. These massive crafts have the ability to carry a Flyer each, like a hovering aircraft carrier, giving these otherwise weak units a great new purpose. Being able to move around, Sky Fortresses compensate for the Flyer's horrible range, simply by carrying Flyers to their intended mission targets. Having Flyers on board also gives Sky Fortresses a defense against opposing Flyers as well as an advantage over other airships, making them one of the most versatile units by the late game.

Other notable prexisting units

• Great War Infantry: A decently cheap early unit useful up to the mid-game. They are better at dealing with Airships due to not being landships themselves, so they can be used to defend Artillery from a mobile airship assault. They will lose quite handily to Landships though.
• Artilery: Available from the start of the scenario, Artillery's increased range is as useful in combat here as it is in the normal game. They are great at chipping down units from afar for your fleet to finish them off, and the bonus against Cities is handy for offensive wars too. With airships that can travel through rough terrain freely to act as spotters, they can abuse their Indirect Fire trait much more often. It is fairly vulnerable to the myriad of mobile units as the game progresses, and will likely get killed in one strike by late-game units, so proper protection is a must.
• Battleship: At sea, naval combat is pretty much unchanged, with the occasional addition of airships. Battleships serve as the strongest ranged units, Destroyers speed through the seas to pursue targets and seek out Submarines, while Submarines are capable sneak attackers for sinking ships. The AI tends to neglect the production of their navy in this scenario, unless on a very watery island chain map, so you could potentially use a small naval fleet to take their coastal cities with little resistance. Note that Battleships now require Coal instead of Oil. If you don't have a lot of Coal available, it's better to prioritize building Factories for a permanent Production boost.

New Buildings

• Difference Engine
  • Production: 500
  • Maintenance Cost: 1
  • +4 Production, +3 Science

• Grand Mansion
  • Production: 500
  • +4 Gold, +3 Culture

• Trade College
  • Prduction: 500
  • Maintenance Cost: 2
  • +33% Science, +2 Culture

• Patent Office
  • Production: 500
  • +3 Production, +3 Gold
  • 1 Scientist specialist slot

• Luboric Refinery
  • Production: 300
  • Grants 2 Luboric resources

• Philanthroporium
  • Production: 500
  • Maintenance Cost: 2
  • +2 Happiness, +5 Culture

• Tesla Coil
  • Production: 500
  • +33% Science, +3 Gold

• Aetherium Fabricator
  • Production: 360
  • Grants 2 Aetherium resources.

• Airship Hangar
  • Production: 360
  • +15 experience to all air units produced in the city.

• Automated Factory
  • Production: 500
  • Maintenance Cost: 2
  • +2 Happiness, +15% Production

• Subterranean Outpost
  • Production: 500
  • Maintenance Cost: 1
  • +5 Production, +2 Science

Wonders

World Wonders

World Wonders are the same as the base game, but their effects are still significant enough to note. For detailed information of each wonder, check the World Wonders page. Unless otherwise stated, all World Wonders provide additional 1 Culture.

• Big Ben: +4 Gold, reduces cost of Gold purchasing in all cities by 15% and grants 2 Great Merchant points per turn. One of the three starting wonders, Big Ben's bonus is quite versatile if you can maintain a good economy, as it has benefits when buying units in a pinch or to get to National Wonders faster by buying specific buildings.
• Brandenburg Gate: +1 Culture. +15 experience for all newly-trained units in the city the wonder is built, grants a free Great General and 2 Great Scientist points per turn. The second of the starting wonders, the Brandenburg Gate suits a conquest playstyle, though you'd usually be conquering cities with wonders rather than building them yourself. The passive progress to a Great Scientist is useful as well, as Brandenburg Gate is the only wonder in this scenario to give Great Scientist points.
• Louvre: Generates 2 Great Artists. If you're going for Lord of Refinement, use them to make Landmarks to increase your cultural output. Otherwise, save them for Golden Ages for the boost in Production and Gold.
• Eiffel Tower: +5 Happiness and +1 Happiness for every two Social Policies. +2 Great Merchant points per turn. For a small cultural, wonder-focused empire, having extra Happiness usually means faster Golden Ages.
• Pentagon: Gold cost of upgrading military units reduced by 33%, +2 Great Merchant points per turn. The Pentagon's effect is great for Defender of Progress, as you'll need to be able to quickly upgrade your landship and airship units to secure the title.
• Neuschwanstein: +4 Culture, every city with a castle gets +3 Gold, +2 Culture and +1 Happiness, +1 Great Merchant point per turn. Can only be built in a city with an adjacent mountain tile. This is one of the best wonders you can build in this scenario, as long as you can find a mountain to settle beside. The unusual building prerequisite means that other civilizations won't compete for it, and since your cities all start with Castles pre-built, you will get the wonder's effects immediately upon completion without extra effort.
• Statue of Liberty: +1 Production from every Specialist in your empire. Useful for getting Captain of Industry in a well-fed city while being able to focus on other aspects like science or culture.
• Sydney Opera House: +50% Culture generated by city the wonder is built in and provides 1 free Social Policy. More Social Policies are always helpful, both for general gameplay and for attaining the Lord of Refinement title.
• Cristo Redentor: +5 Culture and Culture cost of adopting new policies reduced by 10%. Another straightforward cultural wonder that is a great help for getting the Lord of Refinement title.
• CN Tower: Free Broadcast Tower in every city and provides +1 Happiness and +1 population in each city. Free Broadcast Towers are great if your focus was on other buildings, but the wonder comes so late that it's not worth intentionally avoiding building Broadcast Towers.

National Wonders

• Analytical Engine
  • Production: 750 (Increases with number of cities)
  • +8 Production
  • Requires Difference Engines in all cities

• Biltmore House
  • Production: 750 (Increases with number of cities)
  • +6 Gold, +3 Culture
  • Requires Grand Mansions in all cities

• National Intelligence Center
  • Production: 750 (Increases with number of cities)
  • +1 Spy, level up all Spies, 15% reduction in enemy spy effectiveness
  • Requires Police Stations in all cities

• Inventor's Hall
  • Production: 750 (Increases with number of cities)
  • +6 Gold, +3 Science
  • Requires Patent Offices in all cities

• Carnegie Hall
  • Production: 750 (Increases with number of cities)
  • +7 Culture
  • Requires Philanthroporiums in all cities

• Subterranean Colony
  • Production: 750 (Increases with number of cities)
  • +15% Production, +5 Culture
  • Requires Subterranean Outposts in all cities

• Perpetual Motion Engine
  • Production: 1000 (Increases with number of cities)
  • +20% Production, +4 Gold
  • Requires Automated Factories in all cities

Civilizations

Eruch (Cyrus Rotheram)

• Unique Ability: Tireless Watch - All airship units gain +2 Movement.
• Unique Building: Aerodrome - Replaces Airship Hangar. +10% Production when building air units.

Eruch is a proud empire ruled over by nobles experienced in leadership and warfare, using their military might to spread and defend the glory of civilized life. The bonuses granted by Eruch is purely for warfare, so your overall strategy with this empire should be conquest. Tireless Watch makes your airships much more effective fighting machines, having incredible mobility to freely pursue isolated target, cut off retreat and infitrate deep into enemy lines. Having increased movement also means you're free to choose Bombard promotions when upgrading your airships, giving them a bigger advantage over enemy landships. This ties in nicely with the Aerodrome, which encourages building airship units with its Production bonus and lets you give your newly-trained airships Bombard promotions immediately. Defender of Progress is an obvious title to aim for, since you would be building many strong offensive units for your military campaigns anyway. Having a city optimized for spilling out units puts you in a good position to get Captain of Industry. Your military exploits will also help you earn Grand Philanthropist by capturing cities with wonders, and Master of Wealth by having a bunch of puppet cities. The Miitary policy branch would be your main focus, though the Industry and Commerce branches also provide helpful benefits for warmongering.

As leader of the most militaristic civilization in this scenario, expect Cyrus Rotheram to be a fierce warmonger. He prioritizes training military units above all else, and he will often build an army of both landships and airships for a combined assault on his enemies. Rotheram is very expansionistic and focuses on increasing his empires Production at times of peace, which will let him pump out more units. While Tireless Watch airships are a pain to fight, the AI is not very good at abusing his speed advantage. What he is good at is overwhelming you with sheer numbers. If you ever find your civilization near Eruch, build a good defense and prepare for war. Remember that airships cannot capture cities, so if Rotheram is besieging one of your cities, focus on taking out the melee land units while you send in reinforcements. Rotheram's focus on Production and war makes him a likely contender for Defender of Progress and Captain of Industry, but he doesn't contest the other titles much unless he manages to expand his empire significantly.

Dalmace (Clinton Alderdice)

• Unique Ability: New World Order - Culture cost of Social Policies reduced by 10%.
• Unique Building: Grandstand - Replaces Stadium. +2 Culture.

Dalmace is a civilization founded by middle and lower class workers unhappy with their living conditions in the new empires and the decadence of the upper class. They're driven by their ideals, intent on shaping the world with their daring cultural attitudes. Dalmace is all about Culture and Social Policies, with New World Order practically guaranteeing their position as Lord of Refinement. The Grandstand is basically an earlier Philanthroporium that provides half of its Culture yield, giving Dalmace an additional source of Culture. The gameplan with Dalmace is to maximize Culture output and use Social Policies to make up for the innate advantages of other empires. Prioritize Production and Great Engineer generation so that you can rush key World Wonders, many of which provide bonuses to Social Policies, and secure the Grand Philanthropist title. The Culture and Labor branches have good synergy with Dalmace given their effects on Culture and World Wonders, while Industry and Commerce lets Dalmace stay competitive for Captain of Industry and Master of Wealth, respectively. A focus on infrastructure and Wonder spamming will make you a big target for aggressive empires, so a strong defensive force is also advised. Use Espionage to steal military technologies while you research the upper branches of the tech tree, and adopt the Nationalism policy for added defense.

If you're up against Clinton Alderdice, an unavoidable reality due to the nature of the scenario, there's not much you can do to stop him from becoming Lord of Refinement. He tends to build up a decent defense with a minor focus on Artillery, while having a heavy focus on his empire's Culture and Happiness. Like other leaders in this scenario, he has a heavy focus on building wonders, though strangely less so compared to everyone else. In the event that Dalmace is near you, you'll have a shot of taking the Lord of Refinement title from them by force, using a strong military to divert their production and taking cities to cripple their Culture generation or to take over their World Wonders.

Orlin (Ignice Curlow)

• Unique Ability: Optimized Extractors - Each Strategic Resource grants +1 Production. Luboric resources produced by Orlin doubled.
• Unique Building: Luboric Factory - Replaces Luboric Refinery. +2 Production, +1 Production from Luboric mines.

Orlin is ruled by an elite group of industrialistic businessmen, whose cooperation and vicious competition with each other culminated into a powerful empire founded on ruthless efficiency. Orlin has the strongest industrial capacity of any civilization in the scenario, with unique features all made to increase their Production. Optimized Extractors not only gives a Production bonus to vital Strategic Resources like Coal, Luboric and Aetherium, but also to distantly obsolete Iron and Horses, so good city placement is key. Orlin also benefits strongly from the presence of Luboric in their territory, getting doubled the Luboric and generating extra Production whether mining or synthesizing them with Luboric Factories. Their heavy Production bonus makes Orlin one of the more versatile civilizations in this scenario, as you can use your Production advantage to grab World Wonders, develop cities or flood your enemies with units. Thus, the best titles to aim for when playing as orlin is Defender of Progress, Grand Philanthropist and Captain of Industry. You will be focusing on the lower half of the tech tree to quickly reveal Luboric and get to Landships, though an early detour for Analog Computation is advisable for Production and Science enhancing Difference Engines. Reaching Landships quickly should allow you to build up a mobile army, and also unlocks Infernal Combustion to get Luboric Factories in unfortunate cases where you lack Luboric in your territory. Once you have a strong army of Landships, you can go to war with your numbers advantage to undermine your neighbors or for aggressive expansion. You can also keep the Landships for a strong defense while focusing more on peaceful development of your empire. Prioritizing the Industry branch as Orlin is the obvious choice, cementing your edge in Production while giving you neverending Luboric with Fascism.

With high Production and moderate military focus, Ignice Curlow is consistently a formidable foe. Curlow focuses heavily on Production, wonder building and expansion, so expect to see him hold the Captain of Industry title for the majority of the game. His high tendency to expand also makes him one of the more aggressive leaders along with Rotheram, and he will usually declare war on some nearby City-States or empires to conquer a few cities. Be sure to shore up your defenses if any of your cities is near Orlin territory, as Curlow will most certainly covet your lands, and will readily fight for it. He likes to build landships much more than airships, so make some airships of your own to whittle down his primary attack force. Fortunately, preparing for his army also makes you better equipped for invading Curlow's territory, which is the best way to slow down his Production. Pillage any Production improvements like Mines and Quarries so that he can't pump out more units while you're sieging his city. After taking a few cities, you can liberate any conquered City-States or trade the cities to other empires to act as a strategic buffer.

Pulias (Octavius Cutler)

• Unique Ability: Frontier Markets - Each Strategic Resource grants +1 Gold. Aetherium resources produced by Pulias doubled.
• Unique Building: Aetherium Factory - Replaces Aetherium Fabricator. +3 Gold, +1 Gold from Aetherium mines.

Pulias is a mysterious empire that rose to power through shrewd trading and espionage. While their spies aren't particularly stronger than any other empire, they do get a huge boost to Gold output. Frontier Markets is the Gold-based counterpart to Orlin's Optimized Extractors, letting Pulias gain extra income in addition to the base Production yields for every Strategic Resource in their territory. Pulias is also skilled at using Aetherium, getting double the resources of this levitating material and making money off of it with their Aetherium Factories. The increased Gold generation will mean that you will likely attain the lead in gross Gold income, making Master of Wealth an easy title to aim for. Lots of gold also lets you rush buy units and buildings, and lets you make alliances with more City-States, which can provide extra Food, Culture and Happiness. The Commerce tree is particularly helpful for maximizing your net income, reducing maintenance and making rush buying less taxing. In teching your way to Aetherium Factories, you will conveniently unlock several Gold buildings, which are Grand Mansions, Patent Offices and Stock Exchanges. Other than Master of Wealth, you can potentially go for Defender of Progress with your increased Aetherium, which lets you produce many more Sky Fortresses. Peaceful development and befriending cultural City-States will give you a chance at Lord of Refinement as well.

Octavius Cutler is a fairly reserved leader, fitting for Pulias's shadowy past, preferring to stay well-defended supported by a lot of Artillery. He doesn't have a preference for airships despite his high Aetherium resources. Cutler likes to develop Pulias's infrastructure with a particular focus on generating Gold, in line with his civilization's strengths. Like other leaders, Cutler also has a strong urge to build wonders, national or global. Other than Master of Wealth, Cutler's focus on infrastructure also tends to keep Pulias's score close to Dalmace for Lord of Refinement due to the Culture from producing buildings. There's no real way to interfere Pulias's Gold generation other than through war, taking their cities to lower sources of incomes and pillaging improvements to reduce Gold gain.

Vedria (Luther Griggs)

• Unique Ability: Inventor's Guild - +25% Production on buildings already built in the Capital.
• Unique Building: Torus Dynamo - Replaces Tesla Coil. +50% Science over the Tesla Coil's +33%.

Vedria is an empire of scholars and scientists with a heavy emphasis on the pursuit of innovation and progress. While their backstory suggests a heavy Science focus, they don't really play that way. Inventor's Guild provides a really general benefit that mostly helps Vedria gain Grand Philanthropist by their improved rate of producing buildings in all cities. The Torus Dynamo does provide a significant Science boost, but requires a technology in the middle of the Airship Era, so Vedria doesn't have a special means of getting a tech lead before that. Getting to the Torus Dynamo requires you to research every Steam Era technology, followed by Noblesse Oblige and Airships to reach Galvanomagnetism. Along the way, Analog Computation, Expedition and Landships all provide buildings that can boost your Science, and you should stay competitive in the arms race taking the techs leading up to Galvanomagnetism. After that, use Torus Dynamos to secure a tech advantage for the rest of the game. Inventor's Guild should help you unlock National Wonders to get Grand Philanthropist, but other than that Vedria doesn't focus particularly on any other title. The Torus Dynamo is a bit late for Defender of Progress, as it's available around the same time as Land Leviathan. You could also compete for Captain of Industry, as Difference Engines and Patent Offices provide both Production and Science. Secularism will provide you with a lot of extra Science if you can grow your cities big, while the Industry and Commerce branches work well with Inventor's Guild, letting you get buildings up in your Capital fast to build them in other cities faster.

As an opponent, Luther Griggs isn't particularly aggressive, but he does have a tendency to train landship and airship units to try for the Defender of Progress title. He favors Science and generating Great People, and is fairly active in diplomatic engagements. Griggs also has the highest wonder-lust out of any AI leader, capitalizing on Inventor's Guild to make National Wonders, but frequently rushes World Wonders as well. A high focus on Science means that Vedria tends to be a good location to station spies in, but remember that they don't actually get a natural Science advantage until the mid-game. Their Science lead could also make them dangerous to attack if they have access to upgraded units, but you can check how many they have in the League of Empires. In any case, their tendency to snatch World Wonders make their cities valuable targets to capture.