Villages & Exploration

“Beyond the horizon, the ancients said, there are wonders. They were right.”

Scattered across the unexplored map, villages are small settlements left by peoples who never grew into full civilisations. Entering a village with any unit triggers a random reward that can dramatically alter the course of your early game. A free technology, a handful of gold, or even a new city can launch your civilisation ahead of its rivals – but not every village is welcoming.

Village Rewards

When one of your units enters a tile containing a village, the village is consumed and a random reward is granted. The rewards are weighted as follows:

Gold

The most common outcome. You receive between 25 and 50 gold, which is significant in the early game when gold income is scarce. Use it to rush-buy a crucial building or save it for future unit upgrades.

Free Technology

One of the most powerful rewards. You instantly receive a random Ancient era technology that you have not yet researched (limited to techs costing 15 research). This can save many turns of research, especially if it unlocks a key building or unit.

If you have already researched all eligible Ancient era techs, this reward cannot appear – the odds redistribute to the remaining reward types.

Free Unit

A free military unit spawns adjacent to the village (or on it if the tile is empty). If you have researched Archery, the unit may be an Archer (50% chance) instead of a Warrior. Free units are useful as early scouts, garrison troops, or barbarian hunters.

If there is no valid tile to place the free unit (all adjacent hexes are occupied or impassable), you receive 30 gold instead.

Hostile Warrior

The only negative outcome. A barbarian Warrior spawns on the village tile, and your unit is pushed back to its previous position with zero movement remaining. The barbarian gets a one-turn grace period (it does not attack immediately), giving you one full turn to react.

This is dangerous if your exploring unit is weak (a Scout with 4 attack and 2 defence) or damaged. Always approach villages with a healthy unit, preferably a Warrior or stronger.

New City

The rarest and most valuable reward. The village transforms into a city under your control with population 1. This is essentially a free Settler (worth 60 production) that has already settled.

This reward can only occur if the village is at least 3 hexes away from all existing cities. If the village is too close to any city, the reward cannot appear and the odds are redistributed.

Village cities start with no buildings and no founding production bonus, but they claim a 1-hex territory radius and begin producing immediately. They are especially valuable for early expansion on distant islands or in territories you have not yet settled.

Village Rumours

The game includes a rumour system that periodically notifies you about nearby undiscovered villages. Every 5–8 turns, if there is an unexplored village within 10 hexes of any of your cities, you will receive a notification like:

“Travellers bring rumours of a village to the northwest” “A merchant speaks of a settlement to the east” “Nomads tell of an ancient village to the south”

The direction indicated is a compass bearing from your capital to the nearest unrevealed village. Use these clues to direct your scouts toward potential village discoveries.

Rumours stop appearing once all nearby villages have been explored or claimed.

Exploration Strategy

Early Game (Turns 1–15)

1. Build a Scout immediately. Scouts have 3 movement (vs 2 for Warriors) and cost only 15 production. They are the fastest way to explore the map.

2. Spiral outward. Start by exploring in expanding rings around your capital. This reveals nearby terrain, resources, and villages efficiently.

3. Prioritise villages. A free tech or free city in the first 10 turns can be game-changing. Direct your Scout toward any village rumour notifications.

4. Keep your Scout healthy. Avoid combat with barbarians unless your Scout has no other option. A Scout (4 attack, 2 defence) will lose most fights. Retreat and let a Warrior handle threats.

5. Note resource locations. When you discover Iron or Horses, plan future city locations to bring them within your borders.

Mid Game (Turns 15–50)

6. Switch to Warriors for exploration. Once the safe exploration radius is exhausted, you need tougher units to push into potentially hostile territory. Warriors can survive barbarian encounters and pop villages without the same risk.

7. Follow rumour clues. The directional hints from village rumours narrow your search area significantly. A rumour saying “to the northeast” from your capital gives you a clear region to explore.

8. Explore coastlines. Build a Galley once Sailing is researched and explore along the coast. Coastal villages often go unclaimed because AI civilisations focus on inland exploration.

General Tips

• Every village matters. In competitive games, the player who discovers the most villages early has a significant advantage. Do not leave villages for your opponents.

• Approaching hostile warrior villages. If you get the hostile warrior outcome, remember that the barbarian does not attack for one turn. Use that turn to either attack it with a strong unit or retreat your explorer to safety.

• Village cities near rivals. If a village becomes a city close to an enemy border, it may be difficult to defend. Consider whether the city is worth keeping or if you should raze it and focus your resources elsewhere.

• Scouts become obsolete. Once the map is mostly explored, Scouts contribute little. They are too weak for combat and have no special abilities. Replace them with military units for garrison and defence duties.

• Use Horsemen as late scouts. Horsemen (3 movement, 10 attack) are fast enough to explore and strong enough to handle barbarians. If you have Horses and Horseback Riding, they make excellent mid-game explorers.