KEEP IT CIVIL

YOUR GUIDE TO EACH CIVILIZATION

In Civ II, the starting technologies for each civilization are actually random, affected first by their definition as ‘civilized’, ‘neutral’ or ‘militaristic’ and then by the faction in general – and whether their real-world counterparts were famed for constructing a specific world wonder.

ROMANS

Male Leader: Julius Caesar

Female Leader: Livia Drusilla

Civ Colour: White

As expansionists, the Romans are better suited to the ‘civilized’ trait since it means they’ll more likely receive the opportunity to build temples for happiness or courthouses to reduce corruption.

RUSSIANS

Male Leader: Lenin

Female Leader: Catherine The Great Civ Colour: White

By choosing the Russians, you’ll block the expansionist Romans and Celts from taking part – which is an advantage in itself – but you’re also more likely to start with the horseman or phalanx units.

CELTS

Male Leader: Cunobelin

Female Leader: Boudica

Civ Colour: White

The Celts have a penchant for starting with ceremonial burial and therefore happiness from the temple improvement, though white-coloured civs are least likely to get multiple starting techs.

BABYLONIANS

Male Leader: Hammurabi

Female Leader: Ishtari

Civ Colour: Green

If you’re looking to get your hands on an early-game wonder, then pick the Babylonians who theoretically have a greater chance at unlocking pottery and with it the useful hanging gardens improvement.

ZULUS

Male Leader: Shaka

Female Leader: Shakala

Civ Colour: Green

If you’re favouring an aggressive early start, then the Zulus are a pretty safe bet because they’re more likely to start with one of the early military techs letting you win some scraps first.

JAPANESE

Male Leader: Tokugawa

Female Leader: Amaterasu

Civ Colour: Green

If you’re lucky with the Japanese, this militaristic civ could well start with warrior code, horseback riding and/ or bronze working, giving you very flexible army building options early on in your campaign.

GERMANS

Male Leader: Frederick II

Female Leader: Maria Theresa

Civ Colour: Dark Blue

Versus the Romans (who are white and are therefore placed first), the Germans have a slight advantage since the game will need to calculate a decent spot of land away from the first two placed civs.

FRENCH

Male Leader: Louis XIV

Female Leader: Joan Of Arc

Civ Colour: Dark Blue

There isn’t much to distinguish the advantages for the French and the Germans, and since only one civ of each colour can be active in any given game then it’s really just a case of picking your poison.

VIKINGS

Male Leader: Canute

Female Leader: Gunnhild

Civ Colour: Dark Blue

The Vikings are classed on a code level as ‘neutral’ when it comes to their love of war, which means they’re one of a few civs with a chance at the rarest starting technologies such as construction or monarchy.

EGYPTIANS

Male Leader: Ramesses II

Female Leader: Cleopatra

Civ Colour: Yellow

You could argue that the Egyptians are the best civ available in the game due to their predisposition to start with the masonry tech, and therefore immediate access to building the pyramids – one of the best early-game wonders.

AZTECS

Male Leader: Montezuma

Female Leader: Nazca

Civ Colour: Yellow

‘Jack-of-all-trades’ don’t really cut it in Civ II, and the yellow-coloured civs generally don’t have too many advantages since the map is running out of space when they’re placed and aren’t likely to have multiple starting tech.

SPANISH

Male Leader: Phillip II

Female Leader: Isabella

Civ Colour: Yellow

The militaristic Spanish might be the best choice from the yellow-coloured civs since you could push aggressively at the start and take some nice neighbouring cities before anyone else gets their hands on them.

AMERICANS

Male Leader: Abe Lincoln

Female Leader: Eleanor Roosevelt

Civ Colour: Teal

Since space is becoming limited at this point, the ‘civilized’ Americans have an opportunity to push straight to monarchy – and a slightly higher chance for multiple starting tech could help with that.

CHINESE

Male Leader: Mao Tse Tung

Female Leader: Wu Zhao

Civ Colour: Teal

Teal-coloured civs kinda offer the best potential chance for an early head start with a slightly higher chance at multiple starting tech. They could be placed close to other civs, though, and aren’t militaristic enough for an early war.

PERSIANS

Male Leader: Xerxes

Female Leader: Scheherezade

Civ Colour: Teal

Persia might be your best tealcoloured civ of choice. Since they have a neutral classification, they have access to a wide range of potential outcomes for starting tech to fit their risky starting placement.

GREEKS

Male Leader: Alexander The Great

Female Leader: Hippolyta

Civ Colour: Orange

Due to the historic colossus world wonder, the Greeks are the most likely to begin the game with bronze working and therefore access to the phalanx unit. It’s a good thing to consider if it’s something you’d want to rely on.

ENGLISH

Male Leader: Henry VIII

Female Leader: Elizabeth I

Civ Colour: Orange

Orange-coloured civs have a higher chance at starting with multiple starting techs, which makes England’s ‘neutral’ classification quite valuable thanks to the variety of potential techs to be unlocked.

CARTHAGINANS

Male Leader: Hannibal

Female Leader: Dido

Civ Colour: Orange

Like the Greeks, Carthage are militaristic and therefore more likely to start with military tech. The potential likelihood for bonus starting tech makes them a strong choice if you want a powerful army early on.

INDIANS

Male Leader: Mohandas Gandhi

Female Leader: Indira Gandhi

Civ Colour: Purple

The big risk for any purple-coloured civ is the fact that they might end up without any space, relegated to the map’s ice caps. On the flip side, they are the most likely to receive multiple starting techs.

MONGOLS

Male Leader: Ghengis Khan

Female Leader: Bortei

Civ Colour: Purple

As the only purple militaristic civ, you could use that chance for multiple starting tech to give yourself a huge army advantage at the start that could make it difficult for others to counteract.

SIOUX

Male Leader: Sitting Bull

Female Leader: Sacajawea Civ Colour: Purple

The Indians and the Sioux have the same classification, which means the same risks of a terrible starting location but a high chance to have some powerful tech to start the game with.