One of the very first decisions you’ll be faced with when you play a game of Civilization 7 is which leader you’re going to play as. If you’re a beginner or getting used to the way Civilization 7 works, we’ve compiled a list of the top five leaders that have strong bonuses and are relatively easy to learn.
No matter what victory type you want to go for, this guide includes a leader that is suited for beginners trying to obtain a Culture, Economic, Science, or Military win.
More Civilization 7 guides
Civilization 7: Biggest Changes From Civilization 6 | Civilization 7: All Difficulty Levels Explained | Civilization 7: What is Influence and How to Use it |
The first of many turns
Hatshepsut
The developers themselves recommend Hatshepsut for your first playthrough. One of the bonuses granted by Hatshepsut’s Unique Ability, God’s Wife of Amun, is 15% increased Production towards the construction of Buildings and Wonders in Cities adjacent to Navigable Rivers. That increased Production will help your empire hit the ground running early on in the Antiquity Age, steering you towards the Cultural Legacy Path. As long as you’re settling near Navigable Rivers, you’ll be pumping wonders out in very little time.
In addition, Hatshepsut grants bonuses for establishing trades. +1 Culture is obtained for every imported resource. If you’ve established strong trade routes, that’s a lot of bonus passive Culture that you’ll pick up along the way.
Augustus
Perhaps one of the most reliable starting leaders is Augustus. He is a solid choice for players who want to settle a lot of towns as +2 Production is awarded in the Capital for every town. Culture buildings can be purchased in towns and take advantage of +50% Gold towards purchasing buildings in towns.
Again, Augustus favors the Cultural Legacy Path as increasing your settlement limit and maintaining the happiness of your towns will help you get there. Also, this hunger for acquiring land can lead you down the Military Legacy Path, even if you haven’t defeated any opponents.
Amina
The best Economic Legacy Path leader for beginners is Amina. In both the Antiquity and Modern Ages, having an abundance of resource slots available is important to completing the Legacy Path. Although the +5 Combat strength for units in Plains and Deserts can be a useful bonus, the +1 Resource Capacities in Cities and +1 Gold per Age for each of those Resources in assigned Cities will see you overflowing with Gold.
Benjamin Franklin
Even though his focus is on Science, Benjamin Franklin can truly elevate your empire and propel you on a successful Science Legacy Path. With this leader, you gain 50% Production towards constructing Production buildings. From those buildings, you will receive +1 Science per Age on Production buildings in Cities.
As a Diplomatic Scientist, you can even earn +1 Science per Age from active Endeavors you either started or supported. Influence points will play a role in a campaign with Franklin, so make sure you have a hand in diplomatic affairs.
Charlemagne
If you want to achieve a Military Legacy Path by being a warmonger, Charlemagne is the way to go. Any Military or Science building that is placed next to a Quarter (defined as a tile with two buildings) will generate Happiness. This can be a game changer when managing a large military and newly conquered land.
Every time you enter a Celebration as Charlemagne, you’ll gain two Cavalry Units, while +5 Combat strength will apply to all Cavalry Units during a Celebration. As long as you’re strategically placing your Military and Science buildings, you’ll be able to do some serious damage during a Celebration.
