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 free Settler can launch your civilisation ahead of its rivals – but not every village is welcoming.

Village Rewards

Every civilisation starts with up to three villages waiting 4–8 tiles from its starting position: one holds gold, one a free technology and one a free unit. Which is which is a surprise – the race is to find them before your neighbours do. More villages are scattered randomly across the rest of the map, never closer than 5 tiles to each other.

When one of your units enters a tile containing a village, the village is consumed and a reward is granted. Villages near your start give their fixed reward; all others roll randomly, weighted as follows:

When a reward can’t be given (see the conditions below), it is taken off the table and the reward is rolled again from what remains, so the chances shown shift slightly.

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 village rolls one of the other rewards instead. This includes the free-technology village near your start.

Free Unit

A free military unit spawns next to the village. 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 – or, if it came ashore from a ship, back aboard that ship. 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.

This outcome cannot occur before you have founded your first city – an ambush that early could kill your starting Settler and end the game on a single roll. Until your capital stands, the odds are redistributed among the other rewards. The same protection applies to AI empires.

Free Settler

The rarest and most valuable reward. A Settler appears next to the village, ready to walk to a city site of your choosing – 60 production saved, and no population lost from your cities.

Strict limits apply:

• Once per game. After you have received one free Settler, this reward never appears for you again.
• Early game only. It cannot appear after turn 60.
• Not near cities. It cannot appear if any city is within 2 tiles of the village.

If there is no free tile next to the village for the Settler, you receive 30 gold instead.

Village Rumours

The game includes a rumour system that periodically notifies you about nearby undiscovered villages. Your first rumour arrives within the first few turns, then every 5–8 turns, if there is an unexplored village within 8 tiles of any of your cities or land units – and on the same landmass – 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 whichever of your cities or units is closest to the village. Use these clues to direct your scouts toward potential village discoveries.

Rumours stop for good after turn 60.

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. Three villages are always waiting within 8 tiles of your start. A free tech or free Settler 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, and a rumour only fires for a village within 8 tiles of one of your cities or units. Rumours end after turn 60, so act on them early.

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.

• 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.