Your adventure in Civilization 7 will span from the early epochs of history to the contemporary era. This has been a consistent feature of the franchise, however, the latest iteration divides its timeline into distinct segments called Ages. This is arguably the most significant update Civilization 7 brings compared to its predecessors, and it’s crucial to grasp how it functions before delving into other game strategies. Ages are more than just aesthetic elements; they symbolize key turning points in your Civilization 7 journey that require strategic planning to secure a win. There’s a lot to delve into, so let’s dissect all you need to understand about how Ages function.

Understanding Ages

Imagine Ages in Civilization 7 as significant milestones or chapters in your gameplay. By default, you commence each game in the Antiquity age, proceed to the Exploration age, and culminate in the Modern age. No victory can be claimed before reaching the Modern age and unlocking your Victory Condition through one of the four Legacy Paths. Essentially, progressing to a new Age signifies substantial advancement towards one of the possible victory conditions and progression of the game state.

The Antiquity age signifies the game’s initial phase where societies and technology are rudimentary. The Exploration age symbolizes the era of expansion, and finally, the Modern age encapsulates everything from the infancy of industry to cutting-edge science and technology.

Firaxes introduced Ages to address issues identified in previous games. They serve as a solution for players (or NPC) gaining an early advantage and for those lagging to have the opportunity to catch up, minimizing micromanagement, and allowing for more diversity in your civilizations.

Transitions between Ages

The most noticeable transformation when progressing to a new age is the visuals. With each new Age, the technology and architecture of your civilization evolve to reflect the passage of time. However, visual transformations are just the beginning of what a new Age brings.

On triggering a new Age, you will be alerted about numerous changes, including things you will lose and retain between them. The following elements change with each Age:

Civilization: The civilization you choose at the beginning of the game will evolve as you move through Ages. With the onset of a new Age, you will select a new civilization available only during that Age. Factors such as historical connection between your initial and future civilizations, the Leader you’ve chosen, and concealed gameplay actions influence this choice. This change will drastically alter the types of buildings, Wonders, units, and improvements you can access in each Age. This also extends to any civics and technologies you can research.

Leaders: While your civilization evolves, your initial Leader and their traits remain constant throughout the game. This also applies to any AI players, so your relationships with them – whether friendly or hostile – are maintained.

The Map: Every new Age expands the map with more areas to explore. You will discover new resources on the map, many that didn’t exist in the previous Age, but also new independent powers to either befriend or attack.

Non-ageless Structures: When you construct your towns and cities in any Age, you will notice a few have the “Ageless” tag next to them. These specific structures remain on the map when transitioning to a new Age, while all others vanish.

Commanders: While your basic military units don’t survive the transition to a new Age, your Commanders do. This includes the attributes that you’ve invested in them.

Legacies: During an Age, you will unlock Legacy Points that you can invest in your Leader’s different skill trees based on the type of Legacy Point you acquire. Ages offer an opportunity to reallocate your Legacy Points by providing a list of options on which ones you want to carry forward based on the total points you earned in each category. Some new Legacies can cost more than one point, so you will need to strategize how you want to spend them based on what’s available.

Progressing through Ages

Ages don’t progress naturally as they would in real life. You can monitor your progress in an Age based on the Age Progress meter. Each turn adds a small amount to this meter, but the majority of the progress is made by completing milestones on the Legacy Paths. Each Legacy Path, namely Science, Military, Culture, and Economy, has its own set of objectives that you can complete in each Age. You can choose to focus on a single path or divide your attention between multiple paths to progress through an Age. However, if you complete an entire Legacy Path, you can unlock a special Golden Age Legacy that carries into the next Age.

As you near the end of an Age, you will be alerted of a Crisis. These crises impact every player in the game and compel you to make a series of choices as the crisis escalates towards the end of the Age. These choices are Crisis Policies that each have a minor upside but a significant downside. You will need to select three of them before the end of an Age.

Once the Age Progress meter fills, you will be informed that the Age will automatically advance on the following turn.