How do you capture a free city in Civ 6?

How to Capture a Free City in Civ 6: A Comprehensive Guide

Capturing a free city in Civilization 6 can be a crucial strategy in expanding your empire and securing valuable resources. In this article, we will delve into the various ways to capture a free city, the requirements for conquest, and the consequences of your actions.

What is a Free City?

A free city is a city that has broken away from its previous owner and is no longer under their control. This can happen when a city-state becomes independent or when a player conquers a city and the city’s owner fails to reclaim it.

How to Capture a Free City

There are two main ways to capture a free city in Civ 6: increasing loyalty pressure and conquering with military force.

• Increasing Loyalty Pressure: To capture a free city by increasing loyalty pressure, you need to exert enough influence on the city to make it change allegiance to your civilization. This can be done by building buildings and units that increase loyalty, such as culture buildings, barracks, and infantry units.
• Conquering with Military Force: The other way to capture a free city is by conquering it with military force. This involves sending a unit, such as an infantry or cavalry unit, to defeat the city’s defense and take control of the city center.

Requirements for Conquest

Before you can capture a free city, you need to meet certain requirements. These requirements include:

• City Center Health: The city center must have a certain amount of health before it can be captured. This health can be increased by building defensive structures, such as walls and fortresses, and by training units that increase the city’s defense.
• Unit Type: The unit that captures the city must be a melee unit, such as an infantry or cavalry unit. Ranged units, such as archers or catapults, cannot capture a city.
• Loyalty: The city must have a certain amount of loyalty before it can be captured. This loyalty can be increased by building buildings and units that increase loyalty, such as culture buildings and infantry units.

Consequences of Conquest

Capturing a free city has several consequences, including:

• Warmonger Penalties: Capturing a city can lead to warmonger penalties, which reduce your civilization’s warmonger score. This score can be reduced by building buildings and units that reduce warmonger penalties, such as barracks and cavalry units.
• City State Relations: Capturing a city-state can lead to strained relations with that city-state. This can lead to them becoming enemies and declaring war on you.
• Resource Gain: Capturing a city can provide your civilization with valuable resources, such as gold, food, and production.

Conclusion

Capturing a free city in Civ 6 is a crucial strategy in expanding your empire and securing valuable resources. By understanding the requirements for conquest and the consequences of your actions, you can make informed decisions about when to capture a free city and how to do it effectively.

Additional Tips

• Build a Strong Economy: Before you capture a free city, make sure you have a strong economy. This will give you the resources you need to build units and buildings that will help you capture the city.
• Train a Strong Military: Training a strong military is essential for capturing a free city. This will give you the units you need to defeat the city’s defense and take control of the city center.
• Use Loyalty to Your Advantage: Loyalty is a powerful tool in Civ 6. Use it to your advantage by building buildings and units that increase loyalty and decreasing loyalty in cities that you want to capture.

Table: Requirements for Conquest

Bullets: Consequences of Conquest

• Warmonger penalties
• City state relations
• Resource gain