The base strength of a city, which dictates everything from how fast it grows to how much it can produce, lies in its surrounding tiles, and the Improvements that are built on them. No city should be settled without first looking at which tiles it will cover, and once a Builder has been produced it can be a difficult decision working out which to improve.
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Overworking the Workers
While it may seem logical to improve every tile available, with the idea that the city will eventually grow into using them all, that’s not actually the best idea. Just like everything else in a game of Civ 6, Builders cost time and/or resources to produce, and therefore should be deployed efficiently. As a general rule it’s best to keep just ahead of the growth of a city with tile improvements.
One of the reasons for this is District and Wonder placements. A basic Builder only has 3 charges of Tile Improvement, and if one of those charges is used to upgrade a tile which turns out to be the best spot for a District or Wonder five turns later, then that’s a waste of a third of the Builder’s potential.
The Beauty of Nature
As well as being efficient with Builders, there are a few more niche reasons to avoid improving all the tiles around a city. The first is the small number of Improvements that are only unlocked later into the game. This could be chopping down a forest to build a Farm instead of waiting for Lumber Mills, or not leaving space for a civilization’s unique Improvements.
There are also a few different bonuses in the game that benefit particularly from unimproved tiles. One of which is the Forestry Management Promotion for Governor Reyna, which grants +2 Gold on each unimproved feature, and +1 Appeal for every tile next to an unimproved one. Another is the National Park special Improvement, which can be a game-changer for Culture-focused civilizations. The National Park gives huge bonuses to Tourism and Amenities, but can also be very difficult to place. Players aiming for a Tourism victory would be well-advised to check the qualifications for a National Park early, and even reserve a spot for the future.
Civilization 6 is available for iOS, Linux, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
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