Ages – Civilization VII Wiki and Guide

Introduction to Ages in Civ 7

Welcome to your first look at one of the most significant innovations in Civilization VII: Ages. Think of Ages as distinct chapters in the story of humanity, each packed with period-specific technologies, units, and unique challenges. You’ll guide your people from humble beginnings through incredible leaps forward in science, culture, warfare, and exploration, all while keeping the excitement level high from start to finish.

In Civilization VII, there are three Ages to explore—The Antiquity Age, The Exploration Age, and The Modern Age. Each Age is designed to capture the essence of a particular period in world history, and to let you switch to a new civilization specifically balanced for the era you’re entering. This way, you’ll always feel like you’re wielding powerful, era-relevant abilities, and you won’t have to worry about out-of-date units or lackluster civ bonuses.

Ages also help shake up the longstanding “snowball” effect found in previous Civ games. Instead of one civilization racing off into unstoppable glory, every Age transition reshuffles the deck, making sure that you always have a chance to catch up—or to extend your lead—through clever strategy and well-timed moves. Whether you’re a veteran of the series or brand new to 4X games, Ages ensure that every step of your empire’s journey feels fresh, focused, and meaningful.

The different Ages in Civilization vii

Civilization VII focuses on three historically rich Ages that shape your empire’s progression:

• The Antiquity Age
• The Exploration Age
• The Modern Age

Each Age offers access to unique civilizations, tech trees, buildings, and units. You’ll also find that crucial elements like resources, map size, and even game systems (such as expanded religious features in the Exploration Age) come to life in specific periods. This layered approach means every Age feels like its own fully realized mini-campaign, packed with era-appropriate challenges and opportunities.

The Antiquity Age

The Antiquity Age marks the beginnings of urban life and organized civilization. You typically start with a small capital, a basic unit, and very limited technology—just enough to help you explore the immediate area around you. Players research simpler techs such as irrigation, the wheel, and basic military training, reflecting humanity’s earliest innovations. Even though you may discover coastal waters and ways to sail, your ships will still be vulnerable to deep oceans, so be mindful of where you send your vessels.

You’ll earn Legacy Points during this Age by completing key milestones (like cultural or military achievements) on one of the Legacy Paths. Once enough progress has been made collectively in the game world, the door to the Exploration Age swings open. When that happens, any uncompleted Antiquity-era goals disappear, so keep an eye on your progress so you don’t miss out on those powerful rewards!

The Exploration Age

True to its name, the Exploration Age brings the open seas into play. Technologies like astronomy and cartography unlock deeper ocean travel, helping you expand your reach to distant lands and resources. This era also upgrades your military in substantial ways—castles, metallurgy, and new machinery all lead to better-equipped armies. Whether you choose to settle in unfamiliar territory or annex it by force is entirely up to you.

The Exploration Age is also when trade takes off in earnest. You can create merchants to establish trade routes between your own cities and those of other Leaders, building roads and fostering more strategic connections. Religion steps into the limelight as well, shaping diplomatic and cultural alliances (or conflicts) across the seas. Just remember that, at the end of this Age, you’ll face another Crisis—an event thematically tied to the era—before making the jump to the final Age.

The Modern Age

The Modern Age is a technological leap forward in every sense. You’ll harness steam power to build railways across your lands, take to the skies with aircraft, and even push beyond the planet’s limits toward space. As you might expect, heavy-duty military units also make their appearance here—tanks, battleships, and combat-ready aircraft can dramatically shift the balance of power.

With an increasingly connected world, you can expect new global dynamics. Radio technology can boost your people’s happiness, while advanced industry and infrastructure enhance production, research, and culture. Military might isn’t the only solution, either—scientific victories and diplomatic plays are just as viable for those aiming to rise to the top in the most modern of ways.

By the time the Modern Age crisis hits and you’ve weathered its challenges, you’ll be well on your way to a game-ending victory—provided you can leverage all the technological and cultural might at your disposal!

What else is different in the different Ages?

As you progress from the Antiquity Age through the Exploration Age and finally into the Modern Age, each step of the journey introduces its own unique gameplay features. Below is a friendly overview of what changes as you advance through the Ages in Civilization VII.

Civilizations

• Age-exclusive choices: Each Age comes with a set of civilizations that only appear during that era. These civs are balanced to feel strong and relevant within their specific timeframe.
• New abilities: Because your old civ transitions to a new one, you get to explore fresh units, bonuses, and buildings that match the historical themes of that Age.
• Variety of paths: Some civilizations share strong geographical or historical links, while others are unlocked by specific gameplay actions—letting you pivot your strategy if you spot new opportunities.

Resources

• Era-specific availability: Each Age features resources that reflect the time period, such as simple staples in the Antiquity Age or exotic imports in the Exploration Age.
• Shared vs. exclusive: Some resources may carry over across multiple Ages, while others only appear during a single era (like a particularly rare mineral that becomes vital in later stages).
• Discovery and expansion: As the map broadens with each Age, you’ll discover new resource clusters and trade opportunities—which is especially important for fueling more advanced buildings and units.

Civics and Technologies

• Tailored tech trees: Each Age has its own unique technology and civics list, so you’ll research period-appropriate advances without being bogged down by outdated tech.
• Strategic pivot points: The availability of certain techs in each Age (like Cartography in the Exploration Age) can dramatically alter your approach, opening up naval exploration or new military tactics.
• Adaptive planning: Since every Age refreshes your technology path, you’ll need to regularly plan how best to leverage fresh civics (such as focusing on culture, religion, military, or economic strengths).

Buildings and Units

• Age-based rosters: Military units, city improvements, and Wonders reflect each era’s architectural and technological advances—meaning your armies and infrastructure naturally evolve as you progress.
• Unique unit lifespans: In Civilization VII, unique units stay relevant for the entire Age, so you can really enjoy the power spike that specific civs bring to the table.
• Overbuilding: When you enter a new Age, you can “overbuild” new structures on top of older ones. This lets you update older facilities with modern equivalents without starting entirely from scratch.

Independent Powers

• Minor factions: Independent Powers are smaller entities living on the map. They might become trading partners, diplomatic allies, or obstacles to your expansion, depending on your interactions.
• Age influence: As each Age progresses, new Independent Powers can arise—or existing ones can grow stronger—shifting the political and strategic landscape.
• Dynamic relationships: You can choose to ally with these factions or conquer them, adding another layer of depth to how you manage your empire’s diplomacy and territorial ambitions.

Game Systems

• Era-specific features: Certain systems only come online at the right time. For instance, religion is minor in the Antiquity Age but becomes a driving force in the Exploration Age.
• Varied gameplay layers: Each Age introduces new dynamics—like advanced warfare or global trade—and tweaks existing systems, making every era feel distinct and exciting.
• Crises: Near the end of each Age, you’ll face a thematic Crisis event that challenges every civ on the map. Expect to adapt quickly or face the consequences as you approach the next era.

Playable Map Area

• Expansion over time: As you transition into each new Age, your visible and playable map area grows larger. Technologies like shipbuilding in the Exploration Age let you cross wider oceans.
• New frontiers: The Modern Age can even open up distant continents or massive territory expansions, reflecting the more global scope of later-world empires.
• Revealed resources: Fresh regions often come with additional resource deposits, so you’ll always have reasons to push your borders or establish distant colonies.

Age Progress and Legacy Paths

Your civilization’s journey through each Age is measured by Age Progress. Every turn contributes a small amount of progress, but completing key objectives known as Legacy Path milestones yields a larger boost. Generally, an Age lasts about 150 to 200 turns on standard speed, which translates to roughly three or four hours of gameplay.

Legacy Paths are grouped into four categories—Science, Military, Culture, and Economy. Each path contains several milestones, and reaching these goals not only increases your Age Progress but also grants powerful rewards for the present Age and the next one. Fully completing a Legacy Path unlocks a Golden Age Legacy for the following era, while failing a milestone leaves you with a Dark Age Legacy.

The shared contribution to Age Progress among all players determines when an Age will end. Once enough Legacy Points have been accumulated collectively, you’ll receive a warning that you have just one final turn before transitioning to the next Age—so keep a close eye on your progress to avoid losing out on crucial last-minute rewards.

What are Crises in Civ 7?

A Crisis is a major event that appears toward the end of every Age and affects every civilization on the map. Crises are thematically tied to their Age—think of them as dramatic challenges that bring fresh risks and opportunities. They intensify in stages and can seriously disrupt your well-laid plans unless you adapt quickly.

Crises also introduce Crisis Policies, which operate differently from your usual beneficial social policies. You’ll need to slot these negative policies, which can temporarily handicap your empire. By forcing players to juggle short-term penalties against long-term gains, Crises help keep each Age finale feel intense and unpredictable.

What happens during Age transitions?

Once an Age concludes, all players (including AI rivals) simultaneously move into the next one. This Age Transition is a critical juncture in your civilization’s story, as you:

• Select a new civilization (if you choose) from the newly unlocked set.
• Pick which Legacies to carry forward, based on the Legacy Points you’ve earned.
• See the game world evolve with expanded territories, new resources, fresh tech and civics trees, and more.

During this transition, previously constructed buildings become less effective, but you can often overbuild modern equivalents on top of them. In essence, Age Transitions let you reset and refresh your strategies, giving both struggling empires and powerhouse nations a new slate to work with in the upcoming Age.

Selecting a New Civilization

Every Age in Civilization VII comes with its own roster of Age-exclusive civilizations. You can’t randomly pick any civ; instead, you’ll have options dictated by:

• Historical or Geographical Links: For example, certain Antiquity civs can develop into historically related Exploration civs.
• Leader Identity: Some leaders automatically unlock specific civilizations in future Ages due to strong thematic ties.
• Game Actions: Taking certain actions can unlock non-historical paths, letting you make surprising strategic pivots.

This system ensures you always have a relevant toolkit for the Age ahead. Whether you want to keep things historically accurate or try something totally unexpected, Age Transitions offer a fun chance to customize your path.

Selecting Legacies

Legacies are powerful benefits you unlock with the Legacy Points gained from completing milestones on your Legacy Paths. You’ll spend these points right after choosing your next civ.

• Cost and Bonuses: Each Legacy has a different cost, with certain high-level ones (like a Golden Age Legacy) demanding more points.
• Leader Attributes: Some Legacies can be “bought” cheaply to reinforce your leader’s strengths or shore up weaknesses.
• Strategic Tools: One example is the “Change Capital” Legacy, which costs no points but lets you strategically relocate your capital city—an extremely handy feature if you need a coastal capital or want a fresh start.

How do I maintain a Coherent Identity

Even though you pick a new civilization each Age, your empire’s core identity remains intact. Here’s how:

• Same Leaders: Your chosen leader stays with you throughout the entire game, carrying over relationships, levels, and personal story arcs.
• Traditions Persist: Any Traditions you unlock (social policies unique to a civ’s culture) remain available across all Ages.
• Ageless Buildings: Key Wonders, unique Quarters, and other indispensable structures never vanish—even though you can overbuild more modern facilities around them.
• Commanders Carry Over: Commander units retain their skills, levels, and experience, evolving right alongside your newly chosen civ.

Together, these features ensure that your empire feels like one continuous journey, rather than a collection of unrelated civilizations.

Single-Age Games

If you’re short on time or just want a taste of a specific historical period, Civilization VII allows you to turn off Age Transitions and play in only one Age. For instance, you can jump straight into:

• The Exploration Age: You’ll start with a capital city, some gold, Influence, and just enough tech to launch expeditions across uncharted seas.
• The Modern Age: You begin with a larger portion of the map revealed and advanced initial technologies like steam travel. Perfect if you want to quickly jump into global conflicts or high-stakes scientific races.

What should I consider when transitioning Ages?

Age Transitions offer pivotal moments for strategic reflection. Ask yourself:

• Have I earned enough Legacy Points? More points mean access to stronger Legacies—and a better launch in the new Age.
• Do I want to pivot or double down? You can stay faithful to your core playstyle or adapt to new map conditions with a radically different civ.
• Are my key units and buildings up to date? Overbuilding allows you to modernize existing structures, but be mindful of time and resources.
• Can I handle the next Crisis? Each Age ends with a crisis event, so plan your resources and policies accordingly.

More Ages?

At launch, Civilization VII features three main Ages — Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern. However, Firaxis has hinted that the new Ages system is designed to be expandable. Future content, whether in updates or expansions, might introduce additional Ages to enrich the historical tapestry or revisit underexplored eras. For now, these three Ages provide a full and dynamic experience, taking you from the dawn of civilization to the industrial and atomic leaps of the modern world.