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The Apostle is a religious unit in Civilization VI. It can only be purchased with Faith Faith in a city that has a majority religion and a Holy Site with a Temple (or one of its replacements).

  • Attributes:
    • Acquire 1 Religious Promotion at the time of purchase.
    • Can engage in (initiate), as well as defend against, theological combat.
    • Can ignore national borders.
  • Abilities:
    • Spread Religion (3 charges)
      • Converts Citizen Citizens in adjacent city to Apostle's religion (Pressure = 2.2 * Apostle's current HP) and reduces total Religious Pressure of all foreign religions in the city by 25%.
    • Evangelize Belief (only possible if your Religion has fewer than 4 Beliefs, consumes Apostle, must have at least 3 charges)
    • Launch Inquisition (one-time ability for the entire game, consumes Apostle, must have at least 3 charges)

Promotions[]

Apostles are also distinct from other religious units in that that they receive special Promotion Promotions upon being purchased. This is a one-time bonus, because the Apostle cannot in fact earn XP in any way, and thus cannot gain levels. The player may choose between three promotions randomly chosen from the pool. If the player is the Suzerain of Yerevan, they are free to choose from the entire pool listed below. Also, if the player owns the Mont St. Michel wonder, all Apostles automatically receive the Martyr promotion in addition to another one they choose normally. This is retroactive, so existing Apostles will also receive the promotion.

When using the Governor Moksha's Level 3 title, Patron Saint, Apostles trained in the city that Moksha is assigned to can receive one extra promotion when receiving their first promotion. This ability stacks with Mont St. Michel, making this the only way to obtain Level 3 Apostles legitimately in the game. This ability also stacks with Yerevan's Suzerain bonus, allowing the player to freely choose up to two promotions from the entire pool listed below.

Promotion Effect
Chaplain Apostle operates as a Medic, providing extra healing to units within 1 tile.
Debater +20 Religious Strength Religious Strength in Theological Combat.
Heathen Conversion Can convert all adjacent Barbarians to your side by using a religious charge.
Indulgence Vendor Gain 100 Gold Gold if this unit converts a city to your Religion for the first time.
Martyr Relic Relic is created if this Apostle dies in Theological Combat.
Orator Can spread Religion 2 extra times.
Pilgrim Gains 3 extra spreads when moving adjacent to a natural wonder for the first time.
Proselytizer Religious spread eliminates 75% of existing pressure from other Religions in the target city.
Translator Religious spread is triple strength in cities of other civilizations.*

* This also applies to city-states.

Strategy[]

Apostles are much more expensive than Missionaries, but are much more versatile. They not only complement their Religion by adding new Beliefs to it, but also spearhead its spread by being capable of attacking religious units of other Religions. In fact, the Apostle is the main fighter for a religion, both because of its greater Religious Strength Religious Strength compared to other units, and because of the promotions, which vastly enhance its effectiveness; Debater, gives it a huge increase in Religious Strength Religious Strength during theological combat. Many of the other promotions help it spread religion much more effectively than the Missionary; Chaplain can also provide an early-game healer. The Apostle is generally the most important religious unit.

The Apostle is expended upon using the Evangelize Belief action, the Launch Inquisition action, or its last charge of Spread Religion. Until then, it may act as a religious warrior, engaging in theological combat with religious units of other religions. This combat will diminish its HP, destroying the unit when its HP reaches zero, so it would be wise to use its other abilities first before engaging.

Note that in order to use the Evangelize Belief and Launch Inquisition abilities, an Apostle must be in friendly territory and have at least 3 charges of Spread Religion left. This means that Apostles with Orator and/or Pilgrim can spread religion a few times before being used to evangelize or launch an inquisition.

The Apostle, like all other religious units, heals at Holy Sites or tiles adjacent to Holy Sites.

If your main goal is to just spread religion, the Apostle can do this three times. However, the Orator and Pilgrim promotions, the Mosque Worship Belief, and the Hagia Sophia wonder all increase this. These bonuses stack, so an Apostle with the Pilgrim promotion purchased in a city with a Mosque by a civilization that has the Hagia Sophia will have an outstanding 8 Spread Religion charges. In Rise and Fall, this number can be raised to 10 charges if the city also has Moksha established with the Patron Saint title, and the Apostle gains both the Pilgrim and Orator promotions.

Civilopedia entry[]

An “apostle” (from Greek, meaning “one who is sent away”) is a messenger and ambassador for the chosen deity of a given religion in an attempt to convert the faithless. In Christianity, where the concept is most prevalent, the Twelve were mere disciples before scattering out as ordered by the resurrected Christ to spread his “Word.” For Islam, an apostle is a prophet, specifically one sent to teach Allah’s truth: Ibrahim (Abraham in the Hebrew bible), Musa (Moses), Dawud (David), Isa (Jesus), and of course Mohammed. These days some churches simply appoint their own apostles; among the Latter-day Saints, for instance, an Apostle is a member of the priesthood with high authority, and in the Bahá’í faith the apostles were designated as such by Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian.

Gallery[]

Related achievements[]

Nobody Expects the Spanish Inquisition
Nobody Expects the Spanish Inquisition
Launch an Inquisition as Spain
A reference to the catchphrase in the Monty Python skit 'The Spanish Inquisition'.

See also[]

Civilization VI Units [edit]
Civilian SettlerBuilderTraderArchaeologistSpyNaturalistRock Band GS-Only
Land military AT CrewArcher (Hul'che1Pítati Archer1) • ArtilleryBarbarian Horse ArcherBarbarian HorsemanBombardCatapultCavalry (CossackHuszár GS-OnlyLlanero1) • Courser GS-Only (Black Army GS-OnlyOromo Cavalry1) • Crossbowman (Voi Chiến1) • Crouching TigerCuirassier GS-Only (Rough RiderWinged Hussar1) • Field Cannon (Hwacha R&F-Only) • Giant Death Robot GS-OnlyHeavy ChariotHelicopterHorseman (Hetairoi1) • Infantry (Digger1) • Keshig R&F-OnlyKnight (Mandekalu Cavalry GS-OnlyMamlukTagma1) • Line Infantry (Garde ImpérialeRedcoat) • Machine GunMalón Raider R&F-OnlyMan-At-Arms (Khevsur R&F-OnlyBerserkerSamurai) • Maryannu Chariot ArcherMechanized InfantryModern ATModern ArmorMountie GS-OnlyMusketman (ConquistadorJanissary GS-Only) • Nihang1Pike and Shot (Carolean GS-Only) • Pikeman (Impi R&F-Only) • Questing Knight4Ranger (Highlander R&F-Only) • Rocket ArtillerySabum Kibittum1Saka Horse ArcherScout (Okihtcitaw R&F-Only) • Skirmisher GS-Only (Warak'aq GS-Only) • SlingerSpearman (Hoplite) • Spec Ops R&F-OnlySwordsman (Hypaspist1Immortal1LegionNgao MbebaToa GS-Only) • TankTrebuchet (Domrey1) • Vampire3VaruWar-CartWarrior MonkWarrior (Eagle WarriorGaesatae1) • Zombie5
Naval military Aircraft CarrierBattleship (Minas Geraes) • Caravel (Nau1) • DestroyerFrigate (De Zeven Provinciën R&F-OnlyJong1) • Galley (Bireme GS-OnlyViking Longship) • IroncladMissile CruiserNuclear SubmarinePrivateer (Barbary Corsair GS-OnlySea Dog) • Quadrireme (Dromon1) • Submarine (U-Boat)
Aircraft BiplaneBomberFighter (P-51 Mustang) • Jet BomberJet Fighter
Support Anti-Air GunBattering RamCultist3Drone R&F-OnlyMedicMilitary EngineerMobile SAMObservation BalloonSiege TowerSoothsayer2Supply Convoy R&F-Only
Religious ApostleGuruInquisitorMissionary
See also Great PeopleHeroes
1 Requires DLC2 Apocalypse mode only • 3 Secret Societies mode only • 4 Heroes & Legends mode only • 5 Zombie Defense mode only

R&F-Only Added in the Rise and Fall expansion pack.
GS-Only Added in the Gathering Storm expansion pack.

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