| World Renouncer | World Conqueror |
- "Let all listen, and be willing to listen to the teachings of all others."
Ashoka (c. 304 – 232 BCE), commonly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third Maurya emperor, ruling from 268 BCE until his death. He is best known for his conversion to Buddhism after his bloody conquest of Kalinga, devoting himself to a policy of public welfare and enthusiastic patronage of the religion, which is credited with playing a very significant role in the spread of Buddhism across east and southern Asia. He is a leader in Civilization VII.
This is one of Ashoka's two alternate personas, the other being Ashoka, World Renouncer. He is available with the Ashoka (World Conqueror) Persona DLC.
Intro[]
Much is made of how Ashoka the Great, the bloodthirsty emperor of the Maurya, became a chakravartin, a “wheel-turning monarch,” for his role in spreading Buddhism across India. But if he had not experienced a profound revelation upon witnessing his own troops’ bloody slaughter of the Kalinga around 260 BCE, that transformation might never have taken place. His legacy today may be one of conquest and destruction, rather than one of tolerance and non-violence.
In-Game[]
Ashoka, World Conqueror has the Diplomatic and Militaristic attributes. His default colors are cyan and dark purple.
His leader ability is Devaraja. It grants +1 
Production in his Cities for every 5 excess 
Happiness and +10% Production in Settlements not founded by him, declaring a Formal War triggers a Celebration, and his Units gain +5 
Combat Strength against Districts during a Celebration.
His agenda is Without Regret. His Relationship increases by a Medium Amount with the leader whose lands cover the least tiles, and decreases by a Medium Amount with the one whose lands cover the most.
Strategy[]
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Share your wisdom!
How do you use Ashoka, World Conqueror? |
Lines[]
Ashoka is voiced by Sunil Tiwari. He speaks Maghadi Prakrit, a vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Magadha region of Ancient India.[1]
Voiced[]
| Line | Quote (English translation) | Quote (Maghadi Prakrit) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quote | Let all listen, and be willing to listen to the teachings of all others. | This is a quote attributed to Ashoka emphasizing the importance of open-mindedness and tolerance towards diverse perspectives and beliefs. | |
| Greeting | I am Ashoka, the great king at the center of the world, and profound sinner. | ||
| Attacked | Violence echoes across multiple lives, multiple worlds. It will return to you. | ||
| Declares War | The path of violence is a path that I swore never to take again. But here we are. | ||
| Accepts Player's Deal | The righteous path. | ||
| Rejects Player's Deal | This is "adharma", an error. | ||
| Defeated | And now, the burning wheel passes over me. |
Leader Path[]
| Level | Unlocks |
|---|---|
| 2 |  Chanda-mahasena
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| 3 | |
| 4 | |
| 5 |  Silk Uttariya
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| 6 | |
| 7 | |
| 8 | |
| 9 |  Lion Capital
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| 10 |
Civilopedia entry[]
In the immediate aftermath of Alexander the Great’s failed conquest of India, the Mauryan Empire rose to become the largest single polity to emerge in India in antiquity. After Alexander’s retreat, Chandragupta Maurya seized the chaos that followed and conquered the vassals that Greece had left behind. Though less unified than later Indian empires, Maurya was a beacon for learning and culture, even sending emissaries and Buddhist missionaries westward, in Alexander’s footsteps. Domestically, the empire continued the maintenance of trade routes across the subcontinent, from east to west, forming a key link in the Silk Road, a route that was to become central to their fame.
Religion played a vital role in Maurya. India is home to many of the world’s religions – Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism, as well as a few more exotic strands of belief, such as Greek Hellenism. The early Mauryans were Jain, whose focus on non-violence and the cultivation of personal purity seems an odd choice for an emperor – until one realizes that purity in turn leads to personal power and charisma. It should be noted that the Mauryans regularly had both Chinese and Greek visitors rubbing shoulders in its cities, resulting in significant heterogeneity and cosmopolitanism.
Ashoka (Asoka) – the name means “without sorrow” – started life as the unfavored last-born son. Apparently, his father simply did not like his complexion, which was not smooth like his brothers, and repeatedly ignored the signs that this child was going to become a conqueror. When his brother, the crown prince, headed off to war, Ashoka declared that the gods wished him to be the king. Few stood in the way of this claim: when Ashoka’s father protested, the old man promptly died; and when Ashoka’s brother returned to seize the throne, he was promptly dumped into a charcoal fire.
Once established, Ashoka continued his rather bloody rise to power. He immediately placed his sights on the Kalinga Empire to the east and launched a war of brazen conquest. Eager for victory, Ashoka rode out to battle with his troops – and was disgusted. The bloodshed and brutality he witnessed there led him to renounce violence and embrace Buddhism and the effort to spread the truth of the dharma (Buddhist teachings) across the kingdom, which he did by erecting stelae extolling the dharma across Mauryan lands.
On his stelae, Ashoka issued his Edicts. In addition to listing those responsible for inscribing them, the Edicts define prohibitions on immorality – violence towards animals (i.e. meat-eating), violence towards people, and overly licentious festivals. They also describe institutions (of medical care, for instance) that the emperor set up in the region, making a lasting claim towards global goodwill.
Ashoka’s story is one of transformation. A visiting Chinese diplomat speculated that the early Ashoka had personally gone to hell to learn new methods of torture, while the later Ashoka denounces all violence, to human and animal alike. It is a story of repentance that has made Ashoka a hero across Buddhist Asia, and he is seen by many Sri Lankans and Southeast Asians as the person who brought Buddhism to their parts of the world. While this impact is perhaps his most lasting legacy worldwide, Ashoka remains compelling to Indians as well, and was the subject of a big-budget Bollywood feature and, now, a popular TV series.
Trivia[]
- Ashoka, World Conqueror's leader ability is a title, meaning "god-king" in Sanskrit, typically ascribed to Hindu monarchs, while his agenda references his purported ruthlesness before his conversion to Buddhism (देवराज).
- This persona represents Ashoka before his conversion to Buddhism in 261 BC.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Civ Paths - Ashoka (Civ7).jpg (768 KB)")
.png "Ashoka, World Conqueror three-quarter length (Civ7).png (456 KB)")
Videos[]
First Look- Ashoka - Civilization VII
First Look: Ashoka
Related achievements[]
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Sorry Not Sorrow.
Win the modern age as Ashoka, World Conqueror.
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References[]
See also[]
- Ashoka in other games