Civilopedia

"Civilopedia" is the name given to the encyclopedic part of the in-game help in Civilization games. This wiki has adopted it for the category that contains a similar range of content.

Some users may welcome articles explaining the arrangement of the Civilopedia for each game.

The Call to Power games feature their own version of Civilopedia, which they call the "Great Library." The Colonization version is the "Colonizopedia." In Sid Meier's Starships, the help section is called the "SpaceOpedia."

Sid Meier's Civilization

The Civilization Civilopedia, part 1/2

The Civilization Civilopedia, part 2/2

The "Civ1" Civilopedia is located at the right-hand end of the menu bar at the top of the screen, producing a drop-down menu, where the first item is called "Complete"; it is followed by five submenu headings:

• "Civilization Advances" (67 items)
• "City Improvements" (45 items, including the 21 Wonders)
• "Military Units" (28 items, including units that have no attack capability)
• "Terrain Types" (12 items)
• "Miscellaneous" (21 items, each called a "Game Concept": all six types of government; all six alterations that terrain can receive (apart from having a city built or the effects of global warming); four of the eight orders that units can receive; all three possible destinations of trade income; "Trade Routes"; "Veteran Units")

Individual items on four of the sub-menus produce two consecutive screens, the first outlining the subject-matter and its history, and the second specifying game mechanics, prerequisites, obsolescence, etc. (and for each "Civilization Advance" that you currently have, there is an additional line saying how you got it, either "Discovered" or "Taken from [nation adjective]", where the term "taken" includes both conquest and negotiation). "Terrain Types" show only a single screen (the same as you get by right-clicking on a map square). Exiting the only or last screen for an item (by hitting "Enter" or clicking) returns you to the submenu. Exiting a submenu takes you back to the map.

Not every screen tells you everything you should know about the subject-matter. For example, Triremes and Ironclads can bombard units on land, but their explanation does not say that (in contrast to the pages about Cruisers and Battleships, which do). Reading either the Manual or this wiki should fill in the gaps.

Civilization II

The Civilization II Civilopedia

The "Civ2" Civilopedia is at the right-hand end of the eight menus. It has nine submenu headings in four groups, with underlined letters to use with the Alt key.

Civilization III

The Civilization III Civilopedia

In Civilization III, the Civilopedia is a menu that can be accessed during a game by clicking on the middle icon (either the "Aa" symbol or the book) in the upper left corner of the screen.

Civilization IV

The Civilization IV Civilopedia

In Civilization IV, the Civilopedia is a menu that can be accessed during a game by clicking on the question mark (?) in the upper right corner of the screen. It displays information about units, resources, civs, leaders, techs, civics, corporations, buildings, wonders, and game concepts. Historical information about each item is provided in a "Background" section.

Civilization V

The Civilization V Civilopedia

In Civilization V, the Civilopedia is a menu that can be accessed during a game by clicking on the word "HELP" in the upper right corner of the screen. It displays information about units, resources, civs, leaders, techs, social policies, Great People, buildings, wonders, and game concepts. Historical information about each item is generally provided in a "Historical Info" section.

Civilization VI

The Civilization VI Civilopedia

In Civilization VI, the Civilopedia is a menu that can be accessed during a game by clicking on the question mark (?) in the upper right corner of the screen. It displays information about units, resources, civs, leaders, techs, civics, governments, Great People, buildings, improvements, wonders, promotions, and game concepts. Historical information about each item is provided in a "Historical Context" section.

Civilization Revolution

The Civilization Revolution Civilopedia

In Civilization Revolution, the Civilopedia is a menu that helps show all the information needed for all units, resources, civs, techs, Great People, and buildings.