Great Work (Civ6)

Back to Civilization VI
Back to the Tourism article
Go to the Great People article

A Great Work is an exceptional item in the world of Civilization VI. It may appear as an object created by an artist, an ancient artifact that serves as a reminder of the world's glorious past, or a holy relic left behind by a person of faith. Great Works are essential to players pursuing a Cultural Victory in the game.

Mechanics

The Great Work system has been expanded and tweaked considerably in relation to Civilization V: Brave New World; however, its main purpose remains the same. Great Works are the main source of Tourism in the game, and consequently the main path to a Cultural Victory.

All Great Works exist as physical items in the game. As such, they need a space to be stored in by their owner. If no such space exists, the item cannot be acquired by the civilization in question; indeed, it sometimes cannot be created at all. If, for example, a Great Artist has been attracted by your civilization, but you have no suitable slots in your buildings for Great Works of Art, then he won't be able to ever create his masterpieces; similarly if an Apostle with the necessary promotion dies heroically in theological combat with rival religious agents, but its civilization has no slots for any Relics, then his death will have been in vain! Thus players looking to acquire Great Works must prepare space ahead of time, building specific Buildings or Wonders to be able to house these items.

Great Works may also be acquired via trading with other civilizations; however, the same condition applies here: if you want to buy a specific Great Work, you'll need an appropriate slot to store it.

The Great Works screen

A special interface button for your Great Works is found in the upper left corner of the UI, which will open a screen showing your whole Great Work infrastructure. It shows separate space for each building with appropriate slots, and what (if any) Great Works currently reside in it. Mouse over each one to see its details; but the main stats provided by all works in the current building are always shown in the bottom part of its space. The total number of works, total number of free slots available and total yield may be seen in the upper right corner of the screen.

From here you can also manage your Great Works by moving them around. After being produced or excavated, all Great Works are immediately placed in an appropriate slot in one of your buildings. In principle, you are able to move them at will (just click on a Great Work to select it, and the game will highlight all suitable empty slots you could move it into), but there are some rules for this:

• Artifacts cannot be removed from a Museum until all of the Museum's slots are full.
• Great Works of Art cannot be moved from their slots for 10 turns after being created or moved.

Why should you shuffle your Great Works? First, because each Great Work provides yields which you may want to use in a specific city ( Culture-yielding works are a case in point). Second, because Museums may activate a special bonus, called a theming bonus, which doubles the yields of the works. And third, because this allows you to move them away from danger of war or disaster and into cities protected by Spies, and to maximize bonuses from Governors and buildings.

Types of Great Works

In comparison to Civilization V: Brave New World, Civilization VI brings greater variety to the various classes of Great Works, as well as one brand new class.

Great Works of Art

These are the true cultural staples of your civilization: exceptional creations of human genius in the most varied of forms. All of them are the work of Great People, more specifically the Great Writers, Great Artists, Great Musicians and the Great General Sun Tzu. There are three main types of Great Works of Art, according to their type of Person:

• Great Work of Writing, created by a Great Writer. These consist of collections of poetry (e.g. In the Mountains on a Summer Day), prose, and even political treatises (e.g. The Prince).
• Great Work of Music, created by a Great Musician. These are musical (e.g. Symphony #3 (Eroica Symphony) Mvt. 1) or operatic pieces (e.g. "Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture") written by ingenious composers and left for future generations to perform and admire.
• Great Work of Art, created by a Great Artist. These are further divided into four subcategories:
  • Portrait - a painting of a person (e.g. Andries de Graeff)
  • Landscape - a painting of a natural scene (e.g. "Saminmunnyeondo")
  • Religious - a work of painting relating to religion (e.g. Sistine Chapel Ceiling)
  • Sculpture - a work of carved three-dimensional art (e.g. Marriage of Hiawatha)

All of these divisions are important for the purposes of activating theming bonuses. Even without themes, all Great Works produce both Culture and Tourism after being placed in their relevant Great Work slots. For a detailed guide on how to maximize Tourism out of Great Works of Art, read here.

Artifacts

Main article: Archaeology (Civ6)

Artifacts are remnants of the past that hold historical importance in some way, be it an ancient mask, a rusty sword of the Classical Era, or a flintlock pistol of the Industrial Era. Unlike Great Works of Art, Artifacts may only be accessed later in the game, after unlocking the Natural History and/or Cultural Heritage civics, and by performing archaeological expeditions all over the world at Antiquity Sites and Shipwrecks. In this, you will be competing against other civilizations, so take care to reach these locations first.

Artifacts are assigned to a specific era. In order for an Archaeological Museum to be themed, all Artifacts must be from the same era but different civilizations. An Archaeologist can only excavate Artifacts from at least 4 eras behind the current era.

Anshan's Suzerain bonus provides +1 Science from each Artifact.

Relics

Civilization VI introduces a brand new type of Great Work: the religious Relic. This may be a piece of the True Cross, or the Tablet of the Prophet, or a similar item filled with sacred significance. In the world of Civilization VI, more pious than ever, these Relics are powerful tools of both religious and cultural dominance. Their sources are unique, and so are the places they may be stored. Unlike Great Works of Art or Artifacts, Relics may be earned throughout the entire game, and they produce +4 Faith and +8 Tourism. If playing as Jadwiga, a Relic provides a bonus of +4 Gold, +2 Culture and +2 Faith, while a Kongolese player will earn an extra +2 Food, +2 Production and +4 Gold from each Relic. Anshan's Suzerain bonus provides +1 Science from each Relic, and Kandy's Suzerain bonus provides +50% Faith from each Relic.

Relics of the Void

In the Secret Societies game mode, a new type of Great Work makes itself known. When the Voidsingers' sinister Cultist meets its end or spends all of its charges, it will create a terrifying item not of this world: a Relic of the Void. This eldritch artifact could be something as mundane as a simple tome of arcane knowledge, or something as incomprehensible and madness-inducing as the original Civilization II hint guide! In any case, Relics of the Void function the same way as regular Relics, so make sure to pick some up to increase your Tourism and Faith output.

Heroic Relics

In the Heroes & Legends game mode, the first time a Hero meets their end, whether in battle or as their life ends naturally, they create two Heroic Relics: an epic detailing their glorious feats, which is automatically displayed in their home city's Monument, and a memento; perhaps an article of clothing or a weapon, which must be excavated before it is displayed. These each provide 2 Culture, 2 Faith, and 6 Tourism. They can be displayed in Monuments, which gain +2 Great Work slots for them.

Lithuanian Union, Nkisi and Reliquaries all provide their bonuses to Heroic Relics. Kongo has some difficulty getting regular Relics, so Heroic Relics may be a great boon for them.

Products

In the Monopolies and Corporations game mode, running the Create New Product project in a city with a Corporation will produce a new type of Great Work called a Product. Products need to be stored in either a Stock Exchange or a Seaport, each of which has 3 slots for them in this game mode. Of course, Products may also be stored in any slot which accepts any type of Great Work (for example, you can store it in a Palace, but not in a Temple or Art Museum).

Products are unique among Great Works in that they do not provide a single, defined benefit to their parent city. Just as different luxury resources improved with an Industry or Corporation offer different types of special bonuses, so different types of Products offer both an unique type of yield and an unique bonus to their host city. This bonus is the same as if the Product's host city had an Industry of the same luxury resource as the Corporation that produced the Product. For instance, if a Jade Corporation in City X were to produce a special Jade Product, and it was slotted in City Y, then City Y would have 25% more Gold output. The Product will not provide additional bonus to the city where it was produced, so storing the Product in the same city of the Corporation is useless. Note also that Products' yields are quite different from those of other Great Works (but they always include a Tourism boost)! Read about the bonuses each type of Product provides here.

Creating Great Works

The three main types of Great Works differ substantially in the methods that must be used to create and/or acquire them.

Creating Great Works of Art

As mentioned above, Great Works, as objects of art, are created by certain types of Great People. In order to attract them to your civilization, you'll need first to accumulate respective Great Person Points (for more information on how to do this, head to the Great People article).

Once acquired, these exceptional humans have to get activated. This, however, may only be done on a tile containing a building with free slots for the respective type of Art (such as an Art Museum). Most of the time this will happen in a Theater Square district, since it holds the common buildings which have these slots. However, many Wonders also have Great Work slots; make sure to check their descriptions beforehand to be sure. Additionally, the Palace in your Capital has 1 slot which can hold any type of Great Work, Artifact, or Relic.

Excavating Artifacts

Artifacts work very differently than Great Works of Art. The source of Artifacts is not Great People, but rather the history of the world itself. Artifacts are created by a hidden mechanic all the way until the Industrial Era, when the Natural History civic is able to be completed. At this point, the locations are revealed where Antiquity Sites all over the world hold hidden historical treasures, waiting for Archaeologists to dig them up. Later, during the Atomic Era, another source of Artifacts, Shipwrecks, are revealed via the Cultural Heritage civic, allowing further exploration of history.

In order to access these sources, your civilization needs a special civilian unit: the Archaeologist. Archaeologists may only be trained inside of a city containing an Archaeological Museum with at least one free Artifact slot. Then, they must be moved to the target Antiquity Site or Shipwreck, at which point one must activate its special ability. A dialogue window will appear, informing you of the era the Artifact belongs to. In most cases, you will also be prompted to select which civilization this Artifact would have been generated by. Pay attention to this, since this option is a way to achieve theming bonuses in your Museums.

Note that, once they appear, Artifacts will block any development in their tile. You will be unable to place Districts or Wonders there, as well as any Improvements, until you excavate the Artifact. It is usually a good idea to first dig out Artifacts from tiles which you need for development, before looking for those situated further from your lands.

Creating Relics

The third type of Great Works are created mainly through one of the most interesting novelties of Civilization VI: theological combat. Every Apostle with the special Martyr promotion will create a Relic if it dies during theological combat. In this way, its sacrifice is remembered by a material remnant, which may be displayed in your religious institutions to inspire the faithful and draw tourists to your civilization.

Another way to gain a Relic is by visiting a Tribal Village. If you are lucky, the locals will have a Relic that has been passed from generation to generation, and they will deem you worthy to receive it. Retiring Great Person Jeanne d'Arc will also earn you a Relic. Moreover, Kandy's Suzerain bonus allows players to find Relics once they encounter a natural wonder.

Just like Great Works and Artifacts, Relics must be placed in their relevant slots. The most common source of such slots are Temples, each of which has 1 Relic slot.

For the necessary process to create Relics of the Void, Heroic Relics and Products (the three new Great Work types introduced by the new modes of the New Frontier Pass), check the necessary sections above.

Storing Great Works

It is a requirement of producing or excavating a Great Work that there is an available slot in a building or wonder within your empire. A player trying for a Culture Victory ought to prioritize these buildings.

Most Great Work slots are for a single type of matching Great Work, though some buildings have slots that can contain a Great Work of any or many different types. Every civ starts with a Palace which has a slot for any type of Great Work (or 5 slots when playing as the Kongolese).

Building / Wonder	Requirements	Slots
Amphitheater	Theater Square	2 Great Works of Writing
Apadana	Political Philosophy	2 Great Works, any type
Archaeological Museum	Theater Square, Humanism, Amphitheater or Marae	3 Artifacts
Art Museum	Theater Square, Humanism, Amphitheater or Marae	3 Great Works of Art
Bank	Giovanni de Medici (Great Merchant)	2 Great Works, any type
Bolshoi Theatre	Opera and Ballet	1 Great Work of Writing 1 Great Work of Music
Broadcast Center	Theater Square, Radio, Archaeological or Art Museum	1 Great Work of Music
Broadway	Mass Media	1 Great Work of Writing 2 Great Works of Music
Cathedral	Holy Site, Cathedral Worship Belief, Temple or its replacements	1 Great Work of Religious Art
Film Studio	American, Theater Square, Radio, Archaeological or Art Museum	1 Great Work of Music
Great Library	Recorded History	2 Great Works of Writing
Hermitage	Natural History	4 Great Works of Art
Mont St. Michel	Divine Right	2 Relics
Monument	None	2 Heroic Relics
National History Museum	Government Plaza, Tier 3 government, Tier 2 government building constructed	4 Great Works, any type
Old God Obelisk	Voidsingers membership	1 Great Work, any type 2 Heroic Relics
Oxford University	Scientific Theory	2 Great Works of Writing
Palace	Starting building in Capital	1 Great Work, any type
Prasat	Khmer, Holy Site, Theology, Shrine	2 Relics
Queen's Bibliotheque	Government Plaza, Swedish, Tier 2 Government adopted, Tier 1 government building	2 Great Works of Writing 2 Great Works of Art 2 Great Works of Music
Seaport	Harbor, Electricity, Lighthouse, Shipyard	3 Products
St. Basil's Cathedral	Reformed Church	3 Relics
Stave Church	Norwegian, Holy Site, Theology, Shrine	1 Relic
Stock Exchange	Commercial Hub, Economics, Market, Bank	3 Products
Sydney Opera House	Cultural Heritage	3 Great Works of Music
Temple	Holy Site, Theology, Shrine	1 Relic

Added in the Rise and Fall expansion pack.
Added in the Gathering Storm expansion pack.

List of Great Works

Great Works of Writing

See Great Writer (Civ6)

Great Works of Music

See Great Musician (Civ6)

Great Works of Art

See Great Artist (Civ6)

Artifacts

See Archaeology (Civ6)

Relics

• Ark of the Covenant
• Beard of the Evangelist
• Blood of the Martyr
• Bones of the Magi
• Book of Thoth
• Casket of the Evangelist
• Chains of the Apostle
• Cincture of the Theotokos
• Eight-Hand Mirror
• Footprint of the Apostle
• Grass-cutting Sword
• Grapevine Cross
• Gundestrup Cauldron
• Holy Grail
• Holy Lance
• Philosopher's Stone
• Robes of the Guru
• Saint Aubert's Skull
• Sandals of the Prophet
• Shroud of Turin
• Silk Texts
• Splinter of the True Cross
• Stone of Scone
• Tooth of the Prophet

Relics of the Void (Secret Societies mode only)

See Voidsingers (Civ6)

Relics in Heroes & Legends mode

See Heroes & Legends (Civ6)

Relics in Pirates scenario

See Pirates (Civ6)

Related achievements

Epic of Gilgamesh As Sumeria, have the first Great Work of Writing The Epic of Gilgamesh is considered the earliest piece of great literature still surviving.

Pizza Party! Activate Leonardo da Vinci in New York with Great Works from Michelangelo and Donatello -- and a sewer -- all in that city. A reference to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, comic superheroes who enjoyed pizza in New York City's sewers and were named after the famous Renaissance Italian artists.

Repo Man Steal a Great Work of Art and don't get caught. A repossession agent that retrieves outstanding rented or leased objects. May also be a reference to the film Repo Man, which features a repossession agent that 'retrieves' objects from clients without their compliance or knowledge.