The Incan people (or Inca(s)) represent the Inca Empire, an Exploration Age civilization in Civilization VII.
The Incans' civilization ability is Apus, which grants 
Food and 
Production on Mountains and makes Mountains workable. Their associated wonder is the Machu Pikchu, and their unique components are as follows:
- Unique units: Warak'aq (military), Chasqui (civilian)
- Unique improvement: Terrace Farm
- Unique civics: Mit'a, Ayllu, Qhapaq Ñan
Intro[]
In the stony heights, the Inca create an empire where few others dare to tread. Guided by the condor’s flight and the puma’s track, they chart connections from peak to peak, building fortresses in the mountains. From these heights, decide whether to send down prosperity and wisdom - or a hail of sling stones.
Strategy[]
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How do you use the Inca? |
Civilopedia entry[]
The Andes have a long history of settlement. Caral, for instance, is a site comprising around thirty major cities, including massive pyramids and plazas. Caral arrived at an astoundingly early date – as early as 3700 BCE. Its pyramids likely date to around the same time as the Great Pyramid of Giza (in fact, Caral appears to predate Giza by around 100 years). The Andes have been home to large-scale states and monumental architecture for millennia.
This all happened without written records. Andean civilization, up to the time of the Spanish conquest, was an oral tradition where certain people were tasked with remembering the past. People in oral cultures (which includes all human cultures at some point) develop a tremendous capacity for remembering stories and songs. Later Andean societies could make notations using rows of tied strings, called quipu, but these appeared to be for accounting purposes rather than narrative (though there is some debate on the matter).
Andean societies also thrived in inhospitable environments. The Andes are caught between dense rainforests and deserts. Still, this environment has advantages as its people had access to a wider variety of resources, and the Pacific Ocean was a rich source of food.
The Inca Empire rose in the 12th century CE in Cusco, and their history before that remains shrouded in myth. Under Pachacuti (1438-1471), the empire began a campaign of expansion and consolidation, subjugating conquered people through forceful resettling. Conquered people were conscripted into forced labor or drafted as warriors, fueling the mountain war machine.
The term “Inca” refers to the rulers of this society and was not necessarily a name for the larger society. Instead, they were Quechua speakers, and likely referred to themselves as “runa,” which simply means “people.” Their kingdom was called Tawantinsuyu, the “kingdom of the four parts,” referring to the four cardinal directions. Originally, this society was based in the capital of Cuzco, but the Inca expanded via conquest, overtaking other Quechua and non-Quechua-speaking neighbors, eventually ruling over an area from the edge of modern-day Colombia through Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and western parts of Argentina. Impressively, they did all this not only without writing, but also without wheels, using a system of maintained mountain roads and llama pack animals.
Quechua religion involved, and still involves, the veneration of deities, sacred spaces, mountains, etc. However, simply calling these “sacred” does not do them justice. Mountains and the like were active personalities, intimately involved in the lives of those around them. The sun also made its mark; the Incan leader was “the son of the sun,” giving natural legitimacy to the Incan social project.
The Inca industry involved advanced textile production, and they could cut stone so precisely that larger stone works held together without the use of mortar. While earlier Andean societies focused on maritime goods, the Inca cultivated potatoes, beans, tomatoes, and other produce en masse in terraced farms and canals. In warfare, the Inca used weapons of copper or bronze as well as hardened wooden spears – they were also adept at using the terrain to their advantage, rolling boulders downhill toward their enemies when they could.
The Inca had an abundance of silver and gold, a wealth that would eventually doom them as Europeans sought these precious metals. The mountain of Potosi held vast quantities of such ore, allowing the Inca to decorate their temples and their kings with stunning works of art. For the Inca, gold was the sweat of the sun, produced by the sweat of their workers.
The Sapa Inca was the descendant of the sun and ruled the people. Like the Egyptians, the Inca practiced brother/sister marriage to keep this bloodline pure. Royalty was set apart by class distinctions, as were the nobility, and this hierarchical structure was transposed onto the rest of the empire.
Ruin fell on the empire before the Europeans appeared, as smallpox and other diseases ravaged the peaks. In 1532, Pizarro arrived with his runa quicachac (“destroyers of people”), as the Inca described them, and he found the empire on the brink of collapse. At first, the Spanish attempted to communicate with the Inca, but that failed. In frustration, Pizarro seized the Sapa Inca, holding him hostage while demanding ever-increasing quantities of gold for his release. That release never came.
The ruler's death prompted a period of rebellion as the Spanish attempted to install puppet kings, but the empire continued to fall into chaos. This turmoil existed on all fronts as Pizarro’s conquistador, Diego de Almagro, claimed the region for himself, sparking a larger war – conquistador versus conquistador, indigenous versus indigenous. The fight was settled – on the Spanish side – when Almagro was promised Chile and Pizarro carved out Peru for himself. The war had claimed over 10 million indigenous lives and was so catastrophic that it altered the geography of Peru: the indigenous people stopped making shell deposits along the shore, exposing the coast to the Pacific.
Cities[]
Trivia[]
- The Incan civilization's symbol is the chakana, which is thought to represent Cusco (Qusqu) and the Southern Cross.
- The Incan civilization ability is the English plural form of apu, meaning "lord" in Quechua, and referring to sacred mountains or rocks inhabited by protective local deities or spirits. The plural in Quechua be "apukuna".
- The Incan background art depicts the Inti Raymi ("Sun Festival"), dedicated to the solar god Inti, being celebrated in front of a temple. The temple appears visually inspired by the Temple of the Sun at Machu Pikchu.
Soundtrack[]
| Original Track | № | Based on | Credits | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Inca Empire (Exploration Age)" | 24 | Wiphala Siempre Macho |
Composed by Roland Rizzo Performed by Sandro Friedrich & Niccolo Seligman |
4:24 |
The Incan theme is a popular Quechua Huayno song called "Carnaval de Tambobamba" also known by the name "Wiphala", meaning "flag" in Quechua. It was originally composed by the notable 20th century Peruvian writer and anthropologist José María Arguedas. This song was also part of the Civ6 soundtrack as an ambient theme for the Inca.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Incan city in-game (Civ7).jpg (6.6 MB)")
.jpg "Machu Pikchu in-game (Civ7).jpg (809 KB)")
.png "Incan Background (Civ7).png (1.76 MB)")
Videos[]
See also[]
- Incan in other games
External links[]
| Civilization VII Civilizations [edit] | |
|---|---|
| Antiquity | |
| Exploration | |
| Modern | |
| 1 Requires DLC | |