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==Strategy== |
==Strategy== |
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| + | For a long time, the Kurgan was, by a wide margin, the worst unique improvement in the entire game. Its pitiful yields made it a total waste of a citizen slot, and its only use was to secure an early [[Pantheon (Civ6)|pantheon]]. Thankfully, the [[Civilization VI April 2021 Update|April 2021 Update]] breathed new life into the Kurgan. Now, it is a tool for Scythia to be swimming in some of the most important yields in the game. |
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| − | Arguably the only unique tile improvement that can compete with the [[Scottish (Civ6)|Scottish]] [[Golf Course (Civ6)|Golf Course]] for the title of "the worst unique tile improvement in the game", the Kurgan's usefulness ends as quickly as it is unlocked. It can almost be used well for one purpose and one purpose only: to get a Pantheon without having to run the [[God King (Civ6)|God King]] policy card, and that is pretty much it. Both the {{Faith6}} and the {{Gold6}} output on this improvement are abysmal. {{Gold6}} is slightly more useful for [[Scythian (Civ6)|Scythia]] as a Domination civilization, especially when we consider that Scythia will field a massive cavalry army, but a Kurgan only provides 1 {{Gold6}}, and scales so poorly with further technology research and it can never be a decent source of {{Gold6}} to pay off the maintenance cost of units in any era. And if you play Religious Scythia, which is possible, you will still have to rely predominantly on your army and conquest for religious conversion, and [[Holy Site (Civ6)|Holy Site]] districts and buildings for {{Faith6}}, since there is absolutely no way this improvement alone can supply enough {{Faith6}} to pay for the ever-increasing cost of [[Missionary (Civ6)|Missionaries]] and [[Apostles (Civ6)|Apostles]]. Not to mention, for an improvement that does not provide {{Food6}}, {{Production6}}, {{Housing6}}, or any yield that is large enough to be meaningful to the civilization's preferred Victory path, it will be a huge burden for cities if you build too many of this. All in all, just one Kurgan, two if you really want a fast Pantheon, and then you will be better off saving those flat land tiles for Farms. This improvement should only be built on [[Desert (Civ6)|Desert]] or [[Tundra (Civ6)|Tundra]] where Farms cannot be built (which is pretty weird in itself why Scythia would settle or keep a conquered city on these terrains since they cannot make those cities very bustling or productive), or on tiles adjacent to at least 2 [[Pasture (Civ6)|Pastures]], because otherwise, it is a waste of a {{Citizen6}} Citizen that has to work an improvement that only provides 1 {{Gold6}} and 2 {{Faith6}}. |
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| + | The Kurgan's base yield of 1 {{Faith6}} and 3 {{Gold6}} is fantastic for the early game - it practically ensures that Scythia will have the highest {{Gold6}} output of any civilization until [[Commercial Hub (Civ6)|Commercial Hubs]] are available. This is fine support for Scythia's horde-based gameplay, allowing them to support an army of many units, and also lets them get their infrastructure up with great speed. If you research Animal Husbandry as your first technology, you will immediately be able to see every [[Pasture (Civ6)|Pasture]] resource in the game, and this allows you to choose the best positions for your Kurgans. Kurgans formerly had comically bad scaling - +1 {{Gold6}} with [[Guilds (Civ6)|Guilds]] and with [[Capitalism (Civ6)|Capitalism]] - but now, with [[Stirrups (Civ6)|Stirrups]], Kurgans next to two Pastures will produce 5 {{Faith6}} per turn, which also translates directly to {{Tourism6}} later on. Even Kurgans next to just one Pasture with Stirrups produce 3 {{Faith6}} and 3 {{Gold6}}, and Kurgans can be placed next to each other, so the theoretical maximum from just one Pasture (although achieving this is impractical) is 18 of each. And this is just the strategy to maximize {{Tourism6}}! If you just want to be rich, you can carpet the land in these improvements and generate +3 {{Gold6}} per turn on all of them from the very beginning of the game. |
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==Civilopedia entry== |
==Civilopedia entry== |
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Revision as of 14:11, 12 May 2021
Back to the list of tile improvements
The Kurgan is a unique tile improvement of the Scythian civilization in Civilization VI.
- Effects:
- Restrictions:
Strategy
For a long time, the Kurgan was, by a wide margin, the worst unique improvement in the entire game. Its pitiful yields made it a total waste of a citizen slot, and its only use was to secure an early pantheon. Thankfully, the April 2021 Update breathed new life into the Kurgan. Now, it is a tool for Scythia to be swimming in some of the most important yields in the game.
The Kurgan's base yield of 1 
Faith and 3 
Gold is fantastic for the early game - it practically ensures that Scythia will have the highest Gold output of any civilization until Commercial Hubs are available. This is fine support for Scythia's horde-based gameplay, allowing them to support an army of many units, and also lets them get their infrastructure up with great speed. If you research Animal Husbandry as your first technology, you will immediately be able to see every Pasture resource in the game, and this allows you to choose the best positions for your Kurgans. Kurgans formerly had comically bad scaling - +1 Gold with Guilds and with Capitalism - but now, with Stirrups, Kurgans next to two Pastures will produce 5 Faith per turn, which also translates directly to 
Tourism later on. Even Kurgans next to just one Pasture with Stirrups produce 3 Faith and 3 Gold, and Kurgans can be placed next to each other, so the theoretical maximum from just one Pasture (although achieving this is impractical) is 18 of each. And this is just the strategy to maximize Tourism! If you just want to be rich, you can carpet the land in these improvements and generate +3 Gold per turn on all of them from the very beginning of the game.
Civilopedia entry
For some reason, some of civilization’s greatest feats of engineering and construction are mausoleums and tombs, and, for some reason, these great piles are usually reserved for military and political leaders. For the Scythians these piles were great mounds of dirt, now called kurgans, from the Turkish word for “mound.” It appears that a number of the barbarian nomads of the steppes of Central Asia began interring their leaders in these mounds sometime around the 4th Century BC. By the Early Iron Age, the kurgans of the Scythians and other tribes were truly impressive mounds, some as much as 500 meters (1600 feet) across at the base, and might stand as high as 27 meters (89 feet). So, these tended to stand out on the rolling open terrain of the steppes. And then the Scythians decorated the tumuli with the bodies of slaves and horses, just to insure it got everyone’s attention that here lie a great man (or perhaps woman).
Gallery
