Nuclear accident (Civ6)

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Nuclear accident icon

A nuclear accident is a disaster in Civilization VI: Gathering Storm that can occur in an Industrial Zone with a Nuclear Power Plant. It is the only man-made disaster featured in the game.

Mechanics

Once built, a Nuclear Power Plant starts to age. The age of a Nuclear Power Plant (displayed in-game as Reactor Age when hovering over the city project Recommission Nuclear Reactor) is defined as the number of turns that have passed since the Power Plant was first constructed, converted to, or last recommissioned.

As the Reactor Age increases, the likelihood of a nuclear accident increases, as does the potential severity of the accident.

Completing the city project Recommission Nuclear Reactor resets the Reactor Age to 0 (in the city with the aging Nuclear Power Plant).

There are three levels of accidents, each successively more severe and made possible by higher Reactor Age:

Accident	Reactor Age	Fallout duration	Effects
Radioactive Steam Venting	10+	2	Radioactive steam escapes from the plant. The Power Plant is pillaged, and there is a 10% chance that any improvements in the affected tiles are pillaged and a 20% chance that any buildings in the affected tiles are pillaged.
Major Radiation Leak	20+	10	Radioactive substances leak from the plant's reactor. The Power Plant and all other buildings in the affected tiles are pillaged. There is a 50% chance that any districts in the affected tiles are pillaged and a 40% chance that any improvements in the affected tiles are pillaged. There is a 50% chance that any civilian units in the affected tiles are killed and a 50% chance that any military units and the defenses of any City Centers or Encampments in the affected tiles are damaged.
Nuclear Meltdown	30+	20	The plant's reactor overheats and explodes. The Power Plant is destroyed, all districts, buildings, and improvements in the affected tiles are pillaged, and there is an 80% chance that any Citizens working the affected tiles are killed. All civilian units in the affected tiles are killed, and all military units and the defenses of all City Centers or Encampments in the affected tiles are damaged.

Any unit ending its turn on a tile with fallout will suffer 50 damage. A Builder, Military Engineer, Legion or Toa can scrub the fallout.

Prior to the Antarctic Late Summer Update, a nuclear accident could be inadvertently triggered by pillaging the Nuclear Power Plant (either with a military unit, or by having a Spy carry out the Sabotage Production mission). Also, subsequent to this update, the Recommission Nuclear Reactor project will automatically repair a pillaged Nuclear Power Plant.

In-game disaster descriptions

Type	Severity	Description
Nuclear accident	Radioactive Steam Venting	Engineers in the Nuclear Power Plant control room work feverishly to contain a spreading leak. They have already prevented a worse outcome, but the situation is still serious.
	Major Radiation Leak	Alarms sound at the Nuclear Power Plant! Jets of steam rise from cracks in the reactor and dosimeters click and whir as radiation blankets the area.
	Nuclear Meltdown	An ominous explosion thunders, and a dark plume rises above the Nuclear Power Plant. One by one, the wailing of sirens becomes a shrieking chorus, as hellish lumps of burning fuel begin to rain down.

Gallery

Radioactive Steam Venting

Major Radiation Leak

Nuclear Meltdown