Plague (Antiquity) (Civ7)

For the Plague Crisis in the Exploration Age, see Plague (Exploration) (Civ7).

The Plague is one of the possible Crises that can occur during the Antiquity Age in Civilization VII and its expansions. Its theme centers on the Antonine Plague — a historical epidemic that claimed millions of lives during the classical period.

Theme[]

The Plague Crisis centers around the spread of infection across Settlements and tiles. At any point during the Crisis, a Settlement may become infected. When this occurs, the Settlement immediately enters Unrest, and a random number of nearby tiles become afflicted — visually marked by a green, fog-like cloud hovering over them.

Each infected tile destroys any Buildings or Improvements on it upon impact. These must be repaired using Production, as Settlements in Unrest cannot spend Gold. Infected tiles may continue to spread the plague to adjacent tiles, causing further destruction, but cannot spread to tiles in other Settlements. Additionally, any Unit — whether Military or Civilian — that ends its turn on an infected tile will take damage. This damage is randomized but typically ranges between 30 and 50 HP.

Each outbreak lasts for a limited number of turns, after which the player is notified that the Settlement has been cleansed and the disease has been eradicated there. Once cleansed, the Settlement exits Unrest and all plague tiles around it disappear. However, as the Crisis progresses through its phases, the number of infected tiles increases, and the likelihood of new outbreaks becomes higher.

Outbreaks are entirely random and cannot be prevented or influenced by any player action. However, once a Settlement has experienced and recovered from an outbreak, it is permanently immune to further infections during that Crisis.

Crisis flow[]

Plague
Phase 1 — A Strange Year
After the rains, harder and heavier than before, unusual verdure covers the fields. Rats and mice follow, and farmers who smiled at their earlier fortune now crease their brows in frustration. And, worse — at the fringes of the land, illness spreads.
Continue the crisis	+1 Crisis Policy slot. Unlocks 2 Crisis Policies.
Crisis Policies
Healing Cults	+5 Happiness on Altars in infected Settlements but -10 Gold on all Altars.
Prognosis	+2 Science on Science Buildings in infected Settlements but -4 Gold on all Science Buildings.
Phase 2 — The House of Healing
The houses of healing, normally places of quiet whispers and muffled footfalls, overflow. The sick and dying stumble, or are carried, towards already overcrowded halls. Eventually, the healers seal the doors. Some evil grips the land.
Continue the crisis	+1 Crisis Policy slot. The plague grows stronger. Unlocks 3 Crisis Policies.
Crisis Policies
Miasma	Gain 1 Migrant when a City is infected but -25% growth in all Cities.
Prosecute Apostates	+5 Happiness in infected Settlements with a stationed Commander but -5 Happiness in all Settlements with no Altar.
Recruitment Shortfalls	+2 Food in Towns but -15 healing on all Units.
Phase 3 — The Hollow Land
Villages sit empty and lifeless. Grass pokes out of thatched roofs, and a tree sprouts from a treshold, with only a glint of bone tangled in the roots to show that once this was a place of human habitation. The few travelers pass by without a glance; these sights are commonplace.
Continue the crisis	+1 Crisis Policy slot. The plague grows stronger.
The end — Regrowth
The survivors cluster, their eyes filled with memories of what has been lost, but also what remains. Empty lands demand new owners, and fallow fields new plowings. From the ashes of this land will rise a new birth, and the plague's memories will fade, in time, like dreams.
The Age of Antiquity is ending.	Who will carry our legacy?

Legacies[]

Legacy Bonus	Requirement	Legacy point cost	Effect
Minister the Sick	Have 4 Altars.	2	Gain the Piety Civic for free +50% Production towards Temples.
Labor Shortage	Have at least 6 infected Settlements.	2	Gain the Machinery Technology for free and +20% Production towards overbuilding.