Rise of the Mongols (Civ5)

Rise of the Mongols image

Rise of the Mongols is a scenario in Civilization V that was released with the Civilization and Scenario Pack: Mongols (Genghis Khan). The player plays as the Mongols and is supposed to annihilate (not just take the Capital of) at least four major civilizations before running out of turns.

Intro

Scenario Description

All hail the mighty Khan, the new ruler of the united tribes of the Central Asian plateau! You have brought the Merkits, Naimans, Keraits, and Tatars under your domain, joining them with your own faithful Mongol Keshiks. Now that you command 5 tribes of horsemen, it is time to bring the rest of Eurasia under the Mongol yoke. But don't think this is necessarily an easy task - you must keep your greedy clansmen happy. They have promised to stay faithful to your Yassa code only if you can provide them adequate spoils of war. So there is no time to waste: journey out across the steppes and let your conquests begin!

Victory Conditions

Victory is yours if you can conquer 4 or more major civilizations before 100 turns have elapsed. (On Difficulty Levels higher than Prince, you will need to conquer more than 4.) Tarry longer than the allotted time and your compatriots will grow impatient, causing your once mighty empire to dissolve into squabbling fiefdoms.

Special Rules

The spoils you receive from conquest will be numerous and varied, all providing needed boosts and resources to continue pushing forward. For example, the troops of militaristic city states will join your forces. A cultural city state will provide a free social policy. And a maritime city state will provide extra gold for your treasury. Best of all, for conquering a major civilization you will receive a free technology and even greater riches!

Gameplay

All of the civilizations in this scenario have access to their standard unique units and buildings. Mongolia is the only playable civilization, and gains unique benefits from capturing City-States. The benefits awarded are dependent on the type of City-State that is conquered: Militaristic City-States award you with a couple pre-selected, but free units near your capital; Cultured city states award a free Social Policy; Maritime City-States provide a sum of Gold.

The scenario ends when the required number of civilizations (minimum of 4, increases by 1 per level of difficulty above Prince) have been totally conquered, or when 100 turns elapse. Allowing 100 turns to pass before conquering the required number of civilizations results in failing the scenario.

At the starting year of 1206, the Mongols only have one city (Karakorum) and six war units with unique names:

• One Keshik, representing the Mongols proper.
• Four Horsemen, representing four other tribes: Kereit, Merkits, Naimans and Tatars.
• One Khan, representing Genghis.

In addition, the Honor social policy tree is unlocked together with Warrior Code, Discipline and Military Caste policies. There are enough initial Culture points to adopt another social policy.

Civilizations

• Genghis Khan (Mongolia)
  • Unique Ability: Mongol Terror ( Combat Strength +30% when fighting City-State units or attacking a City-State itself. All mounted units have +1 Movement.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Keshik, Khan (Great Person)
  • Starting Cities: Karakorum
  • Notes: Begins play with one Keshik, Khan, and four Horsemen.
• Catherine (Russia)
  • Unique Ability: Siberian Riches (Strategic Resources provide +1 Production, and Horses, Iron and Uranium Resources provide double quantity.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Cossack
  • Unique Building: Krepost
  • Starting Cities: Kiev (capital), Vladimir, Novgorod
  • Notes: Representing the small Russian principalities.
• Darius I (Persia)
  • Unique Ability: Achaemenid Legacy ( Golden Ages last 50% longer. During a Golden Age, units receive +1 Movement and a +10% Combat Strength bonus.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Immortal
  • Unique Building: Satrap's Court
  • Starting Cities: Urgench (capital), Samarkand, Tabriz, Isfahan, Nishapur
  • Notes: Representing the Khwarazmian Empire, which was led by Muhammad II in 1200–1221.
• Gandhi (India)
  • Unique Ability: Population Growth ( Unhappiness from number of Cities doubled, Unhappiness from number of Citizens halved.)
  • Unique Unit(s): War Elephant
  • Unique Building: Mughal Fort
  • Starting Cities: Delhi (capital), Multan, Lahore, Varanasi
  • Notes: Representing the Delhi Sultanate, which was led by Qutb ud-Din Aibak in 1206–1210 and by Iltutmish in 1221 when Mongols appeared in India for the first time.
• Harun al-Rashid (Arabia)
  • Unique Ability: Trade Caravans (+1 Gold from each Trade Route. Oil resources provide double quantity.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Camel Archer
  • Unique Building: Bazaar
  • Starting Cities: Cairo (capital), Damascus, Aleppo, Mecca
  • Notes: Representing the Ayyubid dynasty and the succeeding Mamluk sultanate; the latter was led by Qutuz during the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260 where Mongols have been decisively defeated.
• Michael VIII (Byzantium)
  • Unique Ability: Hellenic League ( City-State Influence degrades at half and recovers at twice the normal rate.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Companion Cavalry, Hoplite
  • Starting Cities: Constantinople (capital), Thessalonica
  • Notes: Uses Greece's colors and unique features; it predates the separate Byzantine civilization which was only added in Gods and Kings.
• Oda Nobunaga (Japan)
  • Unique Ability: Bushido (Units fight as though they were at full strength even when damaged.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Samurai, Zero
  • Starting Cities: Kyoto (capital), Kamakuro, Dazaifu
  • Notes: Representing the Kamakura shogunate during the Hōjō Regency. The de facto leader of Japan during the Mongols invasions of 1274 and 1281 was Hōjō Tokimune.
• Wu Zetian (China)
  • Unique Ability: Art of War (The Great General combat bonus is doubled, and their spawn rate is increased by 50%.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Chu-Ko-Nu
  • Unique Building: Paper Maker
  • Starting Cities: Hangzhou (capital), Chengdu, Guangzhou, Tanzhou, Xiangyang
  • Notes: Representing the Southern Song Dynasty, led in 1206 by Ningzong. Just like in actual history, China may launch an invasion of the Jin Dynasty in an effort to reclaim lost territory.
• Zhangzong (Jin)
  • Unique Ability: Father Governs Children ( Food and Culture from friendly City-States increased by 50%.)
  • Unique Unit(s): Naresuan's Elephant
  • Unique Building: Wat
  • Starting Cities: Beijing (capital), Kaifeng, Xian, Liaoyang
  • Notes: Uses Siam's colors and unique features. Starts with the Great Wall wonder in Beijing.

Special features

City-states

Type	City-State	Capture Reward
	Abbasids	500 Gold
	Crusader States	500 Gold
	Dai Viet	500 Gold
	Dali	2 Pikemen
	Georgia	Free Social Policy
	Hungary	Free Social Policy
	Korea	2 Crossbowmen
	Lhasa	Free Social Policy
	Uighur	Free Social Policy
	Western Xia	2 Horsemen

Strategy

Share your wisdom! How do you play this scenario? Let the world know by editing this section.

See also: Domination victory (Civ5) § Strategies

Winning the scenario would require an aggressive rush, as at least four civilizations must be eliminated completely in a relatively short span of 100 turns. As such, do not focus on city development too much, and the cities should be conquered as quickly as possible. Focusing on Gold production might be preferable as units can be purchased instantly, as long as your city is not garrisoned at the moment.

Since the Horsemen are melee units, you might want to upgrade them to Keshiks before they get their first promotion. However, a melee attacking unit is still necessary to conquer a city after wearing its defenses down with ranged attacks, so it might be preferable to keep a non-upgraded Horseman if you want to rush a city right at the start, because non-mounted melee units such as Pikemen are much slower. If you choose to adopt Professional Army, you can use your initial Gold reserves to upgrade three Horsemen at turn 1, leaving the fourth to assault cities. Nonetheless, Horsemen have a big penalty against cities, so regular melee units would eventually be needed, in enough numbers to conquer cities rapidly.

Be wary of Barbarians; those could distract you from conquering major civilizations. Wipe them out to get more Gold and Culture points, as well as experience for lower-level units.

Managing Happiness is important, as in a regular Domination victory game; try to not let it go down to -10 or lower, because this will severely diminish your Production and the effectiveness of your troops. Make full use of Military Caste and Professional Army civics by establishing garrisons (any military unit will suffice) and constructing defensive buildings such as Walls. Generally, the conquered cities must be turned into puppets; developing a new center for building combat units would take too much time unless you have a lot of money. Razing is also an option, as long as the city has no beneficial wonders or resources (especially luxury ones) and does not have an advantageous geographical position; however, this will cause a short-term spike of Unhappiness. Note that you cannot raze city-states or original capitals of major civilizations.

An expansive road network, representing the Silk Road, connects several civilizations and some city-states. Build roads to connect Karakorum and some of your conquests to this network. This will increase your income by establishing Trade Routes, as well as make it easier for you to move troops from the capital. If needed, you can capture and force Workers from your opponents to build the roads.

The city-state of Western Xia is the closest target to Karakorum, located to the south; you might try rushing it first. Conquering city-states is made easier by the Mongols’ unique ability, as well as zero penalty for Keshik ranged attacks against cities. Capturing Western Xia will spawn two Horsemen at your capital, which can be used for scouting or for further conquests. It is also recommended to capture a Worker, especially since the city-state is not connected to the Silk Road. Two other closest city-states to conquer are the Uighurs and Lhasa, which give free social policies. Note that the major civilizations would not be blind to your conquest of city-states, especially ones under their protection or patronage. This is doubly so in the case of Western Xia, which both the Jin and China (the Southern Song) would try to take from your control. Also, other city-states may declare permanent war on you.

The Jin is the closest major civilization to Mongolia, which might also be invaded by the Southern Song in their attempt to reunite China. While the Chinese distraction could provide an opportunity, beware that the Jin have access to the Naresuan’s Elephant, which has tremendous strength against mounted units. The Jin capital, Beijing, has the Great Wall wonder, which nullifies your cavalry’s speed advantage over the elephants in their territory. You may want to wait until the Jin troops cross their borders or at least come close enough for your Keshiks to shoot at. After clearing your way, besiege and conquer Beijing, then watch your opponents crawl through your newly conquered lands, unable to escape your arrows! Further east are Liaoyang, another Jin city, and the city-state of Korea, which upon conquest will give you a pair of Crossbowmen that you could use as city garrisons. However, be ready to face the Southern Song Chinese as they will likely try to take former Jin cities for themselves.

If you intend to conquer Japan, which is located across the sea further away from Korea, you will need to research the relevant technologies, starting with Sailing. You might also consider annexing a coastal city (such as Korea) so that you could build ships, but only after its resistance period ended.

Related achievements

Khan Beat the Mongol scenario on any difficulty. (Is this a reference to something in popular culture? Please add the information here!)

Great Khan Beat the Mongol scenario on the King or harder difficulty level. (Is this a reference to something in popular culture? Please add the information here!)

Supreme Khan Beat the Mongol scenario on the Emperor or harder difficulty level. Each Mongol warlord was called Khan, so when Temujin united all the Mongols under his rule a new title had to be invented and given to him, Genghis Khan. "Genghis" does not translate to "supreme" but it is a good description of the fact.

Kublai Khan Beat the Mongol scenario on the Immortal or harder difficulty level. References the grandson of Genghis Khan and subject of the eponymous poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

Genghis Khan Beat the Mongol scenario on the Deity difficulty level. (Is this a reference to something in popular culture? Please add the information here!)

Khaaan! Run out of time to beat the Mongol scenario. A reference to the famous scene in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan when Captain James T. Kirk yells "Khaaan!" into a communicator when Khan leaves him to die on a planet.

Civilization V Scenarios [edit]
1066: Year of Viking Destiny1 American Civil War Conquest of the New World1 Empires of the Smoky Skies Fall of Rome Into the Renaissance Paradise Found1 Rise of the Mongols1 Scramble for Africa The Samurai Invasion of Korea1 Wonders of the Ancient World1
1 Requires a DLC Added in the Gods & Kings expansion pack. Added in the Brave New World expansion pack.