Statue of Zeus (Civ6)

Statue of Zeus
World wonder of the Classical Era
Introduced in Byzantium & Gaul Pack
Unlocked by	Military Training
Production cost	400
Removed if game started after	Renaissance Era
Effects
+3 Gold. Grants 3 Spearmen, 3 Archers, and a Battering Ram. +50% Production towards anti-cavalry units.

Back to the list of wonders

 "Upon the head of the god was an olive crown; in his right hand he bore a winged figure of Victory."
– Samuel Augustus Mitchell

The Statue of Zeus is a Classical Era wonder in Civilization VI. It must be built on flat land adjacent to an Encampment with a Barracks.

• Effects:
  • +3 Gold
  • Grants 3 Spearmen, 3 Archers, and a Battering Ram.
  • +50% Production towards anti-cavalry units across your civilization.

Strategy

The most useful benefit of the Statue of Zeus is 50% Production towards anti-cavalry units anywhere in your empire for the rest of the game. Additionally, it saves you 40 total Production on the Archers, Spearmen, and Battering Ram (400 versus 440 for all 7). The wonder makes anti-cavalry units more appealing by making them a lot cheaper, especially when you can stack the Production bonus with policy cards, so it goes well with aggressive leaders/civilizations that favor the use of anti-cavalry or have a strong preference for quantity over quality - most notably Gorgo, Shaka, Ambiorix, and Macedon.

When playing as Gorgo, you instantly gain three Hoplites and halve the Production cost of all future Hoplites when you build the Statue of Zeus, allowing you to begin swarming your neighbors. Keep in mind, though, that the Hoplite is the weakest link in the Greek arsenal, and Hoplites/Spearmen lose relevance very quickly. Once this happens, Gorgo has absolutely no incentive to use anti-cavalry units over melee units, so this wonder isn't a great long-term investment for Gorgo.

Shaka is probably the only leader who would want to go out of their way to build the Statue of Zeus, with which he can produce his already-cheap Impi even faster. This bonus also applies to producing the Corps and Armies the Zulus can access long before anyone else.

Ambiorix's Combat Strength bonus applies to anti-cavalry units and he generally prefers quantity to quality, so cheap units equal good units in his book. Besides, the seven free units granted upon completing the Statue of Zeus grant Ambiorix 88 Culture, which is about two-thirds of a free civic in this era.

Macedon's Basilikoi Paides will give you a burst of 110 Science when the Statue of Zeus is completed. Furthermore, if you want to take Macedon down a Science-focused route on the back of the Basilikoi Paides, this wonder is quite valuable. The extra Production from the wonder combined with the appropriate policy cards can make anti-cavalry units incredibly cheap, and Macedon can produce them en masse and delete the units right after for the sole purpose of generating huge bursts of Science. This may be a bit less useful if you're playing a highly militaristic game as Macedon since they don't have a strong preference for anti-cavalry units, but cheap Science is always lovely.

Civilopedia entry

Phidias, the master sculptor who supervised the construction of the Parthenon, saw the statue of Athena within, and said, “Yes, but make it bigger.” Zeus would have been pleased by that statement, no doubt, and even happier by the outcome of his monument. The final statue featured Zeus seated on a throne and sat a massive 40 feet (he would have hit his head on the temple’s roof if he’d stood up). Gold and ivory were molded over a wooden core to create the god in all of his glory. Other precious materials like silver, ebony, and jewels were etched in to make fine details. On top of the god’s head was a wreath of olive branches and in his right hand the goddess Nike. An eagle perched on his scepter. For all of the statue (and Zeus’s) power, the statue was eventually removed and destroyed by either fire or natural disaster.

Trivia

• With the introduction of the Statue of Zeus, all Seven Wonders of the Ancient World now feature in Civilization VI. Four were introduced in the base game, one in the Persia and Macedon Civilization & Scenario Pack, and one in Rise and Fall.
• There are two unused quotes for this wonder in the game files:
  •  "So did he speak, and, at pausing, he sign'd with his shadowy eyebrows, And the ambrosial curls from the Head Everlasting were shaken, And at the nod of the King deep-trembled the lofty Olympus."
    – Homer
  •  "This is some hapless wanderer that has come hither. Him must we now tend, for all strangers and beggars are from Zeus."
    – Homer

Gallery

The Statue of Zeus completed

The Statue of Zeus, as seen in-game

See also

• Statue of Zeus in other games