Theocracy (Civ6)

Theocracy
Tier 2 Government of the Renaissance Era
Introduced in Civilization VI
Required civic	Reformed Church
Envoys	Grants 2 Envoys at 150 Influence points.
Influence points	5 per turn
Diplomatic favor	2 per turn
Cards
Military
Economic
Diplomatic
Wildcard
Effects
Can buy land combat units with Faith. All units +5 Religious Strength in theological combat. +5 Religious Strength in Theological Combat. +0.5 Faith per Citizen in cities with Governors. 15% Discount on Purchases with Faith.
Legacy bonus
Discount on Faith purchases (15%, plus 1% for every 15 turns on Standard speed). +5 Religious Strength in Theological Combat. +0.5 Faith per Citizen in cities with Governors.

Back to Governments

Theocracy is a form of Tier 2 government in Civilization VI. It is unlocked by the Reformed Church civic.

In Rise and Fall, this government's legacy bonus is conferred by Theocratic Legacy, a Wildcard policy unlocked by changing governments after adopting Theocracy and constructing a Tier 2 government building (Foreign Ministry, Grand Master's Chapel, Intelligence Agency, or Queen's Bibliotheque).

Strategy

Similar to Merchant Republic's Gold purchases and economic focus, Theocracy focuses on Faith purchases and religion. Religious civilizations, such as Spain, can make great use of Theocracy's benefits, even going so far as being able to attract Great People with patronage via Faith.

If you're engaging in theological combat with your neighbors, Theocracy will give +5 Religious Strength to your holy warriors. This will aid in converting more cities to your religion as each defeated enemy unit subtracts religious pressure from their religion while boosting pressure from yours.

Civilopedia entry

“As God Wills” is the mantra for a theocracy, whatever the religion. A theocracy is, simply, a form of government in which some deity is the immediate authority, usually personified by human representative(s) who interprets the “Word” for the common folk. In a pure theocracy, the civil leader has a direct connection to God – Moses for the Israelites, Muhammad for the Arabs, Joseph Smith for Deseret, the Pope for Vatican City, the Ayatollah for the Islamic Republic of Iran, etc. However, most of civilization’s examples of “rule by God” are in fact quasi-theocracies, in which the ruler is a demi-god or can claim a divine commission to rule. In such, the notion of separation of church and state is a heresy. And everyone knows what happens to heretics.

In ancient Egypt, the pharaoh was believed a demi-god, as was the emperor of the Aztecs. In other cases, the ruler’s connection to the divine was somewhat more tenuous … but effective in insuring secular obedience nonetheless. Due to their nature, theocracies tend to have a high level of patriotism (hence, answering the call for war is a matter of faith as well as civic duty), to be well organized as a temple, and enjoy higher productivity (again, as a matter of faith). The downside is that they tend to be rigid and slow to react, and hence prone to collapse in the face of crises.

Trivia

• The artwork for Theocracy depicts Maya from the statue of Maya and Merit from Leiden and the sphinx of Hatshepsut exhibited in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

See also

• Theocracy in other games