| King of Kings | the Achaemenid |
- "Under my hand, wherever there is conflict and chaos I strike it down. I will have peace, even amidst ashes."
Xerxes I (c. 518 – August 465 BC), commonly known as Xerxes the Great, was King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire from 486 BC until his death. He is best known for his invasion of Greece, achieving multiple victories and razing Athens before being forced to retreat after defeat. Upon his return to Persia, he dedicated himself to the construction of large monuments, such as the Gate of All Nations and the Apadana. He is a leader in Civilization VII.
This is one of Xerxes's two alternate personas, the other being Xerxes, King of Kings. He is available with the Xerxes (The Achaemenid) Persona DLC.
Intro[]
Shah of shahs, you bring the fire of ambition to the world. Its light glitters off of the gold in your throne room - and the bronze blades of your warriors. You conceive of a new world, one of wonders rising from the wilderness, of an empire that defies time, and one that will never forget your name - Xerxes.
In-Game[]
Xerxes, the Achaemenid has the Cultural and Economic attributes. His default colors are olive and jet black.
His leader ability is Silk Road. It grants +1 Trade Route limit with all other leaders and +10 Trade Range, as well as +50 
Culture and +100 
Gold per Age after creating a Trade Route or Road and +1 Culture and Gold per Age on Unique Buildings and Unique Tile improvements.
His agenda is Lord of Coin. His Relationship decreases by a Medium Amount if a player has at least as many Trade Routes as he does, and increases by a Small Amount if they don't.
Strategy[]
Different from his other persona, Xerxes the Achaemenid focuses less on warfare but more on economy. He wants his empire to become the trading hub of the world while fostering a unique identity and culture through his bonuses towards trade and unique infrastructure.
Culture and Gold on unique infrastructure[]
Nice yields on a Step Pyramid, 2 Institutes and a Potkop in the Modern Age.
Xerxes gets bonus Gold from all unique infrastructure, including both buildings and improvements, so any civilization that has unique improvements tend to take advantage of this ability better, especially in the Antiquity Age, during which Gold is generally in short supply. Unique improvements tend to pale in power and in players' perception, compared to unique buildings and quarters, but in this case, extra Gold and even Culture may make them worth it, because improvements can proliferate throughout your empire much more than a maximum of 2 Gold and Culture from buildings per Age.
On top of that, befriending city-states can unlock more unique improvements in case the default ones of the selected civilization cannot be spammed too well due to placement or terrain restrictions, or sometimes your civilization just doesn't have a unique improvement. Having a good income allows buying more unique improvements, leading to very high yields across the empire. Note that in Civilization VII, unique improvements can only be built on top and replace a basic improvement, so actually, Towns tend to take advantage of this (using Gold) better than Cities where buildings and quarters are normally the priorities.
- The Emporium, which is unlocked by becoming the Suzerain of an economic city-state, is particularly valuable, adding +2
Gold to a tile and an additional +2 Gold if a resource is assigned to the Settlement where it's built. A possibly unintentional interaction adds +2 Gold for each additional Emporium built in the same Settlement, so a City with 3 Emporiums would earn 4 Gold from the first one, 6 from the second one, 8 from the third one, and so on. Moreover, the cost of buying Emporiums is low compared to other available improvements. In summary, Emporiums will start paying for themselves very quickly and build up a high per-turn income that can then bee used for converting Towns to Cities and buying units and buildings.
To further turbocharge your unique improvements, don't forget about the Serpent Mound in the Exploration Age. Extra 
Science and 
Production from the Serpent Mound on top of your Culture and Gold can make these improvements no less bountiful than buildings at only a fraction of a building's cost (although they cannot host Specialists like Quarters),.
If your civilization has unique buildings, not improvements, try to aim to be the Suzerain of an Economic city-state soon, and investing heavily into Emporiums as early as possible allows one to generate lots of Gold to create more Cities than usual to establish unique Districts. The effects of the unique districts are retained throughout the ages, so it can be a very powerful foundation for the rest of the game.
Culture and Gold for starting a Trade Route[]
Establishing Trade Routes with Xerxes gives a good amount of Gold and Culture as well, so it's important to start establishing them early. The amount of Culture given is particularly useful in the early stages of the Antiquity Age, so aim for Code of Laws as fast as you can, since a flat amount of 50 Culture later in the same Age isn't as useful. The same thing can be said for Economics in Exploration and Steam Engine in Modern. Also, bear in mind that in the Modern Age, you don't have to walk your Merchant all the way to the destination, as the Trade Route can be established instantly, so go get your sweet (and very easy) 150 Culture per Trade Route. Also, war declarations immediately end all Trade Route, so if you want to maximize the number of times a Trade Route is established, send your Merchants to the most hostile empires first, since they may declare war on you, and after making peace, you can rinse and repeat for even more Gold and Culture.
Extra Trade Route limit with other leaders[]
Xerxes starts with a maximum of 2 Trade Routes with every other leaders, which can save quite a bit of 
Influence. This extra Influence should be invested into friendly greetings and supporting/initiating agreements with other empires to ensure their friendliness and prevent the disruption of trade because of war. This is especially useful with your next door neighbors, since they are most likely the most hostile ones against you (due to a negative relationship modifier from borders touching), and also they are the easiest one to establish a Trade Route with in the early game. Remember, you are not playing the aggressive persona of Xerxes, being overly aggressive and expansionistic actually hurts Xerxes the Achaemenid, so it is usually a lot more beneficial to rely on diplomacy in Antiquity to build the staggering economic advantage for the future ages, when the 
Settlement limit becomes less of an issue. As with all other trade-reliant leaders and civilizations, a friendly greeting with just 20 Influence and just being a nice guy can take you a long way.
Recommended civilizations[]
Antiquity[]
While it may sound unorthodox, the Mississippians provide pretty much everything Xerxes dreams of: a unique Merchant, the Watonathi, that grants even more Gold (25 per Resource acquired) when a Trade Route is created, an amazing defensive Ranged unit, the Burning Arrow, and most important, a great improvement focused on growth that can be spammed everywhere due to a lax restriction, the Potkop. Due to Xerxes' Desert bias, the Potkop actually alleviates the 
Food shortage a Desert empire often runs into, allowing Settlement to grow a bit more than usual.
A bit more common and expected civilization is Aksum, where the Hawilt also has a very lax placement restriction. Both Aksum and Xerxes have a focus on generating Gold, so they are really synergistic, although it can be quite one-dimensional, since Gold is quite easy to generate in abundance. Also, the Aksumite unique units, while also have a focus on trade, are not all that powerful.
The Han is also an acceptable option for Xerxes, giving him a scientific and diplomatic bend, making it a well rounded combination. The Great Wall can be put down easily with few restrictions if you really want to make it your focus, and you can use the extra Influence of the Han to appease other empires and expand your trade network even more.
A more unconventional choice for Xerxes is Carthage. Despite lacking a unique improvement, Carthage's unique buildings can be constructed in both towns and cities, as long as they have a coastal tile to put them on. Their unique ability however gives you two Merchant units every time that you build one. This makes it very easy and quick to max out your trade route slots. The lack of a unique improvement does make it more important to spend your Influence on befriending independent powers, making that an even more scarce resource. On the other hand, all your extra gold will go to good use, as Carthage has ample use for it and makes the same amount of gold reach further than other Antiquity era civs. Use it to buy coastal infrastructure with the Gaulos policy, buy and maintain a navy with the Quinquireme policy or use your gold to purchase the Carthaginian unique unit, the Numidian Cavalry. All the extra resources that you got from your trade routes will boost the combat strength of this unit even further, making you a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield as well.
Exploration[]
There is currently no Exploration civilization with outstanding synergy with Xerxes the Achaemenid and what he has to offer, although there are some that are worth considering:
- Songhai is probably the one with the highest level of synergy with Xerxes. A spammable tile improvement that can be built on Desert tiles (Xerxes' bias) and a unique Merchant sound pretty good. To a lesser degree, the Shawnee with their unique improvement. However, if you want to play as either of these civilizations, plan ahead, and establish your core Settlements around navigable rivers. They don't naturally go well with Xerxes with little planning in the Antiquity Age.
- The Abbasid is simply an amazing, well-rounded civilization under any leader with little Antiquity planning to be effective. If you are lucky enough with your Camels spawn, it is always safe to go for them.
- The Ming with their Ming Great Wall can take good advantage of Xerxes' bonus towards improvements. Also, easy to unlock regardless of your starting civilization.
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Modern[]
Depending what you do in the previous Age and what you plan for the Modern Age, there can be a few acceptable choices for Xerxes:
- Mughal is the best choice for Xerxes in the Modern Age, as they are an economic powerhouse who can really empower Xerxes. However, they can be quite one-dimensional as a civilization, as they work best toward an Economic Victory and are hindered toward any other Victory.
- Qing is also not bad a choice (so yes, Xerxes works well with the 3 Chinese civilizations Han-Ming-Qing), a decent economic civilization with a unique Merchant.
- If you play as the Songhai or the Shawnee earlier and have lots of navigable river in your empire, Siam is an okay follow-up. They have a cultural bend and a unique improvement that can go on navigable rivers.
Recommended mementos[]
Xerxes, the Achaemenid synergizes very well with all 3 of his mementos:
- Incense Censer: +2 Culture per Age for every active Trade Route.
- Gold Fluted Phiale: +1 Trade Route limit with all other leaders.
- Chalcedony Seal: +3 Culture and Gold for unique buildings and improvements if you have 3 or more unique buildings or improvements.
Lines[]
Xerxes is voiced by Mario Miguel De Candia. He speaks Avestan.[1]
| Line | Quote (English translation) | Quote (Avestan) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quote | Under my hand, wherever there is conflict and chaos I strike it down. I will have peace, even amidst ashes. | ||
| Greeting | There is one head alone that sits at the center of the world, and it is mine. | ||
| Attacked | Your raiders would challenge the center of the world? Typical. | ||
| Declares War | Your warriors march forward into the flames of their own destruction. | ||
| Accepts Player's Deal | Indeed. Now, if you will excuse me. | ||
| Rejects Player's Deal | The gates are closed at this time. | ||
| Defeat | I was an emperor; now just a pawn in someone else's game. |
Leader Path[]
| Level | Unlocks |
|---|---|
| 2 |  Incense Censer |
| 3 | Cultural Attribute Node
|
| 4 | Exploration Cultural Legacy Card |
| Exploration Economic Legacy Card | |
| 5 |  Gold Fluted Phiale |
| 6 | Xerxes Achaemenid Badge 1
|
Xerxes Achaemenid Banner
| |
| 7 | Economic Attribute Node
|
| 8 | Modern Cultural Legacy Card |
| Modern Economic Legacy Card | |
| 9 |  Chalcedony Seal |
| 10 | Xerxes Achaemenid Badge 2
|
Shāh of the Silk Road
|
Civilopedia entry[]
The term “Persia” originates from the Greek name for the empire of Iran, the land of the Farsi people, who are referred to as “Aryan” in other texts (bearing in mind the term’s association with North India and not with the strange alterations it carried in the 19th and 20th centuries). In the Achaemenid period, Persia was the largest empire at that point in history (Alexander the Great took that title a few years later). The empire extended from Egypt and parts of Greece in the west to the Indus River Valley in the east, encompassing and surpassing what we now know as the Middle and Near East today. Despite its size, or perhaps because of it, Persia had sophisticated transportation networks and bureaucratic and communication systems; was multi-cultural and multi-religious; and established a clear lingua franca throughout its domain.
Early on, the Persians took slow control over Mesopotamia as Babylon and Assyria declined. Under Cyrus the Great, it expanded into Asia Minor and transformed into an empire. Cyrus' line was overthrown by Darius – also "the Great" – who led the Persians to another wave of conquests, this time in Egypt and the Indus Valley. But this triumph was tenuous. With revolt brewing in Egypt, Darius suddenly died and was succeeded by Xerxes – the last and arguably greatest of the Persian emperors.
Xerxes became famous for his campaign against Greece, including the battles of Thermopylae and Salamis. He was a subject of Herodotus’s histories, an inspiration for Alexander the Great, and an icon for cruel tyrants – largely based on Greek perspective. However, while Xerxes was proud and occasionally cruel, he was no cartoon villain.
Xerxes descended from two great emperors – his father was Darius, and his grandfather (on his mother’s side) was Cyrus. He was raised by court eunuchs, as was the custom, and taught horsemanship (the Persians were only a few generations out from being Central Asian horse nomads). His life in the palace of Babylon was one of luxury.
Xerxes' early brush with destiny came when Darius, preparing to leave for Egypt to quash its rebellion, fell ill and unexpectedly died. In the wake of this death, the question of succession loomed. Should the crown go to Darius’ eldest? Or to Xerxes, the grandson of Cyrus? A debate was arranged to solve this question, and Xerxes won, taking the throne in 486 BCE, at the age of 35. He also inherited his father’s wars and immediately took to quelling Egypt, followed by Babylon after that city rebelled. He enacted a brutal vengeance upon Babylon, melting the statues of its gods in punishment. Indeed, Xerxes was staunchly religious (likely adhering to a precursor of Zoroastrianism).
Still, Xerxes is most famous for his invasion of Greece. Darius had attempted such a campaign, which seemed logical since Persia already occupied all of Asia Minor. However, Darius was thwarted at Marathon. Following in his father’s footsteps, Xerxes pulled no punches. He amassed a gargantuan army, built a bridge over the Hellespont (the straits at modern Istanbul), and marched his troops over it. At the Battle of Thermopylae, Xerxes' massive Persian army was stalled by only 300 Spartans – a battle that has become the most renowned example of Spartan bravery in history. However, the keyword here is “stalled,” not “stopped.” Xerxes eventually continued down the Greek coast, and Athens was destroyed. Many Athenians fled to the island of Salamis and bunkered down as the Persians prepared a naval assault. Unfortunately, that battle did not go in favor of the Persians. After the Athenians won, the Persians – mindful of their fragile bridge over the Hellespont – decided that they’d had enough.
Alexander the Great would enact Greece's revenge more than a century later, but this failure brought an end to Xerxes’s plans of domination. Upon returning home to Persia, he turned his gaze inward, funding a dramatic boom in construction, arts, and infrastructure. Persian roads and postal relay systems were some of the most advanced the world had ever seen, and the great capital of Persepolis continued to rise in splendor. Though these ambitious projects did irreparable damage to the royal treasury, the remains of Xerxes’ palaces and monuments are still visible today. He was assassinated in 465.
In Greek texts, Xerxes often plays a foil to democratic Athens. Indeed, this Greek portrait colors our modern view of Asia and Asian antiquity. When the Greeks categorized the Persians as despotic, aggressive, fundamentally undemocratic, and weak from living in a soft climate of rich land, that says more about Greek resentment than it does about real history. This trope persists because Athens reports most of our Greek history, and they accomplished this by juxtaposing themselves with others: Athenian democracy versus Spartan militarism and Athenian freedom versus Persian despotism. They didn't necessarily chronicle things as they were; they made a political point.
Trivia[]
- Xerxes, the Achaemenid's leader ability is named after the Silk Road, the famous trade network that connected the Eastern and Western worlds, while his agenda references the development of commerce in Persia during his rule.
- This persona emphasizes Xerxes' domestic policies, particularly his maintenance of the Royal Road, and is named after the empire he ruled.
Gallery[]
Videos[]
First Look- Xerxes - Civilization VII
First Look: Xerxes
Related achievements[]
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Xerxing Red.
Win the modern age as Xerxes, the Achaemenid.
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References[]
See also[]
- Xerxes in other games