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Era Score, added toCivilization 6in the Rise And Fall expansion, encourages players to play proactively and plan each part of the game. By paying attention to your opportunities to gain Era Score, you can enter a Golden Age for exceptional bonuses. Of course, if you don’t get enough Era Score, you’ll be stuck in a Dark Age instead… but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing!
If Era Score isn’t quite adding up for you, or if you just want a handy reference while you play, this guide has everything you need to know.
What Is Era Score?
Era Score is tracked for your civilization through each Era of the game. You can see your current Era Score, and the amount that you need to reach by the next Era, in thebottom-right corner of the screen, near the End Turn button.
Each Era lasts aboutone-eighthof the game’s turn total, give or take a few. That’sfifty turns per Eraon Standard speed. You’ll always be alerted when there are ten or fewer turns until an Era change.
In general, you should attempt to getat least the minimum required Era Scorefor each period. Doing so lets youavoid a Dark Ageand its associated penalties. If you clear the threshold, a new goal will appear - if you can reach the second goal in a single Era, you’ll get aGolden Agein the following one!
How To Earn Era Score
Era Score is earned whenever your civilization has aHistoric Moment- that is, whenever they do something exceptionally well, or for the first time. The list of possible Historic Moments is enormous, but common ones include:
Major milestones, like founding a Religion or circumnavigating the globe, grant alarger amount of Era Scoreif you’re thefirst player to manage it.If you aren’t the going to be the first to a Historic Moment, it can sometimes be better towait until the next Eraso that you can count the Era Score toward the next age.
Dedications And Golden Ages
At the beginning of a new Era, you’ll be able to make aDedication.This essentially sets your agenda for the Era, and incentivizes you to focus on a particular aspect of your empire.
In aDark AgeorNormal Age, your Dedication determines how you canearn extra Era Score.In aGolden Age, your Dedication instead grants you a bonus!
Pen, Brush, and Voice
Exodus of the Evangelists
Sky And Stars
If you’re in a Dark Age, and you gain enough Era Score to get a Golden Age, you’ll instead receive aHeroic Age.A Heroic Age is identical to a Golden Age, except that you canchoose three Dedication Bonusesinstead of just one!
Dark Ages
If you don’t get enough Era Score, your next Era will be aDark Age.Your cities will take aLoyalty penalty, increasing the risk that they’ll rebel and become Free Cities - or worse, join a nearby opponent’s empire!
Cities near a border with another civilization and those far from any other cities of yours are at the most risk of rebellion.
There is a possible advantage to getting a Dark Age, though - while you’re in a Dark Age, you get access toDark Policies, special Wildcard Policies that have a powerful bonus and a drawback. If you can mitigate the drawback and keep your Loyalty intact, you can turn a Dark Age into a benefit!
Dramatic Ages Mode
If you’re playing with theDramatic Agesgame mode enabled, the rewards and penalties for Era Score are different. Starting in the Classical Era, every age of the game will beeither a Golden Era or a Dark Era, with no Normal or Heroic Eras possible. If you meet the previous Era Score threshold, you get a Golden Era; if not, you suffer a Dark Era.
In Dramatic Ages, you still have access to Dark Policies during Dark Eras, butat the start of a Dark Era, some of your cities will automatically rebel and become Free Cities.The number of cities that rebel ispercentage-based, and scales with the game’s difficulty setting, so large empires can see huge swathes of territory break away all at once.
If you suspect a neighbor is about to get a Dark Era, be ready to pounce on their newly-liberated cities!
If you get a Golden Era, on the other hand, you’ll be rewarded withGolden Policiesinstead of Dedications. Many of these have similar effects, but can be slotted into Wildcard Slots on your Policy screen. This allows you to change the benefits of your Golden Era as needed, giving you more flexibility, or even take several benefits at once!
In Dramatic Ages Mode, Georgia’s Civilization Ability changes, allowing them to use the mode’s unique mechanics to their advantage. Strength In Unity allows Georgia toaccess Dark Policies during a Golden Age, and gives them an extra Wildcard Policy Slot while in a Golden Age as well.
