Should You Raze Cities in Civilization 7?

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Following the conquest of a neighboring city, you will be given the option to either ‘Maintain City’ or ‘Destroy City’. In earlier versions of Civ, destroying cities was an effective method for removing enemy AI cities and preventing your empire from growing too large.

In the game Civilization 7, holding onto a settlement gradually incorporates it into your empire over several turns, but this can lead to unwanted consequences if not handled properly. On the other hand, destroying a settlement carries its own set of disadvantages. This tutorial clarifies what transpires when you demolish a City in Civ 7, and discusses whether it’s generally wiser to retain captured Cities or annihilate them.

What Happens When You Raze A City?

When you conquer a City, you have two options: Keep City, or Raze City.

If you choose to maintain control over the captured city, it will experience roughly a dozen turns of low happiness and unrest as it transitions into becoming part of your empire. Once fully integrated, the unhappiness penalty will be lifted, and it will operate identically to any other settlement within your empire. Additionally, during certain ages, it will contribute to the Militaristic Legacy Paths.

In the game, chains denote territories you’ve captured from opponents, which function identically to regular towns or cities in terms of counting against your Settlement Limit.

If you demolish a city in Civ 7, you’ll face significant consequences. Firstly, the ruler who previously controlled that city will harbor substantial resentment towards you. Secondly, each city you demolish will result in permanent War Support being raised against you by every opponent for the remainder of the game.

Following 12 rounds, the specified city along with its boundaries will be eliminated from the game, thereby creating open territory for your settlers or cities to spread out and grow. However, during this Razing process, you won’t receive any resources or benefits from the city.

So, Should You Keep Or Raze Cities?

In most instances, it’s wiser to preserve a City rather than destroy it. The consequences of demolishing cities in Civ 7 are steep, making it seldom advisable. Generally, it’s advantageous to maintain more urban areas. Nevertheless, there are situations where destruction might be necessary.

  • If you are already at your Settlement Limit, but your empire has low Happiness and can’t support another Settlement, Razing a City will prevent widespread unhappiness.
  • If a City is located in a spot your Cities would normally grow into, like the gaps between city borders (which the Civ 7 AI will sometimes do)
  • If you have a lot of War Support, or Wonders/Abilities that generate free War Support, which negates the War Weariness downside of Razing Cities

If you destroy a city, brace yourself for other leaders to criticize or at minimum, anticipate strained relationships all around. However, if you find an additional settlement overwhelming, it might be wise to establish a new one using a settler instead, or ensure you have enough military support to avoid the negative impact of the War Support debuff.

In almost all cases, though, keeping Cities is better than Razing them in Civ 7.

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2025-02-25 02:24