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With the release of the Great Commanders Pack, Suleiman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire has become the latestCivilization 6leader to receive an alternate persona. The original version of Suleiman, Kanuni, is named for Suleiman’s epithet “the Lawgiver” and focuses on governance and expansion. The new version, Muhtesem, depicts Suleiman later in life and focuses on his rule as a golden age for the Ottoman Empire.
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Whichever persona you choose, the Ottoman Empire is best played as an aggressive expander, fielding a powerful military by land. Read on to learn how to claim a truly magnificent victory!
Ottoman Empire Abilities
Regardless of which version of Suleiman leads them, the Ottomans are geared toward economic and military power. Their signature ability,Great Turkish Bombard, gives an automatic fifty-percent boost to siege unit production, and gives those units an extra five Combat Strength against walls. Furthermore, cities conquered by the Ottomans don’t lose any population in the takeover, and get a free Amenity and Loyalty bonus to help integrate them into the Empire more quickly.
Since dedicating lots of resources to siege and army production can have an impact on things like Science and Culture, the Ottomans have a great way to stay on-curve. The Barbary Corsair, their unique naval unit which replaces the Privateer, is afast, efficient coastal raider.Barbary Corsairs don’t require any movement point expenditure to raid and have the same stealth capabilities as Submarines. When you’re at war with a civilization, send the Corsairs up and down their coast toraid Campuses, Theater Squares, and Harbors.
TheRaidandTotal WarPolicy Cards increase pillage yields, making them extremely valuable for the Ottomans!
At home, the Ottomans can produce extra Amenities to keep their cities happy and extra Strategic Resources to fuel their engine of conquest. The Grand Bazaar is aunique Commercial Hub buildingthat increases its city’s production of all Strategic Resources to which it has access by one, and provides an extra Amenity for every improved Luxury Resource in the city.
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Strategy For Kanuni Sultan Suleiman
The younger version of Suleiman, the Lawgiver, provides the Ottomans with two unique and very powerful assets for pursuing a Domination Victory; the Janissary, anextraordinary melee unitavailable during the Renaissance, and Grand Vizier Ibrahim, aunique and versatile Governor.
Janissaries
Janissaries have five more Combat Strength than a standard Musketman, start with a free Promotion, and can be produced forhalf the cost. However, they can only be produced in cities with a population of two or more, and if trained in a city that was originally founded by the Ottomans, that city willlose a population.This means that it’s important to have at least one productive city that you’ve conquered by the time you research Gunpowder!
Your early game should focus on conquering at least one city near your starting position. A City-State will do, especially once you’ve unlocked Catapults and can easily knock down their walls thanks to Great Turkish Bombard. If you may quickly neutralize or eliminate a rival player, that’s even better! The goal is to beready to train Janissaries in overwhelming numbersonce the Renaissance rolls around.
As you’re researching your way to Gunpowder, make sure toincludeCommercial Hubsin your cities. You’ll need the money to pay for the enormous upkeep costs of your army, especially after the Janissaries upgrade to Line Infantry and no longer have reduced costs.
Grand Vizier Ibrahim
Ibrahim (who was the real Suleiman’s right-hand man for over a decade) is a Governor who will likely be sent to several cities over the course of the campaign. Hiswell-rounded set of abilitiesmake him excellent for furthering your goals of conquest, and he can be sent to foreign cities to provide benefits abroad! Here are all of Ibrahim’s titles:
Khass-Oda Bashi OR Capout Agha
As you can see, Ibrahim has many uses throughout the game. Early on, he helps the Ottomansbuild up a large army, particularly in the mid-game when Janissaries are available. You can establish him on your border or within enemy territory to give your units an advantage when sieging cities - combined with the Great Turkish Bombard, Head Falconer in the target city can combine with Serasker to give your siege units an unbelievabletwenty extra Combat Strength!
In the late game, when your armies are marching halfway across the world, you can easily establish a beachhead by sending Ibrahim to your enemy’s capital. As long as he as the Grand Vizier title, youwon’t need to worry about newly-conquered cities rebelling.
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Strategy For Muhtesem Sultan Suleiman
The elder version of Suleiman no longer has access to the Grand Vizier (historically, Ibrahim was executed on Suleiman’s orders in 1536), but instead bringsrotating bonuses based on the Ottoman’s current Age. If the Ottomans are in a Golden or Heroic Age, their total Science and Culture yield isincreased by fifteen percent.Otherwise, the Ottomans getfour additional Combat Strengthagainst other players who are not themselves in a Golden or Heroic Age.
While he may not have the raw military power of his younger self, Muhtesem Sultan Suleiman is much more versatile, especially once he’s captured powerful cities. Whenever you’re not in a Golden or Heroic Age, leverage Great Turkish Bombard to take the choicest cities from other players - ideally ones with fully-developed Campuses and Theater Squares, or impressive Wonders. Once a Golden Age comes around, turn your focus inward andbuild up your Districtsas quickly as you can to maximize your bonus.
The Ancient Era is always a Normal Age. This means you’llalways get Suleiman’s combat bonusduring early wars with other players. It’s even large enough to put you oneven footing with Deity-level AI players, who get a bonus of four by default!
Played correctly, Suleiman the Magnificent can be an extremely viable choice for higher difficulty levels, including Deity. Since your opponents will be building grand cities anyway, let them do the work thentake the cities from them, getting the benefit of their investment for yourself!
Always try to build or conquer the Taj Mahal if you’re playing this version of Suleiman. This Wonder makes it much easier to get a Golden Age, which will keep your Science and Culture yields high for the rest of the game.
If you’re not going to be able to reach a Golden Age, it can be worth letting yourself fall into a Dark Age when playing as Suleiman. The Loyalty bonus from Great Turkish Bombard should be enough to keep your cities from rebelling, you’ll be able to use Dark Policies if needed, and if you get a Golden Age in the next Era, it will upgrade to a Heroic Age!
The elder Suleiman isn’t quite as focused on Domination Victory as the younger, and his yield bonuses mean he can easily switch to nearly any other victory type if needed. Science and Culture are, of course, the best options, but Suleiman the Magnificent is more than capable of pursuing a Diplomatic, Religious, or even Time Victory as well.
