Sid Meier's Civilization V / Characters
Sid Meier's Civilization V characters, factions and unit roles
Identify the people, opponents and playable roles in Sid Meier's Civilization V, with their functions and relationships in compact tables.
Edition covered
Civilization V with its original base-game systems, including global happiness and the five-policy-branch cultural victory. Gods & Kings and Brave New World add religion, tourism and other changes that are excluded here. Publisher media shows the base PC game.
6 characters · one picture per entry · open a picture for full size.
Characters
Quick notes
- Leaders represent civilization abilities. A leader portrait accompanies a civilization's special ability, units or buildings.
- Escort civilian units. Workers and Settlers are vulnerable to capture.
- Use city-states as distinct partners. City-states are separate from major civilizations and offer influence-based benefits.
- Keep expansion leader rules separate. Gods & Kings and Brave New World add civilizations and change abilities or systems.
Escort civilian units
| Role | Function | Important distinction |
|---|---|---|
| Major civilization | Builds an empire and pursues victory | A full rival or diplomatic partner |
| City-state | Offers influence-based relations | Not an ordinary major civilization |
| Worker | Improves tiles | Needs military protection |
| Settler | Founds a city | Creates global happiness pressure |
| Great General | Supports nearby military | Position safely behind the fighting |
Useful tip
Gods & Kings and Brave New World add civilizations and change abilities or systems. This table identifies original choices without importing later tourism or religion strategies.
References
| Reference | Website |
|---|---|
| Sid Meier's Civilization V publisher listing | store.steampowered.com |
| Firaxis Civilization V manual | store.steampowered.com |
| 2K digital manual support | support.civilization.com |