These guides are designed to help players who are new to Civ but still interested in Vox Populi, familiar with Civ but new to Vox Populi, or even those well versed in Vox Populi who just want to see if there's anything they didn't know about a particular civilization. I am actually a big fan of Zigzagzigal's Civ guide series, and it really helped me learn a lot about the game, and I wanted to bring a similar experience for fans of the Vox Populi or Community Balance Patch modpack. For those interested in the modpack it can be downloaded here[forums.civfanatics.com]

Anyways, without further ado, onto the Portuguese!

Before I go into depth with this guide, here's an explanation of some terminology I'll be using throughout for the sake of newer players.

Beelining - Focusing on obtaining a technology early by only researching technologies needed to research it and no others. For example, to beeline Bronze Working, you'd research Mining and Bronze Working and nothing else until Bronze Working was finished.
Finisher - The bonus for completing a Social Policy tree (e.g. +33% Great Scientist rate and +25% growth in all cities from rationalism.)
GWAM - Great Writers, Artists and Musicians. These are the three types of Great People who can make Great Works, a major source of tourism for cultural Civs.
Opener - The bonus for unlocking a Social Policy tree (e.g. +25% Great Person Rate and +100% construction of guilds in Artistry)
Tall Empire - A low number of cities with a high population each.
UA - Unique Ability - the unique thing a Civilization has which doesn't need to be built.
UB - Unique Building - A replacement for a normal building that can only be built and used by one Civilization.
UI - Unique Improvement - A tile improvement that can be made by workers that doesn't replace any other improvement that can only be made by a single civilization
UU - Unique Unit - A replacement for a normal unit that can only be built by one Civilization or provided by militaristic City-States when allied.
Uniques - Collective name for Unique Abilities, Units, Buildings, Tile Improvements and Great People
Wide Empire - A high number of cities with a low population each.
XP - Experience Points - Get enough and you'll level up your unit, giving you the ability to heal your unit or get a promotion.

Portugal has a coastal start bias. This is useful given that their UU and UI depend on it. Plus, coastal trade routes are better, which they want to focus on for their UA


When a trade unit moves, receive +4 , and great admiral points (for cargo ships) or great general points (for caravans), scaling with era




A naval melee unit


*Represented in the sight column

Positive One-Off Changes

• Higher combat strength (30 instead of 25)
  
• May sell goods to gain xp, and place a Feitoria when adjacent to city state lands, scaling with distance to the capital. Each Nau can do so twice(Exotic Cargo)
  
• Extra Sight(1)*
  
• Obsoletes at Industrialization rather than Navigation

Positive Stay on Upgrade Changes

• Withdraw before melee

These scores are merely my personal opinions from playing and examining this Civ, you may find other uses for the Portuguese uniques that make you disagree with a certain ranking


Portugal gets more generals and admirals then nearly anyone else, which is small, but equally helpful on both offense and defense. Nau can be somewhat strong offensively with the right terrain, and their UI helps somewhat on defense.

Their UI also gives them a small amount of culture in the mid-game that transfers alright to culture

Portugal's biggest strength is in science. Their UA gives lots of science early on, and still provides lots later in the game as well. Their trade bonuses from their UI gives a decent boost to growth and production in the mid-game

Portugal gets just as much gold as they do science, making them a strong gold generator. Technically speaking they get no bonuses to diplomacy, but their focus on trade pushes them towards statecraft, which is an automatic bump.

The only thing they truly lack a bonus in is religion.

Note the +4 gold popup in the city of Lisbon

Whenever a trade unit moves, Portugal gets 4 science, gold, and either great general points for caravans, or great admiral points for cargo ships. In other words, you gain these bonuses for every active trade route. They all scale to +8 of each yield in the medieval era, and by +4 every era afterwords


At this point in the game I have done no fighting with anyone besides barbarians

The science and gold are fairly self explanatory, but the generals and admirals have some interesting implications, considering Portugal is otherwise a very peaceful civ. Other then keeping them for defense, which is a valid way to use them, generals and admirals do have other uses though


I used this citadel to nab those olives, as well as to give me a good invasion point for Medan, as I knew Indonesia was likely to declare war on me soon

Using Great Generals for citadels can be very useful to nab luxury resources, natural wonders, or important military locations from other cities. While Portugal is largely a peaceful civ, there is a merit to using this as the precursor to an invasion if you think it is worth it.



Great Admirals can cross ocean without astronomy. Portugal can get a great admiral earlier then nearly anyone else, most certainly before you get astronomy. Your first admiral can be sent scouting, both to find new spots to settle, but also to find other civs and more importantly city states. Other then that I would use all but one or two admirals for voyages of discovery.


Ignoring the invading French army, it is the medieval era and I have 6 trade routes. That is 48 science, gold and general/admiral points per turn. That's over 50% of my gold income

One last thing to note is that Portugal gets their bonuses from trade routes whether they are internal or international. Getting good trade routes is important but, especially early game I would try to only go for safe trade routes, which are most likely internal.

Our capital appears to be blocked off, it's only coastal access being in a bay cut off by Indonesia. Nothing the Nau can't fix!

The Nau is a bit of an odd unit. They certainly can be used in combat, as they have a significant combat strength bonus over the caravel, but their main uses are outside of combat.



Whenever a Nau is adjacent to either a city state or major civ's borders (not your own) you can use an ability to gain gold and xp based on how far the unit is from the capital. This will easily be enough for one extra promotion, and depending on the distance could even nab you two. More importantly though, if used next to a city state, a Feitoria will be built in a valid tile (coastal, not on a resource). I'll go into more detail on why that is important in the Feitoria section. You can use this ability twice per unit

Long story short, build lots of Nau's send them out to every city state, and use their ability for xp and Feitoria builds.

• Withdraw from Melee

Feitorias as a unique improvement to build in your own land are decent. They give a defense bonus, and solid production and gold, as well as a bit of culture. They also do boost nearby coastal tiles, and fishing ships even more, so since you can't build them adjacent to eachother, make sure to build them so they buff as many fishing ships as possible, especially if you can get multiple Feitorias to boost one tile. This is not the reason they are an important part of Portugal though



Naus can build Feitorias in a city state's territory, and they give a number of bonuses when you do so. The first bonus is that they give you sight for 2 tiles around the Feitoria. That's fairly minor but could help in certain cases. The other two bonuses are more impactful


Note the 1 coral I am receiving

Feitorias give you one copy of every resource that a city state has, even if you aren't allied to them. This means that even if you can't flip a city state to your ally, you can still get lots of benefits from them. Combined with the admiral's voyages of discovery, Portugal is going to be one of the happiest civs in the game.



Even if you have city state friends, it is worth getting a Feitoria, because the Feitoria makes your trade routes to city states with them give extra yields. The yields increase based both on the gold yield of the route as well as if you are friends, and more if you are allies. Whether you do well or poorly in the diplomacy game, the Feitoria gives massive bonuses, and you will want to build them in every valid city state

Portugal should start with Progress to help them build trade units and support their early science. From there they should go Statecraft into Industry for more trade routes.


Opener: If at all possible, try to avoid growing your capital much before you get this, you'll get more science that way. The culture you immediately get from this will likely almost be enough for the next policy

Liberty: If you don't have any worker techs yet, it might be a good idea to save this for later, otherwise this makes sure you're improving stuff ASAP

Organization: Faster moving civilian units are really nice, but unlike most civs what matters more here, at least early on is the faster built trade units, as getting up trade units fast is key to Portugal's success.

Expertise: Faster building construction is great, especially in the early game where production might be sparse.

Equality: More happiness is always welcome, especially if you do some conquering

Fraternity: Little bit of food and science, both good to have

Finisher: More gold, why not?


Opener: Small bit of gold and a few extra yields in the capital can't hurt

Trade Confederacy: Better trades with the many city states you'll want to trade with

Foreign Service: Helps give a more traditional boost to gaining city state allies if you want to go the diplomatic route. Extra spies are a nice addition as well

Shadow Networks: A big boost to science, especially if you go the diplomacy route and get as many city states as possible

Exchange Markets: An extra trade route for more science, a huge part of why you're here

Consulates: Helps makes sure you have a solid amount of control in the world congress

Finisher: Helps you more reliably build wonders on time


Opener: Two free trade routes for more trade bonuses

Free Trade: Extra gold from ITRs is always a good thing

Division of Labor: Seaports and Train Stations are normally expensive buildings, but now they are in line with other buildings. Also a large boost to your production and gold outputs

Entrepreneurship: Gold and production, the industry tree knows what it wants, and you do too.

Mercantilism: A good bit of extra science and culture. Who ever said Industry was just gold and production? Wait a minute...

Protectionism: More food and science, and your gold goes farther, that's very nice

Finisher: You'll definitely have a few specialists around, so this certainly helps

A peaceful, trade based civ has lots to gain from Freedom


Economic Union: 2 trade routes for even more science, etc.

Civil Society: Food on your UI is definitely welcome

Covert Action: More spies to protect your cities and maybe even flip a city state or two


Universal Healthcare: A free hospital in every city, possibly before you even have biology researched, is amazing.

Arsenal of Democracy(Diplomacy): Get a bit more out of your great people with extra influence whenever you use them, and you can maybe give a few units for some extra influence

New Deal(Science): A nice bit of extra yields, can't complain


Space Procurements(Science): With your insane gold you should be able to get your spaceship parts going in no time

Treaty Organization(Diplomacy): Again increasing the benefits of trading with city states, and making it easier to keep them

Petra: An extra trade route this early is a MASSIVE boost to your science and gold. If you don't start next to a desert but you find one nearby, settle your second city there to try and get this wonder

Pyramids: A free settler to get a second city to guarantee you have something to trade with


Colossus: Petra can sometimes be impossible to get, but there is no reason not to get this wonder

Great Lighthouse: Makes your Nau's later on faster, so they can explore and reach city states faster to sell cargo faster.


Forbidden Palace(Progress only): You may have lots of gold, but no reason not to have it go farther


Himeji Castle: Makes sure you can defend your trade empire

Porcelain Tower: More science, not dependent on your trade routes

Summer Palace(Diplomacy): The king of diplomatic wonders, makes you competitive with pretty much anyone for getting city states


Palace of Westminster(Statecraft Only): Makes sure you dominate the early congress, and still can be competitive later on


Broadway(Industry Only): A bit of culture, plus you steal this from someone who could use it better

Statue of Liberty(Freedom Only): More production, can't complain


CERN: Two free techs to clean up the tech tree, and more city state influence to secure the world congress. Awesome wonder

Great Firewall(Science): Makes sure other civs can't easily leech your tech lead

Hubble Space Telescope(Science): Combined with Space Procurements, you'll have spaceship parts in no time

Portugal has a pretty clear gameplan with pretty clear bonuses. There are things that need to be done to make them work though.


Early game trade routes are all you have as Portugal. Make your way to trade fast, and sailing soon after that. Then make sure to build your first caravan asap, and your other trade units not far behind it.


It may be easy to just leave your admirals and generals around as a just in case for defense, and it is certainly worth doing that with one or two of each, but you are going to generate more then that. Using your first admiral for exploration is a great idea, and using a general or two for a citadel might be worth it too. Weigh your options.


Feitorias give nice bonuses, there is no reason not to get them in every possible city state.


Feitorias may be most useful in City State territory, but they still give decent yields in your own lands, most likely more then regular tile improvements. They're worth building domestically and abroad.


The majority of your trade should be on the sea because they will almost certainly give more yields, but you still want a few land trade routes so you can still generate a few more generals

Lisboa constrictor is a good one too, just not relevant to taking them down

Portugal creates one of the strongest trade empires in the game, generating tons of gold and science, with a decent navy to back it up. Trade can be very easy to disrupt though, and Portugal has very little without it

Fun fact Mare Clausum is a nautical term meaning a section of sea/ocean/water that is owned by a nation and is not allowed to be crossed by anyone else. Technically speaking that means in civ V all civs have at least a little Mare Clausum with the water tiles they own

Portugal can significantly increase the amount of science and gold they are generating even very early in the game with trade routes. However, that is their weakness, as trade routes are very vulnerable, especially early in the game. If possible, declaring war on Portugal and pillaging their trade will be a massive blow to them. Before they get their other uniques online, this will deprive them of their only bonus, even if you can't take them over.

Portugal may get more generals and admirals, but this is at most a nuisance for you. They have almost no other military bonuses. The most annoying thing they can do is to steal tiles from you with a citadel, but if that happens you can just invade them for the city that owns the citadel. The only thing Portugal has to stop you with is a strong economy, one you can likely devastate through war.


Naus are a slightly odd unit. They certainly are a threat in combat given their higher combat strength, but Portugal is unlikely to use them in such a strong fashion, as they are going to send them far and wide to sell cargo. Once they come back they'll be decently upgraded, but they'll probably be obsolete. I wouldn't worry significantly about the Nau in combat. There isn't a lot you can do to stop them from selling cargo however. Luckily the only thing to truly worry about them selling cargo is them building Feitorias


In Portugal's territory, there isn't a ton to worry about with Feitorias. They may make it harder to attack from the sea, as their land units on the coast will have strong defensive bonuses, but due to them needing to be built on the coast, they likely won't prove a huge barrier in a land invasion.

What matters a bit more is what they do for city states. Unfortunately, there isn't much you can do to stop their benefits. However, they aren't too big a deal in the long run. Either Portugal isn't allied to the city state, and all they are getting is more happiness, which they already do well at, or they are allied, and get better trade routes with them. You are already trying to destroy Portugal's trade routes anyways, if they are sending them to city states instead of internally, they are probably even more vulnerable.


Early-Game Warmongers: Portugal is one of the only civs guaranteed to have trade routes early in the game. Pillage them for a nice boost in money. Portugal should prove no challenge.

Mid-Game Warmongers: Portugal may prove somewhat difficult to attack from the sea, at least until you can get frigates and corvettes, but they are still vulnerable on land

Late-Game Warmongers: Portugal will have lots of money to buy an army, but otherwise have pretty few military strengths. They should be easy to defeat, especially on land.

Scientific Players: Assuming you don't want to pillage their routes or declare war, Portugal will have very strong science, but weaker production. Outproduce them on important science wonders.

Diplomatic Players: Embargoing Portugal actually does little to stop them since they can trade internally just fine. One thing you can do though is bribe other civs to go to war with Portugal and have them destroy their trade routes.

Cultural Players: There's not much to do as a cultural player outside of the counter-play mentioned above. Just keep doing you.

These guide cover every civ in the game, and can be used as a quick reference

• Civ Summaries

• America (Domination/Science/Culture)
  
• Arabia (Culture/Science)
  
• Assyria (Science/Domination)
  
• Austria (Diplomacy/Culture)
  
• The Aztecs (Domination/Science)
  
• Babylon (Science)
  
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• Byzantium (All)
  
• Carthage (Domination/Diplomacy)
  
• The Celts (Domination/Culture/Science)
  
• China (Domination/Culture)
  
• Denmark (Domination)
  
• Egypt (Culture)
  
• England (Domination/Diplomacy)
  
• Ethiopia (Science)
  
• France (Domination/Culture)
  
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• Greece (Domination/Diplomacy/Culture)
  
• The Huns (Domination)
  
• The Inca (Science/Domination)
  
• India (Science/Culture)
  
• Indonesia (Domination/Culture/Science)
  
• The Iroquois (Domination)
  
• Japan (Domination/Culture)
  
• Korea (Science/Domination)
  
• The Maya (Science/Domination)
  
• Mongolia (Domination)
  
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• The Netherlands (Diplomacy/Domination)
  
• The Ottomans (Domination/Science)
  
• Persia(Domination/Culture)
  
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• Polynesia (Culture)
  
• Rome (Domination/Science)
  
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• The Shoshone (Domination/Science/Culture)
  
• Siam (Diplomacy/Science/Culture)
  
• Songhai (Domination)
  
• Spain (Domination/Culture)
  
• Sweden (Domination)
  
• Venice (Diplomacy/Culture/Domination)
  
• The Zulus (Domination)