Egypt is a civilization steeped in history and most remembered for its wonderful buildings. Civilization 7 brings these factors to the forefront, making Egypt one of the most powerful wonder-building civilizations in the game. In fact, it is one of the most powerful civilizations for those looking to pursue an Antiquity Age cultural victory.

Confucius staring at the production of a water mill in Civilization 7.
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That said, getting the most out of Egypt does require some planning. It's important to maximize Egypt's benefits while counteracting potential downsides. Egypt does not have a particularly strong military, for instance, and this can make defense a bit challenging! Let's look at nine essential tips for making the most of Egypt in Civilization 7.

10 Capitalize On Navigable Rivers

an egyptian city in civilization 7.
via 2K

Egypt’s “Gifts of Osiris” ability boosts production on navigable river tiles, giving you a head start in building wonders and crucial infrastructure. Leverage this bonus by prioritizing cities with river access and aligning your districts next to waterways. Early wonder construction can accelerate culture and gold, so be sure to start in that direction early.

Use this advantage to outpace opponents in wonder and district production. Don’t hesitate to invest in production buildings that further enhance this bonus, and plan your expansion along river corridors.

9 Optimize City Placement

The Hanging Gardens wonder being constructed in Civilization 7.

Many of Egypt's bonuses are terrain-based, so where you put down your cities matters a lot. Look for locations on navigable rivers and near desert tiles. Use scouts early to find potential city-founding locations near navigable rivers. Rivers provide not only a production boost from Egypt’s unique ability but also extra food and trade advantages.

Desert areas also allow you to build wonders like the pyramids and other unique improvements. Look for deserts next to navigable rivers for the best city-founding locations. Of course, you also have to consider resources and fresh water when placing cities.

Build more scouts at the beginning of the game to look for ideal settlement locations faster.

8 Strategic City Planning And Expansion

A settler in Civilization 7 finds a tile to settle on.

As you place your towns, consider what role each settlement will have. Focus on creating specialized cities for production, culture, or commerce. Balance the number of cities to optimize resource management without spreading your empire too thin. Depending on what victory you're going for, you may need to prioritize resources over navigable rivers, for instance.

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Egypt is not an expansionist civilization, so your settlement limit will be lower than that of some other civilizations. Keep this in mind and choose where you put your cities carefully.

7 Focus On Early Game Growth And Infrastructure

The Great Steele Wonder being constructed in Civilization 7.

With Egypt, your best bet is to invest in settlers early to secure the best locations. Other civilizations can rush in and take up all the navigable river spots. While you do get bonuses on these rivers, they're useful for all civilizations, so expect others to be going after them, too.

Prioritize production buildings and warehouses, which have a lasting impact. Building wonders to achieve a cultural victory will take time, but waiting until your cities are well-established before building wonders can ensure that you don't fall behind. The idea is to get everything set up early so that you can run away with victory towards the end of the game.

6 Don't Forget About Your Military

hatshepsut and augustus enter into conflict in civilization 7.

A military is not optional in Civilization 7. Even if you manage to stay friendly with all the other major civilizations, independent powers can become very troublesome, especially as the age progresses. So, it's important to have a military ready to defend your settlements and take out these powers as necessary.

Take advantage of Egypt's unique unity, the Medjay. If you want to play mostly defensively, a strong ranged army can go a long way, too. Develop these units early before you start to build wonders.

Don't forget about your navy, too. If you're located mostly on the coast or navigable rivers, your enemy's fleet can roll right up to your city if you're not careful.

5 Maximize Cultural Production

Camera showing three antiquity age wonders in Civilization 7

Technically, culture isn't necessary to build wonders. You use your city's production to build wonders, not culture. However, wonders are unlocked on the civics tree, which uses culture. If you're behind in your culture production, there is a good chance other civilizations will get to these wonders first and have them done before you. It helps to have a decent cultural output, which will only increase once you start to build wonders.

Xerxes, King of Kings glowering over a naval combat map in Civ 7.
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That said, don't overlook production, either. Even if you have the highest culture output around, other civilizations can still beat you to wonders if their cities build them faster.

4 Engage In Diplomatic Maneuvers And Trade

Ben Franklin's diplomacy screen with various leaders in Civ 7.

Diplomacy is important for staying out of wars, as is developing alliances just in case you get dragged into a war. You can build wonders that increase your influence, allowing you to use diplomatic actions more often. Many diplomatic actions also provide bonuses, like extra culture or gold, which is a nice extra (though, your primary use of diplomatic actions should be to build relationships).

Trade can also be useful for gaining access to resources you wouldn't get otherwise. If you decide to go for an economic victory, this can be especially important, as you'll need many resources allocated to your cities.

3 Embrace Technological Advancements

The tech tree in Civilization 7.

It's easy to forget about technology when you're playing a cultural and economic game. However, military advancements are made largely through the tech tree. So, if you get too far behind, your enemies might easily overpower your army. Invest in technologies that keep your army stronger and provide production buildings to help you build those wonders faster.

If you start to get behind on science, consider building some science-based buildings, like a library, to increase your science output. If you built enough production buildings, it should only take a few turns to build them.

2 Endgame Strategy

The menu screen stating that the Exploration Age has begun in Civ 7.

In the Antiquity Age, it is best not to focus solely on one path. When the age transitions, you'll get bonuses for all the legacy paths you made progress down - not just one. Typically, when playing as Egypt, this means focusing on culture and economics. Preferably, you'd make it a pretty far way down both paths.

Don't forget about the military and science paths too, though. Getting to just the first milestone provides significant benefits in the next age. Often, these first milestones aren't challenging to reach, either.

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