Policy card (Civ6)

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Policy Cards are a new gameplay mechanic introduced in Civilization VI. They represent the new incarnation of social policies, the actual effects of your political agenda, and in many cases are referred to as "Policies," both in order to shorten the name, and to keep the tradition of previous games.

Mechanics

As you progress through the Civics tree, you will gain Policy Cards, which can then be placed into the relevant Policy Card slots in your Government. Different Governments have different policy slot configurations, meaning that you may only activate so many cards of each type at any given time.

Policies have concrete effects for gameplay, such as bonus stats ( Culture, Gold, etc.), or accelerated Production rate for something. There are no right or wrong policy choices in the game - although one policy may be better than another in a given circumstance, policy choices are entirely up to personal preference. Try them all to find your favorite ones.

There are four types of Policy Cards (five in Rise and Fall), which are slotted into corresponding slots in one's Government. Once slotted, Policies will activate their described effects and enhance your game accordingly. The policy card types are as follows:

• Military (Red), based around combat, unit production and maintenance.
• Economic (Yellow), based around gold, general production, other yields.
• Diplomatic (Green), based around diplomacy and city-state relations.
• Wildcard (Purple), based around Great People points. In Rise and Fall, Dark Age (Black) cards can also be placed in these slots.

While a Great Person Policy Card may only be housed in a Wildcard slot, a Wildcard slot can also house any other type of Policy Card (Military, Economic, or Diplomatic). This gives Wildcard slots great flexibility, as they are capable of housing a card of any type.

Note that Policy Cards have effects that are often directed at particular eras; they become obsolete once you advance further. The first (and maybe most shocking example) is the Revelation Policy, which becomes obsolete the moment the last Great Prophet in the game is attracted, which usually happens by the Medieval Era. With continued development of Civics, you will eventually unlock other cards with similar effects, directed at more advanced eras. When this happens, the older cards are removed from your deck.

How to Gain More Policy Card Slots

How many slots for Policy Cards you have available depends directly on your Government type. Because of the many bonuses provided by Policy Cards, it is recommended to try to obtain as many Policy Card slots as possible. One can increase your amount of Policy Card Slots by doing any of the following:

• Changing to a more advanced Government - When you start the game, you are in a Chiefdom with only 2 slots, but as time goes on you can adopt new forms of government with more slots (2, 4, 6, 8).
• Playing as Greece - "Plato's Republic" grants 1 additional Wildcard Policy Slot.
• Playing as Frederick Barbarossa - "Holy Roman Emperor" Leader Ability grants 1 additional Military Policy Slot.
• Building Alhambra - Grants 1 Military Policy Slot.
• Building Big Ben - Grants 1 Economic Policy Slot.
• Building Forbidden City - Grants 1 Wildcard Policy Slot.
• Building Potala Palace - Grants 1 Diplomatic Policy Slot.
• Using Adam Smith's Great Person ability (in vanilla Civilization VI) - Grants 1 Economic Policy Slot.

Completing as many of the above conditions as possible will net a maximum of 14 Policy Card Slots (as it is impossible to play as both Greece and Germany at the same time).

List of Policy Cards

These are separated by type, and ordered by the civic timeline you would gain them.

Name	Type	Description	Supersedes	Obsoleted by	Civic	Era
Survey	Military	Double experience for recon units	None	Exploration Civic	Code of Laws	Ancient
God King	Economic	+1 Gold and Faith in the Capital Capital	None	Scripture	Code of Laws	Ancient
Discipline	Military	+5 Combat Strength when fighting Barbarians	None	Exploration Civic	Code of Laws	Ancient
Urban Planning	Economic	+1 Production in all cities	None	Exploration Civic	Code of Laws	Ancient
Ilkum	Economic	+30% Production towards Builders	None	Serfdom	Craftmanship	Ancient
Agoge	Military	+50% Production towards Ancient and Classical era melee and ranged units	None	Feudal Contract	Craftmanship	Ancient
Caravansaries	Economic	+2 additional Gold from all Trade Route Trade Routes	None	Triangular Trade	Foreign Trade	Ancient
Maritime Industries	Military	+100% Production towards all Ancient and Classical era naval units	None	Press Gangs	Foreign Trade	Ancient
Maneuver	Military	+50% Production towards all Ancient and Classical era light and heavy cavalry units	None	Chivalry	Military Tradition	Ancient
Strategos	Wildcard	+2 Great General points per turn	None	Military Organization	Military Tradition	Ancient
Conscription	Military	Unit maintenance reduced by 1 Gold per turn per unit	None	Levée en Masse	State Workforce	Ancient
Corvée	Economic	+15% Production towards Ancient and Classical era wonders	None	Gothic Architecture	State Workforce	Ancient
Land Surveyors	Economic	Reduces the cost to purchase a tile by 20%	None	Expropriation	Early Empire	Ancient
Colonization	Economic	+50% Production towards settlers	None	Expropriation	Early Empire	Ancient
Inspiration	Wildcard	+2 Great Scientist points per turn	None	Nobel Prize	Mysticism	Ancient
Revelation	Wildcard	+2 Great Prophet points per turn	None	Humanism Civic	Mysticism	Ancient
Limitanei	Military	+2 Loyalty per turn for cities with a garrisoned unit.	None	None	Early Empire	Ancient
Insulae	Economic	+1 housing in all cities with at least 2 specialty districts	None	Medina Quarter	Games and Recreation	Classical
Charismatic Leader	Diplomatic	+2 influence points per turn	None	Gunboat Diplomacy	Political Philosophy	Classical
Diplomatic League	Diplomatic	The first envoy you send to each city-state counts as 2 envoys	None	None	Political Philosophy	Classical
Literary Tradition	Wildcard	+2 Great Writer points per turn	None	None	Drama and Poetry	Classical
Raid	Military	Yields gained from pillaging are doubled for pillaging improvements	None	Total War	Military Training	Classical
Veterancy	Military	+30% Production towards Encampment districts and buildings	None	None	Military Training	Classical
Bastions	Military	+6 City defense strength, +5 City ranged attack strength	None	Civil Engineering Civic	Defensive Tactics	Classical
Limes	Military	+100% Production towards defensive buildings	None	Civil Engineering Civic	Defensive Tactics	Classical
Natural Philosophy	Economic	+100% Campus district adjacency bonuses	None	Five-Year Plan	Recorded History	Classical
Scripture	Economic	+100% Holy Site district adjacency bonuses	God King	None	Theology	Classical
Praetorium	Diplomatic	Governors provide +2 Loyalty per turn to their city.	None	Communications Office	Recorded History	Classical
Naval Infrastructure	Economic	+100% Harbor district adjacency bonuses	None	Economic Union	Naval Tradition	Medieval
Navigation	Wildcard	+2 Great Admiral points per turn	None	None	Naval Tradition	Medieval
Feudal Contract	Military	+50% Production towards Medieval and Renaissance era melee and ranged units	Agoge	Grande Armée	Feudalism	Medieval
Serfdom	Economic	Newly trained Builders gain 2 extra build actions	Ilkum	Public Works	Feudalism	Medieval
Meritocracy	Economic	Each city receives +1 Culture for each specialty district it constructs	None	None	Civil Service	Medieval
Retainers	Military	+1 amenity for cities with a garrisoned unit	None	Propaganda	Civil Service	Medieval
Sack	Military	Yields gained from pillaging are doubled for districts	None	Total War	Mercenaries	Medieval
Professional Army	Military	-50% discount on all unit upgrades	None	None	Mercenaries	Medieval
Trade Confederation	Economic	+1 Culture and +1 Science from international Trade Route Trade Routes	None	Market Economy	Mercenaries	Medieval
Merchant Confederation	Diplomatic	+1 Gold from each of your city-state Envoys	None	None	Medieval Faires	Medieval
Aesthetics	Economic	+100% Theater Square district adjacency bonuses	None	Sports Media	Medieval Faires	Medieval
Medina Quarter	Economic	+2 housing in all cities with at least 3 specialty districts	Insulae	New Deal	Medieval Faires	Medieval
Craftsmen	Economic	+100% Industrial Zone district adjacency bonuses	None	Five-Year Plan	Guilds	Medieval
Town Charters	Economic	+100% Commercial Hub district adjacency bonuses	None	Economic Union	Guilds	Medieval
Traveling Merchants	Wildcard	+2 Great Merchant points per turn	None	Laissez-Faire	Guilds	Medieval
Chivalry	Military	+50% Production to all Medieval, Renaissance, and Industrial era light and heavy cavalry units	Maneuver	Lightning Warfare	Divine Right	Medieval
Gothic Architecture	Economic	+15% Production towards Medieval and Renaissance era wonders	Corvée	Skyscrapers	Divine Right	Medieval
Civil Prestige	Economic	Established Governors with at least 3 Promotions provide +1 Amenities Amenity and +1 Housing Housing.	None	None	Civil Service	Medieval
Native Conquest	Military	Combat victories over units from earlier eras provide Gold equal to 50% of the combat strength of the defeated unit	Discipline, Survey	None	Exploration	Renaissance
Colonial Offices	Economic	+15% faster growth for cities not on your original Capital Capital's continent. +15% faster growth and 3 Loyalty per turn for cities not on your original Capital Capital's continent.	Urban Planning	None	Exploration	Renaissance
Invention	Wildcard	+2 Great Engineer points per turn	Revelation	None	Humanism	Renaissance
Frescoes	Wildcard	+2 Great Artist points per turn	Revelation	None	Humanism	Renaissance
Machiavellianism	Diplomatic	+50% Production towards Spies. Spy operations take 25% less time.	None	None	Diplomatic Service	Renaissance
Wars of Religion	Military	+4 combat strength when fighting civilizations that follow other religions	None	None	Reformed Church	Renaissance
Simultaneum	Economic	Doubles Faith yield from Holy Site district buildings. Extra Faith from buildings in Holy Sites: +50% if city population is 10 or higher, +50% if district has at least +3 adjacency bonus.	None	None	Reformed Church	Renaissance
Religious Orders	Economic	All religious units gain +5 religious strength in theological combat	None	None	Reformed Church	Renaissance
Logistics	Military	+1 movement if starting turn in friendly territory	None	None	Mercantilism	Renaissance
Triangular Trade	Economic	+4 Gold and +1 Faith from all Trade Route Trade Routes	Caravansaries	Ecommerce	Mercantilism	Renaissance
Rationalism	Economic	+100% Science from Campus district buildings. Extra Science from buildings in Campuses: +50% if city population is 10 or higher, +50% if district has at least +3 adjacency bonus.	None	None	The Enlightenment	Renaissance
Free Market	Economic	+100% Gold yield from Commercial Hub district buildings. Extra Gold from buildings in Commercial Hubs: +50% if city population is 10 or higher, +50% if district has at least +4 adjacency bonus.	None	None	The Enlightenment	Renaissance
Liberalism	Economic	+1 amenity to all cities with at least 2 speciality districts	None	New Deal	The Enlightenment	Renaissance
Wisselbanken	Diplomatic	Your Trade Route Trade Routes to an Ally's city provide +2 Food and +2 Production for both cities. Alliance Points with each ally grow 25% faster.	None	Arsenal of Democracy	Diplomatic Service	Renaissance
Grande Armée	Military	+50% Production towards Industrial and Modern era melee and ranged units	Feudal Contract	Military Fist	Nationalism	Industrial
National Identity	Military	Units take 50% less Combat Strength Penalty for being injured	None	None	Nationalism	Industrial
Press Gangs	Military	+100% Production towards Renaissance and Industrial era naval units	Maritime Industries	International Waters	Colonialism	Industrial
Colonial Taxes	Economic	+25% Gold in cities not on your original Capital Capital's continent. +25% Gold and +10% Production in cities not on your original Capital Capital's continent.	None	None	Colonialism	Industrial
Raj	Diplomatic	+2 Science, Culture, Faith and Gold from all city-states you're Suzerain of	None	None	Colonialism	Industrial
Public Works	Economic	+30% Production towards Builders. Newly trained Builders gain 2 additional Build actions	Serfdom	None	Civil Engineering	Industrial
Skyscrapers	Economic	+15% Production towards Industrial era and later Wonders	Gothic Architecture	None	Civil Engineering	Industrial
Grand Opera	Economic	+100% Culture yield from Theater Square district buildings. Extra Culture Culture from buildings in Theater Squares: +50% if city population is 10 or higher, +50% if district has at least +3 adjacency bonus.	None	Professional Sports	Opera and Ballet	Industrial
Symphonies	Wildcard	+4 Great Musician points per turn	None	None	Opera and Ballet	Industrial
Public Transport	Economic	Receive 50 Gold per Appeal of tile when replacing a Farm with a Neighborhood district. Receive 100 Gold per Appeal of tile when replacing a Farm with a Neighborhood district.	None	None	Urbanization	Industrial
Military Research	Military	Military Academies and Seaports generate +1 Science. Military Academies, Seaports, and Renaissance Walls generate +2 Science.	None	Space Race	Urbanization	Industrial
Total War	Military	Yields gained from pillaging are doubled	Raid, Sack	None	Scorched Earth	Industrial
Expropriation	Economic	Settler cost reduced by 50%. Plot purchase cost reduced by 20%.	Colonization, Land Surveyors	None	Scorched Earth	Industrial
Military Organization	Wildcard	+4 Great General points per turn	Strategos	None	Scorched Earth	Industrial
Resource Management	Economic	1 copy of a Strategic Resource allows you to produce or purchase units requiring it in every city	None	None	Conservation	Modern
Propaganda	Military	Accumulate 25% less war weariness than usual	Retainers	None	Mass Media	Modern
Levée en Masse	Military	Unit maintenance cost reduced by 2 Gold per unit	Conscription	None	Mobilization	Modern
Laissez-Faire	Wildcard	+4 Great Merchant points per turn	Travelling Merchants	None	Capitalism	Modern
Market Economy	Economic	Your international Trade Route Trade Routes provide +1 Gold, +2 Culture, and +2 Science per Strategic Resource improved at the destination	Trade Confederation	None	Capitalism	Modern
Police State	Diplomatic	Enemy Spy levels reduced by 2 in your lands. However, all cities suffer -1 Amenities Amenity. Enemy Spies level reduced by 2 in your lands. However all cities suffer -2 Loyalty per turn.	None	None	Ideology	Modern
Nobel Prize	Wildcard	+4 Great Scientist points per turn	Inspiration	None	Nuclear Program	Modern
Nuclear Espionage	Diplomatic	Spies who steal a tech boost without being detected gain an extra boost	None	None	Nuclear Program	Modern
Economic Union	Economic	+100% Commercial Hub and Harbor district adjacency bonuses	Naval Infrastructure, Town Charters	None	Suffrage	Modern
Their Finest Hour	Military	+50% Production toward Modern and Atomic era air units	None	Strategic Air Force	Suffrage	Modern
Arsenal of Democracy	Diplomatic	Your Trade Route Trade Routes to an ally's city provide +2 Food and Production for both cities. Your Trade Route Trade Routes to an Ally's city provide +4 Food and +4 Production for both cities. Alliance Points with each ally grow 25% faster.	Wisselbanken	None	Suffrage	Modern
New Deal	Economic	+4 Housing, +2 Amenities, and -8 Gold to all cities with at least 3 specialty districts	Medina Quarter, Liberalism	None	Suffrage	Modern
Lightning Warfare	Military	+50% Production for Modern, Atomic and Information era heavy and light cavalry units	Chivalry, Maneuver	None	Totalitarianism	Modern
Third Alternative	Economic	+4 Gold from each Research Lab, Military Academy and Power Plant	None	None	Totalitarianism	Modern
Martial Law	Military	Accumulate 25% less war weariness than usual. Accumulate 25% less war weariness than usual. +2 Loyalty per turn for cities with a garrisoned unit.	Limitanei	None	Totalitarianism	Modern
Gunboat Diplomacy	Diplomatic	Open Borders with all City-States, and +4 influence points per turn towards earning Envoy Envoys	Charismatic Leader	None	Totalitarianism	Modern
Five-Year Plan	Economic	+100% Campus and Industrial Zone district adjacency bonuses	Craftsmen, Natural Philosophy	None	Class Struggle	Modern
Collectivization	Economic	+4 Food from domestic Trade Route Trade Routes	None	None	Class Struggle	Modern
Patriotic War	Military	+100% Production towards Modern, Atomic and Information era support units	None	None	Class Struggle	Modern
Defense of the Motherland	Military	No war weariness from combat in your territory	None	None	Class Struggle	Modern
Cryptography	Diplomatic	Enemy Spy level reduced by 2 in your lands. Your Spy level is increased by 1 for offensive operations	None	None	Cold War	Atomic
International Waters	Military	+100% Production towards Modern, Atomic and Information era naval units, excluding Carriers	Maritime Industries, Press Gangs	None	Cold War	Atomic
Containment	Diplomatic	Each Envoy Envoy you send to a City-State counts as two, if its Suzerain has different government than you	None	None	Cold War	Atomic
Heritage Tourism	Economic	+100% Tourism from Great Works and Artifacts	None	None	Cultural Heritage	Atomic
Sports Media	Economic	+100% Theater Square district adjacency bonuses, and Stadiums generate +1 Amenities Amenity	Aesthetics, Grand Opera	None	Professional Sports	Atomic
Military First	Military	+50% Production toward Atomic and Information era melee and ranged units	Grande Armee	None	Rapid Deployment	Atomic
Satellite Broadcasts	Economic	Triples Tourism from Great Works of Music	None	None	Space Race	Atomic
Integrated Space Cell	Military	+15% Production towards Space Race projects if a city has either a Military Academy or a Seaport	Military Research	None	Space Race	Atomic
Second Strike Capability	Military	Nuclear Device maintenance reduced by 50% Gold per turn.	None	None	Cold War	Atomic
Strategic Air Force	Military	+50% Production toward Information era air units and all Carriers	Their Finest Hour	None	Globalization	Information
Ecommerce	Economic	+5 Production and +10 Gold from international Trade Route Trade Routes. +2 Production and +5 Gold from all Trade Route Trade Routes.	Triangular Trade	None	Globalization	Information
International Space Agency	Diplomatic	+10% Science per City-State you are the Suzerain of	None	None	Globalization	Information
Online Communities	Economic	+50% Tourism output to civilizations to which you have a Trade Route Trade Route	None	None	Social Media	Information
Collective Activism	Diplomatic	+10% Culture per City-State you are the Suzerain of	None	None	Social Media	Information
After Action Reports	Military	All units gain +25% combat experience.	None	None	Rapid Deployment	Information
Communications Office	Diplomatic	Governors provide +1 Loyalty per turn to their city, per Promotion the Governor has.	Praetorium	None	Social Media	Information

Added in the Rise and Fall expansion pack.

Dark Age Policy Cards

Dark Age Policy Cards are a new type of policy introduced in Rise and Fall. As their name implies, they can only be adopted by civilizations that are experiencing a Dark Age. They must be placed in Wildcard slots, and provide potent benefits...at a price.

Different Dark Age Policy Cards become available as the game progresses, as seen in the table below.

Name	Description	First available	Last available
Monasticism	+75% Science in cities with a Holy Site. BUT: -25% Culture in all cities.	Classical Era	Medieval Era
Twilight Valor	All units +5 Combat Strength for all melee attack units. BUT: Cannot heal outside your territory.	Classical Era	Renaissance Era
Inquisition	Start Inquisition with 1 Apostle charge. All religious units are +15 Religious Combat Strength in friendly territory. BUT: -25% Science in all cities.	Classical Era	Renaissance Era
Isolationism	Domestic routes provide +2 Food, +2 Production. BUT: Can't train or buy Settlers nor settle new cities.	Classical Era	Industrial Era
Letters of Marque	Naval Raiders: +100% Production, +2 Movement Movement. Yields doubled from plundering Trade Route Trade Routes. BUT: Trade Route Trade Route yields -50%.	Renaissance Era	Modern Era
Robber Barons	+50% Gold in cities with a Stock Exchange. +25% Production in cities with a Factory. BUT: -2 Amenities Amenities in all cities.	Industrial Era	Information Era
Elite Forces	+100% combat experience for all units. BUT: +2 Gold to maintain each military unit.	Industrial Era	Information Era
Collectivism	Farms +1 Food. All cities +2 Housing Housing. +100% Industrial Zone adjacency bonuses. BUT: Great Person Great People Points earned 50% slower.	Modern Era	Information Era
Rogue State	+50% Production to nuclear program projects and WMDs. BUT: Earn no influence toward new Envoy Envoys.	Atomic Era	Information Era

Related achievements

12 Olympians Have 12 Policy Slots as Greece The 12 Olympians were the major gods of Greek mythology who lived on Mount Olympus.

Desperate Times Call For Desperate Measures Assign a Dark Policy to your Government In adverse circumstances, actions that might have been rejected under other circumstances may become the best choice.