Arabia
Saladin
Uniques and adjacency effects read from the game data.
Victory focusScienceReligion
Kit at a glance
Vizier Saladin makes his worship building nearly free to faith-buy and turns it into a yield amplifier, while Arabia's kit guarantees you never miss a religion. The result is a science-faith hybrid that scales through the whole game.
Opening: the first 60 turns
Vizier Saladin can skip the usual Holy Site panic. Open with scout, warrior, settler, settler and let Astrology wait until after Pottery, Mining and Bronze Working, because the guaranteed prophet means the first Holy Site only needs to be finished before the last other civ founds theirs, typically around turn seventy on standard speed. Civics go Code of Laws, Foreign Trade, Early Empire, then State Workforce. The capital should plan a Campus and Holy Site pair, ideally sharing a mountain range, since the Madrasa later converts Campus adjacency into faith. Second and third cities go toward rivers and hills for production; reaching the Feudalism civic boosts Stirrups, which unlocks Mamluks in the Medieval era.
Unique to this civilization
Unit
Mamluk
Replaces Knight
Technology: Stirrups
Building
Madrasa
Replaces University
Civic: Theology
Adjacency effects
No adjacency bonus — standard district rules apply.
How to play it
Found your religion at a comfortable pace — it cannot slip away — then drop the discounted worship building in every city and pair Holy Sites with Campuses. Madrasas and mamluks cover the science and military flanks while faith compounds.
Victory paths
Science is the finishing line, with religion as the engine rather than the goal. The discounted worship building goes into every city and lifts science, faith and culture together, so a ten-city empire with Madrasas and worship buildings out-researches most peers by the Industrial era without Great Scientist luck. Spread the religion abroad early because foreign followers pay science too; two or three converted neighbors are a permanent lab. A religious victory is available if the map is small and rivals ignore their faith, since the same apostles you use for spreading can finish the job, but it competes with the faith you would rather spend on Great Scientists and campus projects. Do not pivot to domination; Mamluks defend borders and escort apostles, nothing more.
Synergies: city-states, wonders, policies
Scientific city-states such as Geneva or Hattusa amplify the Madrasa-heavy Campus line, and a religious one like Yerevan makes the apostles you send abroad more versatile. Pingala with Grants and Researcher belongs in the capital where the Madrasa and worship building stack; Moksha is optional because the worship building is nearly free anyway. Wonders to consider are Mahabodhi Temple for two free apostles, Kilwa Kisiwani to strengthen city-state type bonuses, and Oxford University late. For beliefs, Feed the World or Work Ethic sit well with mountain-heavy Holy Sites, and Cross-Cultural Dialogue turns foreign followers into even more science. Policy cards Scripture and Simultaneum push faith, while Rationalism covers Campus buildings. A pantheon like Religious Settlements or Sacred Path suits jungle starts.
Weaknesses and counters
The guaranteed prophet breeds complacency: a Holy Site built on turn eighty with poor adjacency produces so little faith that the worship building discount saves nothing worth having. Being handed the last prophet also means picking from leftover beliefs, so the follower and worship choices are often mediocre, and Saladin's bonuses attach to whichever worship building is left. Aggressive neighbors can end the game before the Madrasa comes online, since Arabia's early army is generic and Mamluks are a mid-game answer. Religious rivals like Byzantium or Spain with inquisitors erase the foreign followers that fund your science. Players also overspend faith on apostles for a religious win they never intended, starving the Great Scientist purchases that actually close the science game.
Similar civilizations
Related guides
- Science Victory City Planning: Roles, the Production Core, and the SpaceportA city-by-city plan for science victories in Gathering Storm: which cities carry research, which one carries the spaceport, era checkpoints to measure against, and what to do when the plan stalls.Last reviewed: 2026-10-03
- Which Civilization Should You Play? Picks by Victory TypeThree to four leader picks for each victory type — science, culture, domination, religion, and diplomacy — with the reason each one teaches that victory well, plus flexible all-rounders and a guide to matching a civilization to how you actually like to play.Last reviewed: 2026-10-03
- Early District Planning: The First 100 TurnsHow to read city sites for future adjacency, decide between settling for yields now or reserving tile clusters, and know when a planned layout should be abandoned.Last reviewed: 2026-10-03
- City-States and Envoys: Where Your Influence Should GoWhere envoys come from, how to spend the first handful, which city-state types match each victory plan, how to win and keep suzerainty against the AI, and when conquering a city-state is the right call.Last reviewed: 2026-10-03
Last reviewed: 2026-10-03