Ottomans
Suleiman (Muhteşem)
Uniques and adjacency effects read from the game data.
Victory focusDominationScience
Kit at a glance
Suleiman (Muhteşem) runs the Ottomans on an age cycle: +15% Science and Culture during a Golden or Heroic Age, and +4 Combat Strength when neither he nor his foe is in one. He keeps the Ottoman siege bonuses but not the base Suleiman's Janissary or Ibrahim.
Opening: the first 60 turns
Suleiman (Muhteşem) has no unique early unit or governor, so open with a standard expansion: Scout, Slinger, Settler, Settler, with Bronze Working and Masonry for defense. What shapes the opening is his two-mode leader ability: +15% Science and Culture in all cities during a Golden or Heroic Age, and +4 Combat Strength while he is not in one, against civilizations that are not in one either. The era score you earn in one era decides the age you get in the next, so treat it as a resource from the first turn. Engineering brings Catapults, which the Ottoman civilization ability builds 50% faster and makes stronger against district defenses, so a classical siege push is affordable. Plan Commercial Hubs in your core cities; the Grand Bazaar, the Ottoman Bank, later adds Amenities for improved luxuries and extra strategic resources.
Unique to this civilization
Unit
Barbary Corsair
Replaces Privateer
Civic: Medieval Faires
Building
Grand Bazaar
Replaces Bank
Technology: Banking
Adjacency effects
No adjacency bonus — standard district rules apply.
How to play it
Fight in Normal or Dark Ages against rivals who are not in a Golden Age, then spend your Golden Ages consolidating and researching while the +15% runs. Let the Ottoman bonuses for captured cities settle each conquest before the next one.
Victory paths
Domination is still the backbone, but this persona asks you to schedule it. Wars fought in a Normal or Dark Age against a civilization that is not in a Golden Age give every unit +4 Combat Strength; the Ottoman siege bonuses then break the walls, conquered cities keep their population, and cities the Ottomans did not found gain an Amenity and Loyalty every turn, so captures settle quickly. When a Golden or Heroic Age arrives, stop expanding and let +15% Science and Culture work across the now larger empire, which is why science is the natural second path. In the Classical and Medieval eras, pairing a Golden Age with the Free Inquiry dedication also makes the gold adjacency of Commercial Hubs and Harbors yield Science. Culture gets the same percentage but no other Ottoman support, so treat it as a bonus rather than a plan.
Synergies: city-states, wonders, policies
The combat bonus switches off against rivals in a Golden Age and never applies against city-states, barbarians or free cities, so every well-timed war has to count: Kabul doubles experience from battles your units start, Akkad lets melee and anti-cavalry units hit walls at full damage, and Preslav adds Loyalty for each Encampment building to help hold what you take. Muscat adds an Amenity to every city with a Commercial Hub, which fits the Grand Bazaar plan, and Geneva's +15% Science while you are at war with no one rewards the golden-age pauses. Victor with Garrison Commander anchors the newest conquest, and Amani's Emissary promotion drains Loyalty from nearby foreign cities before you strike. Raid raises the yields of the Barbary Corsairs' movement-free coastal raids, Professional Army halves upgrade costs, Alhambra adds a military slot, and God of the Forge speeds up the early army.
Weaknesses and counters
The leader ability works against itself if you mistime it: a Golden Age turns off the combat bonus and a Normal or Dark Age turns off the yield bonus, so drifting between ages without a plan wastes both halves. The combat bonus also disappears against any civilization that is itself in a Golden Age, which means a strong rival riding one is exactly the opponent you fight at par. The Janissary and the governor Ibrahim belong to the base Suleiman, so the early military is ordinary until Catapults arrive, and a rush before then hits a thinly defended empire. Opponents counter by striking during your Golden Ages, keeping their own era score high, and holding capitals behind walls and rivers. Common mistakes are declaring war without checking whether the target is in a Golden Age, chasing a Golden Age right before a planned war, and neglecting Commercial Hubs so the Grand Bazaar never comes online.
Similar civilizations
Related guides
- Domination: Building Cities That Feed a WarHow to lay out an empire for conquest in Gathering Storm: which cities become production cores, where the Encampment goes, the four classic attack windows, siege composition, holding conquered cities, and when to stop fighting and win another way.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