Civilization 5 Guide: How to Get Domination Victory Easier

So you could go for the cultural victory in Civilization 5, but it wouldn’t be just as fun as grabbing the Domination Victory in the game, right? If you agree with me and you’re ready to play the game like a general, read on my own thoughts on how to get the domination victory easier in Civilization 5!

Unlike the previous Civilization game where ruling the entire world was your quest for the domination victory, the rules have changed in Civilization 5, where you “only” have to be the last civilization to have its original capital city. It sounds easy, but when many civilizations are involved and they’re scattered all over the place, things change a little.

First off, everything begins with selecting the right civilization for the job. Since we’ll go to war quite often, I would suggest selecting the Japanese civ or the Chinese civ to push for the win early on. Also, Germany is a good choice for a warring civilization.

Wonder Building Guide for Domination Victory in Civilization 5

– Himeji Castle
– The Forbidden Palace
– The Great Wall
– Brandenburg Gate
– The Kremlin

Unlike the cultural victory quest, you don’t really need to build a lot of wonders for the domination victory, but every bit helps. Probably the Forbidden Palace is the only “must have” when the civilization you get is bigger and bigger.

Buildings Guide for Domination Victory in Civilization 5

– Walls
– Barracks
– Armory
– Military Academy
– Arsenal
– Military Base

Basically, you will need your cities to have as many buildings that increase your troops’ experience early on. Also, you will need your capital to be fully fortified (best defensive troops around in fortifications and castle) so that you don’t somehow lose it and make the domination victory impossible.

Social Policies Guide for Domination Victory in Civilization 5

Liberty – available early on, it will offer you great bonuses and it’s suitable for the expansive civ
Honor – an obvious social policy tree since it’s directly connected to a militaristic civilization and also offers great bonuses against Barbarians (use this with Germany and you’ll have a really solid army early on!)
Autocracy – another must have since it is directly connected to making your troops stronger
Commerce – not really a must have, but certainly one useful social policy since it gives you more money which can be used to upgrade your military permanently

General Tips for Domination Victory in Civilization 5

You will have to focus on building your military and it would be best to have a few cities you specialize on creating military units (lots of production!). You should go to war early on against the closest civilization, when they’re not ready and try to annex as many cities as you can without going into decline – having control over the buildings and troops created by the cities is a huge bonus!

Also, having good relations with City States that give you military units is a must, since they do tend to give you some really solid troops and their help is always useful.

Finally, since it’s just the capitals you need to conquer, aim for them and nothing else: go straight to the heart of your enemy and win the game in style. Good luck!