Power Rankings: Episode 24 – S5
July 20, 2026
Power-Rankers
Abstract
Power Rankings! The rankings…of power! Dun dun dunnnn!
Viewing: Vertical
Ponca
NopeCopter:
Man… Ponca didn’t deserve this. I’ll save the reflections for the eulogy I’ll inevitably have to write next week but… man…
Despite the incredibly defensive position of the final Ponca city, the Anishinaabe are still managing to slowly wear it down, and they’re on the verge of picking up Flight to seal the deal, too. They may have outlived the Pomo, their old tormentors, but they’re not going to make it much further.
Pegu
NopeCopter:
Pegu continues to live on entirely due to being in a very hard-to-reach area. Their threatening neighbors are busy fighting each other, and their non-threatening neighbor is nigh-immortal. But technology marches on, and in fact it seems to be marching downhill because the march just gets faster and faster. Planes are being developed across the cylinder, and before long they’ll end up in the hands of a neighbor who sees Pegu as a tasty morsel. At long last, they may be freed from their torment.
Xavante
Msurdej:
Though most of the wars have concluded, the big wars with Caral and Yanomami still rage on. And it's not looking good for Apoena. Losing another two cities this episode, he's down to three cities and a handful of units. And while it's a bad place to be, an elimination seems a likely outcome...
Ma’in
NopeCopter:
Ma’in still isn’t dead! Even after their long, agonizing run, even now that they have no more chances to try and make even a minor comeback, they’re still here. The Seychelles are distracted, Phoenicia sucks, and nobody else seems to have the ability to deliver the killing blow, so this poor little buffer state gets to live on. Here’s hoping they outlive Phoenicia, and you know what, how about the Seychelles, too. They deserve it after all they’ve been put through.
Maravi
Msurdej:
Good news Maravi! You're still alive! Granted, you're on one city, but look on the bright side. Herero is too beleaguered to try anything now, and the Seychelles are too busy recovering. So I'd say you've got another...5, 10 episodes before someone mercs you.
Karankawa
Leman:
Karankawa has got a city in Greenland that’s sticking around until they inexplicably die in 12th place. We've got a lot of slides to do. I'm not doing it this week.
Papal States
Msurdej:
Aures declares war against the Papal States! While the war is a chance for Aures to regain some of its fallen power, this is a fight for survival for the Papal States. A loss of even 1 or two cities could send Julius into the Bottom five. I doubt Aures will be able to do a cross Mediterranean invasion well enough to take inland cities, but Rome is capable of falling prey to the Aures Navy, And if they lose their capital, then the Papal States are well on their way back to the sub.
Xaragua
ECH:
Xaragua: a land where the sailors hold firm but the peace negotiators certainly don’t, to surmise the fear lingering in the heads of us PR’s. Xaragua’s navy had the tech advantage when declared upon already, but I think the state of this naval battlefront so far has genuinely surprised even with that in mind when it comes to the success Anacaona has had; quality winning over quantity by a decent margin so far. Production prioritisation could make all the difference here: Susquehannock has the coastal cities and hammers to certainly wear away Xaragua’s higher tech navy and score at least the closer city captures, but will they? You’d think Xaragua would at least be fully prioritising new ships in every city, but is that giving them too much credit? It remains to be seen, and unfortunately so far this season we can credibly rely on Xaragua to misstep at the end of an otherwise defensively impressive war.
Hey, at least they’re outdoing their comrade in X-ness in the region!
Guaycuru
JDT:
Welp things are still going pretty badly for Guaycuru. Potiguara are still hammering their ass and their prospects for holding their core look grim. Their main saving grace is the fact they have an enclave within Chono, who are more than happy to keep them as a pet, and which should insulate them until at least Paratroopers if not longer. Arf arf I guess.
Phoenicia
Archimedes :
I’m not sure if we ever really saw Phoenicia in this episode, and for good reason. Their sun has set, and they are now relegated to being the bottom of the barrel. Most did not have much hope in Phoenicia, with poor outlooks in the test games, and Phoenicia has ultimately panned out the same way. Phoenicia’s only saving grace is that Ma’in still exists, and is worse by a decent margin. But with sharks circling the water, and Sumer dismantled before their eyes, will Hiram be next?
Phoenicia only has 6 cities to their name, and those cities are frankly awful. With 138 production and 270 effective science, outlooks are poor on Phoenicia ever getting back into this game. Cramped, and pressed in by aggressive neighbours looking to conquer, Phoenicia can barely manage to field an army able to defend, with only musketmen and cannons to defend against potential riflemen, ships of the line, and great war bombers. At this point for the viewers, it is a waiting game to see when a relevant war is declared on them, and I think if Circassia or Hyksos decide to go for a round two, it’s ultimately lights out for this washed out competitor.
Better watch that clock.
Wallachia
Orange:
The debt is still here! Yayyyyyyyy!
Green Ukraine
Msurdej: The only mention of Green Ukraine this episode was on the slide talking about Japan's options to kill them. That should tell you everything you need to know about Green Ukraine's chances.
Hanseatic League
Fiona (LynnWinn):
Hansa is a pathetic excuse that is a prime example of what Europe usually ends up being in the CBR, even more than Italian civs because they often try. Pathetic future lunch. Take the poor dog out back already!
Yunnan
ItsTruckMonth:
The Yunnanese fortress jumps up a few ranks, mostly as it continues to outlast other civs being gobbled up by their neighbors; a problem that Yunnan mostly doesn’t have to worry about. Given the geography and borders, the only civ that truly poses an existential threat to Long Yun’s reign is Tang, who are asleep at the wheel.
But the moment the sleeping giant wakes up, Yun might as well start writing his memoirs, for he is COOKED.
Vyatka
Casie (LynnWinn):
I was always more in favor of Scythia & Ket but this civ has been basically a flop from the start. Really disappointing to see potential regional powers flop in uninteresting ways. They’re likely going to be outpaced & overtaken by one of the more interesting powers within a few episodes… I hope at least. I hope the Bjarmians can end their endless stalemates soon…
Bactria
ItsTruckMonth:
Bactria finally gets a mention.
Unfortunately for them it's referring to Scythia besieging the city of Sarai.
Fortunately for them, they weren’t mentioned again after this, and the map hasn’t shown anything, so Demetrius is holding onto it.
Now back to irrelevance with you, Bactria.
Ethiopia
Archimedes :
You would think that a civ with such a strong start and such a defensible position would be likely to do well in this game, but it seems like Ethiopia is flavoured just a little too much to stagnation this run. They have fought back incredibly against Zazzau’s advances, and continue to flip those border cities back and forth, but ultimately to what end? Seychelles continues to march in the east, Hyksos stands in the north ready for an opportunity that they will never take, and I see no advancement on the horizon for Zara Yaqob.
One thing that is clear is that their stats remained dampened, both by their inaction and by their slow wasting away in these wars. Their armies are weak, and their actual usable cities remain low, either at 4 or 5 that actually are contributing to the empire. Their science and technologies are both middling, and seem to be outpaced quickly by their neighbours, namely the invading Seychelles. Seychelles could gain greatly in this invasion of Ethiopia, securing productive, defensive cities on the mainland, and maybe even nabbing the illustrious Statue of Zeus. But Ethiopia is defensible in their East, and gains and or losses will be slow going for sure.
Ethiopia could have been a real contender in this game, if they had done one simple thing : Invade Hyksos. Ages ago, when Ethiopia was one of the major production powerhouses and held the Statue of Zeus, the holy land of their religion would have been a prime target for invasion, and would have synergized greatly with all of their religious unique abilities. That time has passed however, and Ethiopia seems primed to continue being a stubborn foothold in Eastern Africa. Whether they eventually fall to the Seychelles, or merely stand as a blockade for them to gain relevance on the mainland will have to be seen. I think Ethiopia is definitely not making it to the top third in this game though.
Caral
ItsTruckMonth:
Gone are the days when Caral could contend for the title, but they still have the stuff to screw over and bring down other contenders! They continue to be a pain in the ass for Teotihuacan, who are currently fighting for their lives against the Tlingit, by repeatedly attacking their southern settlement of Nthakataka and forcing Spearthrower to split precious forces to retake it.If you’re out of the running, you might as well swipe another contender out of the race while you’re at it.
They are also this season’s brave soul to take on the Freedom Ideology. Bold? Definitely. Stupid? Quite possibly so.
France
Orange:
The Papacy is France’s only neighbor with worse tech. Umhaill is 2 ahead, Hanseatic League 4, and Portugal is 8. As a resident João supporter, I can’t wait for them to enact their revenge.
Zazzau
NopeCopter:
Remarkably, Zazzau has evidently still got that dawg in them (wounded as it may be), because they’re currently pulling off a comeback against Ethiopia! Their carpet is still rather thin, which isn’t ideal, but Luba and the Aures are both hella distracted, and Ethiopia is currently facing down an invasion on the other side of their empire as well, so this might be the best opportunity Zazzau gets to reclaim what is rightfully theirs. Even if they do conquer a big chunk of Ethiopia, of course, it’s probably too late for them by this point - the Seychelles are expanding their mainland holdings as we speak, the Aures have woken back up, and even Luba has better tech - but at least Zazzau’s trying.
Kipchaps
Casie (LynnWinn):
Not much to say about them. Didn’t even make an appearance outside of an aside of being declared war on. Long term prospects aren’t great but they have a knack for being somewhat forgettable in my book.
Bjarmians
Msurdej:
The Bjarmians continue their war with Vyatka. They manage to hold onto two cities, but still lose a rank. Why? Well, besides statistical noise, flipping cities back and forth isn;t a good way to advance in this game. Just be happy you didn't fall more Harekr. Because you certainly can.
Luba
Archimedes :
When you’re the no fun civ of the continent, people tend to hate you. And Luba has done everything in their power to stop fun from happening in Africa. Standing in the way of Herero doing anything, intervening against Zazzau during their conquest of Ethiopia, giving up on finishing off Maravi, and resisting against Seychelles as they push into the mainland. Luba stands strong enough still, resisting all of these incursions, but can it be forever? Or is this invasion from Seychelles perhaps the start of their downfall.
Luba stands decently enough in statistics, for their region. They stand above Zazzau and Ethiopia, which isn’t really saying too much, and a little bit under Herero. Their production is underwhelming, and their city count is paltry, but their science is average enough at this stage. What really is holding them up currently is their tech choice, with Fortifications, Flintlock and Metallurgy granting them a solid military that is helping them defend their lands. With Scientific Theory on the horizon, their science will continue to improve, and they will continue to outpace their neighbours.
Except for Seychelles.
Seychelles has pushed clearly onto the mainland, grabbing both Kamina and Mankhamba. With their naval force sailing off the east coast of Africa, Luba stands to not be able to capture them back, but Seychelles is both lacking in land military and military strategy. It’s doubtful if Seychelles can actually manage to push further into Luba, but Mwibele and Musumba are both more open from the east than they are from the west, and could act as a strong position for these invaders to grab. It’s doubtful if Luba can defend if Seychelles can actually push with land units, and Luba’s overall military is shockingly only a quarter the size of Seychelles. We may see a low and gradual loss of cities in the coming episode, and an end to this no fun streak. If Luba does indeed cede all this land, it will be clear that they are done for in this game, and are ultimately known for letting Seychelles become the Champion of Africa.
Hyksos
ItsTruckMonth:
Y'all wanna see my best Apophis impression?
"snoooore mi-mi-mi-mi-mi, snoooore mi-mi-mi-mi-mi..."
Kalmar Union:
Cloudy:
Kalmar had a bit of a rocky episode, in which they almost lost Ribe to the Hanseatic League and failed to capture the undefended exclave of Rakvere. The latter is now taking significant damage, or was as of scene 59, but Margarethe still lost a lot of troops and population, which is reflected in her 7-place slide in the info addict rankings. A two-point slide in our rankings seems sufficient, as we expect her to win the war in the end, possibly capturing Rakvere and holding the line to the south, but it will leave the Kalmar Union weakened for some time and potentially vulnerable to a Scottish invasion.
Potiguara
Fiona (LynnWinn):
It really says something that multiple top civs have been flailing at wars that it’s more interesting to look at the small civs take down others closer than them on the chopping block & let ‘em have it. They’re fine but not great long term. This season is just allergic to cool moments so they’ll just fizzle out later most likely.
Onondaga
Msurdej/NopeCopter:
Yeah, the Onondaga are out of this game, make no mistake. Last two episodes ago war was their perfect opportunity, and they blew it. Even if their terrain is favorable enough (and their neighbors incompetent enough, apparently), they just don’t have a way to expand. Even Scottish Greenland, once a reasonable target, is now being reinforced by Galleons. They’re kind of rebuilding, but they’re still not looking great, and they weren’t even looking that good before the war. Oh, and it’s mostly Knights they’re building. Tough luck, Onondaga, maybe next time build a better unit composition (and don’t just give up five turns in) and maybe then we'll put more effort into your write up than just copy-pasting.
Umhaill
JDT:
Umhail go up by 3 due to mostly other civs being more ass than them. Their circumstances have still been exactly the same. Being Scotland's lesser. Yep, nothing really changes in Ireland.
Herero
Cloudy:
We didn’t see much of the Herero-Luba war this week, probably because that’s a war that’s happened six times now and nothing ever happens. But there are some signs that Herero might be losing, which is enough to drop them two ranks. Luba units that appear to be more advanced than Herero’s have been sighted near Okakarara with little to stop them; is it a sign of things to come? Well.... I wouldn’t count on it. Herero actually outclasses Luba in almost every statistical category, with more troops, 6 more cities, more science, more production, more food, more citizens, you name it. That’s partly because Luba just lost two cities to the Seychelles, but still, the only edge Luba has is one more technology (50 vs. 49). So to be honest, I think the more likely outcome is that this war ends in yet another stalemate.
Estonia
Cloudy:
I maintain my position that Estonia should attack the Bjarmians again; I still think that they could win and gain a couple cities. They need to expand their empire through conquest if they want to stand any chance against Scythia long-term. Unfortunately that’s only become more essential this episode, as Scythia stopped razing Bremen, holding onto a swathe of land that we previously thought might be open to Estonian settlement. Nevertheless, Estonia rises one rank due to Herero’s fall.
Portugal
ItsTruckMonth:
Another sleepy episode for sleepy ol’ João. Though to be fair, there’s not much reason for them to be all too worried about their state:
Aures just woke up to focus on attacking the Pope.
France is on #FraudWatch.
And Umhaill is borderline broke (more on that coming up next).
Overall, good time for Joao to get some beauty sleep, though that latter part should give him reason to start getting out of bed.
Teotihuacan
Archimedes :
Look guys, Teotihuacan can still pull this off.
Sure, Tlingit is sweeping through their lands with air superiority. Teotihuacan has lost 6 cities in short order, with a 7th at a sliver of health and a fleet of Tlingit frigates bearing down on three other western coastal cities. As cuirassiers, riflemen and field guns continue marching through their lands, Teotihuacan seems very tenuous at best, and their capital could soon be under threat. They’ve dropped seven places in stats, and a whopping fourteen places in the PRs, showing just how much the tide of opinion has changed within the team on Teotihuacan’s prospects.
BUT, and this is a big but, Teotihuacan can absolutely still stabilize. Teotihuacan, despite losing so many cities, still is in a solid place statistically. With more stats than Scythia, Bunuba, Cebu and Lanfang, Teo still boasts a respectable amount of production, a solid selection of cities, and is still doing better in effective science than a lot of the cylinder. They have 58 technologies researched, have picked up both Fortification and Rifling, and are working their way towards Biology, the path to Flight of their own. Even though Frigates are bearing down on their lands, if they can manage a peace deal in short order, Teotihuacan stands able to bombard their own neighbours with bombs from the sky.
Teotihuacan also has picked up Autocracy, a perfect ideology for them to recover. With the majority of the world following in Tang’s footsteps, Teotihuacan has the ability to strengthen diplomatic ties with many of their neighbours, including Tlingit if they can manage a peace deal. The bonus production towards units will allow them to rebuild their technologically advanced army, and with Susquehannock swarming into Xaragua lands, Teotihuacan could soon find themselves with more significant coastal borders with their eastern seaboard neighbour. Susquehannock already stands next to Teotihuacan lands in the Yucatan, and with a Tlingit peace deal secured, Spearthrower Owl could swing his surviving armies and significant navy into an exhausted Susq to take plenty enough cities to recover.
There is of course the matter of Caral to the south. As annoying as a flying mosquito, Caral continues to waste their navy away attacking and recapturing Nthakataka, to little success. Again with a peace deal secured with Tlingit, Teotihuacan could focus their full might pushing the Caral invaders back, and attack the small outposts in the Southern Pacific to their own advantage. Caral stands as a weaker competitor against the might and production of Teo, and could easily be swallowed with an undivided military.
As Teotihuacan continues to weather the storm of Tlingit aggression, their prospects may look dire but fortune still favours them moving forward. Plenty of options still exist for Teotihuacan to rebound, and the absolute power of flight is just on the horizon. Fans of Teotihuacan can hopefully expect a cunning peace deal at the start of the next episode, and I feel strongly that Teotihuacan can both recover and exceed their current position. Because of course, is the civ with the most word count in the PRs not worthy of success?
Qara-Khitai
Cloudy:
The world was new and dinosaurs still roamed the land the last time Qara-Khitai did absolutely anything at all.
Bangladesh
ItsTruckMonth:
Bangladesh sneaks out of its war with Lanfang without much of a loss, only seeing the former Pegu capital flip a couple of times. This leaves them in roughly the same spot as they always were: being the ugly duckling/dark horse/middle child of the Indian subcontinent with limited avenues for expansion.
There is one that may be most fruitful, though: running it back with Lanfang. Rahman currently possesses both better production and better techs than Fangbo, and should the latter continue to be bogged down in a war with NSW (or with Cebu or Bunuba in the future), it wouldn’t be a bad idea to seize some exposed cities on their western flank.
Circassia
Orange:
I said everything last time really. But hey they got an ideology, a sign of their tech being at least alright.
They’re gonna get mowed down by planes soon I figure.
Bunuba
Shaggy:
Bunuba’s structural fuckedness hasn’t changed much but they may be able to take advantage of an interesting opportunity that’s come their way. Bunuba has a carpet, one hell of a carpet with a healthy mix of land and naval units and all generally at the cutting edge of modern technology. New South Wales has been very focused on securing the outer reaches of their empire with their navy and who knows what their inland cities have been producing in the meantime because their home territory looks more like a bare tile floor than a carpet. Not only that, but Lanfang has also been showing themselves as struggling to navigate a large army across a wide empire. If there were ever a time for Bunuba to try to bite off a chunk of one of their threatening neighbors, now might be the best opportunity they have for a while.
Cebu
Archimedes :
Cebu featured decidedly little in this most recent game, mainly on the outskirts of a conflict that is currently deciding the fate of North America. Their most significant contribution was as a roadblock to a naval fleet that will shake the world, and at that they have been circumnavigated by Tlingit’s open borders with Japan. As the empire of Pomo fell before their eyes, and the empire of Teotihuacan similarly crumbles, Cebu certainly should be sweating in their boats.
Though Ceu has acted throughout this game with what has been called “Protagonist Plot Armour”, their available targets are dwindling quickly. Only Yunnan and Caral really remains as an easy target in the area, and at that they are not quite so easy to conquer. As Tang, Japan, Tlingit, New South Wales, Lanfang and Bunuba lurk in the water, Cebu is looking less and less capable of securing wins in the wake of an ocean full of technological development. Cebu lacks the advantages of the north, deciding to keep their own religion or Bole Maru over the superior Sgáanaang, stunting their culture and science compared to their competitors. And it’s certainly showing.
Cebu has merely 55 technologies, and 680 effective science, well below the upper echelon of scientific producers that hold over twice the amount of output. Their technological selection is certainly questionable as well, focusing at least on picking up production technologies but otherwise avoiding key science and naval pickup that could improve their current position. Cebu’s aggressiveness has generally made up for their lacking economic developments, but things are slowly but surely getting away from them as their neighbours continue to supersede them in empire effectiveness. Their production, despite picking up key production technologies, is sparse for the region, mainly due to just how many island cities Cebu holds that lack any amount of productive capabilities. If Cebu could manage to grab a foothold on some larger landmass, perhaps they could improve their output, but things are not looking great at the moment for that.
As much as fans of Cebu wish for them to succeed, it seems that Humabon has run into a wall for further expansion. Perhaps they could join Tlingit in taking out the western portion of Teotihuacan, something that they have a positional advantage towards. But Teotihuacan was allied with Tlingit once, and fell in short order once Pomo was eliminated. Cebu may be next on the chopping block, as one of Tlingit’s closest neighbours and holders of former Pomo cities as well. Tlingit looks to nearly fully encircle Cebu here, and those Hawaiian colonies are one tile away from being completely cut off from the rest of Cebu’s empire. Japan acts as a roadblock and an enemy as well, keeping Cebu in a disadvantageous position. With Tlingit, and Tang, and New South Wales all potentially threatening to crush Cebu with a single glance. I fear their prospects in this game are tenuous at best, and downright on a knife's edge at worst. Protagonist energy cannot save you from air superiority.
Mysore
Archimedes :
When you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place, you really have to be concerned about getting out. And Mysore has done anything but, instead letting themselves be invaded by one of the biggest competitors in this game. Although that ship has sailed, and Mysore has weathered the storm, they now stand between Pakistan and Bangladesh at their relative heights, and Pakistan is fresh off of both a successful elimination and at the advent of flight. Tipu Sultan should be sweating right now.
Mysore is at least recovering a bit from the conquest, with respectable enough production, a solid amount of science, and a collection of cities to help bolster their lands. Grabbing Fortification was key to their defense, and they have bolstered themselves with other useful acquisitions, like Industrialization, Railroad, Military Science and Biology. With Dynamite on the horizon, Mysore could potentially stand as a military might, and could push through either into Bangladesh or into Qara-Khitai with enough muster.
But, their lands are frankly awful right now, spread in an awkward shape and cut off at points by settlements, citadels, and land stolen by Pakistan’s UA. Their ability to reinforce their northern cities is awkward at best and impossible at worst, and their recent Wonder pickup adds a bit of defense but is decidedly outside their empire. Both Pakistan or Bangladesh could manage acquisitions in short order, pushing Mysore into a more defensible but more squeezed core. With New South Wales now patrolling the seas, Mysore’s outs are shrinking rapidly, and only a cheeky timed attack could save them now, perhaps when they themselves grab Flight. Does Mysore have much of a chance in this game? I frankly think not. But it’s not quite over yet, and anything could happen that could push Mysore into being a relevant competitor.
Scotland
Archimedes :
Scotland, like Umhaill, has been plagued with inaction in this latter half of the game. They have a significant empire, rivalling Scythia for the strongest in all of Europe, but unfortunately have done nothing to further their game. Scotland stands stronger than their nearby neighbours, and if they had the gusto to actually invade, they could secure a clear place in the top 10, but have yet to do so, much to the chagrin of their supporters.
If you look at their stats right now, Scotland has a clear solid amount of military, production, and population. They have a collection of cities, mostly naval, that feed science and other statistics into their empire, and could work as a launching point into either mainland Europe or mainland North America. But their science is a touch lacking for the position they’re in at the moment, and stand below the average in terms of numbers of technologies when you look at the top 20 in this game. They stand to improve this however, as they’re currently picking up Scientific Theory, after a slew of relevant technologies like Navigation, Flintlock, Fortification and Exploration. Scotland has the technological prowess to push for a naval invasion and secure themselves solid footholds, and now can bolster that military might with continued scientific growth.
Scotland just needs to do something in this game, anything, to further their position. With 72 happiness to their name, they have the bandwidth to actually take cities without plunging themselves into unhappiness, but their inaction has really been a nail in their coffin. Hopefully with a slew of new technologically relevant units, Mary gets up and goes out with gusto, and we see the camera panned to the lands of the British Isles and beyond.
Lanfang
JDT:
…Luo please…
Lanfang goes down by 3 spots as New South Wales’ invasion proves to be more dangerous than initially anticipated, in large part due to Lanfang's naval AI bugging out and them refusing to move their fleet southwards to actually deal with the threat. Of course, this is a threat that can be partially alleviated by actually moving the troops. But NSW is relentless and on even footing. Any intervention must be made in a timely manner to prevent large losses. And of course, YOU NEED TO MOVE YOUR ARMY LUO!! YOU NEED TO MACRO! WAKE THE FUCK UP!!!
Scythia
Cloudy:
Scythia gets back into the top 15 for the first time since episode 16 thanks to an unexpected strategic decision: they stopped razing Bremen. Based on our prior observations we had thought that the anti-razing mod, which causes civs to stop razing a city when their happiness goes back above zero, was not working. However, Scythia bucked that trend and kept Bremen, reversing a major strategic blunder that we previously had baked into their ranking, and giving them a long-term door into central Europe. At the same time, they’re making a valiant if potentially unsuccessful push to capture Sarai from Bactria, which is the most activity we’ve seen from them in a while. Can they come back and dominate Europe as we once thought they might? That remains to be seen, but we’re more optimistic than we once were.
Japan
Leman:
Japan’s basically complicit in Teotihuacan’s downfall, allowing Tlingit ships to sail through their waters in order to get to their target. Which sucks. Cause I like Teotihuacan. And Japan gets nothing out of it. Tlingit doesn’t need more cities. Whatever.
Susquehannock
Orange:
Bro how are you fumbling this hard against Xaragua? They have literally given away half their empire and *you’re losing*.
Itelmen
ECH:
I just straight up cannot vibe with the Itelmen, hangers on for lyfe here. Number 10 in the stats and yet minimal signs of life, even with old Potential Civ next door unconsciously screaming to be taken out. Bolstered so much purely by the religion they had the luck to spawn near, they’re like one of those jerks that gets a highscore in something via exploit, and you have to wonder if they’re fully aware that everyone who sees the score thereafter knows they don’t deserve it. Maybe they smugly enjoy that fact, maybe they’re secretly ashamed? They should be.
Digression on my dislike for them aside, I report that we have nothing to report on their activities. 3 distant wars and minor stats shuffling, almost all areas in the ‘good to great but not astounding’ camp does not make for the most exciting of reads, apologies. Blame the crow, it’s what they do.
Aures
ECH:
After a lengthy period of frustrating inactivity - perhaps Dihya was unfortunately advised that ‘Aur-es farming’ was the way to success in the modern age - the Aures have mobilised once more against their favourite target, the Papal States. I applaud this, having long felt Rome was ripe for the taking given the setup of tile ownership in the Mediterranean, and honestly, I think even 3 ranks is an underestimation of Aures right now. Yes, they have stat issues compared to the top set, but the largest asset they’ve always owned isn’t something that can be put into a stats sheet: opportunity.
Aures already had a great geographic spread full of weaker neighbours and open geography to play with, giving them stronger short-mid-term growth potential than some much larger civs. Expanding into Europe, the disappointing middle child of CBRX5? A great choice, and past experience has shown Aures won’t be the type to just grab Rome and dip, at minimum. Won’t be shocked to see a jump into the top 10 next episode, although who’ll lose out is the question.
Yanomami
Leman:
Welcome to the top 10 for the first time, Yanomami! With Teotihuacan collapsing and Yanomami slowly and surely pushing deep into Xavante territory, Yanomami has finally established themselves as a top 10 player. And it's well deserved. Yanomami has the same number of cities as Ket and will probably overtake them soon. They have a solid military, decent economy, and a bunch of absolute dorks as neighbors Potiguara, Xaragua, Caral could be taken out immediately and Teotihuacan is vulnerable.
Seems like South American this time around is going to be split horizontally, with Yanomami taking the North and Chono in the south.
Anishinaabe
Orange:
While Tlingit is taking over the entirety of what was until now a top ten power, Anishinaabe is trying to take out the last two cities of Ponca. Which means spending a long time just trying to poke at Wáin-Xude. They don’t have planes yet so it’s uh, gonna take a bit, it really is a fortress of a city. And this is kind of the great problem for Anishinaabe, always in the shadows, good but just not quite as good as their neighbor.
Ket
Shaggy:
The closest we got to a shot of Ket this episode had them as a background character hiding behind the Urals while the camera was focused on eastern Bjarmian territory. They still haven’t done much to change their situation and their immediate neighbors have similarly been averse to sparking any sort of conflict in their neck of the woods. Ket falls two ranks this week, though, as the Power Ranking team begins to feel a bit shakier around Ket’s future prospects now that planes are coming online with other Asian great powers, thus eroding Ket’s religious defensive advantages. Ket will need to start showing some willingness to win the game rather than simply not lose it in order to reclaim a top 5 slot.
Rouran
Orange:
ATTACK TANG ALREADY OH MY GOD PLEASE JUST ATTACK TANG HOW LONG ARE YOU GONNA WAIT THEY ARE GAINING TECHS AS WE SPEAK JUST HIT THE DECLARE WAR BUTTON AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Seychelles
Shaggy:
France-Albert Rene is proving to be the more competent of the France’s in this game as Seychelles rockets up to 6th place this week. Capturing Kamina and Mankhamba from Luba is an admirable accomplishment for Seychelles. Despite their struggles with using their Arabian holdings as a launch point for further conquest, their African holdings are paying dividends. Going through Mbewe towards Roha will be a tougher task than pivoting south and directing their military towards Luba and Herero further. Masters of the water than they are, I expect them to flow down the path of least resistance, inevitably carving their path through the landscape.
Pakistan
Leman:
Pakistan spent this episode integrating their new Sumerian conquests, and that's good and all. And they’re good and all. They have great stats, great economy., they’re doing that tall thing really really well. Basically this game’s Wahgi or Kayapo or Nigeria, but honestly I feel like Pakistan is doing it better. Hopefully they turn on Bactria next.
New South Wales
Shaggy:
I know I just had a whole writeup earlier in these Power Rankings about how Bunuba’s greatest hope at taking some cities off of New South Wales is invading them sooner rather than later, but it might already be too late. Macarthur has already entered the modern era which means that planes are not too far off from being the defensive doctrine for the NSW mainland. Great news for NSW when they want to be able to use their navy as their primary expansion tool for now. Cruisers are a ways away, so naval airplanes might not come anytime soon, so defensive uses and the eventual demolition of Bunuba will be their primary use case for NSW. Up one rank this week as the rankers who have some bias against southeastern Australian civs start realizing that NSW might be the real deal.
Chono
Orange:
Chono lightly beat up Caral, and we all thought Caral was done for, and like, they kinda still are, their stats aren’t great in the slightest. Yet they aren’t giving up, they are now taking cities off Teotihuacan, and if they can consolidate those islands off the coast and maintain a presence in Mesoamerica then they might actually be a little bit back into it.
Anyways this isn’t about Caral, this is about Chono watching their neighbors do things while they sit around looking all superior but doing nothing. We’re all just waiting for them to prove themselves.
Tang
Cloudy:
Another week, another stint in second place. As long as Tlingit is on the war path and Tang isn’t, that will remain the case, but make no mistake, Tang is building up for something big. They have 44% more effective science than no. 2 Pakistan, five more techs than Tlingit, and just became the first civ to unlock Combustion and Dynamite, granting access to landships and artillery. Plastics is available for them to research next episode, which would unlock research labs. They’ve also more than solved their happiness problems, jumping from 3 happiness to 206, enough to put them in a near continuous golden age. All that’s needed to propel them into first place is for them to do to some other civ what Tlingit is currently doing to Teotihuacan. We’re waiting!
Tlingit
Cloudy:
Tlingit’s dominance keeps reaching new and more shocking heights with each passing episode. After a couple weeks of slowly grinding down Teotihuacan’s northern lands, airplanes have broken the dam, laying waste to cities and threatening to bring about the complete collapse of a former top 10 power. Before long, Tlingit’s empire could stretch from the Arctic Ocean to the Valley of Mexico. Anything can happen when we hit the future era, but right now, it’s hard to even imagine how Tlingit could be stopped. Tang has the capacity to compete for the No. 1 spot, but they’re not in a position to stop Tlingit. Only the temptation to laziness could do it, but Sheiyksh likes to be constantly at war, and he likes to win. World conquest is in his sights and his aim is true.
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