How to start an Alliance with a leader in Civilization 7

From the opening hour to the very end of a playthrough in Civilization 7, you’ll meet a variety of other world leaders. They control different parts of the map with settlements, and you need to interact with them to help build up your empire.

However, if you want to take it a step further, you can also create an alliance with another leader, which comes with some unique benefits.

How to find other leaders on the map in Civilization 7

Before you can start an alliance with a leader, you need to find them. Fortunately, other world leaders will present themselves to you as you explore your map in Civilization 7.

The best way to meet every leader on the map is to take a Scout in the Antiquity Age or a Scout/naval unit in the Exploration Age and uncover every tile you can. Through uncovering tiles, you’ll discover other continents and lands where other leaders have set up their empires.

When you discover a new leader’s settlement, the game will introduce you to them, and you’ll be able to greet them with hostility or friendship. If you want to start an alliance with the leader, it’s much easier to do so if you greet them nicely, as this starts your relationship off with them at a higher point.

You can discover every single leader on your map by the time most or all of the tiles are uncovered. Then, you can view your status with each leader and take action with them by clicking each one’s portrait in the top-right of the screen in Civilization 7.

How to start an alliance in Civilization 7

Now that you know how to meet leaders, it’s time to go full Dwight Schrute and start talking alliances. You can start an alliance with any leader in Civilization 7, but there are a few requirements that need to be met before you can even get to that point.

First and foremost, you need to have a strong relationship with another leader even to have the chance to ask them about an alliance. Specifically, your relationship with a leader must reach 90 before the game allows you to select the “Form Alliance” button in a leader’s menu. When the relationship reaches 90, you can ask the other leader if they would like an alliance, and in my experience, they’ll always say yes.

While you can manually ask a leader for an alliance, they can also approach you about an alliance, giving you the chance to accept or reject the offer. Once again, though, this only happens after your relationship reaches the “90” threshold.

It should also be noted that in the future in Civilization 7, you will have to make decisions that can continue or end your alliance with a leader. Most notably, if a leader you have an alliance with asks you to join in a war against another leader, you will have to accept that call if you want to keep the alliance. Denying the war request ends that alliance with the leader.

Alliances can also end if you don’t engage enough with the leader through diplomatic actions, so always make sure you have at least one action going with an allied leader.

How to improve relationship with a leader in Civilization 7

If you look at your relationship number with a leader and it’s nowhere near 90, then you’re likely wondering how to boost that number.

Well, the main way to increase your relationship with a leader is simply by engaging in diplomatic actions with them. Opening your borders, starting a cultural celebration, or establishing more trade routes are all things you want to do consistently to improve your relationship with leaders.

However, there are also gameplay elements to maintaining a leader relationship. For example, if you start a settlement too close to a leader’s capital, you’ll receive a huge penalty to your relationship status with that leader. The same goes if your borders touch with a leader’s settlements. You can view everything affecting your relationship number with a leader by clicking their portrait and selecting the heart tab.

For the most part, if you don’t engage in war against a leader and leave their borders alone, you’ll eventually be able to reach the alliance point with them in Civilization 7.

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