Many things change at the end of an age in Civilization VII (Civ 7) that you have to prepare for it before it happens and adjust to it after. Learn what to do before and after an Age Change in this guide.

What to Do Before an Age Change

Complete Legacy Path Milestones Construct Ageless Buildings Incorporate City-States Finalize Invasions and Wars Have Commanders to Avoid Losing Units Progress Legacy Paths to Earn Legacy Points Unlock Traditions and Wonders that You Need

Complete Legacy Path Milestones

Make sure to complete all the milestones on your chosen Legacy Path before the Age Change. Doing so activates the Golden Age Legacy, which gives bonuses once you reach the next Age.

Legacy Paths Explained

Construct Ageless Buildings

Ageless Buildings are permanent buildings, so their effects remain active once your civilization progresses to the next age. Standard buildings, however, become obsolete and have their adjacency bonuses removed.

What are Ageless Buildings?

Incorporate City-States

If you have not reached the settlement limit, you can incorporate City-States to add them to your civilization. City-States and independent villages from the previous Age disappear after an Age change, so it is crucial to incorporate them before the Age ends if you want their territory or location.

How to Interact With Independent People

Finalize Invasions and Wars

If you are in the midst of invading an independent village or warring with another civilization, make sure to finalize it as the Age Change causes wars to be canceled. In addition, six of your Military Units will be automatically transported back to your active Settlements to defend them.

Have Commanders to Avoid Losing Military and Scout Units

Make sure to have enough Commanders for your military units and scouts before an Age Change, as they will be assigned to one. Any other Units that can't be assigned to a commander will be left behind at the start of a new Age.

List of Units

Progress Other Legacy Paths to Earn Legacy Points

You can use the extra turns before the Age Change to complete objectives from other Legacy Paths to earn Legacy Points. Doing this helps make earning a victory easier once you reach the Modern Age.

Unlock Traditions and Wonders that You Need

Traditions are policies that are unique to the civilization that you are playing as. Make sure to unlock them before the Age Change to use them once you need to change your Social Policies.

In addition, you should also build the Wonders in your that you want before the Age changes. Wonders are considered Ageless buildings, so they retain their effects even after reaching the next Age, but unconstructed ones will no longer be available.

List of Wonders

What to Do After an Age Change

Choose a Golden Age or Dark Age Legacy Overbuild Buildings from the Previous Age Find New Independent People Prioritize Which New Resources to Take Maintain Positive Relations with Leaders

Choose a Golden Age or Dark Age Legacy

After an Age Change, you have the option to choose a Golden Age Legacy or a Dark Age Legacy.

Whenever possible, choose the Golden Age Legacy to get the most out of the bonuses that it provides and only choose a Dark Age Legacy if you need to catch up.

What are Dark Age Legacies?

Overbuild Buildings from the Previous Age

Overbuilding is a feature that lets you replace buildings from the previous age with ones from the current age.

It is recommended to overbuild these obsolete buildings with new ones to retain or improve the adjacency bonuses that they had from the previous Age.

Overbuilding Explained

Find New Independent People to Befriend or Disperse

You will encounter a new set of independent villages once you reach the next Age. You may choose to befriend or disperse them depending on which Victory or Legacy Path you choose.

How to Interact With Independent People

Prioritize Which New Resources to Take

After an Age Change, some resources on the map will disappear and new ones will randomly appear. At the start of an age, check these new resources and try to grab the ones you need as soon as possible to maintain and grow your civilization for the new Age.

You can check the Resources screen to see which resources and bonuses you lost after the Age Change to determine which ones you should prioritize to acquire.

List of All Resources

Maintain Positive Relations with Leaders from the Previous Age

An Age Change causes a soft-reset to your relations with Leaders. For example, if you have a Leader who was Helpful in the Exploration Age, the relationship becomes Friendly in the next Age. However, this only applies to positive relationships. Your negative relationships with Leaders do not change.

Where to Spend Influence

Civilization VII (Civ 7) Related Guides

Beginner Tips and Tricks

All Recommended Guides

Recommended Guides
How to Play Civ 7	Early Game Strategy Guide
The New Ages	Diplomacy Guide
Best Science Mementos	Best Military Mementos
Best Culture Mementos	Ground Combat Guide
Naval Exploration and Combat Guide	What Does Happiness Do
How to Win Wars	-
Leader and Civ Guides
Best Leaders and Civilizations Tier Lists	Best Science Leaders
Best Military Leaders	Best Culture Leaders
Best Economic Leaders and Civs	Best Science Civs
Best Culture Civs	Best Culture Civs
List Pages
List of Mementos	List of All Governments
List of Policies	List of Pantheons
All Unique Units	-

All Tips and Tricks

Gameplay Mechanics
Adjacency Bonuses	Army Commanders
Ageless Buildings	Building Roads
Celebrations	Codex (Codices)
Crisis	Dark Age Legacies
Districts	Factory Resources
Healing Units	Independent People
Legacy Paths	Migrants
Overbuilding	Persistent Buildings
Quarters	Repairing Buildings
Rural and Urban Districts	Settlement Cap
Specialists	Towns
Trade Range	Trade Routes and Merchants
Treasure Fleets	Treasure Resources
Upgrading Units	Warehouse Buildings and Bonuses
How to Navigate Rivers	How to Get More Railroad Tycoon Points
Other Tips and Tricks
Where to Settle	Where to Spend Gold
When to Build More Settlements	What to Do Before and After Age Change
Best Settings	Map Types Explained
Best Build Order	Morse Code Event
Should I Accept Alliance?	How to Change City Name
Should You Convert a Town Into a City?	Can You Capture Settlers?
Where to Spend Influence?	When to Incorporate City-States?
Can Scouts Auto Explore?	Best Pantheon
Should You Rush Age Change?	How to Incite Raid
How to Get Relics	How to Get Artifacts
Fresh Water Tiles	Why Can't You Build a Factory?
Distant Lands	Revolutions
How to Get More Resource Slots	Attribute Trees Guide
How to Get Tile Max Yield	How to Found Religion and List of Beliefs
What is X Per Age?	How to Defend and Conquer Cities
What is War Weariness and War Support?	Zone of Control
How to Change the Capital	Resource Map
Should You Melt or Construct Relic?	Game Speed
Floods	Natural Disasters
Best Map Seeds	How to Force End Turn
Papyrus Problems	Best Tech Research Order