The starting location in Civ 7 is usually quite good, without any unpleasant surprises like in Civ 6. This is due to the different order in which the map is generated. In Civ 6, the terrain was generated first, and only then the game engine looked for a starting place for each civilization. In Civ 7, the needs of civilization are taken into account first, and only then is the terrain generated.

But what if you have specific needs?

In the example below, I'm playing Greece in Antiquity Age and intend to switch to Spain in Exploration Age. I want to build two Greek Wonders: Oracle and Colossus and a Spanish Wonder - El Escorial, all of them in my capital. Oracle and El Escorial require Rough terrain both, and Colossus requires Coast.

In addition, I will make sure to build Unique Quarters: Acropolis and Plaza. One of the Acropolis buildings - Parthenon gives +2 Influence if built on a Rough tile. So I need three Rough tiles within range of my capital.


You can see two Rough tiles above the Founder (NW and NE), and two more Rough tiles in the lower right corner of the visible area. In addition, I have Marble within my reach, which gives a bonus to building Wonders, including those on the water (Marine tile). So not bad.


Using Lenses, I can see where I have access to fresh water (bluish tiles) giving the capital +5 Happiness.

However, the water adjacent to the Founder is a Lake (Marine tile), not a Coast (Marine tile as well). So I have to move in search of a place for Colossus, which specifically requires a Coast tile.

Unlike the Settler in Civ 6, which had 2 movement points and a field of view of 3 tiles, the Founder in Civ 7 has 1 more movement point, but a 2 tile smaller field of view.

Also, no matter how many movement points I have left, I end my move with Founder if I enter a difficult area like a Rough or Vegetated tile.


The bluish outline shows the range of my movement.

• If I moved 1 tile towards the NE, I would end my movement there. Same if I moved towards SE.
  
• If I moved East and then East again, I would be stuck on the 2nd tile. However, if I moved East and then SE, I would have one more move left SE or SW.
  
• If I moved West and then West again or NE or NW (the Marble tile), I would be stuck on the 2nd tile. However, if I moved West and then SW (through the Wine tile, which, despite its visual presentation, is not a Vegetated tile), I would have one more move West (to the tile still covered by Fog of War).

I decide to move West and NE towards the Rough tile, which - due to its impressive south-eastern Cliff - I chose for my capital Acropolis. After all, I can see the Oasis to the north, therefore fresh water, and even if I settle on the northern edge of the Oasis, I will still have both Rough tiles, as well as the Marble tile within 3 tiles.

Why not along the Lake? The Lake tile does not connect directly to the Coast tile because it also requires a piece of land with a Navigable River between the Lake and the Coast. So it's a long way, and I don't want to move away from Marble, Gold, Silver and Rough tiles.


As you can see, Founder has such a poor field of view that he did not reveal anything, even though he entered a visually elevated area.

In turn 2 I have 3 movement points again, but I won't use them all at once in one move. First, I will move 2 tiles towards the NE, because - if this turns out to be a good place to establish a capital - I will need this third, remaining movement point to settle the city.


This move has not yet produced a satisfactory effect and has revealed little.

Founder is an extremely poor Scout. He definitely didn't inherit the eagle eyesight of his Civ 6 ancestors.


This is only turn 2. I haven't decided to build a city on this tile yet.

I continue with my remaining movement point by marching NW to the fresh water tile.

The minimap in Civ 7 received a lot of criticism before the game's release, mainly for not showing the range of individual civilizations, but only the location of their cities. Fortunately, Firaxis rose to the challenge and corrected this flaw before the game's release.

However, probably none of the streamers who had access to the game before its release paid attention to a certain advantage of the minimap in Civ 7.


Compare the northern edge of the explored area on the minimap here and in the previous screenshot.

After the last move in turn 2, a dark hex appeared on the minimap in the north, corresponding to an unrevealed tile on the main map (marked here with a yellowish hexagonal border). The color scheme of this hex on the minimap corresponds to the Rough Grassland tile.

This is very useful information, especially for me, because I only have 2 Rough tiles left in the southern range, and I need three.


At the start of turn 3 I have 3 movement points again, and the bluish outline showing the movement range says a lot.

What can I read?

• Since I can only move one tile towards the NE and the minimap doesn't show there is water there, it can only be a Mountain or a Natural Wonder (Good!).
  
• Since there is a freshwater tile towards the NW that does not contain a River itself, it is either adjacent to another Oasis or another Wet tile, or to a Navigable River leading to the Coast (Good!), or to a Lake (Not good at all).
  
• Besides, I can't move 3 tiles either north, west or east, even though in each of these directions the first tile to go is a Desert tile with 1 movement point. Could it be that the Coast was among the obstacles preventing entry? (Very good!).

It's best to move the Founder slowly, one square at a time.

I decide to use the first of three movement points to enter the tile towards the NW. It is true that I move 4 tiles away from Marble and both southern Rough tiles, but I do it only for reconnaissance in the north with the intention of turning back towards SW using the second movement point.


The beginning of the Navigable River has been found. I hope it's a very short River.

The presence of the Dates tile in the NW direction with 1 movement point, combined with the earlier information about the impossibility of entering the tile beyond the Dates, indicates even more clearly the presence of the Coast beyond the Dates.


A bluish glow stretches along the edge of the uncovered area on the minimap (above "Interact").

The most important information I obtained here (again thanks to the minimap) is the confirmation of the presence of the Coast at a distance that satisfies me. The bluish glow of the edge of the Fog of War on the minimap heralds the immediate vicinity of the Coast. I can only guess this from the main map, but thanks to the minimap I'm sure.


I decided to settle on the tile between the Oasis and the Navigable River.

I use the first of my two remaining movement points to move SW in order to use my last remaining movement point for the founding a city action. It's true that the game recommends a place 1 tile to the East, but I prefer to be close to the Navigable River.

I have everything I need within a maximum of 3 tiles: some Coastal tile for Colossus, 3 Rough tiles for: Oracle, El Escorial and Parthenon, plus Marble, Gold, Silver and even Dates.

I used the penultimate movement point in turn 2 to enter the target location of my capital and, unexpectedly, my Founder was next to the Discovery, as the Goody Hut known from Civ 6 is called in Civ 7.


I found a Cave with a rewarding Narrative Event in close proximity to my Capital-to-be.

In Civ 6, establishing a city that included a Goody Hut tile gave a reward from it. In Civ 7 you can forget about it.


"Found Settlement" is the final action you perform with your Founder.

The only thing more unexpected than finding the Cave is its mysterious disappearance.


Where did the Cave go after the city was settled?

Unfortunately, in Civ 7, the Founder destroys the much-desired Goddy Hut, either by settling the city containing it or by entering its tile with himself. And most importantly, in both cases, there is no reward. None.

I was interested in this location, but in a different situation I would probably try to save Goody Hut for a future Scout.

***

That's it. Thank you for taking the time to read this guide. I hope you found at least one valuable tip that will help you even more enjoy the game played on your terms.