Strategic resources now have a real economy
Strategic deposits are no longer only simple requirements that you either control or do not control.
The system now covers iron, horses, coal, oil, aluminum and uranium. Iron, horses, coal and uranium continue to provide strategic access, while oil and aluminum now use a full quantitative economy based on production, storage and allocation.
Oil wells built on revealed oil deposits produce oil every turn. Bauxite mines built on revealed aluminum deposits work in the same way.
New local and multiplayer matches also use deterministic strategic-resource placement around player starting regions. Deposits avoid occupied map features and are placed on terrain that workers can actually reach and improve.
This should make access to strategic resources fairer while still creating important locations to explore, settle, defend and contest.
Stockpiles and unit production
Produced oil and aluminum are stored in your empire-wide stockpile. Resources can then be allocated to units that require them.
In the current balance:
A tank requires 2 oil.
A recon plane requires either 1 aluminum or 1 oil.
When more than one valid resource is available, you can choose which one to use
These resources are reserved when production begins. They are production costs rather than recurring maintenance, so they are not charged again when the unit is completed or rushed.
Changing production releases the previous allocation before the new order is validated. This means resources are returned correctly when a unit is replaced with another unit, building, project or wonder.
Losing access to a deposit also does not delete existing units or automatically cancel production that has already reserved its resources.
A new strategic economy overview
The resource interface has been expanded to explain exactly where your strategic supplies come from and how they are being used.
You can now inspect:
Stored, allocated and currently available resources.
Domestic production, imports, exports and net flow per turn.
Every active extraction source and its output.
Resources reserved by individual cities.
Production shortages that prevent a unit from being started.
Trade agreements that are active or approaching their end.
Resource sources and production allocations can also lead you directly to the relevant city, making it easier to manage a larger empire.
Strategic-resource trading
Diplomacy now supports agreements involving quantitative strategic resources.
You can negotiate:
Gold in exchange for a strategic resource.
A strategic resource in exchange for another resource.
Multi-turn agreements that deliver resources each turn.
A delivery is completed only when the exporter has enough stock, the importer can make the payment, and diplomatic conditions allow the route to operate.
Resource-for-resource exchanges are settled together, preventing one side of a barter agreement from being completed without the other.
War can interrupt deliveries, so access to an important resource may now depend on protecting both your deposits and your diplomatic relationships.
Smarter AI resource planning
Computer-controlled civilizations now understand the new economy.
The AI can evaluate strategic deposits when planning expansion, improve resource tiles, preserve useful stockpiles, account for resources already reserved by other cities, and consider resource requirements when choosing units to produce.
It can also evaluate surpluses and negotiate resource trades while keeping part of its supply in reserve.
These decisions use only information the AI is legally allowed to know. It does not inspect hidden enemy stockpiles or undiscovered deposits.
Improved roads and movement
Movement calculations and road-aware route planning have been made more precise and deterministic.
Merchant routes now re-evaluate their paths when the transport network changes. When a newly constructed road creates a genuinely faster connection, merchants should recognize it and prefer the cheaper route.
These changes keep movement costs consistent across single-player, multiplayer, saves and replays while making road construction more strategically useful.
New animation option
A new Show animations option is now available in both the main menu and the in-game settings.
Animations remain enabled by default, but disabling this option can turn off:
Unit movement animations.
Unit idle animations.
Smooth camera-transition animations.
The preference is saved between sessions. This option may be useful for players who prefer faster turns, a more direct presentation, or reduced visual movement.