Tips

A lot of things are noted in Guide boxes. If you disabled these, you might want to turn them back on (in the Controls screen) or even Reset to see the ones you forgot.

The Manual (available from the Lore screen and elsewhere) has even more detail.

General Tips

  • This isn’t an easy game, even on the “Easier” difficulty setting. You don’t have to play as if you are one of the only horse-riding clans (or the remnant of a once-proud tribe) in a bronze age world, but it can help.
  • The composition of the clan circle is important, but aim for “good” not “best” because perfectly balancing skills, families, and religions may be impossible.
  • Remember that nothing is certain — you may pick a course of action but your clan leaders could fail to execute it (they could be out-bargained, out-argued, or out-fought).
  • Although nothing is certain, you have many ways of influencing the odds. The context of a decision can suggest an easier choice. Larger gifts or sacrifices improve your chances. And better-skilled circle members succeed more often.
  • Don’t forget to consult your advisors! Their personality may color their advice, but they are also full of good information.
  • People are called by the gods, rather than choosing a patron. Sometimes you just have to wait for an Erissan or Raven trickster among your leaders.
  • There are 6 adjectives for the skills of clan leaders, but within a category, leaders slowly improve over time.
  • Dialogs sort by a single skill. Your leader may need more than one, and their religion can matter. The default choice will be good (often taking multiple skills into account), but you might have reasons to pick another leader.
  • Pay attention to the season — the agricultural calendar is important. (On iPhone, show the menu to see the Season button.) Point to (or tap) the Season button for a note on the current season.

  • Clan relationships are complex. Your emissaries may improve another clan’s attitude with gifts, but this may not erase an old grudge.
  • Clan relationships are complex. A clan might grudgingly respect your power, but hate how you use it. Or think well of your behavior, but laugh at your military might.
  • Try to gift goods, not herds. Herds generate food and more wealth. (And are a visible measure of success.)
  • Click a leader’s face to see their abilities. This is especially important when a trade caravan is beset by bandits: can your trader fight?
  • Two ways you can reduce the threat of bandits: send out explorers, or perform the Scour for Bandits venture.
  • If there are many bandits, increasing the number of caravan guards may be necessary.
  • The fewer feuds you have, the fewer clans spread stories about you and encourage attacks on your missions.
  • It pays to have friends — allies and trading partners may be able to warn you about incoming raids.
  • Your temples and shrines support your choices in interactive scenes (in addition to providing ongoing divine blessings).
  • If you’ve played King of Dragon Pass, Six Ages will feel familiar. But not everything works identically (you’re playing a different story with a different clan).


Economy

  • At the start of the game, your clan won’t be able to feed itself. Two possible answers are to send distant foraging parties, or to ask the goddesses for help (sacrificing for knowledge of their magic, then building shrines). In Six Ages 2 you already know the blessings, but need to rebuild shrines.
  • Your clan brings in food throughout the year, from the herds, foraging, and hunting. The food stockpile is the current amount, and doesn’t have to last an entire year. It helps tide you over until the Earth season harvest.
  • Agriculture provides most of your food. Sea or Earth season raids take farmers and herders away from the fields and pastures. (Missions take only a small escort and don’t impact food production.)

  • The Foraging and Hunting ventures both bring in additional food throughout the year. Each tests different skills and may have different bonuses. They can overlap in time, but are unrelated to expeditions sent outside clan lands from the Map screen.
  • Exploring your own lands can find exotic items which make establishing trade routes easier.
  • Herds and goods are valued equally, and in most cases you can offer either. Large herds can provide more food and are an obvious sign of wealth, so it’s often better to gift or sacrifice goods.


Exploration

  • Don’t neglect exploring your own land (don’t move the exploration marker, just pick an explorer and tap “Explore”).
  • Circle members have slightly improved odds while exploring (they embody the clan in a way that ordinary clan members do not).
  • Anyone can use their Magic skill to try to capture spirits, but shamans specialize in this, and may have additional opportunities.

  • Exploration can find things even in places you’ve been before.
  • Consider learning Zarlen’s Pathfinder blessing and building a shrine early in the game, since it will make exploration safer. (Unfortunately, in Six Ages 2, Zarlen no longer shines in the night sky.)
  • Other clans aren’t likely to be happy if you wander their lands looking for things.


Combat

  • Small-scale combat is always uncertain. Your war leader’s skills (Combat and to a lesser degree Leadership) are a big factor.
  • Knowing your foe can help you decide better responses; your war leader will remind you of relevant personality traits.
  • Combat Status, with Night Shield closer to breaking than Grey WingIt’s possible for both sides to be on the brink of victory at the same time. (Alternatively, think of each opponent being at the point of giving up the fight.) The status bars at the bottom show this.

  • Combat choices (particularly at the start of combat) are like rock-paper-scissors, but only as a way to modify the odds. Your war leader needs to execute your option, trying to best your opponent’s war leader.
  • Numerical superiority helps you survive casualties, but doesn’t help with cohesion, morale, or tactical advantage. It’s seldom large enough to play a significant role in the odds unless you have at least a 50% larger fighting force.
  • If your clan suffers from many raids, it’s probably because other clans don’t like or respect you, or because you raided them and they feel they owe you a counter-raid. Build up friendships and avoid being too aggressive.