Set sail for untold riches in Civilization 7 with Treasure Fleets-a unique Exploration Age unit that transports precious resources from distant lands back to your homeland. Unlock advanced technologies like Cartography and Shipbuilding, establish coastal settlements on remote continents rich in treasure, and watch as fleets naturally spawn to ferry gold and valuable goods across the seas. But beware: these slow-moving fleets need careful navigation and protection to safely deliver their bounty, fueling your Economic Legacy Path and steering you toward an Economic Victory. Ready to command the waves and claim your fortune? Here’s how to master Treasure Fleets on Nintendo, PC, PlayStation, and Xbox.
Our Civilization 7 guide will tell you what you need to research to unlock treasure fleets, where you’ll have to build to spawn them, and how to earn the Treasure Fleet Points you get from them.
How to unlock treasure fleets in Civilization 7
To unlock Treasure Fleets in Civilization 7, you must first advance from the Antiquity Age to the Exploration Age and research key technologies including Astronomy, Cartography, Machinery, Heraldry, Feudalism, and Shipbuilding. After this, establish a coastal settlement in a remote region rich in Treasure Resources such as Silver, Tea, or Spices, and build a Fishing Quay there. Treasure Fleets do not appear immediately but spawn over time near these settlements with access to treasure resources. Once a Treasure Fleet appears, you must navigate it back to a homeland settlement on your original continent to unload its cargo, earning gold and Treasure Fleet Points critical for progressing along the Economic Legacy Path and aiming for an Economic Victory.
Treasure fleets are an Exploration Age unit, so the first step to unlocking them is advancing out of the Antiquity Age into the Exploration Age.
In the Exploration Age, you’ll have to research several nodes in the Tech tree. Some (in bold) are required and others (not bold) are the ones you’ll have to unlock on your way. You’ll need:
- Astronomy
- Cartography
- Machinery
- Heraldry
- Feudalism
- Shipbuilding.
You’ll also need a coastal settlement in a distant land. The definition of distant land is a bit nebulous, but it basically means a region (usually, but not always) on a different continent that is separated from your homeland by a deep ocean biome and has access to new resources. The Continent Lens in your minimap will actually show you if a continent has access to Treasure Resources.
Once you’ve set up your settlement, you’ll need to build a fishing quay there.
How to spawn treasure fleets in Civilization 7
To spawn Treasure Fleets in Civilization 7, you need to establish a coastal settlement in the Distant Lands that has at least one treasure resource within its borders and build a Fishing Quay there. Before Treasure Fleets can start spawning, you must research the Shipbuilding technology, which unlocks the ability to cross deep ocean tiles safely and enables fleet production. Once these conditions are met and the treasure resource tile is improved, Treasure Fleets will automatically begin to spawn near your settlement after a few turns. You can track the spawning progress in the settlement’s menu. These fleets are essential for gathering gold and earning Economic Legacy Points during the Exploration Age by returning them to your homeland settlements and unloading their cargo.
Treasure fleets are odd units in that you can’t actually train them or buy them. You have to wait for them to spawn on their own.
Treasure fleets spawn in the ocean near a coastal settlement in a distant land that has access (either through improving a resource or trade route) to Treasure Resources. You can see these in the “Resource” menu – it also tells you how long you have to wait for a treasure fleet to spawn.
How to use treasure fleets in Civilization 7
To use Treasure Fleets in Civilization 7, first establish coastal settlements in Distant Lands that have access to Treasure Fleet Resources such as silver, sugar, tea, or spices. Research the necessary technologies including Shipbuilding to unlock the ability to spawn Treasure Fleets. Build a Fishing Quay on a coastal tile in these settlements to begin producing Treasure Fleets, which spawn automatically over several turns. Once a Treasure Fleet appears, command it to sail back to a homeland settlement on your original continent. When within the borders of a homeland settlement, use the “Unload Cargo” action to gain gold and Treasure Fleet Points, which contribute to the Economic Legacy Path during the Exploration Age. The more Treasure Fleet Resources a settlement has, the more valuable the fleets it produces. Protect your fleets during their journey to maximize gold income and progress toward an Economic Victory.
Once a treasure fleet spawns in your distant lands settlement, you’ll have to move it to a coastal settlement back on your home continent. They move pretty slowly, so you’ll have to wait a bit for it to arrive.
When the treasure fleet shows up in your home waters, you can click the new button to unload your Treasure Resources. Once you click that button, you’ll earn the Treasure Fleet Points that you need for the Exploration Age Economic Legacy Path and its milestones.
How can I maximize treasure fleet points for faster economic growth in Civilization 7
To maximize treasure fleet points for faster economic growth in Civilization 7, focus on these key strategies:
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Settle early and strategically: Send settlers as soon as possible to establish coastal settlements on distant continents rich in multiple treasure resources. Aim for locations with 2-3 treasure resources to maximize the points each treasure fleet will yield when spawned.
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Research Shipbuilding promptly: Unlock Shipbuilding in the Exploration Age to enable treasure fleets to spawn from your treasure resource settlements.
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Build Fishing Quays: Construct fishing quays in your coastal treasure resource cities to trigger the automatic spawning of treasure fleets. Each treasure resource in the city adds one treasure fleet point and 50 gold when the fleet returns home.
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Expand aggressively: Always be expanding (ABE) to increase the number of treasure resource settlements, thereby increasing the frequency and value of treasure fleets.
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Protect and escort fleets: Treasure fleets move slowly and are vulnerable to enemy attacks. Escort them with naval units to ensure they safely reach your home territory and unload their cargo, securing the treasure fleet points and gold.
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Optimize settlement placement: Place your home coastal cities close to the ocean routes from your treasure settlements to reduce travel time for fleets, making the process more efficient.
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Consider naval piracy: If you have a strong navy, capturing enemy treasure fleets can also boost your treasure fleet points, accelerating economic progress.
By combining rapid expansion to treasure-rich sites, timely technological advancement, infrastructure investment, and naval protection, you can maximize treasure fleet points and accelerate your economic growth toward victory in Civilization 7.
What settlement placement strategies boost treasure fleet spawn rates in Civ 7
To boost treasure fleet spawn rates in Civilization 7, focus on these settlement placement strategies:
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Settle on coastal tiles in the Distant Lands near multiple treasure resources: Aim for locations where 2-3 treasure resources cluster close to the coast, as each improved treasure resource adds to treasure fleet points and gold when fleets spawn.
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Ensure the settlement can build a Fishing Quay: Only coastal cities with a Fishing Quay can spawn treasure fleets. The Fishing Quay must be built on a coastal tile adjacent to the treasure resources to enable fleet spawning.
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Improve treasure resource tiles before fleets can spawn: Enhancing the treasure resources (e.g., harvesting or improving them) is required to trigger treasure fleet production.
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Avoid settling on inland lakes or isolated islands: Treasure fleets spawn adjacent to the Fishing Quay and need open ocean or navigable water to travel home. Settlements on lakes or too isolated islands may trap fleets, making them ineffective.
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Prefer locations on navigable rivers connected to the ocean: Some unique civ abilities aside, navigable rivers can allow treasure fleets to spawn and travel, but the settlement must still be coastal or connected to the sea.
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Expand quickly to secure resource-rich distant continents: Because AI also competes for these spots, rapid expansion to claim treasure resource clusters is crucial to maximize fleet spawn potential.
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Place home continent coastal settlements close to ocean routes: This reduces travel time for fleets returning with treasure, improving overall efficiency.
By prioritizing coastal settlements on resource-rich distant lands with Fishing Quays and improved treasure resources, you maximize treasure fleet spawn rates and economic benefits in Civilization 7.
