Units Catalogue
From Freeciv
Overview | Terrain | Cities | Economy | Combat | Diplomacy | Government | Technology | Wonders | Units | Buildings | edit navbar
Back to main manuals page | Talk:Game Manual
Units both offer mobility to your civilization and supply the violence with which it will survive and expand. The available units may be classified as military units, whose talents are those of defense and aggression, and a few noncombatants which support expansion (explorers, settlers, workers, and engineers), diplomacy (the diplomat and spy), and trade (caravans and freights).
The support of your units will be one of your major expenses. Each unit requires one production point per turn, settlers — the units derived from citizens — also require one or two food points per turn depending on your form of government. Note that autocratic governments force cities to support several units for free, which can save production points for other uses.
Under representative governments, aggressive units each cause one or two workers to become unhappy. This makes war quite expensive under representative government, since production points are required to support each unit and luxury points must be produced to mollify the citizenry.
[edit] Movement
Units begin every turn with one or more movement points, depending upon their natural mobility — shown for each unit in the catalogue below — reduced, for damaged land and sea units, in proportion to the extent of their damage. Movement points not consumed by the end of the turn are lost and cannot be stored or transfered. Sea units gain extra movement points if their civilization possesses the Lighthouse, Magellan's expedition, or nuclear power.
Every action undertaken by a unit consumes movement points. This manual describes each action in the section where it is most relevant; see the index for the full list of actions. Actions require one movement point unless otherwise noted.
The most basic action is movement. Units can move into any of the eight surrounding squares under fairly obvious constraints: land units are confined to land and transport vessels; ships are confined to ocean squares and port cities (which are thus the only cities that can build them); and aircraft ignore terrain, though they must often end their turn where they can refuel — see the description of each unit for specific restrictions. Moving one square usually consumes one movement point, and units can always move one square regardless of their wounds. Rough terrain, however, can be more costly for land units as detailed in the terrain catalogue.
Note that military units, settlers, and engineers cannot move between squares adjacent to enemy units — they must retreat into unthreatened territory before again coming into range of an enemy unit — unless the square they enter already holds a friendly city or unit. Note also that land units can embark and disembark from transports whenever the transport is adjacent to land or another transport — this does not require ports or other facilities.
Land units can move instantly between airports in friendly cities with the airlift action. An airport can participate in only one airlift per turn.
[edit] Unit Catalogue
About a half-dozen attributes define each unit in the following table. The Cost specifies how many production points a city must invest to build one unit. Next comes M the number of movement points the unit is granted each turn, followed by C the number of other units that the unit can carry (called its capacity). The combat statistics A attack strength, D defense strength, HP hit points, and FP firepower are all explained in the section describing combat.
[edit] AEGIS Cruiser
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Rocketry - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
100 shields |
| attack: 8 defence: 8 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Alpine Troops
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Tactics - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 5 defence: 5 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Archers
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Warrior_Code - Obsoleted by: #Musketeers
| Cost:
30 shields |
| attack: 3 defence: 2 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Armor
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Mobile_Warfare - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
80 shields |
| attack: 10 defence: 5 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Artillery
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Machine_Tools - Obsoleted by: #Howitzer
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 10 defence: 1 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] AWACS
Air unit - Required tech: Technology#Advanced_Flight - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
140 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 1 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
The AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) is an airplane with an advanced radar that can determine the location of enemy units over a wide area.
[edit] Barbarian Leader
Land unit - Required tech: None - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
not buildable |
When barbarian leader is killed on a tile without any defending units, the 100 gold ransom is paid, but only to land units and helicopters.
[edit] Battleship
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Automobile - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
160 shields |
| attack: 12 defence: 12 hitpoints: 40 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Bomber
Air unit - Required tech: Technology#Advanced_Flight - Obsoleted by: #Stealth Bomber
| Cost:
120 shields |
| attack: 12 defence: 1 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Cannon
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Metallurgy - Obsoleted by: #Artillery
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 8 defence: 1 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Caravan
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Trade - Obsoleted by: #Freight
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
none |
Every Caravan that is used to build a wonder will add 50 shields towards the production of the wonder.
TIP: You can stockpile a stack of Caravans in advance and bring them all into a city where you have started to build a wonder, and finish it in only one turn!
[edit] Caravel
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Navigation - Obsoleted by: #Galleon
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 2 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Carrier
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Advanced_Flight - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
160 shields |
| attack: 1 defence: 9 hitpoints: 40 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
TIP: Guard Carriers with a handful of fast-moving ships and a battleship, as losing a fully-equipped Carrier is VERY painful and expensive.
[edit] Catapult
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Mathematics - Obsoleted by: #Cannon
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 6 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Cavalry
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Tactics - Obsoleted by: #Armor
| Cost:
60 shields |
| attack: 8 defence: 3 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Chariot
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#The_Wheel - Obsoleted by: #Knights
| Cost:
30 shields |
| attack: 3 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Cruise Missile
Air unit - Required tech: Technology#Rocketry - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
60 shields |
| attack: 18 defence: 0 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
TIP: A handful of these can successfully keep the waters around your treasured homeland free of enemy ships.
[edit] Cruiser
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Steel - Obsoleted by: #AEGIS Cruiser
| Cost:
80 shields |
| attack: 6 defence: 6 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Destroyer
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Electricity - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
60 shields |
| attack: 4 defence: 4 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
TIP: A very fast unit, which is very useful for hunting down enemy Transports.
[edit] Diplomat
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Writing - Obsoleted by: #Spy
| Cost:
30 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 0 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
none |
- A Diplomat can establish embassies with other civilizations by moving into another player's city.
- Diplomats can also try to sabotage enemy production, or steal an advance from an enemy city. (An advance can only be stolen once per city).
- A Diplomat can also bribe an enemy unit, if that unit is the only unit on its square.
- Diplomats can even start a revolution in an enemy city and turn it into your own, if you have the money!
- In some game strategies, hordes of Diplomats can be used to wreak havoc on the enemy. Little wonder that Diplomats are often viewed with suspicion and fear!
[edit] Dragoons
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Leadership - Obsoleted by: #Cavalry
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 5 defence: 2 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Engineers
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Explosives - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 2 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 shield |
Engineers are similar to Workers, but they work twice as fast and move twice as fast. Engineers may also perform major terrain transformations (for example, converting Tundra into Desert) which are beyond the capabilities of Workers.
TIP 1: Upgrade Workers to Engineers when possible, as Engineers require the same resources as ordinary Workers.
TIP 2: If you manage to build Leonardo's Workshop, research Explosives before the Workshop becomes obsolete. This way, your Workers units will be upgraded for free.
[edit] Explorer
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Seafaring - Obsoleted by: #Partisan
| Cost:
30 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
none |
Explorers are very useful for mapping unknown territory.
[edit] Fighter
Air unit - Required tech: Flight - Obsoleted by: #Stealth Fighter
| Cost:
60 shields |
| attack: 4 defence: 3 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 shield |
[edit] Freight
Land unit - Required tech: The_Corporation - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
none |
The Freight unit replaces the Caravan, and moves at twice the speed.
[edit] Frigate
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Magnetism - Obsoleted by: #Ironclad
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 4 defence: 2 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Galleon
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Magnetism - Obsoleted by: #Transport
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 2 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Helicopter
Heli unit - Required tech: Technology#Combined_Arms - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
100 shields |
| attack: 10 defence: 3 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
The Helicopter is a very powerful unit, as it can both fly and conquer cities. Care must be exercised, because Helicopters lose a small amount of health for every turn not spent in a city, unless you have the United Nations wonder.
[edit] Horsemen
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Horseback_Riding - Obsoleted by: #Knights
| Cost:
20 shields |
| attack: 2 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Howitzer
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Robotics - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
70 shields |
| attack: 12 defence: 2 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Ironclad
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Steam_Engine - Obsoleted by: #Destroyer
| Cost:
60 shields |
| attack: 4 defence: 4 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Knights
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Chivalry - Obsoleted by: #Dragoons
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 4 defence: 2 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Legion
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Iron_Working - Obsoleted by: #Musketeers
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 4 defence: 2 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Marines
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Amphibious_Warfare - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
60 shields |
| attack: 8 defence: 5 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Mech. Inf.
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Labor_Union - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 6 defence: 6 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
Mechanized Infantry; this unit has the strongest defence strength of any land unit, but is only available near the end of the technology tree.
[edit] Musketeers
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Gunpowder - Obsoleted by: #Riflemen
| Cost:
30 shields |
| attack: 3 defence: 3 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Nuclear
Air unit - Required tech: Technology#Rocketry - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
160 shields |
| attack: 99 defence: 0 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
You can build Nuclear units when you have the required advance, and the Manhattan Project wonder has been built by any player.
On impact, the blast will destroy any unit in a 3x3-square area, including friendly units. When striking a city, the city size is halved, and the surrounding squares are subject to nuclear fallout.
TIP 1: Nuking the ocean will not generate fallout, and is a most effective (but expensive!!) way of getting rid of enemy ships.
TIP 2: You may be involved in a situation where you've invaded an enemy country en masse, but the enemy cities are too strong. Before using a Nuclear unit, assemble a gang of Settlers and/or Engineers next to the city and have them ready to fix the fallout on the same turn it occurs! This minimizes the chance of nuclear winter. Eco-friendly nukes!
[edit] Paratroopers
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Combined_Arms - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
60 shields |
| attack: 6 defence: 4 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Partisan
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Guerilla_Warfare - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 4 defence: 4 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
A number of Partisans are granted free when an enemy conquers your city, but only under these conditions:
- Guerilla Warfare must be known by at least 1 player.
- You must be the player who originally built the city.
- You must know about Communism and Gunpowder.
- You must run either a Democracy or a Communist government.
[edit] Phalanx
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Bronze_Working - Obsoleted by: #Pikemen
| Cost:
20 shields |
| attack: 1 defence: 2 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Pikemen
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Feudalism - Obsoleted by: #Musketeers
| Cost:
20 shields |
| attack: 1 defence: 2 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Riflemen
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Conscription - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 5 defence: 4 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Settlers
Land unit - Required tech: None - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 1 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 shield |
Settlers are one of the key units in the game. They can be used to found new cities, irrigate land, build roads, railroads, fortresses and mines, and clean up pollution and nuclear fallout. Upkeep for Settlers is in food as well as production, and a Settler can die if its supporting city runs out of food.
Settlers, Workers and Engineers may work together to decrease the amount of time required for long projects. If two or more Settlers and/or Engineers are both working on the same task in the same square, their efforts will be added together each turn until the task is finished. Be careful not to dedicate too many workers to one task, though; excess effort can be wasted, and a group of Settlers, Workers and/or Engineers is highly vulnerable to enemy attacks.
[edit] Spy
Land unit - Required tech: Technology#Espionage - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
30 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 0 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
none |
A Spy is a full time professional and as such is much more skilled in the arts of espionage than her Diplomat predecessor.
The most inoffensive skills in a Spy's repertoire are her ability to investigate cities - revealing detailed information, and the establishment of embassies. However, if your Spy has gained herself a reputation for clandestine behaviour she will be executed if she tries to establish an embassy.
She can also be used to: poison the water supply of an enemy city (reducing the population); steal specific technology; and sabotage predetermined city targets (note: sabotaging improvements in a capital or sabotaging City Walls increases the risks of capture). A Spy can also infiltrate a city and ferment a revolt.
A Spy can also be of aid on the battlefield - sabotaging enemy units as well as bribing them to change allegiance.
[edit] Stealth Bomber
Air unit - Required tech: Technology#Stealth - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
160 shields |
| attack: 18 defence: 5 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
An improved Bomber, with improved attack and a higher movement radius.
[edit] Stealth Fighter
Air unit - Required tech: Technology#Stealth - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
80 shields |
| attack: 8 defence: 4 hitpoints: 20 | Upkeep:
1 shield |
An improved Fighter, with improved attack and a higher movement radius.
[edit] Submarine
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Combustion - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 15 defence: 2 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
Submarines have a very high strategic value, but have a weak defence.
[edit] Transport
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Industrialization - Obsoleted by: None
| Cost:
50 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 3 hitpoints: 30 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Trireme
Sea unit - Required tech: Technology#Map_Making - Obsoleted by: #Caravel
| Cost:
40 shields |
| attack: 1 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
[edit] Warriors
Land unit - Required tech: None - Obsoleted by: #Pikemen
| Cost:
10 shields |
| attack: 1 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 content citizen |
This unit may be built from the start of the game. It is the weakest unit.
[edit] Workers
Land unit - Required tech: Pottery - Obsoleted by: Engineers
| Cost:
30 shields |
| attack: 0 defence: 1 hitpoints: 10 | Upkeep:
1 shield |
Workers are one of the key units in the game. They can be used to irrigate land, build roads, railroads, fortresses, airbases and mines, and clean up pollution and nuclear fallout.
Settlers, Workers and Engineers may work together to decrease the amount of time required for long projects. If two or more Workers and/or Engineers are both working on the same task in the same square, their efforts will be added together each turn until the task is finished. Be careful not to dedicate too many workers to one task, though; excess effort can be wasted, and a group of Workers, Settlers and/or Engineers is highly vulnerable to enemy attacks.
[edit] Things to add
- Units costing food points
- Unit costing one production point
- Units creating unhappiness
