Brazil

Brazil

Leader	Pedro II
Benefit	Carnival
Unique Units	Pracinha
Unique Improvement	Brazilwood Camp

Introduction

Pedro II leads Brazil toward victory through Culture and Diplomacy. With only a limited means for direct conquest, players of Brazil will often leverage research, growth, and defensive fighting to ensure that they survive long enough to come out on top. Frequent Golden Ages aid the Brazilian economy, as well as their exemplary focus on Tourism.

The biggest threat to Brazil is that enemies come after them directly with a greater focus on military research and larger armies. You have to be prepared with enough defense that your nation doesn't sustain long-term damage.

Passive Benefits

Carnival

Tourism output is +100% during Brazil's Golden Ages. During these times, Brazil earns Great Artists, Musicians, and Writers 50% faster than they normally would.

Brazil is a consistent threat on the late-game field of cultural rivalry. Their improved Golden Ages give them increased tourism in the short term, but the boost in Great Person generation during Carnival helps to set them up for additional Culture gains and Golden Ages for the future.

Maximize your benefit here by keeping Brazil's population happy, using spare Great Artists for Golden Ages, and taking Aesthetics Policies to promote your Culture-based play.

Unique Strengths

Pracinha

Pracinhas work synergistically with Carnival to give Brazil an even greater chance to win via a Cultural Victory. When Pracinhas defeat enemies in combat, they generate points toward your next Golden Age. They're quite useful in getting your nation more money, Culture, Tourism, and Great People.

Use any sensible excuse to get these guys into combat as long as it won't hurt your nation in the long run. Defending friendly City-States is a good cause because you won't usually get drawn into a huge war (compared with invading a foreign power). Use Pracinhas for defensive city garrisons, patrollers, and for any purpose where you don't specifically need range, siege weapons, or immense speed. As long as you're on your roads or near friendly territory, there's little need to rely on anything else.

Brazilwood Camp

Brazilwood Camp is a special Tile Improvement for the nation of Brazil. They can improve their jungle tiles to generate Gold at first, and then Gold and Culture after you finish researching Acoustics. This isn't a major limitation, because Acoustics is already an important Technology for a cultural nation like Brazil. Get it quickly and receive the maximum benefit from your camps.

The Big Picture

Brazil is a nation to be feared when it comes to Culture. Their Carnival bonus is impressive, and Brazil players are going to harp on Golden Ages to get the most out of it. This gives them the side benefit of increased Gold generation, and they'll hit their stride in the Modern Age. At that point, they'll have the infrastructure to crank out Great People, the Policies to help their Culture along, and a special unit that aids in triggering Golden Ages. It's a perfect storm in Brazil's favor.

Make sure that you have enough cities to store a range of Great Works. Don't play too conservatively in the early game; settle well in the beginning, defend those sites with your life, and enjoy the benefits later on in the game. You won't need to be huge to win the game, but some extra territory lets you trade even more resources and have quick access to even more sites of antiquity once you discover Archaeology.

There is a downside to playing Brazil. Everyone knows that you're pushing for a Cultural Victory. There isn't any level of guessing when you deal with other people; human players know what you're up to. They'll try to take advantage of the early game, when none of your unique bonuses are in play. You won't have special units, buildings, allies, or a good passive to fall back on. Build and play defensively so early aggressors don't snuff you out before your time!

One trick to surviving is to make your cities too expensive for enemies to take. Combine ranged units and defensive city improvements to ward off attackers. Don't throw out tons of city siege units. You'd have to fight an uphill battle to become a conqueror. Just make sure that you're tougher to crack than your neighbors, and watch the militarists waste their best ages on eating easier prey.