As players advance through the eras in Humankind, their cultures evolve into new ones. However, the old cultures still maintain their passive bonuses, leading to some creative combos to discover. Unlike in other historic 4X strategy games, players in Humankind don’t pick a single civilization to play as for the entire game. Instead, they choose a new culture every era that comes with new and unique bonuses.
These bonuses, called legacy traits, can stack with one another and create powerful boosts to help players win. Players can go from leading the Romans in the Classical era, to the Ghanaians in the Medieval era, then end up as the Americans in the contemporary era. All these changes will still provide the legacy traits from previous time periods in play.
To advance to another era and pick a new culture, players have to earn enough era stars. These era stars are earned by doing certain things like unlocking a certain number of technologies, or reaching a certain level of population. They also provide fame in Humankind once they're obtained, so players will be trying to get as many as possible. Obtaining enough stars opens up the selection screen for a new culture, but the same culture cannot be picked twice in a single game. Getting era stars as soon as possible will let them get the first choice in the culture they wish to lead so they can make powerful combos.
The Strongest Legacy Trait Synergies in Humankind
Zhou and Khmer
- The Khmer’s Servants of Magnificence Trait in Humankind, grants +3 industry to all makers quarters. This might encourage players to build as many of those districts as possible, but because each district lowers stability by 10, this can be risky. However, thanks to the Zhou’s Harmonious Thought, which provides +2 stability per district, players will be able to manage more makers quarters at once than they normally could.
Harappans and Edo Japan
- Edo Japan increases their influence for every citizen in their empire, meaning they pair well with past or future cultures that have an agrarian affinity. The Harappans’ Fertile Inundations increases food by 1 on river tiles and any tile producing food, meaning by the time the Edo Japanese are chosen, there will be a large population ready to take advantage of their Shogun’s Authority. However, any culture focused on agriculture, like the Celts or Mexicans, will perform well too.
Aztecs and Soviets
- Players wishing to engage in warfare against their neighbors will appreciate the offensive bonuses that the Aztecs and Soviets provide. The former’s Huitzilopochtli's Legacy will increase the movement speed of all Humankind's army units by 2, substantially improving their mobility, whereas the latter’s Red Tide increases universal combat strength by 3, which is the highest buff provided by a legacy trait. Also, both reduce the production of military units by 20%, allowing them to churn out soldiers for war at a quick pace.
Joseon and Swedes
- Hall of Worthies is the legacy trait of the Joseon, the kingdom ruling Korea in the early modern period. It provides +3 science to tiles providing science, which is a decent bonus made amazing by the Swedes in the contemporary era. Their Prize Science grants +1 science to all districts yielding science, meaning that, when combined with the Joseon trait, the amount of science piled up on a single tile can reach very high numbers. It’s a late-game combo, but one that will help the player surge through the end-game techs.
Franks and Austro-Hungarians
- With the Frank’s Crown Lands, their influence per turn is increased by an unconditional 10%. Many other cultures with Aesthete affinities, like the Olmecs, function well with this trait, but the Austro-Hungarians can really make the most of it. Their Emperor’s Hand provides +1 influence on all districts, and because the player will have built a significant amount by the Early Modern period, the impact of the 10% increase will really be felt.
Byzantines and Chinese
- Lastly, two commerce-focused cultures in Humankind: the Byzantines and Chinese. The Byzantines’ Master of Whispers increases their city’s money output by 5% for every alliance they have, while the Chinese Silk Railroad boosts their city’s money by 10% with no prerequisite. Assuming the player has 2 alliances, this means that their cities will have 20% more money. When stacked with other cultures that grant money bonuses, like the Nubians or Dutch, this combination of traits will cause the player’s economy to skyrocket!
Humankind is available for PC, Macintosh OS, and Stadia.