Sid Meier’s Civilization V – How to Get “Richard the Lionheart” Achievement

How to crack the Richard The Lionheart achievement in CIV V.

Introduction

Richard The Lionheart achievement requires you capture Jerusalem as the English in Into The Renaissance scenario.

In this scenario you exploit the significant buff to naval unit movement and embarkation. Significantly England’s unique trait gives it an additional +2 movement boost to both navy and embarked army.

Setup

• Play the historical map.
• Choose any difficulty above Emperor.
• (And don’t forget to Pick England!)

War

Capture The Vatican & Raid Ireland

Turn 0
Purchase a scout with faith.

Unlock Patronage and Consulates to gain friend benefits from city states once you capture the Vatican.
Unlock Commerce.

Improve resources with your builder. Prioritise luxuries.

Build a catapult.

Disembark your swordsman.

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Turn 1-15/20

Move your scout NW.

Navigate your embarked swordsman along the English channel and then down the French coastline until you reach present day Bordeaux. Disembark and move SE over land until you reach the Mediterranean. Here you disembark again and move eastwards to the Vatican.

Sell your resources to neighbours. Luxuries fetch 200 gold each.

Build/buy a second catapult. Send both to The Vatican.

Disembark your scout to patrol the Irish Channel. Capture/raid any Celtic settlers attempting to settle Ireland.

Build a couple of naval units. Send one to the Vatican. The other to defend your embarked scout.

You may need a couple more naval units to defend against France if and when you declare war.

Reroll

It is essential two things happen in the first act of the game:

• You capture the Vatican.
• Boadicea sends settlers to Ireland instead of settling on the greater British isle.

If neither of these things happen then re-roll. (The map resources are randomised so you may well get a different outcome, as the AI will try to settle where resources are).

Build

Build National College and Heroic Epic.

Purchase another scout and patrol Cornwall. (The French will try to send settlers to settle here, so simply raid them).

Unlock Mercantilism. This gives you a discount to purchase units including settlers.

Buy two settlers and settle present day Bristol and Liverpool like so:

Purchase tiles and/or use citadels to secure the English channel. (You will need this to have a route to the Atlantic).

Education & Alliances

Tech Education.

This allows you to make research agreements with friendly civs. The catholic civs Netherlands, Sweden, Spain & Austria are good candidates.

Beeline Navigation.

Build a fleet of Ship of The Lines and Privateers to crusade along the African coast.

Sell cities to allies. Keep only those with strategics. Notably iron, which you need to build the Ship of the Line.

Use the gold to purchase more units from London.

Endgame

Now you will need your English Longbowman. Their +1 range allows you to attack a city safely from outside of its attack range.

Annex a city you capture on the Levant. Purchase an army to liberate Jerusalem.

to take out Jerusalem.