Though we did know that Firaxis intended to introduce all-new game modes to Civ VI, the last thing we expected was for Secret Societies Civilization 6 to pop up. We mean this in a good way, mind: Secret Societies is our favorite Mode yet. Read on for the best secret society for each civ!

If you haven't been in the loop, Firaxis recently doubled-down on Civilization 6 with their awesome New Frontier Pass expansion model. Instead of pushing out massive - albeit periodical - DLCs once in a blue moon, Firaxis is now releasing numerous smaller DLCs in quick succession. Quick-ish, mind, but still. The first such content drop consisted of the Apocalypse Mode and Maya & Gran Colombia Civs. These were pretty cool, of course, but hardly groundbreaking. Apocalypse added a new layer of excitement to the game but was just a tiny bit too limited in scope for our taste.

This is where Secret Societies comes in!

Civ 6 Secret Societies Game Mode: What is it?

Aside from being one of the best ideas Firaxis has had for Civ VI in a while, Secret Societies is basically a gameplay modifier for the core Civ experience. Once unlocked (information on which you'll find below), you'll have access to four entirely new "factions" or Societies, each of which comes with its own set of boons, functions, and even win-conditions!

These range from classic Illuminati-style world-lords all the way to literal worshippers of cosmic horrors. No, we're not joking: you can now worship Cthulhu in Civ VI. Now, if you know us and our body of work, you'll definitely realize that this alone is a major selling point in our book. And you'd be right to think so! However, we recommend the Ethiopia Civ DLC for the totality of Secret Societies. It really is a great gameplay twist, whether you're into sowing discord with cultist units, or perhaps simply creating a society of vampires to rule the world.

Since Civilization is generally a down-to-earth experience with only mild sci-fi elements, adding the tiniest bit of fantasy to the game works wonders. By the time you've entered the endgame with Secret Societies enabled, it will feel like you're playing an interactive version of a Peter Watts novel!

Best Secret Society for Each Civ

As we said, there are four specialized Secret Societies that you could join during any given game. Before we go into further detail on who they are and what they do, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. First is that, once you join a Society, there's no turning back. You can't switch them around, and you can't join another in the given match. This means you'll need to specialize your playstyle a fair bit, if you want to make the most out of your newfangled conspiracy to rule the world.

You get the option of entering a Society's membership by discovering their patrons. You do so by completing a variety of tasks you really ought to be doing anyway. Whether it's clearing a Bandit camp or sending out Envoys to City-States, it's only a matter of time before you've discovered all four Secret Societies anyway. Once you know what each of them does, and what sort of playstyle they support, it will be a good idea to discover and join them as soon as possible. For your first go, however, we advise you don't rush into things and see what each Society does at your own pace. The primer we've prepared below might help!

In any case, once you've joined a Society of your choice, you'll be provided with a unique type of Governor NPC. Their abilities and effects will be applied across the entirety of your Civ, so there's no need to "assign" them to any given City or some such. A final word of warning, though: the more competitor Civs join a given Society, the less chance you've got of them extending an invitation to you, too.

The Hermetic Order

The Hermetic Order is a Secret Society that focuses on building a strong Science-dependant empire. Once joined, they will show you an all-new resource, the Leylines, which will improve your Science and Great Person yields. They can also build the Alchemical Society, a University replacement that generates extra Great Merchant and Great Engineer points, as well as granting extra Production and Gold.

• Initiation - Discover a Natural Wonder - Ley Lines provide a standard adjacency bonus to all specialty districts.
• Ritual - Reach the Medieval Era - Unlocks the Alchemical Society.
• Indoctrination - Reach the Industrial Era - For every Great Person earned, Ley Lines receive +1 yield in that Great Person's District type; Great Admirals and Great Generals increase Science yields.
• Master Plan - Reach the Atomic Era - Unlocks Occult Research; a City project that provides Gold while active. When completed, it grants Great People points and Science for every Ley Line in the given City.

Owls of Minerva

Owls of Minerva are a Society of powerful people whose end-goal is total economic control over the world. Perfect for those Civs that bank (pun totally not intended) heavily on economic growth and Gold farming. This means Owls of Minerva aren't nearly as ominous as some of the other Societies featured here. If you're not into cosmic madness and vampirism, maybe go with the Owls.

• Initiation - Send an Envoy to a City-State - +1 Economic Policy slot; each Trade Route sent to a City-State grants 1 Envoy there.
• Ritual - Reach the Medieval Era - Unlocks the Gilded Vault, a Bank replacement with bonus Culture yields.
• Indoctrination - Reach the Industrial Era - +1 Wildcard Policy slot, +2 Spy capacity; Cities gain +4 Loyalty and +1 Amenity per turn with a Spy in their territory.
• Master Plan - Reach the Atomic Era - on a successful offensive Spy mission, gain half of the Gold, Faith, Culture, and Science that the targeted City earned that turn; earn 3% of your Gold treasury per turn.

Sanguine Pact

Whereas the previous two Secret Societies afforded mostly economic and cultural benefits, Sanguine Pact is almost entirely opposite in their approach to world domination. Being literal vampires, these guys will work great with Civs that field powerful militaries, but they're also a fair option for those who wish to augment their otherwise weak combat forces. Their Vampire Castle building allows them to teleport troops around, which is an incredible mid-game boon when push comes to shove.

• Initiation - Destroy a Barbarian Camp - Grants a Vampire unit in your Capital.
• Ritual - Reach the Medieval Era - Grants a Vampire unit in your Capital; unlock the Vampire Castle (two max).
• Indoctrination - Reach the Industrial Era - Grants a Vampire unit in your Capital; increases your Vampire Castle cap to 3; Vampires now Intimidate adjacent enemy units, reducing their Combat Strenght by 5.
• Master Plan - Reach the Atomic Era - Grants a Vampire unit in your Capital; increases your Vampire Castle cap to 4; units can now teleport between Vampire Castles.

The Voidsingers

Last but definitely not even remotely least, the Voidsingers are our favorite Secret Society. Powerful. Creepy. In service of cosmic horrors. Yep, they tick all of our boxes!

Virtually all of Voidsingers' functions are in service of Old Gods. From their Monument replacement all the way to their unwavering focus on Faith production. It's all with a singular goal in mind: the summoning of eldritch horrors that warp reality itself. Fun stuff, no joke! Their unique unit - the Cultist - can move into other Civs' territory without a declaration of war, and cause severe loyalty loss in Cities. Once killed or spent, Cultists generate Relics of the Void.

• Initiation - Discover a Tribal Village - Unlocks the Old God Obelisk, which provides bonus Faith yields.
• Ritual - Reach the Medieval Era - Cities earn Gold, Culture, and Science per turn that is equal to 20% of their Faith yields
• Indoctrination - Reach the Industrial Era - Unlocks the Cultist unit, purchasable with Faith.
• Master Plan - Reach the Atomic Era - Unlocks Dark Summoning, a City project that provides great Faith yields while active, and raises the amount of Loyalty damage dealt by Cultists on completion.

How to play Secret Societies Mode in Civilization 6?

To play Secret Societies Civilization 6, you'll need a couple of things. The base game - obviously - is a must-have, but the mode won't work without either of the game's two major DLCs. Meaning Rise and Fall or Gathering Storm. On top of that, the actual game mode has been launched with the Ethiopia Civ. Find the links to everything you need to play Secret Societies below!

• Civilization VI
• Rise & Fall: Civ VI DLC
• Gathering Storm: Civ VI DLC
• Ethiopia Civ Pack / New Frontier Pass DLC

We almost always have ongoing sales and discounts for Firaxis titles, so be sure to check in from time to time, if you're hunting for the best possible prices. Keep in mind that there's also the 'COMMUNITY2GAME' promo code you could use, which will take an additional 10% off your purchase!

Once you have all the DLC you need for Secret Societies, all you need to do is to toggle the appropriate feature in the Custom Game menu. It's going to be somewhere in the lower right corner of the screen, so look there!

Wrap-up!

Secret Societies Civilization 6 isn't fresh out of the gate, but we do feel it's been overlooked because it's a sort of a side-piece to Civ VI itself. Historically, bonus game modes haven't fared all that well in previous titles, so we understand the potential apprehension. It is, however, completely unwarranted! It's the classic Civilization 6 we all know and love, but with a creepy bonus layer of complexity added on top!

If you're at all interested in world-spanning conspiracies, and if you enjoy the idea of your ultimate win-condition being the summoning of Old Ones - Secret Societies is a must-play.