Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword Maps & Locations Guide: Every Area Covered

Q: Do I need the base game and Warlords to play Beyond the Sword?

You need Civilization IV. Beyond the Sword is the second expansion, released in July 2007 after Warlords, and it is the version most veteran players still run because it contains corporations, the espionage economy and the Apostolic Palace.

Q: Which corporations are worth founding?

It depends on what your empire already owns. Mining Inc. turns Coal, Iron, Copper, Gold or Silver into production, Cereal Mills turns Corn, Rice or Wheat into food, and Standard Ethanol produces Oil from Corn, Sugar or Rice. Each of the seven can be founded only once in a game, and each needs a specific Great Person.

Q: What civilisations were added?

Ten: Babylonia, the Byzantine Empire, the Ethiopian Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, the Khmer Empire, the Mayans, the Native Americans, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sumer. Six leaders joined existing civilisations, including Abraham Lincoln, Charles de Gaulle, Boudica, Darius I, Suleiman the Magnificent and Pericles.

Q: How does the Apostolic Palace win work?

The Palace is tied to the state religion of whoever builds it, and civilisations influenced by that religion receive votes. Resolutions cover holy wars, embargoes and forced peace, and a supermajority can award a diplomatic victory long before Mass Media unlocks the United Nations.

Q: How is this different from the newer Civilization games?

Beyond the Sword is a 2007 expansion for a 2005 game, built on stacked units and a commerce slider rather than the district and one unit per tile systems of the later entries. Corporations, the espionage slider and Apostolic Palace voting are specific to this expansion and have no direct equivalent in the modern games.

Complete Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword maps and locations guide. Every area with difficulty, rewards, progression order, and what to do in each zone.

EarlyGuides Editorial Team

Researched and editorially reviewed. Updated August 12, 2026.

Beyond the Sword is the second expansion for Civilization IV, released in July 2007, and it is still the version most long term Civ 4 players run. It bolts three systems onto the 2005 base game: seven corporations that convert spare resources into food, production or cash, a full espionage economy with its own commerce slider, and the Apostolic Palace, a religious voting body that can hand you a diplomatic win centuries before the United Nations exists. It also brings ten new civilisations, six new leaders for existing ones, twenty five units, and eleven scenarios ranging from a squad tactics mission against the undead to a space colonisation mod.

Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword features distinct areas with increasing difficulty. This guide covers every major location in progression order: what to do, what to get, and when to move on. For the step-by-step path, see our walkthrough.

Area Progression Order

Order	Location	Difficulty	Key Rewards	Recommended Build
1	Afterworld	Standalone tactical scenario	Squad tactics practice, a complete change of pace from the main game	Byzantium under Justinian I
2	Broken Star	Modern era scenario	Fast paced modern warfare without a long buildup	Byzantium under Justinian I
3	Charlemagne	Dark Ages Europe scenario	Coronation as Holy Roman Emperor, religious diplomacy practice	Babylon under Hammurabi
4	Final Frontier	Space era total conversion	Star system colonisation, a completely reworked tech tree	Babylon under Hammurabi
5	Next War	Near future scenario	Extended future technologies, late era unit variety	Babylon under Hammurabi

Afterworld: Starting Area

A squad based tactical scenario against the undead with no city building at all, closer to a turn based skirmish game than to Civilization. It is the clearest demonstration of how far the Civ 4 engine could be pushed by the scenario tools.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Standalone tactical scenario
Key Rewards	Squad tactics practice, a complete change of pace from the main game
Recommended Build	Byzantium under Justinian I
Key Equipment	Executive

What to Do Here

Learn the basics of Corporations. This is where you practice without heavy punishment.
Collect starting resources and your first equipment upgrade.
Clear all main content before moving to Broken Star.
If you're struggling, read our beginner's guide.

Broken Star: Early Game

Opens with Russia in civil war, so you begin fighting for control of a fragmenting state rather than founding a capital. It is one of the tighter scenarios because the starting position already contains the conflict.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Modern era scenario
Key Rewards	Fast paced modern warfare without a long buildup
Recommended Build	Byzantium under Justinian I
Key Equipment	Executive

What to Do Here

Focus on mastering Espionage points and the espionage slider. It's critical from this point on.
Farm for Executive if you don't have it yet.
Complete all objectives for maximum rewards.
Prepare for the difficulty spike in Charlemagne.

Charlemagne: Mid Game

You conquer Dark Ages Europe while courting the Pope, and enough papal favour sees you crowned Holy Roman Emperor. It ties the expansion's religious diplomacy directly into a conquest objective.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Dark Ages Europe scenario
Key Rewards	Coronation as Holy Roman Emperor, religious diplomacy practice
Recommended Build	Babylon under Hammurabi
Key Equipment	Executive

What to Do Here

This is the main skill check. Bring an optimized build.
Spy becomes accessible here. Prioritize getting it.
Master The Apostolic Palace for the boss encounters.
Check our boss guide if you get stuck.

Final Frontier: Late Game

A science fiction mod where you explore and settle star systems while looking for the route home to Earth. Systems replace terrain and starships replace armies, which makes it the most transformed of the eleven.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Space era total conversion
Key Rewards	Star system colonisation, a completely reworked tech tree
Recommended Build	Babylon under Hammurabi
Key Equipment	Spy

What to Do Here

Full build optimization is expected by this point.
Spy should be your primary, fully upgraded.
Advanced Start mastery starts mattering here.
Farm resources for the push into Next War.

Next War: Endgame

A near future scenario built around clone armies, cyborgs and other technologies past the base game's modern era. It extends the tech tree rather than replacing it, so the familiar rules still apply.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Near future scenario
Key Rewards	Extended future technologies, late era unit variety
Recommended Build	Babylon under Hammurabi
Key Equipment	Spy

What to Do Here

This is endgame. Best-in-slot gear and a perfected build are mandatory.
See our boss guide for endgame fight strategies.
The reward loop: clear content → upgrade → push harder content.
Experiment with Netherlands under Willem van Oranje for variety once you've mastered the meta.

Exploration Tips

Clear areas in order: Afterworld → Broken Star → Charlemagne → Final Frontier → Next War. Skipping areas means missing resources you'll need later.
Check every corner: Hidden caches and secrets are often in non-obvious locations.
Match your equipment: Some areas favor different equipment types.
Read the walkthrough: Our walkthrough provides exact progression milestones for each area.
Don't rush: Clearing an area fully gives more resources than speedrunning two areas.

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