Owls of Minerva (Civ6)

The Owls of Minerva are one of four Secret Societies in Civilization VI, exclusive to the Secret Societies game mode, introduced in the Ethiopia Pack. They are a secret group of high-placed and wealthy individuals. They focus on government, trade, and espionage.
== Introduction ==
A conversation with a new acquaintance turns to symbols: an eye in a pyramid, a two-headed owl, a serpent biting its own tail. “These are the signs by which we know each other,” he says to you. Later, he invites you down through tunnels below the city to a velvet-draped room full of figures in cloaks and animal masks, and who you think you recognize as some of the richest and most important people in your empire – and beyond. “Join us,” offers a woman in an elaborate moth mask, her voice dripping with wealth and privilege.
=== After Joining ===
The rites have been performed. You have recited the names of the founders and their lineages and memorized the signs of the Owls. It is astounding how many there were, all around you, all this time. Your finance minister hides a tattoo of a two-headed owl on his ankle; a silk merchant idly draws an eye on his open palm. Now you are of the Owls.
== Overview ==
Similar to the other Secret Societies, Owls of Minerva membership lasts the entire game. Once joined, players will unlock a new Governor with four unique titles. This Governor operates on a national scale, thus granting bonuses to the entire empire without being assigned to a city.
Owls of Minerva membership grants access to an extra Economic Policy slot and extra s to city-states with each sent there. It also allows construction of the Gilded Vault, a new building with all the benefits of a Bank, but also grants  adjacency bonus as as well. It also grants an additional for cities with a Harbor. Furthermore, members will have an extra Wildcard Policy slot, extra Spy capacity, and bonuses to defensive Spies.
The Owls of Minerva's base chance of sending an invitation after you send an to a city-state is 80%. However, as with other societies, this chance will get slightly smaller with every other civilization that joins this society (meaning "popular" societies will be less likely to send you an invitation).
== Titles ==
Promotion Title	Unlocked by 	Effect
Initiation 	Send an to a city-state (80% chance).	+1 Economic Policy slot. Each sent to a city-state grants 1 there.
Ritual 	Reach the Medieval Era. 	Allows you to construct the Gilded Vault building, a powerful replacement of the Bank.
Indoctrination 	Reach the Industrial Era. 	+1 Wildcard Policy slot. +2 Spy capacity. Your cities gain +4 Loyalty per turn and +1 when your Spy is in their territory.This applies only when a Spy is performing a Counterspy mission in the city.
Master Plan 	Reach the Atomic Era. 	Whenever an offensive spy mission is successful, you also gain half of the , , , and that the targeted city earned that turn. Earn 3% of your treasury as per turn (up to 1000 per turn).
== Strategy ==
The Owls of Minerva are the most consistently useful of the Secret Societies. s, policy card slots, s, and Spies are all excellent boons towards achieving any type of victory, and unlike the Hermetic Order's s, these bonuses don't rely on luck. They are also generally the easiest to join, as you may receive an invitation any time you send an to a city-state, giving you far more opportunities than the required actions of the other Secret Societies.
An incredible component of the Owls of Minerva is how good their Initiation bonus is. Gaining an Economic Policy slot when you would otherwise only have 1 can be a powerful jump-start to your empire in the early game. Their ability to generate s can also get you a potentially unbeatable head-start on any city-state whose Suzerainty you may consider vital to your game-plan, as long as those city-states are within range of your s.
Afterward, you will gain access to the Gilded Vault, a powerful replacement in its own right, and even more impressive if you think about how underwhelming the standard Bank it replaces is. This building allows each city to have a maximum of 2 s, and also grants extra . (Read more here.) Your Indoctrination bonus basically doubles your Spy capacity, since everyone except Black Queen Catherine and Wu Zetian has only 2 Spies in the Industrial Era, and basically gives you a free Forbidden City. These two bonuses make this the most impressive second-tier promotion out of all four Secret Societies, since it has massive versatility and an unlimited scope of application. Their Master Plan bonus is not quite as impressive as the other three, since it relies on progress made by other civilizations and a bit of extra is hardly a game changer at this point; however, your empire will have benefited a ton from the previous bonuses, so this isn't really a big deal.
=== Recommended civilizations ===
As previously mentioned, the Owls of Minerva are a thoroughly reliable and versatile Secret Society that any civilization going for any victory can pick up and feel great about, especially those civilizations which can build lots of Harbors, have many s, and/or make better use of s (like Hungary, for example). However, the three leaders who love this society more than anyone are Rough Rider Teddy (when you have his Persona Pack) due to the fact that he loves sending to city-states (and America appreciates the extra Wildcard policy slot), Black Queen Catherine, and Wu Zetian, both of whom excel at espionage. Tamar is also an excellent leader to pick the Owls of Minerva, since her ability to generate free s will almost be unmatched as long as she focuses on spreading her religion to city-states and has an extensive network with them. If a city-state has Tamar's religion, every she sends there will give her 2 s without having to invest a real starting .
== Civilopedia entry ==
== Related achievements ==
Category:Secret Societies (Civ6)