Phlegra, as it is now, is a realm with three castes: a mage-priest elite, a warrior citizenry, and a large population of helot slaves. It calls back to the design of Mekone, the City-State of Gold and Marble that Titan-born Gigantes made in an age long past, and this is most likely intentional. In those days, the elites and the warriors were largely of the same Gigante stock, though with Elder Cyclopes from Telkhinis as the greatest mages. Then the Gigantes lost their reason, and their dignity, and eventually their form, following a disastrous declaration of War upon the Gods themselves…

The current Phlegra is a rump state of the original Phlegra, site of a government-in-exile for the defeated Mekone's Gigantes. The Gigantes had become tyrannical, either at this point or with the next generation, and that next generation was far more monstrous than what came before. Though unable to grasp their old ways, the Gigantes at least realized their deficiencies. Recognizing they were on the backfoot, they allowed the Elder Cyclopes to command the Younger Cyclopes of the Phlegran hills. Unable to understand old Mekonean writing, they welcomed Trophimoi (students) from the human realms to decipher it for them. This Phlegra was far less stable than Mekone, for the Phlegran Gigantes took far too many helotes, but the Trophimoi devised new means of holding the state together; one from Pythium, utilizing his old experience in the Theurgy and the enchanted blacksmithing of the Elder smiths, invented a means of coercion through mind-controlling headbands and shackles.

Eventually, however, the original Phlegra came apart. The Gigantes grew so monstrous and unreasonable that they became known as the Laestrygonians, and they imprisoned and ate the Elder Cyclopes in their madness. Then they fought each other, and this gave the helotes (or perhaps some ambitious mind-controllers using them) the chance to rise up. With his kin driven underground, the last Laestrygonian with a Phlegran city had a brief moment of clarity and empowered the Cyclopes (both the Youngers and the descendants of the Elders) to clean up this mess. The rebellion in Telepylos was crushed; and then, like his kin, that last Tyrant went to sleep in the bowels of the earth. Now Phlegra exists for the Cyclopes; they care little for the affairs of humanity, as long as their martial prowess and (limited) acumen as generals are honored, and the new users of the Iron Communions may do what they want. Phelgra's human Oppressors rule with an iron fist, but they are powerless against the legend of the Laestrygonians, whose prophesized return keeps all but the Cyclopes up at night.

"Mekone and its successors are inspired by giants of Greek myth. Described either as strong and proud hoplites, or in later times, as monstrous beings with serpent legs, the idea of a nation of giants that doesn’t follow the development of most other giant nations, with smaller and smaller giants in the later ages, started to take form. … I also wanted to incorporate the hubris of the giants and the Gigantomachia—the war against the gods—into the nation, which in turn created the backstory for the middle and late age versions of the nation.

Phlegra in the middle age is a nation that has lost most of its proud legacy. The Gigantes of Mekone are cursed for their hubris and are becoming physically and mentally afflicted. I also wanted to add shepherding cyclopes to the Elder Cyclopes of earlier times. At first, the nation felt a bit bland, but when I started to think on the slaves and the Phlegran society the idea of the oppressors and slave mages appeared. The feel of the nation took a whole new turn and the slave mage mechanics made for entirely new tactics not available to other nations." -Illwinter

Phlegra is a kingdom of human slaves living in constant terror of the monstrous giants that once claimed the lands as theirs. For centuries the giants have been absent and only memories of their tyranny remain. Most of the Phlegran population are human slaves and slave masters dominated by a warrior-caste of Younger Cyclopes, previously living pastoral lives on the slopes of the Phlegran hills. The Tyrants who once ruled the land were descendants of the Gigantes of Mekone, who made war upon the gods of men. Punished for their sins the Gigantes were imprisoned and cursed with monstrous appearance. Those who avoided imprisonment became Tyrants and rulers of Phlegra and formed a slave kingdom with the aid of human servants. But the Tyrants destroyed each other and the very lands they ruled. Slowly their numbers and influence dwindled and their servants made themselves rulers in all but name. Now human slave masters rule the kingdom in the name of absent Tyrants, hoping that the sleeping giants never wake up. - in-game description

Until around Turn 36, Phlegra is a typical troop-focused nation, if a little overtuned to that end. Following in the Mekonean and middle Phlegran tradition, the nation has small armies of elites that operate alongside vast armies of slightly-below-average troops. This time around, technological advancements are in Phlegra's corner, giving its helot hordes crossbows and plate armor with a bottom-dollar cost in gold. The magic angle for Phlegra is rather odd, with an auto-Communion angle offset by only one mage (the Oppressor Archon) having over three levels; this avaricious elite, demonstrating hubris to a tee, also flaunts superfluous Astral levels that will get him punished by Magic Duels.

Then the switch flips. The capital explodes, and Pretender-grade Titans stream out of it. Phlegra has thuggish mages before this point to practice with, notably the Cyclope Smith, but nothing that compares to these murderous supercombatants. The nation gets one of these for free, tempting players of Phlegra to go ahead and recruit more – they take two turns to manufacture, and they will most-certainly destroy the economy, but their power is just that impressive. With the national Global Enchantment that any of these Laestrygonian Tyrants can cast, the capital can also churn out troop versions at a rate of one-per-turn, provided that anyone's still alive to supply them.

Religion-wise, Phlegra has no Sacred troops and a Dominion effect that passively taxes its provinces, though its special mechanic is at least stronger on enemy provinces than on friendly ones. If one considers a Bless, it would be a tool for aiding their Pretender and Prophet – and, to be fair, their late-game Prophet may very well outmuscle their Pretender. They could also take negative Scales and high Dominion strength to double-down on the economic ruination of their enemies, but these will vex the hungry homeland first (unless they're incredibly aggressive with their Pretender and Prophet).

Magic Access	Alt. Access	Unit Summary	Core Abilities	Buildings
3 (Rare 4) 3 (Rare 4) 2 (Rare 3) 2 (Rare 3) 1 (Rare 2) 2 Late Game: 4 (rare 5) 2 (rare 3)	Master Smith Heroes 223 Summons 11 (req. 2 & GoR) 121 (req. 3 & GoR) Events 442 (one) 433 (one)	Mostly Human Slave Soldiers Cyclops Warriors Mouflon Cavalry No Sacred Troops.	Slave Taskmaster Communion Slave Communion Master	Standard Forts Starts with a Giant Fort

Capitol Gems: 31

The Burning Mountain: This site boosts Heat by up to 2 points, and periodically drives up Unrest after Turn 5. After Turn 15, it may yield additional Fire Gems. After Turn 30, it will explode at some point; this will wipe out 20% of the local Population, add 40 Unrest, yield an old Laestrygonian King, and allow the recruitment of Laestrygonian Tyrants (Phlegra only). This also changes the site's yields, removing the Heat effect and replacing the 3 with 11. If Gigantomachia is cast, the site will also allow the recruitment of Laestrygonian troops after it explodes (again, only for Phlegra).

Turmoil Limit + 1

Unrest: All provinces under the dominion of Phlegra will have their unrest increased every turn. Higher dominion strength in the province yields a greater increase in unrest. In a disciple game this will only have an effect if Phlegra is the Pretender God and then it will affect the disciples as well. Being a disciple of Phlegra will be difficult.

• Gigantomachia (Thaumaturgy 7)
  44 and 60
  Commentary here.
• Oppressors Headband (Construction 1)
  3 and 15
  Commentary here.

See Magic Access. These guides supplement the summaries at the top.

Cyclope Smith have Master Smith, increasing their paths by one for the purpose of forging items. Master Smith does not help with summoning, though.

An Elder Cyclops with 1 or 1 (1 in 4 for both) can make a Staff of Elemental Mastery, Crown of the Elements Unique or Staff of Elemental Mastery, which can be very helpful. Both versions are difficult to get to, though.
LA Phlegra can progress high enough in Astral to get a Ring of Sorcery and a Ring of Wizardry. The only sorcery path LA Phlegra has is Astral, so the Ring of Sorcery doesn't give as much flexibility as it does for other nations.

The hero, Steropes - Elder Cyclops (23), with an Air can create a Staff of Elemental Mastery.

The Magic Lamp Unique but Reforgable
11 Cyclope Smith (1 in 4) + (because of Master Smith).
22 Steropes - Elder Cyclops, the hero +
Obviously, any of the Elemental Mastery boosters, a Ring of Wizardry, or The Forbidden Light Unique, can all really help.
With The Magic Lamp, Al Khazim - Jinn can be summoned. It doesn't give any new paths, but is high in the four it does have.

Highest Starting: 3 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8), but 2 Cyclope Smith (1 in 4) effectively has 3 for the purpose of crafting boosters. Both need a level of empowerment to get to Flame Helmet.

Oppressor Archon has the right crosspaths for the Forbidden Light but it's a lot of boosters.

Highest Starting: 2 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8), but 1 Cyclope Smith (1 in 4) effectively has 2 for the purpose of crafting boosters.
Even with Tome of High Power, a level of empowerment is necessary to get to Winged Helmet.
The hero, Steropes - Elder Cyclops, only needs the Tome of High Power or a level of empowerment to get to Winged Helmet.

Tome of High Power Unique
21 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8) + Astral

Highest Starting: 2 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8), but 1 Cyclope Smith (1 in 4) effectively has 2 for the purpose of crafting boosters.

Trident from Beyond Unique
21 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8) +

Orb of Atlantis Unique
21 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8) +

Highest Starting: 3 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8), but 2 Cyclope Smith (1 in 4) effectively has 3 for the purpose of crafting boosters.
The hero, Steropes - Elder Cyclops, has 3, effectively 4 for crafting boosters.

Oppressor Archon has the right crosspaths for the Atlas of Creation but it's a lot of boosters.

Highest Starting: 2 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8)

Coin of Meteoritic Iron
12 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8) +

Tome of High Power Unique
21 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8) +

Golem Construction
12 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8) +

Oppressor Archon has the right crosspaths for the Atlas of Creation or the Forbidden Light but it's a lot of boosters for either of them.

No national access.

No national access.

No national access.

Troll King's Court
3 Oppressor Archon (1 in 8) +
Troll King has 1

No national access.

How to win as the nation. Feel free to use the following sections, or delete them, or change them.

Different expansion options.

Early game options.

Mid game options.

Late game options.

What are the nation's weaknesses?

Add links to guides or other overviews for this nation here.

Nations
Early Ages	Arcoscephale • Ermor • Ulm • Pyrène, • Marverni • Sauromatia • T'ien Ch'i • Machaka • Mictlan • Abysia • Caelum • C'tis • Pangaea • Agartha • Tir na n'Og • Fomoria • Vanheim • Helheim • Niefelheim • Muspelheim • Rus • Kailasa • Lanka • Yomi • Hinnom • Ur • Berytos • Xibalba • Mekone • Ubar • Atlantis • R'lyeh • Pelagia • Oceania • Therodos
Middle Ages	Arcoscephale • Ermor • Sceleria • Pythium • Man • Eriu • Ulm • Pyrène • Marignon • Mictlan • T'ien Ch'i • Machaka • Agartha • Abysia • Caelum • C'tis • Pangaea • Asphodel • Vanheim • Jotunheim • Nidavangr • Vanarus • Bandar Log • Shinuyama • Ashdod • Uruk • Nazca • Xibalba • Phlegra • Phaeacia • Ind • Na'ba • Atlantis • R'lyeh • Pelagia • Oceania • Ys
Late Ages	Arcoscephale • Pythium • Lemuria • Man • Ulm • Marignon • Mictlan • T'ien Ch'i • Jomon • Agartha • Abysia • Caelum • C'tis • Pangaea • Midgård • Utgård • Bogarus • Patala • Gath • Ragha • Xibalba • Phlegra • Vaettiheim • Feminie • Piconye • Andramania • Pyrène • Atlantis • R'lyeh • Erytheia