The Thrones of Ascension must be claimed and/or sat in, if one is to properly replace the previous Pantokrator. The other way to win a game of Dominions 6 is by knocking all other Pretender Gods out, whether through wiping out their nations or wiping out their Dominions, but those roundabout manners of victory only work by making your Throne-claiming a foregone conclusion.

Most Thrones are quite distinct from one another, and not all Thrones are created equal. The exalted chairs come in three tiers, with Tier-2 Thrones being twice as important as Tier-1 Thrones and Tier-3 Thrones being thrice as important as Tier-1 Thrones. In default settings, smaller games will generally require you to claim all of them anyway, but bigger games (and most multiplayer games) will need only most, or occasionally a mere plurality. In these cases, a Tier-2 Throne counts as two Tier-1 Thrones, while a Tier-3 Throne counts as three.

One does not need a Spy or a Site-Searcher in order to find Thrones; they appear directly on the map. However, new to Dominions 6, the Throne symbols are hidden until the provinces they're in come within range. Identifying what the Throne is, requires either a Scrying spell or a Spy with a magic path; or you can just take the province.

When a Pretender God arrives on the map for the first time, they immediately sense the location of most (if not all) of the Thrones on the map, revealing their symbols. This also reveals the provinces, if Fog of War is enabled. Pretenders who start Awake receive their knowledge on Turn 2.

Claiming a Throne is a turn action that can be performed by one of the following:

• A Pretender God's physical form
• A Priest of 3 or higher

Aside from the claimer needing to be in the province, they also have to own the province. This means that the Stealthy can't just skulk over to a Throne and back-cap it, at least without a fight. If the province has a fort, the fort has to be owned as well, since the fort is invariably built around it. (A king's castle needs a fancy chair, after all!)

Thrones are obvious Magic Sites that capture the imagination of all beings, so they start out well-defended by the independent parties of the world. Tier-1 Thrones have typical fellows defending them, but often with the support of a capable mage or two. Tier-2 Thrones often have more-bizarre defenders and are held by superior mages, and the holders of Tier-3 Thrones are weirder still. The second and third tiers of Thrones may already have "lesser Pretenders" sitting upon them, chassis such as the Monolith or the Great Mother with path spreads similar to those of your opponents.

Most Thrones change the religions of their claimants. All of them act as Temples that are not destroyed when they change hands, except with a 100% chance to spread Dominion regardless of the faith's strength. Tier-2 Thrones spread Dominion twice a turn, and Tier-3 Thrones spread Dominion thrice a turn. The substantive changes to religion mostly come through adding effects to your Bless or tipping your Dominion's preferred Scales, but there are a couple unusual changes as well. Merely having the Throne within your borders is not enough to reap most of its benefits, though some changes provided by claiming a Throne may be considered undesirable.

Thrones can be destroyed, but only by the Horrors beyond any decency and reality. On top of this, they can only be destroyed by the highest tier of Horror, the Doom Horrors. These seven beings enter the strategic map in only three ways:

• Through the Cataclysm, a "sudden death" event enabled in some games, which typically starts years into a game
• Through "baiting" one into an Assassination, then charming or enslaving it – this is by far the least consistent
• Through Wishing for one

The Doom Horrors who can destroy Thrones (for there's one who can't) need to be established in the province on the strategic map, which means they have to have the province. They don't need to have the fort; yes, they can destroy Thrones through forts, merely by having the province under Siege. This is far less consistent, however. Only one Doom Horror can always destroy Thrones through forts, and that's because they destroy the forts as well. The others have a 50% chance per turn at most.

If a Throne is destroyed, this reduces the number of Thrones required to win the game, but the proportion of remaining Thrones needed is unchanged. It is possible to have a game where no one can become the next Pantokrator, due to all of the Thrones being destroyed; in that case, the game ends immediately in a draw.

You may notice, after playing many games, that certain Thrones often appear alongside each other. These are known as "Throne Clusters". You're not guaranteed to see an entire cluster in-game, especially since some of these clusters are spread across multiple tiers, but you're unlikely to see a member of a cluster all alone.

None of these Thrones can appear in Caves.

Throne	Tier	Claiming Effects	Local Effects	Recruitment?	Other Notes
The Throne of Spring	1	Tips Growth/Death Scales by 1	Generates 1 +2 (Base Adj.)	Mage of Spring (21)
The Throne of Summer	1	Tips Temperature Scales by 1	Generates 1 +2 (Base Adj.)	Mage of Summer (21)
The Throne of Autumn	1	Tips Growth/Death Scales by 1	Generates 1 +2 (Base Adj.)	Mage of Autumn (21)
The Throne of Winter	1	Tips Temperature Scales by 1	Generates 1 +2 (Base Adj.)	Mage of Winter (21)

These Thrones tend to have wild beasts and other natural entities as their defenders.

Throne	Tier	Claiming Effects	Local Effects	Recruitment?	Other Notes
The Throne of Fire	2	Blessed units get +3 ATT	Generates 1 Far Caster (1, )	Adept of Pyriphlegeton (3)	Can't be in Caves
The Throne of Air	2	Was Air Shield 40 in Dominions 5	Generates 1 Far Caster (1, )	Wind Master (2)	Can't be in Caves
The Throne of Water	2	Blessed units get +3 DEF	Generates 1 Far Caster (1, )	Hydromancer (3)	Can be Underwater
The Throne of Earth	2	Blessed units get +1 Reinvigoration	Generates 1 Far Caster (1, )	Gnome (222)	Can't be in Caves

This one has only two Thrones, but still.

Throne	Tier	Claiming Effects	Local Effects	Recruitment?	Other Notes
The Throne of the First Age	2	Blessed units get +1 MR	+2 (Base Adj.)		+1 Dominion spread (3) Can be Underwater
The Throne of the Second Age	1	Blessed units get +1 STR			+1 Dominion spread (2) Can be Underwater

There are three of these, spread across all three tiers.

Throne	Tier	Claiming Effects	Local Effects	Recruitment?	Other Notes
The Throne of the Sun	3	Blessed units get +5 FR Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1 Tips Temperature Scales by 1 Tips Growth/Death Scales by 1	Generates 5		+2 Dominion spread (5) Can be Underwater
The Throne of the Moon	2	Tips Growth/Death Scales by 1	Generates 11		Can be Underwater
The Throne of the Stars	1		Generates 2 Far Caster (2, )		Can be Underwater

Some of these may seem like they should be in clusters, but they aren't.

Throne	Tier	Claiming Effects	Local Effects	Recruitment?	Other Notes
The High Throne	1				+2 Dominion spread (3) Can be Underwater
The Throne of War	1	Blessed units get +1 ATT Blessed units get +1 MOR Dominion Conscripts up to PD Level 5			Can be Underwater
The Throne of Night	1	Blessed units get 50% Darkvision			An "evil" throne. When claimed, it causes worldwide Darkness 3 for 2 turns, sometime afterwards. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Beasts	1	Blessed units get +1 Animal Awe	Generates 2		A "wild" throne. When claimed, it grants animal armies if "Story Events" are turned on. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Thorns	1	Blessed units get +10 PR	Generates 2		A "wild" throne. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Flames	1	Blessed units get +5 FR Provides 1/turn	Generates 1		Can be Underwater
The Throne of Ice	1	Blessed units get +5 CR Provides 1/turn	Generates 1		Can be Underwater
The Throne of Storms	1	Blessed units get +5 SR Provides 1/turn	Generates 1		Can't be in Caves
The Throne of Might	1	Blessed units get +2 STR			Can be Underwater
The Throne of Stability	1	Blessed units get +1 MR			Can be Underwater
The Throne of the Deeps	1	Blessed units get 50% Darkvision		A Priest may summon 1 Kraken per turn here!	Only in Deep Seas. Beckons a Deep Seer (321) when claimed, eventually.
The Throne of Pearls	1		Generates 3	Ichtyid Pearl Mage (11, -2)	Only in Deep Seas
The Throne of Bones	1	Blessed units get Undying 3			An "evil" throne. Prompts distant Undead attacks when claimed, if "Story Events" are on. Also beckons 2-12, a Necromancer (2), and an army. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Zeal	1	Blessed units get +2 MOR Dominion Conscripts up to PD Level 10			+1 Dominion spread (2) Can be Underwater
The Brass Throne	1		+100 Income Generates 11		Can be Underwater
The Coral Throne	1		+75 Resources Generates 11	Triton Trooper	Only in Deep Seas
The Throne of Pestilence	1	Tips Growth/Death Scales by 1	Generates 3 +2 (Base Adjust.)		Diseases 1% of all units each turn, for 3 turns after being claimed. Can be Underwater.
The Lower Throne	1		Generates 5		An "evil" throne. Beckons a Circle Master (22) after being claimed, eventually.
The Mirror Throne	1		Generates 3 Far Caster (1, )
The Throne of Twilight	1	Blessed units get +1 DEF	Generates 2		An "evil" throne. Can't be in Caves.
The Rainbow Throne	1		Generates 11 Generates 100 +2 (Base Adjust.)		Can't be in Caves
The Throne of Law	2	Dominion Conscripts up to PD Level 10 Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1	+2 (Base Adjust.)		-1 Dominion spread (1). Dumps 2 on every province's Scales, and reduces Unrest by 10, when claimed. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Gaia	2	Tips Growth/Death Scales by 2	Generates 2		A "wild" throne. Dumps 1 on every province's Scales when claimed, and later beckons a Dryad (121100%), 2-12, and an Animist (2)… Or it might beckon an attack on you. Can't be in Caves.
The Crystal Throne	2		Generates 11	Crystal Mage (22)
The Iron Throne	2		+75 Resources	Adept of the Iron Order (221100%, +8)	Can't be in Caves
The Silver Throne	2		Generates 200	Adept of the Silver Order (221100%, +8)	Can't be in Caves
The Golden Throne	2		Generates 400	Adept of the Golden Order (221100%, +8)	Can't be in Caves
The Throne of Bureaucracy	2	Dominion Conscripts up to PD Level 10 Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1 +1 Conflict bonus	Consumes 200		+3 Dominion spreads (5) Can be Underwater
The Throne of Knowledge	2			Sage (1, +8) Lore Master (3100% 100% 100%, +15)	Can't be in Caves
The Throne of Life	2	Tips Growth/Death Scales by 1	Generates 3 +2 (Base Adjust.)		Shaves 3 Years off every unit when claimed. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Death	2	Tips Growth/Death Scales by 1	Generates 5 +2 (Base Adjust.)		An "evil" throne. Adds 1 Year to every unit when claimed. With "Story Events" on, a Necromancer can get path-boosted here, but will unleash something random. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Fortune	2	Tips Fortune/Misfortune Scales by 1	Generates 2 +2 (Base Adjust.)		Dumps 1 on every province's Scales when claimed, 35% of the time, up to twice a game. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Misfortune	2	Tips Fortune/Misfortune Scales by 1	Generates 4 +2 (Base Adjust.)		Dumps 1 on every province's Scales when claimed, 35% of the time, up to twice a game. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Chains	2	Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1 Tips Fortune/Misfortune Scales by 1	-5 Unrest Generates 4		+1 Dominion spread (3) Can't be in Caves
The Inner Throne	2	Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1	Generates 13		Can't be in Caves
The Outer Throne	2	Tips Magic/Drain Scales by 1	Generates 3		Can be Underwater
The Throne of Dreams	2	Tips Productivity/Sloth Scales by 1 Tips Magic/Drain Scales by 1	Generates 13		Can be Underwater
The Throne of the Churning Ocean	2		Generates 13 +2 (Scale Adjust.) 20% Conj Disc.		A "wild" throne. Underwater only.
The Throne of the Artificer	2		Generates 21 20% Const Disc.		Can't be in Caves
The Throne of Splendour	3	Was Awe in Dominions 5			Removes 25 Unrest from all provinces when claimed. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of the Pantokrator	3	Sacred units get Elegist 2 +2 Conflict bonus			+4 Dominion spread (7). Eventually reduces Dominion in all provinces, after being claimed, but typically with benefits. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Abundance	3	Tips Productivity/Sloth Scales by 2	Generates 500 Generates 11 Generates 11 Generates 11 Generates 11		Can be Underwater
The Throne of Eternal Suffering	3	Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1 Tips Productivity/Sloth Scales by 1 Tips Fortune/Misfortune Scales by 1			An "evil" throne. Boosts existing Dominion, and dumps 1 on every province's Scales, when claimed. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Sorcery	3		Generates 11 Generates 11 +2 (Base Adjust.) 30% Thau Disc. Far Caster (2, , )		Dumps 1 on every province's Scales, when claimed. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Elements	3		Generates 11 Generates 11 30% Evo Disc. Far Caster (2, )		A "wild" throne. Has a long event chain, with "Story Events" on. Can be Underwater.
The Shattered Throne	3	Tips Fortune/Misfortune Scales by 1	+10 Unrest Generates 24 +2 (Base Adjust.) +2 (Base Adjust.) Curses 1% Horror Marks 5% 30% Blood Disc.		An "evil" throne. When claimed, it either reduces existing Dominion, or it dumps 11 on every province's Scales and Horror Marks 2% of all units. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Creation	3	Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1	+150 Resources +2 (Base Adjust.) 30% Conj Disc. 20% Const Disc. Master Ritualist		When claimed, it dumps 1 on every province's Scales, and reduces every province's Unrest by 10. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Destiny	3	Tips Order/Turmoil Scales by 1 Tips Fortune/Misfortune Scales by 2			Dumps 1 on every province's Scales when claimed, though only once per game. Can be Underwater.
The Throne of Power	3	Blessed units get +2 Reinvigoration	Far Caster (2, All Paths)		Can be Underwater
The Throne of Time	3	Blessed units get Unaging Tips Magic/Drain Scales by 1	+100% Rec Pts. +100% Com Pts. Generates 5 +3 (Scale Adjust.) Doubles Aging		Can be Underwater

"Disc." is short for "Discount", by the way. The discount only applies to Rituals, though a Construction Discount also applies to items.