There are several good ideas here and devs has obviously put a lot of effort in to creating different aspects of the games intended progression. But the problem is be that most players are unlikely to keep playing long enough to experience and appreciate it. There is no way to make civilization expansion/warfare functionality "on the cheap" and there is no need for it either in a game like this. To replace it with

As someone who primarily plays city builders and strategy games, I’m used to a familiar gameplay loop: stabilize your economy, solve early bottlenecks, and then gradually scale while optimizing efficiency. In most titles, once the foundation is solid, the game shifts into a more relaxed, macro-focused experience. Aztecs does not follow that formula. This is the only city builder in my library where I consistently