Game Shortcut Options

As discussed in the Shortcut Options section of the game manual, there is a large collection of keyboard and mouse shortcut options available. This page lists them in detail. Here is a sample of the top of the shortcut options dialog.

Fig. 74 Shortcut Options Dialog

To override the default (e.g. change a shortcut setting), click your mouse cursor on the box on the right and then type the shortcut you want to set the setting to. For example: You want to change the Scroll Map option to the PgUp key, you would click in the box and then press the PgUp key on your keyboard. To reset to defaults, you can click on the Reset button. Click Save and then Close when finished.

In most cases, the keyboard shortcut will also show on an associated menu entry depending on the type of shortcut.

Here are the available shortcuts:

Scroll Map

Scroll the map view. You can also use two-finger swipe on a trackpad if you have one (such as on a laptop) in all four directions to scroll the map.

Default: Right mouse button

Center View

With a unit selected, pressing this shortcut will center the unit on the screen. Similar to the option on the View menu.

Default: C

Fullscreen

Toggle fullscreen mode of the game interface.

Default: Alt+Return

Show minimap

Toggle the display of the minimap.

Default: Ctrl+M

City Output

Toggle the display of the city citizen managed tile output on the main map.

Default: Ctrl+W

Map Grid

Toggle the display of the map grid on the main map.

Default: Ctrl+G

National Borders

Toggle the display of the national borders of players on the main map.

Default: Ctrl+B

Quick buy from map

Quick rush buy production without opening up the city dialog. When used, whatever is selected from the menu will be immediately purchased from your national treasury.

Default: Ctrl+Shift plus Left mouse button

Quick production select from map

Quick production change for a city without opening up the city dialog. When used, whatever is selected from the menu will be immediately added to the top of the work list.

Default: Ctrl plus Left mouse button

Select button

Select an item on the map, such as a unit or a city.

Default: Left mouse button

Adjust workers

Auto adjust the citizens managing tiles in a city without opening up the city dialog. This is the same as opening a city in the city dialog and clicking on the city center tile.

Default: Meta+Ctrl plus Left mouse button (for example, Meta is the windows key for Windows keyboards).

Append focus

When applied to units, allow you to move a unit with a goto order without having to enter the Unit menu.

Default: Shift plus Left mouse button

Popup tile info

Pop up a widget of information about the tile, unit(s) on the tile, and other information related to the tile.

Default: Middle mouse button (different OSs handle this differently and is often a press of the scroll wheel).

Wakeup sentries

Quickly wake up all units that are sentried.

Default: Ctrl plus Middle mouse button (different OSs handle this differently and is often a press of the scroll wheel).

Show link to tile

Copies a link to a tile to the Server Chat/Command Line widget on the main map.

Default: Ctrl+Alt plus Right mouse button

Paste Production

Pastes a previously copied production item to the top of a selected city’s worklist. See Copy Production below.

Default: Ctrl+Shift plus Right mouse button

Copy Production

Copy the item being produced in the selected city into a memory buffer. See Paste Production above.

Default: Shift plus Right mouse button

Show/hide city working area

Toggles an overlay showing the working area of a city on the map.

Default: Alt+Shift plus Right mouse button

Units selection (for tile under mouse position)

Opens a widget to allow you to select a unit from a stack for movement.

Default: Ctrl+Spacebar

City Traderoutes

Toggles the display of traderoutes for your cities.

Default: Ctrl+D

City Production Levels

Toggles the display of city production in the city bar.

Default: Ctrl+P

City Names

Toggles the display of the city name in the city bar.

Default: Ctrl+N

Done Moving

Tell the selected unit that you are finished with it, even if it still has move points available.

Default: Spacebar

Go to/Airlift to City…

Instruct a selected unit to go to or airlift to a city. Go to can happen on any tile on the main map. Airlift requires the unit to be inside a city that has an Airport.

Default: T

Auto Explore

Instruct a unit to have the computer control where it explores around the map.

Default: X

Patrol

Tell a unit to patrol. When used, you will give the unit a patrol route with the mouse.

Default: Q

Unsentry All on Tile

Unsentry all sentried units on the tile under the mouse pointer.

Default: Ctrl+Shift+D

Do…

Instruct the unit to do some action. Be sure to have the Messages widget open when using this shortcut as there are often instructions given there.

Default: D

Upgrade

Upgrade the selected unit to a new type. The unit must be in one of your cities and you need to have sufficient gold in your national treasury.

Default: Ctrl+U

Set Home City

Changes a unit’s supporting home city to a new home city. The unit must be inside of the city that will become its new supporting home city.

Default: H

Build Mine

Instruct a Workers or Engineers to build a mine on the tile.

Default: M

Plant

Instruct a Workers or Engineers to plant on the tile.

Default: Shift+M

Build Irrigation

Instruct a Workers or Engineers to build irrigation on the tile.

Default: I

Cultivate

Instruct a Workers or Engineers to cultivate on the tile.

Default: Shift+I

Build Road

Instruct a Workers or Engineers to build a road/railroad/maglev on the tile.

Default: R

Build City

Instruct a Settlers to build a new city on the tile.

Default: B

Sentry

Instruct a unit to sentry on the tile.

Default: S

Fortify

Instruct a unit to fortify on the tile.

Default: F

Go to Tile

Instruct a unit to go to a selected tile with the Left mouse button.

Default: G

Wait

Tell a unit to wait as you are not ready to give it orders yet.

Default: W

Transform

Instruct a Workers or Engineers to transform a tile.

Default: O

Explode Nuclear

Explode a Nuclear bomb on the tile where the unit is located. Assumes you have moved the unit to the tile where you want to explode it.

Default: Shift+N

Load

Load a unit on a transporter, such as a Transport.

Default: L

Unload

Unload a unit from a transporter, such as a Transport.

Default: U

Quick buy current production from map

Quick rush buy the current item being produced without opening up the city dialog. When used, the item will be immediately purchased from your national treasury.

Default: BackButton (Different OSs handle this differently. Often there is a similar named button on your mouse.)

Lock/Unlock interface

Lock the placement of the widgets on the screen so they cannot be accidentally moved.

Default: Ctrl+Shift+L

Auto Worker

Instruct a Workers or Engineers to allow the computer to control their work.

Default: A

Paradrop/clean pollution

If you have a Paratroopers selected you can send it to a tile of your choice with the Left mouse button. Alternately, if you have a Workers or Engineers selected, you can instruct them to clean pollution on the tile they are on. In some rulesets, Transport units can also remove pollution from ocean tiles.

Default: P

Popup combat information

When used just before a combat round, will output the combat results into the Server Chat/Command Line widget on the main map.

Default: Ctrl+F1

Reload Theme

Reloads the current theme.

Default: Ctrl+Shift+F5

Reload Tileset

Reloads the current tileset.

Default: Ctrl+Shift+F6

Toggle city full bar visibility

Toggles the display of the city bar.

Default: Ctrl+F

Zoom In

Zoom in on the map.

Default: + (plus sign)

Zoom Out

Zoom out on the map.

Default: - (minus sign)

Load Lua Script

Load a pre-written Lua script file and runs it.

Default: Ctrl+Shift+J

Load last loaded Lua Script

Re-run the previously selected Lua script file.

Default: Ctrl+Shift+K

Reload tileset with default scale

Reload the current tileset and go to the default zoom level.

Default: Ctrl+Backspace

Go And Build City

Instruct a Settlers to go to a tile and as soon as possible build a city there.

Default: Shift+B

Go and Join City

Instruct a Settlers or Migrants to go to a selected city as as soon as possible add to the city’s population.

Default: Shift+J

Pillage

Instruct a unit to pillage infrastructure improvements on a tile.

Default: Shift+P

Clean Nuclear Fallout

Instruct a unit to clean nuclear fallout on a tile.

Default: N

Show link to unit

Copies a link to a unit to the Server Chat/Command Line widget on the main map.

Default: Ctrl+Alt+Shift plus Right mouse button