Anno 117: Pax Romana – Dawn of the Delta

Dawn of the Delta (German: Erwachen des Deltas) is the third major gameplay expansion for Anno 117: Pax Romana. It opens up the province of Aegyptus with river landscapes, new population groups, production chains, irrigation, belief systems and local military units. The base game is required.

Unlike Latium and Albion, Aegyptus focuses on the Nile: river current, seasonal flooding and soils of varying fertility change how you plan settlements and trade routes.

Dawn of the Delta is announced for Nov 5, 2026. As of Oct 17, the DLC is still pending. The date applies to the base game's supported platforms and coincides with Update 3.0.

The expansion is the third major content release of the Year 1 Pass, after Prophecies of Ash (Apr 30, 2026) and The Hippodrome (Aug 20, 2026). The cosmetic packs released separately should be distinguished from these gameplay expansions.

Ubisoft is announcing the expansion for Windows PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. To play it, you need the matching version of Anno 117: Pax Romana; Dawn of the Delta is not a standalone playable title.

A separate native DLC version for PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch or Switch 2 has not been confirmed. Cloud access or backward compatibility are not the same as a dedicated platform version.

Aegyptus replaces the separate sea islands of Latium and Albion with long river islands and buildable riverbanks. New settlements are reached from the north. That is why the available mooring spots, building space and location of resources already affect the choice of the first site.

Goods still have to be transported by ship. The river current slows heavy Roman ships, while Egyptian ship types move faster on the Nile. You can choose the expansion as the starting province for a new game, or open up Aegyptus in existing save games and connect it to the trade network.

Dawn of the Delta completes the three major gameplay expansions of the Year 1 Pass. Prophecies of Ash expands Latium with volcanic mechanics, while The Hippodrome brings new monument and chariot racing content. Aegyptus, on the other hand, opens a standalone province with additional population groups, production chains and trade systems.

There are also cosmetic packs, which mainly offer extra decoration and visual variants. A DLC should not be confused with an edition of the full base game or with a standalone playable title. Anno 117: Pax Romana is still required for all gameplay expansions.

The expansion uses the technology of the PC base game. For Anno 117: Pax Romana, Ubisoft lists at least Windows 10 64-bit, 16 GB RAM, an SSD and AVX2 support. For 1080p at 30 FPS on low graphics settings, examples given are Intel Core i7-7700 or AMD Ryzen 5 1600, plus NVIDIA GTX 1660 or AMD RX 5600 XT.

No separate PC requirements profile specific to Dawn of the Delta has been announced so far. Check the full system requirements for the respective base game version.

Farmland is the limited fertile strip along the water. Dates and oats grow there at first, and later other grain types too. Harbor facilities can only be built in this shoreline area.

The Floodplains are flooded regularly. Here, among other things, reeds and silt for mud bricks can be gathered. Fertile soil supports certain businesses, but flooding changes their production conditions. The Arid Zone further inland is especially suited to houses, public buildings and other production sites. Additional irrigation can later make parts of the dry soil usable for agriculture.

Agriculture can be expanded beyond the natural shoreline. Ubisoft shows basins and connecting canals for this purpose, with which soil can be irrigated. In the Romanized development path, a Noria is added, which carries water via aqueducts into the interior and to cisterns.

The Nile flood affects cultivation and production in the alluvial land. Concrete building plans or yield figures cannot yet be reliably derived from the previews shown so far.

The first Egyptian population group are the agriculturally shaped Threshers. Once their basic needs are met, a cultural direction choice arrives: on the Greco-Roman path they become Scribes (writers), who need papyrus and writing materials, for example. On the Egyptian path they develop into Potters with other goods and public facilities.

According to Ubisoft, the direction affects both the needs of residents and the look of the settlement. As in Albion, it is therefore not just about building skins, but about different supply chains.

Even the start of construction in Aegyptus differs from Latium and Albion. Instead of wood, mud bricks made from reeds and silt are needed, gathered in the flood zones. A date farm requires trees nearby to build the first food supply. A fire pit provides public services and faith.

Later on, fields supply wheat and barley, among other things, which can be processed into food and drinks. Regional jewelry also counts as supply. Import and export connect the new needs with the trade networks of the base game.

The river flows from south to north. Its current affects the speed of cargo ships, and particularly heavy Roman ships are slowed down. Ubisoft announces two local Egyptian ship types that are meant to be significantly faster on river routes.

Because long river islands and settlement areas can determine the detour to the nearest port, the location of a trading post also becomes important. A port near the river mouth could be interesting for trade between Aegyptus, Latium and Albion. The developers name supplying other provinces with food and importing luxury goods as possible economic strategies.

Ubisoft announces three additional deities for Aegyptus. As an example, the studio names Sobek, whose worship is meant to boost agriculture and irrigation. Religion thus remains an economic and cultural lever.

Militarily, Kushite archers with long range and accuracy, as well as the Dromedarii cavalry, add to the existing troop system. The latter is meant to weaken the morale of enemy infantry and cavalry. Both unit types are announced for the new province.

Ubisoft Mainz presented an official trailer in October showing the Pyramids as an important part of Dawn of the Delta. The preview hints at restoration work on the monumental structures. How individual construction phases, resources and possible effects work in detail, the team plans to explain in further developer posts.

The monument is therefore an announced game element. However, the short trailer does not yet allow a complete construction or optimization guide to be derived.