Age of Empires 2 Remake

Age of Empires 2 Remake Idea

Age of Empires 2: Age of Apple Dough

3 Ages

 * Dark Age: Equivalent to AoE2's Feudal Age.


 * Feudal Age: Equivalent to AoE2's Castle Age.


 * Imperial Age: Equivalent to AoE2's Imperial Age.

Defenses
Defenses will overall be easier to construct in the Dark Age and Castle Age due to new sources of stones. Murder Holes will no longer be necessary, as all towers will start with the ability to defend themselves from units at their bases.

The goal is to allow players to construct a real city before the Imperial Age, when siege weapons become extremely powerful.

Resources
No new resources but several new sources of income.


 * Ruins: Ruins will randomly be placed on the map and there will be two near the player's starting Town Center. Ruins are a very fast source of Stone and essentially function as one big block of stone as opposed to the single-tile stone mines. In real life, towns were frequently founded near older towns and people would strip old ruins for use in new buildings. When Castles are destroyed, they will leave a ruin with a portion of the stone used to build it intact.


 * Monasteries and Markets: Monasteries and Markets will slowly generate gold but to a limited amount. Say only the first four Monasteries built will generate some gold income. A Market will generate a small amount of gold based on your current population, and only one Market will do so. Players will be able to research techs that will increase this gold trickle. Both buildings will retain their Relic and Trade Cart functions, but players can trade with themselves at a fraction of what they would get trading with allies.


 * Trees: Trees will regenerate after a long time, but players can click on used tree stumps and "uproot" them, preventing them from regenerating. Villagers can also be ordered to uproot trees automatically. Trees that have been hacked down will be "tagged" by the player's villager starting from when the Villager "kills" the tree and can gather from it. An enemy player will have to actually move a Villager into LoS around downed trees to tag it for themselves, and then they can create buildings on top or click on them to uproot them. This is to prevent players who find their enemy's base early and lay building foundations over the half-cut trees to deny their enemies.

Castles

 * Castle Costs and Customization: Castles will be individually customizeable and start off as cheaper. Several techs will be available for research at a Castle and they will only affect the individual Castle itself. For instance, a Hoardings-like tech that gives the particular Castle +1000 HP will cost about 75 Food and 75 Wood compared to the old Hoardings 400 of each resource. Holding Shift will research the tech for all Castles, and take away the appropriate number of resources.


 * Examples of New Castle Techs: "Turret," which would be researchable up to 4 times per Castles and allow the Castle to fire an additional arrow. "Star Fort" would be a drastic change that allows the Castle to fire Bombard Tower like cannonballs.


 * Aesthetic Changes: Individual Castles will change aesthetically to reflect their unique improvements and can be named by the player.

This change is to encourage the players to build multiple Castles throughout the game, and thus allow the player to use their Unique Units more often.

Monks

 * Healing Change: The main change to the Monks' gameplay is to reduce their micro management. Monks will heal all units in a small range around them at a much slower rate than AoE2.


 * Conversion Change: Monks will also have stances, and an aggressive stance will cause them to convert units in their LoS automatically. Monks will also have a passive stance that only allows them to convert if under attack or by player order. Monks will also have a change in their conversion ability. It will no longer be semi-random like in AoE2, but will take the same time each conversion and also take less time depending on how close the enemy unit is to the Monk.


 * Building Conversion: Monks will gain the ability to convert buildings without research. They can convert defensive structures at a range, especially Castles.


 * Castle Conversion: 1 Monk will take about 2.5x as long to convert a Castle as a single Bombard Cannon needs to destroy one. A player will be able to counter-convert and slow down the conversion with their own Monks, but their own Monks must do so while at the base of the Castle.


 * Monk Uniqueness: Furthermore, the Monastery techs will be expanded somewhat and players can upgrade Monk armor, pierce armor, HP, range, and movement speed in increments. Each civ will have their own unique set of technologies. A couple of civs will have overall stronger Monks than certain other civs, but those civs will still retain a niche. For instance, Korean Monks will probably be the worst Monks in the game but will still have more range than any other Monk. Monastery techs will also be a lot cheaper overall, even considering the incremental upgrades.

The goal of the Castle conversion is to simulate sieges where besiegers would starve out a fortress and then capture it.

Gathering Point Additions
When queueing Villagers, there will be a paralleling set of icons that show where each Villager is heading to. Players can set it so that Villagers will head to specific places individually. For instance, a player who queues 9 Villagers can set it such that Villagers 1-4 go to a Gold Mine, Villager 5 will head to a Farm foundation, and Villager 6-9 will go to Trees.

Farm Queue
There will be an option at the Mill called "Infinite Queue" which will queue up farms until there are no Wood resources left. If there is no Wood left, Villagers whose Farms get exhausted while Farming will idle until there is enough Wood and then automatically make a Farm.

Military Unit Gameplay

 * Prioritization: Military units will have the ability to specifically target a certain unit type. For instance, Skirmishers can choose to target only Foot Archers. Military units can prioritize up to 9 different unit types and can prioritize them on 9 different levels. Military units can also be ordered to ignore certain units.


 * Maximum Unit Control: The maximum number of units a player can control at once would be raised to 200.

Heavy Infantry

 * Bodyguard (Dark): The equivalent of the Militia line. The idea behind renaming this unit the Bodyguard is that small-time, local rulers would often use loyal bodyguards as their elite forces. These men were the closest thing to a standing army in a Village and were often paid in loot, just like how the Militia in AoE2 line is made using gold.


 * Retainer (Feudal): A Retainer is essentially a Bodyguard but broader in scope. As you advance to the Feudal Age, you will have a bigger city, and in the Feudal Age you'll have multiple Town Centers. The Retainer is a loyal man, a lower-level noble, who is from the further provinces of your territory.


 * Man-At-Arms (Imperial): The Man-At-Arms is usually a lower-level noble or a veteran commoner. Minor nobles usually couldn't afford a mount but could afford the armor and weapons, while a commoner who's survived a few battles could have saved up enough money for those same armaments. This signifies that the Feudal System is in decline, and common men are playing a bigger role in a job usually reserved for the nobility.


 * Champion (Imperial): A Champion can come from any class, as long as he's good at what he does. Money and skill eventually supersedes social standing, which is what the end of the Middle Ages were all about. Gameplay-wise the Champion would be the toughest unit to kill for the resources compared to AoE2. Their attack would be lowered in favor of higher defensive stats.

Medium Infantry

 * Militia (Dark): A Militia man is somebody who's raised from the peasantry, with little experience and meager weapons. He often just brings his farming equipment. It didn't make sense for the Militia to cost gold back in AoE2, so I renamed the Spearman. This particular Militia would bring his pitchfork, which would work suspiciously similar to a spear...


 * Spearman (Feudal): Now the Militia has a role and specific weapons.


 * Pikeman (Imperial): Halberds and Pikes were different weapons with different uses. It would be nice to include the Halberd somehow but Pikes were just used much, much, much more often. The Pikeman would be significantly different from the Halberdier of AoE2: they would have 1 range similar to the Kamayuks of Forgotten Empires.

Light Infantry:

 * Eagle Runner (Dark): An Eagle man who runs around and scouts stuff. He's an inexperienced fighter who can participate in battle but doesn't have a defined role yet. A major change is that the Eagle is available earlier than the equivalent of the Castle Age.


 * Eagle Warrior (Feudal): He's now a full-fledged fighter


 * Eagle Knight (Imperial): The closest translation of the Aztec word is Knight, and this is their name in Age of Empires 3. I am also striving to reduce the use of the word "Elite" and "Heavy."

Foot Bowmen

 * Bowman (Dark): I want a little continuity between Age of Empires I and Age of Empires II, so I renamed the Bowman. Plus with what I have in mind, he needs to be renamed. The Bowman line requires a few technologies to be researched in order to be truly potent but each upgrade works out well, too. With all of the techs researched, which are harder to come by for the civs, they are the most cost effective unit in the game (but not population effective like Paladins).


 * Composite Bowman (Feudal): The civs with the best Archers tend to be the ones with Composite Bows. Crossbowmen are still in the game though, no worries. This is more accurate than the Crossbows being the top Archer.


 * Recurve Bowman (Imperial): Most civs with strong Archers usually use Recurve Bows.

Skirmishers

 * Slinger (Dark): A Slinger would just be a dude who shows up at a battle with one of the most basic weapons in history. Slings were used just as often in the early Middle Ages as Antiquity, and this implies continuity with Age of Empires.


 * Skirmisher (Feudal): The word Skirmisher implies an actual role on the battlefield. The Skirmisher would remain mostly unchanged from AoE2.

Artillery Men

 * Arbalister (Feudal): A Crossbowman guy. This upgrades to the Hand Cannoneer. It initially sounds like it doesn't make sense, but Crossbowmen and Hand Cannoneers occupied the same niches in warfare. Crossbows and Hand Cannons were easy to use and massable compared to a Bow, which would take years of training, and most civs who used Hand Cannons and Crossbows would eschew a regular Bow. They were often fired in volleys behind defenses. Crossbowmen are available after researching Crossbow. Crossbowmen would fire forward just like Hand Cannons, but they wouldn't have the stupid random chance missing in AoE2. Arbalister bolts would keep going until they hit something or until they reach their maximum range. An Arbalister is a guy who uses a Crossbow, and I didn't just call him a Crossbowman because it sounds like a Bowman. They would require long research time at the Castle but due to their power and the lack of necessary upgrades, they would be a very dominant unit in the late Feudal Age.


 * Handgunner (Imperial): Now the trick with this unit line is that Handgunner are instantly available upon researching Chemistry whether you have access to Crossbows or not. Crossbows would be strong, "optional" units that give some civs with pitiful archers an option. Some civs might get Arbalister and not get Handguns, some might get Handguns and no Crossbows. Just like the Arbalister, they would be accurate unlike in AoE2 and non-random. They'll be weaker to compensate.

Horse Archer

 * Cavalry Archer (Dark): I reserved the word "Archer" for the Cavalry Archer. This isn't really historical or anything, but it makes it really easy for players to differentiate between Bowmen and Archers when talking strategy or in chat between players. Now the thing with the Cavalry Archer is that he has a million different techs that can improve him in small ways. He's one of the few units without any sort of upgraded version, he relies on multiple small techs increasing his abilities until he's useful per age. His range, power, and firing rate is pitiful in the Dark Age.

Elephant

 * Elephant (Feudal): This is going to be a unit common to certain civs like the Eagle. It's a very, very heavy and strong cavalry archer unit. The Elephant's starting cost is ridiculous. The Indians, Khmer, and Malayos will all share a cost reduction bonus which makes the Elephant actually usable. The Persians will have a crazy HP bonus but no cost reduction bonus, while the Chinese and maybe the Mongols and Saracens will have access to Elephants with no cost reduction.


 * War Elephant (Imperial): The upgrade to the Elephant Archer. The old Persian War Elephant is intact in slightly changed form.

Light Cavalry

 * Scout (Dark): Name changed because he's a regular scout with no real combat role.


 * Scout Cavalry (Feudal): Now he has a combat role.


 * Light Cavalry (Imperial): Now he has a more clear and defined combat role.

Heavy Cavalry

 * Knight (Feudal)


 * Cavalier (Imperial)


 * Paladin (Imperial): The Paladin line would mostly remain unchanged compared to AoE2. They would retain a similar degree of toughness but the Champion is the better meatshield in equal resources. Knights were always best for their powerful offensive capabilities, which would remain unchanged.

Camel

 * Camel Rider (Feudal): Name changed for continuity with AoE1. A Horseman is not called a "Horse." Early on, Camels were not used for warfare very often and even the Arabs highly preferred the Arabian Horse for their war needs. The implication here is that a Camel Rider was recruited for a vague campaign but with no actual role.


 * Camelry (Imperial): Now the Camel is a true unit with a military role.

Ram

 * Battering Ram (Feudal)


 * Heavy Ram (Imperial): The Heavy Ram would be covered in animal hides and tree branches and stuff.


 * Capped Ram (Imperial): I'm trying to cut down on the use of the word "Siege" so the Capped Ram would be the name of the final unit. Plus CRam is one syllable and good shorthand, you "Cram" Infantry into them, and it kind of sounds funny.

Catapults

 * Catapult (Feudal): Mangonels -> Onagers wasn't very exact in the first place, so Catapult -> Mangonel -> Onager is just as logical. The use of "Siege" should be kept to a minimum, and this implies a continuity with Age of Empires 1.


 * Mangonel (Imperial)


 * Onager (Imperial)

Artillery

 * Scorpion (Feudal)


 * Cannon (Imperial): This is parallel to the Crossbow and Hand Cannon idea. These two weapons have pretty much the same use: a smaller cannon would be an anti-personnel weapon and sweep enemies away.

Moving Belfry

 * Moving Belfry (Feudal): A slow, lumbering siege weapon that Archers can garrison inside for protection and to increase the rate of fire. Mostly used to encroach and provide defense for archers against other siege weapons. It's not a tower just to avoid confusion with the non-moving defensive structures, and they were actually called Belfries in the Middle Ages.


 * Siege Belfry (Imperial)

Bombard

 * Bombard (Imperial): The 'cannon' part is kind of unnecessary.

Docks

 * Fishing Ship:


 * Trade Cog:


 * Transport Skiff:

Galleys

 * Impressed Cog:


 * Galley:


 * War Galley:

Fire Ships

 * Fire Galley:


 * Fast Fire Galley:

Demolition Ships

 * Demolition Ship:


 * Explosion Ship:

Gun Ships

 * Gun Galley:


 * Gun Galleon: The Cannon Galleon line would be changed to be the ultimate ship. They would be very expensive and will only appear very late in the game but able to defeat all other ships in combat as well as take on buildings. They are called "GGs" for a reason.

Castle Units and Unique Units

 * Unique Unit (Feudal)


 * Elite Unique Unit (Imperial): The word "Elite" is going to be reserved only for the Unique Units.


 * Petard (Feudal)


 * Trebuchet (Imperial)

Graphics, Architecture Sets and Civilization List
The game would have a similar 2-D art style of Age of Empires 2. The idea would be to streamline the game's graphics and keep it simple such that 8 player, 1000 population games are possible with no lag.

All units will have a graphical change upon being upgraded, especially unique units.

In AoE2, Universities, Town Centers, and Markets changed upon entering the fina Age. In Age of Apple Dough, Monasteries and Siege Workshops would also have a graphical change. Monasteries would become overall more elaborate upon Age up, while Siege Workshops will tend to reflect the use of gunpowder (not for all build sets).

Furthermore, all civs will now have 2 Wonders that they can build. There is no difference, simply graphical ones.

West Europe
Based mostly on the border regions around France and Germany, including Savoy and Belgium.
 * Britons
 * Franks
 * Teutons

East Europe
Based on Russian architecture and architecture of Novgorod
 * Vikings
 * Slavs
 * Magyars

South Europe
Based on Mediterranean architecture.
 * Byzantines
 * Italians
 * Spanish

West Asia
Based mostly on Persian architecture.
 * Saracens
 * Persians
 * Turks

East Asia
Based mostly on Chinese architecture.
 * Chinese
 * Japanese
 * Koreans

South Asia
Not based on Mughal architecture, though a few elements will be present in the Imperial Age. The civs in South Asia are fairly diverse and need to be generalized. There would be emphasis on the rounded stupas from Orissa and Bengal as the three civs shared those elements. Temples would be of Tamil style. Wooded buildings would look similar to Khmer and Thai houses.
 * Indians
 * Khmer
 * Malayos

Central Asia
Architecture set is determined by nearest non-Mongol player. If that player's civ is from East Asia, East Atlantic, or South America then the Mongols will use the East Asian set (Yuan Dynasty). Vs West Asian, South Asian, or West Atlantic will use West Asian (Ilkhanate). Vs East European, West European, or South European will use East European (Golden Horde). If all players are Mongols, then they will randomly have one of the 3 sets. Some elements are the same no matter what the Mongols mimic, such as their Houses being Yurts.
 * Mongols

West Atlantic
Based on Mali and Songhai architecture.
 * Ghana
 * Bantu

East Atlantic
Based on Mesoamerican architecture.
 * Aztecs
 * Mayans

South American
The only civ to receive their own architecture set, this would be somewhat simplified across all ages. Feudal Age would be based on
 * Inca

Cut civs
Civs are cut in order to keep the total number of civs somewhat low and realistic.


 * Celts: Can be represented by Britons, gameplay style semi-replaced by Khmer and Slavs
 * Goths: Can be represented by Vikings, gameplay style semi-replaced by Mayans
 * Huns: Can be represented by Magyars or Turks, gameplay style semi-replaced by Ghana and Magyars

Aztecs
Aztecs would generally be remade. The Aztecs would have the most Unique Units at 3 and a shortened tech tree to emphasize their difference from the rest of the civilizations in the world. They'd be somewhat similar to the Incas in AoE2. They would lack a lot of the blacksmith techs but rely on unique units with good base stats to do the job.

The Aztecs defining trait would be their fanatical devotion to their religion, seeing war and self-sacrifice as paying a blood debt to their gods.


 * Villagers gather from Farms +15% faster


 * Unique Unit: Jaguar Knight

Aztec Unique Unit available at the Archery Range. Jaguars are an Aztec warrior society named after the Otomi ethnic group. They wield atlatls and have inferior range compared to archers but have an attack bonus vs Cavalry and do well vs Infantry thanks to their durability. They are to the Halberdiers what the Eagle Knights are to Skirmishers. Eagles are melee, extremely powerful vs ranged units but cost gold while Jaguars are ranged, extremely powerful vs melee units but cost gold.


 * Unique Unit: Otomi

Otomis were an Aztec military order named after the Otomi tribe. They wield macehuitls. They are somewhat poor vs melee units except for a special ability. Instead of killing enemies, the last hit they make on an enemy converts them and leaves them at 1 HP, allowing them an effective shield in a close fight and an advantage when their newly converted unit strikes another unit before dying. This simulates the capturing of enemies that the Aztecs would perform.


 * Unique Unit: Shorn One

Available in the Castle and only in the Imperial Age. The Shorn Ones were the most elite group of Aztec warriors. Shorn Ones would require research before being available. They would be the strongest Infantry unit in the game but very rarely used.


 * Unique Tech:


 * Unique Tech: Flower Wars


 * Infantry: no Champion, no Blast Furnace, no Iron Casting, no Plate Mail Armor


 * Archery: no Recurve Bowman, no Composite Bowman, no Arbalister, no Handgunner no Cavalry Archer, no Elephant


 * Cavalry: nothing


 * Siege: no Onager, no Cannon, no Siege Belfry, no Bombard


 * Monks:


 * Navy:


 * Defenses:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Nahuatl


 * Wonder 1: Templo Mayor, Mexico City (Tenochtitlan), Mexico


 * Wonder 2: Tzintzuntzan Platform, Tarasca, Mexico

The Tarascans were a major rival to the Aztecs in the east with their own, large country and an Imperial government focused on homogenization as opposed to the tributary status of the Aztec Triple Alliance's subjects.

Main Units: - Shorn One - equivalent to elite melee warriors, the Cuachicqueh - Otomi - equivalent to the Otomitl, nobles who have captured 12 men - Jaguar Knight - equivalent to the Ocelotl - Eagle Knight - equivalent to the Cuahuitl - Monk - equivalent to priests who would join Aztec armies

Bantu
The Bantu civ would be a very pastiche civ, representing the related people of the Kanem-Bornu Empire, the City-States of the Swahili Coast, as well as the Kingdoms on the Atlantic. The Bantu would spam Archers like the Mayans in AoE2. The soldiers of Kongo would rely primarily on huge levies of archers in battle.

The defining trait of the Bantu civ is their rapid expansion all over Africa


 * All Archers cost -5/15/20% starting in Dark Age


 * Unique Unit: Pombo

A very fast light Skirmisher unit armed with a spear. The Pombo is like a Skirmisher in that he throws spears and is effective vs archers but is slightly stronger than a regular archer when fighting other units.


 * Unique Tech: Assegai

Skirmishers do additional damage vs buildings


 * Infantry: no Eagle


 * Archery: no Cavalry Archer, no Elephant Archer, no Crossbowman, no Handgunner, no Ring Archer Armor


 * Cavalry: no Camel, no Paladin, no Light Cavalry

Most Bantu speaking civilizations had 0 cavalry but the Oyo Empire, Kanem-Bornu Empire, and Yoruba peoples had pretty good cavalry arms. As a consolation, their cavalry would be weak but at least they would exist unlike the civs of the Americas.


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:

Their Navy would be fairly strong due to Swahili influence.


 * Economy:


 * Language: Swahili


 * Wonder 1: Great Zimbabwe


 * Wonder 2: Walls of Benin

Main Units: - Pombo - equivalent to a Kongo military unit. - Recurve Bowman - equivalent to levied Kongo archers - Pikeman - a melee Assegai user - Champion - a heavy infantryman, possibly of Yoruba - Skirmisher - a man equipped to destroy fortifications with fire

Britons
The British tended to steal their military tactics from the Celts, anyway, so the Britons can represent both civs.


 * Villagers gather Wood 20% faster


 * Unique Unit: Longbowman: super Archer

Longbows would be somewhat different from the Longbows in AoE2. They would lose some of their range in favor of power. In real life the Longbow was not known for it's long range: it was instead known for the huge arrows it could heave and the damage it could do on enemy formations rather than single targets. So the Longbowman would have more power akin to the Arbalister but a firing rate like the Recurve Bowman. For his weaknesses, the Longbow would have slightly less range than a Recurve Bowman, as well as be slower and weaker. Longbows destroy melee units but lose to other ranged units due to their slowness.


 * Unique Tech: Tower House: Castle units can be created at Watch Towers, Guard Towers, or Keeps.


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Varies

Longbowmen would speak Welsh and Kings would speak French. Units will randomly be assigned either Gaelic or Old English.


 * Wonder 1: Rock of Cashel


 * Wonder 2: Lincoln Cathedral

Main Units: - Longbowman - Welsh and English Longbowman - Pikeman - Scottish Shilltrons - Skirmishers - Welsh and Anglo-Saxons Javeliners - Light Cavalry - Irish Hobelars - Trebuchet - the English used Trebuchets frequently - Siege Belfry - meant to simulate defensive tactics used by Longbowmen Longbows would be the centerpiece and supported by a variety of cheap units. Longbows would generally lose to archers of other civs so they must be covered by Skirmishers. Light Cavalry keep Siege off of Longbows, and Pikemen keep Cavalry off. Siege Belfries give Longbows a place to hide in case they are caught while Trebuchets take care of buildings.

Byzantines

 * All ranged units and buildings +1 range


 * Swordsmen +33% attack speed


 * Cavalry Archers benefit from melee Cavalry armor


 * Unique Unit: Cataphract: Heavily Armored anti-Infantry unit

The Cataphract would lose it's splash damage unique tech but would be a combination of the Boyar from Forgotten Empires and Cataphracts. Cataphracts would lose their hidden attack bonus shield and make up for it with much higher armor. Cataphracts beat Knights 1v1, as well as Camels though Camels would tie Cataphracts based on cost. Just like in AoE2, Pikes would still counter Cataphracts but require humongous numbers to do so. On the flip side, Cataphracts would get beaten up by ranged units (especially Handgunners and Cannon).


 * Infantry: no Iron Casting, no Blast Furnace


 * Archery: no Bracer, no Thumb Ring

Archers would generally have less offensive strength. There would be no Bracer because Byzantines towers would have more range.


 * Cavalry: no Husbandry

Cavalry would also have less offensive strength overall but more defensive strength than in AoE2.


 * Siege: no Siege Engineers

Siege is where the Byzantine offensive ranged strength should come from. Belfries Catapults, and Artillery would be very powerful in the Feudal Age.


 * Monks:

Monks would be strong defensively but lack offensive strength and be poor at converting units due to the Byzantines disavowing the concept of holy war.


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Varies

The Byzantines spoke Latin in AoE2. The majority of units should speak Greek but the Kings should speak Latin.


 * Wonder 1: Hagia Sophia


 * Wonder 2: Masoleum of Theodoric

This being a Byzantine Wonder seems somewhat nonsensical at first. This is part of an effort to make sure every previous Wonder makes it into AoE2. Theodoric the Great went into Italy at the behest of the Byzantine Emperor and was nominally his vassal. Theodoric was a General and Consul of the Byzantine Empire before taking over the West.

Main Units: - Cataphract - - Champion - Legion - Cavalry Archer - A Cataphract Archer - Siege Belfry - a Ballista - Trebuchet - invented by the Byzantines Byzantine Cataphracts are very powerful and would form a strong core to build armies around. Cataphracts still do not like Pikes and Camels due to barely being beaten by regular counter units cost-wise as well as Skirmishers, so Champions are a helpful back up unit.

Chinese
The Chinese armies will be drastically different from AoE2 and in some ways resemble the Turks.


 * Have +13% population


 * All Technologies cost -10/15/20% starting in Dark Age


 * Unique Unit: Chu Ko Nu

The Chu Ko Nu would be a little different from AoE2. Their range and attack would be decreased in favor of being a little cheaper, like in real life. They would also be more accurate, and so more emphasis is placed on each arrow doing damage rather than their overall damage being high (like in AoE2).


 * Unique Tech: Landmines

Petards would gain a huge attack bonus vs Cavalry.


 * Unique Tech: Fire Dragon Manual: Chu Ko Nu fire faster and more accurately

Chu Ko Nu would fire all their arrows in shorter volley at once, and fire more accurately. When combined with the Chemistry tech, it would make the Chu Ko Nu attack animation look like a flamethrower.


 * Unique Tech: Fire Arrow: Artillerymen, Artillery, and Chu Ko Nu +1 Range

Chu Ko Nu would start with pitiful range to make up for this. This would affect Crossbowmen, Hand Cannoneers, Scorpions, Cannons, and Chu Ko Nu.


 * Infantry: no Champion


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Old Chinese


 * Wonder 1: Beisei Pagoda


 * Wonder 2: Temple of Heaven

Main Units: - Chu Ko Nu - Chu Ko Nus were very common - Handgunners - Massed Crossbows, cannons was THE defining Chinese strategy - Petard - Song Dynasty landmines used against Mongol cavalry - Cannon - Song dynasty rockets and light cannons - Bombard - Song dynasty mortars

Franks
The Franks would remain mostly the same, but they'd have a bigger emphasis on their Castles.


 * Castles cost -33%


 * TEAM BONUS: Castles work +20% faster


 * Unique Unit: Throwing Axeman

The Franks are going to lack Blast Furnace, so the Throwing Axeman will be generally stronger without upgrades than they were in AoE2.


 * Unique Tech: Chivalerie: Knights available at Castle. Cavalier and Paladin upgrade available there, as well.

My Franks would have a faster working Castle, so more Trebuchets and Petards, and their Knights would be created faster there, too.


 * Unique Tech: Francisca: All Castles +1 Range, Castle units +1 Range.

This would make their Trebuchets the longest ranged in the game, make their Petards kind of funny, and make their Paladins really cool. It's also meant to be the closest thing to a Cuirassier for the Franks, basically a Knight armed with a pistol.


 * Infantry: no Eagles, no Blast Furnace


 * Cavalry: no Camels, no Bloodlines


 * Archery: no Recurve Bowman


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Old French


 * Wonder 1: Cathedral of Chartres


 * Wonder 2: Périgueux Cathedral

France is most famous for the French Gothic style but Romanesque architecture was widespread there, as well.

Main Units: - Throwing Axemen - Francisca throwers - Paladin - At one point, France had too many Knights leading to the Crusades - Handgunner - the French made heavy use of gunpowder - Petard - Petard is a French word - Trebuchet - the French made heavy use of Trebuchets

Ghana
The Ghana would represent not just the Ghana Empire, but also the Mali and the Songhai. They would have access to Paladins, Camelries, and Recurve Bowman, giving them a lethal but expensive army that they can somewhat back up thanks to some sort of gold bonus. In real history, all 3 empires imported horses heavily and most of their success came from cavalry warfare. The Mali Empire even had an identifiable Feudal structure of Knights, complete with squires in the form of the Jonows. All sources would exaggerate the huge number of horsemen they could field. Mali and Songhai also relied on large levies of archers to form the backbone of their Infantry forces. The Ghana would take some elements from the Huns.


 * Unique Unit: Farima

Farimas would be the equivalent of the Tarkan. Farimas would be an Anti-Building camel unit. A Farima was a "brave man" in the Mali language, a guy who commanded a corps of cavalry into battle.


 * Unique Tech: Mandekalu


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry: no Eagles, no Champion, no Pikeman

Ghana's Infantry wasn't particularly good or bad but they should have some weaknesses.


 * Archery: no Handgunner

Archery was a military symbol in Ghana, and the heads of the feudal clans responsible for raising an army were known as Ton-tigi, or "quiver masters." However the nobles all fought as cavalry. You'd think that they could combine the two BUT strangely there is no information on mounted Archers. Mounted archers tend to be used by civs who have an ingrained hunting culture based on horses and archers. So their mounted archers would be pretty weak.


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Songhay

The civ's name is Ghana, the army is based on the Mali Empire, and the cultural spices are based on the Songhai.


 * Wonder 1: Great Mosque of Djenne


 * Wonder 2: Agadez Grand Mosque

Main Units: - Farima - - Paladin - the west African empires used tons of heavy cavalry - Camelry - - Recurve Bowman - the primary composition of infantry levies were archers

Inca
Similar to the Aztecs and Maya, the Inca would have a lacking tech tree but they have cheap units


 * Unique Unit: Ayllo

The Ayllo is basically the Plumed Archer from AoE2. An Ayllo was a sling used by the Inca, two stone balls swung around and thrown at enemies. The Inca were fast and had the use of roads, so that's why the Ayllo would be rather fast. Plumed Archers in AoE2 also had inferior attack (and range in Forgotten Empires) much like a Skirmisher would so a hardy and fast Inca man with lower ranged sling-like weapons would fit the gameplay of the Plumed Archer well.


 * Unique Tech: Coca Leaves: Eagle Knights +40 HPs

The Maya UT in AoE2. Some elements of the old Mayan gamplay would be given to the Inca.


 * Infantry: no Champion


 * Archery: no Cavalry Archer, no Elephant, no Handgunner, no Recurve Bowman


 * Cavalry: none


 * Siege: no Cannon, no Bombard


 * Monks:


 * Navy:


 * Defenses:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Ingapirca, Canara, Ecuador

Forgotten Empires featured an original, fan-made Inca Wonder based on Ingapirca.


 * Wonder 2:

Main Units: - Ayllo - Inca ayllo users - Eagle Knight - Inca footmen who operated on roads - Pikeman - An typical Inca infantryman with a basic weapon - Capped Ram -

Indians
The Indian army would be a slow and methodical one, based on extremely expensive and powerful units. The Armored Elephant and Elephant Archer would form the core of their army, and then it would be supported by gunpowder weapons.


 * Unique Unit: Armored Elephant

The equivalent of AoE2's War Elephant. They would be the primary anti-building unit for the Indians.


 * Unique Tech:


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege: no Capped Ram, no Onager, no Siege Belfry, no Siege Engineers


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Bhrihadeeswarar Temple


 * Wonder 2: Konark Sun Temple

Main Units: - Armored Elephant - India has the most elephants - War Elephant - - Handgunner - Mughals - Light Cavalry - parts of India had renown cavalry, especially Kamboja - Cannon - Mughals

Italians

 * Unique Unit: Condottiero


 * Unique Tech:


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Genoa Cathedral


 * Wonder 2:

Main Units: - Condottiero - - Pikeman - - Handgunner - - Onager - - Bombard -

Japanese

 * Unique Unit: Samurai


 * Unique Tech:


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery: no Arbalister


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Todai Temple, Nara, Japan


 * Wonder 2: Himeji Castle, Hyogo, Japan

Main Units: - Samurai - - Pikeman - - Cavalry Archer - - Handgunner - - Bombard -

Khmer



 * Unique Unit: Siege Elephant

Essentially a Scorpion if it were a UU. Siege Elephant has more mobility and durability than a Scorpion. It does a little less damage overall than a Scorpion, less pass through damage and target damage. However it's unique in that it has no minimum range and also does splash damage around itself (except the back), the same as it's pass through damage.


 * Unique Tech:


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Angkor Wat


 * Wonder 2: Chedi Phukhao Thong, Ayuthaiya, Thailand

Maybe Wat Chedi Luang

Main Units: - Siege Elephant - - War Elephant - - Pikeman - - Onager - - Capped Ram -

Koreans
The Koreans would become the Siege civ of AoE2. They'd have weak flesh and blood units but have the full range of Siege weapons, including a Siege unit UU that's NOT the War Wagon. The idea here is to reflect the Koreans' innovations in weapons work. The Joseon Dynasty would fund military experimentation


 * Stone mines last +40% longer


 * Stone sells for 2.5% market price


 * Unique Unit: Hwacha

The Hwacha would be a cross between an Onager and a Trebuchet. It would be extremely long range with a very wide area of effect but be weaker than the Onager and be ineffective vs buildings. In large groups, the Hwacha is extremely powerful as multiple Hwacha firing in the same general area can kill scores of enemy units.


 * Unique Tech:


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Namdaemun Gate


 * Wonder 2: Hwangnyongsa Temple Pagoda

Main Units: - Pikeman - - Hwacha - - Cannon - - Siege Belfry - - Capped Ram - - Bombard -

Magyars
The Magyars and Huns overall playstyles would be merged. They were very similar in AoE2 and FE.


 * Cavalry Archers cost -10/15/20% starting in Dark Age


 * Unique Unit: Hussar


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Old Hungarian


 * Wonder 1: Hunyad Castle


 * Wonder 2:

Main Units - Hussar - Paladin - Cavalry Archer - Bombard

Malayos
Polynesians are frequently included in games like Civilization, and the closest thing to a medieval, Polynesian polity would be the Javanese and Malays who made up the Srivijaya and Majapahit maritime Empires.


 * Elephants cost -15%




 * Unique Unit: Maharlika

The Maharlika would be an anti-Infantry Infantry unit. Maharlika are a Filipino warrior caste, and the Malayo civ looks to represent all Polynesian peoples.


 * Unique Tech: Keris: Villagers combat skills improved

Most males in the Oceanic islands carried weapons, and the Keris swords were the most popular.


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Old Malay


 * Wonder 1: Borobodur


 * Wonder 2: Prambanan

Main Units: - Maharlika - - War Elephant - - Pikeman - - Cannon - a Lantaka cannon that were known for being portable. - Villager -

Mayans
The Mayans did not use tons of archers like AoE2. They would have used mass Infantry because bows were pretty crappy on that side of the Atlantic. The specifics of Mayan warfare was unknown so one can give them a style of warfare that makes no historical sense: the Gothic style of AoE2, which works out well because the Goths have been cut. The Mayans will get a very abbreviated tech tree like the Inca and Aztecs, devoid of many units.


 * Infantry Units cost -35%


 * Unique Unit: Holcan

The Holcan would be a specialized anti-Building unit who is very spammable, similar to the Huskarl except it performs weakly against actual units.


 * Unique Tech: Obsidian: Infantry +2

This would be a replacement for the Mayan lack of


 * Unique Tech: Sacrifice


 * Infantry: no Plate Infantry Armor


 * Archery: no Composite Bowman, no Crossbowman, no Handgunner


 * Cavalry: none


 * Siege: no Capped Ram, no Onager, no Cannon, no Bombard, no Siege Engineers


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Temple of Masks, Tikal


 * Wonder 2: Temple of the Sun, Teotihuacan

Main Units: - Holcan - - Champion - - Eagle Knight - - Pikeman -

Mongols

 * Military Buildings provide 10 population space

This is mainly to reflect Mongol logistics and high mobility in both their civilization and army.


 * Unique Unit: Mangudai


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Tent of the Great Khan

Main Units: - Mangudai - - Light Cavalry - - Cannon - - Trebuchet - - Onager -

Persians

 * Unique Unit: Zhayedan: Heavy Cavalry that does splash damage

A heavy cavalry unit that does splash damage to everything. The Persians would lose their War Elephants but retain a unit that does heavy splash damage.


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Taq-i Kisra, Ctesiphon, Iraq


 * Wonder 2: Herat Mosque, Herat, Afghanistan

Main Unit: - Zhayedan - - Camelry - - Light Cavalry - - Elephant Archer - - Cannon - - Bombard -

Saracens

 * Unique Unit: Mamluk


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Old Arabic


 * Wonder 1: Minaret of the Great Mosque, Samarra, Iraq


 * Wonder 2: Torre de Oro, Seville, Spain

The Torre de Oro was built by the Berber Almohad Dynasty.

Main Units: - Mamluk - - Light Cavalry - - Cavalry Archer - - Onager - - Trebuchet -

Slavs
The Slavs' main weapons would be their Paladins and Champions, and they'd have a well-rounded military with the addition of a ranged UU, the War Wagon.

The main trait of the Slavs would be their diversity and ability to spread to a huge breadth of land.


 * Unique Unit: War Wagon

The War Wagon is an anti-Cavalry siege weapon. War Wagons were very Slavic weapons, and the War Wagon depicted in AoE2 would be much closer to what the Slavs used than anything the Koreans did. Wagons were used extensively by the Bohemians and then spread to the other Slavic nations, especially Poland and Russia. The War Wagon would fire gunpowder bullets and not arrows like the War Wagon in AoE2. This is a nod to the Bohemians who innovated the European style of Wagenburg


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Language: Polish?


 * Wonder 1: Ivan the Great Bell Tower, Moscow, Russia


 * Wonder 2:

Main Units: - War Wagon - - Paladin - - Champion - - Capped Ram - - Onager -

Spanish
The Spanish in AoE2 were a generalist civ with most of their strength lying in their tech tree. Some of their bonuses and techs and could go to other civs to make them more unique while new bonuses and techs could be created for the Spanish easily to retain their generalist feel.

The main trait of the Spanish would be the utter conquest, colonization, and integration of other civilizations.


 * Melee offensive blacksmith upgrades free

This is the AoE2:FE Magyar blacksmith bonus given to the Spanish. The Spanish need a Blacksmith bonus of some kind, and a higher emphasis should be given to their melee Infantry, who were renown in the Middle Ages. This does both.


 * Unique Unit: Conquistador


 * Unique Tech: Reconquista

The Reconquista was the defining trait of the Spanish for most of their history.


 * Unique Tech: Conquista

Conquista refers to the conquest of the Americas. The name of this tech would show a continuity to the last tech. This shows that the Spanish are ready and focused on new lands after reconquering their own.


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Seville Cathedral, Seville, Spain

This Wonder was chosen due to a desire to have a Wonder that represents Moorish Spain as well as Christian Spain. The Torre del Oro was built by the Berber Almohad Dynasty in the Moorish style and is not very "Spanish." The Seville Cathedral was built in Spanish Gothic style and overtook the Hagia Sophia as the largest cathedral in Europe. It features the Giralda Bell Tower, a former Minaret clearly in the Moorish style.


 * Wonder 2: Batalha Monastery, Batalha, Portugal

Main Units: - Conquistador - - Paladin - - Champion - - Cannon - - Bombard -

Teutons
The Teutons




 * Unique Unit: Order Brother


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Maria Laach Abbey


 * Wonder 2: Aachen Cathedral

Main Units - Order Brother - - Paladin - - Handgunner - - Onager - - Trebuchet -

Turks
The Turks would be redone in AoE2, with an emphasis on range rather than straight up gunpowder. Gunpowder would still be a major element of the Turkish army but they would lose their Light Cavalry strength.


 * Unique Unit: Janissary


 * Unique Tech:


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Suleymaniye Mosque


 * Wonder 2: Bibi-Khanym Mosque

Main Units: - Jannisary - an Ottoman Jannisary armed with a hand cannon - Recurve Bowman - Bows were historically the Turkish signature weapon - Skirmisher - Turks play a game called Jereed with javelins on horseback - Cavalry Archer - The Turks originated as steppe horse archers - Cannon - The Ottomans were a "Gunpowder Empire" - Bombard - See above

Vikings

 * Rams, Belfries move +50% faster

These units cost wood and can garrison units inside them, much like a ship. So the idea is to simulate ship warfare, except on land.


 * Unique Unit: Berserker: Fast Regenerating Infantry

The Woad Raider and Berserker of AoE2 were pretty dumb by themselves. But together, they make a lot of sense. A unit that runs fast and can regenerate can run out of harm's way (back to their ships or siege weapons, in fact) and recover HP. Plus it fits the Viking method of war perfectly.


 * Unique Unit: Longboat


 * Unique Tech:


 * Infantry:


 * Archery:


 * Cavalry:


 * Siege:


 * Monks:


 * Defenses:


 * Navy:


 * Economy:


 * Wonder 1: Borgrund Stave Church


 * Wonder 2: Ruined Constantine's Arch

All of the Wonders from Age of Empires 2 are present. This particular Wonder doesn't seem to make sense at first, but consider that the Vikings are closely related to the Goths and Normans and they both sacked Rome a few times.

Main Units: - Berserker - - Pikeman - - Recurve Bowman - - Capped Ram - - Siege Belfry -