Age of Empires I is the game that started our beloved franchise in 1997. Surprisingly, the game still is strong. Return of Rome DLC, the successor of Age of Empires I Definitive Edition shall be in Red Bull Wololo 2024: El Reinado[www.redbull.com]. Definitive Edition had an important role here with amazing changes that improved our classic from the 90’s, being a game worth revisiting due to their unique fast-paced action.

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There is a time capsule from the RTS golden era still surviving on the internet. The name is Heaven Games[www.heavengames.com]. And they got an absurd large amount of Age of Empires custom content, including DE. After a research in the depths of their epic download section[aoe.heavengames.com] I found a very old spreadsheet from 1998 with easy to read information about a new RTS game called Age of Empires released one year before...




Phill Phree, a famous Custom Content designer uploaded this fan guide to Heavengames originally. Access Phill Phree name on granary to know all of his works[aoe.heavengames.com].

Based on this idea, I created my own guide explaining in less than 5 minutes each civilization. Consider it a reference guide to be used from time to time.

Oh, as a bonus, I’ve made a quick glossary for Multiplayer so you can understand the game language along with 13 hardcore basics that you must know about the game, no matter if you want to play casually or competitive.

Now, let's begin! ROGAN?

• Before you start the encyclopedia, be aware that any civ can win in any map or any victory condition really, so don't assume that you are lost solely by the civ, it is the player that makes the difference. What happens is that some civs are particularly prone to Water or Artifact/Ruin/Wonder victory, thus I made sure to highlight the nature of some civs. Sometimes you can win water with a land civ or get with a Conquest civ a timer "Construction" win, where you can hold Artifacts, Wonder or Ruins for 1000 seconds in-game, roughly 16:40 minutes on slowest speed.
  
  
• There is ALWAYS forage bushes next to your TC. Train your map awareness and scouting, since a Granary is the first thing that you should build after 2 houses. Make sure to leave 5 to 6 vills on forage to keep a constant flow of villagers from your TC.
  
  
• Luring Deer and Elephant is a fundamental to start games well. Take your time to train an efficient luring. Some games can be decided on higher levels with a quality luring, where you can bring animals right next to your TC for maximum efficiency.
  
  
• Storage Pits should be well placed right next to forests early, in order to maximize your eco. Sometime you can place a Storage Pit right next to deer and save time while luring. For maps with water, a Storage Pit near Wood AND Fish is very wanted, since shore fish is the fastest food source.
  
  
• Most of MP (Multiplayer) games are decided on Tool Age, being the warfare knowledge on this era decisive. Learning the counter system of the 4 military land units and knowing how to use it is essential:
  
  
  Bowman counters Axeman -> Axeman counters Slinger & Scout -> Slinger counters Bowman -> Scout counters Slinger & Bowman
  
  
• The Wheel technology followed by wood cutting upgrades (Woodworking, Artisanship and Craftsmanship) are extremely important technologies, with Wheel in particular being one that you should researched almost immediately once you hit Bronze. The economic advantage from these techs are tremendous, with emphasis for Wheel that grants 50% more speed for villagers. Wood upgrades are extremely important for Archer or Water Civs due to the wood eco advantage + boat range.
  
  
• Walling (closing your base) is almost compulsory and needed on competitive. Wall off your base even from your allies. Once you hit Tool Age, research Stone Wall and wall your base to avoid dreadful raids by Axemen or Scouts that can kill easily your peasants (these rushes can close a game in less than 10 minutes). Sometimes it is impossible to close all of your base so focus in walling your eco gathering sites (especially your wood lines and berries)
  
  
• Architecture is excellent for Wonder victory due to making all construction 33% faster and 20% stronger in HP. This is an immense advantage for Wonder victory, since it makes countering a Wonder with another Wonder (COunter Wonder) play useless if you lack this technology (only Assyrians, Hittites and Phoenicians miss this tech).
  
  
• Powerful Iron Age upgrades will require other techs that are not necessarily connected to the unit in itself. This is weird but some technologies here will flow naturally most of the time:
  
  
  Legionary Upgrade requires Fanaticism on Temple;
  
  Centurions requires Tower Shield on Storage Pit;
  
  Armored Elephant Upgrade requires Iron Shield on Storage Pit;
  
  Heavy Horse Archer requires Chain Mail Armor (For Archer) on Storage Pit;
  
  Cataphracts requires Metallurgy on Storage Pit;
  
  Scythe Chariots requires Nobility on Government Center;
  
  Helepolis requires Craftsmanship on Market;
  
  Heavy Catapult requires Siegecraft on Market;
  
  Juggernaught requires Engineering on Government Center;
  
  Ballista Tower requires Ballistics on Government Center.
  
  
• For late game (Bronze and Iron Age) units that are FU (Fully Upgrade-able, not missing anything on Tech Tree) or the ones with most of upgrades shall be the ones that you should explore. Iron Age upgrades in particular are insanely good and will be game changers, being a big focus of this guide.
  
  
• This game will test and potentially train your APM and speed for RTS since several games are made on Very Fast speed. While it is annoying at the first glance, it definitely will make your a fast player once you play any other kind of game.
  
  
• It is common on ranked to have Standard Victory conditions enabled, so most of hosted ranked Team Games (TG) will have Wonder, Artifacts and Ruins victory condition enabled. Wonder victory is very common for Age of Empires I compared to other titles. Always check if victory conditions are Standard (enabling Artifacts, Wonder and Ruins victory timer) or Conquest (where you only win by defeating enemies).
  
  
• For team games, we have flank and pocket positions, and each position has a role. In the image below, check my minimap in a 4x4 match:
  
  
  Both me (Blue) and Brown are Pockets, since we are between the two other allies. We are more protected and less exposed.
  
  Pockets will have the chance of building up and going to Bronze Age. Once they hit Bronze, they will have to defend their flank and push towards the enemy.
  
  While Red and Yellow are on opposite sites and more exposed. Each one of them are on a different flank, thus they are the Flanks.
  
  Flanks will need to fight early on Tool Age usually, since they are more exposed. They usually will either get rushed or will have to fend off attacks from the other flank.

Civ Bonuses

+11%, +22% & 33% Each Age for Archers Fire Rate, 10% Villager Speed

Army Quality

Medium Infantry, Great Archers, Great Cavalry, Great Priests, Great Siege, Medium Navy

Building Techs

Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft & Zealotry

Fast vills means more economy and scouting, granting vision of enemies, hunts and mines. I see it as a good eco bonus in the end because more speed helps a bit for every resource gathering. Said that, Assyrians don’t have Slingers but got all archery units with machine guns to compensate. Still, this is a fragility if you don’t manage to mass many bows or use axes and scouts against enemy slingers.

Bronze Age is the glory of Assyria: They get powerful CAs, and it is a must have in any game. Combine it with more stable units, like the Camel Rider and Cav. If things go well, it will be possible to overrun enemies with a few more ST to breach walls and even hold the map on Bronze. Academy units should be used rarely and only if you think of using swordsman-line later on.

They are the only “Chariot Civ” without Scythe Chariots. It really sucks to accept it because you also do not have Chivalry, which makes your late game cav units weaker. Iron Age will be hard if you did not do enough aggression or used the wrong units. Your key to be dominant are Tool Age with Bowmen, Bronze Age with CA and Early Iron with HA/CA and Siege.

Push with CA, Helepolis, HC and Cataphract on Iron (they will be needed when facing enemy Scythe Chariots or top tier Ranged units). You don't have elephants either but your Cav and Camels can be mixed with Chariots. Their great Priests will be good against Elephants although an expensive method to use. HA will be ok on early Iron Age, but will get stale against late game HHA from other civs.

Water is doable but with no special advantage at all and you lack catapult boats. Assyrians got FG in 1998 expansion to fix water, being it a resource for sea battles followed by Triremes with Craftsmanship. An interesting hidden feature easy to miss are Legions in your roster. It is a great "hidden" unit that the Assyrians can use. Be aware that they lack ALL Pierce Armor Upgrades for infantry. They act as a “surprise” element for determined situations, having the great Logistics on their side.

Due to strong disadvantages, they received many “new basic” techs for Iron Age in DE. There is no easy answer for Assyrian weaknesses, you have to figure out every time what can work. Your siege is great but will lack extra range (Engineering) to battle with other Siege Civs. It is advisable to employ group of villagers on late game to aid on siege due to their fast movement with full combat techs to tear down walls, towers and even ranged units alone.

It is hard to be defensive since they rely on aggression and hit-and-run as a core mechanic. Turtling and Wonder/Artifacts/Ruins victory does not favor you (most of the times) since you miss Architecture. Use your Ballista Towers to aid on pushes if cornered. In the long run, it will be hard to catch up with the lack of SC or any strong HP unit (like Cents, Legionaries or any Ele) besides lavish Cataphracts to sustain long battles. Indeed, a complex civ.

Civ Bonuses

+75% Wall & Tower HP, +30% Priest Rejuvenation, +20% Stone Gather Rate and +2 Stone Cap, Market technologies cost -30%

Army Quality

Medium Infantry, Great Archers, Medium Stable, Great Priests, Great Siege, Poor Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft & Zealotry

Babylonians is the real defensive civ OG. You get brute towers and walls, and towers can be an asset for offensive actions as well. Try to suck as much stone from the map. Together with the best stone gatherers and all market techs, their cheaper cost will be your eco bonus every age. This will help you to get wood upgrades and wheel almost always when needed.

All of this can be highly helpful on Tool especially if you are planning to use masses of Slingers against enemies (remember that Stone Tech on Market requires stone and will improve Slinger range) but the fun starts on Bronze: You have Comps at your disposal together with Chariots, Cavalry, CA and Camels. This combination is not available frequently on this game so it makes viable to use units according to your economic capabilities.

Even hoplite-line can shortly appear here on Bronze since infantry upgrades can be used later for swordsman-line... It flies under the radar of many players, but they got Legionaries! Go for it as an auxiliary/situational force since they lack final pierce armor upgrades.

The lack of Iron Age pierce protection for legionaries is an issue if you are facing archer civs, so use this unit line wisely. Pick your SC and HC ASAP on Iron! It must be used on late game, so make sure to never miss. Babylonians in specific will require SC to fill their ranks on Iron since they lack anything remarkable outside FU HC. CA are welcome support additions.

Here I would also consider carefully about priests. They are great with all techs available but they can demand a lot of gold. Use against Elephant or Academy civs but be careful with your gold stockpiles. Horse Archers can be a relief if you do fast iron but don't over invest on it since they lack HHA. Babylonian villagers are another hidden power, acting great as high HP Ballista tower builders, zealots and sappers due to having all combat techs.

Babylonians are TERRIBLE in water maps, lacking Triremes and Catapult Triremes... So yeah, water maps can be a pain and in Iron you are forced to defend with Fire Galleys and War Galleys. You will need to attempt landings on maps like Team Islands since you lack tools to be effective on water. Use the full GC tech tree and market cheap improvements in your favor to even the odds.

This is the most Land/Construction civ in the franchise. You have a diversity of archers, towers, walls and excellent eco on all ages and can lock yourself on land maps for Wonders, Relics or Ruins and win in the end by managing resources on late game SC. Your siege is superb and you can both push or defend with ease. Babylonians are the Jack-of-all-trades but master of none on land and can be a pick for players that like to turtle.

Civ Bonuses

Axemen, Short/Broad/Long Swordsmen and Legionaries have +5/+15/+20/+60/+80 hit points, Towers have +2 range, Priests cost -32%, Storage Pit technologies are 40% cheaper to research

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Poor Archers, Great Cavalry, Great Priests, Great Siege, Poor Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft & Zealotry

Military oriented civ but probably one with a welcoming characteristic for starters, that can be either offensive or defensive and has every market upgrade. Your axes are 5 HP stronger and believe me, that will help you a lot during Tool Age Wars. This combined with the fact that any SP research is cheaper grants you armor and sharper weapons for your army, so you can always have all upgraded.

The lack of economic bonuses is compensated by an aggressive Tool Age, so don't be shy of placing forward barracks. In Bronze, your infantry starts to shine even more with swordsmen line getting stronger each upgrade. One thing to notice is that Choson's infantry is the best in HP and quantity but not quality - They will miss the last Iron Chain Armor upgrades and every pierce armor upgrade after Bronze Shield.

During Bronze, an attack with ST and cav should be also on menu since Choson got Nobility on DE. You can start with Logistics and Bronze Swordsmen, but their impressive flood of Legions in Iron Age is astonishing. Combining it with Hellepolis and Cataphracts on support to thwart enemy siege, their combo will trample foes. In this regard, Choson villagers are surprisingly effective and cheap when breaching towers and walls if you remember their combat techs.

As you advance in the game, cheap FU priests can counter Elephants and Academy-line and their long-ranged FU Ballista Towers can be situational for more map control or pushes on enemies purposes. Choson archers are very skip-able for the most part of the game, with bowmen being your pick when gold starts to dry. Their HA is almost like a trivia question, since I don't think that I ever saw one on ranked yet. Push for map domain and more gold with this civ, as you don't have any chariots and your late game will suffer against SC.

Their Navy is poor and you will need to push early on sea with landings or you might get in trouble, since they are stuck with Triremes lacking Alchemy (thankfully, they got Heavy Transport on DE). Be offensive but don't drain Legionaries on masses of siege and archers. Be smart if your enemy closes himself in a fortress. The lack of ST upgrades and Engineering for Hellepolis will make Choson analyze their great late game economy and the possibility of holding your ground for Wonder/Relics/Ruins victory. I lost many matches due to Choson fortresses covered by Ballista Towers, Siege and units guarding a Wonder.

Civ Bonuses

+20% Gold Mining, +33% Chariot HP, +2/+3 Priest Range on Bronze/Iron, Farm cost -20%

Army Quality

Poor Infantry, Great Archers, Great Stable, Great Priests, Poor Siege, Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Zealotry

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With a remarkable tech tree, the best priests FU with extra range, the best chariots (both archers and scythe) and expert gold miners, Egyptians are an odd case where they sound as the best civ on paper but they shall feel subpar in many cases. To start with, none of their bonuses shall grant you any advantage on Stone or Tool Age, so you will need to try to make damage or defend yourself very well at best when facing enemies. By late Tool you might feel the farm discount but it kind of only matters for your late game (and it will be big once you get there).

Bronze is when the debate starts. You can't count with the swordsmen line and you are stuck with short swords and no pierce armor upgrade at all. Priests are an interesting resource but I see monks as the hardest unit to micro in the game, even experienced players will use them with parsimony. You also have camels and Nobility but lack any Cavalry, so you will depend on Camels and Composite Bowman/CA + ST for Bronze aggression. Use your gold miners here and explore options, even Hoplites with Aristocracy can be a situational pick.

Iron is surprisingly tricky: Egyptians got a beast eco at this point with the farm bonus and should be pumping CA but they simply lack meaningful tools for powerful pushes: No AE, Catas or Cents. Egyptians and Sumerians are the only civs with War Elephants but no Armored War Elephants! That makes you very vulnerable during offensives. Fortunately, they have Ballista Towers, Fortified Walls and Zealotry Vills to establish themselves. Their CA and SC are FU and are the ones with the most HP in the game.

Your best route is to explore their Archery Range with CA, EA to support War Elephants while they research their dreadful SC on Iron. Egyptians are powerful on Bronze Age and Late Iron... But I am forced to admit that the lack of important early bonuses will be an issue on Land maps. Water however will be welcomed - Arguably, Egyptians are a competitive civ for water and will be superior to any other Land civ and inferior to any other Water civ in this guide. OP late game gold mining means that if you use your gold bonus in your favor you can field more FU Juggernauts and smash enemy boats or strongholds, along with FU Triremes.

They can be an amazing pick for defensive players, with endless chariots defending your map control with Ballista Towers and Walls for a Wonder victory. You have a lot of technology and an outstanding late game eco, so they are a excellent support civs on team games if you have an ally with siege. Lacking better elephants or any Iron Age means that your pushes will require a smart use of their potent Chariots.

Civ Bonuses

+50 All Resources, Academy Units & Elephants +25% HP, Camel Riders +15% HP
Fire Galleys +25% Atk, Transport Ships 25% Faster

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Medium Archers, Great Stable, Medium Priests, Great Siege, Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Medium Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Zealotry

Their offensive nature was very welcomed by DE with an extra amount of 50 units for each resource. It seems small but that is equivalent to (almost) 2 houses, 1 villager and 5 sections of walls for free always. Believe me, this boost will help you immensely on early game, turning Carthaginians in one of the best civs in the game, according to a reliable pro player that I know.

Use this boost in your favor and go for early aggression on Tool. Their aggressive nature is enhanced on Bronze, with powerful camels and Hoplites, along with Cavalry. Ranged options on Bronze can be ST ideally and maybe a few monks. The extra HP combined with Bronze techs will make your army a permanent threat. Temple misses important techs and usually is best to save your game can go to Iron Age, since this civ will lack chariots.

For Iron Age, Carthaginian is probably the best non-chariot civ to be used at this stage. Their powerful Elephant Archers and Armored Elephants will be very durable and dangerous even without the last Chain Mail upgrade. Centurions will be another great option followed by Helepolis. With units lasting for very long, Carthaginians will be highly prized for their Iron Age apex. They lack all of their Chain Mail techs but having Metallurgy and Tower Shield will place bets in your favor while using Academy units.

On water, Carthaginians are equally supreme with Heavy Transport Ships inviting you to adopt mass landings combined with powerful Fire Galleys able to clean up the seas. The lack of Catapult Ships is noticeable but they are an instantly powerhouse on Iron due to absurdly aggressive Fire Galleys. Helepolis and AE landings will be your weapon against walls and towers on water. Their small boost of wood every game offers a marginal but helpful chance to get your docks done faster early on.

To wrap up, their Ballista Towers with zealot villagers are an extra offensive measure to siege enemy lands. I see it as one of the most Conquest-like civs – In the end, this is a “chariotless” civ and will suffer to enemy SC floods if you try to hold your ground, not to mention that they lack cheap gold units like Legions that would make number with Logistics. With an interesting Tech Tree and a GC with all techs, you will be strongly oriented to Conquest victory, but Wonders can happen as a "Counter Wonder" (if you need to build one faster with Architecture once an enemy starts).

Carthaginian Armored Elephants have 750 HP. Wonders with Architecture will have 600 HP. I will let that sink.

Civ Bonuses

Town Centers work 10% faster starting from Tool Age; Academy units move 30% faster and cost -20%; Ships move 20% faster

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Poor Archers, Poor Stable, Great Priests, Great Siege, Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft

---

One of the best tech trees, lacking only Monotheism, Zealotry, Sacrifice (old Martyrdoom) and Metallurgy as non-upgrade techs, the Greeks used to be weaker on Land prior to DE, but the faster TC bonus arguably places it on top now. This bonus will start as a small boost for Tool and can give you a lead if you never let your TC idle, being a great bonus once you get the macro of the game right. It starts to be very noticeable after Bronze Age, where Greeks start to shine.

They are a very Academy oriented civ with possibly the best hoplite-line to manage. They are fast enough to chase archers if you research Aristocracy and will have the support of powerful siege units in Iron. Combos of Hoplites and Stone Throwers will be great on Bronze warfare with the support of cavalry. In Iron, Centurions with Heavy Catapults and Helepolis shall be formidable.

As the title suggests, adding a few Priests late game can be a good optional pick for your combo since they lack top-tier gold options for Iron on Stables and Archery Ranges. Their priests will lack Sacrifice but they still got upgrades that can make conversions work decently, specially regarding healing your expensive and powerful siege equipment. There is no secret: their Bronze and Iron must focus on Academy and Siege.

Of course, all of it comes due to the cost of having no archers outside bowmen. But they are FU Bowmen on iron Age and should be your main unit if you find yourself in a very long game and needs to save gold, so don’t underestimate our OG Toxotes (Prostagma?). You also lack any chariots or elephants as well, but you can upgrade to Heavy Cavalry if your Cavalry still is around in Iron. Useful to snipe siege or enemy monks early.

As much as they are good on Land today due to a better TC, I see it now as formidable civ both on Land and Water. For DE they got complete navy tech tree with speed bonus for ALL SHIPS! They have the best ships to maneuver and potentially win any sea warfare due to the amazing speed bonus. As a natural thassalocracy, their speedy fish boats and trade merchants (on team games) will make it arguably the second best civ for water.

Greeks are S tier even with so many downsides. The specific units that greeks focus are excellent and will siphon less gold, thus helping in the war effort. Due to having all buildings techs, a booming economy able to amass funds for defenses and Monuments fast combined with a cheaper and agile army, they are an "Either" case where you can manage your funds to fend off hordes of enemies, even by missing so many units and any kind of chariot. You also got Ballista Towers and Walls with full upgrades at your disposal to play around. Facing Greeks on Water should be a nightmare on sea battles and always very hard due to their (new) eco identity.

Civ Bonuses

+50% Catapult HP, +1 All Archer Attack, +1 Tool +2 Bronze & +3 Iron Ship Range (Except Fire Galley)

Army Quality

Poor Infantry, Great Archers, Great Stable, Poor Priests, Great Siege, Medium Navy

Building Techs

Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft

---

Their glory days with FU Cents ended in DE (now they stop at Phalanx). Hittites are the only civ lacking the upgrade for Fishing Ships, one of the two lacking Slingers as Infantry and one of the three lacking Triremes, but they got amazing long-ranged Scout Galleys and War Galleys, enabling you to dominate Tool and Bronze Age. All of it combined with powerful +1 Attack Archers.

Hittites lack Comps, Iron Age Infantry, Slingers (like Assyrians), Cavalry-line upgrades and most of the Monk techs here. They also lack any meaningful eco bonus for early game, so you will have to invent extra pressures always by using long-ranged Scout Galleys on Water and strong Bowmen on Land. A challenging civ for Tool Wars, but your late game will be easier if you survive and manage to hurt your opponent.

Bronze have many options: Cavalry, CA, ST (with high hitpoints), Camel Riders, Hoplites... It is a pretty solid civ on military choices. For Iron skirmishes they get one of the most powerful HHA FU in the game, together with FU Elephants. Their combo relies on Beefy HC FU, that shall be good with anything. You also can pick upany kind of elephant FU, by the way. When gold runs short they shall still be on top: FU SC combined with powerful +1 attack FU CA are deadly.

If you use aggression in your favor fast enough, you can win water.

With DE, Hittites got the Fire Galley and Heavy Transport. Their Galley-line will be respected for a big part of the game, so make sure to sink enemy fishing and war boats to make things fair. Oddly enough, they lack any catapult on sea, so no Catapult Triremes. I am really split about considering Hittite a water civ or not but since most of DE games can end on Tool Age, I believe that their early advantages may grant a pass as an interesting water civ, with a somewhat mediocre performance for late game fishing and shall rely on Fire Galleys to keep their dominance.

They are very prone for Conquest and lack Architecture for a Wonder or "Counter Wonder", but still it gets the advantage of getting one of the best CAs and SCs to defend Wonders, so do not rule this out. If you ever find in a late game defensive play, you got all the tools to actually hold land against enemy pushes even when there is no gold left on the field. I suggest to focus on your aggressiveness constantly and do not miss your Siegecraft vills with Ballista Towers. Market only misses Irrigation so you will most likely have a good late game eco to sustain your war-machine.

Civ Bonuses

+2 Line of sight for all non-ranged; Academy units with +1 pierce armor on Brz; +2 on Iron; Siege Units 25% cheaper; All units 4x more resistant to conversion

Army Quality

Great Infantry; Medium Archers; Great Stables; No Priests; Medium Siege; Poor Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Medium Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

NONE

---

The title isn't wrong: This is the only case where I can call confidently that this civ should potentially combine 4 different classes of units in their army composition throughout the game. But this will make it the hardest civ to master in my vision, especially due to their glaring weaknesses.

A very bold civ design, I must say: Macedonians are the Greeks with better pierce armor for hoplites but mediocre navy plus dynamic army composition. Lacking crucial techs is a challenge. They start with a better line of sight for vills (and any infantry or melee cavalry), so use it to explore early game and detect surroundings, enemy bases and resources. Apart from that, there is no eco bonus and the civ gets a very military oriented turn.

Having a regular Tool Age Wars with better scouting only, their Bronze Age gets an amazing turn: They will be able to recruit Comps, Cavalry plus Hoplites with extra pierce armor. The cherry on top are their cheap ST. With that, the odds starts to favor you and you can close a game on Bronze already. No priests means no healing but it is offset by the fact that you are almost impossible to be converted due to being 4x conversion resistant.

Speaking of it, their Iron Age starts amazing with HA and War Elephants able to upgrade into HHA and AE respectively, combined with powerful Cataphracts and their traditional Cents. But they lack Nobility and Craftsmanship, which really hurts your diverse army at this stage. You will need to invest in even more maneuvers with your bonus of +2 Pierce Armor on FU Centurions in order to pull a victory. They can upgrade to Catapult but they don’t have HC or Engineering. Their eco will lag behind here, with no Siegecraft (stone upgrade) or Craftsmanship (wood upgrade) on market.

Macedonian units got a natural strong protection to conversion combined with a powerful but slow army. Due to that, cavalry should support you constantly and can be your main pick depending of the situation. Like Teutons in AoE 2, this civ will drain a lot of gold and going Cataphract can be dangerous since you might miss gold for HHA or AE. I personally prefer AE as priority but it really depends of what you can read in your match.

Their navy is forgettable. They lack Juggernaut, Engineering, Fire Galley and Craftmanship. It can be argued that this is the worst water civ in the game but the competition is tough in this sector. I would recommend landing your Hoplite-line, Siege, HHA and Armored Elephants on enemy shores as soon as possible since you can’t compete on Water boom alone against good Water civs.

This strategoi vibe places Macedonian as the hardest civ to play. Their vills are also the weakest later regarding combat, lacking Siegecraft and Zealotry, but will be requested for forward Ballista Towers. Macedonians can’t defend or attack as the best at all times but they can respond to any situation if you are prepared. If your gold runs out, you will have problems so even this should be in your equation. You don't have FU Bowmen or FU Scouts either, making it a hard civ.

Against enemy archers and Siege, there will be Cataphracts maneuver, shielded Centurions and cheap Catapult sniper shots. If they come with melee units, call more Catapult shots and hit-and-run around your HHA with barriers of AE and Centurions. Combine this with the fact that they have practical immunity to conversion, rendering any priest civ almost useless in this aspect unless they use Sacrifice. Your siege is limited by having no HC or Engineering, but their cheap price can be helpful against masses of enemy archers or even FU siege.

Macedonian demands a lot of discussion, thus the biggest text in this guide. Sometimes they will need to reap victory by Conquest if they can make their cheap siege and diverse units prevail when assaulting. However, sometimes they must retreat their Centurions and Elephants and make shield walls on Wonder, Ruins or Relic collections surrounded by hastily made Ballista Towers... Especially because an enemy with a hard to crack fortress might be thinking about placing a Wonder itself and doing it first is a better idea for you.

Civ Bonuses

-30% Ship Cost, +2 Range for Improved Bowman Line, Farm +60 Food

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Great Archery, Medium Stables, Poor Priests; Great Siege; Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Medium Wall & Sentry Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft

---

It is hard to judge which civ is the favorite among ranked newcomers or curious starters but historical archives in Heavengames shows that Minoans are commonly associated with Fast Bronze and Composite Archers since the early days of AoE. These archers are monsters and will have all upgrades in Iron to keep their advantage, being able to counter Stone Throwers (!!!) on Bronze if FU. They are not mobile as HHA or tanky like Elephant Archers (EA) but they are cheap and easy to mass, being the best foot archer in the whole game since 1997.

Their early game on land got nothing special going on until you hit bronze or late tool and need farms, so your macro and initial fights should be picked very well. But after that they got an outstanding heavy infantry combined with terrific siege. Do not focus strictly on compies, that’s a trap easy to fall. They can have the job done even with losses but replenishing this gold unit can drain gold from their excellent HC or Helepolis. Not only that, they got Centurions which you should use also. Comps can repel cavalry when massed but they are not as good like HHA for hit-and-run tactics, so do not rely on it later on. Academy units shall be in your army and they can be FU.

Rise of Rome expansion made an incredible improvement by adding Camels to this civilization from an island in the Mediterranean (I like to believe that these minoans CR are mercenaries from Anatolia or something like that). Camels can be a great pick to counter Cavalry line, especially since they got all upgrades on Storage Pit. This alone makes it a medium civ for cavalry since you got FU Camels.

Compies + Siege + Academy in the Iron should work very well on late game but observe that gold management should be a priority later on. You have no chariot at all, so try to use some regular bowmen in late game among compies along with slingers if you want to preserve gold. Reserve your gold for Centurions and Siege in late game and watch out since Minoans got a slow army. Camels can repel raiding menaces if your bowmen and siege are targeted. The lack of early eco or military bonus make Minoans average on land.

Oh, and water shall be a joy for you. You got cheap boats, with FU Triremes and Juggernauts. FG will not be missed since you will have all conditions to keep Triremes massed, arguably the most OP water civ ever made in an AoE game. Priests are forgettable and you must consider an Either position more than often to finish games: Since you lack mobility, some situations might be better resolved with a proper Wonder if you got tough enemy fortresses pumping SC. Sometimes, a slow but solid push with your units is all that you need.

Although they have Architecture enabling faster builders, they lack fortified walls or Guard Towers but still, Wonder/Relic/Ruins victory isn’t out of place if you can conserve Siege and Cents backed by FU Bowman and Comps to hold ground even with subpar fortifications. Although they suck on early game bonus, they got a strong late game economy. Naval battles will be always your turf, with fishing boats costing 35 wood and scout galley-line 94 wood. No civ can compete with that bonus on water. A+++ on Water, period.

Civ Bonuses

Villagers cost 75 food (+50%) but have armor (+1/+1) and work 25% faster; Start the game with +75 food; Camel Riders move 25% faster; Tributes are not taxed; Trading return 100% extra gold.

Army Quality

Poor Infantry, Great Archers, Great Stable, Great Siege, Medium Priests, Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft & Zealotry

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The most experimentional civ ever made for an RTS expansion on history. Palmyrans are a special case, focusing one specialty for maritime trading and a unique bonus oriented for Team Games. They can tribute without any tax even on Tool Age! I feel that even nowadays people did not explore the power of this slinging civ; hopefully we will see more of it in the future, like Team Game tourneys with only Palmyrans isn’t far-fetched to dream of.

They got uber vills, able to work 25% faster for all resource gathering. Shock yourself checking on how fasting shore fish (fastest food source for vills) can be collected by Palmyreans. They start with extra food in the bank at the cost of pricy 75 food. These vills are also properly armored (+1/+1) and able to survive lions and raiding parties easily.

They can be already good on Tool Age if you set up your eco well and manage to fend off Tool Age Wars. That will be challenging and demands BOs with less vills. The real deal starts at the Bronze age: Their fast camels will be able run very fast and raid enemies. This is a shocking good example on how a secondary unit can be your primarily unit to push enemies. Fast camel riders are so effective that even chariots or CA will need to retreat if not massed. As crazy as it sounds, your vills shall build AND repair 25% faster. This is absurd and makes any strategy faster than usual: Tool Rush, Fast Bronze, Fast Iron, et cetera...

Palms can use both chariots types and will have comps at their disposal. Bronze ST are another investment that your powerful eco can sustain as Palms. Iron Age starts great with the chance of getting a HC with FU AE, but their HC will lack Engineering to compete against enemy FU siege. Along with that, their hit-and-run tactics should continue but now with HHA lacking 1 range (Palmyrans sadly miss Craftsmanship).

On water, they are a good surprise. They lack CT and their last range upgrade for Trireme, but they have Fire Galleys and HT since DE release. What is amazing is that their eco is so good that their medium navy can be deadly with a powerful land eco. If they can hold trade routes on Team Games, things will get scarier for foes with more gold for Fire Galleys and land units. Their Fire Galleys and Triremes masses will impose Palms on water maps.

Lacking Irrigation and Craftsmanship does not remove this civ as the best economy wise on equal vill numbers. Late game will run in your favor on economy so you have to make the best to manage their SC lacking Metallurgy to get the best out of battles. Before I forget, their vills are the best not only eco wise but can fight as good as the Sumerian ones with all vill combat techs. With Architecture and uber vills, Palmyrans Wonders are built very fast, having a high Construction trait.
They got FU walls and Ballista Towers to expand or defend.

Since chariots are very resource intensive and lack gold cost, Palms can be easily a civ if you like to spam CA/Chariots. Their BOs will demand less vills than usual but once you get things going, they are an unstoppable machine. They lack Logistics and their infantry is unimpressive, ceasing to be very interesting for Palms after Tool. Both/Either civ that is played in an unorthodox way.

Civ Bonuses

+30% Hunting Gathering Rate and carry +3 food, +25% Elephant Speed; 33% Trireme Fire Rate

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Medium Archers, Great Stable, Poor Siege, Great Priests, Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Guard Tower

Vill Combat

Zealotry

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Arguably, one of most unfair original tech trees of all timeback in ‘97. They used to have no access to Wheel, Plow or Coinage back in the original, along with a unique farm penalty never seen before (or later) in any other civ in the game. The concept was as a solely naval + early rush + DM games but nowadays it is a proper balanced civilization with a decent eco (but still lacking Artisanship, Siegecraft and Irrigation).

Persia is a very aggressive civilization. Use the early hunting bonus in your favor and make sure to scout any hunting or elephant nearby, securing hunting game on Tool Age Wars which shall be a great thing for Axemen and Scouts. In bronze, you have several resources for bronze warfare, like comps, stone throwers, cavalry and camels. Not only that, Persia got a full tech tree for priests.

During the Iron Age, you can use their best military bonus of fast elephants. With this you can charge against masses of comps and legions, even HC and Helepolis can be hunted by Persian AE. I find the speed bonus very compelling for the Elephant Archer, which will lack the last range upgrade but will be fast enough to dominate and hold positions on the battlefield. You also get all SP upgrades, so use it in your favor. HHA are there but they shall be shortsighted due to lacking last range upgrade so don’t spend on it unless really needed.

Not having Academy enabled is compensated by having Legions FU in your barracks along with Logistics. Naval battles will be in your favor since you have everything EXCEPT the last range upgrade. They lack Fire Ships. With a very aggressive tech tree, going for Conquest is always in the table but a Wonder victory can work pretty well due to their eco upgrades granted by DE. What will really make you get in trouble is that there is no chariots or FU Iron Age siege at your disposal.

The fact that your military oriented tech tree is gold dependent can be a nuisance when SC wars starts to wage in your lands. Naval dominance should be your goal on maps with any water, since Persians can compete with top tier water civs, like Minoans and Greeks. Priests are great but also another drain of gold to be assessed.

Lacking Siegecraft for your villagers mining and siege improvement (along with not enabling HC upgrade) and being limited to Guard Towers... And Craftsmanship upgrade will be missed on late iron games both by your wood eco and by your archers. Thus, Conquest isn't always the smartest way to go. When there is no hard siege to use, no SC on Stable or even the top notch long term economy quality for wood and food, it is good to consider other alternative methods to win (if they are enabled).

Ideally, victory through Conquest seems a reasonable pick but I would advise into attempting Wonder victory if you see gold running short and solid enemy strongholds (Post Scriptum: On water maps you can crack enemy citadels with FU Juggernauts), being for me viable to defend with fast and efficient elephants your Ruins/Artifacts/Wonders. Here is a civ that could finally flourish on DE, being much more sustainable and balanced now.

Civ Bonuses

-25% Elephant Unit Cost, +33% Catapult Trireme and Juggernaut Fire Rate; Woodcutters work 15% faster and carry +2 wood

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Great Archers, Great Stable, Poor Siege, Great Priests, Great Navy

Building Techs

Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Zealotry

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Phoenicians have an incredibly versatile bonus, granting 15% faster work rate for woodcutting with 2+ of wood capacity (used to be even more crazy in 1997, as it was 36% faster with +3 cap.) will prove useful in any game. Phoenician is arguably one of the best low elo friendly faction. So if you are a beginner, hop in the Phoenician wagon for on of the most open tech trees in the entire game in terms of units.

Right on Tool Age, your wood gather bonus will help you immensely on Tool Wars, even if you fall behind at first. Having faster buildings together with more wood for bowmen and able to create farms much earlier is very positive. Researching Woodcutting on Tool will make your economy exceptionally good at this stage.

With Phoenicians you have both Legionaries and Centurions at your disposal, along with compies, both elephants, archer chariots and scythe chariots... It is an incredible civilization in terms of versatility and you will have everything in your Government Center too, except for Architecture (granting Chivalry, Aristocracy and Alchemy for your stable, hoplite-line and archery units, respectively).

Even priests are a choice here to be considered. The only real problem is the lack of siege except for Stone Thrower on Bronze so priests can act as a way to snatch powerful units quickly, specially with Sacrifice. In Iron, you shall unleash the hordes of elephants, which will be very cheap compared to the regular price for other nations. Use them as battering rams and don’t forget to have chariots to snipe enemy siege or monks.

There is something curious about this faction: Their only FU land military unit is the priest. Although they excel on Elephants, they are not FU, as any other Phoenician unit since they will always lack their last armor upgrade on Iron Age along with Metallurgy being also missed. Infantry will get Tower Shields, though, making Cents a viable pick on some match-ups (Pierce protection is arguably the best thing that Centurions can ask).

Here, quantity will take over quality. But the numbers of Elephant Archers and Armored Elephants in the field will make their army an amazing force, not to mention the diversity of picks that you have at your disposal until you are reaching for the Elephant Spam.

Regarding seafaring, Phoenician are clearly in an advantage due to a complete tech tree except for the Fire Galley. Woodcutting bonus will be incredibly helpful and they will have an economy to sustain sea wars (missing only Siegecraft on market). Their Juggernauts are the best in the game (used to shoot crazy 72% faster in the past) and will have enough wood eco to sustain sea wars and demolish enemy structures.

My personal hot take is that they are a strong candidate for Conquest mainly, but their powerful eco can fund an allied Wonder if needed on TG (they lack Architecture which enables fast building so going for Wonder by yourself can be a trap, only go if you are desperate or cornered). This is simply because they can amass amazing economies, spend less gold on their late game and use Chariots during long games, being a tough opponent in terms of numbers. Ballista Towers and Fortified Walls (not FU due to Architecture being missed) can be tools to cover your masses of elephants trampling over the fields.

Civ Bonuses

Buildings cost -10% (except for towers, walls and Wonders),
Towers cost -40%, Swordsmen attack 50% faster

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Poor Archery, Great Stable, Great Siege, Poor Priests, Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Sentry Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft & Zealotry

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To start with, their cheap buildings will kick in right at the beginning, helping immensely on any kind of map. Cheaper houses, storage pits, granaries and barracks shall produce a surplus of wood, which will make your game smoother. I feel that it makes actions on Tool Age so much viable and more comfortable, considering that decisive Tool Wars will demand a lot of wood.

Towers got their own discount, being an invitation to be used early on. After a Tool Age where they can dominate, Romans can shine with pushes using ST, Cav and infantry (preferably, their fast-attack swordsman, but hoplite should work too). Every investment made on infantry or cav is never lost. Their building discount only adds up and makes you able to expand infrastructure freely.

For Iron Age, their FU Legionaries are totally off the charts. Their fast attack will shred enemy armies in a delightful way. Lacking Alchemy, they will get everything else needed for top tier siege, including Helepolis and HC, being a scary combo combining such units with infantry. Off course, FU Centurions are at your disposal, although a Legionary army with Logistics can get absurdly good and very cheap to spam. Cents will play a role against heavy cavalry like AE hordes due to their anti-cavalry bonus and sturdiness.

Later on Iron, roman SCs will roll out in the fields as soon as possible. Their SP got everything so this is one of the most powerful Iron Age units FU for the civ. Using FU SC to aid pushes with siege almost FU as well will enable romans into a potent war machine. Their eco got everything and roman vills will be able to have siegecraft and zealotry to aid on battles. Temples are welcomed for Fanaticism tech in order to enable Legions, and exploring priests can be another resource due to Romans getting useful techs like Sacrifice, Monotheism and Medicine, lacking only Afterlife and Astrology.

It looks too good to be truth: Romans are also among powerful water civs but not due to a direct water bonus, where romans will save wood on buildings and this means more wood for boat war. Along with that, Triremes and CT are only missing Alchemy but their docks got everything except the absence of Fire Galleys. Triremes and CTs can compete with most of other docks.

Their weakness can be other power siege civs and a limited number of archer units later on. An uncontested good pick for any category of map, this civilization got a deserving fame where it can be effective for either aggression or defense, being able to survive in really long games. Their developed walls but cheap sentry towers act as a sign of such balance. A straightforward civ design that might get you hooked into Age of Empires world.

Civ Bonuses

-20% Villager Cost, +75% Wall HP

Army Quality

Poor Infantry, Great Archers, Great Stable, Medium Siege, Great Priests, Poor Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Zealotry

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This civilization ruled (and still rules) with an iron fist in the Age of Empires competitive scene. Their booming is fantastic (back in ’97 a villager costed 35 Food for Shang, as the author stated. Now it is 40 Food on DE). In any Leagues and Tourneys that I observe they are either the first civ pick or first civ ban. Arguably one of the best civs for beginners due to their defensive nature hidden by an aggressive booming nature. Surprisingly, they lack some fundamental resources for solid Conquest campaigns and still has a terrible Dock.

Food savings will kick in right on Stone Age, permitting better up times and more food for Tool Age Warfare. If the game goes to Bronze, they got Compies, Cavalry and ST. You will fend off early attacks with their impressive walls (not crazy +100% HP as it was) with 60% extra hitpoints. Helepolis are your go for late siege (thankfully, Shang got access to Ballistics on DE) and despite lacking HC, Catapults can be a bit helpful if some Bronze ST are still aroung. Their lack of Engineering is extremely problematic if you are against a hard siege specialized civ so be careful while investing on siege.

Their awesome Iron Age horses consist of FU Cavalry-line, SC and CR. You have every SP upgrade available. Despite lacking Alchemy for a long time, they got this on DE so their ranged picks can flourish with Compies, HHA and their dreaded CA. Mounted units are welcomed here since you have access to Nobility. The Shang push will have mounted units covered by Helepolis, along with a strong eco with all market techs (only missing Siegecraft).

This lack of heavy siege can be a nuisance because their Helepolis lack Engineering, placing you in a odd spot where you will lack also a Hoplite-line or Elephant units to break defenses. Even priests are FU as Shang so you can be creative with Sacrifice and Afterlife plays, but use gold wisely since Cataphracts and SC Upgrade will be good picks and will force you to spend gold on it. Infantry however is bad, lacking relevant upgrades for Swordsman-line and Hoplite-line.

Their navy was horrible in ’97 and lacked basic Heavy Transport, but now they “only” lack Triremes and Catapult Triremes. Try to establish yourself on sea early and remember to migrate for Fire Galleys. I consider it bad at sea, but at least they can manage the sea with some assets today (it was not the case in the ’97 balance). Landings on enemy shores should be considered.

They are prone to knock people out very early and aggressive but it will be tough to push through enemy fortress and certain armies without Elephants, quality infantry, HC, Engineering, Ballista Towers and Siegecraft Tech... I really see it as a great opportunity to activate the Wonder countdown if possible. Having the best walls, Architecture and a booming talent will make Turtling work in your favor especially on water maps where you are in an even worse position for Conquest. On sea maps, going for Timer wins is almost necessary if Victory conditions are allowing Artifacts, Ruins and Wonders.

Civ Bonuses

+15 Villager HP, +30% Catapult Fire Rate, +125 Food Farm

Army Quality

Medium Infantry, Medium Archers, Medium Stable, Great Siege, Poor Priests, Poor Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Fortified Wall & Ballista Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft

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Another case where you will most likely wander everywhere to extract the best of this civ, akin to a similar vibe of Macedonians.

Strong sumerian vills are surprisingly the only Sumerian feature for the early game. You can try to attempt a Sumerian Stone Age villager rush with 10 vills, a very risky strategy. It is the only civ able to cause serious damage on Stone Age. The lack of early economic bonus, no cavalry-line unit and poor navy makes Sumerians an oddball. But their siege is the key to make their medium tier army work in an amazing way.

Higher HP villagers will be tough against wildlife but extra HP offers medium to little help when facing Scouts or Axes on Tool and there is no eco bonus to help you out, so not particularly impressive at this stage. Along with a regular Tool Age, your star starts to shine on Bronze. You can open with CA or Camels and consider building academies to employ hoplites. Stone throwers will be also surprisingly effective on Bronze with their +50% rate of fire, being deadly even against enemy Compies or CA.

Things improve on Iron Age. Their machine gun HC FU will prevail in many situations and will be able to fend off enemy Compies and HHA. Upgraded farms start to be relevant on mid Bronze and Iron: Better farms means that you will replenish it later and will maintain high wood stockpiles after Bronze (when farm eco starts to take over the game). I can’t say that the wood economy will be the best one ‘cos they don’t access the last wood upgrade, despite having every single farm upgrade, resulting in the richest farms in the game.

You can start Iron Age with Elephants but will lack AE later on. Iron Age armies of Centurions (lacking Metallurgy), HHA (lacking Craftsmanship) and rapid-fire FU HC will do a balanced army. Other units like SC, Camel Riders and CA will be welcomed picks later on. Remember that you lack Cavalry, Improved Bowmen line and Elephant Archers. Unlikely their tech tree on debut, they got Coinage for DE, lacking only Craftsmanship. They got all techs on GC, missing Iron Shield, Tower Shield and Metallurgy on ST. Their priests are among the least appealing among AoE civs, maybe useful to heal their expensive HC (priests are the ones able to repair siege for free in AoE 1) since RoR due to Medicine.

Although they have great Heavy Catapults, Sumerians bizarrely misses Catapult Triremes on water. Lacking Craftsmanship is an awful news for Trireme wars too, since it will affect late game wood eco and range capability. Sumerians also lacked Heavy Transports in the original release but it was fortunately added for DE. You will need to use Fire Galleys to hold water fights. To sum up: Not an outstanding civ for water, so be careful on sea.

Their fortifications are powerful and you can use ballista towers for pushes or defense. Sumerians can manage a game for a long time by saving gold for HC and using masses of SC and CA to either hold or demolish Wonders. Their villagers have access to Siegecraft and will be a menace to buildings due to being sturdier. In short, Sumerians are a resourceful Land civ and although it may fly under the radar due to a conflicting Tech Tree, they never cease to be dangerous with combined armies.

Civ Bonuses

-15% Cost Cavalry Units, +10% Villager Speed, +20% Navy HP

Army Quality

Great Infantry, Great Archers, Great Stable, Poor Siege, Poor Priests, Great Navy

Building Techs

Architecture, Medium Wall & Sentry Tower

Vill Combat

Siegecraft

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Yamato stands as the powerhouse for cav-oriented players. They got cheap and powerful horses: Cataphracts, HHA and even Scouts fully upgraded that can be pumped easily due to cheaper costs. In a similar vibe to Assyrians, your villagers will run faster and will be able to work, evade raids, scout and place forward bases faster. Quite solid regarding military land capabilities, with a vill bonus that will affect your eco positively. Their Cents will be almost FU, lacking Towers Shields.

Remember that the cheap Scout will give a massive edge right on Tool, an Age were many games in DE are decided. This bonus is so impressive that investing leftover food saved from scouts on other units or techs might create a very powerful Tool Age for Yamato. Relieving food pressure from Scout acts almost like an indirect eco bonus in an age were food is so precious. This only can happen if you use your scouts in an effective way, pay attention to it.

Although they lack any Iron Age siege, they got Stone Throwers. Opening on Bronze with Compies, Cavalry and ST is an excellent pick and you should have a good time on Bronze. Speedy and aggressive attacks using cheap cavalry can be a devastating strategy, making Yamato dominant. Consider exploring Hoplites due to their Cents later, being an interesting duo with HHA if you are aiming for it later.

Early Iron Age shall be good since you will have the advantage to pump HA very early, but things will get tough later on. Any siege on Iron is an issue, use Engineering tech to help on any ST leftover from Bronze. You will have late game eco to sustain Centurions, HHA and Cataphracts as long as you have gold around. Lacking gold is a big issue for Yamato with the civ lacking any kind of chariot and pales on Temple and Siege Workshop. At this point, even their fast Villagers with Siegecraft should be employed to bore holes on enemy walls.

For sea battles, they will be highly competitive as well since the beginning, being able to dispute with Greeks, Persians and even Minoans due to sturdy ships! Currently they all got +20% hp in DE. This is an immense buff for ship wars and will make your masses tough. You will have all sea units except Fire Galleys. FU Trirremes and Juggernaughts will be scary later on, so a very good pick for water.

They also lack Ballista Towers or Fortified Walls. I feel that this disadvantage puts Yamato in an odd spot where they will not be able to use their great eco on late game and will be highly vulnerable without advanced Siege, Elephants and SC. Since they got Architecture, I would consider going for a Wonder/Artifacts/Ruins victory if you feel that the game is dragging too much, especially if you are against solid chariot civs. Be aware that they lack top-notch defense upgrades.

The lack of good defenses means that your powerful Catas, HHA and Centurions mixed with FU Bowmen will be needed to defend your Wonder/Artifacts/Ruins timer. In fact, doing this during Team Games on land locked maps seems to be the best method to avoid being overrun by enemy SC. If Wonder is not an option, remember that your fast vills can surprise enemies and tear down walls and towers with Siegecraft followed by a flood of cheap Scouts. Daikichi!!