Age of Empires 4 Civilizations - Which CIV to Choose in AOE4
Age of Empires 4 has arrived with 8 civilizations to select, and you may be wondering which civ to choose in AOE4. Each has unique strengths and weaknesses. Add to this a difficulty rating for each one, and you find a wide range of challenges await. So, which should you venture out with first? We discuss Age of Empires 4 and which civilizations to choose.
Abbasid Dynasty
This civilization is of medium difficulty. If you select them, the focus will be on pursuing a golden age, which will improve production, research and gathering speeds. They are also able to build a House of Wisdom that brings unique technologies to the table.
In military terms, they are excellent cavalry fighters and gain bonuses against mounted troops. They also benefit from having strong war elephant units.
Chinese
The Chinese have a three-star difficulty rating, making them one of the tougher civilizations to use on Age of Empires 4. This is because they do not have one focus but can shift it across the ages. Of course, this means enemies must also adapt to keep up with your changing tactics.
Part of their appeal is down to their range of unique units. Zhuge Nu have repeating crossbows. Fire Lancers, Grenadiers and Nest of Bees adopt gunpowder early in the game for devasting effect. They will also start the game with extra villagers and faster build times.
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate is another of the tougher civilizations in Age of Empires 4 to get to grips with. It is a scholarly culture, with research done for free but at a slower rate. You can also gain free weapon emplacements from the construction of fortifications.
One of their unique units are scholars, who speed up technology if placed inside a Mosque. Their only unique military unit other than this is a War Elephant, so they are not really for players who favour military expansion.
English
The English are a great beginner’s choice, though they do not allow much room to adapt. They have a one-star difficulty rating and focus on defence, commerce, and food production. If you want a stable, rich civilization, then they are for you.
Bonuses include faster attacks from castles and keeps. Villagers will fight with bows and Man-At-Arms units are available in the dark ages. In terms of food production, farms will build for 50% less wood and have increased efficiency.
French
The French have a lot of similarities to the English civilizations in Age of Empires 4, though with less focus on food production. They have strong mounted combat units and a powerful economy with cheaper drop-offs. Like the English, they also gain bonuses from defensive keeps and forts.
Holy Roman
The Holy Roman Empire is a medium challenge at two stars. Empires that focus on religion are always a little hard to manage. However, this angle does allow you to get extra gold from relics to fill up your coffers in the early days and inspire your units.
Defence is also huge. Anything under the influence of a town centre will get bonuses and certain units end up being cheaper. Unique units include Royal Knights and War Galleys.
Mongols
The Mongols are a challenge for anyone new to the game and focus on outward war and aggression to expand. They are odd in that they begin with a maximum population and don’t need houses. Villagers do not gather stone, but get it from an Ovoo, making them very hard to get to grips with.
For their military, they have excellent mounted and archer units. All will get bonuses from being in the range of the Khanate, who inspires them. They also have a fast Mounted Archer that can fire while moving.
Rus Age of Empires 4 Civilizations
Playing as the Rus is a medium challenge and involves great use of the resources on the map. Extra bonuses for lumbar camps and wooden fortresses are provided. They also have very unique hunting cabins which operate as a mill and way to get gold.
Their unique units are Lodya Ships. These are highly adaptable and can change to suit a range of situations. They also have Warrior Monks and Streltsy Gunpowder units.
