Age of Empires III: The War Chiefs
Encyclopedia
Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs is the first official expansion pack for the real-time strategy game Age of Empires III
. It was announced by Ensemble Studios
and Microsoft Game Studios
on March 7, 2006. The demo version was released October 4, 2006. The full game for PC was released on October 17, 2006 in the United States. The expansion pack was then bundled with the full game of Age of Empires III
, being called Age of Empires III
Gold Edition on September 19, 2006. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer
's MacSoft Games
and published by MacSoft Games
. The full game for Mac was released on June 12, 2007 in the United States. As well, It is now followed by a second expansion pack to the original game called Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties
.
and tin
mines have been added, but these generally do not produce as much coin as the gold and silver mines. Sometimes the copper mines can produce 2000 coin, the same as silver, whereas gold
mines produce 5000 coin.
Home City shipments have been slightly reworked. Decks can now go over 20 cards by allowing one extra card for every ten levels of the Home City currently in use, up to a maximum of 25. There are new cards and a new Level 40 Home City tier of cards are available for all civilizations.
While the Aztecs have a home city, the Iroquois
and Sioux
have five members of the Tribal Council: the Chief, the War Leader, the Shaman, the Wise Woman, and the Messenger. They all offer different units, supports, and improvements. The tribal council is present in the game when a native civilization advances in age (replacing the politician system of the European civilizations), the player can select to promote a candidate to the Tribal Council and this confers a bonus on the player. Typically the type of bonus remains the same (extra units, bonus resources) and new candinates become available at higher home city levels.
European civilizations can construct a new building called a Saloon to hire randomly available mercenaries
as well as map specific human treasure guardian units. These units have a high price and a higher population count but are typically stronger than existing available units. The Saloon can be upgraded to a Dance Hall where Ronin
Samurai
can be recruited. All civilizations can build a Native Embassy. This building allows the training of allied minor civilization units at the embassy rather than at the trading post. Some tribes have the ability to allow Medicine Men to be trained from the Embassy which heal wounded units.
A new victory condition has been added - the economic victory known as a monopoly
. If a player or team controls the (majority) of trading posts on the map, whether on trade routes or at minor tribes, they have the option to purchase a monopoly. This begins a five-minute countdown that must be stopped by the opposing player or team by reducing the number of trade posts owned to below half. If the countdown completes, the player or team that purchased the monopoly wins the game. New trading posts cannot be constructed by the player/team attempting economic victory but damaged ones can be repaired. This option can be enabled or disabled before a game begins.
s, and spies. The cavalry artillery is a more expensive alternative to the field gun of Age of Empires III (it should be noted that all original units remain available), utilizing a faster speed as well as a greater attack.
The petard is built at the artillery foundry and is effectively a suicide-bomber unit. If it reaches its building target, it will detonate, causing massive damage. The Germans can ship Nitro Petards, who can destroy a building in a single blast.
The third unit is the spy, is a fast-moving infantry unit that is available from the Colonial Age and is trained at the Church or Mosque. Spies are weak infantry but have bonus damage against Explorers, War Chiefs, and Mercenaries. They also have increased line of sight and can make use of stealth mode, making them undetectable except by enemy town centers. The spy can be upgraded into assassins or agents depending on civilization, through Home City cards.
, the Sioux
, and the Aztec
are included as three playable native civilizations. The three new civilizations have their own unique set of units, as well as unique sets of in-game bonuses.
Other additions to the game include new minor native tribes. The Huron replaced the Iroquois, the Cheyenne
replaced the Lakota (Sioux) and the Zapotec
replaced the Aztec. Other new tribes include the Klamath, the Apache
, the Navajo
and the Mapuche
. The expansion includes 16 minor tribes, compared to the original 12.
A Fire Pit is available to all Native civilizations. By tasking villagers dance at the Pit, a range of up to ten dances per civilization are available. The more dancers, the more powerful the effect up to a maximum of 25. The Aztecs can task their warrior-priests to the pit which act like two villagers, effectively increasing their maximum to 35.
Generic Dances include: the Fertility Dance (which speeds up unit creation, including ships and herded animals), the Gift Dance (which increases Experience point gathering), the Alarm Dance (which spawns free Natives, broadly equal to a minuteman), the Holy Dance (which spawns Medicine Men except for the Aztecs, who get Warrior Priests), the Warchief Dance (which either increases the health of the Warchief or resurrects him at the pit if fallen). The two dances which can be learned through Home City shipments are The Town Dance which improves building HP and attack, and the Water Dance which improves naval combat.
The Iroquois have the unique Founder Dance, which spawns new Travois, and the Earth Mother Dance, which increases maximum population. The Sioux have the Fire Dance, which increases unit damage to buildings and ships to mitigate their lack of siege weapons, and the War Song Dance, which produces free Dog Soldier cavalry. The Aztecs have the Healing Dance (all idle units automatically regenerate health) to compensate for the limit on Warrior Priests, and the Garland War Dance to spawn the free Skull Knights.
Additionally, each Native Civilization has its share of unique technologies. There is one unique technology per building except for the Sioux teepee, and the Aztec and Iroquois Town Centers have 3 stages of Big Button, and the technologies do everything from delivering shipments of resources or units to upgrading unit capabilities.
s, pirates and wolves can be formed.
The Aztec War Chief possesses an ability that increases the amount of experience points which allied units receive for kills when they are within a certain proximity. The mounted Sioux War Chief's ability is an increase in speed for nearby units. The Iroquois War Chief adds hitpoints to nearby units.
European colonies have a new option open to them in the Industrial age; instead of advancing to the Imperial age, they can revolt from the home nation and found their own country. The initial cost of revolting
is cheaper than advancing to the Imperial age but the nation's economy will stagnate because all settlers will turn into militia
and no new ones can be built (except Coureur des Bois from a Cree Village). Resources can continue to be delivered from pre-constructed ships, tributed resources, trading posts, factories and for the Dutch, banks.
The chief advantage of a revolution is one-time military boost when all settlers turn into militia suddenly giving the player a large army. When a revolution is initiated, a choice is presented between two historical revolutionary leaders, each with a unit specific bonus. The player can no longer receive home city shipments but instead can draw from a "Revolutionary Deck" of four cards, three which may be re-played an infinite number of times providing unit caps are not exceeded. Three new units are available only through a revolution; the Ironclad, the Gatling Gun
, and Colonial Militia. If the map has water, the new nation can receive two Ironclads which are hybrid Frigate/Monitors. Four Gatling Guns can be delivered which are similar to the Portuguese Organ Gun but fire much faster and do more damage. Sixteen Colonial Militia can be delivered in a shipment which are hybrid Musketeer/Skirmish units. Finally a Fort Wagon can be sent which will unpack into a fort. A new nation may not upgrade units to Imperial Age.
The revolutionaries and their nations are:
, Washington and British Columbia
), California
, the Painted Desert
, Araucanía
(which have three varieties: Northern, Southern, and Middle), Orinoco
, Ozarks, Plymouth
, and the Andes
.
. The second act, Shadow, follows Amelia Black's son, Chayton Black, and his actions in the Black Hills during Red Cloud's War
and Great Sioux War. The home city for both acts is the Black Family Estate.
The first act, Fire, begins with Nathaniel (loosely based on Joseph Louis Cook
) and his uncle Kanyenke trying to discourage the Mohawk and the Seneca from fighting in the American Revolutionary War
. However, they are ambushed by a group of Mohawks and head to an Oneida
village nearby. From there they counter-attack and destroy an enemy Town Center, thus causing their enemies to flee. When Nathaniel and Kanyenke return to their village, they find that the Mohawk and a group of Hessian mercenaries led by Colonel Sven Kuechler, have raided the village and captured Nathaniel's mother, Nonahkee. They rescue Nonahkee, but Kuechler and his main army escape. After this, the Iroquois Confederacy shatters. Nathaniel's village supports the colonists, and Nathaniel heads to Boston
where his men help defend a redoubt on Breed's Hill
from the British. After George Washington
takes command a series of defeats
drives the colonials back across the Delaware, where they are joined by Nathanial. Here Washington lead a small force, including Nathaniel, across the Delaware where they attack a Hessian encampment at Trenton
and defeat the rearguard of the army at Princeton
. This is followed by another victory at the Battles of Saratoga. However, the army is once again defeated at Brandywine
and Germantown
and is forced to camp for the winter at Valley Forge
, where they suffer greatly from the cold. This leads Nathaniel to use most of his family's forturne to supply the army throughout the winter. The next scenario is the fictional battle of Morristown, where Nathaniel gets his chance for revenge on Kuechler, who leads an attempt to destroy the capitol building of Morristown. Using artillery shipments he receives from Washington, Nathaniel sneaks around the Hessian flank and relieves Morristown. Refusing to accept defeat, Kuechler leads a suicidal attack on Nathaniel and is killed. After Kuechler's death, Nathaniel is said to have fought at Charleston
, Camden
, and King's Mountain. As the tide begins to turn the French join the war and help the revolution gain a victory at Yorktown
, where Nathaniel is instrumental in capturing several redoubts. With the revolution won, Nathaniel returns home a poor man having spent his family fortune on the outfitting his volunteers and supplying the troops at Valley Forge. During the introductory video of the campaign (where Nathaniel is at Yorktown), the "Old Coot" from Act 3 (Morgan Black) in the previous game, can be seen watching his great-grandson's victory.
The second act, called Shadow, begins in 1866. Chayton Black, Amelia Black's half-Lakota son, is expanding the Falcon Railroad Company westward along the Bozeman Trail
, but winds up in the middle of Red Cloud's War
. Here he helps defend the wood trail from the Sioux and becomes friends with Fort Laramie's quartermaster, William "Billy" Holme, a Civil War veteran. Ten years later, in 1876, Chayton returns to the west and again meets up with Holme, now a sheriff, who informs him of a huge amount of gold in the Black Hills
of Dakota. After defending many mining camps from Sioux attacks, Chayton goes to see the Sioux chief Crazy Horse
and establish a peace treaty. However, Holme and some of the miners ambush the Sioux before Chayton can begin negotiations, wrecking any chance of peace. Despite his warmongering, Chayton still sides with Holme and defends his workers as they gather wood for a new fort. However, once the fort is complete, Holme orders Chayton to destroy a Sioux village without provocation. Chayton refuses and, turning against Holme, allies with the Sioux to destroy the fort, forcing Holme to flee into the hills. Chayton then convinces the newly-arrived General Custer, to give him one day to find Holme, who is the real cause of the unrest. Chayton puts on Sioux clothing and blood-red war paint and, joining with Crazy Horse, chases Holme down and confronts him in a mine. Chayton tries to resolve the situation peacefully, but Holme pulls a gun on Chayton. However Chayton is faster and shoots Holme, who falls to his death down a mine shaft. Chayton then tries to convince General Custer not to attack the Sioux but Custer refuses. Custer then says that Chayton can no longer sit on the fence, demanding that he decide whether he is White or Indian. Chayton agrees, then says good-bye to Custer and wheels his horse and rides off to join the Sioux. He helps gather the Sioux and Cheyenne nations and fights with them at Little Bighorn. After the battle, Amelia Black narrates that she never saw her son again, but that she had heard Chayton was either killed at Wounded Knee
in 1890, taking a dozen cavalrymen with him, or lived out his days in the Black Hills with his wife and children.
. However, to bypass this rule a second game can be purchased, for a new CD, which enables a new account. Players' home cities and levels will carry over with the ability to reselect cards, although all rankings and other stats will be reset.
Also the new game type Treaty is enabled. Playing this, all players won't be able to attack or build far from their starting town center, although towers may still shoot. Available Treaty times are 10, 20, 30 or 40 minutes. Before this new game type, players used "no rush for 30 min" servers for this, though a lot of players cheated and ended up rushing while still within the time limit.
.
The Warchiefs expansion pack was also bundled with the full game of Age of Empires III
, being called Age of Empires III
Gold Edition on September 19, 2006. It is currently discontinued and is replaced by the new bundle, called Age of Empires III
Complete Collection, featuring the full game of Age of Empires III
, the Warchiefs Expansion, and the second released expansion, called Age of Empires III
: The Asian Dynasties
, released on September 15, 2009, in the United States.
As well, this expansion, including the full game of Age of Empires III
and the Asian Dynasties expansion, has been ported over to the Mac by MacSoft Games
, being able to play on Mac OS X.
There is also a downloadable custom map from Ensemble Studios
' website, called Plymouth. It is only available for PC users of this expansion pack, requiring version 1.0.1 or later to run. As quoted from their website: "Plymouth is a festive new custom map from Ensemble Studios. It is a veritable cornucopia of Pilgrims, pumpkins, and envoys." Installation instructions are available on their site, for any help on getting it installed properly.
This expansion pack has gone thorough four patches that have been released to fix bugs and restore the game balance, which has been slightly altered by the appearance of the new civilizations.
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
. It was announced by Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios was a video game developer initially established in 1995 as an independent company, but was owned by Microsoft from 2001 to 2009, when it was officially disbanded. Ensemble developed many real-time strategy games, including the Age of Empires game series, Age of Mythology, and Halo...
and Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Studios is the video game production wing for Microsoft, responsible for the development and publishing of games for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Games for Windows and Windows Phone platforms. They were established in 2002 as Microsoft Game Studios to coincide with the release of the Xbox, before...
on March 7, 2006. The demo version was released October 4, 2006. The full game for PC was released on October 17, 2006 in the United States. The expansion pack was then bundled with the full game of Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
, being called Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
Gold Edition on September 19, 2006. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer
Destineer
Destineer is a computer game developer and publisher based in Minnesota, United States. It was founded in 2000 by former Bungie Studios vice-president, Peter Tamte...
's MacSoft Games
MacSoft Games
MacSoft Games is a Plymouth, Minnesota, United States-based computer game publisher and porter specializing in porting Microsoft Windows computer games to the Macintosh...
and published by MacSoft Games
MacSoft Games
MacSoft Games is a Plymouth, Minnesota, United States-based computer game publisher and porter specializing in porting Microsoft Windows computer games to the Macintosh...
. The full game for Mac was released on June 12, 2007 in the United States. As well, It is now followed by a second expansion pack to the original game called Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties
Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties
Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties is the second official expansion pack for real-time strategy video game Age of Empires III developed through a collaboration between Ensemble Studios and Big Huge Games, and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed...
.
Gameplay changes
There are no major changes to the mechanics to Age of Empires 3 - players are still expected to gather resources, build armies and send them to attack opponents. Instead, there are a number of new concepts introduced, whilst existing concepts have been expanded. On some maps, CopperCopper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
and tin
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
mines have been added, but these generally do not produce as much coin as the gold and silver mines. Sometimes the copper mines can produce 2000 coin, the same as silver, whereas gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
mines produce 5000 coin.
Home City shipments have been slightly reworked. Decks can now go over 20 cards by allowing one extra card for every ten levels of the Home City currently in use, up to a maximum of 25. There are new cards and a new Level 40 Home City tier of cards are available for all civilizations.
While the Aztecs have a home city, the Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
and Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
have five members of the Tribal Council: the Chief, the War Leader, the Shaman, the Wise Woman, and the Messenger. They all offer different units, supports, and improvements. The tribal council is present in the game when a native civilization advances in age (replacing the politician system of the European civilizations), the player can select to promote a candidate to the Tribal Council and this confers a bonus on the player. Typically the type of bonus remains the same (extra units, bonus resources) and new candinates become available at higher home city levels.
New content
Players must have the original Age of Empires III installed to make use of this expansion pack. The WarChiefs offers several enhancements on Age of Empires III. The enhancements include three new playable Native civilizations, new Home City cards, new buildings, a new single player campaign, additional units, additional minor civilizations and additional game concepts.European civilizations can construct a new building called a Saloon to hire randomly available mercenaries
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
as well as map specific human treasure guardian units. These units have a high price and a higher population count but are typically stronger than existing available units. The Saloon can be upgraded to a Dance Hall where Ronin
Ronin
A or rounin was a Bushi with no lord or master during the feudal period of Japan. A samurai became masterless from the death or fall of his master, or after the loss of his master's favor or privilege....
Samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
can be recruited. All civilizations can build a Native Embassy. This building allows the training of allied minor civilization units at the embassy rather than at the trading post. Some tribes have the ability to allow Medicine Men to be trained from the Embassy which heal wounded units.
A new victory condition has been added - the economic victory known as a monopoly
Monopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
. If a player or team controls the (majority) of trading posts on the map, whether on trade routes or at minor tribes, they have the option to purchase a monopoly. This begins a five-minute countdown that must be stopped by the opposing player or team by reducing the number of trade posts owned to below half. If the countdown completes, the player or team that purchased the monopoly wins the game. New trading posts cannot be constructed by the player/team attempting economic victory but damaged ones can be repaired. This option can be enabled or disabled before a game begins.
New European units
Three new generic units have been made available to all eight European civilizations: cavalry artillery, petardPetard
A petard was a small bomb used to blow up gates and walls when breaching fortifications. The term has a French origin and dates back to the sixteenth century...
s, and spies. The cavalry artillery is a more expensive alternative to the field gun of Age of Empires III (it should be noted that all original units remain available), utilizing a faster speed as well as a greater attack.
The petard is built at the artillery foundry and is effectively a suicide-bomber unit. If it reaches its building target, it will detonate, causing massive damage. The Germans can ship Nitro Petards, who can destroy a building in a single blast.
The third unit is the spy, is a fast-moving infantry unit that is available from the Colonial Age and is trained at the Church or Mosque. Spies are weak infantry but have bonus damage against Explorers, War Chiefs, and Mercenaries. They also have increased line of sight and can make use of stealth mode, making them undetectable except by enemy town centers. The spy can be upgraded into assassins or agents depending on civilization, through Home City cards.
Native civilizations
The IroquoisIroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
, the Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
, and the Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
are included as three playable native civilizations. The three new civilizations have their own unique set of units, as well as unique sets of in-game bonuses.
| Civilization | Unique Civilization Bonus |
| Iroquois Iroquois The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America... Hiawatha Hiawatha Hiawatha was a legendary Native American leader and founder of the Iroquois confederacy... |
War Chief boosts hitpoints of nearby units, have Travois, which can build most buildings for free. They start with one Travois. They also have a unique Founder Dance in the fire pit which spawns Travois. They also receive a Travois or two on each age advancement. |
| Sioux Sioux The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects... Chief Gall Chief Gall Gall Lakota Phizí, was a battle leader of the Hunkpapa Lakota in the long war against the United States. He was one of the commanders in the Battle of Little Bighorn.-Early years:... |
War Chief boosts speed of nearby units, starts with 200 population slots automatically, but cannot build walls. Have unique Teepees, which you can only build up to 10 (exception when card sent) to provide a little health bonus (and if card sent, damage bonus) to nearby, friendly units. This bonus is stackable. |
| Aztec Aztec The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the... s Cuauhtémoc Cuauhtémoc Cuauhtémoc was the Aztec ruler of Tenochtitlan from 1520 to 1521... |
War Chief bonus doubles experience gained in combat by nearby units, have warrior priests that can heal or count as 2 people at the firepit. They start with one Warrior Priest. With the exception of an ordinary War Hut, Noble's Hut also acts as a blockhouse, but with a longer range. |
Other additions to the game include new minor native tribes. The Huron replaced the Iroquois, the Cheyenne
Cheyenne
Cheyenne are a Native American people of the Great Plains, who are of the Algonquian language family. The Cheyenne Nation is composed of two united tribes, the Só'taeo'o and the Tsétsêhéstâhese .The Cheyenne are thought to have branched off other tribes of Algonquian stock inhabiting lands...
replaced the Lakota (Sioux) and the Zapotec
Zapotec civilization
The Zapotec civilization was an indigenous pre-Columbian civilization that flourished in the Valley of Oaxaca of southern Mesoamerica. Archaeological evidence shows their culture goes back at least 2500 years...
replaced the Aztec. Other new tribes include the Klamath, the Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
, the Navajo
Navajo people
The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...
and the Mapuche
Mapuche
The Mapuche are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina. They constitute a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who shared a common social, religious and economic structure, as well as a common linguistic heritage. Their influence extended...
. The expansion includes 16 minor tribes, compared to the original 12.
A Fire Pit is available to all Native civilizations. By tasking villagers dance at the Pit, a range of up to ten dances per civilization are available. The more dancers, the more powerful the effect up to a maximum of 25. The Aztecs can task their warrior-priests to the pit which act like two villagers, effectively increasing their maximum to 35.
Generic Dances include: the Fertility Dance (which speeds up unit creation, including ships and herded animals), the Gift Dance (which increases Experience point gathering), the Alarm Dance (which spawns free Natives, broadly equal to a minuteman), the Holy Dance (which spawns Medicine Men except for the Aztecs, who get Warrior Priests), the Warchief Dance (which either increases the health of the Warchief or resurrects him at the pit if fallen). The two dances which can be learned through Home City shipments are The Town Dance which improves building HP and attack, and the Water Dance which improves naval combat.
The Iroquois have the unique Founder Dance, which spawns new Travois, and the Earth Mother Dance, which increases maximum population. The Sioux have the Fire Dance, which increases unit damage to buildings and ships to mitigate their lack of siege weapons, and the War Song Dance, which produces free Dog Soldier cavalry. The Aztecs have the Healing Dance (all idle units automatically regenerate health) to compensate for the limit on Warrior Priests, and the Garland War Dance to spawn the free Skull Knights.
Additionally, each Native Civilization has its share of unique technologies. There is one unique technology per building except for the Sioux teepee, and the Aztec and Iroquois Town Centers have 3 stages of Big Button, and the technologies do everything from delivering shipments of resources or units to upgrading unit capabilities.
WarChiefs
One more new feature of the WarChiefs expansion is the implementation of the War Chief unit. Rather than the European explorer, each of the native tribes begins a game with a War Chief unit who acts as the tribal leader and his presence in combat can provide an advantage to nearby units. Furthermore, the number of advantages and bonuses can be increased through researching technologies, specific dances at the Fire Pit or with Home City shipments. A War Chief can convert treasure guardians rather than needing to eliminate them in order to scoop up the treasure. A converted guardian will not count towards the unit cap and theoretically huge armies of bearBear
Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives. Although there are only eight living species of bear, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern...
s, pirates and wolves can be formed.
The Aztec War Chief possesses an ability that increases the amount of experience points which allied units receive for kills when they are within a certain proximity. The mounted Sioux War Chief's ability is an increase in speed for nearby units. The Iroquois War Chief adds hitpoints to nearby units.
Revolutions
Revolution
A revolution is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time.Aristotle described two types of political revolution:...
is cheaper than advancing to the Imperial age but the nation's economy will stagnate because all settlers will turn into militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
and no new ones can be built (except Coureur des Bois from a Cree Village). Resources can continue to be delivered from pre-constructed ships, tributed resources, trading posts, factories and for the Dutch, banks.
The chief advantage of a revolution is one-time military boost when all settlers turn into militia suddenly giving the player a large army. When a revolution is initiated, a choice is presented between two historical revolutionary leaders, each with a unit specific bonus. The player can no longer receive home city shipments but instead can draw from a "Revolutionary Deck" of four cards, three which may be re-played an infinite number of times providing unit caps are not exceeded. Three new units are available only through a revolution; the Ironclad, the Gatling Gun
Gatling gun
The Gatling gun is one of the best known early rapid-fire weapons and a forerunner of the modern machine gun. It is well known for its use by the Union forces during the American Civil War in the 1860s, which was the first time it was employed in combat...
, and Colonial Militia. If the map has water, the new nation can receive two Ironclads which are hybrid Frigate/Monitors. Four Gatling Guns can be delivered which are similar to the Portuguese Organ Gun but fire much faster and do more damage. Sixteen Colonial Militia can be delivered in a shipment which are hybrid Musketeer/Skirmish units. Finally a Fort Wagon can be sent which will unpack into a fort. A new nation may not upgrade units to Imperial Age.
The revolutionaries and their nations are:
| Nation | Revolutionary | Advantages | Available to |
| San Martín José de San Martín José Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the... |
Grants 6 Imperial Howitzers (mortar is upgraded). | Germans Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
|
| Bonifácio | 20 Fierce Legendary Tupi warriors come to your aid. All natives are set to Legendary level. | Portuguese Portugal Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the... and Dutch Netherlands The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... |
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| O'Higgins Bernardo O'Higgins Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme was a Chilean independence leader who, together with José de San Martín, freed Chile from Spanish rule in the Chilean War of Independence. Although he was the second Supreme Director of Chile , he is considered one of Chile's founding fathers, as he was the first holder... |
Grants 10 Imperial Hussars (Hussars are upgraded). | Ottomans Ottoman Empire The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries... and Spanish Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... |
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| Santander Francisco de Paula Santander Francisco José de Paula Santander y Omaña , was a Colombian military and political leader during the 1810–1819 independence war of the United Provinces of New Granada... |
Grants 3 ironclads | Ottomans Ottoman Empire The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries... , French France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... , and Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... ns |
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| L'Ouverture Toussaint L'Ouverture François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture , also Toussaint Bréda, Toussaint-Louverture was the leader of the Haitian Revolution. His military genius and political acumen led to the establishment of the independent black state of Haiti, transforming an entire society of slaves into a free,... |
Colonial militia have more hitpoints. | French France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... and British United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
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| Hidalgo Miguel Hidalgo Miguel Gregorio Antonio Ignacio Hidalgo y Costilla y Gallaga Mandarte Villaseñor , more commonly known as Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla or simply Miguel Hidalgo, was a Mexican priest and a leader of the Mexican War of Independence.In 1810 Hidalgo led a group of peasants in a revolt against the dominant... |
A group of outlaws rally to your cause. | Spanish Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... and Portuguese Portugal Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the... |
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| Bolívar Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Yeiter, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military and political leader... |
All units gain 5% more hitpoints. | Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... ns and Germans Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
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| Washington George Washington George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of... |
Gatling guns have more hitpoints. | British United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... and Dutch Netherlands The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... |
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Stealth
Another new feature is the use of stealth. All native civilizations have a unit that can use stealth (this cannot be activated when enemy units are nearby). For the Europeans, there is a Home City card that ships five spies (available even to early Home Cities) or they can be trained at the Church. They share the stealth ability, as do other miscellaneous units (ninja, native scouts, etc.). When certain enemy soldiers are near the invisible unit, it becomes revealed and vulnerable to attack. Furthermore, stealth units become visible when they attack.Maps
There are 8 new maps: Northwest Territory (representing OregonOregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, Washington and British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
), California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, the Painted Desert
Painted Desert, Arizona
The Painted Desert is a area of badlands located in Northern Arizona in the United States. The Arizona desert stretches from the Grand Canyon National Park into the Petrified Forest National Park and runs roughly astride and just north of the Little Colorado and the Puerco Rivers...
, Araucanía
Araucanía Region
The IX Araucanía Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions and comprises two provinces: Malleco in the north and Cautín in the south....
(which have three varieties: Northern, Southern, and Middle), Orinoco
Orinoco
The Orinoco is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes called the Orinoquia, covers , with 76.3% of it in Venezuela and the remainder in Colombia...
, Ozarks, Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, and the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
.
Plot
The campaign, which is 15 missions long, includes the Black family in a more historical setting. The first act, Fire, follows Nathaniel Black (John Black's son and Amelia Black's father) as he spends the family's entire fortune supporting the American RevolutionAmerican Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
. The second act, Shadow, follows Amelia Black's son, Chayton Black, and his actions in the Black Hills during Red Cloud's War
Red Cloud's War
Red Cloud's War was an armed conflict between the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho and the United States in the Wyoming Territory and the Montana Territory from 1866 to 1868. The war was fought over control of the Powder River Country in north central present day Wyoming...
and Great Sioux War. The home city for both acts is the Black Family Estate.
The first act, Fire, begins with Nathaniel (loosely based on Joseph Louis Cook
Joseph Louis Cook
Joseph Louis Cook or Akiatonharónkwen was an Iroquois leader and American soldier. Born to a black father and an Abenaki mother in what is now Quebec, he was adopted as a Mohawk. He became an influential leader in the Iroquois Confederacy and distinguished himself during the French and Indian War...
) and his uncle Kanyenke trying to discourage the Mohawk and the Seneca from fighting in the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. However, they are ambushed by a group of Mohawks and head to an Oneida
Oneida tribe
The Oneida are a Native American/First Nations people and are one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy in the area of upstate New York...
village nearby. From there they counter-attack and destroy an enemy Town Center, thus causing their enemies to flee. When Nathaniel and Kanyenke return to their village, they find that the Mohawk and a group of Hessian mercenaries led by Colonel Sven Kuechler, have raided the village and captured Nathaniel's mother, Nonahkee. They rescue Nonahkee, but Kuechler and his main army escape. After this, the Iroquois Confederacy shatters. Nathaniel's village supports the colonists, and Nathaniel heads to Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
where his men help defend a redoubt on Breed's Hill
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War...
from the British. After George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
takes command a series of defeats
New York and New Jersey campaign
The New York and New Jersey campaign was a series of battles for control of New York City and the state of New Jersey in the American Revolutionary War between British forces under General Sir William Howe and the Continental Army under General George Washington in 1776 and the winter months of 1777...
drives the colonials back across the Delaware, where they are joined by Nathanial. Here Washington lead a small force, including Nathaniel, across the Delaware where they attack a Hessian encampment at Trenton
Battle of Trenton
The Battle of Trenton took place on December 26, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, after General George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River north of Trenton, New Jersey. The hazardous crossing in adverse weather made it possible for Washington to lead the main body of the...
and defeat the rearguard of the army at Princeton
Battle of Princeton
The Battle of Princeton was a battle in which General George Washington's revolutionary forces defeated British forces near Princeton, New Jersey....
. This is followed by another victory at the Battles of Saratoga. However, the army is once again defeated at Brandywine
Battle of Brandywine
The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of the Brandywine or the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American army of Major General George Washington and the British-Hessian army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777. The British defeated the Americans and...
and Germantown
Battle of Germantown
The Battle of Germantown, a battle in the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War, was fought on October 4, 1777, at Germantown, Pennsylvania between the British army led by Sir William Howe and the American army under George Washington...
and is forced to camp for the winter at Valley Forge
Valley Forge
Valley Forge in Pennsylvania was the site of the military camp of the American Continental Army over the winter of 1777–1778 in the American Revolutionary War.-History:...
, where they suffer greatly from the cold. This leads Nathaniel to use most of his family's forturne to supply the army throughout the winter. The next scenario is the fictional battle of Morristown, where Nathaniel gets his chance for revenge on Kuechler, who leads an attempt to destroy the capitol building of Morristown. Using artillery shipments he receives from Washington, Nathaniel sneaks around the Hessian flank and relieves Morristown. Refusing to accept defeat, Kuechler leads a suicidal attack on Nathaniel and is killed. After Kuechler's death, Nathaniel is said to have fought at Charleston
Siege of Charleston
The Siege of Charleston was one of the major battles which took place towards the end of the American Revolutionary War, after the British began to shift their strategic focus towards the American Southern Colonies. After about six weeks of siege, Continental Army Major General Benjamin Lincoln...
, Camden
Battle of Camden
The Battle of Camden was a major victory for the British in the Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War...
, and King's Mountain. As the tide begins to turn the French join the war and help the revolution gain a victory at Yorktown
Siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...
, where Nathaniel is instrumental in capturing several redoubts. With the revolution won, Nathaniel returns home a poor man having spent his family fortune on the outfitting his volunteers and supplying the troops at Valley Forge. During the introductory video of the campaign (where Nathaniel is at Yorktown), the "Old Coot" from Act 3 (Morgan Black) in the previous game, can be seen watching his great-grandson's victory.
The second act, called Shadow, begins in 1866. Chayton Black, Amelia Black's half-Lakota son, is expanding the Falcon Railroad Company westward along the Bozeman Trail
Bozeman Trail
The Bozeman Trail was an overland route connecting the gold rush territory of Montana to the Oregon Trail. Its most important period was from 1863-1868. The flow of pioneers and settlers through territory of American Indians provoked their resentment and caused attacks. The U.S. Army undertook...
, but winds up in the middle of Red Cloud's War
Red Cloud's War
Red Cloud's War was an armed conflict between the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho and the United States in the Wyoming Territory and the Montana Territory from 1866 to 1868. The war was fought over control of the Powder River Country in north central present day Wyoming...
. Here he helps defend the wood trail from the Sioux and becomes friends with Fort Laramie's quartermaster, William "Billy" Holme, a Civil War veteran. Ten years later, in 1876, Chayton returns to the west and again meets up with Holme, now a sheriff, who informs him of a huge amount of gold in the Black Hills
Black Hills
The Black Hills are a small, isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, USA. Set off from the main body of the Rocky Mountains, the region is something of a geological anomaly—accurately described as an "island of...
of Dakota. After defending many mining camps from Sioux attacks, Chayton goes to see the Sioux chief Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse was a Native American war leader of the Oglala Lakota. He took up arms against the U.S...
and establish a peace treaty. However, Holme and some of the miners ambush the Sioux before Chayton can begin negotiations, wrecking any chance of peace. Despite his warmongering, Chayton still sides with Holme and defends his workers as they gather wood for a new fort. However, once the fort is complete, Holme orders Chayton to destroy a Sioux village without provocation. Chayton refuses and, turning against Holme, allies with the Sioux to destroy the fort, forcing Holme to flee into the hills. Chayton then convinces the newly-arrived General Custer, to give him one day to find Holme, who is the real cause of the unrest. Chayton puts on Sioux clothing and blood-red war paint and, joining with Crazy Horse, chases Holme down and confronts him in a mine. Chayton tries to resolve the situation peacefully, but Holme pulls a gun on Chayton. However Chayton is faster and shoots Holme, who falls to his death down a mine shaft. Chayton then tries to convince General Custer not to attack the Sioux but Custer refuses. Custer then says that Chayton can no longer sit on the fence, demanding that he decide whether he is White or Indian. Chayton agrees, then says good-bye to Custer and wheels his horse and rides off to join the Sioux. He helps gather the Sioux and Cheyenne nations and fights with them at Little Bighorn. After the battle, Amelia Black narrates that she never saw her son again, but that she had heard Chayton was either killed at Wounded Knee
Wounded Knee Massacre
The Wounded Knee Massacre happened on December 29, 1890, near Wounded Knee Creek on the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, USA. On the day before, a detachment of the U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment commanded by Major Samuel M...
in 1890, taking a dozen cavalrymen with him, or lived out his days in the Black Hills with his wife and children.
Online play
Few changes have been made to Ensemble Studios online. Existing accounts have gained a Warchiefs stats section. A new account is not necessary or even allowed. This is probably to prevent internet sockpuppetrySockpuppet (Internet)
A sockpuppet is an online identity used for purposes of deception. The term—a reference to the manipulation of a simple hand puppet made from a sock—originally referred to a false identity assumed by a member of an internet community who spoke to, or about himself while pretending to be another...
. However, to bypass this rule a second game can be purchased, for a new CD, which enables a new account. Players' home cities and levels will carry over with the ability to reselect cards, although all rankings and other stats will be reset.
Also the new game type Treaty is enabled. Playing this, all players won't be able to attack or build far from their starting town center, although towers may still shoot. Available Treaty times are 10, 20, 30 or 40 minutes. Before this new game type, players used "no rush for 30 min" servers for this, though a lot of players cheated and ended up rushing while still within the time limit.
Other Versions of The Expansion
The Warchiefs expansion now has a trial version for PC only, which can be downloaded from the official site of Age of Empires 3: The Warchiefs website. It features two playable civilizations (Germans and Iroquois) in Skirmish Mode, one random map (California) as well as the two first scenarios in the single-player campaign about the continuing story of the Black Family, from Age of Empires IIIAge of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
.
The Warchiefs expansion pack was also bundled with the full game of Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
, being called Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
Gold Edition on September 19, 2006. It is currently discontinued and is replaced by the new bundle, called Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
Complete Collection, featuring the full game of Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
, the Warchiefs Expansion, and the second released expansion, called Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
: The Asian Dynasties
Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties
Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties is the second official expansion pack for real-time strategy video game Age of Empires III developed through a collaboration between Ensemble Studios and Big Huge Games, and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed...
, released on September 15, 2009, in the United States.
As well, this expansion, including the full game of Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III
Age of Empires III is a real-time strategy game developed by Microsoft Corporation's Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The Mac version was ported over and developed by Destineer's MacSoft Games and published by Destineer and MacSoft Games...
and the Asian Dynasties expansion, has been ported over to the Mac by MacSoft Games
MacSoft Games
MacSoft Games is a Plymouth, Minnesota, United States-based computer game publisher and porter specializing in porting Microsoft Windows computer games to the Macintosh...
, being able to play on Mac OS X.
There is also a downloadable custom map from Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios was a video game developer initially established in 1995 as an independent company, but was owned by Microsoft from 2001 to 2009, when it was officially disbanded. Ensemble developed many real-time strategy games, including the Age of Empires game series, Age of Mythology, and Halo...
' website, called Plymouth. It is only available for PC users of this expansion pack, requiring version 1.0.1 or later to run. As quoted from their website: "Plymouth is a festive new custom map from Ensemble Studios. It is a veritable cornucopia of Pilgrims, pumpkins, and envoys." Installation instructions are available on their site, for any help on getting it installed properly.
This expansion pack has gone thorough four patches that have been released to fix bugs and restore the game balance, which has been slightly altered by the appearance of the new civilizations.