Armenians — Counters & Civilization Overview

How to play against the Armenians — plus bonuses, unique units, unique techs and the full tech tree.

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Armenians emblem

The Armenians are an Infantry and Naval civilization in Age of Empires 2. Their unique units are the Composite Bowman, Warrior Priest. Below: what counters the units they bring, where their tech tree runs out, and the full civilization overview. Jump to the Armenians tech tree.

How to counter the Armenians

Their unique and regional units are the part of the matchup a generic army does not prepare you for. Hard counters beat the unit decisively and win even at a cost disadvantage — usually through bonus damage, area damage, conversion or a speed advantage it cannot escape. Soft counters win the fight too, but only with good numbers and positioning.

Composite Bowman Castle Age · Castle

Armenian unique Foot Archer that ignores armor.

Countered by

Warrior Priest Castle Age · Fortified Church

Armenian unique Monastery Infantry that can heal friendly units.

Countered by

Dromon Imperial Age · Dock

Anti-building Siege Warship with long range blast attack, but cannot attack enemies at cl…

Countered by

What the Armenians are strong against

The other side of the matchup: these are the fights their own units are built to win. Walking one of these into them plays to their strengths.

What the Armenians cannot answer

Every civilization is missing something. What matters in a match is which of those gaps you can actually attack. Below are the Armenians gaps that change how a fight plays out — the economic ones are left out on purpose.

Mounted units

  • Paladin — Their heavy cavalry stops at the Cavalier — no Paladin, so it stays noticeably softer and your Halberdiers keep the upper hand in Imperial.
  • Hussar — No Hussar — their Light Cavalry never reaches the last tier, so it stays a weaker raider and a weaker answer to your Monks.
  • Heavy Cavalry Archer — Their Cavalry Archers stay at the base tier — less range, attack and armour than the Heavy Cavalry Archer, and your Skirmishers keep the upper hand into Imperial.
  • Parthian Tactics — No Parthian Tactics — their Cavalry Archers keep base armour and no bonus damage against your Spearman line, so Pikemen still trade into them.
  • Plate Barding Armor — No Plate Barding Armor — their Imperial cavalry stays two pierce armour short, so Arbalests and Elite Skirmishers keep working against it.

Gunpowder

  • Hand Cannoneer — No Hand Cannoneer — the Armenians never get gunpowder infantry, so massed melee infantry keeps working against them deep into the Imperial Age.
  • Bombard Cannon — No Bombard Cannon — they have no gunpowder siege at all. Your own Bombard Cannons out-range every siege unit they can field except the Trebuchet.

Blacksmith and unit upgrades

  • Thumb Ring — No Thumb Ring — their archers fire slower and miss more, so your units take fewer hits crossing the open ground towards them.

Siege

  • Siege Onager — Their Onagers never become Siege Onagers — no single shot that clears a whole group of your units, and no felling of your walls from range.
  • Siege Engineers — No Siege Engineers — their siege has one range less and hits buildings softer, so your towers and Castles out-range it.

Defensive buildings

  • Keep — No Keep — their towers stay at Guard Tower strength, so your siege takes a tower line down noticeably faster.
  • Arrowslits — No Arrowslits — their towers hit softer at close range, so rams and infantry clear them with fewer losses.
  • Architecture — No Architecture — their buildings keep base armour and hit points, so your siege takes them down faster.

Navy

  • Fast Fire Ship — Their Fire Ship line stops before the Fast Fire Ship — slower and weaker in exactly the close-range fights fire ships are built for.
  • Cannon Galleon — No Cannon Galleon — they cannot shell your shore buildings from the water, so a coastal base is safe from their navy.
  • Dry Dock — No Dry Dock — their ships stay a pierce armour short, so your own warships and shore towers cut through them faster.
  • Shipwright — No Shipwright — their warships cost more and build slower in the Imperial Age, so a replaced fleet comes back later than yours.

Everything the Armenians do and do not have, unit by unit, is in the Armenians tech tree further down.

Armenians: Civilization and Team Bonuses

Civilization Bonuses

  • Mule Carts cost -25%
  • Mule Cart technology effects +40%
  • Spearman- and Militia-line upgrades (except Man-at-Arms) available one age earlier
  • First Fortified Church receives a free Relic
  • Galley-line and Dromons fire an additional projectile

Team Bonus

Infantry +2 line of sight

Unique Units

Composite Bowman
Composite Bowman · Foot ArcherArmenian unique Foot Archer that ignores armor. Strong vs. Infantry and Cavalry. Weak vs. Archery Units and Siege Weapons.
Warrior Priest
Warrior Priest · InfantryArmenian unique Monastery Infantry that can heal friendly units. Can collect Relics and bring them to Monasteries. Strong vs. Infantry. Weak vs. Scout Cavalry-line and Archery Units.

Unique Technologies

Cilician FleetDemolition Ships +20% blast radius; Galley-line and Dromons +1 range
FeretersInfantry (except Spearman-line) +30 HP; Warrior Priests heal +100% faster

Armenians Tech Tree

The full Armenians tech tree in Age of Empires 2 — every unit, upgrade and technology they can research, and everything they cannot. Units are shown as their upgrade lines, followed by the technologies available at each building. Greyed-out entries are missing from the Armenians tech tree.

Barracks

  1. Militia D
  2. Man-at-Arms F
  3. Long Swordsman F
  4. Two-Handed Swordsman C
  5. Champion C
  1. Spearman D
  2. Pikeman F
  3. Halberdier C
  1. Arson F
  1. Gambesons C
  1. Squires C

Archery Range

  1. Archer F
  2. Crossbowman C
  3. Arbalester I
  1. Skirmisher F
  2. Elite Skirmisher C
  1. Cavalry Archer C
  2. Heavy Cavalry Archer I
  1. Hand Cannoneer I
  1. Thumb Ring C
  1. Parthian Tactics I

Stable

  1. Scout Cavalry F
  2. Light Cavalry C
  3. Hussar I
  1. Knight C
  2. Cavalier I
  3. Paladin I
  1. Bloodlines F
  1. Husbandry C

Siege Workshop

  1. Battering Ram C
  2. Capped Ram I
  3. Siege Ram I
  1. Mangonel C
  2. Onager I
  3. Siege Onager I
  1. Scorpion C
  2. Heavy Scorpion I
  1. Siege Tower C
  1. Bombard Cannon I

Castle

  1. Composite Bowman C
  2. E. Composite Bowman I
  1. Petard C
  1. Trebuchet I
  1. Cilician Fleet C
  1. Fereters I
  1. Hoardings I
  1. Conscription I
  1. Sappers I
  1. Spies/Treason I

Dock

  1. Fishing Ship D
  1. Transport Ship D
  1. Fire Galley F
  2. Fire Ship C
  3. Fast Fire Ship I
  1. Galley F
  2. War Galley C
  3. Galleon I
  1. Hulk F
  2. War Hulk C
  3. Carrack I
  1. Demolition Raft F
  2. Demolition Ship C
  3. Heavy Demo Ship I
  1. Trade Cog F
  1. Cannon Galleon I
  2. Elite Cannon Galleon I
  1. Dromon I
  1. Fishing Lines F
  1. Medium Warships C
  2. Heavy Warships I
  1. Gillnets C

Fortified Church

  1. Monk C
  1. Warrior Priest C
  1. Fortified Church C
  1. Devotion C
  2. Faith I
  1. Redemption C
  1. Atonement C
  1. Herbal Medicine C
  1. Heresy C
  1. Sanctity C
  1. Fervor C
  1. Illumination I
  1. Block Printing I
  1. Theocracy I

Blacksmith

  1. Padded Archer Armor F
  2. Leather Archer Armor C
  3. Ring Archer Armor I
  1. Fletching F
  2. Bodkin Arrow C
  3. Bracer I
  1. Forging F
  2. Iron Casting C
  3. Blast Furnace I
  1. Scale Barding Armor F
  2. Chain Barding Armor C
  3. Plate Barding Armor I
  1. Scale Mail Armor F
  2. Chain Mail Armor C
  3. Plate Mail Armor I

University

  1. Masonry C
  2. Architecture I
  1. Fortified Wall C
  1. Ballistics C
  1. Guard Tower C
  2. Keep I
  1. Heated Shot C
  1. Murder Holes C
  1. Careening C
  2. Dry Dock I
  1. Clinker Construction C
  2. Carvel Hull I
  1. Siphons C
  2. Incendiaries I
  1. Treadmill Crane C
  1. Chemistry I
  2. Bombard Tower I
  1. Siege Engineers I
  1. Arrowslits I
  1. Shipwright I

Market

  1. Trade Cart F
  1. Caravan C
  1. Coinage C
  2. Banking I
  1. Guilds I

Mill

  1. Horse Collar F
  2. Heavy Plow C
  3. Crop Rotation I

Town Center

  1. Villager D
  1. Feudal Age D
  2. Castle Age F
  3. Imperial Age C
  1. Loom D
  1. Town Watch F
  2. Town Patrol C
  1. Wheelbarrow F
  2. Hand Cart C

Mule Cart

  1. Mule Cart D
  1. Gold Mining F
  2. Gold Shaft Mining C
  1. Stone Mining F
  2. Stone Shaft Mining C
  1. Double-Bit Axe F
  2. Bow Saw C
  3. Two-Man Saw I

D Dark F Feudal C Castle I Imperial · struck through = not available for the Armenians

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Frequently Asked Questions

How do you counter the Armenians?

The Armenians field Composite Bowman, Warrior Priest and Dromon. Samurai, Elite Skirmisher and Mangonel counter most of what they build. Their tech tree also leaves out Paladin, Hussar and Heavy Cavalry Archer.

What is the Armenians tech tree missing in AoE2?

Their heavy cavalry stops at the Cavalier — no Paladin, so it stays noticeably softer and your Halberdiers keep the upper hand in Imperial. No Hussar — their Light Cavalry never reaches the last tier, so it stays a weaker raider and a weaker answer to your Monks. Their Cavalry Archers stay at the base tier — less range, attack and armour than the Heavy Cavalry Archer, and your Skirmishers keep the upper hand into Imperial.

Which units do the Armenians have that other civilizations do not?

Composite Bowman: Armenian unique Foot Archer that ignores armor. Warrior Priest: Armenian unique Monastery Infantry that can heal friendly units. Dromon: Anti-building Siege Warship with long range blast attack, but cannot attack enemies at cl…

Not sure what counters this unit?

Playing against the Armenians? Look up any of their units in the interactive app to see exactly what counters them — with bonus-damage values.

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