What counters Knights? Cataphracts? Elephants? Search any Age of Empires II unit by name — and instantly see its hard counters, soft counters and exact bonus damage.
I discovered Age of Empires II as a kid and came back to it five years ago when the Definitive Edition launched. As a casual player, I kept running into the same problem: I couldn't find a fast, reliable way to look up unit counters mid-game. Digging through forums, wikis, and YouTube cost me time — and games.
Age of Empires 2 Counter Hub is my solution. It's a hobby project built out of love for the game and a genuine desire to help the community improve. Any revenue from ads or donations goes directly toward keeping the site running and updating the data when Forgotten Empires releases a new patch or DLC.
If you spot an error or a missing unit, feel free to reach out — this guide is for the community, and your feedback makes it better for everyone.
Unit counters in Age of Empires II are units that deal bonus damage to — or are more cost-efficient against — specific enemy unit types. Understanding counters is one of the most important skills in Age of Empires 2, letting you win engagements even when outnumbered.
A hard counter deals specific attack bonus damage against a unit class — for example, Spearmen vs. Cavalry. A soft counter wins the matchup through general cost-efficiency or favorable stats without a dedicated bonus, such as Hussars against Monks.
The best counters to Knights are Pikemen and Halberdiers (bonus damage vs. cavalry), Camel Riders (bonus damage vs. cavalry), and Monks (conversion). Crossbowmen also work well in numbers. See the full cavalry counter guide.
Yes. Counter data and unit stats are maintained for the current Age of Empires II Definitive Edition version. When Forgotten Empires releases a balance patch, we review and update affected units accordingly.