The Battle Elephant is countered by Monk, Halberdier and Heavy Camel Rider. It is a Cavalry / Unique unit of the Battle Elephants, available to the Southeast Asia.
- Class
- Cavalry / Unique
- Line
- Battle Elephants
- Available to
- Southeast Asia
- Elite upgrade
- Elite Battle Elephant
- Cost
-
100 
70
Battle Elephant stats
The Elite Battle Elephant upgrade changes the values marked below. Everything else — cost, class and the civilization bonuses that apply — stays the same.
| Stat | Battle Elephant | Elite |
|---|---|---|
 Hit points | 250 | 300 |
 Melee attack | 12 / 2s | 14 / 2s |
 Pierce attack | 0 | 0 |
 Range | 0 | 0 |
 Melee armour | 1 | 1 |
 Pierce armour | 2 | 3 |
 Speed | 0.9 | 0.9 |
 Line of sight | 7 | 8 |
 Training time | 24s | 24s |
What counters the Battle Elephant?
The Battle Elephant is weak against Monks and Spearman-line.
Hard counters deal bonus damage against this unit — they beat the Battle Elephant even at a cost disadvantage. Soft counters win the fight through cost-efficiency or mobility, without a dedicated bonus.
| Counter | Type | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
 Monk | hard | Conversion – elephants are expensive |
 Halberdier | hard | Attack bonus vs. cavalry/elephants |
 Heavy Camel Rider | hard | Attack bonus vs. cavalry |
 Mameluke | hard | UU (Saracens) – Ranged anti-cavalry |
 Mangonel | soft | Area damage |
 Camel Archer | soft | UU (Berbers) – Kites elephants, no bonus damage |
 Onager | soft | Area damage |
What does the Battle Elephant counter?
The Battle Elephant is strong against units at close range.
Civilizations that improve the Battle Elephant
18 civilizations have a bonus or unique technology that affects this unit.
Bengalis
- Cavalry +2 attack vs. Skirmishers
Berbers
- Stable Units cost -15/20% in Castle/Imperial Age
Bulgarians
- Stirrups (unique tech): Cavalry attacks +33% faster
Burmese
- Battle Elephants +1 melee/+1 pierce armor
- Manipur Cavalry (unique tech): Cavalry +4 attack vs. Ranged Soldiers
- Howdah (unique tech): Battle Elephants +1 melee/+1 pierce armor
Cumans
- Mounted Units move +5/10/15% faster in Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age
Dravidians
- Wootz Steel (unique tech): Infantry and Cavalry attacks ignore armor
Franks
- Mounted Units +20% HP starting in Feudal Age
Georgians
- Mounted Units regenerate 2/8/14 HP per minute in Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age
- Aznauri Cavalry (unique tech): Mounted Units take -20% population space
Gurjaras
- Mounted Units deal +20/30/40% bonus damage in Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age
Jurchens
- Mounted Units and Fire Lancers attack +25% faster starting in Feudal Age
Khitans
- Ordo Cavalry (unique tech): Cavalry regenerates HP in combat
Khmer
- Battle Elephants move +10% faster
- Tusk Swords (unique tech): Battle Elephants +3 attack
Malay
- Battle Elephants cost -25/35% in Castle/Imperial Age
Malians
- Farimba (unique tech): Cavalry +5 attack
Mapuche
- Mounted Units generate +3 gold when defeating military units
Teutons
- Barracks and Stable Units +1/+2 melee armor in Castle/Imperial Age
Vietnamese
- Chatras (unique tech): Battle Elephants +100 HP
Wei
- Ming Guang Armor (unique tech): Mounted Units +4 melee armor
The Battle Elephants
- Battle Elephant
-
Elite Battle Elephant
For the strategy behind these matchups — when to build counters, how to mix them and which civs do it best — see the Elephant Counters guide.
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