Town Center (Age of Empires III)

"Most important building in a colony. Home City arrival point. Supports 10 population."

- In-game description

The Town Center is an economic building in in Age of Empires III that becomes available once the Fortress Age is reached. As it trains Settlers/Villagers and acts as the default drop-off point for Home City shipments, it is the most important of all buildings. Town Centers also support 10 population.

In regular random map games every player starts the game with a Town Center. Until the Fortress Age is reached, no more than one Town Center can be built at a time. From the Fortress Age onward, two additional Town Centers may be built.

Up to 50 villager-type units can garrison in Town Centers for shelter from attacks. By doing so, they give the Town Center an attack, allowing players to survive and fend off attacks. Town Centers also automatically attack passing enemy ships at all times.

Overview
The Town Center is the most important building in the game, as it is the nucleus of every players' settlements, produces Settlers/Villagers that are the backbone of every player's empire, and serve as the only means of advancing to the next Age for European and Native American civilizations.

Unlike other buildings, the Town Center can only be built by the Explorer/War Chief/Monk and a Covered Wagon.

The Town Center is a strong building. It can defend itself from land units with its top tower with a musket, from boats with a cannon and can garrison Settlers/Villagers to protect it and increase its firepower. Town Centers also can call in one (two with specific Home City Cards) levy of Minutemen or Irregulars and Sentries. The Iroquois can make their Town Centers much stronger with Town Dance and the Great House Home City Card.

If the player's Explorer has fallen in battle too close to enemy territory, instead of manually retrieving the unit, they may choose to pay Ransom money from the Town Center and return the Explorer back safely. Asian civilizations retrain fallen Monks from the Town Center instead of ransoming them.

From The WarChiefs expansion, European civilizations can select to "revolt" from the Industrial Age. Revolting will also increase the Town Center's build limit to 10 and makes them no longer necessary to support population.

Attack
The total attack of a Town Center are calculated on the following formula:


 * $$A = B + 2 * G$$

Where A is the total attack, B is the Town Center's base attack, and G is the number of Settlers/Villagers garrisoned in the Town Center.

Players can garrison up to 50 Settlers/Villagers, but the attack will only increase with the first 10. For example, having 8 Settlers/Villagers garrisoned (at a base attack of 9) grants a total attack of 72.

Civilization differences

 * The Portuguese receive a free Covered Wagon every time they Age up until the Industrial Age, allowing them to have up to four Town Centers. With the Donatarios Home City Card, they can build two more, totaling of six Town Centers.

Europeans

 * Units with an asterisk (*) are added in The WarChiefs.
 * The Settler has a limit of 99 except for the Dutch, which is 50.
 * Ottoman Town Centers automatically train Settlers for free with a limit of 25 (45 with Galata Tower District, 70 with Topkapi, 99 with Tanzimat).
 * The Colonial Militia replaces the Settler for a revolting European player.

French

 * The Coureur des Bois replaces the Settler for the French.

Native Americans

 * The Native Scout requires the Advanced Scout Home City Card to be trained at Town Centers, but they will also use 1 population.

Asians

 * The Villager has a limit of 99 except for the Japanese, which is 75.

Home City Cards
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;" ! sab="1148" | Click for a list of Home City Cards related to the Town Center Green : TEAM Shipment that is sent to each player in a team
 * - sab="1147"
 * - sab="1149"
 * sab="1150" |

All

 * The Improved Buildings card is available at a level 1 Home City for the Sioux.
 * The Indians have the TEAM Improved Buildings card instead of Improved Buildings.

Spanish

 * }

History
"Churches, taverns, and town halls were all important colonial centers where leaders and citizens met to discuss the issues facing their towns and colonies. Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia was the site of several important events in the history of the American colonies. One, the First Continental Congress, was the meeting of the thirteen colonies in the fall of 1774 to discuss their grievances with British governance and just what they could do about it. This historic hall also housed Benjamin Franklin's Library Company and the First and Second Banks of the United States."