Consulate

The Consulate is a building featured in Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties. The Consulate enables Asian civilizations to recruit units from a selected European civilization. However, these units cost a fifth resource type, Export. Export is a resource available only to Asian civilizations. Export is slowly generated over time. In order to increase export generation, the player may choose to sacrifice a portion of their ordinary resources collection to be exported, increasing the amount of export. Export generation will automatically increase if you have more villagers at work collecting resources or if you advance an Age.

Shipments
The consulate offers many one-off shipments that cost a certain amount of export. These range from economical and military upgrades to free units to building wagons. These shipments usually take 30 seconds to research, although there are exceptions. In the Imperial age, the "brigade" shipment becomes available. This usually ships a large number of the selected civilization's best units and takes 90 seconds to complete. However, they, like other shipments, can only be sent once.

Home City Shipments
Many players believe Good Faith Agreements are the best cards associated with consulates, every Asian nation has it without any type of level requirement. Consulate armies and improvements arrive 50% faster, improvements cost 40% less, and brigade shipments receive a moderate discount (new cost 2000 export). Others prefer Diplomatic Intrigue and Intervention.

Armies
Consulate troops are a set of units that are trained at the consulate for export. They can be trained an unlimited number of times. Consulate Troops are basically ordinary units with unique names that provide a much needed bolster to some Asian armies. European troops available in the consulate are usually the civilisation's best units, for example, the British send Musketeers and Hussars, its royal guard units. Every time the player ages up, the consulate troops receive a higher bonus to their damage or their hit points. However, the Japanese Isolation feature enables the Japanese to recruit elite Japanese troops not available any other way. These units are recruited like normal Barracks/Stable units - they are directly trained in a single block.

Availability
The following is a list of consulate options available to each Asian civilization:
 * The Chinese: The British and Russians at a level 1 Home City, the French at level 25 Home City and the Germans at level 40 Home City.


 * The Indians: The British, Portuguese and Russians (Campaign only) at level 1 Home City, the French at level 25 Home City and the Ottomans at level 40 Home City.


 * The Japanese: The Portuguese and Isolationism at a level 1 Home City, the Dutch at level 25 Home City and the Spanish at level 40 Home City

Spanish
Bonus: +0.8 experience trickle

Shipments:
 * Home City Shipments arrive +50% faster (Age 2), costs 200 export
 * Synergizes well with the Good Faith Agreements card for 50% faster consulate shipments and 40% cheaper export costs.
 * Crates deliver +25% more resources (Age 2),and Trade routes generate 50% more resources and experience. costs 450 export.
 * Synergizes well with the ability of Japan to send crates twice and their infinite 300 (375) crates.
 * 1500 experience points (Age 3), costs 700 export

Armies:
 * 7 Pikemen (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 10 Pikemen and 1 Falconet (Age 3), costs 800 export
 * 13 Rodeleros and 3 Falconets (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade:
 * 17 Rodeleros and 15 Lancers (Age 5), costs 2400 export

British
Bonus: +10% land unit hitpoints

Shipments:
 * 2 Surgeons (Age 2), costs 200 export
 * 4 Spies (Age 2), costs 300 export
 * 5 Petards (Age 3), costs 450 export

Armies:
 * 6 Musketeers (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 8 Musketeers and a Falconet (Age 3), costs 800 export
 * 6 Hussars and 3 Falconets (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade: 16 Skirmishers and 5 falconets (Age 5), costs 2400 export

French
Bonus: +5% Villager gather rate

Shipments
 * 500 Food (age 2), costs 250 export
 * 500 Wood (Age 2), costs 250 export
 * 500 Coin (Age 2), costs 250 export

Armies
 * 4 Grenadiers (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 3 Cuirassiers and 3 Grenadiers (Age 3), costs 800 export
 * 5 Cuirassiers and 2 Horse Artillery (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade:
 * 15 Cuirassiers (Age 5), costs 2400 export

Portuguese
Bonus: -15% food and wood for building construction

Shipments
 * 3 Fishing Boats (Age 2), costs 250 export
 * 1 Caravel and 3 Petards (Age 3), costs 425 export
 * 1 Ironclad (Age 4), costs 700 export

Armies
 * 7 Crossbowmen (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 10 Crossbowmen and a Culverin(Age 3), costs 800 export
 * 13 Musketeers and 3 Culverins (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade:
 * 11 Dragoons and 4 Horse Artillery (Age 4), costs 2400 export

Dutch
Bonus: +0.8 coin trickle

Shipments
 * Church Wagon (Age 2), costs 150 export
 * Bank Wagon (Age 2), costs 450 export
 * Arsenal Wagon (Age 3), costs 300 export

Armies
 * 6 Musketeers (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 7 Ruyters and 6 Musketeers (Age 3), costs 800 export
 * 9 Ruyters and 2 Mortars (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade:
 * 28 Musketeers and 4 Mortars (Age 5), costs 2400 export

Russians
Bonus: -10 Villager training time

Shipments
 * Blockhouse Wagon (Age 2), costs 200 export
 * Fort Wagon (Age 3), costs 600 export
 * Factory Wagon (Age 4), costs 800 export

Armies
 * 4 Cossacks (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 5 Cossacks and 1 Culverin (Age 3), costs 800 export
 * 7 Kalmucks and 3 Culverins (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade:
 * 15 Bashkirs and 3 Culverins (Age 5), costs 2400 export

Germans
Bonus: Banner Armies costs -15 per resource export

Shipments:
 * 1.5 Food Trickle (Age 2), costs 250 export
 * 1.25 Wood trickle (Age 3), costs 250 export
 * 1.25 Coin trickle (Age 4), costs 250 export

Armies
 * 3 Doppelsoldners (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 6 Skirmishers and 3 Doppelsoldners (Age 3), costs 800 export
 * 11 Skirmishers and 2 Heavy Cannon (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade:
 * 19 Uhlans and 15 Skirmishers (Age 5), costs 2500 export

Ottomans
Bonus: +10 Line of Sight

Shipments:
 * 6 Minutemen (Age 2), costs 200 export
 * 4 Settlers (Age 2), costs 300 export
 * 2 Great Bombards (Age 4), costs 850 export

Armies:
 * 3 Hussars (Age 2), costs 400 export
 * 6 Janissaries and 3 Hussars (Age 3), cost 800 export
 * 11 Janissaries and 2 Great Bombards (Age 4), costs 1600 export

Brigade:
 * 13 Janissaries and 4 Great Bombards (Age 5), costs 2400 export

Japanese Isolationism
Bonus: +5% unit damage

Shipments:
 * 1 Military rickshaw (Age 2), costs 100 export
 * Units can be trained in blocks of ten (Age 2), costs 250 export
 * Each Castle spawns 1 Samurai (Age 2), costs 500 export

Armies:
 * Yamabushi (Age 2), costs 60 export each
 * Shinobi (Age 2), costs 80 export each
 * Ninjutsu-zukai (Age 3), costs 145 export each
 * Hatamoto Samurai (Age 3), cost 290 export each

Brigade:
 * Meiji Restoration - Advances to Imperial Age and disables building a Wonder to age up (in the Industrial Age), costs 4000 export

History
"A consulate, also known as an embassy, or a diplomatic mission, is a group of people from one state or organization present in a foreign state to represent their state’s interests. A consulate is generally located in a busy tourist city, and takes care of minor diplomatic tasks such as issuing visas and diplomatic papers. The word “consulate” literally means “office of the consul,” who is a diplomat appointed to foster trade and take care of expatriates."