Talk:Chinese (Age of Empires II)/@comment-70.95.3.247-20170313191854/@comment-162.247.120.203-20170330134822

National power is often a prerequisite for a strong military. I don't see how a nation with a weak national power can sustain a powerful military. Rome's military expansions also relied on their national power. Thus, I don't think China's case is that unique.

There were at least two periods of Chinese history in which heavy armors were quite commonly used. One was the Northern and Southern Dynasties period (386 - 589) during which the use of heavy cataphract became very prominent due to the popularization of stirrups. And the other one was the Song Liao Jin period (960 - 1279) during which the competing regimes all fielded heavy cataphracts. And the Song also fielded heavy infantry to counter enemy cavalry. Both of these periods fell within the timeframe of AOE 2.

And the unique unit is also problematic. While the Chinese indeed used many crossbows in their armies, they never really used repeating crossbows in warfare. Instead they relied on powerful foot-drawn single-shot crossbows and volley fire formations. Repeating crossbows are unsuitable for warfare because they lack penetration power and accuracy. One Ming account mentioned that repeating crossbows are only suitable for civilian uses.

And Shaolin indeed took part in warfare, at least twice in history. The first time they helped Li Shimin's Tang armies to fight off competing regional armies on the Central Plains and secured the rule of the Tang. The second time was during the Ming dynasty when the Shaolin warrior monks were recruited to fight off the Wokou pirates.