Fuchuan

The Fuchuan is a special Chinese warship in Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties.

Overview
The Fuchuan has 2500 Hit points and is the strongest easily acquired naval unit in all of Age of Empires III. The Fuchuan has a build limit of two (unless using Admiralty), instead of the usual three for a frigate and is incredibly expensive. A single Fuchuan can be shipped from the Home City in the Fortress Age for a cost of or built from a dock. The Fuchuan is useful against other naval units and bombarding land based armies. Due to its range limitations (even with European Cannons), the Fuchuan is weak against buildings such as outposts and forts, and will quickly fall to land cannon units with better range such as mortars, morutaru and the more accurate culverin. With European Cannons these ships can outrange most of the European heavy ships except for those who have the offshore support. The full potential of this ship can be achieved with addition of the Team Improved Warship and Western Reform cards.

Players receive 120 XP for every Fuchuan they manage to destroy or build.

Spanish fuchuan
The Spanish have the highest hit point version of the Fuchuan (and the highest hit point vessel in the game) if one of the ships is sent to them by means of the Chinese card, TEAM 1 Fuchuan. Under these conditions the following cards and upgrades will apply to the Fuchuan.

Cards and upgrades

 * Discovery Age
 * TEAM Inquisition - +10 to all units LOS.


 * Colonial Age
 * Improved Warships - +25% to warship hit points and attack.
 * Unction - +5-63% to warship modified attack with 1-10 nearby Missionaries.
 * TEAM Improved Warships (Chinese ally) - +15% to warship hit points and attack.
 * Town Watch - +2 to all units LOS.
 * Carronade - +25% to warship attack.
 * Armor Plating - +50% to warship hit points.


 * Fortress Age
 * Armada - +30% to warship hit points.

History
"The Fuchuan warships were a standard naval junk used by the Chinese during the treasure expeditions of the Ming Dynasty, starting at the beginning of the fifteenth century. These ships were about 165 feet long and had five masts flying the standard square-rigged sails of the junks."