Malay

The Malay are Southeast Asian civilization based on various kingdoms on the Malay Archipelago before European conquest, mainly Srivijaya and Majapahit. They are featured in Age of Empires II HD: Rise of the Rajas as an infantry and naval civilization.

Kingdoms on Malay Archipelago were able to field large number of troops because of the archipelago's large number of population. To reflect this, Malay have a cheap unique unit named Karambit Warrior and a unique technology named Forced Levy where Malay can train Militia-line units without spending gold. Because Malay Archipelago is strategically located between India and China trade route, the archipelago is often visited by people from both regions who introduce new cultures and techologies to the locals. This is reflected by one of their bonuses: the Malay advance to the next Ages 100% faster than other civilizations.

Coastal defence is essential for kingdoms located in the region. To reflect this, Malay Docks and their allies have much longer line of sight. Malay also possess Thalassocracy technology to give their Docks new ability to defend themselves. The vast sea with huge amount of fishes is reflected by their Fishing Ship and Fishing Trap bonuses. The Sumatran forest has large number of wild elephants and they are often tamed by local people to do various tasks. This is reflected by Malay's cheaper Battle Elephant bonus.

Overview

 * Unique Unit: Karambit Warrior (infantry with very cheap production cost)
 * Unique Technologies: Thalassocracy (upgrade Docks to Harbors, which shoot arrows), Forced Levy (Militia-line costs no gold)

Civilization bonuses

 * Advancing to Ages +100% faster
 * Fishing Ships and Fish Traps cost -33%
 * Fish Traps provide unlimited food
 * Battle Elephants 20% cheaper
 * Team Bonus: Docks +100% line of sight

Trivia

 * If a player pick Malay civilization, the bottom left and center of the navigation bar will show a ship image and a spherical symbol respectively. The ship image is based on a carving at the Borobudur Temple wall, while the spherical symbol is based on Surya Majapahit (Sun of Majapahit), a symbol commonly found in the ruins of Majapahit era.