Gaia (goddess)

For the non-playable team, see Gaia

Gaia is a major god of the Atlanteans.

God Power

 * Gaia Forest: Generates a forest; its trees provide 200 Wood instead of the standard 150.

Bonuses

 * All buildings are surrounded by lush terrain which cannot be built on by enemies.
 * Buildings regenerate hitpoints.
 * Fishing ships are 10% cheaper, Caravans are 20% cheaper and both have +25% hit points.
 * Economic technologies are 30% cheaper.

Technology
Channels: Citizens and Citizen Heroes have +20% speed.

Strategy
A Gaian civilization may appear weak in the beginning, but it has a strong defense and economy. Gaia's stronger, cheaper caravans and fishing ships are less prone to raiding as they are more durable, and if killed, can be replaced cheaply. Citizens move faster, meaning they can escape from enemy attacks more easily. Gaia also allows buildings to regenerate, making them survive longer and almost removing the need for repair. Her buildings also generate lush terrain, restricting enemies from building near her cities. Her god power, Gaia Forest, can be used defensively as a wall. Gaia is probably one of the best gods for turtling and boom strategies in Age of Mythology.

Gaia's economic bonuses are formidable. Faster Citizens can move between resources more quickly, meaning there is even less 'dead time.' Fishing ships and caravans are cheaper, and all economic bonuses are cheaper too. This adds up to a large saving of resources over the course of a game. She also provides bonus resources (like Thor's Dwarven Mine) with her Gaia's Forest god power. On more arid maps such as Savannah, this amounts to a significant benefit.

Mythology
In Greek myth, Gaia is the wife of the Titan Oranos and mother of Oceanus, Rhea, Kronos, Hyperion and Theia.

She is grandmother of Zeus, Hades, Poseidon, Helios, Leto, Atlas, Prometheus, and Aphrodite.

She is great-grandmother of Hekate, Artemis, Apollo, Hephaestus, Ares, Athena, Hermes, and Dionysus.

New Atlantis campaign
In the New Atlantis campaign, Gaia is a Titan unit that beat down Kronos with her special attack and sent him back to Tartarus. She regenerates her HP so fast (100 HP/second) that she is practically invincible.