Monk (Age of Empires II)

"Slow and weak. Converts enemy units, ships, and some buildings to your civilization. Heals wounded villagers, military units." - Age of Empires II Description

The Monk is a specialised unit. Lacking all means of an effective counter-attack, they still hold a position of power as the only unit to convert other units to your side. To convert a unit is to take any infantry or siege unit and some buildings and turn them into your own. In addition to this, the Monk can heal all allied units or your own as long as they are not buildings or Siege Weapons. However, they normally start out weak and can only unlock their full potential, such as converting other Monks or converting buildings, by researching all of their technologies at the Monastery, which is available to only a select few. The Aztecs have the weakest monks and they don't even convert, but they can still heal and pick up relics. Out of all civilizations the Huns have the best monks, they convert quickly and have every upgrade.

In the picture depicted to the right, a Monk is performing Voodoo Magic.

Info
"Religion was a powerful force during the Middle Ages, whether it was Roman Catholicism of the West, Islam in the Middle East, or Buddhism in Asia. The missionaries and teachers of religion were mainly monks, men who took vows of poverty and who dedicated their lives to spreading their message. Middle Age conflicts often derived from religious differences and were led or supported by contingents of monks on each side. The Crusades, for example, were multiple attempts by European Christians to wrest control of the Holy Land from the hands of Islamic Arabs. Large numbers of monks accompanied the Christian crusading armies."

Statistics
Cost: 100G

HP: 30ATK: 0

Armor/Pierce Armor: 0/0

Range: 9Speed: Slow

Upgrades: Faith, Heresy, Herbal Medicine, Fervor, Sanctity, Redemption, Atonement, Illumination, Block Printing

Weaknesses: Eagle Warriors, Scout Cavalry, Light Cavalry, Hussars

Tactics
The first reason that Monks should be in your ranks is to heal the units, most likely Archers or other Monks. Otherwise, they should be at a relatively safe distance, such as across a lake or on a cliff, to convert enemy units so as to avoid getting injured. Alternatively, you could attempt to convert slow-moving units, such as the plodding Teutonic Knight or a normal Champion. Monks could also attempt to collect all Relics on a map, which would yield gold every second as well as give you a timer to an instant victory should you successfully collect all in your Monasteries. However, the relics are often hidden in corners of the map or stored in an enemy Monastery, and collecting all makes you a prime target. Also, any monk that carries a relic is unable to convert or heal until it drops the relic. Bear in mind that against fast units, such as most cavalry units or Eagle Warriors, the Monk's effectiveness is severely limited.

Aztecs have extremely weak Monks in their Civilization and should not be used frequently.