Abbasid Dynasty/Mastery

Civilization

Technology tree

Mastery

Civilization

Technology tree

Mastery

Born of the fertile crescent in the modern-day Middle East, the Abbasid caliphate ruled over the Islamic world for hundreds of years. It oversaw a great period of flourishing and technological innovation known as the "Golden Age of Islam", bringing the medieval world racing towards the modern era.

Commerce and Science

Accrue a sum total of 1,000 resources before the first wing of your House of Wisdom is complete.

Rewards

• Windmill Portrait
• Fun Fact: The Fertile Crescent

Fun Fact: The Fertile Crescent

Between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates, and arcing around to the Nile was a crescent of fertile land that supported flourishing populations for millennia before the time of the Abbasids. It was here that the world's first cities arose, and learning and innovation advanced rapidly. From this "cradle of civilization" the Golden Age of Islam was born

The Path Taken

Research the first technology available from a wing in your House of Wisdom, before reaching the Castle Age (III).

Rewards

• Eastern Windmill Sigil
• Fun Fact: The Mighty Camel

Fun Fact: The Mighty Camel

By the time of the Abbasids, camels had long been used as a reliable form of transport, linking settlements and cities across the arid extents of the empire. They were also sometimes used in warfare, allowing access via desert routes to new territories targeted for conquest. Their endurance and high vantage points made them ideal mounts for maintaining the empire.

Abbasid Novice

Win a game as the Abbasid.

Rewards

• Camel Portrait
• Fun Fact: An Enduring Dynasty

Fun Fact: An Enduring Dynasty

At its greatest extent, the Abbasid Caliphate controlled lands stretching from northern Africa to western Asia, across fertile ground and desert, and was home to rich cities, key trade routes and gleaming centers of knowledge. The Abbasids would endure for nearly 800 years through succession crises, wars, and the loss of their great capital.

Support the Strong

Defeat 30 enemy units with Infantry who are receiving support from Camels.

Rewards

• Abbasid Engineer Portrait
• Fun Fact: The Round City of Baghdad

Fun Fact: The Round City of Baghdad

The original "Round City" of Baghdad was a wonder of its time. Caliph Al-Mansur laid the first brick in July 762 for the city that would become the new caliphal court. It would be a perfect circle, ringed with towering walls and having converging avenues leading to the magnificent Palace of the Golden Gate. The million-strong city became the heart of the Golden Age of Islam.

Love of Knowledge

Research 30 technologies discounted by the Preservation of Knowledge.

Rewards

• Camel & Rider Portrait
• Fun Fact: From Alchemy To Chemistry

Fun Fact: From Alchemy To Chemistry

The Islamic Golden Age was a time of intensive scientific discovery. Experimentation was considered the path to mastery of the sciences, and in particular, alchemy. As alchemists refined many chemical processes and discovered new substances, the first known classification of chemicals emerged - a precursor to today's periodic table. The modern word chemistry derives from the Arabic al-kimiya (alchemy).

Culture of Trade

Accrue 5000 gold from your Traders after researching Spice Roads.

Rewards

• Abbasid Ship Portrait
• Fun Fact: Mill Power

Fun Fact: Mill Power

The Abbasid era saw many advancements in the humble grain mill. Ingenious new gear designs emerged, allowing more efficient capture of wind and water power. Water wheels were placed in front of dams or in underground irrigation tunnels to make best use of available water flow. By harnessing nature's energy more and more effectively, food production boomed across the Islamic world.

Abbasid Apprentice

Win 2 games as the Abbasid.

Rewards

• Trader Monument
• Fun Fact: Baghdad at its Height

Fun Fact: Baghdad at its Height

The flourishing of Baghdad in the late eighth and early ninth centuries was overseen by two Abbasid caliphs, Harun al-Rashid and his son, al-Mamun. Harun patronized scholars, poets and artists. Meanwhile al-Mamun sponsored a research library known as the "House of Wisdom", where an army of translators produced Arabic versions of works of classical and eastern learning. During this period Baghdad was a beacon of culture and splendor.

Expeditious Production

Produce 100 military units after achieving Tier 3 of the Golden Age.

Rewards

• Camel Rider Portrait
• Fun Fact: Medieval Metallurgy

Fun Fact: Medieval Metallurgy

We know much about swordsmithing in the Abbasid period thanks to the metallurgist al-Kindi. He traveled the sword markets of the Middle East and recorded the various techniques and designs he saw. He notes that the finest swords, a variant of the type known as "white swords," were produced at Kufa in Iraq. According to al-Kindi, these were the sharpest and most hard-wearing swords in existence.

Smell of Defeat

Defeat 15 enemy cavalry units with your Camel Riders.

Rewards

• Sun Sigil Frame
• Fun Fact: The Great Mosque of Samarra

Fun Fact: The Great Mosque of Samarra

The 9th century caliph, Al-Mutawakkil, admired great architecture and built an immense mosque now known as the Great Mosque of Samarra. It held 80,000 worshipers and its striking conical minaret spiraled 52 meters into the sky. The mosque was richly decorated with mosaics, carvings and geometric designs, but met its end at the hands of the Mongols in 1278. Today, only the outer walls and the minaret survive.

Heart and Mind

Heal 3000 health on friendly units using your Medical Centers.

Rewards

• Imam Portrait
• Fun Fact: Diplomacy by Elephant

Fun Fact: Diplomacy by Elephant

The Holy Roman emperor Charlemagne and the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid exchanged a number of embassies, which included exchanges of gifts. The most striking of these gifts was an elephant, known as Abul-Abbas, who traveled by boat and land from Baghdad to Germany. He was the wonder of the empire and became one of the most famous elephants in history.

Abbasid Adept

Win 5 games as the Abbasid.

Rewards

• Ulayya Bint Al-Mahdi Portrait
• Camel Rider Monument
• Fun Fact: The End of an Age

Fun Fact: The End of an Age

In 1258, the thunderous force of the Mongol invasion arrived at the gates of Baghdad. When the caliph refused to surrender, the Mongols breached the walls and sacked the city. Thousands of books were thrown into the river, mosques were destroyed, and the population slaughtered. The caliph himself was rolled up in a carpet and trampled to death by horses, in line with a Mongol tradition that forbade the spilling of royal blood. The Golden Age of Islam was over.

Bounty of the Earth

Increase the yield of 18 Berry Bushes and accrue 9000 Food.

Rewards

• Abbasid Sailor Portrait
• Minaret Sigil
• Fun Fact: A Mathematical World

Fun Fact: A Mathematical World

From Cryptanalysis to chess strategies, medieval Islamic mathematicians are credited with devising a wealth of numerical theorems. The written numerals we use today came to us from India via the court of the caliphs of Baghdad. Even the word algorithm is itself derived from the name of al-Khwarizmi, a 9th-century Persian Muslim mathematician who is credited with the formalization of algebra. Thus the Muslim world gave us many mathematical concepts and methods without which today's computing would not be possible.

Resourceful in Warfare

Construct 10 ranged siege units with your melee infantry.

Rewards

• Rabia Al-Adawaiyya Portrait
• Fun Fact: Glass and Optics

Fun Fact: Glass and Optics

The development of the scientific method in the medieval Islamic world birthed many advances in optics. Refinement of glassworking led to the first magnifying glasses, pinhole cameras and even observatories. An occultist, Ammar al-Mawsili, was able to make a hollow glass tube - the first syringe - and used it to suck the cataracts from patients' eyes.

No Higher Honor

Win a Wonder Victory after achieving Tier 3 of the Golden Age.

Rewards

• Abbas Ibn Abd Al-Muttalib Portrait
• Fun Fact: Age of Automation

Fun Fact: Age of Automation

The Abbasid world was captivated by the possibilities of automated devices. The first automatic musical instruments were invented, including a programmable drum machine. The palace in Baghdad boasted a gleaming gold and silver tree, populated by mechanical singing birds that flapped their wings. The Abbasids' European neighbors marveled at these wonders, and soon began incorporating automation technology into their own inventions.

Abbasid Master

Win 10 games as the Abbasid.

Rewards

• Astrological Instrument Sigil
• Ulayya Bint Al-Mahdi Monument
• Fun Fact: The Ceremonial Dynasty

Fun Fact: The Ceremonial Dynasty

After the sack of Baghdad, the remaining Abbasids moved to Cairo, Egypt. but here, they would have to submit to the rule of the Mamluk Sultanate. While the sultan remained in control, the caliph would be the spiritual leader. Although the Abbasids no longer wielded any real power, their influence would endure until the end of the sultanate in 1517.