Advanced Combat is the sixth challenge scenario in Art of War in Age of Empires IV. Similar to its counterpart Basic Combat, it tests the player's skill in unit counters and use of terrain, this time also involving Castle Age units.
Intro[]
Scenario description/loading screen[]
When defending your village, the more armor, the better. Deploy heavy troops like Knights, Men-at-arms and Crossbowmen to fend off enemy attacks.
Video instruction[]
As a game progresses, you will gain access to increasingly powerful troops. Heavily armored Knights, Crossbowmen, and Men-at-arms will tend to form the core of your armies. However, you will still find use for lighter troops in a supporting role.
Men-at-arms, for instance, are slow and heavy units with significant armor. Then can easily defeat any lighter unit on the battlefield.
Crossbowmen have a powerful ranged attack that makes quick work of light infantry and does additional damage to heavy units. If you are fielding an infantry force and see many Crossbowmen in your enemy's army, retreat to preserve your force.
Heavy melee cavalry, such as Knights, repel most attacks and can charge at speed, inflicting heavy damage and throwing opponents into disarray. Here, the Knights force the Crossbowmen to engage unfavorably and quickly cut them down. However, as with regular Horsemen, Knights should steer away from enemy Spearmen.
In most battles, you will face armies comprised of many different unit types. Deploy a combined force of your own, choosing units that counter those of the enemy, and look for opportunities to draw them in. Remember what you have learned here and add it your arsenal of battle tactics.
Start of scenario[]
Your soldiers have spotted an army marching towards your village. The first group of attackers that will reach you is comprised of Men-at-arms but five more waves of enemies will soon follow.
Scenario instructions[]
Starting conditions[]
- Starting Age:
Castle Age - Units: None (initially)
- Resources: None
Objectives[]
- Defend your camp against the enemy attacks (0/6)
- Defeat the approaching Men-at-arms
- Defeat the approaching Crossbowmen
- Defeat the approaching Knights
- Defeat the approaching Spearmen and Crossbowmen
- Defeat the approaching Men-at-arms and Horsemen
- Defeat the approaching Archers and Knights
- Do not let the enemy burn down your village!
- You will lose if too many buildings are burned down (0/7)
Players[]
- Holy Roman Empire (Holy Roman Empire): The player trains units in the German Village, and deploys them against the oncoming attack waves. Any surviving units are turned over to the German Village for a few seconds before disappearing. The player must repel the attack waves with as few losses as possible to obtain a medal.
- German Village (Holy Roman Empire): Controls a Castle Age town containing military buildings, where the player can train a fixed number of units to repel the attack waves. The player loses if too many of their buildings are destroyed.
- Abbasid Dynasty (Abbasid Dynasty): Sends six attack waves against the player and the German Village, first three with one unit type, the other three with two unit types. The player must defeat these attack waves to complete the challenge.
Medals[]
- Gold: Fewer than 16 units lost
- Silver: Fewer than 31 units lost
- Bronze: Fewer than 41 units lost
Strategy[]
Follow the objectives and instructions given by the voice-over. For the first three waves, the player can train a fixed number of one type of units (15 Spearmen, 15 Archers, 10 Horsemen, 10 Men-at-Arms, 10 Crossbowmen, 5 Knights) from the German Village military buildings.
For the waves involving enemy Crossbowmen, it is recommended to train Horsemen (as Crossbowmen have no bonus attack against them), move to a Stealth Forest, and attack once in range. Since the Crossbowmen will focus on one unit, quickly pulling the attacked Horseman back to a Stealth Forest can avoid losses while the other Horsemen kill enemies one by one. When using ranged units, using line formation can help maximize focused attack against individual enemies, while using hit-and-run tactics to minimize damage to the player's own units.
For the fifth wave, it is recommended to use the chokepoint near the impassable cliffs, using Spearmen to block off the chokepoint and counter enemy Horsemen while Crossbowmen pick off Men-at-Arms before they can reach them.
As in the challenge scenario Basic Combat, properly splitting later enemy waves with the right counters can help minimize losses, for example with Horsemen engaging enemy ranged units from behind to prevent them targeting other units.
Gallery[]
