Age of Empires II HD: The Forgotten (informally abbreviated to AoF) is the second official expansion pack for Age of Empires II. It features five new civilizations like The Conquerors (the Incas, Indians, Italians, Magyars, and Slavs), four campaigns (with three planned to be added later), new units and technologies, new maps, enhanced AI, a higher population limit, greater on-screen rendering, bug fixes and several tweaks to old units, technologies, and bonuses for improved gameplay balance. It was released along with patch 3.0.
Originating as a fan-made modification (before they became Forgotten Empires Studios) entitled Age of Empires II: Forgotten Empires, the expansion was developed with SkyBox Labs and released in 2013 exclusively on Steam. It requires the Age of Empires II HD Edition for installation.
Civilizations[]
Architecture set | Civilizations |
---|---|
Eastern European | Magyars |
Slavs | |
Middle Eastern | Indians |
American | Incas |
Mediterranean | Italians |
- Magyars: The people who created the nation of Hungary, the Magyars, were initially nomads from the Eastern steppes. A cavalry civilization, their unique unit is the Magyar Huszar.
- Indians: Many Indian kingdoms were active in the medieval period. In AoFE, they are a camel and gunpowder civilization, and their unique units are the Elephant Archer and Imperial Camel.
- Incas: The first civilization from South America and the most expanded in the Middle Age, the Incas established a vast empire and conquered many other tribes before eventually succumbing to the Spanish. They are an infantry civilization and have two unique units; the Kamayuk and the Slinger.
- Italians: The various cities of Italy were the sites of much technological, artistic, and military achievement during the Middle Ages. They are an archer and naval civilization, with the Genoese Crossbowman as their unique unit. They and their allies can also train Condottieri at their Barracks.
- Slavs: They represent Eastern Slavic nations like Novgorod or Kievan Rus. The Slavs are an infantry/siege civilization and their unique unit is the Boyar.
Units[]
Trainable units[]
- Boyar (Standard and Elite) - Castle unique unit of the Slavs, heavy cavalry unit with high attack.
- Condottiero - Team bonus of the Italians, available to Italians and their allies. Quick anti-gunpowder infantry unit, can be trained at the Barracks upon reaching the Imperial Age.
- Elephant Archer (Standard and Elite) - Castle unique unit of the Indians, heavy cavalry archer with low speed but very high hit points.
- Eagle Scout - Native American infantry unit, it can be trained at the Barracks once the Feudal Age is reached.
- Genoese Crossbowman (Standard and Elite) - Castle unique unit of the Italians, foot archer with an attack bonus against cavalry.
- Imperial Camel Rider - Second unique unit of the Indians, an anti-cavalry unit.
- Kamayuk (Standard and Elite) - Castle unique unit of the Incas, an anti-cavalry infantry unit that carries a very long spear.
- Magyar Huszar (Standard and Elite) - Castle unique unit of the Magyars, a light and quick cavalry unit with an attack bonus against siege weapons.
- Slinger - Second unique unit of the Incas, an anti-infantry ranged unit.
Scenario Editor units[]
- Centurion
- Heavy Swordsman
- Legionary
- Eastern Swordsman
- Heavy Pikeman
- Nordic Swordsman
- Royal Janissary
- Flamethrower
- Siege Tower
- Dragon Ship
Technologies[]
General technologies[]
- Eagle Warrior (300 food, 200 gold): Upgrades Eagle Scouts to Eagle Warriors (+1 pierce armor, +3 second training time, +5 HP) (Castle Age)
- Gillnets (200 food, 300 wood): +25% gather rate for Fishing Ships (Castle Age)
Unique technologies[]
In The Forgotten, every civilization has two unique technologies: one in the Castle Age, and one in the Imperial Age. Both must be researched at the Castle. The Goths had theirs since The Conquerors.
- Andean Sling: Skirmisher-line & Slingers no minimum range (Incas, Castle Age)
- Atlatl: Skirmisher-line +1 Attack, +1 Range (Aztecs, Castle Age)
- Boiling Oil: Main Castle projectile deals +9 extra damage vs. rams (Persians, Castle Age)
- Chieftains: Berserks get +4 attack bonus vs. Cavalry (Vikings, Castle Age)
- Chivalry: Stables work 40% faster (Franks, Castle Age)
- Couriers: Kamayuks, Slingers & Eagle Warrior line move +10% faster (Incas, Imperial Age)
- Druzhina: Infantry damage adjacent units (5 damage in 0.5 tiles per attack) (Slavs, Imperial Age)
- Great Wall: Walls and towers +30% HP (Chinese, Castle Age)
- Greek Fire: Fire Ship line +1 Range (Byzantines, Castle Age)
- Inquisition: Monks convert faster (Spanish, Castle Age)
- Ironclad: Siege weapons get +4 extra melee armor (Teutons, Castle Age)
- Madrasah: Killed owned Monks return 33% of their cost (Saracens, Castle Age)
- Marauders: Create Tarkans at Stables (Huns, Castle Age)
- Mercenaries: Magyar Huszars cost no gold (Magyars, Castle Age)
- Nomads: Destroyed Houses don't lose their population room (Mongols, Castle Age)
- Orthodoxy: Monks +3/+3 armor (Slavs, Castle Age)
- Panokseon: Turtle Ships move 15% faster (Koreans, Castle Age)
- Pavise: Genoese Crossbowman +1/+1 armor (Italians, Castle Age)
- Recurve Bow: Cavalry archers +1 range (Magyars, Imperial Age)
- Shatagni: Hand Cannoneers +1 range (Indians, Imperial Age)
- Silk Road: Trade units cost -50% (Italians, Imperial Age)
- Sipahi: Cavalry archers +20 HP (Turks, Castle Age)
- Stronghold: Castles & towers fire 25% faster (Celts, Castle Age)
- Sultans: All gold production +10% faster (Indians, Castle Age)
- Obsidian Arrows: Archer-line has +3 attack vs. buildings (Mayans, Castle Age)
- Warwolf: Trebuchets do blast damage, 100% accuracy (Britons, Imperial Age)
- Yasama: Towers shoot extra arrows (Japanese, Castle Age)
Campaigns[]
- Alaric (Goths): The trauma of the Hun invasion in the 4th century has shaped Alaric, the fearsome warrior king of the Goths. But can the beloved king secure a new homeland for his people in the territory of the collapsing Roman Empire?
- Sforza (Italians): Always hungry for glory and wealth, Sforza wanders around 15th century Italy, offering his services to the highest bidder. Will he pick the right battles or make the wrong enemy? Take the fate of the young mercenary captain in your hands.
- Bari (Byzantines): 400 years after the collapse of the Roman Empire, Italy is still up for grabs. Relive the tale of the port city Bari from the point of view of a Byzantine family, rising from the common soldiery to the nobility. Beware, for not only Bari is at stake, but also control of Southern Italy.
- Vlad Dracula (Magyars, Slavs): History forged an incredible legend around the man who ruled Wallachia in the mid-15th century. Holding his ground against the vast armies of the expanding Ottoman Empire, his cruel tactics made him the most feared man in all of Eastern Europe. Shall his thirst for blood and the loyalty of his soldiers hold the Turks back for good?
- El Dorado (Incas, Spanish; added in patch 3.3): Join Francisco Orellana and Gonzalo Pizarro on their quest to find El Dorado, the legendary Lost City of Gold, thought to be hidden somewhere in the vast Amazon rainforest. Will their quest along the Amazon River lead to lifelong prosperity?
- Prithviraj (Indians; added in patch 3.5): As the 12th century comes to a close, India is divided between the ruling Rajput clans. One of them, the Chauhans, have just been blessed with a new king. His name is Prithviraj and his determination to unite the rival states is unprecedented. But what happens when he falls in love with the daughter of his enemy? And does he have the strength to stop a full-scale Muslim invasion from the west?
- Battles of the Forgotten (various; added in patch 3.6): Time has faded the names of many of the greatest leaders ever known. During their age they were famed for their fierceness on the battlefield, their just rule and their quest for power. Witness the path to glory of Richard the Lionheart, Minamoto no Yoritomo, Sultan Osman Ghazi, Khosrau and many more.
New random maps[]
- Cenotes: Open rushing map (Arabia style) with a standard set of resources. Small lakes are scattered around all over the map and provide little fish.
- City of Lakes: Semi-closed water map. Galley rushing can prove fatal on the wrong lake, and fishing on the right one can mean a great boost for your economy. Rather easy to wall, but transports are possible from all sides.
- Hideout: Players start in their little hideout camp in the forest. You'll have to break free to conquer your foes.
- Budapest: A spiced up version of your everyday map, starting with two Town Centers.
- Steppe: Nomadic map; players start out with a few yurts and 3 extra villagers. There is an abundance of hunt wanders on the plains in the center of the map.
- Valley: Semi-open map. A dried up river runs through the middle, with herds of deer trying to drink from the last puddles that run along the sandy shore. If you want to hunt, you'll have to go there. But you won't be aloneā¦
- Hill Fort: Fortress type map; players start on a hill together with their teammates. Can you take over your opponents hill, or will they make it impenetrable?
- Lombardia: Open map; players start clumped together with their teammates. Good coordination between teammates seems more vital than ever to rule these Northern Italian lands. Divide et Impera!
- Acropolis: Extremely open map; players start on a hill that is impossible to wall. They must come off their hill to gather resources in the carnage below. They say of the Acropolis where the Parthenon isā¦
- Golden Pit: Variation of Gold Rush. A pit in the center of the map contains large mining reserves. However, protecting the pit means you have to fight uphill. Hill advantage or gold to spend, the choice is yours to make (Incredible map for FFA ā Free For All games).
- MegaRandom: It can be anything!
Fauna[]
- Bear
- Cow
- Camel
- Dolphin
- Donkey
- Llama
- Penguin
- Tiger (Removed due to copyright issues)
- Dragon (Removed due to copyright issues)
Other features[]
- Two new game modes: "Capture the Relic" and "Treaty".
- New size of map "LudiKRIS".
- Population limit of 500 (the Forgotten Empires mod had up to 1000).
- Improved AI, the player can choose between Promiskuitiv's enhanced AI (new default 'Computer') or manually select the old 'Conquerors AI' (Petersen AI).
Reception[]
Although there are no official reviews, Age of Empires II HD was well-received by the Steam community, where it has a rating of 9/10.
Most reviews praised the 5 new civilizations, new technologies, fixes, random maps and the design of the campaigns (eyecandy) and some of its content.
However, the new AI and campaigns content were considered "bad", with the AI being called "dumbed down" and not as good as the Conquerors' AI. The campaigns were attacked for leaving the build and destroy style, for a "Fixed Force" or "Regicide with a Hero" (used in many fanmade scenarios) along with units being stuck in eyecandy, being too hard, and "not allowing you to play/unskippable cutscenes".
Another criticism for this expansion is that some civilizations were too broad, so the Indians were split into four civilizations in Dynasties of India, the Slavs' umbrella civilization was accompanied with Bulgarians, Bohemians, and Poles in the Definitive Edition, and Sicilians were derived from Italians.