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This article is about the architecture set in Age of Empires III. For architecture sets in other games of the series, see Architecture set. |
The original Age of Empires III features three different architecture sets, each used by either two or three of eight European civilizations overall. The Definitive Edition adds three more Western civilizations, one per set. Non-European civilizations added in The WarChiefs, The Asian Dynasties, and The African Royals all have unique styles. The current number of civilizations is 22 (plus additional derived civilizations that are only found in the campaigns).
In the Exploration Age, all Europeans share an architecture set based on colonial log cabins. Other Exploration Age architecture sets are shared by the Chinese and Japanese, on one hand, and the Ethiopians and Hausa on another. In all these cases the architecture changes from the Commerce Age on.
All civilizations have a unique flag that appears waving over the civilization's main buildings and ships, even if they share architecture.
List of architecture sets[]
| Set | Civilizations | Example |
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| Eastern European |  Germans Russians Swedes
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| Mediterranean/Southern European |  Italians Maltese Mexicans Ottomans Portuguese Spanish
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| Western European |  British Dutch French United States
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| East Asian (until the Colonial Age[notes 1]) |  Chinese Japanese
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| African |  Ethiopians Hausa
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| Unique |  Aztecs
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 Haudenosaunee
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 Inca
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 Indians
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 Lakota
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Campaign-only civilizations[]
The following civilizations can only be found in campaign mode, and are alterations of the playable civilizations to some extent.
| Set | Civilizations |
|---|---|
| Eastern European |  Circle of Ossus Tatars
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| Mediterranean/Southern European |  Barbary Pirates Knights of St. John Moroccans
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| Western European |  Black Family Estate Canadians John Black's Mercenaries Pirates United States (campaign) United States (scenario)
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| African | Ethiopians (scenario) Somalians
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Some of these factions have mixed architecture or change style based on the scenario:
- The Knights of St. John have British Churches (and also Settlers and Priests) despite using the Southern building set otherwise (and a tech tree mostly based on the Spanish).
- The Circle of Ossus has Northern European architecture with Western European Manor Houses.
- John Black's Mercenaries, inverse of the above, have Western European architecture with Northern European Houses.
- The Black Family Estate uses Western European architecture in some scenarios and Haudenosaunee in others.
- Tatars have access to both European and Asian buildings, with the Europe-only buildings, the Market and the Barracks using the North European architecture, while the Asia-only buildings and the Town Center use Indian architecture. They also have access to both the Mosque and the Monastery.
Native settlements[]
Native American settlements can be divided into four architecture sets based on the main structures found in them: Mesoamerican stone houses, Teepees, Longhouses and Wigwams. Non-American settlements introduced in The Asian Dynasties, The African Royals, and Knights of the Mediterranean all have unique architecture, and the reworked Quechua (formerly Incas) also get a unique architecture based on the playable Incas. Cherokee settlements feature both longhouses and wigwams.
| Set | Civilizations | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Mesoamerican |  Aztecs Inca (previously) Maya Zapotec
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| Longhouse |  Cherokee Huron Haudenosaunee Klamath Lenape Nootka
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| Teepee |  Comanche Cheyenne Cree Lakota
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| Wigwam |  Apache Carib Cherokee Mapuche Navajo Seminole Tupi
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| Unique |  Akan
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See Gallery |
 Berbers
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 Bhakti Temple
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 House of Bourbon
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 House of Habsburg
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 House of Hanover
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 House of Jagiellon
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 House of Oldenburg
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 House of Phanar
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 House of Vasa
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 House of Wettin
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 House of Wittelsbach
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 Jesuit Mission
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| Quechua
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 Shaolin Temple
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 Somalis
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 Sudanese
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 Sufi Mosque
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 Tengri Shrine
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 Udasi Temple
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 Yoruba
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 Zen Temple
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Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Each European civilization features a unique Church model, except the Maltese, which reuses the Spanish Church model.
- Settlers, Villagers, and (with some exceptions) Priests have appearances tied to the architecture set (sometimes obscured because of civilizations that get unique replacements, like the Coureur des Bois, Missionary, or Imam).
References[]
- ↑ From the Colonial Age, the Chinese and Japanese building models begin to vary, with the Chinese ones being based on Ming and Qing period architecture while the Japanese ones are based on Later-Sengoku to Edo period. Both their Castles are based on Japanese Tenshukaku of Matsumoto-Jo (Matsumoto Castle).
