Continental is a map in Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome, Age of Empires II, and Age of Empires IV.
Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome[]
| “ | A massive island with nothing but the ocean around it. Conquering the hills deep within becomes just as vital as battling on the coasts. | ” |
| —Return of Rome description | ||
Continental selection in Return of Rome
Continental represents a circular, giant island, surrounded by water. Resources are more abundant in land than in the Age of Empires II version, and there are also more trees, mostly Forest Trees.
There might also be some ponds (or a single large one), scattered asymmetrically through the mainland. These include some Shore Fish, but beware of the occasional Alligator and duo of Lions. Chokepoints tend to be surprisingly abundant for a land-and-water map, with cliffs and forests, thus even providing some turtling potential (that can still be somewhat nullified with Light and Heavy Transports).
It is highly recommended to focus about ⅓ of the food production to the sea, just in case the enemy kills many of the player's Villagers. And of course, try to invest in a military navy, that can strike the enemy's Fishing Boats.
Age of Empires II[]
Continental selection
| “ | A large body of land surrounded by the sea; rivers may separate players and teams. | ” |
Description[]
Continental is a mostly land map, surrounded by water. Rivers and series of lakes separate opposing teams and there is an isolated island/peninsula/land joint in the middle. The center of the map is connected to each player through shallows or land passes. Wood is located in piles and is not as frequent as on other maps. Gold is usually more abundant, while stone and food are similar to the average map.
Start-up resources are standard, with 8 small herdables or 6 six Cows around the Town Center, 2 aggressive huntables, 3–4 passive huntable animals, 6 Berry Bushes and normal piles of gold and stone. Wolves or other wild predators can be found scattered alone all over the map. The number of Relics is fixed to five independently of the map size.
It has the in-game map tag "Mixed".
Viable strategies[]
Walling early in order to perform a Turtle strategy is a very viable option on this map, as the rivers, lakes, cliffs and the surrounding sea serve as natural barriers for land troops. However, naval support is advised and required for a successful defense. Focus should be on coastal defense against the opponent's transports. A Boom strategy can be followed if the defense is successful, and for that economic boom to succeed, making additional Docks for spamming Fishing Ships would be required.
Early rushes will not be as successful as in more open maps, due to the need for a navy, putting a strain on the player's wood and food. It is a better idea to rush late in the Feudal Age or early in the Castle Age, when the economy has begun to blossom. The water is not as prominent on the map, but the more limited wood supply means that players should split their food duties fifty-fifty with Farms and Fishing Ships. Having a good navy is somewhat essential, but not a major key to the game.
Civilizations with advantages include:
- Civilizations with good navy: Vikings, Spanish, Byzantines, Malay, Italians, Portuguese, Persians, Koreans, Japanese, etc.
- Civilizations with good defense and particularly good towers and Castles: Koreans, Incas, Teutons, Byzantines, Turks, etc.
- Civilizations with bonuses regarding Fishing Ships, or better shore fish workrate: Japanese, Malay, Italians, Hindustanis.
- Civilizations with good Siege Workshop: Ethiopians, Celts, Khmer, Koreans, Chinese, Slavs, Mongols etc.
- Archer-based civilizations: Britons, Mayans, Vietnamese, etc.
Malians (as their building discount bonus helps them to save wood, which is somewhat scarce on the map)
Civilizations that may struggle in Continental:
Age of Empires IV[]
| “ | A large land mass surrounded by ocean. Hunting is minimal, but there are plenty of fish in the sea | ” |
| —Age of Empires IV description | ||
Continental is a hybrid random map in Age of Empires IV. It features one large center island and four smaller corner islands separated by a narrow sea.
Features[]
The large land mass featured on this map is always mostly circular and flat, except for a single mountain in the center. The mountain is purely cosmetic, and there are no resources or other features on it. On each corner of the map is a small island, and each island has 2 Relics, regardless of map size or player number. These islands are separated from the main island by only a narrow sea containing many patches of Stealth Kelp Forests. Players will spawn evenly distributed around the main island, in close proximity to the coast and across from each other. 3 Coastal Trade Posts and 3 Sacred Sites alternate evenly along the coast of the island. Curiously, this map is listed in the game as having an increased number of Trade Posts, but other maps with 3 or more, such as Baltic, do not have this tag.
Resources[]
While the description of this map is correct in identifying its abundance of both Shoreline and Deep Water Fish, it has a questionable assessment of the hunting, which is actually more abundant on this map than normal. On the main island, there will always be 2 large Deer packs and 1 Boar per player, while on each of the corner islands, a single Boar or a large Deer pack will also spawn, potentially resulting in up to 6 Boar or 8 Deer packs in a 1 vs 1. The one area of food which is lacking is the number of Berry Bush patches, which is limited to the single starting medium patch per player. 1 Large and 3 Small Gold Mines spawn per player, as do 1 Large and 2 Small Stone Outcroppings. Each player will start with a single small woodline next to their base, but other large patches of irregularly shaped forest cover the main island, as do patches of Stealth Forest.
Gallery[]
