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This article is about the unit in Age of Empires IV: The Sultans Ascend. For the unit in Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition - The African Royals, see Desert Raider (Age of Empires III).

Versatile Cavalry unit that can swap between ranged and melee attacks with a toggle.
Age of Empires IV description

The Desert Raider is a light cavalry unit in Age of Empires IV: The Sultans Ascend and is unique to the Ayyubids. It can switch between melee and ranged modes. It is a strict addition to the Ayyubid roster, as it does not replace anything. It can be trained at both the Stable and Archery Range and can also be spawned automatically from the House of Wisdom if Reinforcement is chosen.

The Desert Raider is also available to the Byzantines as a mercenary unit.

Ability[]

  • The Desert Raider can swap its weapon at will, with only a very short ~1 second cooldown. It has the option of:
    • AoE4 DesertRaiderBlade Desert Raider Blade: Swap to a melee Sword weapon.
    • AoE4 DesertRaiderBow Desert Raider Bow: Swap to a ranged Bow weapon.
  • AoE4 CamelUnease Camel Unease: Enemy horse-riding cavalry within a 5-tile radius deal 20% less damage.

Tactics[]

Due to their ability to swap between melee and ranged attacks, Desert Raiders can be considered a combination of the Camel Rider and Camel Archer, with a few key differences. Compared to both units, the Desert Raider has fewer hit points, but a lower cost, especially in terms of food. The cheaper cost, faster training time, and availability in the Feudal Age (the Camel Archer is also available in the Feudal Age) means the Desert Raider can be massed earlier and more cheaply.

In melee mode, compared to a Camel Rider, the Desert Raider has higher attack (and bonus damage against cavalry). As a ranged unit, it does less damage than a Camel Archer and lacks any attack bonus (even that against light melee infantry which the former has), but has longer range. In either mode, the Desert Raider has high melee armor.

The overall strength of the unit lies in its ability to swap modes depending on enemy army compositions. Desert Raiders can never be forced into an unfavorable matchup; any other ranged unit might be facing a highly-resistant siege weapon. It can be considered to counter Spearmen in ranged mode due to its ability to hit-and-run, but can swap to melee mode to do more damage when engaging cavalry or Men-at-Arms. The mode swap also grants the Desert Raider a unique role as a ranged unit with a torch attack. Even if used primarily as a mounted archer, swapping to melee mode will allow the Desert Raider to quickly take down structures.

Besides common cavalry counters like Spearmen, which can generally be outrun or fought from range, Desert Raiders lack ranged armor, and so are vulnerable to ranged attacks. Archers and Crossbowmen both trade cost-effectively and should not be fought without support such as Horsemen. Even in melee mode, the Desert Raider takes anti-ranged bonus damage, so it is vulnerable to Javelin Throwers and Mangonels, but the matchup vs Horsemen is also somewhat neutral despite the anti-cavalry bonus and Camel Unease ability. The Desert Raider, despite being able to attack in melee mode, does not have the 'melee' unit type, meaning it does not take extra bonus damage from the Bedouin Swordsman.

For tactics applying to all units with the Camel Unease debuff, see Camel Unease.

Unit comparison[]

Ranged[]

AoE4 CamelArcher Camel Archer AoE4 DesertRaider Ranged Desert Raider
Cost 180 food, 60 wood 80 food, 50 wood, 50 gold
Training time 35 s 30 s
Hit points 140 (Regular)
170 (Veteran)
200 (Elite)
120 (Regular)
145 (Veteran)
175 (Elite)
Attack 12 (Regular)
14 (Veteran)
15 (Elite)
7 (Regular)
9 (Veteran)
11 (Elite)
Bonus vs light melee infantry 12 (Regular)
14 (Veteran)
15 (Elite)
0
Melee armor 0 5 (Regular)
6 (Veteran)
7 (Elite)
Range 3.75 tiles 4.5 tiles
Attack speed 1.25 s 1.25 s

Melee[]

AoE4 CamelRider Camel Rider AoE4 DesertRaider Melee Desert Raider
Cost 160 food, 30 wood, 30 gold 80 food, 50 wood, 50 gold
Training time 35 s 30 s
Hit points N/A (Feudal Age)
270 (Regular)
320 (Elite)
120 (Regular)
145 (Veteran)
175 (Elite)
Attack N/A (Feudal Age)
14 (Regular)
16 (Elite)
13 (Regular)
15 (Veteran)
19 (Elite)
Bonus vs cavalry N/A (Feudal Age)
14 (Veteran)
16 (Elite)
13 (Regular)
15 (Veteran)
19 (Elite)
Melee armor 0
+3 with Camel Rider Barding
+2 with Camel Rider Shields
5 (Regular)
6 (Veteran)
7 (Elite)
Attack Speed 1.13 s 1.25 s

Further statistics[]

Strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs. Light melee infantry (in ranged mode), Cavalry (in melee mode, except Horsemen)
Weak vs. Archers, Crossbowman
Conditional matchups Horsemen, Mangonels
Technologies
Hpicon aoe2de Hit points AoE4 Biology Biology (+30%)
Attack AoE4 Bloomery Bloomery (+1 melee)
AoE4 Decarbonization Decarbonization (+1 melee)
AoE4 DamascusSteel Damascus Steel (+1 melee)
AoE4 SteeledArrow Steeled Arrow (+1 ranged)
AoE4 BalancedProjectiles Balanced Projectiles (+1 ranged)
AoE4 PlatecutterPoint Platecutter Point (+1 ranged)
AoE4 IncendiaryArrows Incendiary Arrows (+20% ranged)
Rangeicon aoe2de Range AoE4 SilkBowstrings Silk Bowstrings (+0.75)
Armor AoE4 FittedLeatherwork Fitted Leatherwork (+1 melee)
AoE4 InsulatedHelm Insulated Helm (+1 melee)
AoE4 MasterSmiths Master Smiths (+1 melee)
AoE4 IronUndermesh Iron Undermesh (+1 ranged)
AoE4 WedgeRivets Wedge Rivets (+1 ranged)
AoE4 AngledSurfaces Angled Surfaces (+1 ranged)
Creation speed AoE4 MilitaryAcademy Military Academy (+33%)
Ability AoE4 Reinforcement Miltary Wing - Reinforcement (Can build Battering Rams, Siege Towers, Springalds, and Mangonels)
Other AoE4 Reinforcement Miltary Wing - Reinforcement (Spawns from House of Wisdom)
Abilities and Enhancements
Armor AoE4 CamelSupportEnhancement Infantry Support (+3 melee/ranged)
AoE2DE icon Reload Time Attack speed AoE4 GoldenAgeTier5 Golden Age: Tier 5 (+20%)
Creation speed AoE4 GoldenAgeTier3 Golden Age Tier 3 (+20%)

Mercenary Desert Raider[]

The Byzantines can purchase Desert Raiders with Olive Oil from a Mercenary House built next to a Trade Post (if available) after researching Veteran Contracts. Once unlocked, they can train automatically from the Golden Horn Tower. In addition to generic upgrades, they benefit from the following Byzantine unique bonuses:

Further statistics
AoE2DE icon HP Regen Regeneration AoE4 Triumph Triumph (+2 hp/s while active)
AoE4 PilgrimFlask Pilgrim Flask (25 hp/s for 6 seconds, requires Cistern of the First Hill)
Attack AoE4 Triumph Triumph (+4 while active)
AoE4 ImprovedTorch Improved Torch (+25% torch attack, requires Trapezites)
AoE2DE icon Movement Speed Movement speed AoE4 SpeedEnhancement Naval Deployment (+50% speed for 12 seconds after unloading from a Transport Ship)
AoE4 Triumph Triumph (+10% while active)
AoE4 ForeignEngineeringCompany Foreign Engineering Company (+15%, grants Camel Handling)
Creation speed AoE4 InfluenceBuff AoE4 Conscriptio Conscriptio Influence (+20% per Cistern water level)

Dialogue lines[]

The Camel Lancer uses the Abbasid Camel Archer voice lines

Main article: Camel Archer (Age of Empires IV)/Dialogue lines

Trivia[]

  • The Desert Raider has the same weapon switching ability as the Ratha in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Dynasties of India.
  • It is the only military unit in the game that can be created from two different standard military buildings (Stable and Archery Range).
  • Despite having 2 more melee armor than the Lancer (5/6/7 compared to 3/4/5), it is tagged as a "light" unit.

Gallery[]

Units in Age of Empires IV
Common/Generic
Miscellaneous AoE4 GenericVillager Villager · AoE4 Trader Trader · AoE4 FishingBoat Fishing Boat · AoE4 TradeShip Trade Ship · AoE4 TransportShip Transport Ship · AoE4 Monk Monk/Imam/Shaman · AoE4 Leader Monarch
Melee infantry AoE4 Spearman Spearman · AoE4 ManAtArms Man-at-Arms
Ranged infantry AoE4 Archer Archer · AoE4 Crossbowman Crossbowman · AoE4 Handcannoneer Handcannoneer
Melee cavalry AoE4 Scout Scout · AoE4 Horseman Horseman · AoE4 Knight Lancer/Knight
Siege AoE4 SiegeTower Siege Tower · AoE4 BatteringRam Battering Ram · AoE4 Springald Springald · AoE4 Mangonel Mangonel · AoE4 CounterweightTrebuchet Counterweight Trebuchet · AoE4 Bombard Bombard · AoE4 Ribauldequin Ribauldequin · AoE4 Culverin Culverin
Military ship AoE4 ArcherShip Archer ship: Dhow, Galley, Hunting Canoe, Junk, Light Junk, Lodya Galley
AoE4 SpringaldShip Springald ship: Baghlah, Hulk, Lodya Attack Ship, War Canoe, War Cog, War Junk
AoE4 IncendiaryShip Incendiary ship: Demolition Ship, Explosive Dhow, Explosive Junk, Lodya Demolition Ship
AoE4 Warship Warship: Baochuan, Carrack, Xebec
Cheat AoE4 PhotonMan Photon Man
Unique
Abbasid Dynasty AoE4 Abbasid Dynasty AoE4 CamelRider Camel Rider · AoE4 CamelArcher Camel Archer · AoE4 Ghulam Ghulam
Ayyubids AoE4 Ayyubids AoE4 Atabeg Atabeg · AoE4 BedouinSkirmisher Bedouin Skirmisher · AoE4 BedouinSwordsman Bedouin Swordsman · AoE4 CamelLancer Camel Lancer · AoE4 Dervish Dervish · AoE4 DesertRaider Desert Raider · AoE4 Ghulam Ghulam · AoE4 TowerOfTheSultan Tower of the Sultan
Byzantines AoE4 Byzantines AoE4 Cataphract Cataphract · AoE4 VarangianGuard Varangian Guard · AoE4 Cheirosiphon Cheirosiphon · AoE4 Limitanei Limitanei · AoE4 Dromon Dromon
Chinese AoE4 Chinese AoE4 ImperialOfficial Imperial Official · AoE4 ZhugeNu Zhuge Nu · AoE4 PalaceGuard Palace Guard · AoE4 NestOfBees Nest of Bees · AoE4 FireLancer Fire Lancer · AoE4 Grenadier Grenadier
Delhi Sultanate AoE4 Delhi Sultanate AoE4 Monk Scholar · AoE4 WarElephant War Elephant · AoE4 TowerElephant Tower Elephant · AoE4 SultansEliteTowerElephant Sultan's Elite Tower Elephant · AoE4 GhaziRaider Ghazi Raider
English AoE4 English AoE4 Longbowman Longbowman · AoE4 King King · AoE4 WynguardRanger Wynguard Ranger · AoE4 WynguardFootman Wynguard Footman
French AoE4 French AoE4 RoyalKnight Royal Knight · AoE4 Arbaletrier Arbalétrier · AoE4 Galleass Galleass · AoE4 Cannon Cannon
HRE AoE4 Holy Roman Empire AoE4 Monk Prelate · AoE4 Landsknecht Landsknecht
Japanese AoE4 Japanese AoE4 Warship Atakebune · AoE4 BuddhistMonk Buddhist Monk · AoE4 KatanaBannerman Katana Bannerman · AoE4 MountedSamurai Mounted Samurai · AoE4 OnnaBugeisha Onna-Bugeisha · AoE4 OnnaMusha Onna-Musha · AoE4 Ozutsu Ozutsu · AoE4 Samurai Samurai · AoE4 Shinobi Shinobi · AoE4 ShintoPriest Shinto Priest · AoE4 TreasureCaravan Treasure Caravan · AoE4 UmaBannerman Uma Bannerman · AoE4 YumiAshigaru Yumi Ashigaru · AoE4 YumiBannerman Yumi Bannerman
Jeanne d Arc AoE4 Jeanne d'Arc AoE4 JeannesChampion Jeanne's Champion · AoE4 JeannesRider Jeanne's Rider · AoE4 RoyalKnight Royal Knight · AoE4 Arbaletrier Arbalétrier · AoE4 Galleass Galleass · AoE4 Cannon Cannon · Jeanne d'Arc [AoE4 JdA Peasant Peasant · AoE4 JdA WomanAtArms Woman-at-Arms · AoE4 JdA Hunter Hunter · AoE4 JdA Knight Knight · AoE4 JdA MountedArcher Mounted Archer · AoE4 JdA BlastCannon Blast Cannon · AoE4 JdA Markswoman Markswoman]
Malians AoE4 Malians AoE4 Donso Donso · AoE4 MusofadiWarrior Musofadi Warrior · AoE4 JavelinThrower Javelin Thrower · AoE4 WarriorScout Warrior Scout · AoE4 Sofa Sofa · AoE4 FreebornWarrior Freeborn Warrior · AoE4 Cattle Cattle · AoE4 MusofadiGunner Musofadi Gunner
Mongols AoE4 Mongols AoE4 Khan Khan · AoE4 Mangudai Mangudai · AoE4 TurkicHorseArcher Khan's Hunter · AoE4 TractionTrebuchet Traction Trebuchet · AoE4 HuihuiPao Huihui Pao · AoE4 Keshik Keshik
Order of the Dragon AoE4 Order of the Dragon AoE4 GildedSpearman Gilded Spearman · AoE4 GildedManAtArms Gilded Man-at-Arms · AoE4 GildedLandsknecht Gilded Landsknecht · AoE4 GildedArcher Gilded Archer · AoE4 GildedCrossbowman Gilded Crossbowman · AoE4 DragonHandcannoneer Gilded Handcannoneer · AoE4 GildedHorseman Gilded Horseman · AoE4 GildedKnight Gilded Knight · AoE4 GenericVillager Gilded Villager · AoE4 Monk Prelate
Ottomans AoE4 Ottomans AoE4 Mehter Mehter · AoE4 Sipahi Sipahi · AoE4 HorseArcher Cavalry Archer · AoE4 Janissary Janissary · AoE4 GreatBombard Great Bombard · AoE4 GrandGalley Grand Galley
Rus AoE4 Rus AoE4 FishingBoat Lodya Fishing Boat · AoE4 WarriorMonk Warrior Monk · AoE4 HorseArcher Horse Archer · AoE4 Streltsy Streltsy · AoE4 Militia Militia
Zhu Xis Legacy AoE4 Zhu Xi's Legacy AoE4 ImperialOfficial Imperial Official · AoE4 ZhugeNu Zhuge Nu · AoE4 PalaceGuard Palace Guard · AoE4 NestOfBees Nest of Bees · AoE4 Grenadier Grenadier · AoE4 ImperialGuard Imperial Guard · AoE4 YuanRaider Yuan Raider · AoE4 ShaolinMonk Shaolin Monk
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