Strengths[]
The Dravidians have good early flexibility, thanks to the 200 wood they receive with each age. Their Fishermen and Fishing Ships carry +15 food, and their Docks hold +5 population space. Both bonuses allow for a good start on naval maps. The Dravidians also have a strong navy, as they have every Dock technology, their aforementioned wood bonus, and the Thirisadai (a heavy ship that fires multiple arrows).
Dravidian infantry are among the best in the game, as their Barracks technologies and upgrades cost 50% less, and their unique technology Wootz Steel enables their infantry's and cavalry's attack to ignore armor. Their unique unit is the Urumi Swordsman, an infantry unit akin to the Champion line, which has a charge attack that deals heavy splash damage.
They also have good archers, thanks in part to their wood bonus. They have fully upgradable Arbalesters, Hand Cannoneers, and Elite Skirmishers, the last of which also fire 25% faster with one of the Dravidians' bonuses. They also have access to the Elephant Archer, which also fires 25% faster, though the lack of Parthian Tactics, Husbandry, and Bloodlines makes them somewhat questionable.
The Dravidians have great siege, with a -33% wood discount that makes them more affordable. While they lack Siege Engineers, they offset this with access to every siege workshop unit (excluding the ram line, which is replaced with the Armored Elephant line).
The Dravidians have decent defenses, only lacking Architecture and Treadmill Crane at their University, while also having strong Halberdiers and Skirmishers for countering cavalry and archers, respectively.
Weaknesses[]
The Dravidians have one great weakness: their cavalry is among the worst of any non-American civilization, with only regular Battle Elephants and Light Cavalry at the Stable, along with missing Bloodlines and Plate Barding Armor. This means the Dravidians lack mobility for their troops.
Dravidian Monks are mediocre, as the Dravidians lack Redemption, Illumination, and Fervor at the Monastery.
Strategy[]
On land, the Dravidians are a civilization well suited for Feudal Age rushes. At the start, they must focus on advancing to the Feudal Age as soon as possible, since most of their advantages come in the Feudal Age. If they get lucky and find a pond with fish, or are playing on a water map, they may use the fish for aging up, as Fishermen carry +15 food. Likewise, their Fishing Ships also carry +15 food, and Docks provide +5 population, which means that on water maps, they can start the game by placing one House and a Dock, and use the saved 25 wood for the first Lumber Camp.
Once in the Feudal Age, depending on the situation, Dravidians may use their +200 wood they get for aging up to either perform an archer Rush, a Men-at-Arms rush, or for a Fast Castle. They may also perform a Scout rush, though they have poor long-term potential.
Although the Dravidians are considered an infantry civilization, they are well equipped for a Feudal Age rush using their Archery Range units, thanks to their +200 wood upon entering an Age and their faster-firing Skirmishers. In the case of this strategy, it is recommended that the player already has a Barracks before aging up, so as soon as the player reaches Feudal Age, they must use the 175 of the wood received for the Archery Range.
If the player chooses to perform a Men-at-Arms rush, it is recommended to make two Barracks; if wood is plentiful, the player may also build a Blacksmith in order to improve the armor and attack of their infantry. In any case, since their infantry upgrade cost at the Barracks is halved, they will have more resources after researching Supplies and Men-at-Arms.
For a Fast Castle strategy, the Dravidians should take their Dark Age as normal, aging up at 21 villagers; once in the Feudal Age, they should use the 200 wood for making a Market and gather another 125 wood for the Blacksmith. This way, the player will save time, as the Villagers may put more focus on the gold and food required for aging to the Castle Age. Once in the Castle Age, they will receive another 200 wood. Depending on the situation, they may use that wood for either a Town Center to perform a booming strategy, a Siege Workshop to make their discounted Mangonels, a Barracks, or an Archery Range. In some very rare cases, they may make a Stable and use the Battle Elephants, but as they can't improve them to Elite (while also lacking Husbandry and Bloodlines) a Battle Elephant rush should be done only in very specific cases.
As the game continues, the Dravidians will have to choose between a variety of strong units. The standard composition will be based around their strong infantry, which should be backed by Skirmishers and either Bombard Cannons or Siege Elephants. Alternatively, they can base their composition around their strong Arbalesters, Hand Cannoneers, Elite Elephant Archers, or Siege Onagers, supported by Halberdiers and Bombard Cannons.
The Dravidians have several advantages in trash wars in the late Imperial Age since they have fully upgraded Halberdiers with Wootz Steel that can beat Hussars and other Halberdiers with ease, and fully upgraded Elite Skirmishers that fire 25% faster, which can easily destroy enemy Halberdiers. However, as they lack Hussars, the trash Dravidian army will lack a lot of mobility. Their Champions with Wootz Steel and cheaper upgrades and their unique unit, the Urumi Swordsman, also give Dravidians a great late-game advantage vs. trash unit armies.
On water maps, the Dravidians will be strong throughout the game. Their wood bonus gives them more resources for the creation of Fishing Ships and combat ships. As the game goes on, they have access to the Thirisadai, which is a powerful ship that can bring needed late-game strength.
Patch changes[]
Update 66692 gives the Dravidians Bombard Cannons. While their siege remains average due to the lack of Siege Engineers, it allows the Dravidians a strong late-game answer to enemy Siege Onagers (a unit that threaten the Dravidian foot and elephant army). Similarly, their Elephant Archers have their cavalry armor increased from -7 to -4. Combined with their Medical Corps and faster firing rate, this makes them more usable in the late game.
Update 81058 gives the Dravidians Gambesons, which further supplements their Champion with Wootz Steel. Furthermore, Medical Corps has its cost reduced to make it easier to afford while increasing its hit point regeneration for their Elephant units by 30 per minute. The Dravidians also receive a new civilization bonus where their siege weapons cost -33% wood. This synergizes well with their wood bonus when advancing to the next age (For example, the Dravidian can opt to build a Siege Workshop in the Castle Age and it is easier to afford building their first Mangonel or can afford building their first Trebuchet in the Imperial Age). Despite this, their siege will still fall behind when compared to other civilizations' siege bonuses due to the lack of Siege Engineers.
With update 141935, the Dravidians gain access to Husbandry. Despite still having the worst Stable in the game, the addition of Husbandry is an essential boost for their Elephant Archers and Armored Elephants. In addition, Urumi Swordsmen move faster and have 1 more attack. As a result, Dravidians now have better mobile options.
Alliances[]
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In team games, Dravidians are a good choice for the flank position, due to their strong archer- and infantry-rushing capabilities. In general, the Dravidian team bonus is helpful on any map that contains a significant amount of water, but is virtually useless on land maps.
Some of the better partners for the Dravidians are civilizations that have a team bonus that can support their archer rush, infantry, and/or economy. While the Dravidians prefer basing their army on their infantry, they are also content with going into their strong ranged units. However, the Dravidians will want an ally to have good mobility.
Vietnamese: Dravidians already have faster-firing Skirmishers, so the ability to upgrade them to Imperial Skirmishers in the late game can be a solid upgrade. Meanwhile, while not top tier, the Vietnamese have a decent enough navy to appreciate the Dravidians' bonus. Furthermore, although both civilizations have strong foot archers, they otherwise complement one another fairly well, with the Dravidians offering far superior infantry and certain siege options (like superior Armored Elephants), while the Vietnamese provide far bulkier Battle Elephants and Bombard Cannons with Siege Engineers.
Compared advantages and disadvantages[]
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Advantages vs other civilizations[]
- The Dravidians' biggest strength is their strong infantry rush potential, thanks to their Barracks upgrades costing 50% less. In addition, they receive 200 wood upon advancing to the next Age, which can either allow them to boom, transition into an archer rush after their initial drush strategy, or have a mix of archers and infantry in their rush. This gives Dravidians an advantage against civilization who lack early-game economic bonuses, or civilizations that are vulnerable to Dark and Feudal Age rushes. Because of their strong rush potential, this makes Dravidians a solid civilization in open maps.
- The Dravidians' Imperial Age unique technology, Wootz Steel, gives them an advantage against civilizations with melee units that normally rely on having high melee armor.
- While the Dravidians have relatively strong infantry bonuses, they can also be a solid archer civilization, thanks to their civilization bonus of receiving 200 wood upon advancing to the next age and having access to fully upgradable Arbalesters. Combined with their access to Hand Cannoneers, this gives the Dravidians a significant edge against infantry civilizations. Their Skirmishers attacking faster can even allow them win trades against other archer civilizations.
- Their navy is the strongest in the game, as they are the only civilization to have access to a unique ship (Thirisadai) and all technologies and technologies available in the Dock. Combined with the increased capacity of their Fishing Ships and Fishermen, this gives them an edge against civilizations with lackluster navy.
- The Dravidians are relatively strong at trash wars, as they not only have faster-attacking Skrimishers, but their Light Cavalry's and Halberdiers' attacks can ignore armor. Combined with their access to the Urumi Swordsman and fully upgradable Champions, this gives a Dravidians an advantage against civilizations with weak trash units.
- The Dravidians have a complete Siege Workshop with access to the Armored Elephant line instead of the ram line, and their siege weapons cost less wood. This gives the Dravidians an advantage when besieging enemy defenses in the early Imperial Age, especially against civilizations that lack key defensive upgrades.
Disadvantages vs. other civilizations[]
- The weakness of the typical Dravidian cavalry makes it difficult for them to pursue Light Cavalry and Cavalry Archers. This can make them vulnerable to hit-and-run tactics.
- Their Monks are underwhelming, lacking several key important technologies (Fervor, Redemption, and Illumination). This can put the Dravidians at a disadvantage against civilizations with bonuses to their Monks, as their army is also vulnerable to conversion due to the lack of Heresy.
- Despite saving a lot of wood with their siege weapons, the lack of Siege Engineers will cause the Dravidian siege to be outclassed by civilizations with better bonuses to their siege (especially to civilizations with access to Siege Engineers).
Situational advantages[]
- Due to the Dravidians receiving 200 wood upon advancing in the next age, they have an advantage in maps where access to wood is relatively scarce (such as Ghost Lake).
- The Dravidians are also strong in open maps such as Arabia because of their strong rushing potential with their infantry and archers, and are a solid civilization in 1v1 matches thanks to their good trash war potential.
- Much like the Malay, the Dravidians are solid in water maps, but their civilization bonuses are best used in amphibious maps such as Bog Islands, or maps with mixture of both land and Water (such as Salt Marsh, Mediterranean, or Baltic), since the Dravidians can take advantage of their Fishing Ship and Fishermen carry capacity bonuses to produce their infantry and Elephant Archers.
- As their Fishing Ships and fishermen carry more food, the Dravidians have an advantage in maps that start out with a Dock or Fishing Ships (i.e. Water Nomad).
