Hero (Age of Empires II)

This article is about the heroes in Age of Empires II. For heroes in other games of the series, see Hero.

Joan the Maid's icon in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition

Heroes are special units in Age of Empires II. Unavailable in regular games, heroes typically refer to historical figures. As such, they are often featured in campaign scenarios, but also make appearances in the Battle Royale mode. They are often must-survive units in campaigns, i.e. their death means instant defeat.

Heroes are characterized by the following properties, which were split in the Definitive Edition for versatility and to reduce hardcoding. Before that, all properties of heroes were combined in hero mode 1. Some of these properties were present at the release, while some were added in The Conquerors, and some were added in the Definitive Edition.

• 1 - Full Hero Mode - Appears in Heroes tab if unit, and Building or Other tab if building in addition to the effects 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64
• 2 - Cannot be converted (since the Conquerors)
• 4 - Regenerate 30 hit points per minute (since the Conquerors)
• 8 - Default Defensive Stance
• 16 - Protected Formation - hero units always occur in the back of the player army when moving in line formation, or in the middle of the box when moving in box formation
• 32 - Safe Delete Confirmation - warning appears when trying to delete (since the Definitive Edition)
• 64 - Golden Glow (since the Definitive Edition)

The numbers beside the properties are used when only some features of a hero are to be enabled for a unit. When all features are to be enabled, 1 is used, which is equivalent to 126 except that the unit appears in the regular units tab instead of the heroes tab. Flag 128 is used to invert the effect of a property when used with 0 (if used with 0, better not use 128 too) or 1. For example, Hunting Wolves have Hero Mode 193, which means that they have properties 1 (full hero mode), 64 (glow) and 128 (inversion), which combines to give Hunting Wolves all hero properties except glow. Hence, all heroes except the Hunting Wolf have a distinct, golden glow that helps tell them apart from common units.

Heroes often have unique icons and sometimes even unique unit designs, and usually have good combat stats, making them very valuable in-game.

Tsar Konstantin, a very unique hero

List of heroes

Hero	Type	Sprite	Campaign appearances	Civilization
The Age of Kings
Aethelfrith	Infantry	Woad Raider	Vinlandsaga (DE) The Saxon Revolt Legionaries on the Horizon! Finehair Ironside Ragnar	Celts
Archbishop	Monk	Monk	Langshan Jiang The Old World (DE) An Unlikely Alliance The Matter of the Crown Ironside Ragnar
Archer of the Eyes	Foot archer	Arbalester	The Siege of Jerusalem The Lion and the Demon The Emperor Sleeping Arrival at Bari (HD) A Promising Warrior The Right Partner
Bad Neighbor	Siege weapon	Trebuchet	The Lion and the Demon	Britons
Belisarius	Cavalry	Cataphract Centurion (DE)	Legionaries on the Horizon! The Return of the Dragon (HD) The Moon Rises (HD) Bapheus (HD) Honfoglalás (HD) The Siege Bohemond and the Emperor The Emperor's Revenge Constantine XI Fetih Ironside	Byzantines
Charlemagne	Infantry	Throwing Axeman	The Saxon Revolt The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD) Finehair Ironside Karlsefni Ragnar	Franks
Charles Martel	Infantry	Throwing Axeman	Tours Ragnar	Franks
Constable Richemont	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	A Perfect Martyr The Fruits of Her Labor Robert	Franks
Duke D'Alençon	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	The Maid of Orleans Emperor of the West Hammer of the Scots Vain Ambition Bohemond in the East Ironside	Franks
El Cid	Infantry	Champion	Brother against Brother The Exile of the Cid The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD)	Spanish
Emperor in a Barrel	Civilian	Trade Cart	The Emperor Sleeping The Elopement Tales of La Canela Cyprus (HD) A Dangerous Mission In the Shadow of the Throne Rising Star	Teutons
Erik the Red	Infantry	Berserk	Vinlandsaga The Saxon Revolt The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD) Ironside Karlsefni Ragnar	Vikings
Frankish Paladin	Cavalry	Unique	Barbarossa's March (DE) The Saxon Revolt Bohemond and the Emperor Robert	Franks
Friar Tuck	Monk	Monk	The Saxon Revolt Where the One-Eyed Man is King	Britons
Gawain	Cavalry	Cavalier	Arrival at Bari (HD)	Celts
Genghis Khan	Mounted archer	Mangudai	Crucible Arrival at Bari (HD) Honfoglalás (HD) Temujin	Mongols
God's Own Sling	Siege weapon	Trebuchet	The Lion and the Demon Cyprus (DE) Mangudai Madness The Siege	Britons
Guy Josselyne	Cavalry	Paladin	A Perfect Martyr The Saxon Revolt The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD) The Return of the Dragon (HD) The Moon Rises (HD) Arrival at Bari (HD) The Old World (HD) A Titan Amongst Mortals Bohemond in the East Courage and Coin	Franks
Harold Haardraade (removed)	Monk	Monk	None	Vikings
Hrolf the Ganger	Infantry	Berserk	Finehair Ragnar Robert	Vikings
Hunting Wolf	Infantry	Wolf	The Horde Rides West Pax Mongolica The Great Ride The Triple Alliance (HD) The Legend of Prithviraj (formerly) Honfoglalás (HD) The Old World The Old Tiger Raising the Banners The Battle at the Kalka River A Most Unlikely Man Tsar of the Bulgars Amir of Transoxiana Warrior of God Finehair
Jean Bureau	Siege weapon	Bombard Cannon	A Perfect Martyr The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD)	Franks
Jean de Lorrain	Siege weapon	Bombard Cannon	The Siege of Paris	Franks
Joan of Arc	Cavalry	Unique	The Maid of Orleans The Cleansing of the Loire The Rising The Siege of Paris The Maid Falls Stephen	Franks
Joan the Maid	Infantry	Unique	An Unlikely Messiah The Sack of Rome Tales of La Canela The Right Partner The Maid Falls The Siege of Vilnius Ragnar	Franks
King Arthur	Infantry	Champion	None	Celts
Kitabatake	Infantry	Samurai	Kurikara	Japanese
Kushluk	Cavalry	Cavalier Unique (DE)	A Life of Revenge Emperor of the West The Sack of Rome The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD) Honfoglalás (HD) A Most Unlikely Man An Unlikely Alliance Echoes of Heroes The Tatar Yoke Pearl of the East Ragnar Temujin	Mongols
La Hire	Infantry	Champion	Bari (HD) - all scenarios The Cleansing of the Loire A Perfect Martyr Arrival at Bari (DE)	Franks
Lancelot	Cavalry	Paladin	None	Celts
Lord de Graville	Foot archer	Arbalester	The Siege of Paris The White Elephant (DE)	Franks
Master of the Templar	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	The Siege of Jerusalem O Fortuna The Cannibals Hammer of the Scots	Franks
Minamoto	Infantry	Samurai	Kurikara	Japanese
Mordred	Cavalry	Paladin	None	Celts
Ornlu the Wolf	Animal	Wolf	Crucible Vinlandsaga The Triple Alliance La Noche Triste A Promising Warrior The Digvijaya (HD) The Elopement Tsar of the Bulgars Echoes of Heroes Where the One-Eyed Man is King Finehair
Reynald de Chatillon	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	Lord of Arabia The Horns of Hattin Guiscard Arrives Bloody Crestwaves	Franks
Richard the Lionheart	Cavalry	Paladin	The Emperor Sleeping Cyprus Honfoglalás (HD) Bohemond in the East	Britons
Robin Hood	Foot archer	Longbowman	None	Britons
Roland	Cavalry	Knight	The Dragon Spreads His Wings (DE) Honfoglalás (HD) Tamar the Builder	Franks
Saboteur	Siege weapon	Petard	Pax Mongolica A Son's Blood (HD) Welcome Home (DE) Mangudai Madness Nobunaga
Shah	King	King	The Horde Rides West The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD) The Return of the Dragon O Fortuna The Great Siege Cyprus (HD) Honfoglalás (HD) Bapheus (HD) The Digvijaya (DE) Lion of Africa (HD) Ruins of Empires (HD) A Son's Blood (HD) Djeriba Gold (HD) The Last Timurids The Queen in the Panther's Skin	Persians
Sheriff of Nottingham	Infantry	Long Swordsman	The Elopement The Rebellion of Melus (DE) Vain Ambition	Britons
Siegfried	Infantry	Champion	The Saxon Revolt Like Father, Like Son Ragnar	Vikings
Sieur Bertrand	Cavalry	Knight	An Unlikely Messiah The Sack of Rome The Rebellion of Melus (HD) Tales of La Canela Bohemond in the East	Franks
Sieur de Metz	Cavalry	Knight	An Unlikely Messiah The Rebellion of Melus (HD) The Great Siege A Titan Amongst Mortals	Franks
Sir John Fastolf	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	The Cleansing of the Loire Hastings (Co-Op) The Great Siege Bapheus (HD) Guiscard Arrives	Britons
Subotai	Mounted archer	Heavy Cavalry Archer Unique (DE)	The Horde Rides West Pax Mongolica The Moon Rises (HD) Honfoglalás (HD) Mongol Raiders Harbinger of Destruction The Tatar Yoke Vytautas' Crusade The Battle of Panipat Mstislav Temujin	Mongols
Tamerlane	Mounted archer	Mangudai	The Fate of India Amir of Transoxiana Temujin	Tatars
The Black Prince	Cavalry	Cavalier	His Own Man Viva Sforza! The Onrushing Tide The Old World Welcome Home (HD)	Britons
Theodoric the Goth	Infantry	Huskarl	All Roads Lead to a Besieged City Legionaries on the Horizon! The Battle of Guadalete Finehair Ironside Ragnar	Goths
William Wallace	Infantry	Champion Unique (DE)	The Battle of Falkirk A Kingdom of Our Own Hammer of the Scots Preparing for Battle Charlemagne Karlsefni Ragnar	Celts
The Conquerors
Admiral Yi Sun-Shin	Warship	Turtle Ship	Noryang Point	Koreans
Alexander Nevski	Cavalry	Cavalier	Legionaries on the Horizon! The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD) The Return of the Dragon (HD) The Moon Rises (HD) The Old World (HD) Kurikara (HD) Kaesong A Titan Amongst Mortals Vain Ambition Robert	Slavs
Attila the Hun	Cavalry	Cataphract Unique (DE)	The Scourge of God The Fall of Rome The Rebellion of Melus (HD) Honfoglalás (HD) Bohemond in the East Pearl of the East Ironside	Huns
Bleda the Hun	Cavalry	Mangudai Steppe Lancer (DE)	The Scourge of God Bapheus (HD) Harbinger of Destruction Roger in Sicily Vytautas' Crusade Pearl of the East The Fallen Amir	Huns
El Cid Campeador	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	El Cid - all scenarios Bohemond in the East Robert	Spanish
Harald Hardrada	Infantry	Berserk	Hastings The Saxon Revolt The Dragon Spreads His Wings (HD) Charlemagne Ragnar	Vikings
Henry V	Cavalry	Paladin	Agincourt The Cleansing of Paris Ragnar	Britons
Imam	Monk	Monk Unique (TF)	The Enemy of my Enemy Bapheus (HD) Ruins of Empires A Son's Blood (HD) Djeriba Gold Ironside
King Alfonso	King	King	Brother against Brother Black Guards Cyprus (HD) Duel of the Dukes	Spanish
King Sancho	King	King	Brother against Brother Cyprus (HD)	Spanish
Nobunaga	Infantry	Samurai	Kyoto Kurikara	Japanese
Pope Leo I	Monk	Monk	The Fall of Rome The Siege Charlemagne Ironside	Romans
Scythian Scout	Cavalry	Light Cavalry	The Scourge of God (DE) Bukhara (HD) All Roads Lead to a Besieged City Legionaries on the Horizon! Honfoglalás (HD) Djeriba Gold (HD)
Scythian Wild Woman	Infantry	Unique	The Great Ride The Cannibals The White Elephant
William the Conqueror	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	Hastings Courage and Coin	Franks
The Forgotten
Chand Bardai	Monk	Unique	A Promising Warrior Battles of Tarain Born of Fire The Digvijaya (DE) Hand of a Princess The Fate of India Unconditional Loyalty The Royal Peacock The Falcon's Tent	Gurjaras
Cuauhtemoc	Infantry	Elite Eagle Warrior	The Split Ruins of Empires (HD)	Aztecs
Francesco Sforza	Infantry	Condottiero Unique (DE)	Sforza - all scenarios (HD and DE) Blood for Blood The Siege Drake Ironside	Italians
Francisco de Orellana	Gunpowder cavalry	Conquistador	El Dorado - all scenarios Lion of Africa The Burmese Tigers The Mandalay Cobra The Old Tiger (HD)	Spanish
Frederick Barbarossa	Infantry	Teutonic Knight	Caught in the Crossfire Robert	Teutons
Gonzalo Pizarro	Gunpowder cavalry	Conquistador	The Split Tales of La Canela The Triple Alliance (DE) Lion of Africa Ruins of Empires Estado da India A Son's Blood (DE) The Old Tiger (DE) Drake	Spanish
Jarl	Cavalry	Tarkan Unique (DE)	The Scourge of God (Co-Op) The Fall of Rome (Co-Op) York (formerly) Honfoglalás (HD) Harbinger of Destruction The Fruits of Her Labor Charlemagne Finehair Ragnar	Vikings
Khosrau	Mounted archer	Elephant Archer	Bukhara Born of Fire	Persians
Osman	Mounted archer	Heavy Cavalry Archer Unique (DE)	Bapheus A Son's Blood The Siege	Turks
Prithvi	Foot archer	Crossbowman	A Promising Warrior The Digvijaya (DE)	Gurjaras
Prithviraj	Mounted archer	Heavy Cavalry Archer Unique (DE)	Prithviraj - all scenarios (HD) Born of Fire The Digvijaya (DE) Hand of a Princess	Gurjaras
Queen (formerly)	Civilian	Queen	Cyprus (HD) Bapheus (HD)
Saladin	Cavalry	Mameluke	Battles of Tarain Ruins of Empires (HD) A Son's Blood (HD) A Titan Amongst Mortals (formerly) Roger in Sicily Ironside	Saracens
Sanyogita	Civilian	Queen	A Promising Warrior The Elopement Hand of a Princess The White Elephant (HD) Temujin	Gurjaras
Savar (removed)	Cavalry	Cataphract Unique (DE)	Bukhara (HD) A Son's Blood (formerly)	Persians
Vlad Dracula	Cavalry	Boyar Unique (DE)	Vlad Dracula - all scenarios A Son's Blood (HD) Mstislav
The African Kingdoms
Abraha Elephant	Cavalry	War Elephant	None	Ethiopians
Babur	Cavalry	Imperial Camel Rider	The Fate of India (formerly) A Son's Blood (DE) Roger in Sicily The Last Timurids The Fallen Amir	Tatars Hindustanis
Dagnajan	Mounted archer	Unique	A Fallen Crown	Ethiopians
Gidajan	Infantry	Unique	Welcome Home (HD) The Falcon's Tent Drake Ironside	Ethiopians
Guglielmo Embriaco	Foot archer	Genoese Crossbowman	The Siege Constantine XI Fetih	Italians
Henry II	Infantry	Two-Handed Swordsman Unique (DE)	The Pasunda Bubat Tragedy (HD) The Field of Blood War of Brothers The Falcon's Tent Ragnar	Britons
Huayna Capac	Foot archer	Slinger	None	Incas
Itzcoatl	Infantry	Jaguar Warrior Unique (DE)	Like Father, Like Son	Aztecs
Little John	Infantry	Spearman	Vain Ambition	Britons
Miklos Toldi	Cavalry	Magyar Huszar	Mstislav	Magyars
Musa ibn Nusayr	Mounted archer	Camel Archer	Consolidation and Subjugation Ruins of Empires (HD) Roger in Sicily	Saracens
Mustafa Pasha	Gunpowder unit	Janissary	None	Turks
Pacal II	Foot archer	Plumed Archer	None	Mayans
Pachacuti	Infantry	Kamayuk Unique (DE)	War of Brothers	Incas
Princess Yodit	Civilian	Queen	Path of Exile	Ethiopians
Richard de Clare	Cavalry	Light Cavalry	Cyprus (DE) Stephen	Britons
Su Dingfang	Foot archer	Chu Ko Nu	None	Chinese
Sumanguru	Cavalry	Cataphract Unique (DE)	The Lion's Den	Malians
Sundjata	Cavalry	Light Cavalry Unique (DE)	Hunted	Malians
Tariq ibn Ziyad	Mounted archer	Genitour Unique (DE)	The Battle of Guadalete Consolidation and Subjugation Crossing the Pyrenees Ruins of Empires Tours (DE) Roger in Sicily Ironside	Berbers
Tristan	Cavalry	Magyar Huszar	None	Celts
Yekuno Amlak	Infantry	Shotel Warrior	Ruins of Empires (DE) Estado da India (HD)	Ethiopians
Yodit	Infantry	Gbeto Unique (DE)	None	Ethiopians
Zawisza the Black	Cavalry	Hussar	None	Poles
Rise of the Rajas
Bayinnaung	Cavalry	Elite Battle Elephant Unique (DE)	The Burmese Tigers The Mandalay Cobra The Royal Peacock	Burmese
Bui Bi	Monk	Unique	The Fate of India The Legend of Prithviraj A Three-Pronged Attack The Burmese Tigers The Mandalay Cobra The Royal Peacock (DE) The Old Tiger The Battle at Hanoi (DE) Sacred Waters Temujin	Vietnamese
Dinh Le	Cavalry	Paladin Unique (DE)	A Three-Pronged Attack	Vietnamese
Envoy	Cavalry	Light Cavalry Unique (DE)	Usurpation (Co-Op) A Dangerous Mission The Royal Peacock (DE) The White Elephant (DE) Rising Star
Gajah Mada	Infantry	Unique	Unconditional Loyalty The Pasunda Bubat Tragedy The Old Tiger (HD)	Malay
Jayanegara	King	King	The Burmese Tigers The Field of Blood War of Brothers	Malay
Jayaviravarman	Infantry	Karambit Warrior	The White Elephant (HD) Quelling the Rebellion	Malay
Le Lai (removed)	Infantry	Two-Handed Swordsman	The Mountain Siege (HD)	Vietnamese
Le Lai (removed)	Infantry	Champion	The White Elephant (HD) The Mountain Siege (HD)	Vietnamese
Le Loi	Infantry	Champion Unique (DE)	The White Elephant The Dai Viet Uprising The Mountain Siege The Battle at Hanoi (HD) The Final Fortress (HD) Sacred Waters	Vietnamese
Le Trien	Infantry	Champion	The White Elephant A Three-Pronged Attack	Vietnamese
Luu Nhan Chu	Foot archer	Arbalester	A Three-Pronged Attack	Vietnamese
Raden Wijaya	Cavalry	Cavalier	The Story of Our Founders The Pasunda Bubat Tragedy (HD)	Malay
Sunda Royal Fighter	Infantry	Unique	Bayinnaung - all scenarios (DE) The Pasunda Bubat Tragedy The Dai Viet Uprising (HD) The Field of Blood War of Brothers The Falcon's Tent	Malay
Suryavarman I	Cavalry	Elite Battle Elephant	Usurpation A Dangerous Mission The Old Tiger (HD)	Khmer
Tabinshwehti	Mounted archer	Elephant Archer	The Burmese Tigers The Mandalay Cobra	Burmese
Udayadityavarman I	King	King	Usurpation	Khmer
Wang Tong	Cavalry	Cataphract Unique (DE)	The Old Tiger (HD) Temujin	Chinese
The Last Khans
Alaric the Goth	Cavalry	Unique	The Giant Falls (Co-Op) The Siege Ragnar	Goths
Ataulf	Infantry	Unique	The Giant Falls Ragnar	Goths
Cuman Chief	Cavalry	Unique	The Battle at the Kalka River Saving the Huts Blood for Blood A New Home Tsar of the Bulgars Echoes of Heroes Where the One-Eyed Man is King The Tatar Yoke Takeover Mstislav Temujin	Cumans
Cusi Yupanqui	Infantry	Unique	The Field of Blood	Incas
Girgen Khan	Mounted archer	Unique	A Titan Amongst Mortals Saving the Huts Tsar of the Bulgars Where the One-Eyed Man is King The Siege Temujin	Cumans
Henry the Lion	Cavalry	Knight	Hammer of the Scots	Teutons
Ivaylo	Cavalry	Unique	Ivaylo - all scenarios The Siege Ragnar	Bulgarians
Ivaylo (dismounted)	Infantry	Unique	Spawned when Ivaylo is killed Where the One-Eyed Man is King Ragnar	Bulgarians
King Bela IV	King	King	None	Magyars
Kotyan Khan	Mounted archer	Unique	Raising the Banners The Battle at the Kalka River Saving the Huts The Siege Mstislav Temujin	Cumans
Leif Erikson	Warship	Longboat	Finehair	Vikings
Le Lai	Cavalry	Unique	The Mountain Siege (DE)	Vietnamese
Sosso Guard	Infantry	Unique	The Lion's Den (DE) Drake	Malians
The Middlebrook	Warship	Longboat	None
Tokhtamysh Khan	Cavalry	Keshik	Bapheus (Co-Op) Amir of Transoxiana Gurkhan of Persia Vytautas' Crusade The Fruits of Her Labor	Mongols Tatars
Tsar Konstantin	Cavalry	Unique	A Most Unlikely Man	Bulgarians
Topa Yupanqui	Infantry	Jaguar Warrior	None	Incas
Urus Khan	Mounted archer	Kipchak	Amir of Transoxiana A Most Unlikely Man The Battle of Panipat	Tatars
Vasco da Gama	Warship	Caravel	None	Spanish
Vytautas the Great	Cavalry	Unique	Cyprus (DE) The Old World (DE) Where the One-Eyed Man is King Duel of the Dukes The Siege of Vilnius Vytautas' Crusade The Fruits of Her Labor Courage and Coin Warrior of God Mstislav	Lithuanians
Lords of the West
Bernard d'Armagnac	Cavalry	Unique	The Cleansing of Paris Courage and Coin Ragnar	Franks
Bohemond	Cavalry	Unique	Bohemond and the Emperor Bohemond in the East Robert	Sicilians
Dafydd ap Gruffydd	Infantry	Unique	Of Castles and Kings Ragnar Stephen	Celts
Edward Longshanks	Cavalry	Unique	Edward Longshanks - all scenarios	Britons
Gilbert de Clare	Cavalry	Unique	Vain Ambition Roger in Sicily Stephen	Britons
Jacqueline of Hainaut	Civilian	Queen	None	Burgundians
John the Fearless	Cavalry	Unique	A Kingdom Divided The Wolf and the Lion The Cleansing of Paris	Burgundians
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd	Infantry	Unique	Of Castles and Kings Ragnar	Celts
Philip the Good	Cavalry	Unique	Unholy Marriage The Hook and Cod Wars The Maid Falls	Burgundians
Robert Guiscard	Cavalry	Unique	Guiscard Arrives Bohemond and the Emperor Mstislav Stephen	Sicilians
Roger Bosso	Cavalry	Unique	Guiscard Arrives Roger in Sicily Charlemagne Ragnar Stephen	Sicilians
Warwolf Trebuchet	Siege weapon	Trebuchet	Hammer of the Scots	Britons
Dawn of the Dukes
Algirdas	Cavalry	Unique	Family Affairs No Man's Land The Tatar Yoke A Worthy Opponent Mstislav	Lithuanians
Dmitry of Moscow	Cavalry	Cavalier	A Son's Blood (DE) A Worthy Opponent	Slavs
Emperor Sigismund	Cavalry	Frankish Paladin	None	Teutons
Jadwiga	Monk	Unique	Star of the Poles Duel of the Dukes The Siege of Vilnius	Poles
Jan Zizka	Cavalry	Unique	The Fruits of Her Labor The One-Eyed Wanderer Courage and Coin The Iron Lords The Golden City Ragnar Mstislav	Bohemians
Jogaila	Cavalry	Unique	In the Shadow of the Throne The Matter of the Crown Star of the Poles Duel of the Dukes The Siege of Vilnius The Fruits of Her Labor Courage and Coin Charlemagne Ragnar	Lithuanians Poles
Kestutis	Cavalry	Unique	Algirdas and Kestutis - all scenarios	Lithuanians
Mikhail of Tver	Cavalry	Boyar	A Worthy Opponent Ragnar Mstislav	Slavs
Ulrich von Jungingen	Cavalry	Unique	The Fruits of Her Labor Courage and Coin Mstislav Otto	Teutons
Young Jadwiga	Infantry	Unique	The Matter of the Crown Ragnar	Poles
Dynasties of India
Amoghavarsha	Infantry	Urumi Swordsman	Estado da India (DE)	Dravidians
General Araiyan	Cavalry	Unique	The Successor Sacred Waters	Dravidians
Ibrahim Lodi	Mounted archer	Khan	The Battle of Panipat	Hindustanis
Mihira Bhoja	Cavalry	Shrivamsha Rider	None	Gurjaras
Qutlugh	Mounted archer	Unique	Pearl of the East The Last Timurids	Tatars
Rajendra Chola	Cavalry	Unique	The White Elephant (DE) The Old Tiger (DE) Rajendra - all scenarios	Dravidians
Shaybani Khan	Mounted archer	Unique	The Fallen Amir
Young Babur	Cavalry	Heavy Camel Rider	Pearl of the East	Tatars
The Mountain Royals
Ismail	Cavalry	Scout Cavalry	The Red Hats Road to Royalty	Persians
Ivane	Cavalry	Cataphract	Takeover The Queen in the Panther's Skin	Armenians
Mleh	Infantry	Two-Handed Swordsman	Outlawed The Emperor's Revenge Caught in the Crossfire	Armenians
Selim the Grim	Cavalry	Savar	None	Turks
Shah Ismail	Cavalry	Unique	Alexander Safavi	Persians
Stephan	Infantry	Warrior Priest	Outlawed The Emperor's Revenge Caught in the Crossfire	Armenians
Tamar	Cavalry	Unique	Tamar - all scenarios	Georgians
Thoros	Cavalry	Unique	Thoros II - all scenarios	Armenians
Yury	Infantry	dismounted Ivaylo	None	Slavs
Zakare	Infantry	Warrior Priest	Takeover The Queen in the Panther's Skin	Armenians

List of hero buildings

Hero	Campaign appearances
The Age of Kings
Dome of the Rock	The Siege of Jerusalem The Emperor Sleeping
Great Pyramid	An Arabian Knight
The Accursed Tower	The Lion and the Demon Reconquista The Onrushing Tide Cyprus (DE) A New Home A Titan Amongst Mortals The Golden City
The Tower of Flies	The Lion and the Demon Reconquista The Dragon Spreads His Wings The Night Falls The Belly of the Beast The Best Laid Plans Cyprus (DE) York The Old World
The Forgotten
Quimper Cathedral	York The Old World (HD) Unholy Marriage The Maid Falls Ragnar
The African Kingdoms
Fortified Tower	Born of Fire The Digvijaya (DE) Lake Poyang Bapheus (DE) Lion of Africa (HD) Razzia (DE) The Lion's Den Welcome Home (DE) The Battle at Hanoi (DE) Quelling the Rebellion Challenging a Thalassocracy (DE) Serving the New King (DE) The Pasunda Bubat Tragedy Mongol Raiders Where the One-Eyed Man is King Blood for Blood A New Home Edward Longshanks - all scenarios Roger in Sicily Bohemond in the East Wonder of the World Unholy Marriage The Maid Falls No Man's Land A Worthy Opponent Duel of the Dukes The Siege of Vilnius Vytautas' Crusade The Fruits of Her Labor Courage and Coin The Emperor's Fury Pearl of the East Rising Star Sacred Waters Slaying the Vritra Charlemagne Constantine XI Fetih Komnenos Ragnar Seljuk Shimazu
Rise of the Rajas
Gol Gumbaz	The Digvijaya (formerly) Ironside
Sanchi Stupa	The Old Tiger (DE) Hand of a Princess Deeds of the Father

Trivia

• The golden glow is also present on one non-heroic unit: the Khan.
• Like heroes, Kings, Queens, Mounted Samurai, and Crusader Knights cannot be converted. However they are not complete hero units.
• The Queen is the only hero unit to lose its status and become a generic unit.
• All heroes have armor class 36, called the Hero armor class. Ninjas have a +9 attack bonus against the hero armor class. This bonus also affects Kings and Queens.
• All cavalry heroes introduced in Lords of the West and all playable heroes (not just cavalry) in Dawn of the Dukes (except Young Jadwiga and Vytautas the Great) return 38 gold upon death. This is due to the fact that the Burgundians had a civilization bonus in development stage where half the gold cost of the Knight line was returned upon death.
• The Franks have the most number of heroes who are thematically Frankish/French, or appear as Franks in the campaigns, numbering 20.
• Monk-type Heroes cannot pick up Relics in the Definitive Edition. In prior versions, a glitch will turn them into a regular Monk on picking one up.

Gallery

A group of many hero units.

The game asking to confirm deleting a hero unit.

The hero unit's hit point regeneration rate is shown next to the heart icon below the health bar in the information panel

Joan the Maid with the distinct golden glow.

	Heroes in Age of Empires II
The Age of Kings Non-military Archbishop · Emperor in a Barrel · Friar Tuck · Harold Haardraade (removed) · Hunting Wolf · Ornlu the Wolf · Shah Infantry Aethelfrith · Charlemagne · Charles Martel · El Cid · Erik the Red · Hrolf the Ganger · Joan the Maid · King Arthur · Kitabatake · La Hire · Minamoto · Sheriff of Nottingham · Siegfried · Theodoric the Goth · William Wallace Foot archer Archer of the Eyes · Lord de Graville · Robin Hood Cavalry Belisarius · Constable Richemont · Duke D'Alençon · Frankish Paladin · Gawain · Guy Josselyne · Joan of Arc · Kushluk · Lancelot · Master of the Templar · Mordred · Reynald de Chatillon · Richard the Lionheart · Roland · Sieur Bertrand · Sieur de Metz · Sir John Fastolf · The Black Prince Mounted archer Genghis Khan · Subotai · Tamerlane Siege Bad Neighbor · God's Own Sling · Jean Bureau · Jean de Lorrain · Saboteur Building Dome of the Rock · Great Pyramid · The Accursed Tower · The Tower of Flies The Conquerors Non-military Imam · King Alfonso · King Sancho · Pope Leo I Infantry Harald Hardrada · Nobunaga · Scythian Wild Woman Cavalry Alexander Nevski · Attila the Hun · Bleda the Hun · El Cid Campeador · Henry V · Scythian Scout · William the Conqueror Ship Admiral Yi Sun-Shin The Forgotten Non-military Chand Bardai · Queen (formerly) · Sanyogita Infantry Cuauhtemoc · Francesco Sforza · Frederick Barbarossa Foot archer Prithvi Cavalry Jarl · Saladin · Savar (removed) · Vlad Dracula Mounted archer Francisco de Orellana · Gonzalo Pizarro · Khosrau · Osman · Prithviraj Building Quimper Cathedral The African Kingdoms Non-military Princess Yodit Infantry Gidajan · Henry II · Itzcoatl · Little John · Pachacuti · Yekuno Amlak · Yodit Foot archer Guglielmo Embriaco · Huayna Capac · Mustafa Pasha · Pacal II · Su Dingfang Cavalry Abraha Elephant · Babur · Miklos Toldi · Richard de Clare · Sumanguru · Sundjata · Tristan · Zawisza the Black Mounted archer Dagnajan · Musa ibn Nusayr · Tariq ibn Ziyad Building Fortified Tower Rise of the Rajas Non-military Bui Bi · Jayanegara · Udayadityavarman I Infantry Gajah Mada · Jayaviravarman · Le Lai (removed) · Le Loi · Le Trien · Sunda Royal Fighter Foot archer Luu Nhan Chu Cavalry Bayinnaung · Dinh Le · Envoy · Raden Wijaya · Suryavarman I · Wang Tong Mounted archer Tabinshwehti Building Gol Gumbaz · Sanchi Stupa The Last Khans Non-military King Bela IV Infantry Ataulf · Cusi Yupanqui · Sosso Guard · Topa Yupanqui Cavalry Alaric the Goth · Cuman Chief · Henry the Lion · Ivaylo · Le Lai · Tokhtamysh Khan · Tsar Konstantin · Vytautas the Great Mounted archer Girgen Khan · Kotyan Khan · Urus Khan Ship Leif Erikson · The Middlebrook · Vasco da Gama Lords of the West Non-military Jacqueline of Hainaut Infantry Dafydd ap Gruffydd · Llywelyn ap Gruffydd Cavalry Bernard d'Armagnac · Bohemond · Edward Longshanks · Gilbert de Clare · John the Fearless · Philip the Good · Robert Guiscard · Roger Bosso Siege Warwolf Trebuchet Dawn of the Dukes Non-military Jadwiga Infantry Young Jadwiga Cavalry Algirdas · Dmitry of Moscow · Emperor Sigismund · Jan Zizka · Jogaila · Kestutis · Mikhail of Tver · Ulrich von Jungingen Dynasties of India Infantry Amoghavarsha Cavalry General Araiyan · Mihira Bhoja · Rajendra Chola · Young Babur Mounted archer Ibrahim Lodi · Qutlugh · Shaybani Khan The Mountain Royals Non-military Tamar Infantry Yury · Zakare · Stephan · Mleh Cavalry Ismail · Shah Ismail · Selim the Grim · Thoros · Ivane