Grenadier (Age of Empires III)

This article is about the unit in Age of Empires III. For the unit in Age of Empires IV, see Grenadier (Age of Empires IV).

Grenadier
Unit information
Introduced in	Age of Empires III
Type	Infantry Heavy infantry Siege unit Ranged infantry Grenade trooper*
Civilization(s)	See description
Age	Commerce Age
Requires	Young Guard (French)
Required Home City Card	"Grenade Launchers" (Germans, Portuguese, and Spanish)
Training
Trained at	Barracks (requires the "Line Grenadiers" Home City Card) Artillery Foundry Fort Galleon Fluyt (Dutch) American Citadel
Population	2
Food	120
Coin	60
Train time	42 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	200
Resistance	50% Ranged
Speed	4.0
Line of Sight	15
XP train bounty	18
XP kill bounty	18
Hand attack
Damage	24 Hand
Bonus damage	×0.25 vs. Cavalry ×0.15 vs. Shock infantry
Area	1
Rate of Fire	1.5
Ranged attack
Damage	16 Siege
Bonus damage	×0.5 vs. Villager ×0.5 vs. Artillery ×0.4 vs. Cavalry ×0.4 vs. Shock infantry
Area	3
Range	4-12
Rate of Fire	3.0
Siege attack
Damage	41 Siege
Range	12
Rate of Fire	3.0

“	Heavy siege infantryman that throws grenades to defeat infantry or buildings.	”
—In-game description

The Grenadier is a ranged heavy infantry siege unit in Age of Empires III that can be trained at Artillery Foundry, Fort, and Galleon/Fluyt.

Grenadiers are available to the British, Dutch, Italians, John Black's Mercenaries (Act II: Ice campaign), Russians, and Swedes.

The United States can also train them through the "Washington's Legion" card, and the French require the "Edict of Nantes" card and the Young Guard technology to train Grenadiers. The Ottomans train Humbaracis instead. All the other European civilizations (except the Maltese) can unlock them with the "Grenade Launchers" card.

Overview

Grenadiers are heavy infantry that work like a light siege unit, whose attacks are equivalent to weak cannonfire, though they are not considered true artillery for purposes of damage multipliers on units (e.g. Culverins). However, like their cousins they have an extraordinarily high ranged resistance that allows them to mitigate ranged attacks. As a general rule, Grenadiers are much more functional as a support and siege unit than fighting against other units. Their attacks are not particularly powerful, but the AoE provides certain opportunities in limited situations.

Grenadiers are effective at destroying buildings since they have fairly high hit points and a high siege attack. They are best compared to the Pikeman and their main advantage is their higher survivability. They have more health, ranged resistance, and do not need to be in close range to siege, which can leave the Pikemen vulnerable to being sniped. However, the Pikeman is cheaper, much faster and with careful player control can overcome those positioning issues. When comparing the Grenadier to cannons such as the Falconet, they are more durable, maneuverable, and easier to train (especially costing mostly food and being more coin efficient), but suffer from reduced range and much lower effectiveness against units. Grenadier shipments are also inferior to the "2 Falconets" card.

Like most Artillery, Grenadiers are very weak against melee cavalry, which can quickly rush them, are unaffected by their resistances, and have larger unit modules that are less likely to be affected by AoE. To boot, while in melee the Grenadiers' damage will be reduced because even though it has equivalent DPS to their ranged attack, it does not apply an AoE. They are generally easily dispatched by units with high hand attack and multipliers versus heavy infantry or infantry, such as anti-infantry cannons or Abus Gunners (siege damage, multipliers against heavy infantry) due to their heavy infantry classification.

Grenadiers are of mixed effectiveness against infantry. While Grenadiers are powerful against massed infantry when in range, many counter-infantry units greatly outrange them (note that the multiplier against Light Infantry in the infobox refers to Aztec units, not to Ranged infantry). Abus Gunners and Skirmishers have 18 and 20 range respectively, alongside heavy infantry multipliers which partially or completely negate the Grenadier's high ranged resist. As mentioned, the Abus in particular can also bypass the Grenadier's ranged resistance with siege damage. If the enemy is skilled they can stagger their troops and kite away. Grenadiers are also unable to kite due to their long throwing animation (unless they have grenade launchers), so fast melee infantry which can focus them down would be the next threat, such as the Rodelero or Pikeman. Grenadiers would be best suited to fighting equally slow and short ranged infantry such as Musketeers and Halberdiers. They are capable against short ranged infantry, such as Mantlets, and can do quite well against Crossbowmen or groups of Streltsy as their damage is more evenly matched compared to Skirmishers (Streltsy having low base damage, and Crossbowmen having a lower damage multiplier). Increasing their area of effect attack of three to four with Incendiary Grenades at the Arsenal will be worthwhile in this role.

Strategy

Economically, Grenadiers are individually expensive, but somewhat cheaper than two Musketeers. To pay off effectively it would require getting good AoE hits or siege damage.

Civilizations that lack Grenadiers of their own can sometimes hire the mercenary version at a Saloon or Monastery. The Chinese and Indians can hire four Grenadiers at the Consulate. The first two buildings provide the Arsonist, the latter by selecting the French Expeditionary Company.

By default, Grenadiers will use their ranged attack to attack enemy ships. Putting them in melee mode will make them use their siege attack instead, vastly improving their damage.

With the "Grenade Launchers" card, the fire animation of the Grenadier is removed, effectively allowing for hit-and-run tactics.

Upgrades

Age	Upgrade	Cost	Effect	Civ.
	Veteran Grenadiers	200 wood 200 coin	Upgrades Grenadiers to Veteran (+20% hit points and attack)
	Guard Grenadiers	600 wood 600 coin	Upgrades Grenadiers to Guard (+30% hit points and attack); requires Veteran Grenadiers
	Pavlov Grenadiers	850 wood 850 coin	Upgrades Grenadiers to Pavlov Grenadiers (Guard Grenadiers with +10% hit points and attack, and -10% food cost); requires Veteran Grenadiers
	Imperial Grenadiers	1,500 wood 1,500 coin	Upgrades Grenadiers to Imperial (+50% hit points and attack); requires Guard Grenadiers
	Imperial Pavlov Grenadiers		Upgrades Pavlov Grenadiers to Imperial Pavlov Grenadiers (+50% hit points and attack); requires Pavlov Grenadiers

Civilization differences

• As seen above, Russians can upgrade Grenadiers to Royal Guard and Imperial Guard.
• While the British have generic Grenadiers, they have several Home City Cards that makes their Grenadiers one of the strongest in the game.
• John Black's Mercenaries can only upgrade Grenadiers to the Guard.
• (Definitive Edition) The French can train Grenadiers through the Young Guard technology. It also allows Grenadiers to be upgraded to Guard and Imperial. Additionally, Middle Guard researches Incendiary Grenades, and Old Guard enables Grenadiers to use a hand mortar to attack, and get +2 Line of Sight and range.
• (Definitive Edition) The Germans, Portuguese, and Spanish can train Grenadiers with the "Grenade Launchers" Home City Card. It also allows Incendiary Grenades to be researched at the Arsenal and Grenadiers to be upgraded to Guard and Imperial.
• The Inca can get Grenadiers through the "Tupac Rebellion" Home City Card, which turns Huaracas into Guard Grenadiers.

Revolution

• Revolutionary France Grenadiers can gather coin from mines at a rate of 1.0 coin per second, wood from trees at a rate of 1.5 wood per second and build the Barracks, Stables, Artillery Foundries, Outposts, Trading Posts, and Field Hospitals if the "Génie Troops" Home City Card is sent.
• Hungary can get Grenadiers through the "6 Grenadiers" Home City Card, which can be sent an infinite number of times, and upgrades them to Imperial through the "Hungarian Grenadiers" Home City Card.

Variants

• Young Guard
• Legion Grenadier
• Hungarian Grenadier

Young Guard
Unit information
Introduced in	Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties
Type	Infantry Heavy infantry Siege unit Ranged infantry Grenade trooper* Consulate unit
Civilization(s)	Chinese French Indians
Age	Commerce Age
Training
Banner army	French Expeditionary Company French Expeditionary Force
Trained at	Consulate (Chinese and Indians)
Population	2
Food	120
Coin	60
Train time	42 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	200
Resistance	50% Ranged
Speed	4.0
Line of Sight	15
XP train bounty	18
XP kill bounty	18
Hand attack
Damage	24 Hand
Bonus damage	×0.25 vs. Cavalry ×0.15 vs. Shock infantry
Area	1
Rate of Fire	1.5
Ranged attack
Damage	16 Siege
Bonus damage	×0.5 vs. Villager ×0.5 vs. Artillery ×0.4 vs. Cavalry ×0.4 vs. Shock infantry
Area	3
Range	4-12
Rate of Fire	3.0
Siege attack
Damage	41 Siege
Range	12
Rate of Fire	3.0

“	Heavy siege infantryman that throws grenades to defeat infantry or buildings.	”
—In-game description

The Young Guard is a counterpart of the Grenadier, which starts with +10% hit points and attack.

Upgrades

The Young Guard is automatically upgraded in the Fortress Age, Industrial Age and Imperial Age:

• Young Guard: +20% hit points and attack
• Middle Guard: +30% hit points and attack
• Old Guard: +50% hit points and attack

Civilization differences

• The French can research the Young Guard, Middle Guard, and Old Guard technologies at the Church, which ships 4, 8 and 15 Young Guards respectively (total 27 Young Guards). Additionally, Young Guard allows the training of Grenadiers, Middle Guard researches Incendiary Grenades, and Old Guard enables Grenadiers and Young Guards to use a hand mortar to attack, get +2 Line of Sight and range, and Young Guards get +10% melee, ranged and siege resistance, and +100% hand attack.
• Chinese and Indians can get Young Guards by allying with the French at the Consulate, which provides French Expeditionary Company and French Expeditionary Force that includes 4 and 3 Young Guards respectively.

Revolution

• Revolutionary France Young Guards can gather coin from mines at a rate of 1.0 coin per second, wood from trees at a rate of 1.5 wood per second and build Barracks, Stables, Artillery Foundries, Outposts, Trading Posts, and Field Hospitals if the "Génie Troops" Home City Card is sent.

Legion Grenadier
Unit information
Introduced in	Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition
Type	Infantry Heavy infantry Siege unit Ranged infantry Grenade trooper Consulate unit
Civilization(s)	United States United States (Revolutionary)
Age	Commerce Age Revolution
Required Home City Card	"Washington's Legion" (United States) "Washington's Continental Grenadiers" (United States Revolutionary)
Training
Trained at	Fort American Citadel
Population	2
Food	120
Coin	60
Train time	69.3 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	200
Resistance	50% Ranged
Speed	4.0
Line of Sight	15
XP train bounty	18
XP kill bounty	18
Hand attack
Damage	24 Hand
Bonus damage	×0.25 vs. Cavalry ×0.15 vs. Shock infantry
Area	1
Rate of Fire	1.5
Ranged attack
Damage	16 Siege
Bonus damage	×0.5 vs. Villager ×0.5 vs. Artillery ×0.4 vs. Cavalry ×0.4 vs. Shock infantry
Area	3
Range	4-12
Rate of Fire	3.0
Siege attack
Damage	41 Siege
Range	12
Rate of Fire	3.0

“	Heavy siege infantryman that throws grenades to defeat infantry or buildings.	”
—In-game description

The Legion Grenadier is a counterpart of the Grenadier, which starts with +10% hit points and attack, but trains 65% slower.

Upgrades

The Legion Grenadier is automatically upgraded in the Fortress Age, Industrial Age and Imperial Age:

• +20% hit points and attack
• +30% hit points and attack
• +50% hit points and attack

Civilization differences

• The United States can get Legion Grenadiers through the "Washington's Legion" Home City Card, which ships 16 Legion Grenadiers (named Grenadiers) with the hand mortar attack given by the "Grenade Launchers" Home City Card and 2 additional Line of Sight and range, the Incendiary Grenades technology is researched, and allows them to be trained at Forts and American Citadel. Additionally, United States Forts can train Legion Grenadiers in batches of 3 for free if the "Texas Forts" Home City Card is sent, but this takes 98 seconds.

Revolution

• The British, Dutch, French, Italians, and Swedes can get Legion Grenadiers upon revolting to the United States through the "Washington's Continental Grenadiers" Home City Card, which ships 16 Legion Grenadiers (named Washington's Grenadiers) with the hand mortar attack given by the "Grenade Launchers" Home City Card and 2 additional Line of Sight and range, the Incendiary Grenades technology is researched, and allows them to be trained at Forts and American Citadel.

Hungarian Grenadier
Unit information
Introduced in	Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition
Type	Infantry Heavy infantry Siege unit Ranged infantry Grenade trooper Consulate unit
Civilization(s)	Hungary
Age	Revolution
Training
Trained at	Outpost Barracks Blockhouse Artillery Foundry Fort Galleon
Population	2
Food	120
Coin	60
Train time	42 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	200
Resistance	50% Ranged
Speed	4.0
Line of Sight	21
XP train bounty	18
XP kill bounty	18
Hand attack
Damage	24 Hand
Bonus damage	×0.25 vs. Cavalry ×0.15 vs. Shock infantry
Area	1
Rate of Fire	1.5
Ranged attack
Damage	16 Siege
Bonus damage	×0.5 vs. Villager and artillery ×0.4 vs. Cavalry and shock infantry
Area	3
Range	18 4-20 (Mortar Attack)
Rate of Fire	3.0
Siege attack
Damage	41 Siege
Range	12
Rate of Fire	3.0

“	Heavy siege infantryman that throws grenades to defeat infantry or buildings.	”
—In-game description

The Hungarian Grenadier is a counterpart of the Grenadier, which have +6 Line of Sight and range.

Upgrades

The Hungarian Grenadier is automatically upgraded in the Fortress Age, Industrial Age and Imperial Age:

• +20% hit points and attack
• +30% hit points and attack
• +50% hit points and attack

Civilization differences

• Revolting to Hungary as the Russians and Ottomans turns Grenadiers and Humbaracis into Hungarian Grenadiers.
  • Germans can acquire Hungarian Grenadiers when revolting to Hungary with the "Hungarian Grenadiers" Home City Card.
  • On some European maps, they can also be spawned by all civilizations using the Radetzky March ability, available after building a Trading Post on a House of Habsburg palace. This requires researching the Austro-Hungarian Empire technology before activating the ability.

Further statistics

Unit strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs.	Infantry in groups, buildings
Weak vs.	Light infantry, cavalry, shock infantry, artillery
Improvements
Hit points	Corselet (+25%; Spanish only) Grand Encampment (+25%; campaign United States only) Cree Tanning (+5%) Navajo Weaving (+5%) Tar Kilns (+5%)
Attack	Armatoloi (+5%) Yoga (+5%) Clenched Fist (+25% hand attack) Incendiary Grenades (+15% siege attack multiplier vs. buildings and +1 ranged attack Area of Effect) Somali Ajuran Engineers (+20% multiplier vs. Frontier fortification)
Resistance	Somali Oryx Hide Shields (+5% ranged resistance) Hualcana (+5%; Inca only)
Range	Old Guard (+2; French only)
Line of Sight	Town Watch (+3) Old Guard (+2; French only)
Speed	Tilly's Discipline (+20%; Germans only) Military Drummers (+10%) Quechuan Mountaineering (+10%) Akan Fontomfrom (+5%) Apache Endurance (+5%)
Train time	Standing Army (-25%) Akan Fontomfrom (-20%) Quechuan Diet (-15%) Immigrants (-10%) New Mexico Immigration (-10%)
Cost	Mapuche Ad-mapu (-10% coin cost) Golden Liberty (-5% coin cost)
Other	Young Guard (ships 4 Young Guards, allows Grenadiers to be trained and upgraded at Barracks; Artillery Foundries can be built in the Commerce Age; French only) Middle Guard (ships 8 Middle Guards and researches Incendiary Grenades; French only) Old Guard (ships 15 Old Guards and enables Grenadiers to use a hand mortar to attack; French only) Westernization (grants Veteran upgrade; Russians only) Petrine Reforms (grants Royal Guard upgrade; Russians only) Meritocracy (-20% upgrade cost)
Penalties	Grand Encampment (-25% speed; campaign United States only) Corselet (-15% speed; Spanish only) Tilly's Discipline (+10% cost; Germans only)

Home City Cards

Click for a list of Home City Cards related to the Grenadier

Some cards are highlighted with:
Green	TEAM Shipment that is sent to each player in a team
Purple	Shipment that can be sent an INFINITE number of times
Red	Shipment that can be sent twice
Blue	Shipment that arrives fast (5 seconds)

• Definitive Edition
• The Asian Dynasties

All

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Senegalese Riflemen	Ranged infantry get +10% attack; French and Hausa-only ranged infantry get +15% attack instead

• "TEAM Senegalese Riflemen" is available to the French and Hausa.

Asian

Card	Description	Age
Good Faith Agreements	Consulate units' train time -50%; Consulate technologies' cost -40% (-300 export for Brigades) and research time -50% (except Brigades) (also +1 Villager for the Indians)
Intervention	The Consulate ally sends a shipment of their units (also +1 Villager for the Indians)

• "Intervention" ships 5 Young Guards (if French allies are picked).

British

Card	Description	Age
British Grenadiers	Grenade troopers get +15% ranged and hand attack and +35% siege attack; Grenadiers get a Mortar attack and +2 Line of Sight; card plays a jingle upon arrival
Scots Guards	Musketeers and Grenadiers get +15% attack
TEAM Grenadier Guards	Musket infantry and grenade troopers get +15% hit points
Coldstream Guards	Musketeers and Grenadiers get +15% hit points and attack

Chinese

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Yongle Infrastructure	Ships 1 Mongol Scout; infantry, land villagers, healing units, Envoys, and Disciples get +5% speed
Siege Hitpoints	Artillery and Flamethrowers get +15% hit points; grenade troopers get +20% hit points
Siege Attack	Artillery and Flamethrowers get +15% attack; grenade troopers get +20% attack
Siege Combat	Artillery get +15% hit points and attack; Flamethrowers and grenade troopers get +20% hit points and attack
Western Reforms	All units get +8% hit points and attack
Acupuncture	All units' train time -20%
Banner School	Banner army train time -30%; Summer Palace banner army spawn time -7%

• "TEAM Yongle Infrastructure" does not stack with the Inca "TEAM Inca Bridges" card.

Dutch

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Infantry Hitpoints	Infantry get +10% hit points; Dutch-only infantry get +15% hit points instead
TEAM Coehorn Mortars	Mortars, Hand Mortars, Morutaru, Consulate Mortars, Grenadiers' Mortar attack, and Sebastopol Mortars get +20% attack

Ethiopians

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Coffee Consumption	Ranged infantry get +5% speed

Europeans

Card	Description	Age
Line Grenadiers	Ships 5 Grenadiers; Grenadiers can be trained and upgraded at Barracks
7 Grenadiers	Ships 7 Grenadiers
6 Grenadiers	Ships 6 Grenadiers
9 Grenadiers	Ships 9 Grenadiers
6 Grenadiers	Ships 6 Grenadiers
Grenade Launchers	Grenadiers can be trained at Artillery Foundries, Forts, and Galleons; Incendiary Grenades available at the Arsenal (for Germans, Portuguese, and Spanish); Grenadiers get a Mortar attack and +2 Line of Sight (also +3 Uhlans for the Germans)
Fencing School	Infantry and shock infantry train time -40%
Hungarian Grenadiers	Each Outpost/Blockhouse spawns 1 Hungarian Grenadier; upgrades Grenadiers to Veteran, Guard (if not already) and Imperial; turns all Grenadiers and Humbaracis into Hungarian Grenadiers; Hungarian Grenadiers can be trained at Barracks, Artillery Foundries, Forts, Galleons, Outposts, and Blockhouses instead of Grenadiers and Humbaracis; +1 Outpost/Blockhouse Wagon; Outpost/Blockhouse build limit +1
Wanderlust	Land units get +5% hit points; land villagers and wagons get +5% speed
Washington's Continental Grenadiers	Ships 16 Legion Grenadiers with "Grenade Launchers"; Legion Grenadiers can be trained at Forts; costs 1,000 coin
American Patriotism	State Militia train time -45%; Regular and Revolutionary Sharpshooter train time -35%; Carbine Cavalry and Legion Grenadier train time -25%; Home City Cards that enable unique units for the Revolution arrive time -25%
Continental Army	Turns all Revolutionaries into Regulars; Regulars, Revolutionary Sharpshooters, Carbine Cavalry, Revolutionaries, Militiamen, and Prussian Uhlans get +15% hit points and attack; General and Legion Grenadiers get +10% hit points and attack; costs 500 coin

• "Line Grenadiers" is available to the British, Italians, and Swedes.
• "7 Grenadiers" is available to the British, Dutch, Italians, and Russians.
• "6 Grenadiers" is available to the British, Italians, Russians, and Swedes.
• "9 Grenadiers" is available to the Italians, Russians, and Swedes.
• "6 Grenadiers" is available to the British, and also Germans, Maltese, Ottomans, and Russians upon revolting to Hungary.
• "Grenade Launcher" is not available to the British and French.
• "Fencing School" is not available to the French and Spanish.
• "Hungarian Grenadiers" is available to the Germans, Maltese, Ottomans, and Russians upon revolting to Hungary.
• "Wanderlust" is available to the British and Dutch upon revolting to South Africa, and can be sent 3 times.
• "Washington's Continental Grenadiers", "American Patriotism", and "Continental Army" are available to the British, Dutch, French, Italians, and Swedes upon revolting to the United States.

French

Card	Description	Age
Royal Fencing School	Infantry and shock infantry train time -40%; +3 Royal Musketeers
Imperial Old Guard	Grenadiers get +10% melee, ranged and siege resistance and +100% hand attack
Génie Troops	Grenadiers and Young Guards can mine, chop wood and build Field Hospitals, Trading Post, Barracks, Stables, Artillery Foundries, and Outposts

• "Imperial Old Guard" and "Génie Troops" are available upon revolting to Revolutionary France.

Haudenosaunee

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Scout Infantry	Ships 1 Native Scout; infantry get +8 Line of Sight

Inca

Card	Description	Age
Road Building	Land military units get +10% speed
TEAM Inca Bridges	Ships 1 Chasqui; infantry, land villagers, healing units, and Envoys get +5% speed
Tupac Rebellion	Turns all villagers into Revolutionaries, Plumed Spearmen into Guard Musketeers, Chimu Runners into Guard Hussars, Jungle Bowmen into Guard Skirmishers, Bolas Warriors into Veteran Dragoons, Huaracas into Guard Grenadiers, and Macemen into Guard Soldados; costs 1,500 food, 1,500 wood, 1,500 coin

• "TEAM Inca Bridges" does not stack with the Chinese "TEAM Yongle Infrastructure" card.

Indians

Card	Description	Age
Dravidian Martial Arts	All units get +15% hand attack; Rajputs get +20% hand attack instead; +1 Hindu Villager
TEAM Shivaji's Tactics	All units get +5% hit points and attack
Foreign Trading Companies	Gives a trickle of 0.75 export/sec.; banner army cost -15% export; Indian units cost +2.5% (Villagers, Fishing Boats, and Sacred Cows cost +5% instead); +1 Hindu Villager

Italians

Card	Description	Age
Infantry Hitpoints	Infantry get +15% hit points
Schiavoni Swords	Infantry and cavalry get +15% hand attack

Japanese

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Sengoku	Unit upgrades cost -20%

Maltese

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Knights of the Round Table	Ships 1 Hospitaller for each Town Center owned by the player; all units get +2% hit points

Mexicans

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Mariachi	For the next 30 seconds, military buildings work 400% faster and units get +10% speed

Portuguese

Card	Description	Age
Artillery Hitpoints	Grenade troopers get +30% hit points; artillery get +15% hit points
Naval Infantry	Caravels can train Crossbowmen, Ordinance Riflemen (if available), Pikemen, and Halberdiers; Monitors and Ironclads can train Musketeers, Cassadores, and Grenadiers (if available); Frigates can train all Barracks units; Battleships can train all Barracks units and Grenadiers; Caravels, Frigates, Monitors, Ironclads, and Battleships now tagged as recruiting ships

Russians

Card	Description	Age
Ransack	Infantry get +50% siege attack
Tula Arms Foundry	Ships 2 Grenadiers and 1 Artillery Foundry Wagon
5 Grenadiers	Ships 5 Grenadiers
Pjotr's Toy Soldiers	Rekruts, Poruchiks, and Grenadiers get +15% hit points and attack; Rekruts can build Forts; card plays a small tune upon arrival
Dueling School	Infantry train time -25%

Spanish

Card	Description	Age
Peninsular Guerrillas	Ranged infantry get +20% attack; musket infantry get +10% attack instead; Skirmishers now see the Line of Sight of enemies they attacked for 3 seconds
Liberation March	Infantry, cavalry, and shock infantry get +5% speed and -35% train time
TEAM Spanish Inquisition	Ships 1 Inquisitor; all units get +10 Line of Sight

Swedes

Card	Description	Age
TEAM House of Bernadotte	Heavy infantry get +15% hit points
Svea Lifeguard	Caroleans get +15% hit points and now resist ranged attacks; Grenadiers get +25% hit points

United States

Card	Description	Age
United States Army	The General, Minutemen, and heavy infantry get +15% hit points and attack
Washington's Legion	[Legion] Ships 16 Legion Grenadiers with "Grenade Launchers" and Incendiary Grenades; Legion Grenadiers can be trained at Fort; costs 1,000 food, 1,000 wood
Indiana Mobilization	Ships 1 Carbine Cavalry for each shipment sent so far this game including this one; unit train time (except Heavy Cannons), technology research time, and age-up time -10%; costs 250 food, 250 wood

• "Indiana Mobilization" is available upon selecting the Indiana Federal State.

Asian

Card	Description	Age	HC level
Good Faith Agreements	Consulate units' train time -50%; Consulate technologies' cost -40% (-400 export for Brigades) and research time -50% (except Brigades) (also +1 Villager for the Indians)		1
Intervention	The Consulate ally sends a shipment of their units (also +1 Villager for the Indians)		10

• "Intervention" ships 5 Young Guards (if French allies are picked).

British

Card	Description	Age	HC level
Improved Grenades	Grenadiers get +20% ranged and hand attack and +87% siege attack		40
Musketeer/Grenadier Damage	Musketeers and Grenadiers get +15% attack		10
TEAM Musketeer/Grenadier Hitpoints	Musketeers, Sepoys, Ashigaru Musketeers, and Grenadiers get +15% hit points		10
Musketeer/Grenadier Combat	Musketeers and Grenadiers get +15% hit points and attack		25

Chinese

Card	Description	Age	HC level
Western Reforms	All units get +8% hit points and attack		40
Acupuncture	All units' train time -20%		40
Banner School	Banner army train time -30%; Summer Palace banner army spawn time -7%		10
TEAM Engineering School	Abus Gunner, Grenadier, Culverin, Falconet, Mortar, Organ Gun, Mantlet, Ram, Light Cannon, Petard, Horse Artillery, Siege Elephant, Morutaru, Flaming Arrow, Hand Mortar, and Flamethrower train time -30%; Heavy Cannon, Great Bombard, Rocket, and Flying Crow train time -5%		25

Dutch

Card	Description	Age	HC level
TEAM Infantry Hitpoints	Infantry get +15% hit points		10

Europeans

Card	Description	Age	HC level
4 Grenadiers	Ships 4 Grenadiers		1
7 Grenadiers	Ships 7 Grenadiers		1
5 Grenadiers	Ships 5 Grenadiers		10
6 Grenadiers	Ships 6 Grenadiers		10
TEAM Artillery Hitpoints	Artillery, Abus Gunners, and Grenadiers get +15% hit points		10
Fencing School	Infantry train time -40%		10
Engineering School	Abus Gunner, Grenadier, Culverin, Falconet, Mortar, Organ Gun, Mantlet, Ram, Light Cannon, Petard, Horse Artillery, Siege Elephant, Morutaru, Flaming Arrow, Hand Mortar, and Flamethrower train time -40%; Heavy Cannon, Great Bombard, Rocket, and Flying Crow train time -10%		25

• "5 Grenadiers" is available to the British and Russians.
• "6 Grenadiers" is available to the British and Ottomans.
• "TEAM Artillery Hitpoints" is available to the Ottomans and Portuguese.
• "Fencing School" is not available to the Ottomans.
• "Engineering School" is available to the French, Ottomans, Portuguese, and Russians.

Indians

Card	Description	Age	HC level
Dravidian Martial Arts	All units get +15% hand attack; +1 Hindu Villager		40
TEAM Shivaji's Tactics	All units get +5% hit points and attack		25

Iroquois

Card	Description	Age	HC level
TEAM Scout Infantry	Infantry get +8 Line of Sight		10

Japanese

Card	Description	Age	HC level
TEAM Cheaper Unit Upgrades	Unit upgrades cost -20%		1

Ottomans

Card	Description	Age	HC level
Light Artillery Hitpoints	Grenadiers get +25% hit points; Abus Guns get +20% hit points		10
Artillery Attack	Artillery, Abus Guns, and Grenadiers get +15% attack		25
Ottoman Artillery Division	Ships 6 Grenadiers and 1 Great Bombard		25

Russians

Card	Description	Age	HC level
Ransack	Infantry get +50% siege attack		25
9 Grenadiers	Ships 9 Grenadiers		25
Dueling School	Infantry (except Skull Knights), Old Han Army, and Territorial Army train time -25%; Black Flag Army, Standard Army, Ming Army, and Imperial Army train time -12%		25

Spanish

Card	Description	Age	HC level
TEAM Inquisition	All units get +10 Line of Sight		10

Changelog

Age of Empires III

• Grenadier's in-game description is "Light artillery that throws grenades to defeat infantry or buildings."
• Grenadiers have 50% ranged resistance, no melee multipliers, a x0.5 ranged multiplier against cavalry and shock infantry, no ranged multipliers against villagers and artillery, a siege rate of fire of 3.0, and 54 siege damage.
• Grenadiers are affected by the "Engineering School" Home City Card.
• Grenadiers are affected by Socket Bayonet.
• Ottomans can train Grenadiers.

Definitive Edition

• Grenadiers now have 40% ranged resistance, a ranged ×0.3 multiplier against cavalry, shock infantry and villagers, and a siege rate of fire of 4.0.
• "Grenade Launchers" introduced. It allows civilizations other than British, Dutch, Russians, and Swedes to train Grenadiers.
• Grenadiers are no longer affected by the "Engineering School" Home City Card.
• Grenadiers are no longer affected by Socket Bayonet.
• Grenadiers now use a new animation in Volley Mode.
• Fixed an issue causing Grenadiers to restart their firing animation during combat.
• Grenadiers are now tagged as grenade trooper.
• Grenadiers inaccuracy removed.

The African Royals

• With update 50830, Grenadiers have 50% ranged resistance, a ranged ×0.5 multiplier against cavalry, villagers and artillery, a siege rate of fire of 3.0, and 41 siege damage.

Knights of the Mediterranean

• With update 13.27885, the Grenade Launchers card is no longer available to the French, the French now require the Edict of Nantes card and the Young Guard technology to train Grenadiers, the Ottomans can train Humbaracis instead of Grenadiers, Grenadiers have 24 hand damage, a melee Area of Effect of 1, a ×0.25 melee multiplier against cavalry, and the in-game description is "Heavy siege infantryman that throws grenades to defeat infantry or buildings."
• With update 13.38085, a negative hand attack multiplier of ×0.15 against shock infantry was added.
• With update 14.43676, Grenadiers have a ×0.4 ranged multiplier against cavalry and shock infantry. Grenadiers shipped by Old Guard and the Pavlov Grenadier upgrade received new models.

Trivia

• The Grenadier has three distinct appearances:
  • The Grenadier is based on late 17th to early 18th century grenadiers.
  • The Veteran Grenadier is based on War of the Austrian Succession period British grenadiers. However, the uniform's main color is white, which was more typical for French and Spanish uniforms of that time.
  • The Guard/Imperial Grenadier is the same uniform as the Veteran, but the old mitre is replaced with what appears to be Napoleonic era British bearskin and the addition of a backpack.
• With the "Grenade Launchers" Home City Card, Grenadiers use a hand mortar to launch their grenades when attacking, reducing the attack delay of Grenadiers.
• Russian Royal Guard Grenadiers may be named after the Pavlovsky Grenadier Regiment.
• The United States' ability to access Grenadiers through the "Washingon's Legion" Home City Card is a reference to George Washington's military career as a British officer in Virginia.
• The Hungarian Grenadier speaks Hungarian reusing dialogue files of the Magyar Hussar, which are, in turn, recycled in-game dialogue of military Magyar units from Age of Empires II HD: The Forgotten, but with the pitch raised slightly.

History

“

Grenadiers began as a unit of siege infantry that hurled grenades - iron spheres filled with gunpowder -- at their targets. Grenadiers needed to be tall, strong men so they could lob the grenades to their targets, or at least far enough away so that the explosion didn't damage their own troops. Over time, tactics and technology changed, and Grenadiers evolved into elite, highly trained and storied infantry regiments. Grenadiers wore long-tailed coats festooned with buttons, braid, and brass. The classic Grenadier wears a tall, cylindrical hat trimmed in or covered with bearskin. The hat originally had no brim, or a very little one at most, so it would not interfere with throwing, even though later Grenadiers fought as traditional infantry.

”

Gallery

An in-game Grenadier

An in-game Veteran Grenadier model

An in-game Guard Grenadier model

An illustration of a real-life Grenadier (Prussian)

Grenadier concept art.

In-game Hungarian Grenadier

An in-game Grenadier in the Definitive Edition

An in-game Veteran Grenadier in the Definitive Edition

An in-game Guard/Imperial Grenadier in the Definitive Edition

Guard/Imperial Grenadier in the Definitive Edition with a grenade launcher

In-game Pavlov Grenadier since update 14.43676

In-game Old Guard (French Grenadier) since update 14.43676