Fishing is another means of gaining food in the Age of Empires series. It requires the player to build a Dock and train Fishing Boats or Fishing Ships, depending on the game. Fishing is available in every game in the Age of Empires series.
Age of Empires[]
In Age of Empires, Villagers and Fishing Boats can gather both fish and Whales. However, Villagers can only fish from the shore, that features Shore Fish, while Fishing Boats have access to fish anywhere on the map.
Unfortunately, fish supplies are limited and run out soon, especially shore fish.
Age of Empires II[]
As with Age of Empires, both Villagers and Fishing Ships can fish in Age of Empires II.
Fishermen have a 0.43 gathering rate, making it the second fastest rate of food for a villager. A fisherman can stock food for the player at a Mill or a Dock.
Fishing Ships gather food at a rate of 0,28 food per second from shore fish (i.e fish that are adjacent to the shore), and at the rate of 0.49 food per second from deep-sea fish (i.e all other fish). Additionally, Fishing Ships can build Fish Traps. They are otherwise similar to Farms in that once all the food they provide has been used up, they are depleted. A new Fish Trap will then have to be built.
However, with The Forgotten's Gillnets technology, Fishing Ships' gather rate is increased by 25%. Furthermore, with the Malay civilization's inclusion in Rise of the Rajas, Fish Traps provide +200% food and are cheaper, often making them a decent alternative to Farms. Although still costing more than a Farm (100 wood rather than 60), such a Fish Trap provides more food than a Farm, even one with Crop Rotation researched (715 food). Furthermore, the Definitive Edition added the ability to queue Fish Traps at the Docks and auto-renew them.
Usually, fishing is preferred by civilizations who have a distinct advantage in fishing, or by those that lack Crop Rotation. Civilizations that are much better at fishing over farming include the:
Age of Mythology[]
In Age of Mythology, Fishing Ships are used to catch fish. Unlike in the previous games, fish shoals are inexhaustible. Furthermore, once the two fishing technologies, Purse Seine and Salt Amphora, are researched, fishing is often superior to farming. However, Fishing Ships are more vulnerable to attack than Farms and may need defending.
None of the five cultures in Age of Mythology has any technologies or other advantages that make them better at fishing. Each is as good as the other.
Age of Empires III[]
In Age of Empires III, the Fishing Boat can not only gather food from fish, but coin from Whales as well. Also, many warships can fish, though they are less cost-efficient than fishing boats when doing so.
The following warships can gather from fish:
Age of Empires IV[]
As in Age of Empires and Age of Empires II, both Villagers and Fishing Boats can fish in Age of Empires IV. There are two kinds of fish featured in the game. Shoreline Fish contain 500 food and disappear when depleted. Deep Water Fish begin with 1,000 food and replenish after being depleted, at a rate of 50 food every 10 seconds. While Villagers can only gather from Shoreline Fish, Fishing Boats can gather from both. Like Fishing Boats, Villagers can drop off food at the Dock, regardless of its source.
Fishing is the fastest method of gathering food in the game, with Fishing Boats gathering from Deep Water Fish at a rate of 1.1 food/second and from Shoreline Fish at 0.75/second, while Villagers gather from the latter at about 1/second, making it faster than hunting. The Malians' civilization bonus makes their Fishing Boats move faster when in proximity to a Dock but, other than that, no civilization has a direct bonus to their fish gather rate. The Byzantines can also use fishing to generate Olive Oil, with their Villagers dropping off an additional 10% when gathering from Shoreline Fish, while their Fishing Boats drop off an additional 20% when gathering from both kinds.
Trivia[]
- Originally, Villagers in Age of Mythology were able to fish. The feature was dropped, most likely due to issues of how far away fishing spots spawned in random maps, and due to the fish's large obstruction radius.
- At one point, sharks could be fished as well, as they have a selection ring. The feature was most likely removed to avoid controversy.
- Settlers were also allowed to fish in Age of Empires III, but the feature was also removed.