Healing is the ability to restore the hit points of units, including allied ones belonging to another player.
Overview[]
Healing can be a very useful mechanic when used strategically. In battle, it effectively increases the hit points of the targeted units, allowing them to gain an advantage over their opponents. It can also be used to restore the hit points of important units after taking damage from raiding or skirmishes. In both cases, healing provides an indirect economic bonus by saving the resources needed to train replacements for soldiers that would otherwise be lost. For this reason, healing is especially useful on units with high hit points that are typically expensive. Units capable of restoring the hit points of other units are sometimes called healers, and every game in the Age of Empires series features at least one healer unit. Starting with Age of Empires II, subsequent games introduced additional means of healing, including healing with buildings (e.g. by garrison in Age of Empires II), god powers (Age of Mythology), and various aura effects.
Healing is defined separately from other forms of recovering hitpoints. In most games of the series, the term "healing" only applies to organic units, while restoring the hit points of siege weapons and ships (as well as buildings) is referred to as "repairing", and is accomplished by different means. Additionally, the ability to restore one's own hit points is called regeneration.
Age of Empires[]
Units[]
Age of Empires features only one healing unit:
Team bonuses[]
- Romans: Priests +50% heal speed.
Age of Empires II[]
Units[]
The following healing units can be trained in standard games:
- Monk
- Missionary ( Spanish only)
- Warrior Priest ( Armenians only)
- Campaign units
Buildings[]
- See also: Garrison
Age of Empires II introduces the ability to heal units by garrisoning them inside buildings, giving players the option to heal garrisonable units from the start of the game, albeit at a much slower rate than healing units. The rate of garrison healing differs by building: Castles heal garrisoned units at 0.2 hit points per second, while towers, Donjons and Town Centers heal at 0.1 hit points per second. Researching Herbal Medicine further increases the regeneration rate.
Beginning with The Forgotten, some buildings can passively heal units with in their area of influence, but are limited to one type of healing target, namely trade units for the Caravanserai, and infantry for Celtic Castles with Stronghold researched.
Technologies[]
- Herbal Medicine: Units garrisoned in buildings heal 6× as fast.
- Bimaristan: Monks automatically heal multiple nearby units. ( Saracens only)
- Fereters: Warrior Priests +100% heal speed. ( Armenians only)
- Stronghold: Castles heal allied infantry units at 30 hit points per minute in an 18 tile square. ( Celts only)
Civilization bonuses[]
- Teutons: Monks have double healing range.
Team bonuses[]
- Byzantines: Monks heal 100% faster.
Age of Mythology[]
Age of Mythology greatly expanded the concept of healing compared to previous games in the series, with multiple unique healing units, the ability to heal with buildings (outside garrisons), god powers, and area healing. Unlike in other games of the series, ships and siege weapons can be healed like other units, rather than being repaired like buildings. One exception is Automata, who can repair each other at no cost, unlike buildings.
Units[]
- Priest: Egyptian hero unit; healing rate can be increased with Spirit of Maat
- Pharaoh: Egyptian hero unit; healing rate can be increased with Spirit of Maat
- Son of Osiris (Osiris): Egyptian hero unit; retains the Pharaoh's ability to heal
- Hippocrates (Poseidon): Greek hero unit; in the Extended Edition only
- Valkyrie (Freyja): Norse myth unit; healing rate can be increased with Disablot
- Caladria (Oceanus): Atlantean myth unit
- Servant (Oceanus): Atlantean myth unit
- Automaton (Leto): Atlantean myth unit capable of healing and reviving others of its kind
- Sage: Chinese (Immortal Pillars) hero unit; also passively heals nearby units with Herbal Medicine
- Qilin (Xuannü): Chinese (Immortal Pillars) myth unit, passively heals nearby units; healing rate and range can be increased with Qilin's Blessing
- Monk: Chinese (Tale of the Dragon) hero unit; worshiping Shennong increases their healing rate
- Qilin (Chang'e): Chinese (Tale of the Dragon) myth unit, heals nearby units on death
- Campaign units
- Cangjie: Hero from the Pillars of the Gods campaign, modeled after the Sage
- Setna: Hero from the Fall of the Trident campaign, modeled after the Pharaoh
- Reginleif: Hero from the Fall of the Trident campaign, modeled after the Valkyrie
- Zhi: Hero from the Tale of the Dragon campaign, modeled after the Monk
Buildings[]
- Temple with Temple of Healing (Apollo): Can heal up to three nearby non-flying units at once
- Healing Spring (Forseti): Capturable building with an area healing effect, created by the eponymous Norse god power
- Town Center, Hill Fort, Asgardian Hill Fort with Feasts of Renown (Aegir)
- Hesperides Tree (Theia): Heals nearby friendly myth units (since Retold)
- Dock with Daktyloi (Rheia): Heals nearby friendly naval units
- Shennong's Farm (Shennong): Heals nearby friendly units
God powers[]
- Restoration (Athena): Heals all friendly units and buildings in a radius of 25 for 6 seconds
- Healing Spring (Forseti): Creates a capturable Healing Spring
- Valor (Prometheus): Heals one human unit to full health instantly, as well as converting it to a hero
- Hesperides (Theia): Creates a capturable Hesperides Tree
- Prosperous Seeds (Shennong): Converts two Farms into Shennong's Farms
- Forest Protection (Goumang): Allows a targeted friendly building to heal nearby allied units
Age of Empires III[]
Units[]
Units listed below are healing units referred to as AbstractHealer in the game files.
- Abun (Ethiopians only)
- Brahmin (Indians only)
- Griot (Hausa only)
- / Healer (Haudenosaunee and Lakota only)
- Healer (Maya allies only)
- Imam (Ottomans and Hausa only)
- Inquisitor
- Missionary (Spanish only)
- Padre (Mexicans only)
- Priest (Europeans and Japanese only)
- Priestess (Inca only)
- Shaolin Master (requires Temple of Heaven; Chinese only)
- Sohei Archer (requiers Reiki; Japanese only)
- Surgeon (Europeans and United States only)
- Warrior Priest (Aztecs only)
The following units can heal, but are not considered healing units.
- Akan Tufohen (Akan allies only)
- Battleship (heals ships with the "Nossa Senhora da Conceição" card; Portuguese only)
Buildings[]
- Athos Monastery (House of Phanar allies only)
- Cathedral (heals buildings; Mexicans only)
- Dock (heals ships; all except Africans)
- Field Hospital
- Hospital (Maltese only)
- Mountain Monastery (Ethiopians only)
- Port (heals ships; Africans only)
Age of Empires IV[]
Similar to Age of Mythology, Age of Empires IV features a wide array of healing options. This includes the standard single-unit healing performed by dedicated healer units, of which every civilization has at least one. It also includes a number of units and buildings that have passive healing auras that can simultaneously heal multiple allied units within a certain radius. All of these are either civilization-unique or are have their ability unlocked through unique technologies.
Single unit healing[]
The following units have the generic passive 'Heal' ability. This ability heals friendly units at 7 hit points per second up to full health from a distance of one tile. This can be targeted by right-clicking on a unit, or the nearest unit within a 5 tile radius will automatically be healed. Targets in combat are healed 50% slower. Units that can both fight and heal will prioritize fighting before healing.
- Main article: Religious unit (Age of Empires IV)
- Buddhist Monk ( Japanese)
- Dervish ( Ayyubids)
- Hospitaller Knight ( Knights Templar)
- Imam ( Abbasid Dynasty, Malians, and Ottomans)
- Monk ( Byzantines, Chinese, English, House of Lancaster, Jeanne d'Arc, Knights Templar Zhu Xi's Legacy)
- Prelate ( Holy Roman Empire and Order of the Dragon)
- Scholar ( Delhi Sultanate)
- Shaman ( Mongols)
- Shinto Priest ( Japanese)
- Warrior Monk ( Rus)
Aura healing[]
- Units
In addition to the dedicated healer units, some civilizations have access to units that have aura healing abilities. These can be active or passive and include the following:
- Dervish ( Ayyubids, active, upgrade to passive by Ageing up with the Logistics branch of the House of Wisdom
- Imam ( Ottomans, passive, unlock with Field Work)
- Jeanne d'Arc ( Jeanne d'Arc, active, requires Level 2)
- King ( English, Passive)
- Buildings
The following buildings have healing auras. All of them are passive.
- Keep/ Town Center ( Abbasid Dynasty, unlock with Medical Centers)
- Mosque/ Dome of the Faith ( Delhi Sultanate, unlock with Tranquil Venue)
- Abbey of Kings ( English)
- Sacred Site ( Knights Templar, unlock with Kingdom of Castile)
- Kurultai ( Mongols)
- Outpost ( Mongols, Traders only, unlock with Improved Yam Network)
Gallery[]
