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This article is about the civilization in Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties. For other appearances of the faction in the series, see Japanese.
Civilization Technology tree Strategy Home City Cards

ā€œDescendants of the Yamato civilization, who inhabited the island of Japan and other parts of Asia in the far-east. The Japanese civilization is now under the Tokugawa Shogunate, that unified the country.ā€
Forgotten Empires website

The Japanese are one of the three playable civilizations featured in Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties. The civilization is based on the Edo period of Japanese history where the Tokugawa Shogunate ruled over most parts of modern Japan.

Their precursors in the series are the Yamato in Age of Empires, the Japanese in Age of Empires II, and the Japanese Age of Empires IV.

Home City[]

Homecity Japanese DE
Default Monk names
Benkei, Gochin No Tajima, Honen Shonin, Ichirai Hoshi, Inei, Kosa, Rennyo, Shimotsuma Nakayuki, Shinran Shonin, Tsutsui Jomyo Meishu

  • Japan treasury1 Emperor's Treasury (original) - Default
  • Japan treasury2 Emperor's Treasury (white and oak) - 2 points

  • Japan fortress1 Fortress Tower (original) - Default
  • Japan fortress2 Fortress Tower (red and blue) - 2 points
  • Japan sunset lightset Sunset Lighting - Default
  • Japan misty morning lightset Misty Morning - 5 points
  • Japan night lightset Night Lighting - 10 points
  • Japan snow lightset Snowy Season - 10 points

  • Japan imperial court1 Imperial Court (original) - Default
  • Japan imperial court2 Imperial Court (imperial gold) - 2 points
  • Japan snowmonkey Snow Monkeys - 5 points
  • Japan hanging lanterns-kamihinokinai1 Kamihinokinai Paper Balloon Festival - Lanterns - 5 points (also requires the Night Lighting customization)

  • Japan merchants guild1 Merchants' Guild (original) - Default
  • Japan merchants guild2 Merchants' Guild (red and black) - 2 points
  • Japan boats Japanese fishing boats - 2 points

  • Japan customs house1 Customs House (original) - Default
  • Japan customs house2 Customs House (mahogany red and black) - 2 points
  • Japan kites Kite Festival - 2 points
  • Japan water lanterns-kamihinokinai2 Kamihinokinai Paper Balloon Festival - Water Lanterns - 5 points (also requires the Kamihinokinai Paper Balloon Festival - Lanterns customization)

Characteristics[]

Civilization bonuses[]

Shared Asian units[]

  • Sentry cn jp de Sentry: Quick-training, Pikeman who quickly loses hitpoints, becoming less effective over time.
  • Irregular cn jp de Irregular: Quick-training, musketeer who quickly loses hitpoints, becoming less effective over time.

Shared Asian buildings[]

  • China rice paddy icon aoe3de Rice Paddy: Slow, infinite source of Food or Coin. Limited to 10 gatherers.
  • Monastery aoe3de Monastery: Trains repentant outlaws and mercenaries. Provides Monk improvements.
  • Japan castle aoe3de Castle: A powerful defensive building that can also train and upgrade artillery.
  • Consulate icon aoe3de Consulate: Spend Export here to enter into relations with European powers and gain a powerful bonus. Also use Export to purchase European troops and technologies.

Unique units[]

  • IkkoIkkiDE Sohei Archer: Leader who stuns Treasure guardians and has a chance to do Divine Strike damage in combat. Explores, fights, and builds Town Centers, Trading Posts, and Shrines.
  • Villager asian aoe3de Villager: A Japanese villager that does not eat meat. Gathers all other resources.
  • Samurai aoe3de Samurai: Powerful Japanese Samurai swordsman that inflicts area damage in hand combat. Good against cavalry and buildings.
  • Ashigaru de Ashigaru Musketeer: Japanese heavy foot soldier armed with a musket. Good against cavalry in a melee.
  • Yumi archer de Yumi Archer: Ranged infantry armed with the Japanese longbow. Good against infantry.
  • Naginata de Naginata Rider: Heavy cavalry armed with a naginata for killing archers, skirmishers, and artillery.
  • Yabusame de Yabusame: Japanese master of the bow and the horse. Good against cavalry and artillery.
  • Flaming arrow aoe3de Flaming Arrow: Japanese cannon that shoots an exploding arrow. Better against infantry and artillery than buildings.
  • Morutaru de Morutaru: Artillery that fires an exploding shell at buildings or ships.
  • Daimyo kiyomasa aoe3de Daimyo Kiyomasa: Powerful Japanese lord who can train troops and receive Shipments.
  • Shogun tokugawa aoe3de Shogun Tokugawa: Supreme ruler of Japan. Can train troops and receive Shipments. Also gives nearby troops extra hitpoints.
  • Yamabushi aoe3de Yamabushi: Japanese Monk armed with a large two-handed club. Good against cavalry and buildings.
  • Shinobi aoe3de Shinobi: Stealthy ranged infantry. Good against infantry.
  • Fune aoe3de Fune: Fune. Good at exploring, fishing or transport.
  • Atakabune aoe3de Atakebune: Atakebune. Slow, powerful ship resistant to building fire that can train units.
  • Tekkousen aoe3de Tekkousen: Tekkousen. Heavy warship.

Unique buildings[]

  • Shrine aoe3de Shrine: Generates a tiny amount of resources. Configure it to produce different things. Attract nearby animals for bonus production. Supports 10 population.
  • Cherry orchard portrait aoe3de Cherry Orchard: A beautiful Cherry Orchard which can be harvested for Food.
  • Dojo aoe3de Dojo: Generates armies automatically. Configure it to produce different things. Can only be sent from the Home City.

Wonders[]

  • GoldenPavilionDE Golden Pavilion: Increases the attack of ranged land units, the attack of hand units, the speed of all land units, or the hitpoints of all land units. Configure it to give bonuses to different things.
  • GiantBuddhaDE Great Buddha: Casts the Informers spell which reveals the enemy's positions to you.
  • ShogunateDE Shogunate: Decreases training time and cost of land military units.
  • ToriiGatesDE Torii Gates: Increases the experience point build bounty for training units and constructing buildings and the bounty for defeating enemy units and buildings.
  • ToshoguShrineDE Toshogu Shrine: Acts as a giant Shrine and increases the amount of resources that Shrines generate. Supports 20 population.

Overview[]

The Japanese are a strong civilization, but they cannot gather food via herding or hunting. They build Shrines to gain a small trickle of whatever resource they are set to, including experience, with a high-level Home City. Building Shrines around huntables or herdables will attract them to the Shrine, with each huntable or herdable animal increasing the amount of resources that the Shrine generates. The Shrines also act as Houses; they support 10 population. The Japanese may also build Cherry Orchards, which are unpacked from freely-obtained Rickshaws. As a special advantage, most cards in the Japanese Home City may be sent twice.

The Japanese have very expensive ā€“ but powerful ā€“ military units, such as the Samurai, Ashigaru Musketeers, Yumi Archers, Yabusame, Naginata Riders, as well as artillery units such as Flaming Arrows and Morutaru. The Japanese navy is average at best, but their fishing potential makes it easy to perform a water boom.

Each Asian civilization has special Monks instead of Explorers. Japanese monks, the Sohei Archers, are the only explorer-type units in the game to also be considered "archers" for the purposes of Carib Garifuna Drums' anti-Villager bonuses (x1.3 damage vs. Settlers) and other archer-specific upgrades. As with other Monks, Sohei Archers have no sniper abilities, but can stun treasure guardians. They also perform powerful "Divine Strike" attacks that instantly kill weakened enemies outright, among others. Sohei Archers can also build Shrines. If the card Mountain Warrior is sent, they will receive twice the normal resources or experience they normally would from treasures.

Changelog[]

3ADIcon48px The Asian Dynasties[]

  • The Japanese Home City cannot be customized.

Age3DE Icon The African Royals[]

  • With update 43871, the Japanese Home City can be customized.

Campaign appearances[]

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it.

The Japanese are playable in their dedicated campaign Act I: Japan in The Asian Dynasties.

In-game dialogue[]

These Japanese words or sentences spoken in this game are grammatically correct and generally standard with no particular regional dialect, but some of them are old-fashioned or pronounced with a foreign accent. The accents and styles of the language spoken by Japanese units are as follows:

  • The female villager speaks modern standardized Japanese with some non-standard (apparently foreign) accent.
  • The male villager speaks modern standardized Japanese with a standard Tokyo accent.
  • The Sohei Archer speaks a kind of typically theatrical and conventional Japanese which is characterized by its old-fashioned word usage and its stylized pronunciation of words. The style of the language spoken by the monk is like that of Jidaigeki, a genre of film and television drama that depicts the life of Japan in pre-modern times. The monk sometimes speaks with the copula ja (恘悃), which, if used by a fictional character (and not as a regional dialect), usually signifies that the speaker is an old or archaic person, especially male one.
  • Military units, including Daimyo and Shogun, speak a kind of theatrical Japanese characterized by its old-fashioned word usage. Some of them speak with a standard accent, while others speak with some non-standard accent.

Common[]

  • ē”Ø件ćÆ? [Yōken wa?] ("What's the matter?")
  • ćŖ悓恠? [Nan da?] ("What?") ā€” male villager
  • å‘¼ć‚“ć ć‹ć„? [Yonda kai?] ("Did you call?") ā€” male villager
  • 何? [Nani?] ("What?") ā€” female villager
  • å‘¼ć‚“ć ? [Yonda?] ("Did you call?") ā€” female villager
  • 恄恄悈 [ÄŖ yo.] ("All right.")
  • ćÆ [Ha.] ("Yes."; a variant of hai (ćÆ恄 "Yes") pronounced with a short, strong breath; old-fashioned, typically said by fictional archaic characters, especially of the feudal ages, in response to the instructions or remarks of their superior person, with an attitude of respect toward that person)
  • ć”å‘½ä»¤ć‚’ [Gomeirei o.] ("Your instructions?")
  • å¾”ę„ļ¼ˆć«ļ¼‰ [Gyoi (ni).] ("At your will.")
  • 悈恗 [Yoshi.] ("Ok.") ā€” male villager
  • ć‚ć‹ć‚Šć¾ć—ćŸ [Wakarimashita.] ("I understood")
  • ć‚ć‹ć£ćŸć‚ˆ [Wakatta yo.] ("I understood!") ā€” female villager
  • č”Œćć¾ć™ [Ikimasu.] ("I go.")
  • ćÆ恄! [Hai!] ("Yes!")
  • ćŸć ć„ć¾ [Tadaima.] ("At once") ā€” fishing boat
  • 恝恆恧恙 [Sō desu.] (In this context, "I see" or "Understood") ā€” fishing boat
  • 恄恖 [Iza.] ("Now.")
  • ē›“恔恫 [Tadachi ni.] ("Immediately.")
  • 仰恛恮通悊ļ¼ˆć«ļ¼‰ [Ōse no tōri (ni).] (Literally "As you say."; it means "In accordance with your will.")
  • 恄恖悆恋悓! [Iza yukan!] ("Let's go now!")
  • ęˆ¦ć˜ć‚ƒ! [Ikusa ja!] ("Fight!")
  • 悄! [Ya!] (an interjection)

Villager[]

Monk[]

Japanese version[]

Ready[]

  • Civilian
    1. Nan da? ćŖ悓恠? (male Villager)
    2. Nani? 何?) (female Villager)
    3. Yonda? - (å‘¼ć‚“ć ?)
    4. n? - (悓?)
    5. 'Hai - (ćÆ恄?)
  • Military
    1. Nan nari to - (ćŖ悓ćŖ悊ćØ)
    2. Gomeirei wo. - (ć”å‘½ä»¤ć‚’)
    3. Ha. - (ćÆ)
  • Monk
    1. Nan nari to - (ćŖ悓ćŖ悊ćØ)
    2. Yō ka na? - (ē”Ø恋ćŖ?)
    3. Nan ja na? - (ćŖ悓恘悃ćŖ?)
  • Daimyo
    1. Umu - (恆悀)
    2. Nan ja? - (ćŖ悓恘悃?)

Moving[]

  • Civilian
    1. Ikuyo. - (č”Œćć‚ˆ)
    2. Ikimasu. - (č”Œćć¾ć™) (female Villager)
    3. Wakadda. - (ć‚ć‹ć£ć )
    4. Shouchi - (ę‰æēŸ„)
  • Military
    1. Tadachi ni. - (ē›“恔恫)
    2. Shouchi - (ę‰æēŸ„)
    3. Iza - (恄恖)
  • Monk
    1. Umu - (恆悀)
    2. Shōchi shita - (ę‰æēŸ„恗恟)
    3. Ikimashyou. - (č”Œćć¾ć—ć‚‡ć†)
  • Military
    1. Yukou - (č”Œć“ć†)
    2. Shouchi - (ę‰æēŸ„)
    3. Iza - (恄恖)

Attack[]

  • Common
    1. Kagare! - (恋恌悌)
    2. Yaa! - (悄恁)
    3. Taa! - (恟恁)
  • Artillery
    1. Utte! - (ę’ƒć£ć¦!)
  • Picking resources
    1. Female Build Tateru no ne (å»ŗ恦悋恮恭) - "Builder", literally "To build"
    2. Male Farm Kome da ne (ē±³ć ć­) - "Rice cultivator", literally "Rice cultivation"
    3. Female Farm Kome ne (ē±³ć­) - "Rice cultivator", literally "Rice cultivation"

History[]

ā€œThe Sengoku, or Warring States period, lasted roughly from 1478 to 1605 and was a time of tremendous social upheaval and political strife in Japan, defined by an almost endless state of war.

The centralized government of the reigning Ashikaga shogunate had begun to lose the loyalty of many daimyo, or feudal lords, across Japan. Individual provinces were beginning to turn inwards and busy themselves with local matters. This was especially true of those domains far from Kyoto, the center of power.

Many factors contributed to the gradual fragmentation of the shogunate. Trade with China was growing rapidly, developing the Japanese economy and boosting the importance of money to local economies. Commercial cities began to appear across the countryside, and a great desire for local autonomy developed, touching all classes of the social hierarchy. Soon, frustrated over rising taxes and the damage done by famines and earthquakes, peasants began to revolt.

As chaos began to take hold of the rural villages, unrest broke out in Kyoto, where a dispute over shogunal succession triggered the Onin War (1467ā€“1477). The Hosokawa family and its allies clashed with the Yamana family over the right to wield Japan's cetral authority. This conflict raged for 11 years, further weakening the role of the shogunate, and it eventually spread out to the waiting powder keg that had become the surrounding provinces.

Regional daimyo suddenly rose up to take control where the central authority had none. During this time, notable clans such as the Takeda and the Imagawa were able to greatly expand their spheres of influence. This was not true of all local lords, however, as many were overtaken by their own subordinates and replaced. This was known as gekokujo, literally translated to mean "the underling conquers the overlord."

A century passed and the feudal warring continued, even as a possibility for peace grew on the horizon. Oda Nobunaga, who had emerged from obscurity to seize power over much of central Japan, seemed poised to unite the scrabbling clans into an alliance; but before he could, Nobunaga fell victim to the treachery of one of his own generals in 1582. This left the path to power open for whoever had the ambitions to take it.

One of Nobunaga's most trusted underlings, a general and former foot soldier named Toyotomi Hideyoshi, stepped in where his predecessor had left off and continued the work to unify the feuding families. Hideyoshi could never become a true shogun as he was of common birth, but he did consolidate enough power to be named an Imperial Regent by the Emperor of Japan.

After several ill-fated invasions of Korea, Hideyoshi died in 1598 without leaving a capable successor to his dynasty. Again, the nation teetered precariously on the edge of chaos.

It was then that the powerful daimyo of Mikawa province, Tokugawa Ieyasu, chose to make his move, one he had been planning for years.
ā€

Trivia[]

  • The only in-game way to listen to the Japanese dialogue for "Hunter" [Kari da ne.] is to obtain a European Settler, either by rescuing from Treasures or researching the Sequoyah's Cherokee Syllabary technology.
  • The Japanese flag shown in the game features the emblem (mon) of the Tokugawa shogunate (1603ā€“1867) on a black background.
  • According to early screenshots before the release of The Asian Dynasties, the Japanese flag in the game would be the Civil and state flag and ensign of the Empire of Japan used by the Japanese Empire between 1870ā€“1999.

Gallery[]

Civilizations in Age of Empires III
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AmericanFederal American: Flag MexicanDE Mexicans Ā· Flag American act3 aoe3de United States
Native American: Flag AztecDE Aztecs Ā· Flag IroquoisDE Haudenosaunee (formerly Iroquois) Ā· Flag IncanDE Inca Ā· Flag SiouxDE Lakota (formerly Sioux)
AsianFlag ChineseDE Chinese Ā· Flag IndianDE Indians Ā· Flag JapaneseDE Japanese
EuropeanFlag BritishDE British Ā· Flag DutchDE Dutch Ā· Flag FrenchDE French Ā· Flag GermanDE Germans Ā· Flag ItalianDE Italians Ā· Flag MalteseDE Maltese Ā· Flag OttomanDE Ottomans Ā· Flag PortugueseDE Portuguese Ā· Flag RussianDE Russians Ā· Flag SpanishDE Spanish Ā· Flag SwedishDE Swedes Ā· Polish Ā· Danes
Minor
AfricanAkan Settlement Icon Akan Ā· Berber Settlement Portrait Berbers Ā· Somali Settlement Portrait Somalis Ā· Sudanese settlement portrait Sudanese Ā· Yoruba settlement portait Yoruba
AsianBhakti aoe3de Bhakti Temple Ā· Jesuit aoe3de Jesuit Mission Ā· Native shaolin site icon portrait Shaolin Temple Ā· Sufi aoe3de Sufi Mosque Ā· AOE3DE Tengri Tengri Shrine Ā· Udasi aoe3de Udasi Temple Ā· Zen aoe3de Zen Temple
EuropeanBourbon icon portrait-1 House of Bourbon Ā· Habsburg icon portrait-1 House of Habsburg Ā· Hanover icon portrait-1 House of Hanover Ā· Jagiellon icon portrait-1 House of Jagiellon Ā· Oldenburg icon portrait-1 House of Oldenburg Ā· Phanar icon portrait-1 House of Phanar Ā· Vasa icon portrait-1 House of Vasa Ā· Wettin icon portrait-1 House of Wettin Ā· Wittelsbach icon portrait-1 House of Wittelsbach
Native AmericanApache aoe3de Apache Ā· Aztec native icon aoe3de Aztecs Ā· Carib aoe3de Carib Ā· Cherokee aoe3de Cherokee Ā· Cheyenne aoe3de pre update Cheyenne Ā· Comanche icon aoe3de Comanche Ā· Cree aoe3de Cree Ā· Iroquois aoe3de Haudenosaunee Ā· Huron aoe3de Huron Ā· Klamath settlement portrait Klamath Ā· Sioux aoe3de Lakota Ā· Lenape warrior portrait Lenape Ā· Mapuche icon aoe3de Mapuche Ā· Maya aoe3de Maya Ā· Navajo aoe3de Navajo Ā· Nootka aoe3de Nootka Ā· Inca native icon aoe3de Quechua (formerly Incas) Ā· Seminole aoe3de Seminole Ā· Tupi aoe3de Tupi Ā· Zapotec icon aoe3de Zapotec
Other
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Historical BattlesBarbary States flag revolt Barbary Pirates Ā· Flag CanadianDE Canadians Ā· Flag Ethiopian aoe3de Ethiopians Ā· Flag Moroccan Moroccans Ā· Flag Somali aoe3de Somalians Ā· Flag Tatars aoe3de Tatars Ā· Flag American act3 aoe3de United States
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