Joan of Arc is a campaign in Age of Empires II. The campaign is based on the exploits of the real Joan of Arc (c. 1412 โ May 30, 1431, French Jeanne d'Arc.) She was a French heroine who, at the age of 17, was pivotal in turning the tide of the Hundred Years' War in her nation's favor.
Template:Heroes Infobox (Age of Empires II)Joan of Arc is a cavalryhero. In the campaign, she is always a must-survive unit. In the first scenario (An Unlikely Messiah), she appears in her unmounted form, as Joan the Maid, in scenarios 2-5 she appears as Joan of Arc, and in the final scenario, A Perfect Martyr, she doesn't appear at all, as she was captured and burned at the stake after the previous scenario. She is also available in the Scenario Editor. As a hero, she cannot be converted and can regenerate health (only in The Conquerors onward).
Gallery
Joan of Arc and her army in the fifth scenario
Joan of Arc in the Scenario Editor
Joan of Arc (right) next to her unmounted variant
Joan of Arc beta art in the Definitive Edition.
Comparison between art in the The Age of Kings cutscenes and the Definitive Edition
Contemporary portrait of Joan of Arc by Clรฉment de Fauquembergue, in the protocol of the parliament of Paris, dated 10 May 1429
It is a war that has lasted for one hundred years, and the French have lost nearly every battle. Soon the English and their allies in Burgundy will conquer all of France. The heir to the French monarchy is too cowardly to ascend to the throne. The French army is wounded and tired and has given up all hope. But in the darkest hour, a young peasant girl declares that she intends to save France
โ
—In-game campaign description
The Joan of Arc campaign consists of 6 scenarios. The player plays as the Franks, and the player color is blue.
The Joan the Maid model is shared with the Scythian Wild Woman in The Conquerors.
The mounted version of Joan is edited from a beta model of the ByzantineCataphract, replacing its head (originally covered with a helmet) with Joan's.
Joan uses the female Villager's dialogue and will change language if made to play for other civilization in the Scenario Editor.
Despite being portrayed as a powerful cavalry unit, Joan herself never participated in actual combat and mostly served as a standard bearer and morale booster for the French army. She declared at her trial that she had never killed a person, in combat or otherwise.
The map in the campaign menu is infamously inaccurate. It depicts the 20th century borders of France, Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands; identifies Switzerland as "Burgundy", and misplaces every single battle location. It's been announced that Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition will feature a corrected map.
In The Forgotten, a renamed Joan the Maid stands for Gala Placidia, the Roman Emperor's sister and later wife of Ataulf.