Loom is a technology in Age of Empires II that can be researched at the Town Center. Once researched, it makes Villagers harder to kill by adding +15 hit points, +1 armor, and +2 pierce armor for a total of 40 HP and 1/2 armor.
It is the only technology available in the Dark Age and is the cheapest to research.
Loom is effective during the early game, as it helps to protect Villagers from an early attack, but decreases in effectiveness as the strength of enemy armies rise. This is much more helpful for the Spanish if combined with Supremacy, as it further adds defense with an upgrade that's meant to make Spanish Villagers combat capable.
Additionally, Loom makes Villagers far more formidable against wild animals. Without Loom, a single Villager (except Magyar Villagers) will lose to any wild animal if it strikes first. With Loom, however, a single Villager can even kill two wild animals if they do not attack at the same time and do not strike first.
In the Dark Age, a Villager with Loom is quite self-sufficient, beating a Scout Cavalry and tying with Militia, but it still loses to Eagle Scouts (10 HP remaining after combat). In the later Ages, however, Villagers become gradually worse in comparison to these units, due to the upgrades they can get.
Civilization bonuses[]
- Chinese: Loom is 5%/10%/15% cheaper in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
- Goths: Loom is researched instantly.
- Persians: Researching Loom is 5%/10%/15%/20% faster in the Dark/Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
- Spanish: Receive 20 gold after researching Loom.
Team bonuses[]
- Portuguese: Researching Loom is 25% faster.
Changelog[]
The Age of Kings[]
- Loom gives +1/+1 armor to Villagers.
The Conquerors[]
- With patch 1.0b, Loom now gives +1/+2 armor.
- Aztecs: With patch 1.0b, Loom is free.
The Forgotten[]
- Aztecs: Free Loom removed, but start the game with +50 gold.
Definitive Edition[]
- Goths: With update 36906, they get Loom for free. With update 42848, Loom is no longer free, but it is researched instantly.
- Persians: Initially, Loom is researched 5% faster in the Dark Age. With update 36906, Loom is no longer researched 5% faster in the Dark Age.
- Portuguese: With update 42848, Loom is researched 30% faster.
The Mountain Royals[]
- Persians: With update 95810, Loom is researched 5% faster in the Dark Age.
Trivia[]
- Loom is one of only two technologies outside the Monastery costing only gold, the other one being Spies.
- A free Loom bonus was originally possessed by the Aztecs in patch 1.0b for The Conquerors. Since the release of The Forgotten, however, the bonus was removed from the Aztecs and, instead, they received +50 gold at the start of the game. Later, Goths received free Loom as an economy bonus with update 36906 of the Definitive Edition, but then it was removed in update 42848 and replaced with instant research time.
History[]
ā | The invention of the loom and the ability to weave cloth was an important ancient technology that was quickly recovered during the Dark Ages. Good wool clothes were an important asset that lengthened life expectancy in the Northern European climate. Raising sheep for wool and then making cloth was one of the early important industries of the Middle Ages. | ā |