Merchant (Age of Empires III)

This article is about the unit in Age of Empires III. For the unit in Age of Empires II, see Merchant (Age of Empires II).

Merchant
Information
Introduced in	Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition
Type	Villager Economic
Civilization(s)	Dutch
Age	Exploration Age
Training
Trained at	Town Center
Cost	100 Coin 1 Population
Train time	25 seconds seconds
Train limit	50
Statistics
Hit points	150
Resistance	20% Hand
Speed	4.0
Line of Sight	14
Ability	Gathers resources Builds buildings Claims treasures
XP train bounty	10
XP kill bounty	10
Ranged attack
Damage	3 Ranged
Range	2-12 0-12 (against huntable animals)
Rate of Fire	3.0
Bonus damage	×4.0 vs. Huntable animals ×2.0 vs. Pet and Artillery ×0.5 vs. Villager
Siege attack
Damage	5 Siege
Range	6
Rate of Fire	3.0
Bonus damage	×3.0 vs. Resource enclosure*
Hand attack
Damage	10 Hand
Rate of Fire	1.5
Bonus damage	×5.0 vs. Llama

“	Dutch villager that costs coin but also gathers coin faster than a Settler.	”
—In-game description

The Merchant is an economic unit in Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition that replaces the Settler for the Dutch since update 13.27885.

Overview

The Merchant is a variant of the Settler unique to the Dutch. While otherwise identical to European Settlers, they cost 100 coin instead of 100 food. As a civilization bonus, Merchants gather coin +15% faster from mines.

Further statistics

As Merchants are unique to the Dutch, only technologies that they have access to are shown in the following table:

Unit strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs.	Pets
Weak vs.	Everything, especially Oprichniks
Improvements
Gathering speed	Klamath Work Ethos (+5%) Fasting (+10%) Punjabi New Year (+10% from Mills/Farms/Estates/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas) For food: Hunting Dogs (+10% from huntable animals) Steel Traps (+20% from huntable animals) Seed Drill (+15% from Mills/Farms/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas) Artificial Fertilizer (+30% from Mills/Farms/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas) Large Scale Agriculture (+50% from Mills/Farms/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas; Europeans only) Aztec Chinampa (+20% from Mills; Age of Empires III only) Maya Calendar (+10%) Zapotec Food of the Gods (+10%) Vegetarianism (+40% from Berry Bushes) Akan Cocoa Beans (+30% from Berry Bushes, 10% from Mills/Farms/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas) For wood: Gang Saw (+10%) Log Flume (+20%) Circular Saw (+30%) Deforestation (+50%) Wood Clearing (+20%) Yoruba Herbalism (+10%) For coin: Placer Mines (+10% from mines) Amalgamation (+20% from mines) Bookkeeping (+10% from Estates/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas) Homesteading (+20% from Estates/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas) Refineries (+30% from Estates/Rice Paddies/Fields/Haciendas) Excessive Taxation (+50%) Quechuan Metalworking (+20% from mines) Navajo Craftsmanship (+20%) Somali Coinage (+10%)
Hit points	Nootka Bark Clothing (+50%) Berber Kings of the Desert (+35%) Great Coat (+35%) Apache Cactus Use (+15%)
Attack	Blunderbuss (+3) Chouannerie (+1.0 multiplier against infantry)
Range	Blunderbuss (+4)
Line of Sight	Blunderbuss (+4) Town Watch (+3)
Speed	Apache Cactus Use (+15%)
Train time	Christian Schools (-15%) Immigrants (-10%)
Other	Sequoyah's Cherokee Syllabary (ships 4 Settlers) Sharia (+10 train limit) Yoruba Herbalism (regenerate hit points when close to a tree or Berry Bush)
Penalties	Fasting (-40% hit points) Blunderbuss (-2.0 multiplier against huntable animals)

Home City Cards

As Merchants are unique to the Dutch, only their cards and other civilizations' TEAM cards that affects them are shown in the following tables:

Click for a list of Home City Cards related to the Merchant

Some cards are highlighted with:
Green	TEAM Shipment that is sent to each player in a team
Purple	Shipment that can be sent an INFINITE number of times
Blue	Shipment that arrives fast (5 seconds)

All

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Food Silos	Villagers gather food from Mills, Farms, Rice Paddies, Fields, and Haciendas 10% faster; Haciendas auto gather food 10% faster
TEAM Furrier	Villagers gather food from huntable animals 10% faster and from Berry Bushes and Cherry Orchards 15% faster; huntable animals last 5% longer; Berry Bushes and Cherry Orchards last 7.5% longer
TEAM Spice Trade	Villagers gather food from huntable animals 10% faster and from Berry Bushes and Cherry Orchards 15% faster; huntable animals and Cherry Orchards last 5% longer; Berry Bushes last 7.5% longer
TEAM Medicine	Villagers train time -15%

• "TEAM Food Silos" is available to the Germans and Haudenosaunee.
• "TEAM Furrier" is available to the Haudenosaunee and Russians.
• "TEAM Spice Trade" is available to the Dutch and Lakota.
• "TEAM Medicine" is available to the Aztecs, Haudenosaunee, Inca, and Indians.

Aztecs

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Exotic Hardwoods	Villagers gather wood from trees and Mango Groves 15% faster
TEAM Silversmith	Villagers gather coin from mines, Tribal Marketplaces, and Mountain Monasteries 10% faster; Abuns gather coin and influence from Mountain Monasteries 10% faster; Mountain Monasteries auto gather coin and influence 10% faster; mines last 10% loger

British

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Rum Distillery	Villagers gather coin from Estates, Rice Paddies, Fields, and Haciendas 15% faster; Haciendas auto gather coin 15% faster

Canada

Card	Description	Age
Great Buffalo Hunt	Ships 10 Bison; Villagers gather food from huntable animals 10% faster

Dutch

Card	Description	Age
2 Merchants	Ships 2 Merchants
4 Merchants	Ships 4 Merchants
3 Merchants	Ships 3 Merchants
Flemish Revolution	Turns all Villagers into Halberdiers; costs 750 food, 750 wood, 750 coin
Bank of Amsterdam	Bank build limit +1; Merchant train limit +5
Bank of Rotterdam	Bank build limit +1; Merchant train limit +5
Pioneers	Villagers get +65% hit points
Sawmills	Villagers gather wood from trees and Mango Groves 15% faster; trees and Mango Groves last 15% longer
Exotic Hardwoods	Villagers gather wood from trees and Mango Groves 20% faster
Establish Ironmonger	Villagers gather coin from mines 20% faster
Silversmith	Villagers gather coin from mines 20% faster; mines last 20% longer
Royal Mint	Villagers gather coin 25% faster; Haciendas auto gather coin 25% faster
Sustainable Agriculture	Villagers gather food from Mills, Farms, Rice Paddies, Fields, and Haciendas 15% faster; Haciendas auto gather food 15% faster
Refrigeration	Villagers gather food 20% faster; Haciendas auto gather food 20% faster
Medicine	Villagers cost and train time -15%
Rum Distillery	Villagers gather coin from Estates, Rice Paddies, Fields, and Haciendas 20% faster; Haciendas auto gather coin 20% faster
Cigar Roller	Villagers gather coin from Estates, Rice Paddies, Fields, and Haciendas 20% faster; Haciendas auto gather coin 20% faster
Textile Mill	Villagers gather coin from Estates, Rice Paddies, Fields, and Haciendas 25% faster; Haciendas auto gather coin 25% faster
Stonemasons	Villagers build buildings 65% faster

Europeans

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Ironmonger	Villagers gather coin from mines, Tribal Marketplaces, and Mountain Monasteries 10% faster; Abuns gather coin and influence from Mountain Monasteries 10% faster; Mountain Monasteries auto gather coin and influence 10% faster

• "TEAM Ironmongers" is available to the Ottomans and Spanish.

French

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Sawmills	Villagers gather wood from trees and Mango Groves 10% faster; trees and Mango Groves last 5% longer

Inca

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Inca Bridges	Infantry, Villagers, Healing units, and Envoys get +5% speed; +1 Chasqui

Indians

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Shivaji's Tactics	All units get +5% hit points and attack

Japanese

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Jujutsu	Villagers get +35% hit points; Surgeons, Priests, Architects, Native Scouts, and Envoys get +20% attack; Disciples and Shaolin Masters get +10% attack; units affected by villager upgrades get +10% hit points
TEAM Chonindo	Villagers, Fishing Boats, and Abuns gather 8% faster (except hunts); Haciendas auto gather 8% faster

Maltese

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Knights of the Round Table	Ships 1 Hospitaller for each Town Center owned by the player; all units get +2% hit points

Mexicans

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Mariachi	For the next 30 seconds, military buildings work 400% faster and units get +10% speed
TEAM Copper Canyon	Ships 1 Prospector Wagon; Villagers gather wood from trees and coin from mines 10% faster

Revolutions

Card	Description	Age
Citizenship	Ships 6 Merchants; Merchants can be trained at the Town Centers for 70 coin; Fishing Boats can be trained at the Docks
Minas Gerais	Gives a trickle of 3.3 coin; Merchants can be trained at the Town Centers for 70 coin; Fishing Boats can be trained at the Docks
Aceh Pepper Exports	Gives a trickle of 4.65 food; Merchants can be trained at the Town Centers; Fishing Boats can be trained at the Docks
Wanderlust	Land units get +5% hit points; Villagers and Wagons get +5% speed

• "Citizenship" is available to the United States (revolutionary).
• "Minas Gerais" is available to Brazil.
• "Aceh Pepper Exports" is available to Indonesia.
• "Wanderlust" is available to South Africa.

Spanish

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Spanish Inquisition	All units get +10 Line of Sight; +1 Inquisitor

Swedes

Card	Description	Age
TEAM Falun Mine	Ships 1 Prospector Wagon; Villagers, Abuns, and Mountain Monasteries gather yield from mines 25% longer

Changelog

Knights of the Mediterranean

• Originally, Merchants had a ×3.0 siege multiplier against Mountain Monasteries, Athos Monasteries, Depots and Shrines. With update 13.58326, Merchants have a ×3.0 siege multiplier against Resource enclosure.

History

“

The Dutch Golden Age describes a period of enormous prosperity that lasted roughly hundred years beginning with the proclamation of the Dutch Republic in 1588. The economic success is largely attributed to a series of technological revolutions in the fields of shipbuilding, agriculture and industrial production. These developments enabled the Dutch republic to become a naval power and dominate naval trade with the largest merchant fleet of the 17th century. The foundation of chartered companies, particularly the "Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie" – better known as the Dutch East India Company – were pivotal in expanding the trade opportunities internationally through a network of trading posts, ports, and colonies. Trade monopolies with Japan or the so-called "Spice Islands" of Maluku are emblematic of the company's reach and power.

”

Gallery

Merchant image from the Compendium section

In-game Merchants