The Monitor has a mortar fixed on the front for bombarding beaches or fortifications, but is weak against other ships and anti-ship units. It has an ability where it fires a more powerful shot that covers more range. The Monitor is most effective against buildings, as it deals 10 times as much damage against them compared to units. Any building that is deemed a threat can also be targeted; however, they are essential for destroying shore defences such as Forts. Monitors are resistant to building fire due to being classified as a siege unit; Outposts and Town Centers do half their damage against them. This marks a power swing towards invading navies and away from the shore defender starting in the Industrial Age.
Monitors are expensive, but may be acquired via the TEAM Monitor cards. If sending the 2 Monitor Card, be careful with the unit limit, as training any (without Admiralty) will make the total after the shipment exceed the unit limit, which prevents the card from being sent.
The Monitor is generally considered better than the Ironclad for long-range attacks. With the European Cannons or Offshore Support cards, Monitors can outrange all other ships. However, this range bonus only applies to its basic attack; the long-range attack is a fixed amount and damage versus ships is low (unless modified via the tactics discussed below).
Strategy[]
Fixed Gun[]
If a puddle of water is large enough to build a Dock, then it can usually hold a Monitor. This can grant easier control over a large area of a landlocked map, and obliterate or severely weaken any enemy units that encroach on the territory. Hot Air Balloons or the Spyglass ability can be used as a spotter for bombarding targets behind enemy walls that prevent passage of normal units.
Total tactic cost
The following includes Dock, Monitor (2), and upgrade costs. It does not take into account Spanish Unction, TEAM cards, or minor native civilization cost reduction cards for buildings and upgrades. It also does not include the Admiralty card for a third Monitor, which would add 800 wood, 200 coin to the costs (or subtract that, if a shot every 60 seconds is satisfactory). Keep in mind that the area of effect is very large, so when targeting tightly packed buildings click on the ground, not an individual building, to better spread the damage to multiple buildings. With armies, target a unit in the middle rather than the edge of the formation, or the area between the frontline and supporting cannons, for maximum effect. Unless leading a moving enemy army, in which case, use a best estimate.
2,550 wood, 1,150 coin for all Monitor damage upgrades in the Industrial Age (including Improved Warships card). 350 damage per long-range shot, one shot every 30 seconds if staggered.
4,050 wood, 2,650 coin with the Imperial Age upgrade. 450 damage per long-range shot, and one shot every 30 seconds if staggered.
Note:Water Ceremony for the Aztecs and Haudenosaunee, and Charging Ceremony for the Lakota can not be used to buff a Monitor, as maps with such puddles of water do not support naval unit TEAM cards as they lack a water delivery point.
4v4 Carpet bombing[]
The highest attainable damage for the Monitor's regular attack is 339.04 (3,390.4 vs buildings, 67.808 vs villagers), and the long-range attack is 847.6 (8,476 vs buildings, 169.52 vs villagers) in 4v4 games. It requires all upgrades and damage cards, including Spanish Unction, and a British (Monitor Combat), Chinese (Improved Warships), and Indian (Shivaji's Tactics) ally sending their TEAM cards. British Monitors will inflict 228 regular damage, and 570 long-range shot damage. India 224 regular damage, and 560 long-range. China 216 regular damage, and 540 long-range damage. With timing practice, such a team can lay down rapid bombardments in a large number of areas simultaneously via staggering the long-range shots of their ships while the Spanish focus on the enemy armies exclusively.
The four civilizations also synergize well in another significant way explained here.
Special ability[]
Long-range Bombardment Attack: Fires a single mortar shell to the target from a range of 70, doing 200 (with a ×10.0 multiplier against buildings, ×0.2 against villagers, and ×0.1 against Docks and Ports) siege damage in an Area of Effect of 10. 90 seconds cooldown.
Gives a trickle of 0.75export; Consulate Armies cost -15% export but Indian units cost +2.5% (except Villagers, Fishing Boats, and Sacred Cows which cost +5%); +1 Hindu Villager
N/A
Bombay Marine
Ships' train time -30% and train bounty +30%; +1 Hindu Villager
Ships 1 Inquisitor; all units get +10 Line of Sight
10
Armada
Warships get +20% hit points and +2 Line of Sight; Caravels can now train infantry units; Frigates can now train cavalry and artillery units; Monitors can now train Mortars; Battleships can now train infantry, cavalry, and artillery units
Long-Range Bombardment Attack now has a cooldown of 90 seconds and a range of 70.
Trivia[]
"Monitor" actually refers to small turreted warships of post 1860s, but carrying disproportionate large guns. The correct name for this unit is thus "Bomb Vessel" or "Bomb Ship", although the Monitor's history section correctly refers to it as a bomb ship. The term "Monitor" referring instead to a purpose-built shore bombardment vessel does appear by the First World War, referring originally to a series of small ships built by the Royal Navy with spare battleship guns, and persists to modern usage, however.
History[]
“
Bomb ships or bomb ketches were made by removing the front masts of a warship to make room for one or more deck-mounted mortars. These ships could then bombard an enemy fortress from several miles away. The Star-Spangled Banner, the US national anthem, refers to such a bombardment.
Note: Water Ceremony for the Aztecs and Haudenosaunee, and Charging Ceremony for the Lakota can not be used to buff a Monitor, as maps with such puddles of water do not support naval unit TEAM cards as they lack a water delivery point.
Ship's Howitzers
Imperial Monitor
Armor Plating (+50%)
Heavy Riverboats (+25%; Africans only)
Rawhide Covers (+20%; Haudenosaunee only)
Byzantine Legacy (+15%)
Cipactli Worship (+10%; Aztecs only)
Tar Kilns (+10%)
Gadaa System (+5%; Ethiopians only)
Carronade (+25%)
Flaming Arrows (+25%; Lakota only)
River Skirmishes (+25%; Africans only)
Somali Ajuran Engineers (+20% multiplier vs. Frontier fortification)
Town Watch (+3)
Immigrants (-10%)
Mapuche Ad-mapu (-10% coin cost)
Golden Liberty (-5% coin cost)
Meritocracy (-20% upgrade cost)
Öresund Customs (generates 0.4 coin/sec.)
Coffee Trade (-10% speed; Dutch only)
Advanced Dock
Improved Warships
TEAM Improved Warships
Naval Gunners
Offshore Support
European Cannons
1 Monitor
Admiralty
2 Monitors
TEAM Monitor Combat
Western Reforms
Acupuncture
Dutch Raiding Fleet
Ignatian Spirituality
Land of the Sea
TEAM Gunboat Diplomacy
Baltic Fleet
Gunboats
Lantakas
TEAM Shivaji's Tactics
Foreign Trading Companies
Bombay Marine
TEAM Sengoku
TEAM Knights of the Round Table
Speronaras
TEAM Mariachi
Colegio de San Nicolás
National Servant
Water Ceremony
Ottoman Assault Fleet
Navigation School
Naval Infantry
Russian North Fleet
TEAM Cold Water Port
TEAM Spanish Inquisition
Armada
