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This article is about the unit in Age of Empires II. For the armor class, see Armor class: Monk. For the similar unit in other games of the series, see Monk.

โ€œSlow and weak. Converts enemy units, ships to your civilization (player color). Heals wounded villagers, military units (except siege weapons).โ€
Age of Empires II description

The Monk is a special unit in Age of Empires II that can be trained at the Monastery. Lacking all means of attack, they still hold a position of power as they are one of only two units being able to convert other units to the player's side (the other being the Missionary). Additionally, the Monk can heal all allied units or their own, except for ships and siege weapons. Initially, they are very weak, but they can be powered up quite a bit by researching all technologies in the Monastery.

Of all civilizations, the Aztecs have the strongest Monks, having access to all religious technologies and getting an extra 5 HP for each one researched. If every technology is researched, Aztec Monks have 95 HP - more than twice as much as a regular Monk with Sanctity.

The Slavs, Saracens, and Spanish also have unique technologies that benefit their Monks.

Byzantine, and Teuton Monks are also good, benefiting from both Monastery upgrades and team bonuses.

Tactics

General

Monks are a versatile unit that play a number of important roles from the Castle Age onward, including the collection of Relics, harassing opposing resource nodes, disrupting opponents lines, dissuading Knight aggression, and healing injured units.

Relics

The first and arguably most important role they serve is to collect Relics. A Relic is a special object that when garrisoned in one of their Monasteries, the player possessing it will receive a small but continuous trickle of gold over time, roughly equivalent to one Miner. The more the Relics the player collects, the more gold they generate. Unlike mining, Relics do not run out of resources. Most importantly, training Monks quickly and effectively in a game with standard victory becomes critical following the Castle Age since collecting and holding every Relic for a brief time period is one of the many ways to win the game.

Conversion

The second purpose Monks serve is to convert enemy units. Opinions can differ widely about the use of conversion in the game. However, converting a unit minimizes the enemy's forces while simultaneously increasing their own army. In the Castle Age, Monks can be effective in backing up rushes without the opponent having the ability to research Faith and being able to outrange every single unit but the Longbowman.

Good Monk civilizations (such as the Aztecs, Burmese, Saracens, Slavs, Spanish, and Teutons) can even perform a Monk rush. That can be dangerous, because the attacked player most likely does not have any anti-conversion technologies researched and the Monks are affordable due to the high amount of gold being freely available. The Portuguese can also rush with Monks, despite lacking Illumination, as their Monks are 15% cheaper, costing 85 gold.

Teuton Monks also act as an early deterring unit against other enemy Monk rushes, as they are more resistant to conversion (stacks with Faith in the Imperial Age).

In the Imperial Age, Block Printing becomes available, helping the Monk to keep up rangewise, but the armies of the players are getting much stronger in the Imperial Age, which relatively makes the Monk much weaker. Almost all infantry and cavalry units are able to kill them in three hits, archers normally only need five. Siege units also make short work of Monks. That is a huge problem for players relying on Monks. Also, with Faith being available, the use of conversion is significantly decreased. Another problem is that conversion requires a high amount of micromanagement due to the fact that Monks do not convert on their own and cannot be instructed to do so (there is no aggressive stance function for Monks). That means that the player always has to be present and execute the conversion manually. In later stages of the game, when the battle is larger and taking place on multiple locations, it is almost impossible to handle aggressive Monks adequately. If there is just one main battlefield, it can still work, however, if the player concentrates on converting key units such as Paladins, War Elephants, or Boyars and guards the Monks well.

Healing

Monks are able to heal friendly units (with a speed of 1 HP per 0.4 seconds). That comes in especially useful for resilient units that the player wants to keep taking hits. Monks are often paired with archers, because they are easy to control and be effective at the same time with the defensive stance mode. Siege weapons are a heavy threat to this combination.

Players should around have two to ten Monks depending on the size of their forces, to heal wounded units free of charge during battle. Monks should be kept out of danger and the wounded units should come to the Monks, not the other way around or else they are likely to be targeted.

The Byzantines and Teutons have the best healers in the game, as they have a faster healing rate and a longer healing range respectively. Spanish Missionaries are also among the best, thanks to their speed, allowing them to keep up with armies.

Defense

The Monastery is no military building, and does not have any prerequisites other than being in the Castle Age. This is important for a lot of boom strategies where a Blacksmith and Market are used to get to the Castle Age. Upon reaching the Castle Age, it will be difficult to get out military to defend the player's settlement as they will need to build a Barracks and then most likely also Archery Ranges and Stables before starting to produce unupgraded (!) units. Comparatively, a Monastery can be built, Monks can be produced immediately, and they are instantly fully functional. Combined with a Siege Workshop producing Mangonels, the player will have good answers against attacking archers, Knights, and infantry with minimal investment. With additional Walls, the aggressive options left to their opponents are further limited when they can no longer get Eagle Warriors or scouts into the players base.

Further statistics

Unit strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs. Slow non-ranged units
Weak vs. Eagle Warriors, Light Cavalry
Upgrades
Hit points SanctityDE Sanctity (+15)
Range BlockPrintingDE Block Printing (+3)
Armor UniqueTechCastle-DE Orthodoxy (+3/+3, Slavs only)
Speed FervorDE Fervor (+15%)
Conversion RedemptionDE Redemption (convert buildings and siege weapons)
AtonementDE Atonement (convert Monks)
IlluminationDE Illumination (regain faith faster)
TheocracyDE Theocracy (only one Monk rests after conversion)
UniqueTechCastle-DE Inquisition (Spanish only, Monks convert faster)
Conversion defense FaithDE Faith
HeresyDE Heresy
Other UniqueTechCastle-DE Madrasah (Saracens only, Monks return gold when they die)

Civilization bonuses

  • Aztecs: Monks gain +5 HP for every researched Monastery technology.
  • Burmese: Technologies that benefit Monks are 50% cheaper.
  • Celts: Monks can convert herdables even if enemy units are next to them.
  • Chinese: Technologies that benefit Monks are 15%/20% cheaper in the Castle/Imperial Age.
  • Portuguese: Monks cost 15% less gold.
  • Teutons: Monks have double range for healing.

Team bonuses

Changelog

The Age of Kings

The Conquerors

  • Monks carrying Relics are not affected by anti-Monk damage.
  • Fervor now only affects Monks carrying Relics.
  • Heresy introduced.
  • Theocracy introduced.
  • Byzantines: Monks now heal 50% faster.

The Forgotten

  • Monks carrying Relics are now susceptible to anti-Monk damage.
  • All Monks are now affected by Fervor, not just Monks carrying Relics.
  • Saracens: Madrasah introduced.
  • Spanish: Inquisition introduced.

Trivia

  • The Monk is one of only two units in the game to only cost gold, the other being the Missionary.
  • The Monk is one of only three units to have two different designs, the other being the Villager and the Trade Cart.
  • The Aztecs, Saracens, and Spanish are the only three civilizations in the game that have access to all Monastery technologies. However, the Teutons and the Byzantines also have access to all available technologies for their Monks, lacking only Herbal Medicine.

History

โ€œReligion was a powerful force during the Middle Ages, whether it was Roman Catholicism of the West, Islam in the Middle East, or Buddhism in Asia. The missionaries and teachers of religion were mainly monks, men who took vows of poverty and who dedicated their lives to spreading their message. Middle Age conflicts often derived from religious differences and were led or supported by contingents of monks on each side. The Crusades, for example, were multiple attempts by European Christians to wrest control of the Holy Land from the hands of Islamic Arabs. Large numbers of monks accompanied the Christian crusading armies.โ€
Age of Empires II manual

Gallery

Units in Age of Empires II
CivilianMaleVillDE Villager ยท Tradecart aoe2DE Trade Cart ยท FishingShipDE Fishing Ship ยท Trade cog aoe2DE Trade Cog ยท King eu aoe2DE King
ReligiousMonk aoe2DE Monk
InfantryMilitiaDE Militia ยท Manatarms aoe2DE Man-at-Arms ยท Longswordsman aoe2DE Long Swordsman ยท Twohanded aoe2DE Two-Handed Swordsman ยท Champion aoe2DE Champion
Spearman aoe2DE Spearman ยท Aoe2-infantry-2-pikeman Pikeman ยท Halberdier aoe2DE Halberdier
Eaglescout aoe2DE Eagle Scout ยท Eaglewarrior aoe2DE Eagle Warrior ยท EliteEaglewarrior aoe2DE Elite Eagle Warrior
ArcherArcher aoe2DE Archer ยท Crossbowman aoe2DE Crossbowman ยท Arbalester aoe2DE Arbalester
Skirmisher aoe2DE Skirmisher ยท Elite skirmisher aoe2DE Elite Skirmisher
Hand cannoneer aoe2DE Hand Cannoneer
Cavalryarcher aoe2DE Cavalry Archer ยท Heavycavalryarcher aoe2de Heavy Cavalry Archer
Aoe2de DOI elephant archer icon Elephant Archer ยท ElephantArcherIcon-DE Elite Elephant Archer
CavalryScoutcavalry aoe2DE Scout Cavalry ยท Lightcavalry aoe2DE Light Cavalry ยท Hussar aoe2DE Hussar
Knight aoe2DE Knight ยท Cavalier aoe2DE Cavalier ยท Paladin aoe2DE Paladin
Camelrider aoe2DE Camel Rider ยท Aoe2 heavycamelriderDE Heavy Camel Rider
Battle elephant aoe2DE Battle Elephant ยท Elite battle elephant aoe2DE Elite Battle Elephant
Steppelancericon Steppe Lancer ยท Elitesteppelancericon Elite Steppe Lancer
Xolotlicon Xolotl Warrior
AoE2DE Armored Elephant icon Armored Elephant ยท AoE2DE Siege Elephant icon Siege Elephant
SiegeBattering ram aoe2DE Battering Ram ยท Capped ram aoe2DE Capped Ram ยท Siege ram aoe2DE Siege Ram
Mangonel aoe2DE Mangonel ยท Onager aoe2DE Onager ยท Siege onager aoe2DE Siege Onager
Scorpion aoe2DE Scorpion ยท Heavyscorpion aoe2DE Heavy Scorpion
Bombard cannon aoe2DE Bombard Cannon
Trebuchet aoe2DE Trebuchet
Petard aoe2DE Petard
Siegetower aoe2DE Siege Tower
War shipTransportship aoe2DE Transport Ship
Galley aoe2DE Galley ยท War galley aoe2DE War Galley ยท Galleon aoe2DE Galleon
Fire galley aoe2DE Fire Galley ยท Fireship aoe2DE Fire Ship ยท Fastfireship aoe2DE Fast Fire Ship
Demoraft aoe2DE Demolition Raft ยท Demoship aoe2DE Demolition Ship ยท Heavydemoship aoe2de Heavy Demolition Ship
Cannon galleon aoe2DE Cannon Galleon ยท Elite cannon galleon aoe2de Elite Cannon Galleon
AoE2 Dromon Dromon
Unique
ReligiousMissionaryIcon-DE Missionary ยท AoE2 WarriorPriest Warrior Priest
InfantryBerserkIcon-DE Berserk ยท Aoe2de Chakram Chakram Thrower ยท CondottieroIcon-DE Condottiero ยท Aoe2-icon-flemish-militia Flemish Militia ยท GbetoIcon-DE Gbeto ยท Aoe2de Ghulam Ghulam ยท HuskarlIcon-DE Huskarl ยท JaguarWarriorIcon-DE Jaguar Warrior ยท KamayukIcon-DE Kamayuk ยท Karambitwarrioricon-DE Karambit Warrior ยท AoE2 DE Legionary new icon Legionary ยท Aoe2-icon--obuch Obuch ยท SamuraiIcon-DE Samurai ยท Aoe2-icon-serjeant Serjeant ยท Shotelwarrioricon-DE Shotel Warrior ยท TeutonicKnightIcon-DE Teutonic Knight ยท ThrowingAxemanIcon-DE Throwing Axeman ยท Aoe2de Urumi Urumi Swordsman ยท AoE2 WarriorPriest Warrior Priest ยท WoadRaiderIcon-DE Woad Raider
ArcherArambaiicon-DE Arambai ยท CamelArcherIcon-DE Camel Archer ยท ChukoNuIcon-DE Chu Ko Nu ยท AoE2 CompositeBowman Composite Bowman ยท ConquistadorIcon-DE Conquistador ยท GenitourIcon-DE Genitour ยท GenoeseCrossbowmanIcon-DE Genoese Crossbowman ยท Imperialskirmishericon-DE Imperial Skirmisher ยท JanissaryIcon-DE Janissary ยท Kipchakicon Kipchak ยท LongbowmanIcon-DE Longbowman ยท MangudaiIcon-DE Mangudai ยท PlumedArcherIcon-DE Plumed Archer ยท Aoe2de ratha ranged Ranged Ratha ยท Rattanarchericon-DE Rattan Archer ยท SlingerIcon-DE Slinger ยท WarWagonIcon-DE War Wagon
CavalryBallistaelephanticon-DE Ballista Elephant ยท BoyarIcon-DE Boyar ยท Aoe2de camel scout Camel Scout ยท CataphractIcon-DE Cataphract ยท Aoe2de roman unique centurion icon Centurion ยท Aoe2-icon-coustillier Coustillier ยท Flaming camel icon Flaming Camel ยท ImperialCamelRiderIcon-DE Imperial Camel Rider ยท Keshikicon Keshik ยท Konnikicon Konnik ยท Leitisicon Leitis ยท MagyarHuszarIcon-DE Magyar Huszar ยท MamelukeIcon-DE Mameluke ยท AoE2 Monaspa Monaspa ยท Aoe2de ratha melee Melee Ratha ยท AoE2 Savar Savar ยท Aoe2de shrivamsha rider Shrivamsha Rider ยท TarkanIcon-DE Tarkan ยท WarElephantIcon-DE War Elephant ยท Aoe2-icon-winged-hussar Winged Hussar
SiegeAoe2-icon--houfnice Houfnice ยท Aoe2-icon-hussite-wagon Hussite Wagon ยท OrganGunIcon-DE Organ Gun
War shipCaravelIcon-DE Caravel ยท LongboatIcon-DE Longboat ยท Aoe2de Thirisadai Thirisadai ยท TurtleShipIcon-DE Turtle Ship
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