| “ | All-purpose infantry unit. Strong vs. buildings and infantry. Weak vs. archers at long range. | ” |
| —Age of Empires II description | ||
The Norse Warrior (Nordic Swordsman before the Definitive Edition) is an untrainable infantry unit introduced in Age of Empires II HD: The Forgotten. It appears in several campaign scenarios and is also available in the Scenario Editor.
The Norse Warrior has the same stats as the Eastern Swordsman and, originally, only differed from the Long Swordsman in lacking the attack bonus against buildings, but now also differs in melee armor.
Campaign appearances[]
Bari[]
- The Rebellion of Melus: In the HD Edition, they are present as Norman mercenaries serving under Melus.
- The Great Siege and The Onrushing Tide: They are part of the Norman forces besieging Bari.
Vlad Dracula[]
- The Dragon Spreads His Wings: In the HD Edition, they are renamed to "Wallachian Swordsman" and serve both Voivod Jakub and the Danesti Commander in the southern town that Jakub wants liberated.
- The Breath of the Dragon: In the HD Edition, Vlad Dracula starts out with several Norse Warriors under his command.
Prithviraj[]
- The Elopement: In the HD Edition, there are Norse Warriors renamed to "Elite Red Guards" and serving Raja Jaichand in Kannauj, always in pairs. Though it is possible to backstab one, it would alert his partner and the rest of the guards.
Victors and Vanquished[]
- Charlemagne: Saxon tribes in the east utilize Norse Warriors in their armies.
- Finehair: Norse Warriors are present as soldiers in armies of all Norse factions except the Danes and can be trained by Harald from the Barracks.
- Gaiseric: The Vandals can recruit Norse Warriors from the Barracks, as a replacement for the Militia line.
- Ironside: Norse Warriors can be trained by Bjorn from the Warriors' Hall.
- Karlsefni: A couple neutral Norse Warriors are present in the Faroe Islands. They can also be trained from the Barracks.
- Otto: The Vikings in Scandinavia have Norse Warriors in their armies.
- Ragnar: Norse Warriors are used by all Norse factions and can be trained by Ragnar from the Warriors' Halls.
- Robert: The Norse invaders in Brittany have Norse Warriors in their armies.
- Vortigern: Norse Warriors can be hired by the Britons in exchange for unpopulated land. The Saxons also train Norse Warriors.
Trivia[]
- In its first appearance in The Forgotten, the "Nordic Swordsman" had a sprite edited from the Long Swordsman, that was only different in that it wore the conical helmet and round shield of the Elite Skirmisher (hence the "Swordsman" name, as it was armed with a sword). It is unknown if this unit and the Eastern Swordsman were created as part of an abandoned plan to give the Long Swordsman an appearance unique for each building style, of if it was only meant to be used in campaigns.
- The name remained "Nordic Swordsman" even after the sprite was changed to a new one armed with an axe, and was only renamed in the Definitive Edition.
Gallery[]
A group of Nordic Swordsmen
Two Nordic Swordsmen guarding a river
A group of Norse Warriors in the Definitive Edition
A group of Nordic Swordsmen (original model before The African Kingdoms)
