| ā | Polish unique infantry unit which can damage the armor of units it is fighting. | ā |
| —In-game description | ||
The Obuch is the unique unit of the Poles in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Dawn of the Dukes. It is an infantry unit which reduces the armor of enemy units (but not buildings) they are attacking.
Obuchs can be upgraded to Elite Obuchs in the Imperial Age.
Tactics[]
The Obuch is an infantry unit similar in functionality to the Militia line, but with key differences: the Obuch has 20 more hit points than the Long Swordsman and the Two-Handed Swordsman, while the Elite Obuch has 25 more hit points than the Champion, and they have more armor than the Militia line, making the unit highly resilient. However, the Obuch, even in its Elite form, has less attack than a Two-Handed Swordsman and less Line of Sight. Despite having less attack, a fully upgraded Elite Obuch can defeat a fully upgraded Champion due to the durability of the Obuch, while the unit also tears the armor of the Champion with each attack.
The Obuch having less attack but +1/+1 armor compared to the Militia line equivalent is actually useful because infantry are supposed to be the frontline units, while fragile high-damage output units like Hand Cannoneers, Arbalesters, and siege can do the heavy lifting while being protected for longer. Additionally, it better allows them to utilize their special ability:
Ability[]
The Obuch's special ability is to tear armor of units with each hit by ā1/ā1 (melee/pierce). Armor against bonus damage (such as the anti-Cavalry attack armor of Cataphracts) are unaffected. Armor can be reduced to a minimum of 0, so units with negative armor such as Battering Ram (-3/180) cannot lose further melee armor (but can still lose pierce armor). This effect is applied after the Obuch's attack has inflicted damage to a unit. The armor loss lasts until the unit is brought back to full hit points.
Notable uses include weakening units with heavy melee armor (such as Teutonic Knights, Boyars, Serjeants, and Bulgarian Two-Handed Swordsmen with Bagains). In this role, the player should consider that Obuchs still lose against Teutonic Knights or Boyars in equal numbers, but not in equal resources spent. In the case of Serjeants or Bulgarian Two-Handed Swordsmen, Obuchs can be considered a hard counter just by themselves. It can also weaken units with strong pierce armor, such as Huskarls, War Wagons, and Elephants Archers. In this case, a Polish player may pair the Obuch with archers, as in a way, the Obuch may be played as a counter to anti-archer/anti-building units. The Obuch can mitigate the usefulness of enemy Blacksmith armor upgrades; however, researching armor against Obuchs still provides some value, unlike against the Leitis.
Because Obuchs reduce the opponent's armor, other units with low attack (Skirmishers and Winged Hussars with Lechitic Legacy in particular) might receive a huge increase in damage output. Just like the Vikings, the Poles should prefer combining their unique unit with Arbalesters and Siege Rams because both units cover each other's weaknesses very well, while being manageable to pull off because of top tier economy of both civilizations and low reliance on gold for the infantry units.
Counters[]
The Obuch shares typical infantry shortcomings: slow movement speed and no ranged attack, making them vulnerable to archers, siege weaponry, and units with attack bonuses against them (Cataphract, Jaguar Warrior and Samurai). Heavy Cavalry Archers, Plumed Archers, Conquistadors, and Mamelukes can be particularly deadly against Obuchs, possessing superior speed and range to kite effectively. Throwing Axemen and Gbetos are also effective, and Battle Elephants and War Elephants due to high hit points and the Poles' lack of Halberdiers.
Berserks are a soft counter to Obuchs, since they are fast and can automatically regenerate hit points (and lost armor at full hit points) after an engagement. Against Berserks, a Polish player may prefer investing into the Knight line instead. Urumi Swordsmen with Wootz Steel become a big counter because the charge attack with splash damage that ignores armor overwhelms the Obuch's high hit points and armor, despite costing more.
Comparison in the Castle Age with similar units[]
 Two-Handed Swordsman
|
 Obuch
|
 Teutonic Knight
| |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | 45 food, 20 gold | 55 food, 20 gold | 85 food, 40 gold |
| Hit points | 60 | 80 | 80 |
| Speed | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.8 |
| Armor | 1/1 | 2/2 | 7/2 |
| Train Time | 21 seconds | 12 seconds | 12 seconds |
| Line of Sight | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| Melee attack | 12 | 8 | 12 |
| Attack bonus | +8 vs Eagle Warrior +4 vs Standard building |
+2 vs Eagle Warriors +4 vs Standard building |
+4 vs Eagle Warriors +4 vs Standard building |
| Attack speed | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Upgrade Cost and Time | 750 food, 350 gold 100 seconds |
800 food, 600 gold 45 seconds |
950 food, 500 gold 50 seconds |
| Other | Reduces armor by 1/1 with every attack | Resists conversion |
Comparison in the Imperial Age with similar units[]
 Champion
|
Elite Obuch
|
Elite Teutonic Knight
| |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | 45 food, 20 gold | 55 food, 20 gold | 85 food, 40 gold |
| Hit points | 70 | 95 | 100 |
| Speed | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.8 |
| Armor | 1/1 | 2/2 | 10/2 |
| Train Time | 21 seconds | 12 seconds | 12 seconds |
| Line of Sight | 5 | 3 | 5 |
| Melee attack | 13 | 10 | 17 |
| Attack bonus | +8 vs Eagle Warrior +4 vs Standard building |
+3 vs Eagle Warriors +6 vs Standard building |
+4 vs Eagle Warriors +4 vs Standard building |
| Attack speed | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Other | Reduces armor by 1/1 with every attack | Resists conversion |
Further statistics[]
As Obuchs are unique to the Poles, only technologies that are available to them are shown in the following table:
| Unit strengths and weaknesses | |
|---|---|
| Strong vs. | Skirmishers, Camel Riders, buildings, Light Cavalry, most infantry, heavily-armored units |
| Weak vs. | Samurai, gunpowder and mounted archers, Scorpions, Berserks, Cataphracts, Jaguar Warriors, Slingers, Organ Guns, Throwing Axemen, Mamelukes, Gbetos, Battle Elephants and War Elephants |
| Upgrades | |
| Attack |  Forging (+1) Iron Casting (+1) Blast Furnace (+2) Arson (+2 attack against standard buildings)
|
| Armor |  Scale Mail Armor (+1/+1) Chain Mail Armor (+1/+1) Plate Mail Armor (+1/+2)
|
| Speed |  Squires (+10%)
|
| Conversion defense |  Devotion (+1 min, +1 max) Faith (+4 min, +4 max)
|
| Creation speed |  Conscription (+33%) Kasbah (+25%, with Berber allies only)
|
| Regeneration | Stronghold (30 HP/min when within 18 tiles square of a team Celts Castle)
|
| Upgrades |  Elite Obuch
|
Team bonuses[]
Armenians: Obuchs have +2 Line of Sight.- Bulgarians: Blacksmith upgrades are researched 80% faster.
- Goths: Researching Arson and Squires is 20% faster.
- Lithuanians: Researching Devotion and Faith is 20% faster.
- Portuguese: Upgrades that benefit Obuchs are researched 25% faster.
- Teutons: Obuchs are more resistant to conversion.
Changelog[]
Dawn of the Dukes[]
- Originally, (Elite) Obuchs train in 9 seconds. With update 56005, they train in 12 seconds.
History[]
Obuch, obuszek, or obuszysko is a kind of melee weapon similar to the horseman's pick on the front with a hammer on their reverse head. They were used from the 16th to the 18th century, often by Polish nobility, and often had a spar 80ā100 cm long and were carried like canes. They were used as weapons in duels and brawls.
Trivia[]
- As of the release of Dawn of the Dukes, Obuchs can repair Donjons (using Serjeant's repair animation), and Obuchs converted by Sicilians can build Donjons. This is presumably an oversight, as Serjeants likely form the base for Obuchs.
- The in-game unit actually wields a nadziak, with outward-pointing beak, not an obuch, with curved inward-pointing beak.[1]
- The in-game weapon is oversized. Real-life nadziaki are only 80ā100 cm long.
- It is modeled as being wielded by what looks like a common soldier, while in real life the Obuch is a weapon of nobility.
Gallery[]
Videos[]
