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This article is about the building in Age of Empires II. For the building in other games in the series, see Outpost. |
| “ | A stationary watch point that provides advanced warning of nearby enemy activity. | ” |
| —Age of Empires II description | ||
The Outpost is a tower in Age of Empires II. While lacking any means of attack, it can warn the player of enemy activity by providing extensive Line of Sight.
Tactics and placement[]
Outposts are good for keeping watch over wide areas of the map. While towers, Castles, and walls are more effective at maintaining control over important areas, Outposts are much better for areas that are not of strategic value, as they are cheaper while being able to provide valuable information on enemy positions. Having vision of enemy movement can be critical, as it allows a player to react and strategize faster.
If a player does not have sufficient gold to flush out enemies with Spies, they can place Outposts around the map instead.
Further statistics[]
| Strengths and weaknesses | |
|---|---|
| Strong vs. | Nothing |
| Weak vs. | Everything |
| Technologies | |
|---|---|
 Hit points
|
 Masonry (+10%) Architecture (+10%)
|
| Armor | Masonry (+1/+1, +3 building armor) Architecture (+1/+1, +3 building armor)
|
| Conversion resistance |  Devotion (+1 min, +1 max) Faith (+4 min, +4 max) Heresy (die upon getting converted)
|
| Line of Sight |  Town Watch (+4) Town Patrol (+4)
|
| Build speed |  Treadmill Crane (+20%)
|
Civilization bonuses[]
Burmese: Researching Devotion and Faith is 50% cheaper.- Byzantines: Outposts have +10%/+20%/+30%/+40% hit points in the Dark/Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age. Town Watch and Town Patrol are free.
- Chinese: Technologies that benefit Outposts are 5%/10%/15% cheaper in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
- Inca: Outposts cost -15% stone (rounded off as -1 stone).
- Italians: Masonry, Architecture, and Treadmill Crane are 33% cheaper.
- Jurchens: Researching Masonry, Architecture, and Treadmill Crane costs -75% wood and is 100% faster.
- Georgians: Outposts receive -20% damage (-40% instead of -25%) when fighting from higher elevation.
- Malians: Outposts cost -15% wood.
- Persians: Researching Town Watch and Town Patrol is 10%/15%/20% faster in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
- Romans: Outposts are built and repaired 5% faster.
- Spanish: Outposts are built 30% faster. Researching technologies that benefit Outposts provides 20 gold each.
Team bonuses[]
- Ethiopians: Outposts have +3 Line of Sight and stone cost removed.
- Georgians: Repairing Outposts costs 25% fewer resources.
- Lithuanians: Researching Devotion, Faith, and Heresy is 20% faster.
- Malians: Researching Masonry, Architecture, and Treadmill Crane is 80% faster.
- Portuguese: Technologies that benefit Outposts are researched 25% faster.
- Teutons: Outposts are more resistant to conversion (+3 min, +1 max cycles).
Changelog[]
The Age of Kings[]
The Conquerors[]
The Forgotten[]
Rise of the Rajas[]
- Koreans: With patch 5.8, Outposts are now built 5% faster.
Definitive Edition[]
- Koreans no longer build Outposts faster.
Dynasties of India[]
- Ethiopians: With update 81058, Team bonus effect changed to Outposts +3 Line of Sight and stone cost removed.
The Mountain Royals[]
- With update 99311, Devotion was introduced.
History[]
| “ | The world of 500 AD was far less populated than the world of today, and there were great expanses of empty and desolate land. To keep watch at the frontier, lords established outposts that would provide early warning of attack and report movements of settlers and trade caravans. As the land became more populated and more settled, outposts were replaced by establishing castles and communities on borders. | ” |
| —Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings manual | ||
Trivia[]
- The original The Age of Kings manual had a picture of a Villager next to an Outpost when talking about garrisoning in towers. As Outposts cannot garrison units, this is either a mistake or an implication that Outposts were originally supposed to garrison units.
Gallery[]
Outpost surrounded by Palisade Walls in the Definitive Edition
The Line of Sight of a Dark Age Outpost in the original game
The Line of Sight of an Imperial Age Outpost with Town Patrol researched
An Outpost spotting an enemy army (mini map included)
