 |
This article is about the civilization in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Return of Rome. For other uses, see Romans. |
| “ | Rise to the throne of an empire dominating the Mediterranean Sea and defend your borders against countless barbarian invasions. The Roman unique units are the Legionary, a sturdy infantry unit, and the Centurion, a heavy cavalry unit that increases the power of nearby Militia-line units. | ” |
| —Description[1] | ||
The Romans are a Mediterranean European civilization in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Return of Rome, based on the Western Roman Empire centered at Rome and Ravenna.
The Romans first featured as a playable civilization in Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome. The eastern continuation of their empire and culture are also represented in Age of Empires II as the Byzantines. They are also one of the ancestors of the Italians.
Characteristics[]
Unique units[]
Legionary: Sturdy infantry unit. Replacement of the Two-Handed Swordsman and Champion upgrades.- Centurion: Heavy cavalry unit that increases the attack and movement speeds of nearby Militia-line units.
Unique technologies[]
- Ballistas: Scorpions fire 33% faster, the Galley-line has +2 attack.
- Comitatenses: Militia-line, Knight-line, and Centurions train 50% faster and receive +5 charge attack over 20 seconds.
Civilization bonuses[]
- Villagers gather, build, and repair 5% faster.
- Galley-line and Dromon +1/+1 armor.
- Infantry receives double the effect from Blacksmith armor upgrades.
- Scorpions cost -60% gold.
Team bonus[]
- The Scorpion-line's minimum range is reduced to 1.
Overview[]
The Romans are classified as an infantry civilization, and in addition have very powerful Scorpions, and potent navy and heavy cavalry. Their infantry receive double the effect of the Blacksmith armor upgrades, which is offset by the lack of Plate Mail Armor (giving their infantry +1/0 armor in late game compared to generic infantry). Instead of having access to Two-Handed Swordsman and Champion upgrades, the Romans have access to their final unique upgrade for their Long Swordsman, the Legionary, which can be seen as a sturdier version of the Champion that is much cheaper to fully upgrade. Their cavalry have all of the upgrades they need for their Light Cavalry and Cavalier, with access to their unique unit, the Centurion, that boosts the combat effectiveness of nearby Militia-line units.
Much like the Romans in Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome, they have very potent siege weapons, only missing out in Siege Onager and Bombard Cannon. In particular, their Heavy Scorpions are much cheaper in terms of gold and can fire faster with Ballistas (which also benefit their Galley line), which greatly help compensate for their disastrous Archery Range. In terms of their navy, they have almost all of the upgrades they needed, and their Galley-line not only have an additional attack with Ballistas, but are tankier than most civilizations'. Their monks are average, as while they have Redemption to answer to enemy Bombard Cannon, the lack of Sanctity means they can easily die from enemy siege, and the lack of Theocracy leaves their Monks very limited uses in the Imperial Age. Their economy is solid, as their villagers work 5% faster, and only miss out in Stone Shaft Mining and Two-Man Saw.
The Romans do have noticeable weaknesses. Much like their Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome counterpart, their Archery Range is terrible, lacking Bracer, Thumb Ring, Arbalester, and Parthian Tactics. The lack of Bracer also hurts their Galley-line, which they are also less mobile since they lack Dry Dock. They also miss out in Demolition Ship, which makes their navy more vulnerable to enemy Fire Ships and makes it harder to come back from behind as well. Their Militia-line will be on the more expensive end, as they also lack Supplies, but make up for it for their durability thanks to the infantry receiving double the effect of armor upgrades. Hence, they focus on quality units over quantity units, very unlike their real-life opponents the Goths. Their cavalry are also less than perfect without any of the final unit upgrades or any regional unit. Their Castle unique unit fills in the role of the Paladin, with the added advantage of the aura effect and the disadvantage of cost. Their Imperial Age unique technology Comitatenses is pretty interesting since it makes their heavy units (Swordsmen, Knight and Centurion lines) train 50% faster, and gives them an extra punch with +5 charge attack over 20 seconds, reinforcing the theme of quality over quantity again. On top of that, the Romans lack Heresy, making their relatively expensive army composition vulnerable to conversion. Their defenses are somewhat spotty, as while they have Keeps, Architecture, and Fortified Walls, they lack Arrowslits, Hoardings, Heated Shot and the Bombard Tower.
Changelog[]
Return of Rome[]
- Romans are the only civilization whose Scorpions benefit from Ballistics.
- They have access to Arson.
- With update 87863:
- Romans are enabled for Ranked play.
- Galley-line +1 attack civilization bonus removed.
- War Galleys +1/+1 armor, Galleons and Dromons +2/+2 armor civilization bonus changed to Galley-line and Dromons +1/+1 armor.
- Ballistas' effect on Galley-line changed from +33% attack speed to +2 attack; effect on Scorpions unchanged.
- Centurion formation position moved behind infantry units instead of in front of them.
- With update 93001, Centurion (non-Elite only) hit points reduced from 120 to 110.
The Mountain Royals[]
Victors and Vanquished[]
- With update 125283, all Scorpions benefit from Ballistics. As such, the bonus was reworded.
Chronicles: Battle for Greece[]
- With update 141935, they lose access to Arson.
Campaign appearances[]
The Romans are not playable in any campaign or scenario in Age of Empires II, but they do appear several times in other campaigns:
Attila the Hun[]
- A Barbarian Betrothal and The Catalaunian Fields
- Western Roman Empire - Enemy
- The Fall of Rome
- Western Roman Empire - Ally
Alaric[]
- The Battle of the Frigidus
- Western Roman Empire - Enemy
- The Belly of the Beast
- Ravenna - Neutral → Enemy
- The Giant Falls
- Rome - Neutral
- City Garrison - Enemy
- Imperial Legion - Enemy
- A Kingdom of Our Own
- Western Roman Empire - Neutral → Enemy
Victors and Vanquished[]
In-game dialogue language[]
The Roman units speak Latin, a classical language officially used in both the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. After the collapse of Western Roman Empire, it was also widely used as a literary language through the medieval period and had a significant impact for the development of later Romance Languages.
The in-game Roman Villager and military units use the vulgar (sermo vulgaris) pronunciation rather than the noble (sermo nobilis) phonology. Whereas the Monk and King units use a mix of vulgar and noble pronunciation. This is an intentional effort to depict the differences in way of speaking between societal elites and commoners during the early Roman Empire time period circa 50 CE. Even the elites would gradually adopt the vulgar phonology and stop using the noble pronunciation by the third century CE.
- Select 1 Salvē - Hello
- Select 2 Heus - Hey
- Select 3 Prōmptus - Ready
- Select 4 Imperā? - Order?
- Task 1 Rēctē - Right
- Task 2 Salve - Well (In the sense of I understood)
- Task 3 Eō - I go
- Task 4 Cōnfestim faciam - I will do immediately
- Build Aedificō - I build
- Chop Lignor - I cut wood
- Farm Colligō - I gather
- Fish Piscor - I fish
- Forage Colligō - I gather
- Hunt Vēnor - I hunt
- Mine Fodiō - I dig
- Repair Reficiō - I repair
- Military
- Select 1 Salvē - Hello
- Select 2 Tibi serviō - I serve you
- Select 3 Imperā? - Order?
- Move 1 Rēctē - Right
- Move 2 Eō - I go
- Move 3 Pāreō - I obey
- Attack 1 Pugnēmus! - Let's attack!
- Attack 2 Ad pugnam! - To battle!
- Attack 3 Ad arma! - To arms!
- Select 1 Salvē – Hello
- Select 2 Imperā? - Order?
- Select 3 Tibi serviō - I serve you
- Select 4 In nōmine Deī - In the name of the God
- Move 1 Eō - I go
- Move 2 Rēctē - Right
- Move 3 Salve - Well
- Move 4 Cōnfestim faciam - I will do immediately
- Select 1 Ecce - Here (I am)
- Select 2 Quid vīs? - What do you want?
- Select 3 Cūr mē interpellās? - Why are you interrupting me?
- Select 4 Adsīs - You would stand by
- Move 1 Faciam quod rogās - I will do what you require
- Move 2 Mē grātiā - By my grace
- Move 3 Ut rogāstī - As you required
- Move 4 Faciam - I will do
AI player names[]
When playing a random map game against the computer, the player may encounter any of the following Roman AI characters.
- Anthemius: Western Roman Emperor that failed to limit Ricimer's influence in Rome, reigned 467-472
- Arbogast: Frankish magister militum who supported Eugenius in The Battle of the Frigidus, died in 394
- Avitus: Western Roman Emperor of Gallo-Roman origins and Visigothic ties deposed by Ricimer, reigned 455-456
- Flavius Aetius: Western magister militum who stemmed the Hunnic invasions of Attila the Hun, notably defeating him at The Catalaunian Fields, died in 454
- Galla Placidia: Dowager empress who was also briefly the Queen consort of the Gothic king Ataulf after The Sack of Rome, died in 450
- Honorius: Western Roman Emperor who tried to negotiate with Alaric in Alaric's Second invasion of Italy, reigned 393-423
- Majorian: the last Western Roman Emperor that made a concerted effort at restoring the territorial integrity of the empire, reigned 457-461
- Odoacer: Germanic magister militum and later King of Italy after deposing Romulus Augustulus, which effectively ended the Western Roman Empire, reigned 476-493
- Pope Leo I: Pope during 440-461 and the pope who met with Attila the Hun.
- Ricimer: Germanic magister militum and the effective ruler of Rome through several puppet emperors, died in 472
- Romulus Augustulus: last Western Roman Emperor placed on the throne as a child by his father and dethroned by Odoacer, reigned 475-476
- Stilicho: half-Vandal Roman general who became one of the most powerful men in Western Roman Empire during his service, died in 408
- Theodosius I: last Roman Emperor to rule over both halves of the Empire, reigned 379-395
- Valentinian III: Western Roman Emperor during whose reign Rome lost much of its non-Italian territories to germanic invaders, reigned 425-455
History[]
| “ | Upon the death of Emperor Theodosius I in 395 CE, the Roman Empire was divided in two for the last time. Untold troubles and changes faced Rome and Europe as a whole during this time. Decades of internal instability and civil war had gutted the Empire from the inside, while the Hunnic migrations from the east started a chain reaction that caused wave after wave of Germanic and Alanic migrants to pour towards the Roman frontiers on the Rhine and Danube. Compounding the problem, many of Rome's northern neighbors had already forced their way across the border and established themselves within Roman territory by the early 400s, whether as hostile raiders or as allied federates – mercenaries that the Empire furnished with land and money in exchange for military service. These federates, though useful in a pinch, began to pose a long-term problem. Often unwilling to assimilate to Roman culture and law, they were functionally independent polities whose allegiances switched on a whim and were a massive drain on Rome's finances. Disgruntled federates could go rogue; the Visigoths, for example, even went so far as to sack Rome in 410 and seize much of Gaul (modern France). As the 5th century progressed, Rome faced a new threat: the Hunnic Empire – a massive confederation of Germanic, Alanic, and Hunnic people-groups – had established itself in Pannonia and Germania and began consistently raiding Roman borders. This rival reached its apogee under Attila, who pillaged much of both Eastern and Western Empires before marching on northern Italy and nearly sacking Rome. Contemporary sources credit the sitting Pope, Leo I, with intervening and convincing Attila to turn away – although famine and plague in his armies as the campaign wore on were likely more stirring factors than the threat of divine retribution. After Attila's death in 453 CE, the Hunnic Empire fragmented, shattering the balance of power between the Hunnic confederation and Rome and its few Germanic allies. Ineffectual rulers, a collapsing economy, and dwindling military manpower made the less defensible and poorer Western Roman Empire unable to prevent invading groups from tearing away Imperial territory. While the Vandals seized the Empire's breadbasket in North Africa, ambitious barbarian generals flexed their muscles on the imperial court. Finally, a Germanic chieftain, Odoacer, deposed the last Western Roman Emperor in 476, ending the era of Roman rule in the West. |
” |
Portrayal[]
| “ | In game, the Romans date back to about 395 C.E., making them contemporaries with the Goths, Celts, Britons, Franks, Persians, etc. By this period in Late Antiquity and Early Middle Ages – Rome was a crumbling shadow of its former glory. Plagued by an inability to pay its soldiers, lack of manpower, and its older fortifications in disrepair, they could not face the invasions of their former provinces or fend off attacks closer to home. By the time of Attila, Rome simply couldn't field any large armies of note, and relied on Germanic tribes to guard their frontiers, but those tribes often went rogue and became as enemies instead. The old Roman-controlled area was inundated with an influx of different peoples who settled the land, bringing their own culture and customs, annihilating the old Roman ways. By the end, Rome could not overcome a collapsing economy, loss of manpower, an inability to pay troops, plus bad leadership. When the "official" end in 476 came with the ousting of the last Roman emperor by a Germanic king, the Roman Empire had already silently melted away. |
” |
| —[2] | ||
Trivia[]
- The Roman civilization icon (Aquila-engraved shield) is based on shield insignias used by the Palatini royal guard (which replaced the Praetorians) of the late Western Roman Empire,[3] notably by the Jovians and Herculeans.
- The user interface image portrays the full-length marble statue of the first Roman Emperor, Augustus Caesar, dated to 1st Century AD.
- While they were made available to content creators in ranked play with the content creator preview, upon release, the Romans were initially playable only in singleplayer and unranked multiplayer games.[2] On May 26, 2023, it was announced that they would be made available in ranked as well in June 2023.[4] On June 28, 2023, accompanying update 87863, the Romans were made available on the ranked ladder.
- Before this update, it was also impossible to get them via the random civilization option on unranked multiplayer.
- This civilization is the third Roman civilization in the franchise, after the Romans of the original Age of Empires, and the Byzantines in Age of Empires II.
- The Romans in Age of Empires II share many strengths and weaknesses with their counterpart from the first game, as both have relatively strong infantry, navy, and siege with decent cavalry. Much like their Age of Empires counterpart, the Romans in Age of Empires II also have relatively weak Archery Range unit options.
- In addition, the Romans in Age of Empires II use the same civilization music theme as their counterparts of the first game.
- The model of the Wonder is reused from the Amphitheatre, whereas a distinct building called the Colosseum also exists in the game.
- The model of the Castle resembles a pair of Gatehouses of Castra connected by ramparts, with one gatehouse having a pair of towers with rounded walls on the outside, and the other gatehouse having a pair of rectangular towers.[5] Such Castles can be found all across Europe, especially at distant frontiers of the Empire, such as in Britannia (England) along Hadrian's Wall, in Hispania (Spain), in Germania (Germany), etc.
- The music theme features a Graeco-Roman bagpipe-like instrument in the beginning called an Aulos/tibia. It shares this theme with the Romans from Age of Empires, as both themes were introduced simultaneously.
- Pope Leo I is the only hero available in the Scenario Editor who is themed on the (western) Romans.
Gallery[]
