Scutage is a technology in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Lords of the West that is unique to the Sicilians and can be researched at the Castle once the Imperial Age is reached. Once researched, it grants each team member a one-time payment of 15 gold for each military unit (including Monks) that they own.
Scutage is not already researched in Post-Imperial matches (like Burgundian Vineyards, First Crusade and Flemish Revolution).
Strategy
The Scutage research is an easy way to get a lot of gold in the late game, especially once every Gold Mine has been mined, because usually in late-game trash unit fights, there are a lot of military units on the battlefield. Timing is important, because the high gold cost of the technology might make it feel prohibitive in certain situations. It's a pretty situational technology outside of team games, because the player has to have at least 27 military units to get the gold back invested in the technology.
One has to consider that it's a one time payment, so timing it properly is crucial. However, used in combination with the other Sicilian unique technology First Crusade (each Town Center musters 7 Serjeants, maximum 5 Town centers) the payback may be worth if the player already has an army and has also 5 Town Centers.
Team bonuses
Changelog
Lords of the West
- On introduction, Scutage awards gold to each ally based on the military count of the researching player.
- With Hotfix 45185, Scutage now awards gold to each ally based on the size of their own military rather than the military count of the researching player.
History
When the Normans arrived in Sicily in 1061, they introduced the feudal system to the locals in the region which was previously ruled by Arabs and did not have a feudal system. Rather than exchanging military service to the king in exchange for the lands, the nobles instead levied taxes to the king which helped the powers able to maintain a healthy coffer of gold in times of war.
