In Age of Empires II, sheep are a common food source that is beneficial in the early stages of a developing game. Nearing a neutral Sheep will cause it to become aligned with the player's faction. As long as units are within close proximity of the Sheep, they will remain under the control of the player that first discovers it (except if Celt units come close). If, however, no friendly units are nearby and another team's unit happens to pass by, the Sheep will fall under the control of that player.
Sheep are extremely useful in the early game to maintain food (and hence Villager) production, as rapid development of farmland may simply not be feasible due to a lack of necessary resources, which is an issue in the Dark Age. As the game progresses the need for Sheep gradually decreases as Farms become plentiful and effective in the later stages of the game.
Sheep can also be used for scouting, but have a very limited Line of Sight of 3 and speed of 0.7. Despite there being a risk of losing them, in island maps or maps where players start without a scout it can be relatively safe.
The Celts have the unique advantage of being able to steal other players' Sheep if a Celt player moves a unit close enough, even if the Sheep are close to other players' units. Celts cannot do the same to other Celts, however.
The Tatars, upon reaching the Castle Age, will have two Sheep spawn at any new Town Centers they make. In addition, they can get 50% more food from it.
In the Honfoglalás scenario, players can train Sheep for 25 food at the Town Center. Players can also train Cows, which is a bit more cost-efficient.
Herd animal. Fattens over time. Fattens faster if tasked on a Livestock Pen, Farm, or Village.
”
—In-game description
Like in Age of Empires II, the Sheep will fall under control to any player whose unit it comes into contact with. Originally introduced for livestock in Age of Mythology, the Sheep will fatten over time, which fills them with a much larger supply of food as time goes by. They start at 50 food and can store up to 300. This fattening process can be sped up substantially by tasking them near a Livestock Pen (Europeans), Farm (Native Americans), or Village (Chinese).
Sheep can also be trained at Livestock Pens and can be shipped from the Home City. They can also be found wild around most maps and even can be found as treasures.
Navajo Shepherds (+100% auto gather; +30% from Livestock Pens, Farms, Villages, Livestock Markets, and Haciendas) Large Scale Gathering (+50% from Farms; Native Americans only) Selective Breeding (+25% from Livestock Pens, Farms, Villages, Livestock Markets, and Haciendas) Punjabi New Year (+10% from Livestock Pens, Farms, Villages, Livestock Markets, and Haciendas)
Delivers 1 Carbine Cavalry for each shipment sent so far this game including this one; unit train time (except Heavy Cannons), technology research time, and age-up time -10%; costs 250 food, 250 wood
"Indiana Mobilization" is available upon selecting the Indiana Federal State.
Scientific Name: Ovis aries Approx. Size: 2 ft, at the shoulder, 100 lb. Diet: Grasses, sedges, lichen, mosses
Domesticated sheep have been kept by humans for thousands of years as sources of milk, wool, and meat. They are social creatures and gather in flocks, or mobs, known for blindly following the movement of their groups. In fact, there are distinct roles in the leadership of a mob. "Outliers" act as scouts and risk predation by ranging away from the herd in search of water and grazing. "Bellweathers" are sheep that watch the outliers and follow when it appears the outlier is safe. The rest of the flock then follows the bellweather. Sheep eat plants that other livestock will not and are now used in rotation with other livestock to maximize the grazing of pasture land and also as a form of natural weed control.
Bring a Scout near this gentle Sheep to herd it. Sheep automatically follow any Scouts they are herded to. Dead Sheep provide Food that can be gathered by Villagers.
You monster.
”
—Age of Empires IV description for Herdable Sheep
“
Use Villagers to gather Food from this poor helpless Sheep.
”
—Age of Empires IV description for Sheep Carcass
A Scout converting a neutral Sheep while others follow behind
Sheep are the most important source of food in the early game. In a random match, every player starts with four Sheep near their Town Center. Villagers should harvest these Sheep to sustain Villager production, before they switch to other sources of food. Additional Sheep can be found nearby in the fog of war, which can be converted by the Scout and lured back to the Town Center. Neutral Sheep will automatically begin following a Scout once converted, matching its speed, but otherwise move very slowly. The Sheep can be converted by other Scouts if it leaves the vicinity of the Scout it is currently following. Note that, unlike in previous games, non-Scout units cannot convert Sheep. Unupgraded Villagers gather food from Sheep faster than from Berry Bushes or Farms, but slower than from Shoreline Fish or Deer.
Sheep are a special unit for the Mongols. Since they do not have access to Farms, they rely on other sources of food. The Mongol unique building Pasture produces Sheep continuously every 140 seconds, which can be reduced to 93 seconds when the Pasture is under the influence of an Ovoo. Sheep production stops when there are already 30 Sheep accumulated. The Ottomans can spawn 8 Sheep at the starting Town Center with Anatolian Hills. Some maps contain a greater than usual number of Sheep, such as Rocky River, Lipany, and Turtle Ridge. Other maps, such as Haywire, have all the Sheep concentrated in the center the map, between the players' starting locations, making it crucial to scout quickly at the start of the game.
Changelog[]
With update 11.0.782, Sheep now give 200 food instead of 250.
Trivia[]
Despite not appearing, the bleating of a sheep is used for the selection sound for the Farm in Age of Mythology.
Age of Empires II[]
Navajo Shepherds (+100% auto gather; +30% from Livestock Pens, Farms, Villages, Livestock Markets, and Haciendas)
Large Scale Gathering (+50% from Farms; Native Americans only)
Selective Breeding (+25% from Livestock Pens, Farms, Villages, Livestock Markets, and Haciendas)
Punjabi New Year (+10% from Livestock Pens, Farms, Villages, Livestock Markets, and Haciendas)
Ritual Bovine (+10% from Sacred Fields)
Transhumance (+0.15)
Gadaa System (+5%; Ethiopians only)
Tar Kilns (+5%)
Town Watch (+2; before the Definitive Edition)
Immigrants (-10%)
Cow Loans (fattened herded animal sold at Livestock Markets spawns an unfattened one; Africans only)
Royal Banquet (sells for 50% of its food as influence; Africans only)
Día de Muertos (+5 XP for every lost; Mexicans only)
TEAM 4 Sheep
7 Sheep +1 Homestead Wagon
15 Sheep +1 Homestead Wagon
20 Sheep
Stockyards
TEAM Wool Staple Ports
Western Reforms
Xhosa Foods
Wampum
Moroccan Leather
Kilishi Jerky
TEAM Shivaji's Tactics
Goraksha
TEAM Knights of the Round Table
TEAM Mariachi
Colegio de San Nicolás
Indiana Mobilization
TEAM Inquisition
Definitive Edition
Gazelle · 
Elephant
Alligator · 
Lion · 
Crocodile
Shore Fish · 
Tuna · 
Salmon · 
Whale
Bird · 
Dragon
Horse · 
Goat
Return of Rome
Deer · 
Ibex · 
Iron Boar · 
Ostrich · 
Rhinoceros · 
Zebra
Cow · 
Goat · 
Goose · 
Llama · 
Pig · 
Sheep · 
Turkey · 
Water Buffalo
Bear · 
Dire Wolf · 
Jaguar · 
Komodo Dragon · 
Snow Leopard · 
Tiger · 
Bactrian Camel · 
Camel · 
Donkey · 
Horse
Alfred the Alpaca · 
Furious the Monkey Boy · 
Penguin
Stormy Dog · 
Box Turtles · 
Dolphin · 
Dorado · 
Marlin · 
Perch · 
Snapper
Chicken · 
Argali · 
Wild Chicken · 
Elephant · 
Arabian Wolf · 
Crocodile · 
Lion · 
Polar Bear · 
Oysters · 
Horse
Hunting Wolf · 
Ornlu the Wolf
Bird · 
Herdable Sheep · 
Cattle (Malians only)
Huntable Deer
Huntable Boar
Wolf
Fish ·