Short Swordsman

Short Swordsman
Unit information
Introduced in	Age of Empires
Type	Infantry
Civilization	All civilizations
Age	Bronze Age
Training
Trained at	Barracks
Food	35
Gold	15
Training time	26 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	60
Melee attack	7
Reload time	1.5
Melee armor	1
Pierce armor	0
Armor class	Light infantry
Speed	1
Line of Sight	4
Upgrades to
Upgrades to	Broad Swordsman
Upgrade cost	140 food, 50 gold
Upgrade time	90 seconds
Upgrade requires	Battle Axe and Short Sword (before the Definitive Edition)

• Return
• Definitive
• Original

“	All-purpose infantry unit.	”
—In-game description

“	A light swordsman with more hit points, attack strength, and armor than earlier infantry.	”
—In-game description

“	Has more hit points, attack strength, and armor than the Axeman.	”
—In-game description

The Short Swordsman is an infantry unit in Age of Empires. Though it is superior to and fills the same tactical niche as the Axeman, it is not a direct upgrade but instead a separate unit.

Gameplay

This unit is similar to the Axeman in that they have normal speed, no range, and average damage and health. They are poor units to use against Cavalry, being slow and not having enough hit points. They usually get massacred by Academy units, due the Hoplite and related units having extremely powerful attack and very strong armor, making the Short Swordsman useful only against Tool Age infantry, or the equivalent light infantry in future Ages (this provided that they outnumber the enemy units).

Before the Definitive Edition it had a weapon upgrade prerequisite of Short Sword, which was itself dependent on Battle Axe. In other words, Clubman had to be upgraded for the Short Sword upgrade to appear. Once the upgrade was finished, Short Swordsman was available.

Further statistics

Strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs.	Buildings, Chariots, Camel Riders
Weak vs.	Cavalry, Hoplites, archers

Upgrades
Attack	Toolworking (+2) Metalworking (+2) Metallurgy (+3)
Armor	Leather Armor Infantry (+2/0) Scale Armor Infantry (+2/0) Chain Mail Infantry (+2/0) Bronze Shield (0/+1) Iron Shield (0/+1) Tower Shield (0/+1)
Creation speed	Conscription (+25%)
Other	Logistics (-0.5 population usage) Broad Sword (+20 hit points, +2 attack)

Civilization bonuses
Hit points	Choson (+15)
Conversion resistance	Macedonians (4x)
Attack speed	Romans (+50%)
Line of Sight	Macedonians (+2)
Creation speed	Lac Viet (+25%)

Team bonuses

• Palmyrans: Upgrading Short Swordsmen to Broad Swordsmen and researching technologies that benefit Short Swordsmen is 30% faster.

Changelog

Age of Empires

• Short Swordsmen move at 1.2 tiles/s.
• Short Swordsmen take 80 seconds to upgrade.
• Battle Axe and Short Sword are required to train Short Swordsmen.

Definitive Edition

• Short Swordsmen take 90 seconds to upgrade.
• Battle Axe and Short Sword are no longer required to train Short Swordsmen.
• Choson: Short Swordsmen get +15 hit points.

Return of Rome

• Short Swordsmen move at 1 tiles/s.
• Team bonuses added, Palmyrans: Technologies benefiting Short Swordsmen researched 30% faster.

Heroes

There are three heroes in the game with the appearance of a Short Swordman:

• Jason (since the Definitive Edition)
• Xerxes
• Mark Antony

History

“	The short sword represents an evolutionary step in infantry weapons. The spear, mace, and axe were relatively easy to manufacture and use, but cumbersome in very close combat. Following the discovery of bronze during the Bronze Age, it became possible to manufacture swords and shields that were basically enlarged and strengthened knives. These were much easier to wield in hand-to-hand combat and improved the effectiveness of infantry who carried them. Short swords were carried as a second weapon by spearmen or pikemen, such as the Greek hoplites. The most famous short sword of antiquity was the gladius, or Spanish sword, adopted by the Roman legions from the Spanish allies of Carthage. The gladius was especially effective in the dense legion fighting formations that pressed tightly against their opponents and restricted movement.	”
—The Age of Empires manual

Gallery

The Short Swordsman unit line in Return of Rome, with the Short Swordsman on the left end

A group of Short Swordsmen in the original game.

A Short Swordsman in the Definitive Edition

Technology tree

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