Spearman (Age of Empires II)

This article is about the unit in Age of Empires II. For other uses of the term, see Spearman.

Spearman
Unit information
Introduced in	Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings
Type	Infantry
Civilization	All civilizations
Age	Feudal Age
Training
Trained at	Barracks Donjon (Sicilians only)
Food	35
Wood	25
Training time	22 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	45
Melee attack	3
Attack bonus	+15 vs Cavalry +15 vs War elephant +12 vs Camel +9 vs Ship +9 vs Fishing Ship +4 vs Mameluke +1 vs Eagle Warrior +1 vs Standard building
Reload time	3
Melee armor	0
Pierce armor	0
Armor class	Infantry Spearman
Speed	1
Line of Sight	4 6
Unit evolution
Upgrades to	Pikeman
Upgrade cost	160 food, 90 gold
Upgrade time	35 seconds

“	Anti-cavalry infantry unit.	”
—Age of Empires II description

The Spearman is an infantry unit in Age of Empires II that can be trained at the Barracks (and also Donjons for the Sicilians) once the Feudal Age is reached. They are a good early cavalry-counter, but are weak against virtually everything else. If not upgraded, a Spearman is one of only two military units (the other one being the Skirmisher) to lose outright to a Villager with Loom. Since no gold is required to train them, Spearmen are considered trash units.

Tactics

Spearmen are very cheap and massed easily, allowing them to overwhelm enemy cavalry. They are useful in preventing early Scout Cavalry charges, but struggle against Castle Age cavalry such as Knights or Camel Riders. Players generally use this unit to defend their base against cavalry raids. As their stats are lackluster and they suffer the unfortunate combination of low movement speed and no range, they should not be used for raiding.

Further statistics

Unit strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs.	Cavalry
Weak vs.	Archers, infantry
Upgrades
Regeneration	Stronghold (30 HP/min when within 18 tiles square of a team Celts Castle)
Attack	Forging (+1) Iron Casting (+1) Blast Furnace (+2) Arson (+2 attack against standard buildings) Garland Wars (+4, Aztecs only) Druzhina (gives trample damage in 0.5 tiles radius, Slavs only) Chieftains (+5 against cavalry and +4 against camels, Vikings only) Wootz Steel (attack ignores armor, Dravidians only)
Armor	Scale Mail Armor (+1/+1, +2/+2 for the Romans) Chain Mail Armor (+1/+1, +2/+2 for the Romans) Plate Mail Armor (+1/+2) Tower Shields (+2 pierce armor, Lithuanians only)
Conversion resistance	Devotion (+1 min, +1 max) Faith (+4 min, +4 max) Heresy (die upon getting converted) First Crusade (+4 min, +4 max, Sicilians only)
Movement speed	Squires (+10%)
Resource cost	Kshatriyas (-25% food, Gurjaras only)
Creation speed	Conscription (+33%) Perfusion (+100%, Goths only)
Other	Chieftains (generates gold when killing Villagers, trade units, and Monks, Vikings only)
Upgrade	Pikeman

Civilization bonuses

• Armenians: Spearmen are available in the Dark Age. Pikeman can be researched in the Feudal Age.
• Aztecs: Spearmen are created 11% faster.
• Bohemians: Spearmen deal +25% bonus damage.
• Bulgarians: Blacksmith upgrades that benefit Spearmen cost -50% food.
• Burmese: Spearmen have +1/+2/+3 attack in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age. Researching Devotion and Faith is 50% cheaper.
• Byzantines: Spearmen are 25% cheaper.
• Celts: Spearmen move 15% faster. Spearmen can convert herdable animals even if enemy units are next to them.
• Chinese: Technologies that benefit Spearmen are 5%/10%/15% cheaper in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
• Dravidians: Researching Arson and Squires and upgrading to Pikeman is 50% cheaper.
• Ethiopians: The Pikeman upgrade is free.
• Georgians: Spearmen receive -20% damage (-40% instead of -25%) when fighting from higher elevation.
• Goths: Spearmen are 25%/30%/35% cheaper in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age, and have +1/+2/+3 in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age attack against standard buildings.
• Incas: Spearmen cost -15%/-20%/-25% food in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
• Japanese: Spearmen attack 33% faster.
• Koreans: Spearmen cost -50% wood.
• Lithuanians: Spearmen move 10% faster.
• Magyars: Forging, Iron Casting, and Blast Furnace are free.
• Malians: Spearmen have +1/+2/+3 pierce armor in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
• Romans: Spearmen receive double the effect from armor upgrades.
• Sicilians: Spearmen take -33% bonus damage.
• Spanish: Blacksmith upgrades that benefit Spearmen cost no gold. Researching technologies that benefit Spearmen provides 20 gold each.
• Tatars: Spearmen deal +20% damage (+50% instead of +25%) from a cliff or an elevation.
• Teutons: Spearmen have +1 armor in the Castle Age and +2 armor in the Imperial Age.
• Vietnamese: Conscription is free.
• Vikings: Spearmen have +20% hit points.

Team bonuses

• Armenians: Spearmen have +2 Line of Sight.
• Bulgarians: Researching infantry armor and attack upgrades at the Blacksmith is 80% faster.
• Goths: Spearmen are created (only at Barracks) and upgraded 20% faster. Researching Squires and Arson is 20% faster.
• Lithuanians: Researching Heresy, Devotion and Faith is 20% faster.
• Portuguese: Upgrades that benefit Spearmen are researched 25% faster.
• Teutons: Spearmen are more resistant to conversion.

Changelog

The Age of Kings

• Goths: Spearmen are 10%/15%/25% cheaper in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age and have an extra +1 attack against standard buildings.
• Vikings: Spearmen have +10%/+15%/+20% hit points in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
• The Pikeman upgrade takes 45 seconds and costs 215 food, 90 gold.

The Conquerors

• Spearmen gain +7 attack against camel units and ships.
• Heresy introduced.
• Aztecs: Garland Wars introduced.
• Goths: With patch 1.0b, Spearmen are 35% cheaper. Perfusion introduced.

The Forgotten

• Spearmen have +9 attack against camels and ships.

The African Kingdoms

• Arson introduced.
• Vikings: With patch 4.8, Chieftains affects Spearmen. It gives Spearmen +2 attack against camels.

Rise of the Rajas

• With patch 5.7, Spearmen deal +12 damage against camel units.
• Vikings: With patch 5.7, Chieftains gives Spearmen an extra +4 attack against camels.

Definitive Edition

• Bulgarians: With update 42848, Blacksmith upgrades that benefit Spearmen cost -50% food.
• Bulgarians: Initially, the team bonus gave the Blacksmith a 50% work rate boost. With update 42848, this was changed to a 80% work rate boost.
• Koreans: Spearmen cost -15% wood. With update 39284, they cost -20% wood.
• Tracking removed; all infantry receive +2 Line of Sight from the Feudal Age instead.
• Goths: With update 36202, cost bonus is 25%/30%/35% in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age and bonus damage against standard buildings is +1/+2/+3 in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age. Goths lose access to Arson.
• Teutons: With update 35584, starting in the Castle Age, Barracks units gain +1 armor. With update 36906, they receive another +1 armor in the Imperial Age.
• Lithuanians: Initially, Tower Shields granted +1 pierce armor. With update 36906, it grants +2 pierce armor.
• Portuguese: With update 42848, as a civilization bonus, technologies that benefit Spearmen are researched 30% faster.

Dawn of the Dukes

• Vikings: With update 56005, Spearmen have +20% HP.

Dynasties of India

• Sicilians: With update 66692, Spearmen resist only 33% bonus damage. With update 81058, Donjons can now train Spearmen.
• Portuguese: With update 73855, as a team bonus, technologies that benefit Spearmen are researched 25% faster.
• With update 81058, the Pikeman upgrade costs decreased to 160 food, 90 gold and takes 35 seconds to research.
• Incas: With update 81058, Spearmen cost -20%/-25%/-30% food in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
• Malay: With update 81058, infantry armor upgrades are free.

Return of Rome

• Chinese: With update 87863, technologies that benefit Spearmen are 5%/10%/15% cheaper in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
• Koreans: With update 87863, spearmen cost -50% wood.

The Mountain Royals

• Incas: With update 99311, they cost -15%/-20%/-25% food in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.

Heroes

There is one hero in the game with the appearance of a Spearman:

• Little John

History

“	The medium infantry of medieval armies were often spearmen wearing half-armor, usually a helmet and armor on the upper body. As the Middle Ages advanced, the role of the spearman became more important. Armies learned to employ large formations of spearmen as a counter to heavy cavalry attacks because horses would not charge home against a bristling wall of spear points. Spearmen were most effective when emulating the ancient Greek phalanx, a dense box of men that could extend several spear points in a chosen direction. As towns grew in importance toward the end of the period, they fielded large contingents of trained spearmen. These were very effective in battle for the cost of their equipment and training. Spearmen were originally deployed in a defensive posture, but the best of the spearman armies, such as the Swiss, Scots, and Flemish, learned to maneuver and take the offensive.	”
—Age of Empires II manual

Trivia

• The Spearman line units are the second cheapest of all military units, tied with the Skirmisher line, costing only 60 resources and no gold, only behind the Karambit Warrior (which costs 40 resources but is not a trash unit).
• The Spearman line units are the only trash units and also only common infantry units that do not have any base pierce armor.
• Spearmen deal bonus damage against the cheat unit Saboteur (since The Conquerors) because it is in the same armor class as ships.
• Spearmen and Pikemen use the same attack animation as Hoplites, Phalangites, Centurions, and Bronze Age onward Villagers in Age of Empires.
• Though the Turks cannot upgrade Spearmen to Pikemen, their fully upgraded Spearmen can defeat Malian Pikemen.

Gallery

The Spearman line, with the Spearman on the left.

The Spearman line, with the Spearman on the left. In the Definitive Edition.

A group of Spearmen

Spearmen attacking an enemy Knight.

A group of Spearmen protect their town from a Scout Cavalry raid

Spearman in the Definitive Edition

A soldier armed with spear, sword, & shield, from a 1109 copy of Commentary on the Apocalypse by Beatus of Liébana

Festive Spearman skin from Carnival 2022 event