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This article is about the scenario in Age of Empires II. For the unit in Age of Mythology, see Avenger. |
| โ | Sun Quan inherits the mighty Sun army and seek revenge against Liu Biao, his father's murderer. | โ |
| —In-game scenario description | ||
The Avenger is the fourth scenario of the Sun Clan campaign in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - The Three Kingdoms. It is based on Sun Quan's campaigns against the Shanyue hill tribes of southern China, and against Liu Biao's administrator Huang Zu, culminating in the Battle of Jiangxia.
Intro[]
The death of a family member brings a unique breed of grief. Like a great fissure, it opens up from the bottom of your soul, swallowing everything above into its black maw. Son Quan was all too familiar with this pain.
The Little Conqueror Sun Ce was dead. A part of Sun Quan had died with him: the part that had whispered with his brother in the night when they were young, dreaming of adventures, of days spent hunting with their father, and of travels in faraway lands...
Never again would they talk, or quarrel, or laugh at some stupid joke only they understood. He was alone now. So terribly alone. Yet, he knew precisely what he had to do.
While Sun Quan had often been impatient with his brother, there was no denying that Sun Ce's choices had taken the clan from obscurity and turned it into a powerhouse. Now, it was time to put the war machine to use.
The vengeful tree that they had planted when their father died had borne fruit now ripe for the picking. Gathering the full strength of the Sun armies, Sun Quan and Zhou Yu marched on Liu Biao's lands. At long last, Liu Biao would pay for his sins.
Scenario instructions[]
Starting conditions[]
- Starting Age:
Imperial Age - Starting resources: 800 food, 600 wood, 750 gold, 200 stone
- Population limit: 200
- Starting units:
- Sun Quan (hero)
- Zhou Yu (hero)
- 14 Villagers
- 8 Fire Archers
- 8 Jian Swordsmen
- 6 Light Cavalry (5 units changed to Imperial Cavalry if the player rescued the nobles in The Imperial Seal)
- 5 Hei Guang Cavalry (upgraded to Imperial Cavalry if the player rescued the nobles in The Imperial Seal)
- 4 Demolition Ships
- 3 War Galleys
- 1 Monk (if the player reached the Temple in time in The Conquest of Jiangdong)
- Hero Cheng Pu or Huang Gai (depending on choice made in The Conquest of Jiangdong)
- Hero Taishi Ci or Zhou Tai (depending on choice made in The White Tiger)
- Yu Ji (if spared in The White Tiger)
Main objectives[]
- Bring Sun Quan to Liu Biao.
- You must always control at least one Castle.
Secondary objectives[]
- 1/14 Castles captured.
- Bring the Naval Engineer to the western village (5, Grey), or to your starting Castle.
Hints[]
- Sun Quan can support a population of 200.
- You cannot build new Castles; only capture and hold existing ones.
- Build a navy to control Lake Pengli and the Yangtze River โ but do not neglect the land routes controlled by the Shanyue Tribes and Huang Zu.
- The Wu have a powerful navy. Use their unique technologies to strengthen it.
Scouts[]
- Sun Quan (Red) has seized a fortress on the shores of Lake Pengli from Liu Biao.
- Shocked by the sudden invasion, Liu Biao will soon counterattack. His forces are split into two: the navy (Blue) controls the waters, while his diverse army (Cyan) holds most of the region's Castles.
- The Shanyue tribes (Yellow) control the land west of the lake. They will defend their homes, trade routes, and riches with fierce infantry and ranged soldiers.
- Huang Zu leads Liu Biao's Vanguard (Purple) on the east side of the lake and will defend his lands with Pikemen. He works for Liu Biao and helped him kill Sun Quanโs father Sun Jian.
Players[]
Player[]
- Sun Quan ( Wu): Begins in the south of the map with a walled town containing military production buildings and a Castle, and an economic base just southwest of it, with the starting forces of Jian Swordsmen, a few cavalry units, a small navy, and heroes chosen up to this point. The player must fight their way to Liu Biao in the north of the map through the region's Castles, ensuring that one Castle always remains under their control. They win by bringing Sun Quan to Liu Biao's hero unit (represented by a War Chariot).
Ally[]
- Chinese Villages ( Wu): This faction consists of Houses around the map providing a background setting, and of a small settlement containing a Market in the west of the map, where the captured Naval Engineer requests to be escorted. Otherwise, they play no active role in this scenario.
Enemy[]
- Liu Biao ( Shu): Controls four Castles in walled towns containing military production buildings all around the lake, with the main base in the far north containing three Castles, behind which Liu Biao himself (set to Ally unlike the rest of the faction) stands next to a Wonder. To stop the player, they will actively send Crossbowmen/Arbalesters, Two-Handed Swordsmen/Champions, War Chariots, and (Elite) White Feather Guards, and also rams (progressively upgraded) and Traction Trebuchets as the scenario progresses.
- Liu Biao's Navy ( Shu): Controls six Castles, four of which are located on lakeshore or islands connected by shallows, with the other two on islands only reachable by ships, and each containing several Docks. Three other Docks are located near Liu Biao's main base in the north. Being a naval faction, they primarily build ships, initially Galleons and Demolition Ships, later also Fire Ships and Lou Chuans, but also train land units such as White Feather Guards, which may attempt to retake the Castles they just lost. They resign upon losing all Castles, Docks, and military.
- Shanyue Tribes ( Wu): They have unwalled military camps in the southwest and west of the map, and their main base containing their economy and Town Center located between Liu Biao's northwestern Castle and his main base in the north. They train Jian Swordsmen, Crossbowmen, and Elite Skirmishers. They do not actively attack the player. Destroying their military and Town Center leads to their resignation.
- Liu Biao's Vanguard ( Shu): Led by Huang Zu, they have an Outpost just northeast of the player's starting base and two military camps near Liu Biao's eastern Castle, with their economic base just southwest of Liu Biao's northeastern Castle. They train Hei Guang Cavalry and Pikemen. Like the Shanyue Tribes, they behave passively, and attack the player only on sight. They also resign upon losing their military and Town Center.
Strategy[]
Another 'Risk'-style scenario in this campaign, this time also involving naval combat. To win, the player has to bring Sun Quan to Liu Biao in the north, who is inside a heavily fortified city with three Castles. The player must control at least one of the map's 14 Castles at all times.
Two enemies will actively attack the player: Liu Biao, who initially controls seven Castles west, north, and east of the lake, and as such can field large armies against the player once the scenario gets going; and Liu Biao's Navy with six Castles (four close to the shore and reachable from land, and the other two on islands), and will mainly build warships against the player's navy and Castles, but may also train land units as well. The other two enemies, Shanyue Tribes and Liu Biao's Vanguard, behave passively, and will attack only on sight.
To start, the player should first get their economy in order, to be able to replace potential losses much more easily, and to sustain training of both naval and land units at the same time. Shortly after starting, the player can select an additional hero: Ling Tong, an archer Commander Class hero with a speed aura and active ability Morale Boost, or Gan Ning, an infantry Champion Class hero with Heavy Attack. While the construction of Castles is disabled in this scenario, it can still be useful to build several Guard Towers/Keeps, especially near the lake, as the Heated Shot is already researched. To avoid fighting on three fronts at once, a simple trick is to build a Palisade Wall on one approach to the player's base, forcing Liu Biao's forces spawning at bases on the respective side of the lake to go all the way around. This is more easily done by walling off the northeastern approach by virtue of the shorter section to cover.
The Shanyue Tribes primarily train Jian Swordsmen, Crossbowmen, and Elite Skirmishers, so the player should ideally counter with Militia-line units to deal with Jian Swordsmen, and Hei Guang Cavalry to kill the ranged units. Heroes can also be very helpful in the combat, with their generally superior stats and abilities, which can make the battle easier. Liu Biao's Vanguard defends itself with Hei Guang Cavalry and Pikemen, so the player should send their Pikemen/Halberdiers to counter the cavalry and ranged units or infantry to deal with the Pikemen. Clearing their bases is also important to secure additional resources, especially gold and wood, as they will run out fairly quickly in the starting base.
On the other hand, Liu Biao likes to send White Feather Guards, against which ranged units perform better. At the same time, the player should not neglect building a navy: while the initial naval attacks are fairly weak, they can be a significant threat if left unchecked. Massed Galleons with several Lou Chuans should win almost any naval battle for the player. Massed Lou Chuans should then be used to capture Liu Biao's Navy's Castles, which turns them over to the player, and reduces the number of Docks the enemy navy can use.
Liu Biao's Castles are inside a walled town, which become the player's once the Castle is sufficiently damaged. As such, massed Traction Trebuchets are the way to go to preserve the rest of the town intact. The Traction Trebuchets can also be used to conquer Liu Biao's Navy's Castles near the shore, but should be careful to avoid getting hit by the enemy warships. Researching the Wu unique technology Sitting Tiger (also affecting Lou Chuans) makes this task easier by increasing the damage they deal against buildings with secondary projectiles.
After capturing the Liu Biao's Navy Castle just north of the player's starting base, they gain control of a Naval Engineer stationed on the island. Escorting him to the western Chinese Villages settlement as he requests grants the player a 20% discount on the gold cost of their warships in this and the next scenario, and upgrades Fire Ships to Dragon Ships in the next scenario. Bringing him instead to the starting Castle to conscript him reduces the wood cost of the player's warships by 20% in this and the next scenario.
After this, no other special events occur. As the main objective is to bring Sun Quan to Liu Biao, the player needs to subdue only the Castles in the way. If they want the scenario achievement "I Am Coming For You, Liu Biao", however, all 14 Castles on the map must be captured. As long as the player uses the described tactics to subdue both Liu Biao's and Liu Biao's Navy's Castles, it should only be a matter of time. Forcing Liu Biao's Navy to resign may make this slightly easier by establishing complete control of the lake. The achievement is awarded immediately upon conquering the last Castle.
Once Sun Quan is brought to Liu Biao, the player is victorious.
Outro[]
As the smoke rising from the burning palace filled the evening sky, Liu Biao was brought before his captors. The wizened ruler had never been a warrior, yet he towered over the guards like a chained-up bear.
Sun Quan could barely contain his rage, but the elderly giant just gave him a weary smile. "You have earned your revenge, young man. Before I leave this earth, I implore you to listen to me, just once. You look upon me as a monster for what I did to your father, but a far greater beast lurks behind me."
"It is the tyrant Cao Cao of whom I speak. While he refuses to say it openly, it is clear that he intends to turn all of China into his personal domain. I know of only two men capable of standing up to him: my subordinate Liu Bei, who is holding off the tyrant's armies in the north as we speak... and you."
"Seek out Liu Bei. Bring an end to Cao Cao. Not for my sake, but for the sake of your father... and for the sake of China."
Sun Quan's blood boiled in his veins. Just before he bellowed the order, he gave Liu Biao a nearly imperceptible nod.
Afterwards, he sent Liu Biao's decapitated head to a temple dedicated to his father. Sun Quan had gotten his revenge. Now, he had to finish what his father and brother had begun.
Trivia[]
- While the scenario depicts Sun Quan leading a campaign against Liu Biao personally to avenge Sun Jian, he was actually campaigning against his subordinate Huang Zu, as his troop (according to the Records of the Three Kingdoms) was responsible for Sun Jian's death during the Battle of Xiangyang in 191 CE, taking place shortly after the events depicted in The Imperial Seal. Huang Zu was killed in the aftermath of the Battle of Jiangxia, decapitated and his head presented by Sun Quan as a sacrifice in his father's temple. Liu Biao died of illness several months after the events depicted in this scenario, shortly after Cao Cao's main army started their invasion of Jing Province, and never faced Sun Quan in battle.
- Lake Pengli, or Pengze, is the ancient name of Lake Poyang, which appears in the namesake scenario. However, the two lakes are not identical, mainly due to changing course of the Yangtze and its tributary, the Gan River, and connected changes in the landscape between the time of the Han dynasty and the 14th century, when the Battle of Lake Poyang took place.
- The Shanyue (ๅฑฑ่ถ) are an ethnic group based in southern China and northern Vietnam. They are related to the Baiyue, who are alleged to be the ancestors of the Vietnamese.
- Despite Shanyue's association with the Vietnamese, the faction is represented by the Wu kingdom instead of the Vietnamese civilization, which is historically accurate, as many of the Shanyue would assimilate and join the Eastern Wu army through the efforts of Ling Tong. As such, choosing Ling Tong over Gan Ning for this scenario would be the most historically accurate choice for the player.
