The Battle of Actium (named just Actium in the original) is the first scenario of the Imperium Romanum campaign in Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome. It depicts the eponymous battle that marks the end of the Roman Republic and the beginning of the Roman Empire.
Scenario instructions[]
Description[]
| “ | Actium, 31 BCE Marc Antony has taken the offensive, crossing the Gulf of Ambracia in a maneuver designed to strike quickly at your camp. Cleopatra, meanwhile, has laid anchor within the gulf, her barge protected by the Egyptian navy. Should Antony's attack be repulsed, she will likely flee to Egypt where reinforcements await. Your destiny is in your hands, Octavian. Deal a crushing blow to your enemies here, and nobody will be able to challenge your claim to the title of Princeps Civitatis! |
” |
| —In-game section | ||
| “ | 33 to 30 AD Marc Antony has taken the offensive, crossing the Gulf of Ambracia to shorten the distance between his legions and yours. Cleopatra remains in a defensive posture behind the protection of her Egyptian navy. Should Antony's attack fail, she will probably flee to Egypt where reinforcements await. |
” |
| —In-game section | ||
Starting conditions[]
- Starting Age:
Iron Age - Starting resources: 200 food, 200 wood, 150 stone
- Population limit: 50
- Starting units:
- 10
Broad Swordsmen - 4 Improved Bowmen
- 2 Cavalry
- 4 Triremes
- 2 Fishing Boats
- 3 Villagers
- 10
Objectives[]
- Destroy the Town Centers of the two enemy fortresses.
- Sink Cleopatra's Barge.
- Destroy the Town Centers of the two enemy fortresses and sink Cleopatra's Barge.
Hints[]
- You will need powerful land and naval forces for complete victory; do not rely too heavily on one or the other.
- You may need to relocate your camp.
- You need both a strong land force and a navy for complete victory; do not rely too heavily on one or the other.
- You may need to relocate your camp.
Players[]
Player[]
- Player ( Romans): The player's base is located in the northern corner of the map. It is fortified and defended by a small army and navy. Resources are rather low and the base is vulnerable to attacks from all directions.
Enemies[]
- Marc Antony (Antony before the Definitive Edition) ( Romans): Antony starts with a base in the middle of the map, right southwards from the player. His initial army starts at the player's base gates and has to be fended off. His base is low on wood, food, and stone. Unfortunately for the player, Antony has huge amounts of every resource in stock: 5,000 food, 5,000 wood, 5,000 gold, 2,000 stone. Antony attacks with infantry.
- Cleopatra ( Egyptians): Cleopatra has a stationary navy in the eastern corner of the map and three Ballista Towers guarding the strait in the middle of the map. She starts in the Post-Iron Age, which means she has all technologies possible for the Egyptian civilization.
- Egyptian Forces (Egypt before the Definitive Edition) ( Egyptians): The Egyptian base is located in the southern corner of the base and attacks with Catapult Triremes, Composite Bowmen, Chariot Archers, Priests, and Stone Throwers. Egypt starts with 2,000 wood at the start of the game.
Strategy[]
The player's starting base
To win the scenario the player must level Antony and Egypt's Town Centers while sinking Cleopatra's Barge.
First, deal with Antony. A few Cavalry to deal with ranged attackers, some Long Swordsmen to deal with infantry, and a Stone Thrower for Towers will be enough to level his base. First go for the towers and the military buildings, then head for his town center, to cripple him.
Train a navy to control the seas. If resources are becoming a problem, transport some Villagers to the island to the west; there's plenty of wood, stone and gold to gather there.
Take the army, replace anything that's lost, and go south to the Egyptian town, but not before leveling Cleopatra's three Ballista Towers and Antony's Stone Thrower which defend the area. Use the same tactic as before - but since reinforcements would have to travel a long way, it's better to build some buildings on their islands and train the soldiers from there. Either bring a Villager, or convert one. The player may also need to train some Chariots, as Egypt has many priests.
Once the Egyptian base is down, the land units are useless, so the player can kill them if they lack population. Build Triremes, and assault the navy until Cleopatra's Barge is sunk.
Alternatively, the player can also build the Dock behind the wall in the northern corner, build a Temple, create Priests, and send the priests over in the Transport Ship. Go to the eastern area where Cleopatra's Barge is and convert it. Once the player successfully converts it, hitting the delete button will make the game much easier.
History[]
Historical notes[]
| “ | Following the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BCE, Rome was sent into a tailspin of conflict between various political factions. Out of the chaos emerged a triumvirate composed of Marc Antony (Caesar's closest ally), Octavian (Caesar's nephew), and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, the pontifex maximus of Rome. The power of this "Second Triumvirate" was derived from the Lex Titia, a piece of legislature that granted them near-absolute authority. At the Battle of Philippi in 42 BCE, they crushed the forces of Brutus and Cassius, two of the principal figures in the plot against Caesar. Octavian proved to be an exceptional politician, and was a master of brokering political alliances and utilizing the sentiments of the common people to support his own aims. For a decade, the volatile political alliance between the triumvirs was largely held together by mutual pragmatic interests and by Antony's marriage to Octavian's sister, Octavia. Antony was placed in control of the East while Octavian assumed control of the West. Lepidus' role was increasingly marginalized. Antony committed a grave error when he fell for Cleopatra of Egypt and shunned his wife in favor of Cleopatra (in 33 BCE). Seizing the opportunity, Octavian leveraged this insult as a means of eroding Antony's support from within the Senate and the people of Rome. The Senate agreed to declare war on Cleopatra, which was by extension a war on Antony. After some maneuvering, the forces of Octavian and Antony clashed at Actium, near the Gulf of Ambracia, in 31 BCE. Claiming a decisive victory, Octavian added most of the Roman territory in the East to his already impressive holdings. Antony and Cleopatra escaped to Egypt, where they attempted to recruit a new army. The local troops defected to Octavian, however, and Antony and Cleopatra chose to commit suicide rather than be paraded through the streets of Rome in Octavian's triumph. Antony, true to Roman tradition, literally fell on his sword; but Cleopatra held a deadly poisonous snake—the asp—to her breast, causing it to bite her. Octavian, meanwhile, went on to further consolidate his power in Rome, first being proclaimed Princeps Civitatis (first citizen), and eventually becoming the first emperor of the newly-formed Roman Empire, which he ruled under the title of Augustus Caesar. |
” |
| —In-game section | ||
| “ | Following the death of Caesar, there began of period of conflict between republicans, Pompeiians, and various claimants to Caesar's legacy. The principal players ultimately were Marc Antony, Caesar's most trusted subordinate, and Octavian, Caesar's nephew. Together they fought a brief but decisive civil war against Caesar's murderers, Brutus and Cassius. Octavian was only 18 at the time of Caesar's death and not a particularly gifted military commander, but he proved a superb politician. By 40 BC the empire had been divided among a new triumvirate of Octavian, Antony, and Lepidus. The arrangement was formalized by Antony's marriage to Octavian's sister. Antony ruled the East and met Cleopatra, ruler of Egypt, in 43 BC. In 33 BC he repudiated his marriage to Octavian's sister and married Cleopatra. This caused the inevitable break between the two strong men of Rome. Octavian used his political skill to strip Antony of his titles and support in Rome. War was declared against Cleopatra. In 31 BC, Octavian's forces met those of Antony and Cleopatra on the west coast of Greece near Actium. In a naval battle involving over 800 warships, Octavian triumphed. Two large contingents of ships in Antony and Cleopatra's fleet proved disloyal. The doomed lovers escaped to Egypt by sea, but their land forces mutinied and surrendered to Octavian. Chased to Egypt, both Antony and Cleopatra ended their lives by suicide. Octavian returned to Rome in triumph. The Senate first confirmed him as imperator and then gave him the name Augustus. As Augustus, he became known as the first emperor of Rome. | ” |
| —In-game section | ||
Victory[]
| “ | Your glorious victory over the combined forces of Antony and Cleopatra has compelled them to flee to Egypt. Although some additional maneuvers will doubtless be required to secure the lands that had rebelled under Antony, the main danger is past. You have solidified your control of Rome; and you are now positioned to take more power than any Roman ever has before. Soon, the citizens of Rome will be heaping endless praise on you during your triumph! | ” |
| —In-game section | ||
| “ | Your victory over the combined forces of Antony and Cleopatra has compelled these enemies of Rome to flee to Egypt. You have solidified your control of Rome and you are now positioned to become the first emperor of Rome. | ” |
| —In-game section | ||
Loss[]
| “ | Your loss to the combined forces of Antony and Cleopatra has compelled you to withdraw to Rome and attempt to rebuild your forces. With the eastern part of the empire now lost to our enemies, it is likely that Antony will follow up his victory by marching on Rome. A second defeat at the hands of Antony will mean the end of your career as consul and will surely allow Antony to become the first emperor of Rome. | ” |
| —In-game section | ||
| “ | Your loss to the combined forces of Antony and Cleopatra compels you to withdraw to Rome and rebuild your forces. The eastern part of the empire is now lost to our enemies. It is likely that Antony will follow up his victory by driving on Rome. A second defeat at the hands of Antony will mean the end of your career as consul of Rome and put Antony in position to be the first Emperor of Rome. | ” |
| —In-game section | ||
Trivia[]
- This is the only scenario outside of the Egyptian Campaign where the player faces Egypt as an enemy, and not just enemies which are only technically Egyptian used as a substitute for some other civilization or state.
- If the player destroys Antony and Egypt, kills all units of Cleopatra except Cleopatra's Barge, then converts that unique unit, it still needs to be sunk in order to win, even though, at this point, all enemies are annihilated completely.
