Age of Empires Series Wiki
Register
Advertisement

The Battle of Falkirk is the seventh and last scenario in the William Wallace learning campaign in Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings. It is more open-ended than the rest of the campaign and serves somewhat as a review of the first six scenarios, as well as teaching the player about important features of the Castle Age such as siege units, Castles, and unique units.

The scenario is named after the Battle of Falkirk (July 22, 1298).

Intro[]

The only way we can hold the boggy lowlands around Falkirk is to build a castle and as many walls as we can construct in a short time.

These fortifications will serve to protect our camp as we construct siege weapons with which to assault the English castle.

Once the castle is constructed, Wallace himself has sworn to join our forces. Together we will attack Longshanks and his English troops.

The only way we can hold the boggy lowlands around Falkirk is to build a castle and as many walls as we can construct in a short time.

These fortifications will serve to protect our camp as we construct siege weapons with which to assault the English castle.

Once the castle is constructed, Wallace himself has sworn to join our forces and together we will attack Longshanks and his English troops.

Scenario instructions[]

Starting conditions[]

Objectives[]

  • Build a Castle.
  • Destroy the English castle.

Hints[]

  1. The Scots are restricted to a population limit of 100.
  2. This scenario uses the advanced commands interface. Although you do not need to use this interface to play Age of Empires II, it does provide access to some more powerful ways to control your civilization.
  3. Different civilizations have different strengths. For example, the Scots, who are represented by the Celtic civilization, have fast and powerful infantry. The Britons have long-ranged archers.

  • This scenario uses the advanced commands interface. Although you do not need to use this interface to play Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, it does provide access to some more powerful ways to control your civilization.
  • Different civilizations have different strengths. For example, the Scots, who are represented by the Celtic civilization, have powerful infantry. The Britons have long-range archers.

Scouts (Definitive Edition)[]

Your scouts report:

  • The Scots (1, Blue) will fight one final battle against the English at Falkirk. Their independence relies on it.
  • News has spread that William Wallace (2, Yellow) is on his way with reinforcements. He is expected to arrive by ship.
  • The English (3, Red) have a strong presence to the south and will launch raids on your land. They are bringing infantry and their fearsome Longbowmen to the field of battle.

Players[]

Player[]

  • Player (CivIcon-Celts Celts): The player starts with a fortified town in the north of the map, and all buildings necessary are up at the game start.

Ally[]

  • Wallace (CivIcon-Celts Celts): Wallace is the player's ally, but will not actually play. Once the player has constructed a Castle, his ships land on the riverside and join in the player's army. The four Transport Ships deliver 14 Elite Woad Raiders, five Cavaliers (five Paladins in the Definitive Edition), and William Wallace himself. All of the units are fully upgraded.

Enemy[]

  • English (CivIcon-Britons Britons): The English are once again the only enemy. They have a town south of the river that can only be reached with ships or by crossing the river in the west of the map, where there are shallows. The river crossing is protected by Stone Walls and Watch Towers. In their town, the English have a Castle. They field an army of Longbowmen, Spearmen, and some Battering Rams.

Strategy[]

The player starts with a solid base, with enough Houses to support the maximum population along with every important Feudal Age building. They also start with a ring of Outposts surrounding the base, though the English will soon destroy them one at a time. Begin by building Stone Walls to finish enclosing the base, along with Gates where appropriate. Also start collecting resources and advance to the Castle Age right away. After advancing, the player may build a Siege Workshop to create siege weapons as well as a University to research important technologies (Murder Holes, Fortified Wall, Guard Tower, and Ballistics should be a priority). Also, towers may be built near the walls, as the English will begin attacking them soon enough. Their forces include Longbowmen, Pikemen, and Battering Rams. The English will not advance beyond the Castle Age.

Wallacelc7owncastle

The ideal location for the own Castle

Once the player has enough stone, they should build their Castle. The perfect place for it is at the north end of the river crossing. Bring several Villagers to build it, along with troops to protect them. A Castle provides excellent defense, pelting any unit that dares go near it with a volley of arrows and being able to outrange Longbowmen. Its only major weakness is Rams, but they can easily be destroyed with Castle-trained Woad Raiders.

Upon building the Castle, Wallace will give the player some troops: 14 Elite Woad Raiders, five Cavaliers, four Transport Ships, two Galleons, and William Wallace himself. These units are essentially enough destroy the English Castle and finish the final objective. If a few Battering Rams are added to this army, the Castle falls even more quickly. It is easiest to use the Rams to destroy the Gate at the entrance to the English base and the other units to deal with enemy units. Once the Gate is gone, go south. Just ignore the towers as the damage they deal is negligible. Soon the army will encounter the Castle, the objective of the scenario. Directly attack it with the rams. The other units may also attack the Castle or kill defending enemy units. Once the Castle is destroyed, the scenario is won.

Alternative strategies[]

Wallacelc7castle

The English Castle is not able to withstand a quick raid

Alternatively, immediately after the start of the scenario, the player can advance to the Castle Age and send all Villagers to gather stone. Once the Castle Age is reached, a Castle can be constructed right away. Once the Castle is up (no matter where), the ships of William Wallace arrive and drop their units on the shoreline. Garrison them back inside and sail to the coast in the south and drop the units off. Locate the Castle and attack it with all of Wallace's units. The Castle is gone in less than seven minutes of play.

William_Wallace_7th_mission_but_I_stay_on_Feudal_Age_while_destroying_the_enemy_castle

William Wallace 7th mission but I stay on Feudal Age while destroying the enemy castle

Feudal Rush and Douche strategy applied on "The Battle of Falkirk"

In another alternative strategy, the player can also win this level without advancing to Castle Age, building a Castle, or (consequently) using Wallace reinforcements. The player can rush the enemy at the start with all starting units, along with trainable units from the buildings (Archers are recommended). Once the player manages to get in into the English city (they will open the Gate and send their units on the player if the player rushes intensively by the start). Build a Town Center in range of the enemy's Town Center (by deleting the initial Town Center). Killing all the Villagers will make the path safe to the Castle (they will simply stop training new units once their economy is neutralized). Make sure to raid all of the Mining and Lumber Camps in the city, as shown in the video.

Outro[]

It looked certain that we would be defeated at Falkirk. Yet somehow, though outnumbered and outranged by English longbows, we were victorious.

The English castle was torn down, and a Scottish one shall be built in its place.

William Wallace has shown us the path to victory. Although he is but one man, he inspires great deeds in others. Many of the Scottish knights and lords have drawn their swords with his.

Wallace's own sword is a five-and-a-half-foot beast, forged of course in Scotland.

He has sworn not to rest until his sword finds the neck of Edward Longshanks. The struggle will continue, but we have learned the ways of war. Now it is the English who will know true fear.

It looked certain we would be defeated at Falkirk. Yet somehow, though outnumbered and outranged by English longbows, we were victorious.

The English castle was torn down and a Scottish one will be built in its place.

William Wallace has shown us the path to victory. Although he is but one man, he inspires great deeds in others and many of the Scottish princes and lords have drawn their swords with his.

Wallace's own sword is a five-and-a-half-foot beast, forged of course in Scotland.

He has sworn not to rest, until his sword finds the neck of Edward Longshanks. The struggle will continue, but we have learned the ways of war. Now it is the English who will know fear.

Trivia[]

  • This is the only William Wallace scenario with two objectives.
  • The player can also win this scenario by advancing to the Imperial Age and building a Wonder, though it is faster and easier to simply destroy the Castle.
  • There is a lone Champion on the allied Wallace team hidden in the woods west of the English base. This is done because giving all of their units to the player would cause Wallace to be defeated.
  • Throughout the scenario, the speed cannot be changed.
  • The starting Mill takes up a 3x3 space, compared to a normal Mill's 2x2 space. This isn't because its base is increased to a 3x3 base, but because its 2x2 base doesn't correctly correspond to the grid.
  • As opposed to most other campaigns, the death of its main hero has no consequences whatsoever.
  • If the player destroys the English Gate and builds their own Gate in its place, the English will not attack the new Gate, and will be unable to launch any further attacks against the player's base.
  • The English will only resign after having their Castle destroyed (the fate of the rest of their base is uninfluential).

Historical comparison[]

  • In the scenario, the Scots and English begin each with a base separated by the Firth of Forth, which the Scots must cross to attack the English. In reality, both armies were south of the Forth (the Scots in Falkirk and the English in Temple Liston), and it was the English who attacked the Scots. The Scots had left the cities and were avoiding battle, intending to strike when the English left due to running out of supplies, but the English learned the Scots's location before this happened.
  • Wallace arrives with additional forces by the sea. This did not happen, but it could be an allusion to Wallace traveling to France after the battle, to ask for support.
  • Most crucially: The Scots were decisively defeated at Falkirk, and Wallace resigned as Guardian of Scotland shortly after.
  • The real outcome of the Battle of Falkirk is revealed in the intro of the last Edward Longshanks' campaign scenario, Hammer of the Scots, in which one of the objectives is to kill William Wallace.

Gallery[]

Campaigns in Age of Empires II
AoE2-DLCicon-0 The Age of Kings
CampaignIcon-WilliamDE William Wallace Difficulty easy PC: Marching and Fighting · Feeding the Army · Training the Troops · Research and Technology · The Battle of Stirling · Forge an Alliance · The Battle of Falkirk
Xbox: Preparing for Battle · The Battle of Stirling · Forge an Alliance · The Battle of Falkirk
CampaignIcon-JoanDE Joan of Arc Difficulty easy An Unlikely Messiah · The Maid of Orleans · The Cleansing of the Loire · The Rising · The Siege of Paris · A Perfect Martyr
CampaignIcon-SaladinDE Saladin Difficulty medium An Arabian Knight · Lord of Arabia · The Horns of Hattin · The Siege of Jerusalem · Jihad! · The Lion and the Demon
CampaignIcon-KhanDE Genghis Khan Difficulty easy Crucible · A Life of Revenge · Into China · The Horde Rides West · The Promise · Pax Mongolica
CampaignIcon-BarbarossaDE Barbarossa Difficulty easy Holy Roman Emperor · Henry the Lion · Pope and Antipope · The Lombard League · Barbarossa's March · The Emperor Sleeping
AoE2-DLCicon-1 The Conquerors
CampaignIcon-AttilaDE Attila the Hun Difficulty easy The Scourge of God · The Great Ride · The Walls of Constantinople · A Barbarian Betrothal · The Catalaunian Fields · The Fall of Rome
CampaignIcon-ElCidDE El Cid Difficulty easy Brother against Brother · The Enemy of my Enemy · The Exile of the Cid · Black Guards · King of Valencia · Reconquista
CampaignIcon-MontezumaDE Montezuma Difficulty easy Reign of Blood · The Triple Alliance · Quetzalcoatl · La Noche Triste · The Boiling Lake · Broken Spears
Battles of the Conquerors Icon Battles of the Conquerors Tours · Vinlandsaga · Hastings · Manzikert · Agincourt · Lepanto · Kyoto · Noryang Point
Hidden scenario The Saxon Revolt
AoE2-DLCicon-2 The Forgotten
CampaignIcon-AlaricDE Alaric Difficulty hard HD: All Roads Lead to a Besieged City · Legionaries on the Horizon! · Emperor of the West · The Sack of Rome
DE: The Battle of the Frigidus · Razing Hellas · The Belly of the Beast · The Giant Falls · A Kingdom of Our Own
CampaignIcon-DraculaDE Vlad Dracula Difficulty medium The Dragon Spreads His Wings · The Return of the Dragon · The Breath of the Dragon · The Moon Rises · The Night Falls
CampaignIcon-BariDE Bari Difficulty medium HD: Arrival at Bari · The Rebellion of Melus · The Great Siege
DE: Arrival at Bari · The Rebellion of Melus · Loose Ends · The Best Laid Plans · The Onrushing Tide
CampaignIcon-SforzaDE Sforza Difficulty medium HD: An End and a Beginning · O Fortuna · The Hand of a Daughter · The Ambrosian Republic · A New Duke of Milan
DE: Mercenaries and Masters · His Own Man · Prodigal Son · Blood and Betrayal · Viva Sforza!
El Dorado Icon El Dorado (removed) Tales of La Canela · The Split · The Amazones · The Cannibals
CampaignIcon-PrithvirajDE Prithviraj Difficulty medium HD: A Promising Warrior · The Digvijaya · The Elopement · Battles of Tarain
DE: Born of Fire · The Digvijaya · Hand of a Princess · The Fate of India · The Legend of Prithviraj
Battles of the Forgotten Icon Battles of the Forgotten Bukhara · Dos Pilas · York · Honfoglalás · Langshan Jiang · Kurikara · Cyprus · Bapheus · Kaesong (cut)
AoE2-DLCicon-3 The African Kingdoms
CampaignIcon-TariqIbnZiyadDE Tariq ibn Ziyad Difficulty medium The Battle of Guadalete · Consolidation and Subjugation · Divide and Conquer · Crossing the Pyrenees · Razzia
CampaignIcon-SundjataDE Sundjata Difficulty medium Hunted · The Sting of the Scorpion · Djeriba Gold · Blood on the River Bank · The Lion's Den
CampaignIcon-FranciscoDE Francisco de Almeida Difficulty hard The Old World · Lion of Africa · Ruins of Empires · Estado da India · A Son's Blood
CampaignIcon-YoditDE Yodit Difficulty hard Path of Exile · The Right Partner · A Fallen Crown · Broken Stelae · Welcome Home
AoE2-DLCicon-4 Rise of the Rajas
CampaignIcon-GajahMadaDE Gajah Mada Difficulty medium The Story of Our Founders · Unconditional Loyalty · The Oath to Unify Nusantara · Serving the New King · The Pasunda Bubat Tragedy
CampaignIcon-SuryavarmanIDE Suryavarman I Difficulty easy Usurpation · Quelling the Rebellion · A Dangerous Mission · Challenging a Thalassocracy · Nirvanapada
CampaignIcon-BayinnaungDE Bayinnaung Difficulty hard The Burmese Tigers · The Mandalay Cobra · The Royal Peacock · The White Elephant · The Old Tiger
CampaignIcon-LeLoiDE Le Loi Difficulty hard The Dai Viet Uprising · The Mountain Siege · The Battle at Hanoi · Reaching South · A Three-Pronged Attack · The Final Fortress
AoEIIDE icon Definitive Edition
CampaignIcon-TheArtOfWar The Art of War Difficulty easy Early Economy · Booming · Rushing the Enemy · Fast Castle Age · Defending Against A Rush · Land Battle · Destroying a Castle · Naval Battle · Battle Formations
CampaignIcon-Pachacuti Pachacuti Difficulty medium A New Power Arises · The Field of Blood · War of Brothers · The Falcon's Tent · Like Father, Like Son
00 historical battles normal Historical Battles Difficulty easy Scn 09 bukhara normal Bukhara · Scn 10 dos pilas normal Dos Pilas · Scn 01 tours normal Tours · Scn 11 york normal York · Scn 12 honfoglalas normal Honfoglalás · Scn 02 vinlandsaga normal Vinlandsaga · Scn 03 hastings normal Hastings · Scn 04 manzikert normal Manzikert · Scn 13 kurikara normal Kurikara · Scn 14 cyprus normal Cyprus · Scn 15 bapheus normal Bapheus · Scn 16 lake poyang normal Lake Poyang · Scn 05 agincourt normal Agincourt · Scn 06 lepanto normal Lepanto · Scn 07 kyoto normal Kyoto · Scn 08 noryang point normal Noryang Point
Event scenarios Mongol Raiders · Barbarossa Brawl · Mangudai Madness · The Siege (co-op)
AoE2-DLCicon-5 The Last Khans
CampaignIcon-Tamerlane Tamerlane Difficulty easy Amir of Transoxiana · Gurkhan of Persia · Harbinger of Destruction · Sultan of Hindustan · Scourge of the Levant · A Titan Amongst Mortals
CampaignIcon-Ivaylo Ivaylo Difficulty hard A Most Unlikely Man · An Unlikely Alliance · Tsar of the Bulgars · Echoes of Heroes · Where the One-Eyed Man is King
CampaignIcon-Kotyan Kotyan Khan Difficulty hard Raising the Banners · The Battle at the Kalka River · Saving the Huts · Blood for Blood · A New Home
AoE2Icon-LordsWest Lords of the West
CampaignIcon-EdwardDE Edward Longshanks Difficulty easy Vain Ambition · A Man of God · Of Castles and Kings · Toom Tabard · Hammer of the Scots
CampaignIcon-DukesDE Grand Dukes Difficulty medium A Kingdom Divided · The Wolf and the Lion · The Cleansing of Paris · Unholy Marriage · The Hook and Cod Wars · The Maid Falls
CampaignIcon-HautevillesDE The Hautevilles Difficulty hard Guiscard Arrives · Roger in Sicily · Bohemond and the Emperor · Bohemond in the East · Wonder of the World
Dawn of the Dukes icon Dawn of the Dukes
Algirdas icon Algirdas and Kestutis Difficulty easy Family Affairs · No Man's Land · The Tatar Yoke · A Worthy Opponent · In the Shadow of the Throne
32 jadwiga normal Jadwiga Difficulty hard The Matter of the Crown · Star of the Poles · Duel of the Dukes · The Siege of Vilnius · Vytautas' Crusade · The Fruits of Her Labor
Jan Zizka icon Jan Zizka Difficulty medium The One-Eyed Wanderer · Courage and Coin · The Iron Lords · The Golden City · The Emperor's Fury · Warrior of God
AoE2Icon-DynastiesIndia Dynasties of India
Babur Icon Babur Difficulty easy Pearl of the East · The Last Timurids · Into India · The Battle of Panipat · The Rajputs
Rajendra Icon Rajendra Difficulty hard The Successor · Deeds of the Father · Rising Star · Sacred Waters · Slaying the Vritra
Devapala Icon Devapala Difficulty easy Dissatisfaction · Desire · Renunciation · Liberation? · Enlightenment
AoE2Icon-MountainRoyals The Mountain Royals
Tamar Icon Tamar Difficulty hard Takeover · Yury's Revenge · The Protectorate · Tamar the Builder · The Queen in the Panther's Skin
Thoros Icon Thoros II Difficulty easy Outlawed · The Emperor's Revenge · Caught in the Crossfire · Bloody Crestwaves · Of Turncoats and Traitors
Ismail Icon Ismail Difficulty medium The Red Hats · Road to Royalty · Alexander Safavi · The Fallen Amir · Khata'i
Aoe2 hb Victors and Vanquished
VictorsAndVanquished Campaign Icon
Victors and Vanquished
Difficulty easy Scn 23 charlemagne Charlemagne · Scn 39 drake Drake · Scn 26 finehair Finehair · Scn 25 ironside Ironside · Scn 38 nobunaga Nobunaga
Difficulty medium Scn 36 fetih Fetih · Scn 21 gaiseric Gaiseric · Scn 24 ragnar Ragnar · Scn 27 robert Robert · Scn 37 shimazu Shimazu · Scn 32 stephen Stephen · Scn 33 temujin Temujin · Scn 22 vortigern Vortigern
Difficulty hard Scn 35 constantine Constantine XI · Scn 30 karlsefni Karlsefni · Scn 31 komnenos Komnenos · Scn 34 mstislav Mstislav · Scn 28 otto Otto · Scn 29 seljuk Seljuk
Advertisement