The Battle of Patay

This article is about the scenario in Age of Empires IV. For the scenario in Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, see The Cleansing of the Loire.

The Battle of Patay
Scenario information
Game	Age of Empires IV
Campaign	The Hundred Years War
Civilization	French
Color	Blue
Scenario no.	6
Previous	The Siege of Orléans
Next	Retake Normandy
Setting information
Year	1429
Map

The Battle of Patay is the second scenario in the Desperation chapter and the sixth scenario of the The Hundred Years War campaign in Age of Empires IV. It depicts the campaign to cleanse the Loire Valley of English and Burgundian troops led by Joan of Arc in October 1428 to June 1429, culminating in the Battle of Patay on 18 June 1429.

Scenario instructions

Starting conditions

• Age: Castle Age
• Units:
  • 2 Scout
  • 12 Royal Knight
  • 6 Horseman
• Resources: 3000 gold

Objectives

• Defeat the English on the road to Patay
• Clear the blocked road
• Clear the English from St. Sigmund
• Eliminate the remaining English regiments
  • Eliminate the eastern regiment
  • Eliminate the central regiment
  • Eliminate the western regiment
• Optional: Take control of Patay

Players

• Jeanne d'Arc: The player starts near the south corner of the map with a small force of cavalry. As their army progresses across the map, they will be able to recruit more units in exchange for gold, which can be found in Treasure Chests along the way as the player clears off the English on route to Patay. After the third group of English are defeated, Jeanne d'Arc arrives with a force of 20 Veteran Horsemen and 4 Scouts as reinforcements.

Allies

• Patay (French): The town of Patay lies in the north corner of the map. The town is relatively small but has a few military production buildings, and is defended by a small force Arbalétriers and Hardened Spearmen which will switch to the player's control once their army reaches the town. They also control three minor settlements along the routes to Patay, each of which contains Treasure Chests than can be collected for gold. The first settlement, St. Sigmund is guarded by a sizeable English force which must be cleared out to progress further, but contains a larger number of Treasure Chests. The other two will be destroyed by the central and western English regiments on their way to Patay.

Enemies

• John Talbot (English): The English army is in disarray while retreating through the Loire Valley, and is divided into several regiments which must be defeated by the player. They consist of Men-at-Arms, Veteran Spearmen, and large numbers of Veteran Longbowmen, as well as a couple of Mangonels in one instance. They will initially blockade the road to Patay at a few locations, with Longbowmen deploying Palings to stop enemy cavalry charges. However, once at a disadvantage, the surviving units will abandon their positions and begin to flee, allowing the player to run them down with their cavalry. After the initial blockades are defeated, the player will be tasked with defeating three English regiments heading for Patay. These regiments will be composed of Veteran Spearmen and Longbowmen, as well as a pair of Springalds.

Strategy

This scenario plays very straightforward. Initially, the player has no base and must clear out the remnants of the English army on their way to Patay. They will then have to eliminate three English regiments heading towards the town. Because the enemy is divided into groups, it is simply a matter of eliminating one after another, replenishing or healing troops when needed.

Heading up the path, the English will initially try to ambush the player's units with a small group of Longbowmen and Scouts, which are easily dispatched with cavalry. Further up the road leading to the village of St. Sigmund, a detachment of Longbowmen have set up a blockade by deploying palings, but this is easily circumnavigated by using the path that leads left and around behind the blocked road. Once they are attacked from behind, the Longbowmen will retract their palings, making them easier to deal with. With the first blockade defeated, the player will now have the option to recruit reinforcements in exchange for gold, which will remain available for the remainder of the scenario:

Ally	Gold cost	Reinforcements	Units
Count Antoine	400	Archers	10 Archer
Jean d'Alençon	600	Infantry	6 Man-at-Arms 4 Arbalétrier
Jean Poton	800	Horsemen	10 Veteran Horseman
La Hire	1000	Royal Knights	8 Royal Knight

Since the English force occupying St. Sigmund contains a lot of Spearmen, d'Alençon's reinforcements are most useful, although the player should have enough gold at this point to buy at least one regiment of units from each ally if they wish. Make sure to send the cavalry around the flank to attack their archers while the infantry and archers deal with the English Spearmen.

Once the village is cleared and the player has collected all the Treasure Chests, continue along the road to Patay to find another English blockade just before the crossroads. This blockade is a bit tougher to deal with, as it is larger and additionally has two Mangonels. Move the units south along the treeline through the Stealth Forest to flank the English force. The units will likely get spotted and may be initially attacked by the English, but will not be followed once they are past the Stealth Forest. With the army positioned, attack the English blockaders from behind, making sure send the cavalry to take out their Mangonels. Be sure to pick up the Treasure Chests to recruit more units from the allies.

Once the second blockade is defeated, Jeanne d'Arc will arrive with a small group of cavalry. The player will now be given the objective to eliminate the three English regiments which are heading towards Patay, or to head straight for Patay and take control of the town to defend it. Since the player will have to defeat the three regiments either way, the best choice is to eliminate the eastern regiment first, since it is on the way to Patay, then take control of the town and place the army to defend it. Don't forget to make use of Jeanne d'Arc's healing power to preserve troops.

Make sure to send a Horseman to the two villages along the central and western routes to Patay and collect the Treasure Chests there, as this will provide more gold with which to recruit units or research upgrades, as well as unlock the achievement associated with the scenario. Don't bother trying to save the two villages, as this is not necessary and will only waste time moving the army back and forth from Patay. By the time that the player takes control of Patay, the army will likely exceed the population space, so build some Houses to train or recruit more troops.

The central regiment will arrive at Patay first, so place the army to the south of the town, in front of the Mining Camp, to protect the Villagers there. Since the enemy force will have Spearmen at the front, it is a good idea to place the cavalry beside the rest of the army (the default when grouped is at the front) so they can flank the Longbowmen and Springalds while the other units take care of the English infantry. With the central regiment defeated, move the army to the west of Patay and do the same with the western regiment. Once they are defeated, the scenario is won.

Trivia

• La Hire and Jean d'Alençon, who are among the allies from which the player can recruit units in this scenario, also appear as hero units in the Joan of Arc campaign of Age of Empires II.