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This article is about the scenario in Age of Empires: Definitive Edition. For the scenario in Age of Empires, see Mountain Temple. For the building, see Temple. |
The Mountain Temple is the fourth scenario of the Yamato, Empire of the Rising Sun campaign in Age of Empires: Definitive Edition, replacing the scenario of a similar name in the original. In the scenario, the player must destroy the enemy Temple and build one of their own in its place.
Scenario instructions[]
Description[]
| “ | Izumo-taisha, 300 CE It has been many years since the reign of Queen Himiko and war once again grips Japan. Your clan the Yamato, controls the Kansai region, where you, Homutawake, rule a king. Rival lords, however, threaten your rule in this life and the next. They compete with one another over farming lands and the construction of giant burial mounds to house their remains. But you know that the great Shinto shrines are more prized than any rice paddy or mound. Your rivals, the Izumo clan, control one such shrine. Destroy it and build a greater shrine where it once stood to weaken your rivals' influence, and receive the blessings of the gods. |
” |
| —In-game section | ||
Starting conditions[]
- Starting Age:
Bronze Age - Starting resources: 200 food, 200 wood, 100 stone
- Population limit: 50
- Starting units:
Objectives[]
- Destroy Izumo Temple.
- Build a Temple where Izumo Temple once stood.
Hints[]
- The Kibi control the resources you need for victory; attack them early before they claim these resources as their own.
- A combined arms approach is best for defeating the Izumo. Cavalry can chase down their Composite Bowmen and Ballistae while heavy infantry and Stone Throwers can do the rest.
Players[]
Player[]
- Player ( Yamato): The player starts in the western corner of the map with a Town Center, some Villagers and four Axemen.
Enemies[]
- Kibi ( Shang): Brown Kibi controls an island with important resources in the south of the map. They build War Galleys to control the river, and train Composite Bowmen, Axemen, and Bowmen, which they will periodically transport to attack the plater.
- Kibi ( Shang): Yellow Kibi starts at the same land of the player, to the south. They train Axemen.
- Izumo ( Shang): Izumo controls a heavily fortified mountain and the Temple that the player have to destroy. Their army consists of Cavalry, Composite Bowmen, Ballistae, and a few Priests.
Strategy[]
Shortly after the scenario starts, the yellow Kibi will send Axemen and Villagers to the player's base. However, these units will merely walk around the player's base and then withdraw if they are not attacked, such as if the player's starting Axemen are set to No Attack stance. After a minute or two, though, the brown Kibi will actually attack with a few Axemen and Bowmen, so the player should still prepare to either defend their base or rush down the yellow Kibi and contest control of the river.
Defensive strategy[]
If the player wishes to play a slower-paced game, they can use their starting Villagers to construct a wall across the entrance of their base while training more to mine stone for Watch Towers to eventually upgrade to Sentry Towers, which they can supplement with Composite Bowmen of their own. This will give them enough time to train a force to eventually overrun the yellow Kibi.
Offensive strategy[]
Alternatively, the player can quickly rush down the yellow Kibi and secure control of their island. The player should send their Villagers onto gold, and queue up only a single Villager at the Town Center so they have enough food to train two units of Cavalry, which will be enough to defeat any Kibi forces at the start of the game. While waiting for gold to collect and for the first Cavalry to train, the player can pick off individual Axemen wandering around their base.
Once the first Cavalry finishes training, the player can now take the offensive, killing any Axemen along the way, razing the yellow Kibi's Barracks, and killing any new Axemen trained. The brown Kibi's attack can be repelled with two Cavalry units. Afterwards, the player should then kill the yellow Kibi's Villagers and raze their Town Center. Take care not to lose any Cavalry, especially to brown Kibi's War Galleys.
After the yellow Kibi player is defeated[]
Once the yellow Kibi have been destroyed, it only remains to create a navy capable of subduing the brown Kibi's navy, and then to land forces on their island to finish them off. The player can acquire large gold reserves in the process.
Brown Kibi's War Galleys will patrol the river and attack any Villagers building a Dock, so they should be warded off with either units from the Archery Range, Stone Throwers using Attack Ground, or Sentry Towers.
From this point forward, the player's strategy is largely at their discretion. With a fleet, the brown Kibi no longer pose a threat, although destroying their base gives access to more resources and allows the player to free up population space. Catapult Triremes will help in destroying many of Izumo's Guard Towers from range, although there is not much point in bombarding the rest of the Izumo's base, as they have only four Villagers and miniscule production.
Once as many Guard Towers are destroyed from range as possible, the player is free to send their army to the far eastern edge of the shore and properly begin their invasion of the Izumo. Stone Throwers can easily take out the remaining Guard Towers, but should be protected from Izumo Cavalry. As the player smashes their way through the Izumo base, they will encounter several Izumo Priests, Composite Bowmen, and Ballistae, which are best dealt with using horse-mounted units. If necessary, the remaining Izumo units can safely be dispatched with an army of trash units if now economically necessary. Once Izumo Temple is destroyed, Villagers should immediately be transported over to construct their own Temple in its place, finishing the scenario.
History[]
| “ | Around 300 CE, large earthen burial mounds, called Kofun tombs, began appearing in Japan. These mounds varied in size and shape, but most distinctive were those resembling a giant keyhole pattern. Rulers and the elite were buried in the tombs with weapons and other personal items. As with the construction of monuments in other parts of the ancient world, the building of these tombs coincided with political centralization and a period of warfare during which various local chiefs competed for dominance. The Shinto religion also emerged from previous belief systems during the Kofun period, although the oldest Shinto shrines, such as Izumo-taisha and Ise Grand Shrine, date to as early as the Yayoi period. The word Shinto, meaning "way of the gods," was adopted from the Chinese Shendao, meaning "spirit path or study." In Shinto religion, practitioners rely on diligent ritual to establish a connection to the Kami, or gods. The Kami embody the powers of nature such as the sun, wind, storms, and the sea. |
” |
| —In-game section | ||
Victory[]
| “ | The gods have blessed your reign, Emperor Homutawake. Your defeat of the Izumo and their Kibi allies has strengthened your clan, making the Yamato the predominant power on Honshu island, You have constructed shrines throughout your lands, and begun construction of a great burial mound to house your remains after your work on this earth is done. | ” |
| —In-game section | ||
Loss[]
| “ | Your sons counsel you on your failure. They recommend that you make peace with the gods by becoming a hermit. They say Mount Fuji is quite lovely in the winter. | ” |
| —In-game section | ||
Changes[]
Despite the maps changes, the player and the yellow Kibi were moved to a western island, and brown was given a larger terrain to expand. The mountains features a lot more of cliffs and decorative buildings.
Trivia[]
There's an Easter egg in the eastern forest containing the initials of Forgotten Empires, visible in the minimap only via cheat codes to fully reveal the map.
