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* Like its [[Reign of Blood|predecessor]], this scenario is more symbolic and intended to introduce elements relevant later in the story (e.g. Tlaxcala's enmity and the Aztec Empire being loose and prone to rebellion), than based on an actual historical campaign. |
* Like its [[Reign of Blood|predecessor]], this scenario is more symbolic and intended to introduce elements relevant later in the story (e.g. Tlaxcala's enmity and the Aztec Empire being loose and prone to rebellion), than based on an actual historical campaign. |
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** Montezuma fought a war against Tlaxcala, but it was early in his reign. By the time of Cortéz's arrival, Tlaxcala was under economic blockade instead. The scenario plays somewhat more like the ''Spanish''-Tlaxcala War, where the Spanish razed several Tlaxcalan settlements before Tlaxcala offered to join forces against the Aztecs. |
** Montezuma fought a war against Tlaxcala, but it was early in his reign. By the time of Cortéz's arrival, Tlaxcala was under economic blockade instead. The scenario plays somewhat more like the ''Spanish''-Tlaxcala War, where the Spanish razed several Tlaxcalan settlements before Tlaxcala offered to join forces against the Aztecs. |
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| − | ** Though Texcoco is represented by Mayans, in reality it was |
+ | ** Though Texcoco is represented by Mayans, in reality it was a [[Wikipedia:Nahua people|Nahua]] state like Tlaxcala, Tlacopan, and Tenochtitlan. Tlacopan was on the western shore of Lake Texcoco, and Texcoco on the eastern shore. |
** Neither Tlacopan nor Texcoco rebelled against Montezuma prior to the Europeans' arrival. Rather the king of Texcoco spurred Tlacopan and other cities to disobey Cortéz when he was in Tenochtitlan. For this, he was imprisoned in Tenochtitlan and executed when the city rebelled in [[La Noche Triste]]. |
** Neither Tlacopan nor Texcoco rebelled against Montezuma prior to the Europeans' arrival. Rather the king of Texcoco spurred Tlacopan and other cities to disobey Cortéz when he was in Tenochtitlan. For this, he was imprisoned in Tenochtitlan and executed when the city rebelled in [[La Noche Triste]]. |
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* In ''The Conquerors'', Cortéz claims the land for "Ferdinand of Spain", but by this time (1519) [[Wikipedia:Ferdinand II of Aragon|Ferdinand II]] had been already succeeded by his grandson, [[Wikipedia:Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles I]]. This is corrected in the ''Definitive Edition.'' |
* In ''The Conquerors'', Cortéz claims the land for "Ferdinand of Spain", but by this time (1519) [[Wikipedia:Ferdinand II of Aragon|Ferdinand II]] had been already succeeded by his grandson, [[Wikipedia:Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles I]]. This is corrected in the ''Definitive Edition.'' |
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Revision as of 15:45, 7 July 2020
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This article is about the campaign scenario in Age of Empires II: The Conquerors. For the Age of Empires III mod, see Wars of Liberty. |
The Triple Alliance is the second scenario of the Montezuma campaign in Age of Empires II: The Conquerors.
Intro
Passed down to you by Cuauhtemoc, Jaguar Warrior of Tenochtitlan. The gods were still uneasy, for another omen appeared that same year. The temple of the demon Huitzilopochtli burst suddenly into flame, although it was made of stone. When the people hurried to pour water on the fire, it burned with even greater violence.
I asked our emperor Montezuma what we needed to appease the gods. His haughty priests made the predictable reply. The Aztec Empire needed more prisoners. The sun god, the rain god, and even the Feathered Serpent, Quetzalcoatl, were angry deities that required sacrifice.
Our city-state of Tenochtitlan is allied with two others, together composing the Triple Alliance. Montezuma intended for the Triple Alliance to attack our longtime enemies, the Tlaxcala.
I sent the traditional shield, arrows, and cloaks to the Tlaxcala, declaring to them that they would soon be attacked. Then we marched out into the forests, our jaguar and eagle banners ready to clash with the heron banners of the Tlaxcala.
Birds in the rainforest canopy took to the sky, eager to be away from the violence that was to come.
Scenario Instructions
Starting Conditions
- Starting age:
Feudal Age - Starting resources: 2000 wood, 1000 food, 1000 gold, 500 stone
- Population limit: 75
- Starting units:
- Gaia units:
Objectives
- Deliver the summons of war to the Texcoco Town Center.
- Deliver the summons of war to the Tlacopan Town Center.
Later Objectives
- Defeat the Tlaxcalans by destroying their 4 Town Centers.
- Defeat your former allies, the Tlacopan and Texcoco.
- OPTIONAL: Bring 10 Elite Jaguar Warriors to the Temple of Tlaloc and be rewarded.
Hints
- Use your Eagle Warriors to locate a suitable location for an Aztec town.
- Be aware of Tlaxcalan war ships on streams and rivers.
- The Aztecs have two powerful infantry units: the Jaguar Warrior, which can easily defeat other infantry, and the Eagle Warrior, which is a good counter for archers, horses and siege weapons.
- The Aztecs cannot yet advance to the Imperial Age.
Scouts
- Your scouts report: Montezuma's forces (green) begin with only a few Eagle Warriors. These messengers must visit the other two members of the Triple Alliance, the Tlacopan (yellow) and Texcoco (purple).
- The Tlacopan train swordsmen and Eagle Warriors while the Texcoco train archers and Mangonels.
- All of these troops will be needed to defeat the wicked Tlaxcala (red) who live to the north across the rivers. The Tlaxcala are known for their archers, infantry, and mad shaman.
Players
- Player (Aztecs): The Player begins southwest, just south of Texcoco.
Enemy
- Tlaxcala (Aztecs) controls mostly the northern part of the map and also the center around the Gaia Monastery, though they won't send troops to the latter. Besides their ground units, they will also build War Galleys and sail the rivers to attack the player and Texcoco. They commit suicide after their Town Centers are destroyed, leaving behind only Houses, Lumber Camps, Mining Camps, Mills and Blacksmiths. Thus it is not possible to trade with Tlaxcala after Texcoco and Tlacopan become hostile.
Allies → Enemies
- Texcoco (Mayans) is by the coast to the east and fields mostly Plumed Archers and Mangonels.
- Tlacopan (Aztecs) is west and trains mostly infantry. Unlike Texcoco, it doesn't build Castles.
Neutral
- Cortéz (Spanish) plays virtually no role in this scenario and is represented for most of it by a lone Hunting Wolf hidden in the rainforest. Once all enemies are defeated, two Transport Ships and two warships spawn at the sea northeast and "unload" some Conquistadors (actually spawned after the ships reach the coast). Cortéz claims the land for Spain and sinks the transports to affirm his intentions, while the Aztecs mistake him for their god Quetzalcoatl. Afterwards the player and Cortéz are jointly declared as winners.
Strategy
The player starts with 4 Eagle Warriors that must deliver the summons of war to their Mayan and Aztec allies, Tlacopan and Texcoco. Afterwards, The player receives a Transport Ship, some Villagers, and the task of destroying the four enemy Town Centers belonging to Tlaxcala. Later the allies will become enemies, and the player must defeat them to win.
A good place to start a base after receiving the Villagers is in the eastern part of the map, south of Texcoco. Once there, Tlaxcalans will tend to attack Tlacopan and Texcoco instead of the Aztecs.
Before defeating Tlaxcala, some defensive buildings can be built inside Texcoco and Tlacoplan, like towers and Castles, to both fortify them against the Tlaxcalans and put them at a disadvantage when they turn enemies.
If the player brings 10 Jaguar Warriors to the hidden monastery in the middle of the map (guarded by Tlaxcalan gates, walls, towers, a jaguar and the Son of Ornlu), the player will be rewarded with the blessing of the Rain God rewarding the Jaguar Warriors will +400 Hit Points. However, it is not actually necessary to bring only 10 Jaguar Warriors; they can be as many as they fit, and all will get +400 HP, but they must be brought at the same time.
All Jaguar Warriors that get +400 HP won't be able to receive any upgrades anymore, so it is recommended to fully upgrade the Jaguar Warriors before bringing them to the Monastery for maximum benefit.
Outro
The first messengers to arrive to Tenochtitlan told of mountains or towers that floated on the sea. Each story told to Montezuma was more fantastic than the last: they could fire stone balls, shooting sparks and raining fire that could crack open weapons.
Huge deer with no antlers carried these gods on their backs. Their swords were iron, their bows were iron, their shields were iron, and their clothes were iron. Surely this was the return of Quetzalcoatl!
Montezuma heard these reports with growing alarm, as he shifted nervously on the icpalli, his legless throne. He ordered expensive gifts to be sent to the new arrivals, in the hopes that Quetzalcoatl would spare Montezuma when the Feathered Serpent came to Tenochtitlan.
'He has come back,' Montezuma whispered to me. 'He seeks his place on the throne, for that is what he promised when he departed.' I held my weapons tightly but said nothing. How could I challenge the word of our emperor? So says Cuauhtémoc, Jaguar Warrior of Tenochtitlan.
Trivia
- The optional objective says that the player will have to bring 10 Elite Jaguar Warriors, despite being unable to advance to the Imperial Age. The trigger actually works with non-elite Jaguar Warriors.
- When delivering the summons of war to the allies, neither seems to like it and reluctantly comply, hinting at their future betrayal.
- The Transport Ship carrying the Villagers from Tenochtitlan, actually belongs to Tlaxcala in the beginning and switches to the player after delivering the summons of war.
- The player can betray the allies before they do so by changing diplomacy to enemy. They will reciprocate, forcing to fight them at the same time as Tlaxcala.
- If the Hunting Wolf belonging to Cortéz is killed before the enemies are defeated, the Spanish ships never spawn and the player is declared sole winner.
- In The Conquerors, it is possible to walk into the area where Cortéz lands, build over, and even attack his troops without penalty. In the Definitive Edition, this is not possible as the area is changed to an island not connected by shallows and surrounded by cliffs and reeds to stop the player from landing there.
- In the Definitive Edition, one of Cortéz's Elite Cannon Galleons is replaced by a Caravel, and the landing Conquistadors include Cortéz himself, represented by a renamed Gonzalo Pizarro.
Historical comparison
- Like its predecessor, this scenario is more symbolic and intended to introduce elements relevant later in the story (e.g. Tlaxcala's enmity and the Aztec Empire being loose and prone to rebellion), than based on an actual historical campaign.
- Montezuma fought a war against Tlaxcala, but it was early in his reign. By the time of Cortéz's arrival, Tlaxcala was under economic blockade instead. The scenario plays somewhat more like the Spanish-Tlaxcala War, where the Spanish razed several Tlaxcalan settlements before Tlaxcala offered to join forces against the Aztecs.
- Though Texcoco is represented by Mayans, in reality it was a Nahua state like Tlaxcala, Tlacopan, and Tenochtitlan. Tlacopan was on the western shore of Lake Texcoco, and Texcoco on the eastern shore.
- Neither Tlacopan nor Texcoco rebelled against Montezuma prior to the Europeans' arrival. Rather the king of Texcoco spurred Tlacopan and other cities to disobey Cortéz when he was in Tenochtitlan. For this, he was imprisoned in Tenochtitlan and executed when the city rebelled in La Noche Triste.
- In The Conquerors, Cortéz claims the land for "Ferdinand of Spain", but by this time (1519) Ferdinand II had been already succeeded by his grandson, Charles I. This is corrected in the Definitive Edition.
- Cortéz being represented by a lone Hunting Wolf before his arrival could be an allusion to the Lebrela de Términos ("She-Greyhound at Términos Lagoon"), a hunting dog left behind by another Spanish expedition years prior and that was found by one of Cortéz's recoignaissance ships. The dog recognized the ship as Spanish and came to greet it with a freshly caught rabbit on her teeth.
- The four Tlaxcala Town Centers are likely an allusion to the four member states of Tlaxcala: Tepeticpac, Ocotelulco, Tizatlan, and Quiahuixtlan.
