Tomahawk

This article is about the unit in Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs. For the native unit, see Iroquois Tomahawk.

Tomahawk
Unit information
Introduced in	The WarChiefs
Type	Infantry Heavy infantry Ranged infantry Gunpowder unit Musket Infantry*
Civilization	Haudenosaunee
Age	Commerce Age
Training
Trained at	War Hut
Food	75
Wood	20
Training time	28 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	150
Resists	20% vs. Melee
Speed	4.0
Line of Sight	16
Population	1
XP train bounty	10
XP bounty	10
Melee attack
Damage	14
Multipliers	x3.0 vs. Cavalry x2.5 vs. Light infantry
Rate of Fire	1.5
Ranged attack
Damage	19
Range	12
Rate of Fire	3.0
Siege attack
Damage	20
Range	6
Rate of Fire	3.0

“	Haudenosaunee warrior that hurls tomahawks into battle. Good against cavalry.	”
—In-game description

The Tomahawk is an ranged heavy infantry in Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs that is unique to the Haudenosaunee and can be trained at the War Hut once the Commerce Age is reached.

Overview

The Tomahawk is the Haudenosaunee equivalent to the Musketeer, a ranged heavy infantry with a strong melee bonus against cavalry. It is fairly cheap and easy to mass, making it among the most commonly trained units for Haudenosaunee players.

Tomahawks have a higher melee damage than most other Musketeer units (exceeded only by the Sepoy and Janissary), but a lower base ranged attack than any other one. This can be compensated for by the use of the Iroquois' extensive Home City upgrades for infantry units, making them potentially among the most powerful heavy infantry available in the Commerce Age. They are incredibly powerful against melee cavalry and most melee infantry.

Tomahawks are unique among Musketeer units in that they have a range upgrade – Lacrosse. This brings their ranged attack up to 14 range, equal to a Strelet. This can give them a slight advantage in crowded fights.

They combine well with either Kanya Horsemen or Aenna in the Commerce Age, and with Light Cannon in the Industrial Age. They are less useful in the Fortress Age, having been superseded by Musket Riders, though they can be used alongside Mantlets or Forest Prowlers as a meatshield to bodyblock against cavalry charges.

Upgrades

Age	Upgrade	Cost	Effect
	Elite Tomahawks	200 wood, 100 coin	Upgrades Tomahawks to Elite (+25% hit points and attack)
	Champion Tomahawks	400 wood, 200 coin	Upgrades Tomahawks to Champion (+25% hit points and attack); requires Elite Tomahawks
	Legendary Tomahawks	1,500 wood, 1,500 coin	Upgrades Tomahawks to Legendary (+50% hit points and attack); requires Champion Tomahawks

Further statistics

As Tomahawks are unique to the Haudenosaunee, only technologies that they have access to are shown in the following table:

Unit strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs.	Cavalry, light infantry, heavy infantry
Weak vs.	Skirmishers, archers, artillery
Improvements
Hit points	Cree Tanning (+5%) Navajo Weaving (+5%)
Attack	Yoga (+5%) Smokeless Powder (+30% siege attack) Clenched Fist (+30% melee attack)
Range	Lacrosse (+2)
Speed	Incan Road-building (+20%) Apache Endurance (+5%)
Sight	Lacrosse (+2)
Creation speed	Incan Chasquis Messengers (-25%)
Other	Iroquois Scouting Party (ships 5 Tomahawks) Iroquois Raiding Party (ships 10 Tomahawks) Iroquois War Party (ships 15 Tomahawks) Meritocracy (-20% upgrade cost)

Home City Cards

As Tomahawks are unique to the Haudenosaunee, only their cards and other civilizations' TEAM cards are shown in the following tables:

Click for a list of Home City Cards related to the Tomahawk

Green: TEAM Shipment that is sent to each player in a team Dutch Card Description Age HC level TEAM Infantry Hitpoints Infantry get +15% hit points 10 French Card Description Age HC level TEAM Ranged Infantry Attack Ranged infantry get +15% attack 10 Indians Card Description Age HC level TEAM Shivaji's Tactics All units get +5% hit points and attack 25 Iroquois Card Description Age HC level 6 Tomahawks Ships 6 Tomahawks 1 8 Tomahawks Ships 8 Tomahawks 1 13 Tomahawks Ships 13 Tomahawks 10 9 Tomahawks Ships 9 Tomahawks 10 16 Tomahawks Ships 16 Tomahawks 25 Infantry Attack Infantry get +15% attack 10 Infantry Hitpoints Infantry get +15% hit points 10 Infantry Combat Infantry get +15% hit points and attack 25 TEAM Scout Infantry Infantry get +8 LOS 10 Battlefield Construction Tomahawks, Aennas, and Forest Prowlers can build War Huts, Corrals, and Siege Workshops 25 Conservative Tactics Tomahawks, Aennas, and Mantlets get +10% hit points and attack 25 Onodaga Support Ships 14 Tomahawks and 500 wood; costs 1,000 coin 1 Japanese Card Description Age HC level TEAM Cheaper Unit Upgrades Unit upgrades cost -20% 1 Portuguese Card Description Age HC level TEAM Gunpowder Infantry Hitpoints Gunpowder infantry get +15% hit points 10 Russians Card Description Age HC level TEAM Dueling School Infantry train time -25%; banner army train time -12% 25 Spanish Card Description Age HC level TEAM Inquisition All units get +10 LOS 10

Changelog

The WarChiefs

• Tomahawks cost 75 food, 25 wood and train in 30 seconds.

Definitive Edition

• With update 23511, the Tomahawk is tagged as Musket Infantry.
• With update 38254, Tomahawks cost 75 food, 20 wood and train in 28 seconds.

Trivia

• The playable civilization Tomahawk inflicts ranged damage akin to a gunpowder unit, while the Native and Treasure version deals melee damage at range similar to the Throwing Axeman in Age of Empires II.
• The Tomahawk is strangely classified as a gunpowder unit despite of not using any kind of gunpowder weapons.
• In The WarChiefs, when the Tomahawk performed the ranged attack, it left a trail of smoke, as if it had shot with a firearm. This error was corrected in the Definitive Edition.
• Since update 23511, the Tomahawk is tagged as Musket Infantry, but it does not wield a musket. The same occurs with the Bolas Warrior, the Dacoit and the Pistolero.

History

“

The Tomahawk is a type of axe used by Native Americans. It has a wooden shaft and a stone, iron, or brass head. A popular version of the Tomahawk could double as a smoking pipe, blending together symbols of war and peace. Iroquois men traded furs for these ingenious pipe tomahawks. Very ornate versions of these tomahawks were given as gifts to Native American leaders and were fashionable to both carry and wield.

”

Gallery

A native Iroquois (minor tribe) Tomahawk on the left and an Iroquois (major civilization) Tomahawk on the right

An in-game Tomahawk

An in-game Elite Tomahawk

An in-game Champion/Legendary Tomahawk