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 They are less useful in the Fortress Age, having been superseded by Musket Riders, though they can be used alongside Mantlets or Forest Prowlers as a meatshield to bodyblock against cavalry charges.
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 infantry despite of not using any kind of gunpowder weapons.
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.