| โ | Conquer the many lakes to gain economic advantage and dominate your opponents on foot or horseback. | โ |
| —Age of Empires IV description | ||
Waterholes is a random map that was released with Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition. It is a hybrid map that features one small lake per player.
Features[]
The noteworthy feature of this map is its small lakes that spawn in what would be an otherwise standard land map. The lakes are of roughly equal size and there will always be one per player. In 1 vs 1, the lakes spawn in between opponents, who can spawn anywhere along the map edges, a short distance away from them. In team games, the lakes will spawn more directly in between players, forming a circle, leaving the center area open. Each corner of the map features either a Sacred Site or a Trade Post, with two of each always in opposite corners, and the third Sacred Site will be in the center of the map. Relics can spawn anywhere on the map.
Resources[]
Resources on this map are balanced relatively evenly across the whole map. Players will need to control the lakes, containing Shore Fish and four Deep Water Fish each, to gain a critical source of food. This is doubly important because while players start off with the standard medium Berry Bush patch along with two extra Sheep and a large Deer pack in close proximity, there are no other berries, Sheep, or Deer on the map. Each player also starts out with their own nearby Boar. Occasionally, some lakes may fail to spawn with the full amount of Deep Water Fish, or any at all. Wood is distributed in irregularly shaped woodlines all across the map. In terms of gold and stone, players will start off with two Small Gold Mines and one Small Outcropping in relatively close proximity, and the rest are all Large Gold Mines and Stone Outcroppings, spread around the map.
Changelog[]
- Originally, Waterholes had the standard two large Deer packs per player. With patch 5.1.148, it only has one per player.
Trivia[]
- The map is very similar to Kawasan from Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, but without the large patch of Berry Bushes in the center of the map.
Gallery[]
