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This article is about the building in Age of Empires II. For the building in other games of the series, see Wonder. |
Sound when selecting a Wonder.
| “ | Building a Wonder of the World demonstrates the superiority of your civilization. Constructing a Wonder that stands for a certain period of time is one way to win the game. | ” |
| —Age of Empires II description | ||
The Wonder is a special building in Age of Empires II that becomes available upon reaching the Imperial Age. In specific game modes, the Wonder grants victory if built and defended for long enough. Wonders take considerably longer time to build compared to other buildings and cannot be converted.
Each civilization builds a Wonder of historical relevance and unique appearance.
Tactics and placement[]
Wonders serve as a victory condition, but only in game modes that allow for that kind of victory. When a player starts to build a Wonder, every other player receives a notification that reveals the location of the Wonder.
The length of time it takes for a Wonder victory varies on the size of the map. On a tiny, small, or medium map, the length is 200 years; while on normal, large, giant, and ludicrous maps, the lengths are 300, 350, 400, and 500 years respectively.
Wonders should be built in a well-defended area, so it is better to first build up a strong fortification composed of Castles, walls, and towers. The player must be prepared to be the focus of all enemy attacks and prepare to defend the Wonder, and a large army to defend against incoming attacks. Since the Wonder takes incredibly long to be built, it is advised to build it with as many Villagers as possible. Note that building a Wonder against an object will slow down its maximum building rate. In team games, the support of allies while defending is highly valuable.
It is possible, though costly, to build more than one Wonder, so that if one falls, other Wonders can stand for the time required to win the game. Every Wonder has its own countdown, though only the lowest one for each player will be displayed. Although extremely unlikely, if multiple players finished their Wonder at the same time (to the frame), the player in the highest slot (regardless of color) wins once the countdown ends.
A Monument can be found in the Scenario Editor and some campaigns. Its appearance varies for each civilization and has the same icon and design as a given civilization's Wonder. It has 9999 hit points, making it one of the bulkiest buildings in the game, although this is moot as Monuments cannot be damaged.
08 November 2021
16 April 2013
23 October 2007
List of Wonders[]
The Age of Kings[]
Britons[]
The Aachen Cathedral and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Aachen Cathedral (before the Definitive Edition), became its own building: Aachen Cathedral
Campaign appearances:
The Chichester Cathedral and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Chichester Cathedral (since the Definitive Edition)
Campaign appearances:
Byzantines[]
The Hagia Sofia and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Hagia Sophia
Campaign appearances:
- Barbarossa's March
- The Walls of Constantinople
- Honfoglalás (original version)
- The Old World (before the Definitive Edition)
- A New Home
- Bohemond and the Emperor
Celts[]
The Rock of Cashel and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Rock of Cashel
Campaign appearances:
Chinese[]
The Temple of Heaven and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Temple of Heaven
Campaign appearances:
- Into China
- Lake Poyang
- Reaching South (before the Definitive Edition)
Franks[]
The in-game Cathedral and the real-world St. Vitus Cathedral
Wonder: Either Chartres Cathedral or St. Vitus Cathedral
Campaign appearances:
Goths[]
The Mausoleum of Theodoric and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Mausoleum of Theodoric
Campaign appearances:
Japanese[]
The Tōdai-ji Temple and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Tōdai-ji
Campaign appearances:
Mongols[]
The Great Tent of Genghis Khan and a medieval depiction of the tent
Wonder: Great Tent of Genghis Khan
Campaign appearances:
Persians[]
The Taq Kasra Palace and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Taq Kasra Palace
Campaign appearances:
- The Horde Rides West
- The Digvijaya (original version)
- Honfoglalás (original version)
- A Son's Blood (before Dynasties of India)
- The Last Timurids
Saracens[]
The Great Mosque of Samara and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Great Mosque of Samarra
Campaign appearances:
- The Lion and the Demon
- Ruins of Empires
- A Son's Blood (before the Definitive Edition)
- Scourge of the Levant
Teutons[]
The Maria Laach Abbey and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Maria Laach Abbey
Campaign appearances:
- Jihad!
- Pax Mongolica (before the Definitive Edition)
- The Lombard League
- The Fall of Rome
- Mongol Raiders
- Wonder of the World
- Warrior of God
Turks[]
The Selimiye Mosque and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Selimiye Mosque
Campaign appearances:
- An Arabian Knight
- Black Guards
- The Breath of the Dragon (before the Definitive Edition)
- Battles of Tarain
- A Son's Blood
- Scourge of the Levant
- Sultan of Hindustan
Vikings[]
The Borgund Stave Church and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Borgund Stave Church
Campaign appearances:
The Conquerors[]
Aztecs[]
The Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan and a render of its real life counterpart
Wonder: Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan
Campaign appearances:
- Broken Spears
- Dos Pilas
- The Falcon's Tent (updated version)
- Like Father, Like Son (updated version)
Huns[]
The Arch of Constantine and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Arch of Constantine
Koreans[]
The Hwangnyong Temple and a miniature reconstruction of the temple
Wonder: Hwangnyong Temple
Campaign appearances:
Mayans[]
The Temple of the Great Jaguar and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Temple of the Great Jaguar
Campaign appearances:
- Dos Pilas
- The Falcon's Tent (updated version)
- Like Father, Like Son (updated version)
Spanish[]
The Torre del Oro and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Torre del Oro
Campaign appearances:
The Forgotten[]
Incas[]
The Temple of the Sun and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Temple of the Sun at Macchu Picchu
Campaign appearances:
- The Amazones
- The Field of Blood
- The Falcon's Tent (original version)
- Like Father, Like Son (original version)
Indians[]
The Gol Gumbaz and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Gol Gumbaz (before Rise of the Rajas), became its own building: Gol Gumbaz
Campaign appearances:
The Brihadisvara Temple and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Brihadisvara Temple (since Rise of the Rajas), inherited by the Dravidians
Campaign appearances:
- The Elopement
- Born of Fire (before Dynasties of India)
- Hand of a Princess (before Dynasties of India)
- Estado da India
- The Burmese Tigers (before Dynasties of India)
- Sultan of Hindustan (before Dynasties of India)
Italians[]
The Genoa Cathedral and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Genoa Cathedral
Campaign appearances:
- All Roads Lead to a Besieged City
- The Sack of Rome
- The Ambrosian Republic
- His Own Man
- Viva Sforza!
- Cyprus (original version)
- Consolidation and Subjugation
Magyars[]
The Corvin Castle and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Corvin Castle
Campaign appearances:
- Pax Mongolica (since the Definitive Edition)
- The Return of the Dragon
- Saving the Huts
- A Worthy Opponent
Slavs[]
The Kizhi Pogost and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Kizhi Pogost
The African Kingdoms[]
Berbers[]
The Hassan Tower and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Hassan Tower
Ethiopians[]
The Biete Amanuel and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Biete Amanuel
Campaign appearances:
- A Fallen Crown
- Welcome Home (since the Definitive Edition)
Malians[]
The Great Mosque of Djenné and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Great Mosque of Djenné
Campaign appearances:
- The Lion's Den
- Lion of Africa (during Dynasties of India)
- Ruins of Empires
Portuguese[]
The Belém Tower and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Belém Tower
Campaign appearances:
Rise of the Rajas[]
Burmese[]
The Shwezigon Pagoda and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Shwezigon Pagoda
Campaign appearances:
Khmer[]
The Angkor Wat and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Angkor Wat
Campaign appearances:
Malay[]
The Kalasan Temple and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Kalasan Temple
Campaign appearances:
- The Digvijaya (before Dynasties of India)
- The Old Tiger
- The Pasunda Bubat Tragedy
- Slaying the Vritra
Vietnamese[]
The Bút Tháp Temple and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Bút Tháp Temple
Campaign appearances:
- Reaching South (before the Definitive Edition)
- A Three-Pronged Attack
The Last Khans[]
Bulgarians[]
The Round Church and a miniature reconstruction of the church
Wonder: Round Church
Campaign appearances:
Cumans[]
The Sarkel Fortress and an artistic depiction of the fortress
Wonder: Sarkel Fortress
Campaign appearances:
- Harbinger of Destruction
- Where the One-Eyed Man is King
- A New Home
- Bohemond and the Emperor
- Vytautas' Crusade
Lithuanians[]
The Trakai Island Castle's Ducal Palace and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Ducal Palace of Trakai Island Castle
Campaign appearances:
- Where the One-Eyed Man is King (before Dawn of the Dukes)
- Family Affairs
- Duel of the Dukes
- The Siege of Vilnius
Tatars[]
The Ulugh Beg Observatory and a miniature reconstruction of the observatory
Wonder: Ulugh Beg Observatory
Campaign appearances:
Lords of the West[]
Burgundians[]
The Brussels Town Hall and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Brussels Town Hall
Sicilians[]
The Monreale Cathedral and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Monreale Cathedral
Campaign appearances:
Dawn of the Dukes[]
Bohemians[]
The Powder Tower and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Powder Tower
Poles[]
The Wawel Cathedral and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Wawel Cathedral
Campaign appearances:
- Where the One-Eyed Man is King (since Dawn of the Dukes)
- The Matter of the Crown
Dynasties of India[]
Bengalis[]
The Somapura Mahavihara and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Somapura Mahavihara
Campaign appearances:
- The Burmese Tigers (since Dynasties of India)
- The Royal Peacock (since Dynasties of India)
- The Old Tiger (since Dynasties of India)
- Enlightenment
- Sacred Waters
Dravidians[]
The Brihadisvara Temple and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Brihadisvara Temple, inherited from the Indians
Campaign appearances:
- Estado da India
- The Digvijaya (since Dynasties of India)
- Liberation?
- Rising Star
Gurjaras[]
The Somnath Temple and its real-life counterpart
Wonder: Somnath Temple
Campaign appearances:
- The Digvijaya (since Dynasties of India)
- Hand of a Princess (since Dynasties of India)
- A Son's Blood (since Dynasties of India)
- Desire
- The Successor
Hindustanis[]
The Humayun's Tomb and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Humayun's Tomb
Campaign appearances:
- Sultan of Hindustan (since Dynasties of India)
- The Rajputs
Return of Rome[]
Romans[]
The Colosseum and its real life counterpart
Wonder: Colosseum
Campaign appearances:
Further statistics[]
| Building strengths and weaknesses | |
|---|---|
| Strong vs. | Nothing |
| Weak vs. | Everything except Monks. |
| Upgrades | |
| Hit points |  Masonry (+10%) Architecture (+10%)
|
| Armor | Masonry (+1/+1, +3 building armor) Architecture (+1/+1, +3 building armor)
|
| Line of Sight |  Town Watch (+4) Town Patrol (+4)
|
| Construction speed |  Treadmill Crane (+20%)
|
| Other |  Atheism (adds 100 years to Wonder victories for all players, Huns only)
|
Civilization bonuses[]
- Byzantines: Wonders have +40% hit points. Town Watch and Town Patrol are free.
- Chinese: Technologies that benefit Wonders are 5%/10%/15% cheaper in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
- Incas: Wonders cost -15% stone.
- Italians: Researching Masonry, Architecture, and Treadmill Crane is 33% cheaper.
- Malians: Wonders cost -15% wood.
- Persians: Researching Town Watch and Town Patrol is 10%/15%/20% faster in the Feudal/Castle/Imperial Age.
- Romans: Wonders are built and repaired 5% faster.
- Spanish: Wonders are built 20% faster. Researching technologies that benefit Wonders provides 20 gold each.
Team bonuses[]
- A team containing Malians: Researching Masonry, Architecture, and Treadmill Crane is 80% faster.
- A team containing Portuguese: Technologies that benefit Wonders are researched 25% faster.
Changelog[]
The Age of Kings[]
- Wonders are always revealed on the map, regardless of victory condition.
- Britons: The Wonder is the Aachen Cathedral.
The Conquerors[]
- Wonders are only revealed on the map on Standard Victory conditions.
- Wonders are indicated on the minimap as a white spot.
The Forgotten[]
- Incas and Italians: The Wonder is partially edited from other buildings in the game.
- Indians: The Wonder is the Gol Gumbaz.
- Magyars: The Wonder is a modified, smaller version of the Hunyad Castle.
Rise of the Rajas[]
- Indians: The Wonder is the Brihadeeswarar Temple. The Gol Gumbaz remains available in the Scenario Editor.
Definitive Edition[]
- Britons: The Wonder is the Chichester Cathedral. The Aachen Cathedral remains available in the Scenario Editor.
- Incas and Italians: The Wonder has a unique model made from scratch, but it is still based on the same real-life buildings.
- Magyars: The Wonder is a full version of the Hunyad Castle.
Dynasties of India[]
- Upon the split of Indians, Dravidians inherit their Wonder.
- Wonders get a new armor class 0.
Trivia[]
- The Wonder is the only constructable building that does not have Armor class: Standard building, along with the Fish Trap.
- The Wonder is the only standard item in the game to cost three different resources. Scenario triggers can be used to make buildings which cost three resources, as happens with the buildable Quimper Cathedral in Unholy Marriage, which also costs Wood, Gold and Stone.
- A few Wonders are repurposed as other buildings in the Scenario Editor: The Arch of Constantine in Rome, edited from the Hunnic Wonder; the Gol Gumbaz and Aachen Cathedral, previously used as the Indian and Briton Wonder, the Mosque, identical in appearance to the Turkish Wonder, the Cathedral, which is a larger version of the former Briton Wonder (and actually was created first during development), the Temple of Heaven, which is a larger and more decorated version of the Chinese Wonder, the Monument, which is a building used in King of the Hill and uses the same designs as the Wonder, The Amphitheatre, which had its model used as the Roman Wonder; and in the HD Edition, the Palace, which is identical to the Wonder except in the case of the Malians, Ethiopians, and Portuguese, where it resembles previous Wonder models that were later discarded or reworked.
- Every instance of the Turkish Wonder in the campaigns is actually as a Mosque, rather than as a Wonder, with the exception of A Son's Blood, which used to be a Monument prior to Dynasties of India.
- Most Wonders that don't appear in any scenario and aren't part of any objectives, have at least one scenario where they can be built at the player's discretion. This includes the Hunnic, Berber, Burgundian, and Bohemian Wonders. The only Wonder that has no way to appear in the campaigns is the Slavic Wonder, as it doesn't appear as part of any scenario, and the only two scenarios where the player plays as the Slavs in the Vlad Dracula campaign don't allow for construction of a Wonder.
- The icon depicts the Turkish Wonder.
- The Wonder description from the manual references the old Briton Wonder (Charlemagne's Palace was destroyed, but a part of it remains as part of the Aachen Cathedral), the Frankish Wonder (connecting it to the Chartres Cathedral, despite certain elements resembling the St. Vitus Cathedral) and the Byzantine Wonder.
The Age of Kings[]
- The original Briton Wonder is located in Aachen, in modern Germany. It was constructed by Charlemagne and was used as the place of coronation for over thirty German Kings and Holy Roman Emperors. As such, it has little, if any, connections to any nations that could be considered Britonnic.
- The Frankish Wonder's appearance is anachronistic. St. Vitus Cathedral's Western portal featured in game was finished in the late 1920's. This building is located in Prague - Czech Republic. It is also worth noting that St. Vitus's Cathedral is actually a Bohemian cathedral, ordered by Wenceslaus the 1st after he had acquired a holy relic, Saint Vitus' arm, from Emperor Henry I, Emperor of Francia.
- The Turkish Wonder was influenced by the Byzantine Wonder.
The Conquerors[]
- The Hun Wonder was actually built by the Romans, though it might be a testament of the Huns being one of the barbarian tribes who pushed the Western Roman Empire into decline, as shown by the Huns' loot filling it. The looted state of the Wonder, however, is contradictory to history, as the Huns never reached the city where the Arch is located, which is Rome itself.
- This is true of the Hunnic empire of Attila, at least. Some Huns would follow Belisarius on his campaign into Italy, which included the conquest of the city of Rome.
- The Spanish Wonder is usually credited to the Berber Almohad Caliphate, though its in-game appearance includes elements built after its Castilian takeover.
The Forgotten[]
- The Italian Wonder was originally created for the Age of Chivalry: Hegemony mod, where it serves as the Genoese "Monument", the Wonder equivalent in the mod. Other structures that originate from the mod include the Fortress and Quimper Cathedral.
- The top of the Spanish Wonder is reused for the Italian Wonder.
- The base of the Celt Wonder was slightly altered and reused as a base for the Mediterranean style Castles.
- The Slav Wonder is anachronistic, as the Kizhi Pogost was not built until the 17th century (outside Age of Empires II's timeframe). A more accurate choice would've been the Moscow Kremlin when it was a limestone citadel, the Dormition Cathedral, or the Ferapontov Monastery.
- Notably, the Russian Mod that preceded The Forgotten and served as basis for the Slavic civilization used a model of St. Basil's Cathedral (near the Kremlin, and often mistaken for it by Westerners), which had been taken from the game Cossacks, and would be a more appropriate choice since St. Basil's was built in 1555-1561 (barely within Age of Empires II's timeframe) to commemorate the Russian conquest of the Tatar Khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan. It is possible that Kizhi Pogost was chosen as the new Wonder because it resembles St. Basil's, but also looks different enough to avoid accusations of plagiarism.
- Similarly, the first Indian mod actually used the Gol Gumbaz's contemporary but much more famous Taj Mahal (1632) as the Indian Wonder.
The African Kingdoms[]
- The Berber Wonder is actually an incomplete building, being the minaret of an unfinished mosque and has only half of its intended height. The Hassan Tower has two finished "twin" minarets in Seville, Spain (Giralda) and Marrakesh, Morocco (Kutubiyya Mosque). Since Giralda was reformed extensively in later centuries, Kutubiyya is the only resembling what a finished Hassan Tower would have looked like.
- The design of the Malian Wonder is anachronistic by necessity. It is based on the current appearance of the Great Mosque of Djenne, but the mosque was rebuilt in the early 20th century. The original mosque would likely have looked different, but no records exist that describe its appearance, so it remains unknown. The architect of the original mosque was from Egypt, so it is possible that it would have been similar to medieval Egyptian mosques in appearance.
- The Ethiopian Wonder in the real world is a monolithic underground rock-cut church, so ideally it should be built by digging the soil, cutting and sculpting an underground rock and digging a passage from above to the church's front door.
Rise of the Rajas[]
- Gol Gumbaz is the first Wonder to be replaced by another Wonder. Aside from being a better fit for the time period, Brihadisvara Temple also fit in better with the newly developed Indians-specific architecture set.
Definitive Edition[]
- The Cuman Wonder was actually built by the Khazars, an unrelated Turkic people, with assistance from the Byzantines, but taken by the Kipchaks from the Kievan Rus' in the 12th century. Although the Wonder having a ruined appearance in-game is likely a reference to this, the list of Cuman AI players also includes some Khazar Khans.
- The presence of the Tower of London and the Dormition Cathedral in the Editor could be due to them being considered for new Briton and Slavic Wonder. The former was ultimately replaced with Chichester Cathedral, whereas the latter remained unchanged.
Lords of the West[]
- One wing of the Brussels Town Hall was constructed prior to the Burgundian acquisition of Brabant. The other wing was constructed during Burgundian rule, with Charles the Bold laying the first stone.
Dawn of the Dukes[]
- While the Frankish Wonder makes an appearance in the Bohemian campaign as the St Vitus Cathedral within Prague, it remains the Frankish Wonder. This keeps it in line with the Age of Empires II manual, which references the Chartres Cathedral.
- The name Powder Tower would be anachronistic, as it originates in the 17th century due to the storage of gunpowder inside of the gate.
- The Wavel Cathedral is an amalgamate of structures covering several centuries of additions by different Polish rulers, including two reconstructions.
Dynasties of India[]
- Due to having similar statistics to a Wonder, it is possible that the Minaret of Jam was considered for a Hindustani Wonder at some point in development, prior to Humayun's Tomb being selected. The Minaret of Jam (constructed in 1190) would have been a better choice since the latter is anachronistic being constructed in 1558, and is required to be constructed in the Babur campaign (which is funny since a father is constructing his son's tomb). It is possible that the developers wanted Hindustanis to have an Indian touch, so they selected the building located in India, rather than in Afghanistan.
- The Somnath Temple could be considered anachronistic in two different ways, being either a structure from before or after the Age of Empires II time period. This is due to it being constructed potentially very early in the first millennium, or due to several reconstructions it has gone through during its existence, with the latest one being in the twentieth century.
Return of Rome[]
- The Roman Wonder is anachronistic due to being built prior to the Age of Empires II time period, being built in the first century. It would see use into the Middle Ages, however, even being repurposed as a Castle and having a Chapel built inside of it.
- The Colosseum is the first Wonder to have previously been a different building, in the form of the Amphitheatre Scenario Editor-only building. It is also the second Wonder from the original Age of Empires to be featured as a Wonder in Age of Empires II, after the Chinese Wonder, although unlike the Temple of Heaven, it also reuses the same model as its Age of Empires counterpart.
History[]
| “ | One distinguishing cultural characteristic of the great Middle Age civilizations was architecture. Buildings in Japan, Scandinavia, Britain, Constantinople, and Arabia looked quite different and employed different construction techniques. In many cases, particularly noteworthy buildings stand as icons for the building civilization, marking it for all time as a culture that achieved greatness, if only temporarily. Examples of such Middle Age cultural icons are the Cathedral at Chartres, Charlemagne’s Palace, and the Hagia Sophia at Constantinople. | ” |
| —Age of Empires II manual | ||
Images[]
Videos[]
Map[]
Civilization icons are placed at the real world locations of their Wonders.