The Yumi Archer is a Japanese archer with a high attack that is good against heavy infantry and light cavalry, and has a very long range. The Yumi Archer has regular unit upgrades, that increase its hit points and range to 20, making it the third longest ranged archer in Age of Empires III. The only two that have longer range are the Longbowman (22, 26 with Yeomen) and the Arrow Knight (30).
It has an attack bonus as a card from the Home City, it has aura boosts from the Daimyo and Shogun, it can have the passive attack boost from the Japanese Consulate, and it can have the passive attack or speed boost from the Golden Pavilion, making it powerful in combat as it progresses through the Ages.
Yumi Archers are depicted inaccurately in the game. A close view shows that the bows of the in-game Yumi Archers are symmetric, however, the strongly asymmetric design is an important characteristic of the traditional yumi. Ironically, this fact is even mentioned in the game's history text but not implemented in the Yumi Archers' design.
The Yumi Archer is a mix between a regular archer and a Skirmisher. Their ranged Rate of Fire is 3.0 opposed to most other archers Rate of Fire of 1.5. The Yumi (unlike other archers) fires immediately instead of having a long drawing animation. Because of that, they can be used for hit-and-run tactics much more effectively than other archers.
The word “yumi” means either a long or short bow used in kyudo, the ancient Japanese art of archery. The traditional yumi stands at over 6 feet fall, often dwarfing the archer, and is made from laminated bamboo, wood, and animal hide, in a process that is still the same today as it was two thousand years ago. The yumi’s unique asymmetric design, where the upper and lower curves differ, is a style that dates to around 250 BCE. It is believed the asymmetric shape was designed for use on horseback, so the bow could be switched from one side of the horse to the other with relative ease.
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Disciplined Yumi
Honored Yumi
Exalted Yumi
Infantry Breastplate (+10%)
Cree Tanning (+5%)
Navajo Weaving (+5%)
Carib Kasiri Beer (+10%)
Carib Garifuna Drums (+1.0x multiplier vs. villagers)
Seminole Bowyer (+25%)
Tupi Poison Arrow Frogs (+10%)
Yoga (+5%)
Clenched Fist (+30% melee attack)
Incan Road-building (+20%)
Apache Endurance (+5%)
Town Watch (+2)
Standing Army (-25%)
Incan Chasquis Messengers (-25%)
Meritocracy (-20% upgrade cost)
TEAM Infantry Hitpoints
TEAM Ranged Infantry Attack
TEAM Early Skirmishers
TEAM Shivaji's Tactics
TEAM Scout Infantry
5 Yumi Archers
14 Yumi Archers
9 Yumi Archers
16 Yumi Archers
Yumi Archer Attack
Way of the Bow
Onin War
TEAM Cheaper Unit Upgrades
TEAM Dueling School
TEAM Archaic Soldier Training
TEAM Inquisition
