ATTRIBUTES

Unit Information - Attributes : Cost:H/P 45 Attack 8 Armor 0 Range 4 Speed M - Attributes Elite: H/P 50 Attack 8 Armor 0 Range 4 Speed M - Cost: 40 Wood 35 Gold - Elite Upgrade Cost: 850 Food 850 Gold - Strengths: Rapid Fire Rate - Weaknesses: Short Range

Historical and Game Information

"The Chu-ko-nu The unique unit for the Chinese is the Chu-Ko-Nu, which is a crossbowman who wields a hi-tech crossbow capable of rapid-firing multiple bolts at a time. This unit can be built starting in the Castle Age once you build the castle structure. In the next age, the Imperial Age, you can increase the Chu-Ko-Nu's power with an upgrade. The Chu-Ko-Nu has a triple-fire rate, so it can deal three times the damage of a regular crossbowman. However, it has very short range when compared with super archer units and the unique ranged units of the Turks and Britons. Also, the Chu-Ko-Nu is inexpensive, according to Sandy Peterson. Overall, the unit is cheap and does a tremendous amount of damage but is not very durable and has short range. "A batch of Chu-Ko-Nu has as much firepower as three archers from any other civ. This means targets normally inaccessible for other archers can be killed by these guys. Buildings, siege weapons, even cavalry, can be mowed down by the rain of rapid-fire bolts produced by a big enough clutch of Chu-Ko-Nu." Peterson also illustrates the weaknesses of the Chu-Ko-Nu, telling us that the Chu-Ko-Nu aren't any tougher in terms of hit points, so they fall easily to anti-archer units like onagers, skirmishers, and hardy cavalry. However, because of the rapid fire of the Chu-Ko-Nu, the enemy has to field more of these anti-archer units than he would normally have to in order to take down your crossbowmen. Bombard towers can make short work of Chu-Ko-Nu. A bunch of Chu-Ko-Nu, protected by a circle of infantry and battering rams, can wreak great havoc on enemy armies and fortifications. Says Peterson, "The Chinese infantry is terrific and can be used to make up for those areas in which their archers are weak - i.e. versus buildings and cavalry. Also, since the infantry cost mostly food, and the archers coast wood and gold, they make a natural match for production reasons. Battering rams are wonderful because they carve their way through walls, towers, and forts like nobody's business, and the ram's costly upgrades aren't so bad for the Chinese. If the enemy sorties to kill the rams, the archer/Chu-Ko-Nu backup can hammer the units sent out." ."
- Mark Terrano, Age of Kings Game Designer

China was unified under its first emperor in 221 BC. For most of the next 2,000 years it was the largest and most advanced civilizations in the world. Because it was geographically isolated from powerful civilizations in the Near East and later in Europe, it was able to develop and maintain a unique culture that spread its influence over much of Asia. The one great constant in Chinese life for these two millenium was political stability. Although emperors might change, the imperial court kept a firm hold on power. Neither the clergy, the military, nor the merchant class acquired long-lasting power, even though religion, warfare, and trade were significant influences in Chinese life. Of the 12 different dynasties that ruled China during these 2,000 years, the Sung were one of most important during the period when the West was passing through its Middle Ages.

The Chinese Civilization

The Chinese in Age II are a powerful civilization. While the Chinese don't have quite the overwhelming villager bonus as before, they also aren't as weak in the final age. Instead, Ensemble Studios has done a good job of retaining China's penchant for huge populations and economic growth while also representing China's historical dominance in technology and science. What that all means is that the Chinese do get a nice starting bonus to help them rush through the ages, and they also gain a great ability to research technology faster than any other civ, a benefit that gets progressively more valuable the later the age. Here are the Chinese cultural bonuses.

High Starting Population

Whereas every other civ starts with three villagers in the Dark Ages, the Chinese start with six. However, while other civs start with enough food to build four extra villagers at the very beginning of the game, the Chinese will start with enough to build only one. The extra villagers at this early stage of the game, coupled with the town-center bonus, allow the Chinese to rush through the Dark Ages faster than any other civ. Or the extra villagers can help you support an army faster than anyone else. Sandy Peterson says, "If you want to go for a Dark Age or Feudal Age rush, the Chinese are an excellent civ for it - possibly the best."

Large Town Centers

The town center of the Chinese supports ten people, whereas other civilizations' town centers only support five people. Sandy Peterson, designer on Age II, says, "They [the Chinese] don't need to start on a house until they've earned enough food to produce two villagers and start a third, which takes at least two minutes, often more. Other civs must build a house as their very first act, or run into a building limit immediately. Basically, since the second Chinese villager is delayed anyway (because of their initial food shortage), they get the full use of all their civilians for those first two minutes." While these two bonuses (extra villagers and larger town centers) are very helpful in the first two ages, their usefulness diminishes by the Castle Age.

Cheaper Technologies

The Chinese pay less to research technologies than other civilizations. In the Dark Ages, this bonus has no effect. In the Feudal Age, though, the Chinese pay 90 percent of the cost for technologies, 85 percent of the cost in the Castle Age, and 80 percent of the cost in the Imperial Age. That means as the ages progress, the Chinese get a bigger discount on technologies. The bonus is marginal in the Dark Ages but really helps later on. According to Sandy Peterson, "As time goes on, the Chinese get cheaper and cheaper technology. By Imperial [Age], technologies only cost 80 percent as much for the Chinese as for everyone else. When you're paying for something expensive, like champions, you're saving yourself a few hundred food and gold at a pop. And Imperial technologies tend to be pricey...." Cheaper technologies also means the Chinese can research these advances before anyone else, since they don't have to wait to amass as many resources as others

Strong Demolition Ships

The demolition ship is a floating bomb that destroys all ships in a certain radius when it explodes. Although the demolition ship is lost, it does take all other ships in range with it. Chinese demolition ships have 50 percent extra hit points, meaning they can soak up more damage before they close to within range. Having the extra hit points lets more of these ships accomplish their tasks, whereas other civs' demolition ships might be destroyed before they reach their targets. Says Peterson, "The Chinese demolition ships have so many HP that they are almost totally impossible to KO before they hit home. If a Chinese player makes enough of these things and uses them well (i.e. carefully micromanaging his attacks), he can sometimes completely reverse the naval situation and take control of the waves from another player."

Castle Age

Battering Ram: Battering rams are slow, but they are also well armored and resistant to archer fire. The amount of damage they do is great against buildings, and they can reduce towers and walls to rubble in short order. They are very vulnerable to infantry and cavalry though. Mangonel: Mangonels are wheeled siege engines that have an area-of-effect attack. They are similar to catapults. Mangonels have a minimum range and are vulnerable to melee attacks. Scorpion: The scorpion is an antipersonnel weapon that shoots a lethal bolt. The bolt flies through enemy units, so it can actually kill a line of troops in one blow. Scorpions are thus good against masses of troops. Like other siege weapons, they are resistant to archer fire but are vulnerable to infantry and cavalry attacks. .

A Chinese Summary

The Chinese, because of their bonuses and their general technology and unit paths, tend to be a strong early- to midgame civilization. Compared with a few other civs, like the Turks, they don't have a commanding Imperial Age advantage, although their technology bonus helps them in the later ages. Here is a look at the strengths and weaknesses of the Chinese civilization. The Chinese can advance through the early ages faster than any other civ. Their town center and villager bonus mean they can also support a greater population than others in the Dark Ages. These bonuses all converge to let the Chinese either leapfrog other civs and rush up the tech tree or support a grunt rush. Either way, the Chinese have the advantage in the early game. In addition, because of cheaper technologies, the Chinese tend to have more resources for military units. "A Chinese player tends to have a larger military than other civs, all things being equal. This is not only because most of their best units are inexpensive, but also they are able to save money on their upgrades. For the money a Chinese player saves upgrading to arbalest, he can build two to three extra archers." The Chinese infantry line is powerful, as the Chinese get access to all infantry types and upgrades, and they also get a wide range of cavalry units and the entire archer line. Unfortunately, the Chinese, again, do not have an overwhelming military advantage in the final age, nor do they have a unique unit that can stand against the more powerful infantry of civs like the Germans and Japanese. They aren't a particularly strong naval power, and it is only because of their tough demolition ships that they are not completely overpowered on the seas. The Chinese also don't have access to all siege engines, lacking the higher-end units like the siege onager and bombard cannon. They do not get the paladin unit (the ultimate mounted unit), nor do they get the hand cannoneer. They also don't get all the final upgrades for the castle, priest, or war galley. Yet, all things considered, the Chinese are a strong civilization. While they don't have as powerful a villager bonus as the Age I Chinese, they aren't as weak in the final stages of the game. The Chinese retain a technological superiority that mirrors their historical strengths. They strike me as an exceptionally well-designed civilization that has obvious strengths to appeal to newcomers but also subtle bonuses that advanced players can use to turn the Chinese into a Age II powerhouse, if they are mindful of the Chinese weaknesses.