Italians
Archers & NavalTeam Bonus
Condottiero available at the Barracks in Imperial Age
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"The Italians are an archer and naval civilization with cheaper age advances, armored foot archers, and powerful gunpowder units."
Civilization Bonuses
- 1
Advancing to the next Age costs -15%
- 2
Foot Archers and Condottieri +1 melee/+1 pierce armor
- 3
Dock and University technologies cost -25%
- 4
Gunpowder Units cost -20%
- 5
Fishing Ships cost -15%
Unique Units
Unique Technologies
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Other Civilizations
AoE Coach analysis
Context & meta
The Italians are an archer and naval civilization built around economy and discount bonuses. Advancing to the next Age costs -15%, letting them reach Castle and Imperial faster and cheaper. Their Foot Archers and Condottieri gain +1 melee and +1 pierce armor, making their ranged lines unusually durable. Dock and University technologies cost -25%, Gunpowder Units cost -20%, and Fishing Ships cost -15%. Their unique unit, the Genoese Crossbowman, shreds cavalry, while the Condottiero is a fast anti-gunpowder mercenary available to allies. Italians shine on water maps and in flexible archer-based strategies where their cheaper aging and armored archers create early tempo.
History & balance
The Italians represent the maritime city-states and mercantile republics of medieval Italy, a civilization defined by trade, exploration and naval ingenuity. Their identity has always leaned on economic efficiency rather than raw military power, rewarding players who exploit cheaper aging and discounted technologies to out-tempo opponents. The Genoese Crossbowman echoes the famed Genoese mercenary crossbowmen prized across European battlefields, while the Condottiero recalls the hired captains who fought for Italian cities. Across balance iterations the Italians have remained a thinking player's civilization: rarely the most explosive on open land, but consistently strong on water and in the hands of those who value flexibility, gunpowder transitions and durable archer compositions over brute force.
In pro play
On open land maps, pros often open Italians with a Scout into archer transition, leveraging the cheaper aging to slip into Castle Age ahead of schedule. The +1/+1 armor on Crossbowmen and Arbalests makes their archer lines win mirror skirmishes against most civilizations. A common plan is a Fast Castle into Genoese Crossbowman play, using the unique unit to hard-counter enemy Knights and Camels while massing armored archers behind. On water maps Italians are a first-choice pick: discounted Fishing Ships and cheap Dock technologies fuel a dominant Galley or Fire Galley war. Late game, the gunpowder discount and Pirotechnia enable a strong Hand Cannoneer and Bombard Cannon transition, making Italians a flexible Arena and Hybrid map contender favored by players who value economic snowballing.
How to counter it
Italians lack a strong dedicated cavalry bonus and have no economic boom bonus beyond cheaper aging, so pressuring their fragile early economy pays off. On land, civilizations with strong Knights or siege can overwhelm their armored archers, since the +1 pierce armor does nothing against melee charges; a Knight or Cataphract dive punishes overextended Genoese Crossbowmen, which are slow and weak versus infantry and other archers. Skirmishers hard-counter their archer lines despite the bonus armor. Avoid feeding their Genoese Crossbowman by not committing pure cavalry into it. On water, contest early with an equally strong naval civilization or deny their fish, since much of their power budget sits in discounts you can neutralize by forcing fights before their economy snowballs.