Koreans
Defensive & NavalTeam Bonus
Villagers +3 line of sight
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"The Koreans are a defensive and naval civilization with fast stone miners, cheaper ranged units, and free tower upgrades."
Civilization Bonuses
- 1
Stone miners work +20% faster
- 2
Ranged Soldiers and Infantry cost -50% wood
- 3
Archer armor and tower upgrades free (Bombard Tower requires Chemistry)
- 4
Warships cost -20% wood
Unique Units
Unique Technologies
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Context & meta
The Koreans are a defensive and naval civilization built around towers, durable ranged units and cheap soldiers. Their unique units are the War Wagon, a heavily armored mounted archer, and the Turtle Ship, an armored warship that crushes other navies. Stone miners work +20% faster, Ranged Soldiers and Infantry cost -50% wood, archer armor and tower upgrades are free (Bombard Tower requires Chemistry), and Warships cost -20% wood. Unique techs Eupseong and Shinkichon strengthen their towers and siege range. The team bonus grants Villagers +3 line of sight. Koreans excel at turtling behind defensive structures, controlling water with Turtle Ships, and grinding out games with cheap, well-armored ranged armies in the late game.
History & balance
The Koreans evoke the kingdoms of the Korean peninsula, celebrated historically for their fortifications, innovative warships and early experiments with gunpowder and rocketry. In the game this translates into a deeply defensive identity: free tower upgrades and tower-boosting unique techs make them masters of fortress play, while the armored Turtle Ship recalls the legendary geobukseon that defended Korean waters. Their wood discounts on ranged units and warships reward patient, economy-driven defensive play over early aggression. Across balance iterations Koreans have remained an archetypal turtle civilization, rewarding players who weather early pressure to reach a powerful, cheap and well-armored late-game army, while their naval prowess makes them a recurring threat on water and hybrid maps.
In pro play
Pros use Koreans as a defensive specialist, leaning on free tower upgrades for tower rushes and fortress-style maps. A classic land plan is a Tower-based defensive opening transitioning into War Wagons and Mangonels in Castle Age, where Shinkichon-boosted siege range and durable mounted archers dominate sustained engagements. The -50% wood on ranged units lets them flood cheap Crossbowmen and War Wagons while investing saved wood into eco. On water and hybrid maps Koreans are a premier pick: cheaper Warships and the dominant Turtle Ship let them control the sea and protect a turtling economy. Players who favor patient, defensive macro and late-game army quality choose Koreans on closed maps like Arena, Hideout and Fortress, grinding opponents down once their armored composition reaches critical mass.
How to counter it
Koreans have a weak early land economy with no food or boom bonus, so aggressive Feudal pressure with Scouts or archers exploits their slow, defensive start before towers come online. They lack cavalry bonuses, so their land army leans on War Wagons and siege; counter War Wagons with Halberdiers, Camels or massed cheaper archers, since War Wagons are gold-intensive and slow to mass. On water, contest Turtle Ships before they accumulate, since they are slow and can be kited or outranged by Galleys and avoided in the early Feudal naval phase. Punish their tower-heavy defense by taking map control and out-booming them, denying the patient late game they want. Raid stone to undercut both their tower play and the +20% stone mining bonus that fuels it.