Hoardings
Castle - ImperialEvolution
Hoardings
Imperial
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"+1000 HP for Castles"
Coach's Tip
Hoardings gives your Castles +1000 HP, making them much harder to take down. Essential when defending against siege-heavy attacks.
Strategic Analysis
Strategic Identity
Hoardings gives your Castles +1000 HP, making them much harder to take down. Essential when defending against siege-heavy attacks.
When to Research
High Priority
Research Hoardings as soon as you have the resources and are using defense units.
Combat Impact
+1000 HP for Castles
Civilization Access
* 37 civilizations have access to this technology.
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Other Technologies to Explore
AoE Coach analysis
Context & meta
Hoardings is the Imperial Age Castle technology for Castles, Kreposts and Donjons. It costs 400 food and 400 wood and takes 75 seconds to research. The official help defines the effect exactly: Castles, Kreposts and Donjons +1,000 HP. The affected force must be active in the next fight. It is a build breakpoint: spend now to improve an existing composition. It pays when several affected units are ready. Its timing matters because an upgrade that finishes after the battle cannot change that battle.
History & balance
Hoardings uses a compact historical label to describe a long technical step. Hoardings names a defensive addition built around a stronghold, and the game turns that idea into extra time before the structure falls. AoE2 reduces that development to one research button, but the concept remains readable: the upgrade changes the way an established tool survives, reaches, or delivers force. This is why it belongs to the technology tree rather than the unit card. The name also gives a useful coaching cue: do not judge it in isolation; judge the equipment line, the building, and the battlefield role that it completes.
In pro play
Use Hoardings when a Castle, Krepost or Donjon is the anchor of your Imperial defense and the opponent is preparing siege. Keep 400 food and 400 wood and the 75 seconds research time in the plan. Castles, Kreposts and Donjons +1,000 HP. The clean execution is to queue the research before the mass is fully exposed, keep relevant production or defense preparation running where possible, and make the first upgraded engagement deliberate. The classic error is researching it automatically while the stronghold is safe, or waiting until siege is already firing. If timed well, it changes the next fight.
How to counter it
There is no military unit that counters Hoardings; the practical answer is to read the research window. Pressure the research building or fight before completion. Effect: Castles, Kreposts and Donjons +1,000 HP. The common mistake is researching it automatically while the stronghold is safe, or waiting until siege is already firing. Track the research building and resource bank; an early click can delay units. If you struggle against this timing without knowing what to produce or when, AoE Coach reads your matchup and gives you the composition and timing.