Fishing Ship
ShipBase values, before Blacksmith upgrades. The Blacksmith raises attack and armour for infantry, cavalry and archers — Blast Furnace, for instance, gives "+2 Attack for infantry & cavalry". Late in a game, the real numbers are higher.
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Fishing Ship
DarkThe coach's briefing
The Fishing Ship is your water economy workhorse. Fish provide faster food income than farms - about 0.43 food/second. On water maps, build multiple Docks and boom your fishing fleet. Protect them with Galleys - losing fish means losing the game on maps like Islands.
STRONG AGAINST
You win these trades cost-effectively.
WEAK AGAINST
Avoid these fights or bring support.
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Your coach names the counters during the match — not once the game is over.
Strategic Analysis
Tactical Identity
The Fishing Ship is your **water economy foundation**. It enables faster food income than land farming.
Tactical Playbook
Fast Food Income
Fish gather at ~0.43 food/second vs farms at ~0.32. This advantage compounds over time.
Multiple Docks
Build 2-3 Docks early on water maps. Boom fishing economy for Castle Age power spike.
Deep Fish Priority
Deep fish last longer than shore fish. Prioritize them for sustained income.
Critical Point
**Fishing Ships are defenseless**. A single enemy Galley destroys your economy. Never leave fish unprotected.
Understanding The Stats
The Fishing Ship is a cheap, essential economic unit for water map dominance.
Fast Gathering
Faster than farmers. Significant economic advantage.
Cheap Cost
Very affordable. Build many for booming economy.
No Combat
Completely defenseless. Must be protected.
Fast Train
Quick to produce. Rebuild fleet quickly if raided.
Coach's Tip
50 HP is fragile. Your value is economic, not combat. If enemy ships approach, flee to Dock for garrison.
Mechanics & Bonuses
Attack Bonuses
| Target | Bonus Dmg |
|---|---|
| No damage bonus: this unit deals the same damage to every target. | |
Armor Classes
Ship
Takes bonus from Heated Shot, Fire Ships, and Demolition Ships.
Fishing Ship
Vulnerable to units with bonus damage vs this class.
Key Upgrades
Civilizations
* 50 civilizations have access to this unit.
Other Units
AoE Coach analysis
Context & meta
Fishing Ship is an economic water unit, not a combat unit. It costs 75 wood, trains in 40 seconds, has 50 HP, 0 attack, 1 melee armor and 1 pierce armor, with 1.26 speed and 5 line of sight. It gathers fish and can construct fish traps, so its value is measured in food gathered over time rather than damage dealt. The low HP and long production cycle make each boat meaningful. A safe fish line can accelerate an economy; an exposed one turns wood investment into a steady stream of easy targets. Vision decides its safety.
History & balance
Fishing ships turn the old relationship between settlements and coastal food into a clear economic choice. A dock gives an economy another surface to work, but it also places workers on open water where vision and escort matter. Age of Empires II keeps the idea deliberately simple: the boat does not fight, it gathers. That separation creates a useful strategic tension. Water can support a faster boom, yet the player must protect the infrastructure and the boats that make the boom possible. That tradeoff is the point.
In pro play
Use Fishing Ships only when the map gives them a real safety plan. Start with a small group, place the dock where a quick raid cannot reach every boat, and add fish traps only after you know how the opponent can contest the water. The 40-second train time rewards early queues, but idle production is painful because each lost boat removes future food as well as 75 wood. Scout the enemy dock, wall or escort the route, and move threatened boats before the first attack lands. Fish is an economy plan, not a free pocket of food.
How to counter it
The classic mistake is defending the dock while ignoring the boats, or waiting until several Fishing Ships are trapped on the same shoreline. There is no official combat Weak vs category here because the unit has 0 attack. The practical counter is denial: use Galleys, War Galleys, or a land raid to reach the dock and kill boats before they pay back their wood cost; vision tells you when to move. Do not fight the dock under fire if the fish line is exposed. Losing fish without knowing the right response? AoE Coach reads your matchup and gives you the composition + timing.