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This article is about the building functions. For architecture styles used in the series, see Architecture set.
Architectureme

All buildings in the Middle Eastern architecture set in Age of Empires II

A building is a type of structure that is designated for habitation and typically has a roof and walls. In the Age of Empires series, most buildings can only be built by Villagers. Buildings form the backbone of the civilizations.

Types of buildings[]

In the Age of Empires series, buildings are separated into four distinct categories, each of which has its own distinct function. The main types of building found in the game are:

  • Economic buildings
  • Fortifications
  • Military buildings
  • Research buildings

Note that there are also a few buildings which cannot be sorted in any of the categories above, like the House.

Economic buildings[]

Economic buildings are crucial when it comes to building a civilization. They are the most important structures in the game as building them is the only way to research technologies that are needed to advance a civilization. These structures provide economic benefits for an entire civilization and usually train economic units such as Villagers, Fishing Boats, or trade units. Some of these structures serve as a drop off point when a unit collects a particular resource, while other economic buildings provide unlimited resources, such as a Bank or a Factory.

Fortifications[]

Unlike other buildings which train units and research technologies, these structures are simply designed for combat and defense. Defensive structures often have a large amount of hit points and range and a decent attack. Unlike other buildings which can only be made of wood, these structures are usually made of stone, which is a far rarer resource.

Military buildings[]

Military buildings train units only suited for combat and research technologies that upgrade these units. Military structures can be separated into categories based on what kind of units they train. These structures are vital for a strong civilization since building them are the only way to achieve a military conquest or victory.

Research buildings[]

Research buildings can neither train nor attack units, they are also usually not designed to benefit a player's economy, but rather provide various technologies. Once a research building has done all its research, it is practically useless.

See also[]

Gameplay elements in the Age of Empires series
Age · Ability (M · III · IV) · Architecture set (II · III) · Area of Effect (Trample damage) · Armor/Resists (hack/melee · pierce/ranged · crush/siege)  · Armor class/Tag (I - original · I - Return of Rome · II · IV) · Artificial intelligence · Attack (Attack bonus/Multiplier) · Attack delay · Attack ground · Aura · Auto Scout · Building (I · II · M · III · IV) · Civilization (I · II · M · III · IV) · Civilization bonus · Cheat code (I · II · M · III · IV) · Conversion · Counter · Diplomacy · Gaia/Mother Nature · Game modes · Garrison · Gather Point · Healing · Hit points · Hotkey · Line of Sight · Mini map · Player · Population · Range · Rate of Fire · Regeneration · Relic (II · M · IV) · Renewable resources · Repairing · Resource · Scenario Editor (I · II · M · III · IV) · Score · Signal Allies/Flare · Soundtrack (I · II · M · III · IV) · Speed · Stealth mode · Taunt · Technology (I · II · M · III · IV) · Technology tree (I · II · IV) · Town Bell · Trade · Tribute · Unit (I · II · M · III · IV) · Unit formation · Unit stance (III) · Upgrade (I · II · III) · User interface · Victory
Genie Engine
Frame delay · Full Tech Tree · Team bonus
ReturnRome-AoEIcon Age of EmpiresRuins · Discovery
AoE2-DLCicon-0 Age of Empires IIPass-through damage · Projectile duplication
Bang Engine
Autoqueue · Snare
Aom original icon Age of MythologyGod (Major · Minor) · God power · Settlement
3Icon48px Age of Empires IIIAge-up methods (Politician/Tribal Council/Wonder/Federal State/Alliance· Banner army · Consulate · Damage Cap · Home City · Home City Card · Inspiring Flag · Promotion · Revolution · Target Lock · Trade Monopoly · Trade Route · Treasure
Essence Engine
GameIcon-AoE4 Age of Empires IVBounty · Dynasty · Fire armor · Imperial Council (Vizier Point) · Influence · Landmark · Religion · Sacred Site · Variant civilization
If a gameplay element has different pages across games, like civilization, the individual pages are linked in brackets.
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