Ethiopians (Age of Empires II)

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The Wonder of the Ethiopians, the rock church of "Bete Amanuel" in Lalibela, Ethiopia

“	Relive the glory of the once mighty Aksumite empire and rule over the Red Sea. Launch military expeditions into the Arabian peninsula and far beyond to hold a firm grip on your trading partners. Will your dynasty stand strong against internal conflicts or will your successor already be preparing your funeral. Only the strongest dynasty will survive…	”
—Civilization description.

The Ethiopians are an African civilization featured in The African Kingdoms expansion as an archer civilization.

The Ethiopians were historically known for the Aksumite and Zagwe kingdoms, who were dedicated followers of Orthodox Christianity and Judaism.  Their architecture was the best in the region, and many stelae and other tall monuments exist to this day.  For most of the Middle Ages, Ethiopian kingdoms were defensive - not offensive - powers.  They protected their lands from various outsiders (Himyarite, Arab, Portuguese, etc.), and kept close watch of movements in their own region.  To highlight this, the Ethiopian team bonus grants extra line of sight for Towers and Outposts.  

Ethiopian kingdoms were positioned in a vital area - on the Horn of Africa at the narrow entrance to the Red Sea.  This made Aksum a vital center for trade on the Indian Ocean; goods and materials from Europe, India, Arabia, and even China went through Ethiopian ports.  Through the ages, they benefited from a regular influx of resources from outside the empire.  This is represented in-game with the Ethiopians gaining 100 food and gold for free whenever they advance an age.

The Ethiopians were known to be mercenaries for fast deployments to other kingdoms (particularly Egypt) and were known to be very fierce in battle, but underequipped. To highlight the Ethiopian army, the Shotel Warrior can be created quickly in the Castle, to stress this rapidity they have a castle unique technology: Royal Heirs bringing about Shotel Warriors creation nearly instantly, but has very low defenses with high attack. Because historically, spears and polearms were a staple of most Ethiopian armies, the Ethiopians get Pikemen and Halberdier upgrades at no cost.

Along with spears and shotel swords, the bow and arrow were important weapons in Ethiopia, and archers formed the backbone of the kingdom's army. Arabs referred to East African archers as Archers of the Eyes to reflect their expert marksmanship, letting loose showers of arrows aimed at the eyes of their enemies. To reflect these facts, Ethiopians' archers fire +15% faster.  

Finally, the Ethiopians are one of the few civilizations to have preserved some of the lost technology from the Classical Age after the barbarians destroyed the Roman Empire. They were also exposed through trade to many forms of technology from all over the world. To highlight this, the Ethiopians are the only civilization to access all siege weapons, and have an imperial unique technology: Torsion Engines that increases the blast radius for siege weapons.

Overview

The Ethiopian Archery Range is pretty strong chiefly because of the archer line, since archers fire +15% faster. The Barrack lacks the Champion but gets Halberdiers. The Ethiopian's unique unit: the Shotel Warrior is a very fast infantry unit with high creation speed and being a fantastic raiding unit, however they are very weak in engagements. The Stable lacks the Paladin and upgrades such as: Bloodlines and Plate Barding Armor, but has the Hussar and the Heavy Camel. The Dock is moderately fine since they get the Galleon, but lacks Heavy Demolition Ship, Fast Fire Ship and Elite Cannon Galleon. The Monastery doesn't get Block Printing and Redemption, however the monks are worthy. The Siege Workshop is awesome with all the units available and benefiting from the civilization's imperial unique technology: Torsion Engines, that increases the blast radius for siege weapons. Their economy is nice only missing Crop Rotation. The Ethiopians will meet trouble with some civilizations such as the Berbers, due to Genitours being an anti-archer mounted skirmisher and their Stable is better, and they fare horribly against the Byzantines due to their unique unit, Cataphract is able to decimate Halberdiers and Shotel Warriors and cheaper skirmishers is a cost efficient answer to Ethiopian archers. The Ethiopians make a great civilization against civilizations like the Vikings who have slower archers and worst cavalry. Goths are the perfect counter to the Ethiopians lategame because the Ethiopians lack the Champion upgrade and have no cost effective counter to the Huskarl unit.

Unique Unit: Shotel Warrior (infantry)

Unique Technologies: Royal Heirs (Shotel Warriors are created nearly instantly), Torsion Engines (Siege Workshop units blast radius increased)

Civilization bonuses

• Archers fire +15% faster
• Receive +100 gold, +100 food when they advance to the next Age
• Pikeman and Halberdier upgrades free
• Team Bonus: Towers and Outposts +3 LOS

In-game dialogue language

Ethiopian units speak Amharic, a South Semetic language that is related to Arabic, but is written with the Ge'ez script.

Citizen dialogue

• Āwo (አዎ) - yes
• Minidini? (ምንድን?) - what?
• Selamita (ሰላምታ) - greetings/ Selamine (ሰላምነ) - peace
• Ti‘izazochi zigiju (ትዕዛዞች ዝግጁ)/ Ti'izazochi zigijuni (ትእዛዞቺ ዝግጁን) - ready for orders (lit. order-ready)
• Ishī (እሺ) - all right/ok
• Yaderigali (ያደርጋል) - will do
• Lemesebisebi (ለመሰብሰብ) - to collect/harvest 
• Migibi yesibesibali (ምግብ ይሰበስባል) - to gather food
• Ma‘idini mek’oferi (ማዕድን መቆፈር መሄድ) - going to excavate stones
• Inich’eti āt’efalehu (እኔ እንጨት አጠፋለሁ) - will cut wood
• Ginibenya (ግንበኛ)/Ginibenyani(ግንበንያን) - constructor

Military dialogue

• Ti'izazi minidi newi? (ት'እዛዝ ምንድ ነው?) - your order?
• Inidaliki - as you say 
• Ishī (እሺ)- all right/ok
• Lemewagati! (ለመዋጋት!) - fight!

AI Player Names

• Abba Guba – One of the Nine Saints of Ethiopia, who were important in the growth of Christianity in Ethiopia
• Amda Seyon – An Ethiopian emperor from the Solomonic dynasty; reigns 1314–1344
• Amir Habbuba - Amir (king) ruled the ancient walled city of Harar (969–1000).
• Dil Na'od – The last king of Aksum before the Zagwe dynasty; lived 9th–10th century
• Frumentius – The first Bishop of Aksum who were credited for bringing Christianity to the kingdom; died 383
• Gelawdewos – Personal name of Asnaf Sagad I, an Ethiopian emperor from the Solomonic dynasty; lived 1521/1522–1559
• Kaleb of Axum – The most well-documented, if not the best known, king of Aksum; reigned ca. 520
• Lalibela – Personal name of Gebre Mesqel, the most well-known of Zagwe kings known for completing the monolithic rock-cut churches on the namesake city; lived 1162–1221
• Yakuno Amlak – Personal name of Tasfa Iyasus, a descendant of Dil Nao'd and the restorer of the Solomonic dynasty; reigned 1270–1285
• Yared – A legendary Ethiopian musician credited for inventing the sacred music of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and and Ethiopian musical notation; lived 505–571
• Yodit
• Zara Yaqob – Personal name of Kwestantinos I, emperor of Ethiopia from the Solomonic dynasty and one of the greatest rulers in Ethiopia's history; lived 1399–1468

Trivia

• The Ethiopians are the only civilization that has access to all units and their upgrades at the Siege Workshop.
• They are also the only ones to receive a bonus by aging up, similarly to the politicians in Age of Empires III.
• The African architecture set shared by the Malians and Ethiopians is based on the Sudano-Sahelian architecture, with elements of Aksumite architecture in the Imperial Age.

Gallery

Official preview

African.jpg

The African architecture shared with the Malians.

Video Overview