Camel Archer (Age of Empires II)

This article is about the unit in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. For the unit in Age of Empires IV, see Camel Archer (Age of Empires IV).

Camel Archer
Unit information
Introduced in	Age of Empires II HD: The African Kingdoms
Type	Mounted archer
Civilization	Berbers
Age	Castle Age
Training
Trained at	Castle
Wood	50
Gold	60
Training time	25 seconds
Statistics
Hit points	55, 60 (Elite)
Pierce attack	7, 8 (Elite)
Attack bonus	+4, +6 (Elite) vs mounted archers
Reload time	2
Attack delay	0.63
Range	4
Accuracy	95%
Projectile speed	7
Melee armor	0, 1 (Elite)
Pierce armor	1
Armor class	Archer Cavalry archer (0) Camel (0) Unique unit
Speed	1.4
Line of Sight	5
Unit evolution
Upgrades to	Elite Camel Archer
Upgrade cost	1,000 wood, 500 gold
Upgrade time	45 seconds

“	Berber unique mounted archer.	”
—Age of Empires II description

The Camel Archer is the first unique unit of the Berbers in Age of Empires II HD: The African Kingdoms. It is a mounted archer with an attack bonus against mounted archers.

Camel Archers can be upgraded to Elite Camel Archers in the Imperial Age.

Tactics

The Camel Archer fits nicely in the cavalry based army of the Berbers. Due to their high attack and speed, they can support the cavalry against all kinds of ranged units and are also a good choice if enemy Halberdiers overwhelm the army, since they can perform hit-and-run tactics against them. As far as utility is concerned, they are a versatile unit, as apart from being a hard counter against other mounted archers, they can also serve as a solid anti-infantry unit, and even directly engage against most foot archers on account of having 1 base pierce armor.

Camel Archers are quite tough for a cavalry archer, boasting good hit points, regeneration (with Maghrebi Camels), and more endurance against common vulnerabilities of cavalry, because they do not take damage from anti-cavalry attacks but from anti-camel attacks, which is lower (except from defensive structures). E.g., Camel Riders deal much less bonus damage (5 instead of 9) and Mamelukes deal no bonus damage at all, making them struggle against massed Camel Archers. On the other hand archer counters and cavalry archer counters, such as Genitours, and Elite Skirmishers, still remain highly cost-effective against them. The attack bonus which most defensive structures have against camels is 1, which is also the pierce armor advantage of Camel Archers over Cavalry Archers. Hence they have equal or better survivability than Cavalry Archers.

It should also be noted that thanks to Kasbah, Camel Archers train in only 20 seconds, much faster than a generic Heavy Cavalry Archer (27 seconds). They are a better alternative to Cavalry Archers in almost any way, save for wood cost, attack vs Spearmen and difficulty of having enough Castles.

Since the Berbers lack Parthian Tactics, it makes their mounted archers slightly less resilient against most attacks, while also causing less damage against Spearmen than fully upgraded Heavy Cavalry Archers. However, they generally fare better against units with high anti-cavalry attack bonuses, like the Heavy Camel Rider, thanks to being in the camel armor class and having slightly higher hit points. They also have a lower attack delay, making them more effective in hit-and-run tactics.

Like all mounted archers, Camel Archers work well if they are paired with Light Cavalry (which only cost food, so the wood and gold can be spent on Camel Archers, and Light Cavalry can be used as "cannon fodder" for the front lines).

If gold is scarce or the enemy heavily relies on foot archers, the Camel Archer should be replaced by the Genitour.

Counters

Camel Archers can be countered with Skirmishers and, when massed, with Mangonels and Scorpions. Cavalry units like the Camel Rider, Light Cavalry, and Shrivamsha Rider can also work decently well against Camel Archers.

Genitours receive bonus damage from Camel Archers and lose in one-on-one combat, but are still cost effective when used against them. In fact, they are a good choice, because they can retreat if melee cavalry arrives to support the Camel Archers (as opposed to Skirmishers).

Eagle Warriors are also a decent choice against Camel Archers, as they have good pierce armor and more speed than Huskarls and Halberdiers, coupled with a reliable attack and an attack bonus against camels.

Comparison in the Castle Age

	Mangudai	Cavalry Archer	Camel Archer	Kipchak
Training Cost	55 wood, 65 gold	40 wood, 60 gold	50 wood, 60 gold	60 wood, 35 gold
Training Time	26 seconds	34 seconds	25 seconds	20 seconds
Hit Points	60	50	55	40
Pierce Attack	6	6	7	4 + 2
Attack Bonus	+1 vs Spearman +3 vs Siege weapons	+2 vs Spearman	+4 vs Mounted Archers	+1 vs Spearman
Range	4	4	4	4
Rate of Fire	1.68 TR - 1.428	2 TR - 1.8	2 TR - 1.7	2.2 TR - 1.87
Attack Delay	0.5	0.9	0.63	0.5
Armor	0/0	0/0	0/1	0/0
Movement Speed	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.4
Line of Sight	6	5	5	6
Upgrade Cost and Time	1,100 food, 675 gold 50 seconds	900 food, 500 gold 50 seconds	1,000 wood, 500 gold 45 seconds	1,100 food, 1,000 wood 65 seconds
Other	Fire 25% faster		Can be trained and upgraded 25% faster Has Camel armor class instead of Cavalry armor class	Additional projectiles have 0 melee attack and 3 pierce attack which helps against Rams and Monks

Comparison in the Imperial Age

	Elite Mangudai	Heavy Cavalry Archer	Elite Camel Archer	Elite Kipchak
Training Cost	55 wood, 65 gold	40 wood, 60 gold	50 wood, 60 gold	60 wood, 35 gold
Training Time	26 seconds	27 seconds	20 seconds	20 seconds
Hit Points	60	60	60	45
Pierce Attack	8	7	8	5 + 3
Attack Bonus	+1 vs Spearman +5 vs Siege weapons	+4 vs Spearman	+6 vs Mounted Archers	+1 vs Spearman
Range	4	4	4	4
Rate of Fire	1.428	1.8	1.7	1.87
Attack Delay	0.5	0.88	0.63	0.5
Armor	1/0	1/0	1/1	0/0
Movement Speed	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.621
Line of Sight	6	6	5	6
Other	Civilization lacks Ring Archer Armor Fire 25% faster	Civilization lacks Parthian Tactics	Civilization lacks Parthian Tactics Can regenerate 15 HP/min Trained 25% faster Has Camel armor class instead of Cavalry armor class	Civilization lacks Bracer and Husbandry Additional projectiles have 0 melee attack and 3 pierce attack which helps against Rams and Monks

The comparison of units are a mixed bag, with various missing technologies and civilization bonus. The different effect of Thumb Ring on different units does not help either. In summary, we can say that:

• Kipchaks have the most pierce armor, because of having both Parthian Tactics and Ring Archer Armor, having 2 more than others. Camel Archers have the second most, on account of having 1 base pierce armor. All units are equal in melee armor considering base melee armor, Ring Archer Armor, and Parthian Tactics.
• Cavalry Archers and Kipchak have the lower attack (-1 compared to others), considering Kipchaks have extra projectiles and lack Bracer, except against buildings (others do 1, Kipchaks do 3/4), rams (Cavalry Archers and Camel Archers do 1, Kipchaks do 7/10, Mangudai do 3/5) and Monks (others do their advertised attack, Kipchaks do 10/14 + Blacksmith upgrades).
• Mangudai are the hardest to mass, considering their relatively long creation time and being created as Castles. Cavalry Archers need Archery Ranges, whereas the other two can be created in 20 seconds, considering Kasbah for Berbers. Camel Archers also have regeneration, which helps keep them alive for longer.
• Mangudai attack the fastest. Camel Archers are second. Regular Cavalry Archers are third. Kipchaks attack the slowest.
• Elite Mangudai and Elite Kipchaks have +3 vs Spearmen. Heavy Cavalry Archers have comparatively 1 less base attack, but +2 vs Spearmen. Elite Camel Archers have no attack bonus vs Spearmen.
• Considering Husbandry and the Cuman bonus, all units except Imperial Age Kipchaks are equally fast. Imperial Age Kipchaks are 5% faster than others.

Further statistics

As Camel Archers are unique to the Berbers, only technologies that are available to them are shown in the following table:

Unit strengths and weaknesses
Strong vs.	Slow non-ranged units, Cavalry Archers, Conquistadors
Weak vs.	Huskarls, Skirmishers, Eagle Warriors, Mangonels, Camel Riders, Rattan Archers
Upgrades
Hit points	Bloodlines (+20)
Attack	Fletching (+1) Bodkin Arrow (+1) Bracer (+1) Chemistry (+1)
Range	Fletching (+1) Bodkin Arrow (+1) Bracer (+1)
Firing rate	Thumb Ring (+18%)
Accuracy	Thumb Ring (increases accuracy to 100%) Ballistics (hit moving targets)
Armor	Padded Archer Armor (+1/+1) Leather Archer Armor (+1/+1) Ring Archer Armor (+1/+2)
Speed	Husbandry (+10%)
Conversion defense	Devotion (+1 min, +1 max) Faith (+4 min, +4 max) Heresy (die upon getting converted)
Creation speed	Kasbah (+25%, Additional +25% with a Berber ally only) Conscription (+33%)
Other	Maghrebi Camels (regenerates 15 HP/min)
Upgrades	Elite Camel Archer

Team bonuses

• Britons: Researching Thumb Ring is 10% faster.
• Bulgarians: Researching upgrades at the Blacksmith is 80% faster.
• Huns: Researching Bloodlines and Husbandry is 20% faster.
• Gurjaras: Camel Archers are created 25% faster.
• Hindustanis: Camel Archers have +2 attack against standard buildings.
• Lithuanians: Researching Devotion, Faith, and Heresy is 20% faster.
• Magyars: Camel Archers are created 25% faster.
• Malians: Researching Chemistry and Ballistics is 80% faster.
• Portuguese: Upgrades that benefit Camel Archers are researched 25% faster.
• Tatars: Camel Archers have +2 Line of Sight.
• Teutons: Camel Archers are more resistant to conversion.

Changelog

The African Kingdoms

• Camel Archers have a +1 attack bonus against infantry and a +2 attack bonus against rams.
• (Elite) Camel Archers have 60 (65) HP, +2 camel armor, and +2 cavalry archer armor.
• Camel Archers train in 21 seconds.

Rise of the Rajas

• With patch 5.3, Camel Archers no longer have an attack bonus against infantry.
• With patch 5.7, (Elite) Camel Archers have 55 (60) HP, and they lose their bonus armor against anti-camel and anti-cavalry archer attacks. Also, they lose their attack bonus against rams.
• With patch 5.8, Camel Archers train in 25 seconds.

Heroes

There is one hero in the game with the appearance of a Camel Archer:

• Musa ibn Nusayr

Trivia

• With a total cost of 7,075 resources (3,100 food, 1,550 wood, 2,425 gold), Camel Archers are the most expensive unit to fully upgrade in Age of Empires II (based on all upgrades listed above except Faith and Heresy).
• The Camel Archer is the only Castle unique unit that does not make the usual military unit sound when created. Instead, it makes the camel sound, like Camel Riders trained at the Stable.
• It is the only camel unit that deals pierce damage.
• It is the only camel unit to have base pierce armor.
• Before patch 5.3 and patch 5.7, Camel Archers were regarded as one of the most unbalanced units because the Camel Class bonus attack was not high enough and they themselves have anti-camel armor and Cavalry Archer as well. Meanwhile, they have five more hit points and train faster. Also, they have a bonus attack against infantry and rams, making them even not too weak against Trebuchets and Battering Rams. This was highly criticized, as they were almost functioning as Camel Mangudai with slightly cheaper cost. It also made the Berbers a unique units civilization, since it was overpowered with Kasbah and Maghrabi Camels researched. Most of its status was toned down in those updates (by removing the anti-ram and anti-infantry attack bonuses along with their camel armor and cavalry archer armor), since the Berbers are considered a cavalry civilization with Cavalry Archer as a synergy.
• Camel Archers are the only mounted archers without the Cavalry armor class. Instead, they have the Camel armor class.
• Camel Archers have the most benefits in creation speed as a unique unit: Conscription, Kasbah, and the Magyar and Gurjara team bonuses.
• The Camel Archer has a sword on its side which is just for show (it does not use the Ratha mechanic of changing its attack weapon).
• The Camel Archer, alongside with the Korean War Wagon, are one of the two unique cavalry archer units without Parthian Tactics.

History

Historically, the Berbers were well known for raiding deserts. They rode camels because they were ideal for moving quickly in the sand. Using bows while riding camels would immensely help with raiding.

Gallery

A group of Camel Archers

A group of Camel Archers in the Definitive Edition

Camel Archer preview

Unit sprite in the Definitive Edition

3D Model of the Camel Archer

Wealthy Berber (Moro de Barbaria di conditione). Illustration by Cesare Vecellio, 1589

Camel Archer in the HD Edition and Definitive Edition

Timurid Tatar Camel Archers vs. Elephant Archers of the Delhi Sultanate's Tughlaq dynasty

Camel Archer walking animation

ELITE CAMEL ARCHER vs EVERY UNIQUE UNIT (Total Resources) - AoE II- Definitive Edition