This article is about the civilization in Age of Empires. For the civilization in Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, see Persians (Age of Empires II). |
ā | Throw off the Median yoke, conquer Babylon, and build a diverse empire stretching from India and Egypt to Thrace. Powerful elephants will trample anything that stands in your way! | ā |
—Description[1] |
The Persians are a playable civilization in Age of Empires that comes with powerful aggressive units to reflect their rapid expansion of their empire under Cyrus the Great. They are based on the Achaemenid Empire.
The Persians re-appear in Age of Empires II.
Characteristics[]
Civilization bonuses[]
- Hunters work 30% faster and carry +3 food.
- Elephant units move 25% faster.
- Scout Ship line fires 18%/25%/33% faster in the Tool/Bronze/Iron Age.
- Walls cost -20%.*
Team bonus[]
- Stables work 20% faster.
Missing technologies[]
Missing units[]
Overview[]
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Changelog[]
Age of Empires[]
- Hunters work 67% faster (but stated 30%) and carry +3 food.
- Farming production -30%.
- War Elephants and Elephant Archers move 56% faster (but stated 50%).
- Triremes fire 38% faster (but stated 50%).
- Artisanship, Wheel, Plow, Coinage, and Ballistics are not available.
The Rise of Rome[]
- Farming penalty eliminated.
Definitive Edition[]
- Hunters work 30% faster and carry +3 food.
- War Elephants and Elephant Archers move 20% faster. With update 38862, War Elephants and Elephant Archers move 25% faster.
- Triremes fire 33% faster (but stated 25%).
- Artisanship, Wheel, and Coinage are available.
- With update 38862, Plow is available.
Return of Rome[]
- Team bonus added.
- Walls cost -20%.
- The Trireme firing rate bonus is extended: the Scout Ship line fires 18%/25%/33% faster in the Tool/Bronze/Iron Age.
- Ballistics is available.
Campaign appearances[]
The Persians appear as AI players in:
Glory of Greece[]
- 7. Xenophon's March
- Persia - Enemy
- Persia - Enemy
- Persia - Enemy
- Persia - Enemy
- 8. Wonder (original)
- Cambyses - Enemy
- Persia - Enemy
- 8. Alexander the Great (since the Definitive Edition)
- Persia - Enemy
Voices of Babylon[]
- 2. The Tigris Valley
- Ebla Raiders - Enemy (since the Definitive Edition)
- 5. The Great Hunt (original)
- Elam - Enemy
- 5. The Great Hunt (since the Definitive Edition)
- Susa - Enemy
- Elamites - Neutral
- 5. The Great Hunt (since Return of Rome)
- Susa - Enemy
- Elamites - Enemy
- Elamites - Enemy
- 6. The Caravan
- Elamites - Enemy (since the Definitive Edition)
- Elamites - Enemy
Reign of the Hittites[]
- 2. Raid on Babylon (since the Definitive Edition)
- Gutians - Enemy
The Rise of Rome[]
- 6. Mithridates
- Artaxiad Armenia - Enemy (since the Definitive Edition)
Imperium Romanum[]
- 3. Ransom at Ctesiphon
- Sasanian Empire - Enemy
- Parthian Brigands - Enemy
- Persian Raiders - Enemy
- 5. Coming of the Huns (original)
- Goths - Enemy
Enemies of Rome[]
- 4. Odaenathus, Lord of Palmyra
- Persians - Enemy
Sargon of Akkad[]
- 3. The Prophecy
- Ur - Enemy
- 4. The Land of Kings
- Elam - Enemy
- Elamite Navy - Enemy
Trajan[]
- 4. An Old Enemy
- Armenia - Enemy
- Parthia - Enemy
- 5. Blood in the Water
- Charax - Ally
- Mesopotamia - Ally
- Parthia - Enemy
- Ctesiphon - Enemy
Pyrrhus of Epirus[]
- 1. A Second Alexander
- Seleucus - Enemy
- Antiochus - Enemy
AI player names[]
Names shown in italics are only used in the original game, names shown in bold are used in both the original game and its expansions.
- Cyrus (šš¢š½šæš; Ś©ŁŲ±ŁŲ“) - Cyrus I, king of Anshan c. 600-580 BC
- Darius (šš š¼š¹šŗš¢š) - Darius (I) the Great, king of Persia 522-486 BC
- Cyrus II (š¤š¢š½š¢š) - Cyrus the Great, king of Persia 559-530 BC
- Darius II (šš š¼š¹šŗš¢š) - King of Persia 423-405 BC
- Xerxes (š§šš¹š š¼šš ; Ų®Ų“Ų§ŪŲ§Ų± Ų“Ų§Ł) - King of Persia 486-465 BC
- Xerxes II (š§šš¹š š¼šš ) - King of Persia 424 BC
- Cyrus III - Did not exist in Persia
- Cambyses (š£š²š¢šŖš”š¹; Ś©Ų§Ł ŲØŪŲ²) - King of Anshan 580-559 BC (Cambyses I); King of Persia 530-522 BC (II)
- Datis (ŲÆŲ§ŲŖŪŲ³) - Median admiral under Darius I, leader of Persian forces during the Persian Wars
- Bessus - King of Persia 330-329 BC
- Mardonius (š¶š¼šÆš¢š“š”š¹; Ł Ų±ŲÆŁŁŪŁŲ³) - Persian military commander during the Persian Wars, lived ?-479 BC, died in Battle of Plataea
- Spitamenes - Sogdian warlord, leader of the Sogdian and Bactrian uprising against Alexander the Great, lived 370-328 BC
- Artaphernes - Brother of Darius I and satrap of Sardis; His son, also Arthaphernes, was military commander under Darius I, leader of Persian forces during the Persian Wars
History[]
- Main article: /History
ā | 700 to 332 BC The Persians were unlikely empire builders but in a relatively short span of years they conquered most of the Near and Middle East. They benefited from the leadership of a series of strong kings in succession and by a lack of competent leaders among their neighbors. They expanded very quickly, wobbled for a few hundred years under internal and external pressures, and then collapsed suddenly and utterly. Despite their accomplishments and the breadth of their influence, our knowledge of the Persians is surprisingly limited. Very few Persian records have survived and many of these are written in Elamite, a language we understand poorly today. There is nothing to compare with surviving records of the Egyptians, Greeks, Hittites, and others. Historians rely heavily on what neighbors wrote about the Persians, such as Herodotus who traveled widely within their empire during its peak. Archaeology has revealed that while the empire was certainly in decline prior to Alexander's conquest, it was once well-governed, efficient, and no fluke of history. | ā |
—Excerpt from the Age of Empires manual |
Trivia[]
- The civilization crest (icon) introduced in Return of Rome portrays the royal standard of the Achaemenid Empire, Shahbaz, which means the Royal Falcon. The standard is shown on top of a type of common Persian shield shape, usually made of wicker and reed. Such shields were also found among Assyrians and Cypriots, as well as among the Mycenean Greeks where it was called the Dipylon shield or Boeotian shield.
- The UI emblem artwork depicts the Faravahar, a major symbol of Zoroastrianism, an ancient Iranian religion beginning around 15th Century BC and declining after the Arab conquest of Persia in 7th Century AD.
Gallery[]
References[]
Civilizations in Age of Empires categorised by architecture set | |
---|---|
East Asian architecture | Choson Ā· Lac Viet Ā· Shang Ā· Yamato |
Egyptian architecture | Assyrians Ā· Egyptians Ā· Hittites |
Greek architecture | Greeks Ā· Minoans Ā· Phoenicians |
Mesopotamian architecture | Babylonians Ā· Persians Ā· Sumerians |
Roman architecture | Carthaginians Ā· Macedonians Ā· Palmyrans Ā· Romans |