University
Military Research
First Appearance	Age of Empires II
Cost	200 Wood
Age Available	Castle Age
Base Hit Points	2100
Use	Provides upgrades
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The University is a building available in Age of Empires II beginning in the Castle Age. Universities are of key importance in the mid-to-late game due to their pivotal upgrades in weaponary and building strength.

The University does not train units. It is used purely for upgrades and technologies.

OverviewEdit

During the bleakest days of the Dark Ages, learning was all but extinguished in much of Europe. A scattering of priests and monks in isolated monasteries carried forward the ability to read and write and kept books alive by copying old manuscripts. Charlemagne attempted to reverse this trend by creating a school to train men who could help him control his empire, but this experiment largely disappeared under a new wave of barbarian invasions from the north and east. The first centers of higher learning were associated with great cathedral towns such as Cambridge, Oxford, Padua, and Paris. Future priests and church leaders received training in Latin, the Bible, Christian philosophy, and other Christian writings. Medicine, science, and mathematics did not enter the curricula until much later. Graduates of these first universities led the Church and provided a pool of educated men who served generations of European kings as advisors and administrators.

Technologies Edit

Researching technologies are the primary reason for building a University. The advantages of the University technologies are predominantly structural, missile, or siege-based. These tecchnologies are vital in winning the game since it allows the player to develop stronger versions of units available in later games. Below is a list of the technologies you can research from the University:

• Masonry
• Ballistics
• Heated Shot
• Murder Holes
• Architecture
• Chemistry
• Treadmill Crane
• Siege Engineers
• Bombard Tower

Upgrades Edit

The only upgrades available from the University are that of walls and towers. It is here that you can upgrade the Stone Wall to a Fortified Wall, the Watch Tower to a Guard Tower and Keep, and you also research the Bombard Tower technology here.