Age of Empires 3 (AOE3) Update 13.12327 Patch Notes – June 23, 2022

Stability & Performance

• Fixed an issue which would cause the game to use more VRAM than it should, which would occasionally lead to a crash on the highest Texture Quality settings.
• Fixed a crash that would occur if the user toggled fullscreen while customizing their Explorer in a Home City.

Graphics

• Fixed an issue where flaming arrows would not be used by Pavisiers or Crossbowmen after sending the Steel Bolts card.
• Added an unique icon for the Maltese Grand Master unit.
• The British Explorer customizations “Ada Lovelace” and “Lizzie” now use their own icon.
• The Chinese Shaolin Master customizations “Lao Chen” and “Captain Huang” now use their own icon.
• The Ethiopian Prince customization “Tewodros” now uses its own icon.
• The Hausa Emir customization “Usman dan Fodio” now uses its own icon.
• The Maltese Grand Master customizations “Morgan Black” and “Alain Magnan” now use their own icon.
• The Mexican General customization “Calaca” now uses its own icon.
• The Spanish Explorer customizations “Heroic Villager” and “Flamenco Dancer” now use their own icon.
• The United States General customization “Astronaut” now uses its own icon.
• Replaced the Italian Gondolas customization in the Maltese home city with Maltese Luzzu boats
• Improved the variation of Gondola designs in the Italian home city
• The Italian Galleass now flies a Venetian flag in addition to the Italian one
• Fixed the compendium images for the Cossack Daredevil, Commandery and Armored Pistoleer
• Repainted the Native Warriors card icon

UI

• Added Age-Up button to the HUD.
  • When used, the button will select the Starting Town Center. If the starting Town Center has been destroyed, then the next Town Center will be selected.
  • For the Japanese, Chinese and Indians, the last villager to receive a command will be selected again.
• Added clarification about ELO score within Profile screen.
• Updated notification displayed for restricted actions while within a Treaty Period.
  • This is now consistent with Tycoon Mode’s notification for restricted actions within active Cease Fire.
• Improved display of King of the Hill and Trade Monopoly Victory timers.
• Updated various European tech trees.
• Improved readability in Hotkeys menus.
• Fixed an issue where the Game Summary screen would show incorrect settings after loading a save game.

Updated Minor Civilizations

An additional mechanic to form alliances with Minor Civilizations has been implemented:

• Clicking on a Settlement will now preview what units and techs are available inside before building it.

Minor Civilization Rework

• Instead of manually placing a Trading Post it is now also possible to convert the settlement’s socket with any unit and slowly build the Trading Post automatically with a click of a button!
• To convert a socket you can to walk up to a neutral settlement with any unit. Upon conversion you will hear a capture sound and see a flag of your player color placed into the socket:

• Beware! Moving near a neutral Settlement will change its color on the minimap, alerting a vigilant opponent to a potential raiding parties’ location, so be stealthy!

• To form an alliance with this minor civilization select the converted socket and click the new build button in the top left:

• Forming an alliance through this mechanic does not require a builder unit and costs 100 food and 100 wood. Upon clicking the button the Trading Post will be slowly built.
• It is still possible to manually place and build a Trading Posts for 200 wood in the same socket. The construction time will also be notably shorter this way!
• A neutral Settlement with a converted socket will now provide some Line of Sight of the surrounding area (a bit like the Stagecoach) as long as you are in control. Building a Trading Post improves this bonus further and grants a trickle of 0.35 XP per second, and access to additional units and technologies as usual.
• As long as the construction of a Trading Post has not been started, other players can still convert sockets back with any of their own units, or manually build Trading Posts in the socket.

American settlements

Asian settlements

European settlements

Fixes

• Disabled Ping/Flare menu access when viewing games as a spectator.
• Fix for some Home City customizations costing more points than displayed in their tooltips.
• Fix for additional Spring Event Profile portrait not being obtainable.
• Fixed an issue where the Explorer would sometimes refuse to move to a Trading Post to build it.
• Fixed Bombard avatar rewards not being awarded when the required scores have been accomplished

Ping/Flare

• Updated Ping/Flare & Communication Wheel are no longer in BETA Stage.
  • Please note the Hotkey ‘Select Flare Type’ can be unbound to disable the Communication Wheel.
• Improved selection accuracy when selecting Ping types.
• Added Ping/Flare display to recorded games.

Photo Mode

• Photo Mode is no longer in BETA Stage.
• Additional in-game UI elements are now disabled when Photo Mode is active:
  • Obscured Unit Alpha.
  • Friend or Foe Outlines.
  • Accessibility Pattern Overlays.
  • Hitpoint Bars for units/buildings/etc.
  • Unit Glow & Aura/buffs from Hero units (Explorers/Generals/War Chiefs/Monks/Princes).
  • Aura buffs from buildings such as Torps, Teepees, Karni Mata etc.
  • Stun Ability status effect visuals.
  • Ping/Flares including the Danger Ping used for Maltese Depots when they are toggled for destruction.
  • Story Mode objective panels.
• Fog of War and Blackmap can now be enabled/disabled.
• Additional hotkey bindings have been added for new functions within Photo Mode.

Tycoon Mode

• Further fixes and improvements to Tycoon UI menus.
• Balance Tycoon challenges.
• Added Hotkeys for Tycoon Mode’s Tycoon Packages.

Lakota, Haudenosaunee, Aztec & Inca Naval Rework

NEW DOCK TECHNOLOGIES

The following Dock technologies are shared by all 4 Native American civilizations:

Improved Cordage (III)	“American cording techniques improve the hitpoints of War Canoes, Tlaloc Canoes, and Chincha Rafts.”  Dock technology costing 350 Wood & Coin. Grants +25% hitpoints.
River Raids (III)	“Improves the damage of War Canoes, Tlaloc Canoes, and Chincha Rafts.”  Dock technology costing 350 Wood & Coin. Grants +25% attack.
Legendary War Boats (V)	“Improves the damage and hitpoints of War Canoes, Tlaloc Canoes, and Chincha Rafts.”  Dock technology costing 1000 Wood & Coin. Grants +25% attack and hitpoints.

Accompanying Naval Balance Adjustments

GENERAL:

• Water Ceremony: Reduced the effectiveness of the attack and hitpoint improvement provided to Warships by each villager tasked to the Community Plaza by approximately two thirds; improvement is now calculated from base stats (previously scaled from current stats)

AZTEC:

• Cipactli (Big Button, Dock): Now also grants +10% attack and hitpoints to all Warships

HAUDENOSAUNEE:

• Rawhide Covers (Big Button, Dock): Now grants +30% hitpoints to all Warships (up from 20%)

INCA:

• Totora Reeds (Big Button, Dock): Now also improves Chincha Raft range and build limit (Chincha Rafts no longer receive a range and build limit shadow improvement upon reaching the Fortress and Industrial Ages)

LAKOTA:

• Flaming Arrows (Big Button, Dock): Now grants +30% attack to all Warships (up from 25%)

Lakota Gameplay Adjustments

GENERAL

• Civilization Bonus: Updated to “Begins with 200 population and Huntable Animals last 10% longer, but cannot build Walls until the Industrial Age.”

• Starting Units:
  • 5 Villagers (no change)
  • 400 Food (no change)
  • 200 Wood (added)
  • 100 Coin (no change)

UNITS AND BUILDINGS

• Tokala Soldier: To complete the narrative correction of Tokala Soldiers and Cheyenne Riders both units have received new visuals.
• Tribal Marketplace: Now free to construct; Gather rate reduced by 10% (to 0.6 c/s); yield improved by +10% (coin lasts longer); these changes also impact the Haudenosaunee civ.
• Teepee: Adjusted as follows:
  • Hitpoint aura no longer stacks; now also affects Settlers
  • Now also provides a +12.5% gather rate bonus to Villagers (does not stack)
  • Build limit increased to 20 (from 12); cost increased to 50w (from 40); hitpoints increased to 600 (from 450); build time increased to 10 seconds (from 5)
  • May no longer be constructed by Lakota infantry as a default feature (Moved to Nomadic Expansion card)
• Walls: Lakota Infantry all now inflict 1.5x to Walls and Lakota Cavalry all now inflict 0.5x to Walls (indicated on stats HUD); This can now be improved to 1.5x for Cavalry with the Horsemanship big button
• Bow Rider: Now inflicts 1.5x to Artillery; Elite Bow Rider upgrade adds +0.5x
• Axe Rider: Cost adjusted to 150f 50c (from 160f 40c)
• Cetan Bowman: Now benefits from the Target Lock feature (once the firing animation begins, the attack will always finish, even if the target moves out of range)
• Captured Mortar: Now benefits from the Wild West upgrade as it is now tagged an Outlaw (previously Native Warrior); now costs 8 population (up from 5); now costs only coin
• Community Plaza: Charging Ceremony is considerably less powerful as the Lakota civs reliance on it for siege power should be considerably less now
• Town Center: Restored to the usual cost of 500 wood (from 400)

CARDS

• Added colors to all Lakota unit card icons for better recognizability
• The following cards have received new names and icons for extra flavor:
  • Fur Pelts → Lynx Pelt Trade
  • Command Skill → Blotáhunka
  • Center of Power → Heyoka
  • War Chief → Ogle Tanka Un
  • Evening Star → Leman Trade Muskets
  • Uprising → Seven Council Fires
  • Wind Runner → Moccasins
  • TEAM 2 Tokala Soldiers → TEAM Bare Lances
  • TEAM 3 Tokala Soldiers → TEAM War Badgers
  • TEAM 8 Cheyenne Allies → TEAM Dog Soldiers
• 4 Villagers (I): Removed
• 5 Villagers (II): Removed
• 8 Villagers (III): Added
• Great Hunter (II): Effect updated to “Villagers gather Food +20% faster from Hunted Animals. Also, 12.5% of all Food you have gathered from Hunted Animals is granted to you again (up to a maximum of 1500 resources)”
• Spice Trade (II): Replaced with TEAM Spice Trade (I)
• Adoption (III): Effect tweaked to “Arrives fast! Villagers train +25% faster and grant +250% more XP when trained.”
• 15 Bison (II): Now Ships 13
• INF 15 Bison (IV): Now Ships 13
• [NEW] Camp Movements (II): “Ships 2 War Hut Travois. Improves construction speeds and enables most Lakota buildings to be deconstructed into Travois so they may be built elsewhere.”
• Friendly Territory (II): Moved to age 1; Effect updated to “Teepees gain significantly more hitpoints and now also improve the attack speed of nearby units.” (+200% hitpoints and +10% attack speed)
• Nomadic Expansion (I): Moved to Age 3; Effect updated to “Enables Lakota Infantry to construct Teepees. Nearby Teepees also boost Military Building training speeds.” (they work twice as fast)
• Riding School (II): Removed (Note: The Horsemanship Big Button now also improves Cavalry trainspeed)
• Wind Runners (II): Moved to Age 4
• Mustangs (III): Is now a team card; Cavalry & shock infantry cost improvement reduced to 10% (down from 15%)
• [NEW] Territorial Claims (II): “Enables Cetan Bowmen to siege buildings from a long-range with their arrows and significantly improves War Clubman siege damage.”
• [NEW] Akichita (IV): “Significantly increases the hitpoints of all Lakota Warriors, but reduces their damage against Villagers.” (+20%)
• Cavalry Hitpoints (II): Removed
• 6 Cetan Bowmen (II): Increased to 7
• TEAM Conestoga Wagons (IV): Now also increases Town Center Build Limit by +1 (impacts all civs with access to this card)
• Uprising (IV): Now also activates the Elite and Champion upgrades for the 7 Cetan Bowman, Club Warriors and Wakina Rifleman delivered

TECHNOLOGIES

• [NEW] Lakota Lands (Teepee Big Button): “Teepees now cast their benefits over a much wider area and will also improve unit movement speed.”
• [NEW] Gun Running (Embassy Big Button): “Enables your Native Embassy to recruit sinister Outlaws and powerful Captured Mortars.”
• Cooperation (Tribal Marketplace Big Button): Cost reduced to 200f 200w (from 600f 600w); XP trickle provided to working Villagers reduced to 0.03 (from 0.10)
• [NEW] Fur Dressing (Market Tech, 75f 125w): “Villagers gather Coin from Tribal Marketplaces faster.”
• Bonepipe Armor (Corral Big Button): Effect updated to “Traditional armor enables your Lakota Warriors to be more resistant to siege-type damage (inflicted by units such as Artillery).” (Adds 5%)
• Battle Anger (Community Plaza Big Button): Effect updated to “Lakota Cavalry now inflict greatly increased damage to Artillery, especially your War Chief!” (Note: This combines the previous effects of both Battle Anger and Bonepipe Armor into one)
• Horsemanship (Farm Big Button): Effect updated to “Lakota horsemanship enables Cavalry to train faster and inflict increased damage to Walls.”
• Lakota Tokala Soldiers (Town Center Big Button): Cost increased to 2000 food (from 1500)
• Cooperation big button now reduces the cost of all cards with a Coin cost

General

UNITS AND BUILDINGS

• Arsonist: Costs changed to 250c (down from 300c) and 3 population (up from 2); all attacks now inflict siege damage as well as burning damage over time
• Napoleon Gun: Now costs 4 population (down from 5); Increased speed from 3.25 to 3.75
• Royal Horseman: Costs changed to 400c (down from 500c) and 4 population (down from 5); Ranged armor increased to 30% (from 20%); Stampede Attack damage increased to 7 (from 5)
• Navajo Rifleman: Reverted its stats to those is had in legacy AoE3, but now has 16 range (up from 12).
• Royal Arquebusier (Vasa Royal House): Now benefits from Valor Promotions from which they receive additional hitpoints and damage.
• War Elephant: This unit is now available to the Bhakti minor civilization.
• Stable Wagon: This unit is now available to the Bhakti minor civilization.
• [NEW] Qizilbash (Sufi): Can now construct a Hospital for the Maltese civilization.
  • “It is available in the Commerce Age to anyone who has built a Trading Post at the Sufi Mosque. Armed with a lance and a bow this unit acts like a lancer with an additional ranged attack. The lance of the Qizilbash has increased range and will automatically be used if an enemy unit is close enough. The melee attack inflicts bonus damage against infantry. Although the bow attack does not share this bonus, it enables the Qizilbash to perform hit-and-run tactics.”

TECHNOLOGIES

• INF 1 Battleship: This card has been added to all European Home cities!
• Cards which reduce the cost of Trading Posts: Now also reduces the cost of Alliances as well as Trading Posts.
• Advanced Trading Post (I): Cost improvement reduced to 35% (from 40%); ranged attack enabled now inflicts 20 damage (down from 25).
• TEAM Cheap Outposts: This card available to the Portuguese and Haudenosaunee is now called TEAM Natural Lookouts.

CARDS

• Royal Saxon Grenadiers (Wettin Royal House): Now also delivers 1 Giant Grenadier upon complete research

British

UNITS AND BUILDINGS

• Ranger: Increased armor from 30% to 35%

TECHNOLOGIES

• Roger’s Rangers II: The second instance of the Roger’s Rangers Church technology now sends 30 Veteran Rangers instead of 26 Guard Skirmishers; has been renamed to Queen’s Rangers.

CARDS

• INF 8 Rangers (III): The icon of this infinite card now displays the proper purple border
• [NEW] Ranger Combat: Replaces the Siege Archery card in the deck when Roger’s Rangers has been researched; improves Ranger hitpoints and damage by +15%
• [NEW] Baker Rifles: Replaces the Yeomen card in the deck when Roger’s Rangers has been researched; keeps the original effect of Yeomen and applies it to Rangers

Dutch

UNITS AND BUILDINGS

• Envoy: Now benefits from villager upgrades.

Inca

UNITS AND BUILDINGS

• Huaraca: Ranged attack damage reduced to 20 (from 40); now inflicts 2x against Infantry

TECHNOLOGIES

• Hualcana (Big Button): Now grants +5% additional Armor (down from +10%).

CARDS

• Huanka Support: Cost increased to 500 (from 250).
• Renegade Spanish: Both cards can now be sent twice like in the Aztec home city.

Italians

CARDS

Roman Tactics (Card, IV)	“Improves Pikeman, Halberdier and Pavisier hitpoints. Enables a damage boost when they fight in groups.”  Pikeman and Halberdier hitpoints +15%. Pavisier Hitpoints +30%. All three units gain a damage boost if any others are nearby, which automatically improves in the Imperial Age.
Redshirts (Card, IV)	“Improves the damage of all Italian musket and rifle infantry.”  Musketeer, Bersagliere, Papal Zouave, Schiavone receive +15% damage.

Japanese

CARDS

• TEAM Pioneers: This card has been renamed to TEAM Jujutsu and now also increases the damage of all fist-fighting units (+20% for Surgeons, Priests, Envoys, Native Scouts, Architects; +10% for Disciples and Shaolin Master); the icon has also been updated.

Mexicans

CARDS

• Naval Gunners: Removed.

Portuguese

The following two cards have been renamed:

CARDS

• TEAM Order of Aviz (formerly TEAM Early Dragoons) → TEAM House of Aviz.
• Genitours → Order of Aviz.

United States

CARDS

• European Cannons: Added.
• Oklahoma Black Mesa: Reduced card cost to 500 wood (from 1000 wood); moved to Age 3.

Map Updates

• Added a new random map set:
  • Hybrid Maps: Randomly selects from among all Hybrid maps that are a mix of land and water maps, among both competitive and casual sets.
• Treaty Maps Set:
  • All treaty maps that had berries (i.e. Alps, Deccan, Darfur, etc) no longer spawn with berries around the starting Town Center. The Japanese civilization will now begin with two Cherry Orchard Rickshaws on these maps accordingly.
• Standard Maps Set:
  • Added Central Asia
  • Added Siberia
  • Removed Bohemia
  • Removed Cascade Range
  • Removed Central Plain
  • Removed Finland
  • Removed France
  • Removed Hokkaido
  • Removed Minas Gerais
  • Removed New England
  • Removed Pampas Sierras
  • Removed Pepper Coast
  • Removed Pripet Marshes
  • Removed Wallachia
• Team Maps Set:
  • Added Karelian Lakes
  • Added Rhine
  • Removed Baltic Sea
  • Removed Bohemia
  • Removed Colorado
  • Removed Danish Strait
  • Removed Dnieper Basin
  • Removed England
  • Removed France
  • Removed Great Rift
  • Removed Ireland
  • Removed Lake Chad
  • Removed Low Countries
  • Removed Scotland
  • Removed Siwa Oasis
  • Removed Spain
  • Removed Tassili
  • Removed Trans-Saharan Routes

Map Changes

• Alps:
  • Made mountain passes slightly wider.
• Arabia:
  • Replaced the Desert Warrior outlaw with the Desert Raider outlaw.
• Atlas:
  • Replaced the Desert Archer outlaw with the Corsair Marksman outlaw.
  • Fixed an issue where sometimes settlements and trade sockets would spawn outside one team’s treaty build radius.
• Dakota:
  • Replaced the Pirate outlaw with the Pistolero outlaw.
• Deccan:
  • Made the map slightly larger in treaty games.
• Dunes:
  • Replaced the Desert Archer outlaw with the Desert Raider outlaw.
• Eurasian Steppe:
  • Added the minor civilization Tengri.
  • Fixed an issue where the Indians civilization didn’t start with enough wood to start their first Town.
• France:
  • Teammates now spawn closer together in 2v2 games.
• Guianas:
  • Made the map slightly larger in treaty games.
• Kamchatka:
  • Replaced the Marathan Dacoit outlaw with the Blind Monk outlaw.
• Manchuria:
  • Replaced the Zen Temple with the Tengri Shrine.
• Mongolia:
  • Replaced the Wokou Ronin outlaw with the Blind Monk outlaw.
  • Replaced the minor civilization Sufi with Tengri.
• Niger River:
  • Replaced the Desert Warrior outlaw with the Desert Raider outlaw.
• Nile Valley:
  • Replaced the Desert Archer outlaw with the Corsair Marksman outlaw.
• Pyrenees:
  • Added some additional huntable animals to the map.
• Saharan Routes:
  • All African outlaws are now possible.
• Savanna:
  • Replaced the Desert Warrior outlaw with the Desert Raider outlaw.
• Siberia:
  • Replaced the Wokou Ronin outlaw with the Blind Monk outlaw.
  • Added the minor civilization Tengri.
• Silk Road:
  • Added the minor civilization Tengri.
• Siwa Oasis:
  • Replaced the Desert Archer outlaw with the Corsair Marksman outlaw.
• Tripolitania:
  • Replaced the Desert Archer outlaw with the Corsair Marksman outlaw.
• Unknown:
  • Added new starting scouts, technologies, map layouts, and more! As always, they’re yours to discover.

General

• Fixed an issue where a mod would be downloaded to an incorrect folder path if the user folder contains a non-ASCII character.
• Fixed an issue where publishing a mod would fail if the user folder contains a non-ASCII character.
• Fixed an issue where mod thumbnails would not show when the user folder contains a non-ASCII character.