Fast Imperial · Horsemen — English AoE4
Farms from the first second (0:00–4:10)
Age up at 2:30 with 2 Farms and a Mill already placed: the food never runs out, and the straggler trees give the 30 wood needed.
- 0:00 — 3 villagers on the straggler trees for a single drop (30 wood), 2 build a Mill and 2 Farms, 1 on sheep.
- 0:05 — Rally on gold: House, then Mining Camp, until 2 on gold.
- 0:26 — After the 30 wood drop, the 3 tree villagers go to sheep.
- 0:45 — Rally on sheep: 10 on food in total.
- 2:05 — Rally 3 villagers on the straggler trees you started, then on the main wood line.
- 2:30 — 2 gold villagers and 2 sheep villagers build the Age II landmark, then return to gold.
- 2:35 — 4 sheep villagers to wood.
- 2:50 — 2 sheep villagers build a Farm as soon as the 37 wood is in.
- 3:05 — Rally on sheep until 14 on food; Lumber Camp at 3:10.
Horsemen on the map (4:10–9:20)
Start raiding with the King and Horsemen from 5:00, train up to 5 Horsemen, build 8 Farms around the Mill, and start the Age III landmark at 8:30 with 14 food villagers.
- 4:10 — Age II: the 4 builders put up a Stable.
- 4:20 — A House.
- 4:25 — Horsemen, up to 5. The wood villagers build the remaining 4 Farms around the Mill: 8 in total.
- 5:00 — Start raiding with the King and the Horsemen.
- 5:05 — Rally 1 villager on gold: 5 on gold.
- 5:25 — Rally on wood; keep adding Farms with wood villagers until the age-up.
- 8:30 — 14 food villagers (6 from sheep, 8 from Farms) build the Age III landmark: King's Palace. Keep 8 on Farms while aging up.
- 8:45 — Rally on gold until 10 on gold. At 9:05, add a second Stable if you chose King's Palace, and research Horticulture.
Fifteen Horsemen, forty Farms (9:20–15:30)
Raid with 15 Veteran Horsemen while 5 packs of Farms (40) and a Market pay to start aging up to Imperial at 14:30.
- 9:20 — Age III: 8 builders to Farms, 6 to sheep. Veteran Horsemen right away; raid and distract with them. Remake the King if he died.
- 9:45 — Rally on wood. Wheelbarrow, then Double Broadax.
- 10:30 — Horsemen up to 15: raids and isolated units. A Barracks for infantry at home: Man-at-Arms against Spearmen, Spearmen against Knights.
- 12:00 — Farms up to 5 full packs (40), then rally on wood and keep adding Farms and production: 2 Barracks, 2 Stables (The White Tower would count as 2).
- 14:30 — Age IV landmark. Build a Market and sell food: the gold speeds up the upgrades.
Upgrades, then the slow push (15:30)
Enclosures, Blacksmith and University upgrades, then push slowly behind Outposts and Keeps. Long-term economy target: 64 food, 30 wood, 15 gold, 5 stone.
- 15:30 — Enclosures immediately. Blacksmith upgrades, Lumber Preservation, Fertilization. Elite Man-at-Arms and Horsemen first, Armor Clad.
- 16:30 — University: Elite Army Tactics, Incendiary Arrows, Silk Bowstrings, Siege Works, Court Architects. Research Network of Citadels at a Keep, The White Tower or the Berkshire Palace. Target: 10 Barracks, 5 Archery Ranges, 5 Stables, 3 Siege Workshops.
- 18:00 — Push slowly with Outposts and Keeps creeping towards the enemy base: the army always fights with the attack speed bonus. Trebuchets against Keeps and Stone Walls.
Tips
- The Horsemen are there to distract, not to win fights: raid villagers and kill isolated units, run from everything else.
- After Incendiary Arrows and Silk Bowstrings, Longbowmen and each Wynguard Ranger counter siege, even Mangonels, and hold against cavalry. Research Arrow Volley at an Archery Range too.
- Hard build: everything rests on constant Farm building and a Market used at the right time.
- Research Network of Citadels at a Keep, The White Tower or the Berkshire Palace: the whole push benefits from it.
Source: AoE4 Guides