Feudal pressure · Taxes — Chinese AoE4
Mill, gold and Imperial Academy (0:00–3:12)
Reach Age II at 3:12 with 15 villagers: the Mill from the first second, 2 villagers on gold, then the Imperial Academy built by 5 villagers at 2:15.
- 0:00 — All 6 villagers build a Mill together toward the woodline, leaving room for a Lumber Camp and the Imperial Academy.
- 0:20 — The 2 new villagers go to gold.
- 1:00 — Rally on food until the age-up.
- 2:15 — Age up: 5 villagers build the Imperial Academy, facing the wood and the Mill.
- 2:20 — During construction, the 2 miners collect 35 gold, the gold cost of an Imperial Official from the Imperial Academy, then move to wood. Rally on sheep until 7 villagers, then on wood. Put down a Village, then a Lumber Camp.
Imperial Officials and Scouts (3:12)
Bring out the Imperial Officials (Mill, Lumber Camp), keep 10 to 11 villagers on wood, then start Professional Scouts and the Stable at 6:50 to pressure the opponent while hunting deer.
- 3:12 — Age II: queue Imperial Officials, up to 4; they supervise the Mill and the Lumber Camp.
- 3:45 — A Village.
- 4:00 — The second Imperial Official comes out: a Lumber Camp.
- 4:20 — Queue the third Imperial Official and spend the wood on an Archery Range, Barracks or Stable depending on need. Rally on food again.
- 6:50 — Professional Scouts, and a Stable with 4 Scouts to hunt deer. A Blacksmith for upgrades.
- 7:00 — After that, macro to the situation; keep collecting taxes until you can pay for Professional Scouts, then Scouts take the deer while you pressure the opponent.
Tips
- Everything rests on taxes: the Imperial Officials supervise the Mill and the Lumber Camp, and the Imperial Academy must be able to influence both.
- Set the Scouts’ deer drop-off to the Mill.
- Once Professional Scouts is done, don’t forget Imperial Examinations: it is researched in the Imperial Academy.
- Variant (nini): the Imperial Academy at 2:25 with 2 villagers, Age II at 3:40; Imperial Officials at 3:40, 4:15 and 4:55; Professional Scouts at 5:10.
- Variant (Valdemar, “Fast Pro Scouts (2026)”): a Stable at 4:45, supervised for 3–5 Scouts; Professional Scouts and military production buildings at 5:30. Decide on the Song Dynasty if Age II lasts, or add it after collecting relics.
Source: AoE4 Guides