Playing as the Mongols in Age of Empires 4 is decidedly different than most civilizations fans have seen in the series. Their high mobility and lower need for Villagers will be confusing for those who are used to more traditional factions. Still, they can be devastating in the right hands. Here are some strategies and tips to help players win with the Mongols in Age of Empires 4.
Check out our guides to playing as other Age of Empires 4 civilizations here:
How to win playing as the Mongols in Age of Empires 4
The key to winning as the Mongols in Age of Empires 4 is to take advantage of their agility from the onset of a match. Building placement is also critical, as is raiding.
The Mongols start with max population, but the trade-off is that they don’t have access to farms. Their villagers also can’t mine stone. So instead, Mongol players must build the unique Ovoo building on top of stone to gather it. The upside to this is that the Ovoo provides double unit production and increased research speed to any building in its influence area.
The Mongols also have a unique ability that should not be overlooked. They can pack up their builds and redeploy them anywhere. Using this ability is essential to getting the most out of the Mongols, and players should never get too comfortable in one place.
The first thing a player should do as the Mongols is to send a scout to find stone. Once it’s found, players should immediately relocate their Town Center nearby and build an Ovoo on top of it. After that, produce Villagers and gather resources and build a Stable. Mongols get early cavalry, so players should start churning them out in preparation to raid.
While Villagers gather the resources needed to proceed to Age 2, Mongol players in Age of Empires 4 should use their early cavalry in hit and fade attacks against their opponents. For each building the Mongols ignite, they get +50 food and gold, which can add up quickly.
Once the Mongols reach Age 2, they’ll get the Pasture which serves as a pseudo-replacement for farms. This will help stabilize a players’ food supply and make them less dependent on foraging.
As the match goes on, players should continue moving their settlement as needed. When the Ovoo depletes its stone supply, it’s time to uproot and move on. By the time Age 3 comes around, Mongol players should begin thinking about the endgame. Cavalry, including the Khan unit, should remain the focus of a Mongol army.
The key to victory while playing as the Mongols is knowing the right time to make that big strike. Late-game units can be highly lethal to cavalry, so waiting too long to launch an invasion can lead to the Mongols getting crushed. However, striking too early means going in without valuable units and upgrades.
