Campaign
While I think you can make a 5 scenario campaign for the Haudenosaunee with the Great Law of Peace.
I, scenario about how it was before the ConfederacyII, Convince Mohawk and Oneida to help you
III, Convince Cayuga and Seneca to join you
IV, Convince Onondaga
V, Show now with the Confederacy that working together is better than alone
However I can not think of a good 5 scenario campaign for the Algonquian.
Unfortunately we don’t know enough details.
But what we do know is that the Iroquois and Algonquian often waged war like in every human society. Warfare played, like always a multifaceted role. Some conflicts were waged for economic and political goals, such as gaining access to resources or territory, like the vital access of the Saint Lawrence River.
Exacting tribute from another nation or controlling trade routes was also important.
Revenge was a consistent motivating factor across North America, a factor that could lead to recurrent cycles of violence, often low intensity, which could last generations.
They often move their troops at night to avoid detection. And did naval landings around the Great Lakes.
On a personal level warfare was beside hunting the best place to show your courage to your fellow people.
For a general overview I recommend to read this.
Other sources
Native American’s Brilliant Warfare Tactics. It was a lot more than bows and arrows.
Reddit - Siege warfare in precolombus Americas
Iroquois Assault Tactics Used against Fortified Settlements (first part is precolonial)
Iroquois Warfare Natural or Forced Progression? Studying the impact of pre contact and post contact.
17 century source but I guess canoe building did probably not change that much.
With that information we can piece together a plausible historic scenarios.
So I suggest to combine the potential campaigns in a 6 scenario campaign were you play 3 times with Iroquois and 3 times with Algonquian.
Forsake of consistency, flow and strength of the narrative of the campaign, we take the earlier possible date for the forming of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy (the 1142 CE date instead of the 1451 date).
This podcast episode talk about the dating of the Peacemaker story and the merits of the 1142 date.
Peace and War
The Iroquois and Algonquian campaign
The campaign narration is set somewhere before 1350.
The narrator is a Mohawk captive/ adoptee in an Algonquian village.
The narrator talk about how his new Algonquian adoptive family brag/talk the last season raid where he was captured.
Scenario I, Night Raids,
Playing as the Algonquians, start in Feudal Age, limited to Castle age.
In game, we use the Day and Night cycle mechanic, during the day you control your town. You need to build an army and put them in a transport ship to bring them across the river. There you lose control over them. During the night you lose control of your town but gain control of your soldiers across the river.
So long it is night you need to raid enemy towns for extra resources but before the night is over you need to bring your soldiers back to a safe place or they will be lost.
You need to strike a balance to bring warriors across the river for night time raids and keep soldiers at home for daylight raids on your own town.
To win the scenario you need to have plundered X amount of resources, or capture a well guarded town or bring a relic home.
In the epilogue the Mohawk mention that the raid was a great feat but they would not have a chance if they would be against the full strength of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.
The Algonquian ask to hear about the founding of the Confederacy and the Great Law of Peace. The narrator gladly want to talk about it.
The following two scenarios are about founding of the Five Nations Confederacy and the Great Law of Peace I have mostly inspired by this podcast episode
I recommend to listen to it or a different retelling of the founding of the Haudenosaunee.
Scenario II, The Prophet
Playing as the Iroquois, start in Feudal Age. Can go to the Imperial Age.
The narrator talks about the first part of the story of Peacemaker Dekanawidah, Hiawatha and Jigonhsasee.
It is important to know where the nations live.
This is a bit like the first Genghis Khan scenario where you need to help/convince other player.
You can create extra units but the population limit is low, with gaining towns it will be more.
The Hero unit Hiawatha, as a Tomahawk Warrior. Monk unit Dekanawidah meet the woman Jigonhsasee. After a short conversation/task she will help you in your quest. She will not fight but can heal/boost your troops. Your goal is to convince Mohawk and Oneida, travel around Onondagaand and then convince Cayuga and Seneca to join you for the Great Law of Peace.
For the Mohawk you have the task to help in their deer hunt.
In the forest the Mohawk have build a V shaped wall and you need to slowly “push” the deer down into the V shaped funnel. At the smallest point Mohawk hunters are ready and it is like shooting “fish in a barrel.”
If you fail the hunt, kill the deer yourself or let them escape, or you don’t want to do it. Tribute 1000 food to the Mohawk.
After that Mohawk join you and you get control of their town.
Oneida want to fish in peace and you need to drive away the Algonquians away from the lake coast.
After that Oneida join you and you get control of their town.
Tadodaho and his Onondagaand will not yet listen to you so you need to travel around them without attacking them. Killing too many of the Onondagaand units will make you lose the game because if Tadodaho lose so many men he don’t want to talk to you any more.
To convince Cayuga and Seneca you need to attack a Mississippian town in the south to open a trade route. The other task is to show you are a great hunter of dangerous animals. Kill Ornlu the Wolf, a Mother Bear, and a Ferocious Mountain Lion. (I wish Iron Boar as well but boars does not life there…)
After you done the quest of that nation, the nation town will be under your control. When all four as joined you you are ready to confront Onondagaand and win this Scenario.
Scenario III, Great Law of Peace
Playing as the Iroquois, start in Castle age.
You are ready to confront Onondagaand and Tadodaho himself. But he still not let you in his town, if enough of his people are on your side he might want to talk: convert X amount of Onondagaand units.
After that you can enter his town. Tadodaho “Bodyguards” are unconverteble. Convert Tadodaho himself to win the scenario. When Tadodaho is converted the day will turn to night to symbolize the solar eclipse.
If X amount of Onondagaand units are killed instead of converted you lose the scenario.
(I wanted a scenario that lean in the Iroquois monk bonuses, however this scenario can be easily fold into Scenario II, The Prophet.)
Scenario IV, the Five Nations.
Playing as the Iroquois, start in Castle age.
Working together is better then alone. Here has the narrator a moment to brag towards his new adoptive family about the successes of the Haudenosaunee teaming up.
You start in the middle of the map, Onondagaand territory. To win you need to have 5 relics.
Your Villagers can not build new (production) buildings until unlocked. The Onondagaand town lack Archer Range, Dock, University, Barrack, Siege Workshop, Castle and Blacksmith. But you start with your starting force and Monastery.
Mohawk, Oneida, Cayuga and Seneca are your ally. You need to bring a relic to their Monastery, you get control of their town and their buildings are unlocked for your villagers. (Only thing that does not convert is their Monastery and Market)
The Mohawk got the Archer Range and Blacksmith
The Oneida got the Dock and University
The Cayuga got the Barrack and Blacksmith
The Seneca got the Siege Workshop and Castle
The relics are in control of Algonquians, Mississippian and Huron (Iroquois) towns.
Scenario V, Control of the Land,
Playing as the Algonquians, start in Castle age.
The narrator has spent most of the year with in the Algonquian and witness the next season hunt/war.
In this scenario you fight for the vital access of the Saint Lawrence River and the best hunting grounds, fishing spot and trade routes.
In order to do that you need to build towers at the key spots and protect them, your enemies do the same. You need to have X amount of map control in order to win.
Scenario VI, Strangers on the Coast,
Playing as the Algonquians, start in Castle age.
“They are back! The Strangers are back!” the narrator was about to tell a different story when they get interrupted by current events. Everybody rush outside!
Of course I want to pit the Algonquians against the Vikings. I inspired this on a report from the Iceland that casually mention that the Greenland colony went to “Markland” for wood around the year 1347.
The battle here in game is of course bigger than it would have been in real life. But fun gameplay is more important for things like this.
The map will roughly look like this part of Canada
On different places along the coast Viking settlements are present and they working hard to cut the forest, pick berries and hunt deer.
Destroy the Lumbercamps, Trade Workshops and Town Centers to make that settlement leave.
It is a race against the clock, if the Vikings are able to gather X amount of wood you lose.
A secondary objective is stealing the “strange deer” that the Vikings are sitting on top of.
That is a possibility to get the Kanya Horseman.
In the Epilogue the Mohawk narrator mention that he slip away and has escaped from his adoptive family in the confusion and don’t know what happened to his Algonquian host or the strangers at the coast but he will have a lot of new stories to tell when he is back at his clan.
For more information about “Vikings” in North America I recommend these two videos
History With Hilbert
Atun-Shei
I have read people who suggested to have a Samuel de Champlain campaign but I would not like that in AOE II, I don’t want to have Paladins and Throwing Axemen in my historic North America campaign. AoE III is the better game to tell that story.
I don’t mind to have Spain or Portugal early colonial stories because their design lean into that time frame.
If we ever get more single Historic Battle scenarios and we need something from every continent.
The North American Historic Battle could be about Crow Creek
More information.
A Caddoan (Mississippian) settlement get attacked by an Iroquois group, around the year 1325 CE
Conclusion
The three major types of weapons used in pre Columbian North American were the war club, tomahawk and the bow. Those archetypes are used now in my three North American civ designs with the Mississippian Atassa Warrior, Iroquois Tomahawk Warrior and the Algonquian Mi’kmaq Hunter.
Also all Castel Age Unique technologies benefits Skirmisher just like the existing American civ. On top of that, my Castel Age UT are named after games they played what is often used for training for war.
The theming of that is something I quite like and proud of.
In the end I am just a European with access to freely available online sources. I hope I did the cultures justice.
I would love to see the Mississippian, Iroquois and the Algonquian in game, however I don’t see it as a high priority. First I would like to see every civilization that does not yet have a Campaign have a cool DLC.
After that is done I see room for DLC like this. I would love to see a second Spanish Campaign, De Soto is one of the most diverse conquistador story to tell. The Mississippian are a fascinating and I love them more and more as I learn more about them. Knowing that Algonquian met the Vikings is such a bizarre moment in history. And the Haudenosaunee has such an unique and interesting history with one of the oldest continuing democracy.
I have always seen Age of Empires as a game about world history, it would be a shame that this fascinating part of the world is not shown.
I also know about the dislike to add Native Americans in a medieval game. And also that a DLC like this need to have a lot of new assets. Not getting a new architecture set in the Mountain Royals DLC my hope for so many new assets is very low. So my hope of a DLC like this as well unfortunately…