Arsenal Return? (Hint!)

Arsenal Return? (Hint!!!)



In at least one level of the campaign, the armory appears to be an enemy building.

Is it decorative? Is there a goal in the campaign? Or are they planning to use this building again?

What do you think? This is related to past news when the devs says that they were preparing new type of buildings?


Arsenal (AoE IV Season Beta)

When the game was in Beta, there were several ideas that didn’t survive its release. Many of them are still preserved in the first four campaigns, including:

  • Some unique technologies in the Keep, similar to AoE II, but for your unique units.

  • Ranged units attacked melee units up close.

  • Crossbowmen had a very slow firing rate, but a devastating attack.

  • Arsenal and Blacksmith worked together.

Arsenal and Blacksmith.-** Arsenal was for ranged, siege, and building technologies. Smithing was for melee units, including melee damage and melee armor, and unique technologies for melee units. Castle was for unique technologies for unique units.

IT WAS VERY CONFUSING, and in fact, Blacksmith was of little use, as the four technologies (for infantry and cavalry) it was supposed to have were discarded and better versions were moved to the University. That’s why it was discarded, leaving only the better-designed blacksmith. Building technologies were moved to the Castle. Unique unit technologies were moved to the same military buildings where they are produced.


Arcanal? What do you think this building does?

It’s likely just for the historical battles just like with the regular campaign.

New building for upgrades?

If I’m optimistic, I suggested in another post a while back that the number of base technologies for the six base units (Spearman, Knight, Archer, Crossbowman, Horseman, Men-at-arm) could be increased.

The problem is that the blacksmithing has limited slots (it has six empty ones left), and if a civ has two or three unique blacksmithing technologies, my idea is out the window.

On the other hand, if the arsenal is revived to include technologies that support the game’s base units, or specific units (Spearman, Archer, etc.) instead of general ones (Cavalry, Infantry, Ranged), it could work well.

Among some of them is the possibility of having Pikemen and Arquebusiers in the Imperial Age.

My original post was here:

[New IDEA] Arsenal Revival with 7 New Technologies!


Eyecandy for campaign

Well, the other possibility is that it’s a campaign building to “take advantage” of the Abbasid arsenal model that never saw the light of day (because the Abbasids didn’t appear in the first campaigns).

If so, they’ll use the building a lot going forward, like the AoE2 Trade Workshop, which was originally going to function as a building for a fifth trade resource, something like a crafting workshop, raw materials for trade. Still, they use it in the campaign several times, as a special market, an inn, or many extra things; and you have to admit, it has a nice design.

They’d have to make these buildings for the new civilizations, which they haven’t as of yet. Seeing as they’re struggling to make any new buildings for suppousedly new content (DLC variants), I’d be extremely surprised at them doing this just to reintroduce a mechanic they gave up on in the past.

Ah, I didn’t know the arsenal was only for the campaign… :smiley:

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