Hello everyone,
For as much talk about the Tatars as there has been since game launch, I am surprised that nobody has yet undertaken a comprehensive proposal for a Tatar civilization. I wanted to attempt an undertaking to design a Tatar civilization for AoE3: DE.
Historical Background:
The Tatar civilization encompasses the collection of post-Mongol successor states spanning from the Crimean Khanate north of the Black Sea; the Central Asian Khanates of the Uzbeks, Kazakhs, Kiva and Bukhara; through to the Dzungar Khanate of western China.
The conquests of Genghis Khan in the thirteenth century profoundly transformed the political landscape of much of Asia, from China, through the Middle East, and northwards in Russia and Ukraine. Although the lifespan of the great Mongol Empire of Genghis Khan was relatively short-lived, the legacy of his conquests lived on in the litany of successor states found across much of the Khan’s former territories, which were feared and powerful fiefdoms in their own right; the rulers of these successor states came to be referred to in European literature as the Tatars.
Perhaps the most fearsome of these Tatar conquerors was that of Tamerlane, whose empire cut a fiery swath across Persia, down to India, and westwards to the Mediterranean, even almost bringing the rising Ottoman Empire to its knees! One of Tamerlane’s descendants, Babur, eventually went on to found the Mughal Dynasty in India.
The Tatar Khans held particular sway over the region of modern Russia and Ukraine, where the realms of the Golden Horde, Crimean Khanate, and Khanate of Kazan controlled much of the economic and political life in the region. However, the stranglehold over the peoples of eastern Europe began to loosen as realms such as the Grand Duchy of Muscovy, the future Russian Empire, began to exert more confidence against their Tatar overlords, and the Khanates promptly began to fall into decline. Muscovy managed to entirely conquer the Golden and Kazan Hordes before pushing eastwards across the Urals into Siberia. The Crimean Khanate turned increasingly towards the Ottoman Empire for support, reducing the Crimeans into puppets of the Sultan in Istanbul.
A major factor behind these setbacks was the comparative lack of military innovation among the Tatar realms: whereas the European, Chinese, and Persian powers enthusiastically adopted gunpowder weapons such as firearms and cannons, the hordes continued to cling to their ancient tactics of horse archers and massed cavalry charges, all of which made for easy targets to gunfire.
In 1873, the Russian Empire stamped out the last Tatar khanates of Bukhara and Kiva. Nonetheless, Tatar culture continues to live on in the form of the Central Asian republics, as well as among ethnic enclaves across Russia, Ukraine, and Lithuania.
Civilization Basics:
Regional Category - Central Asian (bundled with a hypothetical Persian civilization)
Architecture - Central Asian/Indian
Language(s): Chagatai, Crimean Tatar
- This can borrow voice lines from the Tatars and Cumans of AoE2: DE
Age-up System: Horde
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Proposed as a variant of the Dynasty system for Persians here, but the Dynasty system would function differently from Persia’s
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Horde: Based on a historical khanate or Tatar dynasty, they have scaling benefits by age similar to Alliances, Wonders, or the Tribal Council, as well as a military benefit; unit upgrades consequently improve unit stats less than other civilizations.
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Commerce Age:
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Timurids: Coin delivery, increased siege attack for all units
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Kazan: Additional sheep/goats/yaks, Foot and Mounted Archer attack
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Golden Horde: Wood delivery, Melee Cavalry Attack and Defense
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Yuan: Food, Coin, and Wood; improved infantry melee and defense
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Uzbeks: Building hit-points, research speed; modest attack and defense boost for Foot and Mounted Archers
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Fortress Age
- Crimean Khanate: Additional Villagers, access to Janissaries, later Bombard delivery
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Industrial Age:
- Mughals: Access to Elephants; Turcomans become boosted Zamburaks
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Imperial:
- Kiva: Productivity boost to villagers and TP’s; Musketmen are improved
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Civilization Type: Cavalry, Trade, Native Alliances
Hero: Khan
- Mounted hero armed with a bow and scimitar
- Abilities: Spotting Arrow (short range, temporary illumination of an area), sabre strike (area of effect attack)
Economic Bonuses: All trade posts generate an XP trickle, especially natives; trade-posts have 10% improved payout per delivery; Livestock fatten more quickly, but sedentary farming is less efficient
Buildings:
- Town Center
- Village
- Market
- Rice Paddy
- Mosque
- “Asian” Outpost (seen in some campaign levels, on the Siberia map
- Barracks: Archaic Infantry
- Gunsmith Workshop: Gunpowder and artillery units
- Stable
- Tea House: Tavern equivalent and up to three can ne built, earns more gold when close to TP’s
- Walls
Infantry Units:
- Seymen: Chainmail-wearing musketeer with no attack bonuses but a strong base attack, and resistance to melee
- Recurve Archer: Basic archer unit with a 1.0 rate of fire
- Tajik: Melee warrior that acts between a Pikeman and Rodelero, with speed approaching a Rodelero but siege and anti-cavalry attack closer to a Pike
Artillery:
- Bombard: Trainable in the Fortress Age from the Training Field, it is a decent but not great cannon unit
- Camel Gunner: Camel unit with a mounted cannon, able to damage to infantry and buildings from long range
Cavalry:
- Turcoman: Rapid-fire horse archer like a Tatar Archer
- Oglan: Hussar-type melee cavalry with high defense
- Cataphract/Baghatur: Lancer-type cavalry with a wind-up attack, like a mainline Bosniak
- Steppe Rider: From the Chinese Roster
- Steppe Ambusher: Sneaky Horse Archer which can stealth; initial attack from stealth has a bonus against Villagers (UP FOR CONSIDERATION)
Navy:
- Fishing Boat
- Galley
- Galleon (placeholder for a tanky transport)
- Dhow
Sample Cards:
- Kuraltai: You get an additional Khan per age up, with up to 5
- Ottoman Fealty: The Ottoman Sultan sends a battalion of 8 Janissaries; Janissaries recruitable from the Training Ground
- Kalmyk Invasion: Receive 10 renamed and boosted Keshiks; Keshiks replace Turcomans from the Stable
- Basmachi Rebellion: All villagers transform into Musketmen
- Caucasus Emirate: Receive 5 Mountaineers and a Hajji hero which boosts the combat stats of your Mountaineers (reference to Tolstoy’s Hajji Murat)
- Migration: All Tatar buildings can pack and relocate
- Timurid Scourge: Destroyed enemy buildings grant coin
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Feedback, additional ideas, and historical corrections are of course welcome!
