Despite their best efforts, Worlds Edge accidentally promoted AoE3 with their Louvre partnership showcasing the Mamelukes. In the video below, Adam is too busy doing damage control for the ahistorical AoE2 Mamelukes and nonexistent AoE4 Mamelukes to mention AoE3, but thankfully the historians work for the Louvre, not WE, and end up giving AoE3 a very favourable appraisal.
With this first promotion of AoE3 in years maybe it’s time to for WE to stop treating AoE3 like trash and acknowledge some of its strengths. The Mamelukes in particular, have so much more potential than just a single mercenary and barebones Egyptian revolution. The Arab world has immense potential, with powerful civilizations like the Egyptians, Moroccans, and Omanis, who rebuffed European conquerors and forged vast colonial empires.
I did most of this research before support got pulled so I’m a lot less optimistic of anything coming from it now, but if nothing else, hopefully this research helps some modding projects to realize faithfully realize an Egyptian civ. There’s a lot of overlap with other potential Arab civs, so I’ll probably post something similar about Morocco and Oman at some point.
Egyptian Civilization
Background
While Egypt was de jure Ottoman territory for much of the time period, it was almost always de facto independent and deserves to be a standalone civ. During the timeframe of AoE3, Egypt was ruled as the Mameluke Sultanate and Khedivate of Egypt, with the governance of both regimes dominated by Mamelukes even during Ottoman times. In this period, Egypt encompassed neighbouring areas in the Levant, Hejaz, and Sudan.
Unit Summary
Most of what I reasearched was focused on a potential unit roster which is summarized below.
| Archetype | Euro Equivalent | Egyptian Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Hero | Explorer | Emir |
| Militia | Militiaman | Bashibozuk |
| Anti-Cav Heavy Infantry | Pikeman | Fellahin |
| Melee Heavy Infantry | Halberdier | Tabardariyya |
| Ranged Heavy Infantry | Musketeer | Nizam Fusilier |
| Archaic Light Infantry | Crossbowman | Composite Bowman |
| Rifle Infantry | Skirmisher | Jihadiya |
| Heavy Cavalry | Hussar | Meharist |
| Elite Heavy Cavalry | Cuirassier | Mameluke |
| Light Cavalry | Dragoon | Halqah |
| Anti-Infantry Artillery | Falconet | Darbzen |
| Anti-Artillery Artillery | Culverin | Midfa |
| Siege Artillery | Mortar | Bombard |
| Siege Trooper | Grenadier | Naffatun |
| Iconic Mercenary | N/A | Gatling Camel |
Unique Units
| Mameluke |
|---|
Powerful age 3 heavy cavalry that are the core of the Egyptian army. The Louvre historians in the above video give a good overview of the early history, so watch that if you’re curious. In the AoE3 period, they lose some of their luster and get trounced by Napoleon, but they’re still a force to be reckoned with.
The obvious issue is while Mamelukes are an excellent fit for a mercenary, you really can’t have an Egyptian civ without this being the signature unit. So unfortunately they’d need to be removed from the mercenary pool and made into a standard unit with more reasonable stats. Balance wise, this probably doesn’t actually change much since there are now oodles of similar mercenary cavalry, and Ottomans are the only non-rev civ with cards for them and they still have Sipahis which are functionally similar.
| Halqah |
|---|
Strong age 3 cavalry archers. The Halqah made up the second tier of the professional soldiers in Mameluke armies behind the Mamelukes proper.
[1]
They would have fought in much the same fashion as the other Mameluke solders, but as the Louvre historians mentioned, the Mamelukes were known for their proficiency in mounted archery. The Halqah wing of the army would have been especially skilled in at mounted archery, because they included not just Mamelukes, but also Turko-Mongols (at least initially).
[2]
Even if that legacy did not carry over to the AoE3 timeframe, the role of Ḥalqah being a cavalry archer still make sense because as a second tier part of the army, a Halqah soldier could be demoted for not maintaining necessary skills like mounted archery, and would lose their position in the Halqah.
| Fellahin |
|---|
Versatile age 2 melee heavy infantry. Fellahin are peasant farmers who were raised as militias throughout the period. Given their agricultural line of work, their cost should be primarily food. Their armament would be an assortment of makeshift melee weapons:
[4]
Despite their primitive weapons, the above excerpt is describing forces facing Napoleon, so they should be upgradable into the Imperial age to serve as the backbone of the infantry in both the early and late game. Fellahin preserved the pre-Arab Egyptian culture and language so giving them Coptic voice lines instead of Arabic would be a nice detail.
| Tabardariyya |
|---|
Elite age 3 melee heavy infantry. The Mamelukes generally distained the infantry and only fought as cavalry. Tabardariyya however, were the exception to this as they served as axe wielding elite bodyguards and would need to accompany the sultan where cavalry could not go. They should be expensive and tanky to make them useful for screening high value units. The deflection ability would also make sense as they are based on bodyguards.
[5]
| Gatling Camel |
|---|
These obviously shouldn’t be a standard unit, but Egypt should definitely have reliable access to cards that ship them.
Shared Units (non-Arab units)
| Nizam Fusilier |
|---|
Powerful age 4 musketeer shared with the Ottoman civ. Military reforms were a major part of Muhammed Ali’s push to modernize Egypt. These reforms emulated the Nizam-i Cedid system implemented in other Ottoman realms, so they could use the same unit. Having a later musketeer unit with limited availability would also leave room for the 2 other suggested heavy infantry units to not get crowded out.
[6]
| Jihadiya |
|---|
Age 3 rifle infantry that could be shared with a Sudanese civ. The Gihadiya was a regiment made up of captured Nubians from the conquest of Sudan. Enslaving people into the army was actually one of the primary reasons for invading Sudan in the first place as Muhamad Ali saw it as a source of manpower. Ultimately, it wasn’t as successful as hoped for due to the comically evil implementation of trying to whip discipline into the soldiers and the harsh environment they endured on the journey to Egypt leading to the many dying during transit and training.
Details on how the Jihadiya functioned in the Egyptian army are sparse, but there are a lot more helpful accounts in descriptions of Mahdist Sudanese troops. In the Mahdist accounts Jihadiya are described as riflemen, and it is mentioned that most received their training while in the service of the Egyptian Army.
| Bashibozuk |
|---|
Since Egypt was under Ottoman control for a long time, it makes sense to share Bashibozuks as the militia unit. Bashibozuk rebellions also contributed to weakening Ottoman control over Egypt.
Shared Units (Common to Arab civs of Egypt, Oman, and Morocco)
| Emir |
|---|
This common term for Muslim rulers would be appropriate for the hero for all Arab civs and would be consistent with the Hausa hero. Being mounted on a camel and having the chaos ability would work well for Arab civs which could include a mix of African and Euro elements. An alternative hero name could be Sultan (like the existing Berber Sultan), but since heroes are generally named after minor elites, I think Emir is slightly more appropriate.
Leaders of the Egyptian expeditions/occupations of Sudan were called Kashifs so that could be the name of a card or upgrade for them.
| Composite Bowman |
|---|
Age 2 archaic light infantry. This is unit is named so vaguely it could be used for far more than just Arab civs, but they make up probably the biggest block of civs that would have a generic unit with a shared appearance so it works here. Arab composite bows have a long history, so they work well for any Arab civ. It could also work for central Asian civs such as Uzbeks or Kazakhs. For the central Asian civs that may not have a more advanced rifle unit, a Majra tech/card could function equivalently to Steel Bolts.
| Meharist |
|---|
Age 2 melee heavy cavalry mounted on a camel. Obviously everyone is going to demand a camelry unit be part of Arab civs, and this would fill that role. Meharist is a French term, but it’s derived from the Mehri camels that gained renown in the Islamic conquests, so it works for the Arab equivalent of Hussars.
| Naffatun |
|---|
Age 2 grenadier equivalent that throws incendiaries.
[8]
Just like Maltese Fire Throwers, they were armed with jars of naphtha to start their enemies ablaze, so their function should be very similar. Naft can also refer to gunpowder as well as naphtha, so their grenades can be both explosive and incendiary.
One notable use of grenades by an Arab force was the Battle of Mamora where Moroccan troops used them to annihilate a pinned down Portuguese army.
| Bombard |
|---|
Primitive anti-building artillery available in age 3. The Mameluks gained access to artillery extremely early, but were disdainful of its use, restricting it to only be used in sieges and not developing from there.
Being that Bombards are primitive artillery only useful for sieges, they’re the perfect fit for Mameluks and other Arab civs. It would be fitting to have such a primitive cannon available earlier than Mortars, so it would also need worse stats to compensate for earlier availability.
These early Mameluke cannons may have been the source of the first cannons among other Arab nations, which supports them being a shared unit.
[10]
| Darbzen |
|---|
Age 3 anti-infantry artillery based on Turkish artillery. The Mameluke contempt for field artillery backfired when their armies were smashed by superior armed Ottoman forces. This superior technology was then imposed upon them by their conquerors.
[11]
This justifies giving them a Turkish based artillery piece such as a Darbzen. The Turks were also the main supplier of artillery throughout the Muslim world, so many civs ranging as far away as central and southeast Asia could share this cannon. And of course, Ottomans should also have it replace their Falconets.
| Midfa |
|---|
Age 3 anti-artillery artillery based on early Arab cannons. Midfa is simply the Arab word for cannon so it is generic enough to use for any Arab civ.
Other than sieges, the one other place the Mamelukes used cannons was in defending against ships. Functioning as anti-ship artillery fits well for a Culverin equivalent unit.
An upgrade for this unit could be themed on the Iftar Cannon used to announce the breaking of the fast during Ramadan.
Naval Units
For the most part, the Egyptian navy could share its units with the Ottomans, with Galleys and the other standard European ships. However, the watercraft of the Nile should be represented, and these ships could displace the Galleon from their roster.
| Dahabeah |
|---|
Dahabeah were shallow sailing vessels that plied the waters of the Nile. They could serve as a training/transport ship that is weaker but more numerous than Galleons.
Buildings
Egypt could have a variety of buildings shared with other Arab/Muslim civs.
| Bazaar |
|---|
Market equivalent. Could have some techs to reference the common trade of captured people.
| Caravanserai |
|---|
Tavern Equivalent.
| Mosque |
|---|
Could be more generic, and less Ottoman specific.
Age Ups
Arab civs like Egyptians, Omanis, and Moroccans are most closely aligned with Ottomans which are a Euro civ. However, they also forged empires deep into Africa so they could feature a mix of African and Euro civ elements.The alliance age up system is one African element they could share.
For Egypt, alliances with the Ottomans, British, French, Bedouins, Circassians, and Sudanese wold make the most sense.
Other
Feel free to brainstorm more ideas like cards, buildings, campaigns, and how the civ should function.
The Ḥalqah in the Mamluk Army: Why Was It Not Dissolved When It Reached Its Nadir? by Amalia Levanoni ↩︎
The Ḥalqah in the Mamluk Army: Why Was It Not Dissolved When It Reached Its Nadir? by Amalia Levanoni ↩︎
Studies on the Structure of the Mamluk Army–II by David Ayalon ↩︎
A Military History of the Modern Middle East, by James Brian McNabb ↩︎
Islamic Arms and Armor
in The Metropolitan Museum of Art by David G. Alexander ↩︎Race and Slavery in the Middle East: Histories of Trans-Saharan Africans in 19th-Century Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Mediterranean by Terence Walz and Kenneth Cuno ↩︎
A Military History of the Modern Middle East, by James Brian McNabb ↩︎
Gunpowder and Firearms in the Mamluk Kingdom: A Challenge to a Mediaeval Society by David Ayalon ↩︎
Islam and the Abode of War by David Ayalon ↩︎
ANCIENT WEAPONS OF OMAN
VOLUME 2 – FIREARMS by Vincenzo Clarizia ↩︎Islam and the Abode of War by David Ayalon ↩︎
Gunpowder and Firearms in the Mamluk Kingdom: A Challenge to a Mediaeval Society by David Ayalon ↩︎