posted 09-27-04 11:06 AM EDT (US)
This is my take on a Celtic culture for Age of Mythology. I first meant it to be included in Age of Mythology: Wars in Eden, with the Babylonian Culture.
The Celts are designed for FUN. All their God Powers, Techs and units have clear and fun uses, either by hyperpowering your Economy, army, or by destroying enemy stuff. Celts have the best Heroes in the game, special Myth Units, a weaker economy than most civs and decent (but not overpowered) reusable God Powers.
For this culture (Gods, units, Techs, GPs), I've shamelessly mashed together continental Celtic, Irish and Arthurian mythology. To any Irishmen, Scotsmen or whoever else seems to think he's a Celt, sorry, but: do it better yourselves!
This article consists of the following:
1) Unique attributes of the Celtic culture
2) Celtic Gods and their attributes
3) Human military units
I can only say: Enjoy as much as I did making it! And please give me feedback (preferably feeding my ego).
> > > Before you can train units at the Ring Fort, you have to purchase military buildings in them. These must be purchased inside each individual Ring Fort. These are: Barracks (30F), trains Infantry, Archery Range (40W), trains Archers, Stables (25G), trains Cavalry, Siege Workshop (50W), trains Siege Weapons, and Throne Room (30G), trains Knights (Hero Cavalry). > > > The Celts can build a second type of Hero in Mythic Age: The Knight (75F, 125G) is an very powerful Hero Cavalry unit. They can be built at Ring Forts with the Throne Room improvement. The Irish/Celtic earth goddess, matriarch of the Tuatha Dé Danann ("People of the goddess Danu"). Danu is the mother of various Irish gods, such as Dagda (also mentioned as her father), Dian Cecht, Ogma, Lir, Lugh, and many others. Her Welsh equivalent is the goddess Don. Danu benefits Cavalry and Special Myth Units, arguable the most powerful Celtic battle units. Because she can see all animals on the map, she can succesfully pull off an early rush. The MU bonuses helps to quickly create vast amounts of dangerous (Special) Myth Units right on the battlefield, trained by Druids. The Enchant GP changes any targeted unit (except GP units and Greek Heroes) to another unit in the same class (EG Wolf to Giraffe, Woad Raider to Jarl, Sphinx to Mountain Giant, Helepolis to Catapult). The new unit is chosen randomly, but your own units tend to change to stronger units and enemy units to weaker ones. Danu is strongest in Classical Age, when she has access to all three Minor Gods. Danu's Minor God paths are as follows: The Sun God Lugh is the Celtic lord of every skill. He was patron of Lugodunum (Lyons) in Gaul. He and his nature goddess consort (Rosmerta) were worshipped during the 30 day Lugnasad midsummer feast in Ireland. Fertility magic during this festival ensured ripening of the crops and good harvest. He was called Lamfhada or 'of the long arm' in Gaelic because of his great spear and sling. His animal attributes were the raven and the lynx. Lugh mirrors Hindu Karttikeya, the spiritual warrior, and Roman Mercury, the swift messenger. Lugh benefits Infantry and Druids, allowing for strong armies with good anti-MU capability and favor gathering. He allows your Peons and Military units to perform their duties a little longer as invulnerable Ghosts, which disappear after 1:00. The Ghost Army GP turns several of your units into Ghost units with 66% of their regular Attack or 100% of their gathering rate (ie. Ghost Peon, Ghost Warrior, Ghost Carpentom etc). They cannot be counterattacked, but they will turn mortal - and vulnerable - again after 1:30. This GP makes Lugh resistant to raids and allows for quick raiding as well. Lugh's Minor God paths are as follows: The Irish-Celtic god of the earth and treaties, and ruler over life and death. Dagda, or The Dagda, ("the good god") is one of the most prominent gods and the leader of the Tuatha Dé Danann. He is a master of magic, a fearsome warrior and a skilled artisan. Dagda is a son of the goddess Danu, and father of the goddess Brigid and the god Aengus mac Oc. The Morrigan is his wife, with whom he mates on New Years Day Dagda benefits Economy and Technology, leaving you free as how to use the extra resources. His Ring Fort bonuses grant him both an offensive and a defensive edge. The Mushroom bonus grants free food; mushrooms invisble to all other civs grow around forests and can be gathered for food at mediocre rate, allowing Dagda to postpone farming a little longer. He also gets a discount on all Military units; the more expensive an unit, the more discount he gets. Finally, his great Gnomes GP allows you create temporary villagers (for some Favor) every 2 minutes at an opportune location (even in enemy territory). Dagda is strongest in Mythic Age, when he has access to all three Minor Gods. Dagda's Minor God paths are as follows: Belunos or Belenus is the Gaulish/Celtic god of light and war, and referred to as 'The Shining One'. His cult spread from northern Italy to southern Gaul and Britain. Belunos is in charge of the welfare of sheep and cattle. His wife is the goddess Belisama. They can be compared with the continental Apollo and Minerva, but Belunos can also be identified with the Irish god Bile. His festival is Beltine ("Fire of Bel"), celebrated on May 1. On this day, purifying fires were lit and cattle driven between them before being allowed out onto the open pastures. The Firbolg is a good early combat unit, giving the Celts a hard counter unit in Classical age. The Firbolg can be upgraded to counter any unit type, but will then lose against any other unit type. Belunos, the god of Battles aids Attack. The Fury GP allows a few targeted units to temporarily have a large bonus against buildings, making even archers dangerous anti-building weapons. His techs help Heroes (first Druids, and in Mythic Age Knights), Madaris archers, and Carpentom cavalry in battle. Cernunnos, "The Horned One", is a Celtic god of fertility, life, animals, wealth, and the underworld. He was worshipped all over Gaul, and his cult spread into Britain as well. Cernunnos is depicted with the antlers of a stag, sometimes carries a purse filled with coin. The Horned God is born at the winter solstice, marries the goddess at Beltane, and dies at the summer solstice. He alternates with the goddess of the moon in ruling over life and death, continuing the cycle of death, rebirth and reincarnation. His appearance was later borrowed for the Christian interpretation of Satan. The Pixie MU can temporarily stun enemy Human units, preventing them from attacking or moving, and is invisible to the enemy except to Heroes and Town Centers. Pixies are great support units for any army, but die quickly to any unit, once spotted by a Hero. A Kelpie, in Scottish legend is a creature, that is said to be in league with the devil. Usually it is a black beast, part horse and part bull, with two sharp horns. It has the ability to change its shape and usually when it did, it would take the form of a beautiful white horse. If passersby mounted the horse it would immediately gallop into the water and drown the rider. The Kelpie would then eat the flesh of the drowned victim. Cernunnos benefits your Economy and your Myth Units. The Logging GP lets all allied villagers gather Wood at double speed for 1:00, allowing for quick creation of archers, buildings or siege weapons. "Thunder". The thunder-god of ancient Gaul, and master of the sky. He may be compared to the Roman Jupiter, although his place in the Celtic pantheon was not as prominent as that of Jupiter in the Roman pantheon. His attribute is the wheel, which could be the symbol of thunder. The Romans described him as receiving human sacrifices. The value of the Kobold lies in its ability to move quickly and build extremely quickly, making it a great (forward) builder, that will not even stop building if attacked. When not building it can be used as a beefed-up villager. Taranis makes your Infantry fearsome killing machines by giving Warriors more attack and allowing Warriors and Woad Raiders to attack enemy units from a short range (3 meters) with thrown shields, inflicting damage earlier and allowing them to focus-fire. He also allows the Springal Siege weapon, a long-ranged building killer, to operate with reduced attack in Classical age. The Thunder GP pushes enemy all Myth units far away from the targeted point with shockwaves, temporarily denying them access to the area. Breo Saighead, or the "Fiery Arrow of Power," is a Celtic three-fold goddess, the daughter of The Dagda, and the wife of Bres. Known by many names, Brigid's three aspects are (1) Fire of Inspiration as patroness of poetry, (2) Fire of the Hearth, as patroness of healing and fertility, and (3) Fire of the Forge, as patroness of smithcraft and martial arts. She is mother to the craftsmen. She is also the patroness of the Druids and seeers. Witches have no regular attack, but can transform Human units into friendly animals (boars, bears, elk, vipers, wolves). The transformation takes a while to succeed. The animals resulting from conversion are under your control and last until killed. They can be slaughtered for Food. Witches have a secondary use: creating Black Cats (25G), which are great scouting units with decent LOS and are invisible to enemies except to Heroes and Town Centers. Before the advent of Christianity, wicces, a kind of female priest, served as spiritual advisors and healers (see Völva or shaman). This changed with the arrival of Christianity and the priests who regarded them as competitors. From the Middle ages and onwards to about the mid-19th century, witches were universally associated with evil, under the belief that the witch's magical powers were granted by Satan in exchange for the witch's soul. A few folk tales, however, refer to kindly witches. Many outrageous claims were made about the powers of witches, which include the ability to fly, to transform oneself or others into animals or other shapes, and to curse one's enemies. On the other hand, all these powers typically belong to those of the shaman, so these powers were associated with witches long before the arrival of Christianity. Celtic mythology is full of witches and sorceresses. Witches sent by Morrigan were ultimately responsible for the defeat of Cuchullain. Brigid, available to all three Gods in Heroic Age, suits a more defensive playing style with her techs which improve Ring Forts and Farming, and the Monolith GP, a sacred shrine which grants magically enhanced armor to all allied units near it. It can destroyed by enemy units. Her Witch Special Myth Unit is powerful against Human units and allows terrific scouting with her invisble Black Cats. Taliesin's Knowledge allows for faster favor generation and Plow of Amaethon helps your farmers. The Celtic horse goddess whose authority extended even beyond death, accompanying the soul on its final journey. She was worshipped throughout entire Gaul, and as far as the Danube and Rome. Her cult was eventually adopted by the Roman army and they spread her worship wherever they went. She was the only Celtic Goddess to be honored by the Romans with a temple in their capital city. Among the Gaulish Celts themselves, she was worshipped as goddess of horses, asses, mules, oxen, and, to an extent, springs and rivers. The Redcap is a quick combat unit that summons another Redcap for every five kills. Its a good compliment to your cavalry and can cause a Myth Unit infestation if not killed off quickly. Epona grants improvements to your cavalry and unit upgrades. Her Cuchulainn GP creates a very strong Hero that can go into war frenzy, temporarily killing any units immediately with each attack (except certain heavy Myth units and Greek Heroes). Finally Stone of Destiny allows cheaper line upgrades (eg. Medium Archers, Heavy Cavalry) for all units. In Irish-Celtic myth, Ogma is the god of eloquence and learning. He is the son of the goddess Danu and the god Dagda, and one of the foremost members of the Tuatha Dé Danann. He is the reputed inventor of the ancient Ogham alphabet which is used in the earliest Irish writings. The slow Water Giant is good against both units and buildings. Its special produces a ring of water around it, which is impassable by enemy units. This disperses enemy troops and provides your own units with a temporary safe haven. The Water Giant is amphibous; it can swim and attack boats as well. Ogma, the god of Wisdom, improves your archers and allows cheaper techs. His Eviction GP allows you to take over an enemy building and produce enemy untis from it, while the Clan Rally GP allows any targeted building to produce units at an astonishing rate for a short while. Ogma also has a powerful combat Myth unit with the Water Giant. In Welsh mythology, Arawn was the Lord of the Underworld, which was called Annwn or Avalon. Some of the more prominent myths about Arawn include the incident in which Amaethon stole a dog, lapwing and white roebuck from Arawn, leading to the Battle of the Trees, which Arawn lost to Amaethon and his brother, Gwydion. The Dragon is an extremely powerful land Myth unit good against units and buildings alike. It attacks by breathing flames, doing damage to all enemies in the vicinity. The Dragon has 1500 Hitpoints and can only be killed effectively by Heroes. The Morrigan is a goddess of battle, strife, death, and fertility. Her name translates as either "Great Queen" or "Phantom Queen," and both epithets are entirely appropriate for her. The Morrigan appears as both a single goddess and a trio of goddesses. The other deities who form the trio are Badb ("Crow"), and either Macha (also connotes "Crow") or Nemain ("Frenzy"). The Morrigan frequently appears in the ornithological guise of a hooded crow. She is one of the Tuatha Dé Danann and she helped defeat the Firbolg at the First Battle of Mag Tuireadh and the Fomorians at the Second Battle of Mag Tuireadh. More info: When ignited or killed, the Wicker Man engulfs a large area in flames, damaging all units and especially buildings near it. The more units (allied or enemy) killed in its vicinity, the larger and more damaging the fire blast will be. A Wicker Man has to "collect" around 30 killed infantry to reach maximum damage potential; heavier units fill it up faster. Death Ravens hover over the battlefield and can swoop down and pick up any Human unit and throw them to their deaths. They have no regular attack and can be killed by ranged Heroes and Buildings. Death Ravens are faster than other flying MU's and are good at surprise attacks. The Devil Whale is a very powerful Naval Myth unit that can destroy many boats. It can swallow an enemy Ship with its special attack and subsequently launch it out of its blowhole onto targets far away, doing heavy damage to units and buildings alike. A little micromanagement allows you to bombard inland targets without fear of retaliation. Morrigan grants 3 Myth units and allows cheaper Myth Units. Cult of Severed Heads acts as a powerful Attack upgrade for your Human units. She can also turn your Woad Raiders (Infantry) into fearsome raiding units with Lore of the Dark Woods. Also Nudd or Ludd. "Silver Hand." The Irish/Celtic chieftain-god of healing, the Sun, childbirth, youth, beauty, ocean, dogs, poetry, writing, sorcery, magic, weapons, and warfare. Similar to the Roman god Neptune, Nuada also had an invincible sword, one of four great treasures of the Tuatha De Danann, that he used to cleave his enemies in half. The screams of the Banshee will temporarily lower the Hack, Pierce and Crush armor of the targeted unit or building, making it more susceptible to attacks. Several Banshees targeted on the same enemy can lower its armor to 0/ 0/ 0% for several seconds. Choose Nuada when you want to upgrade your Ring Forts and Siege weapons. He also greatly improves your Knights (Hero Cavalry), which are your most powerful Human units. His bonuses can make you win a prolonged war. Take care to target the Great Siege GP carefully: enemy Siege weapons will be boosted by it as well. The Celtic Military goes like this: > > > > If you manage to come up with an ORIGINAL idea for Celtic Naval units, I'll add it! Bonus damage: Myth units (x2.5) The Druid, a tall, bearded priest in white, has a shortranged attack than is powerful against enemy Myth units. The Druid automatically gathers Favor when not fighting. He has a lot of hitpoints, but can be killed cost-effectively by Human units. Druids are powerful Heroes with a ranged attack. They can easily destroy enemy Myth units, but can be defeated by Human units. Bonus damage: Infantry (x1.5) The frenzied Warriors of the Celts are powerful infantry, armed with a longsword and a round shield, that are good at fighting other infantry. They can, however, do heavy damage to any unit or building in their war fury. A Celtic Warrior is as strong as an Norse Ulfsark, but is slower. Celtic Warriors are good general combat units that excels against other Infantry units. It can be defeated by most Cavalry units, and can easily be shot down by Archers. Bonus damage: Archers (x1.3) The heavily-armored Madaris is an archer with a large rectangular shield that throws long javelins (called madaris). In groups they're good against most units, but their projectiles are deadliest against enemy archers. A Celtic Madaris has more hitpoints than a Greek Toxotes, has less attack and range, and is slower. The Madaris is a good general combat unit, but excels against other Archers. It can be overrun by Cavalry and massed Infantry. Bonus damage: Cavalry (x1.5) The Carpentom or Celtic war chariot is a fast medium cavalry unit that can charge any unit formation, but it excels against other cavalry. The Carpentom consists of a lightweight wooden frame on two wheels with a small, fast, brown horse in front. It carries a ferocious Celtic warrior armed with a broad-bladed spear. A Celtic Carpentom is as strong as an Atlantean Contarius, but is faster and has less pierce armor. Carpentoms are good general combat units that excel against other Cavalry, but are more susceptible to Archer fire than other Cavalry, and can quickly be demolished by Infantry soldiers that manage to close with them. Bonus damage: Archers (x4), Siege Weapons (x2.5) Painted blue with woad and equipped with a wooden shield and small battle-axe, these fearsome fighters are as lightfooted as most cavalry, so they can quickly close with enemy archers and strike them down. A Celtic Woad Raider has less hitpoints than a Norse Huskarl, but is faster. Fast anti-archer soldier. Lacking hack armor, the Woad Raider is ineffective against Cavalry and other Infantry. Use against Archers and Siege Weapons only. Bonus damage: Cavalry (x3.5) The slow Longbowman carries a huge, heavy longbow and a small shield. His long arrows have sharp bodkin arrowheads and are designed to pierce cavalry plate armor. A Celtic Longbowman is as strong as a Atlantean Arcus, but has more range, and less attack and speed. Longbowmen can quickly mow down Cavalry and have the largest range of all Archers, but lack fighting capability against Infantry and other Archers. Use against Cavalry only. Bonus damage: Infantry (x3.5) The Scramasax is a light cavalry unit that is capable of decimating enemy infantry. It is quick and can hurl large daggers (called scramasax) at enemy formations at short range. It deals Hack attack from range, like a Norse Throwing Axeman. A Celtic Scramasax is about as strong as a Norse Raiding Cavalry, but has less speed and pierce armor. Scramasax cavalry are only effective against Infantry and can easily be shot down by Archers, or run through by Cavalry. Use against Infantry only. Good against: Buildings A fast, weak, and cheap siege weapon. The Springal consists of a four-wheeled frame with a long arm made of flexible wood. When the arm is pulled back and released, the flexibility of the wood causes it to hit a light, iron-headed bolt with tremendous force. This weapon has the longest range of all Siege Weapons in AoM, but it requires several Springals to destroy a building quickly. They perform very poorly against units. Springals can damage buildings from extremely long range, but can quickly be demolished by cavalry, infantry and Myth Units. Use against buildings only. Bonus damage: Myth Units (x3) The powerful Knight, bearing lance and shield, riding a large war horse and bristling with early medieval armor, is a combat unit that can deal out and withstand a lot of punishment, but he excels against Myth units. It can be destroyed by hard cavalry counters or massed infantry, cavalry and archers. A Celtic Knight is stronger and faster than a Jarl. Knights are powerful units and can quickly defeat enemy Myth units as well as most units. They can be killed by infantry and other anti-cavalry troops. Good against: Buildings A short-ranged but powerful siege weapon, the Catapult-like Onager has six wheels and a large scoop loaded with stones that damage all enemies in the target area. Onagers are good against buildings, but can be demolished by cavalry, infantry and Myth Units. Use against dense concentrations of buildings. -----------------------------------------------------------
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The Druid has a secondary function: he gathers Favor. When he's not fighting he will Worship at any location, yielding a trickle of Favor. A maximum of 10 Druids can be built at a time, except for Lugh, who can build 20 Druids.
Celts have an unique class of Myth Units, Special Myth Units (such as the Pixie and the Witch). They have special abilities, generally cost mostly Favor, and are extremely good against Human Units, but otherwise useless in combat. Celts can build normal Myth units as well. No Celtic Myth Units have a bonus against other Myth Units, to make up for the good Heroes Celts have.
Benefits Cavalry and Special Myth units
Changes any unit to any other unit in the same class.
Costs Favor.
Unlimited uses, costs 5 Favor, cooldown time 0:30
- Cavalry have higher Attack
- Special Myth units attack 33% faster; Druids can train Myth units
- Can stockpile up to 1000 Favor
Gives visibility to all animals on the map, including birds
CLASSICAL: Belunos (Attack), Cernunnos (Economy) or Taranis (Infantry)
HEROIC: Brigid (Defense) or Epona (Cavalry)
MYTHIC: Morrigan (Myth Units) or Nuada (Ring Forts and Siege)
Benefits Infantry and Druids
Transforms a few allied units into Ghost units with 66% of normal Attack or 100% gathering rate. The Ghost units, which cannot be attacked, can walk through forests, over cliffs and over water and exist for 1:00, after which they turn mortal again. Costs Favor depending on the Hitpoints of targeted units.
Unlimited uses, costs 5 Favor, cooldown time 0:30
- Infantry have more Armor, gain higher Attack for each kill they make
- Killed units continue to exist as Ghost units for 1 minute. Ghost units cannot be attacked, and fight at 33% or gather at 50% of their normal rate
- Can build 20 Druids instead of 10
Ghost units' lifespan increased by 50%
Lugh is strongest in Heroic Age, when he has access to all three Minor Gods.
CLASSICAL: Belunos (Attack) or Taranis (Infantry)
HEROIC: Brigid (Defense), Epona (Cavalry) or Ogma (Archers)
MYTHIC: Arawn (Peons) or Morrigan (Myth Units)
Benefits Economy and Technology
The Dagda is portrayed as possessing both super- human strength and appetite. His attributes are a cauldron with an inexhaustible supply of food, a magical harp with which he summons the seasons, and an enormous club, with one end of which he could kill nine men, but with the other restore them to life. He also possessed two marvellous swine---one always roasting, the other always growing---and ever-laden fruit trees.
One of his epithets is Ollathir, which means "All-father". He is identified with the Welsh Gwydion and the Gallic Sucellos.
Creates a Gnome Hill at the targeted location. From this small hill stream forth numerous minute Gnomes, which can gather resources for you and drop them off at the Gnome Hill. Gnomes gather slowly, have no attack, cannot be attacked due to their tiny size and dissappear (as well as the Hill) into the ground after 1:00 minute. The Gnome Hill can be destroyed with some effort.
Unlimited uses, costs 5 Favor, cooldown time 2:00
- Ring Forts stronger, Ring Fort buildings cheaper
- Military Units cheaper; the more expensive an unit, the more discount Dagda gets
- Gathering Pits have longer range; edible Mushrooms grow around forests
Technologies are researched 50% faster
CLASSICAL: Cernunnos (Economy) or Belunos (Attack)
HEROIC: Brigid (Defense) or Ogma (Archers)
MYTHIC: Arawn (Peons), Morrigan (Myth Units) or Nuada (Ring Forts and Siege)
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Danu, Lugh, Dagda
Benefits Attack
Greatly improves targeted units' attack against buildings for a short time.
4 uses, lasts 1:30, cooldown time 3:00.
All allied ships temporarily move twice as fast.
1 use, lasts 3:00
Myth unit. Human/demon hybrid. Can be upgraded to counter either infantry, cavalry or archers. The Firbolg can be equipped with a Club to counter Infantry, a Spear to counter Cavalry or a Sling to counter Archers. It can be (re)equipped with any of these weapons at any time for 30 Gold.
According to Irish legend, Firbolgs were a race of beings from Europe who invaded Ireland. They were conquered by another group of beings, the Fomorians. They were later banished from Ireland by Tuatha de Danann. Their name means "people of the bogs".
Upgrades your Firbolg to Enslaved Firbolg, improving their Attack and lowering the cost to equip them with another weapon by 50%
Heroes have more Hitpoints
Improves the Hack Armor of your Carpentoms
Improves the Range of your Madaris
Danu, Dagda
Benefits Economy
All Allied villagers gather wood at 200% of normal rate for a while.
2 uses, lasts 1:00, cooldown time 2:00
Special Myth unit. Tiny green gnome. Invisible, can only be seen or attacked by enemy Heroes and Town Centers. Can stun Human soldiers. Has no regular attack.
Usually no larger than a human hand, a pixie is human-like with red hair and green eyes. They have upturned noses and malicious smiles. They usually wear tight fitting green clothes. Pixies have the ability to change their size at will. They are tricksters who like to lead humans astray; their magic can cause them to become utterly confused and lost, a condition known as "Pixie-led".
Special Myth Unit. Creates temporary Whirlpools in the water which scatter and damage enemy Ships and Naval Myth Units. Has no regular attack.
Villagers and Fishing Ships gather food (except from farms) and wood faster
Allows Peons and Kobolds to gather Gold faster
Improves the Hack and Pierce armor of your Myth Units
Danu, Lugh
Benefits Infantry
Expels all enemy Myth Units from target area and does not allow them back in for 1:00.
3 uses, cooldown time 3:30
Special Myth unit. Friendly hobgoblin which can build buildings very quickly and gather resources quicker than Peons. Has low attack.
Kobold are small creatures that are very old and wrinkled. They work tirelessly doing chores for the family whose house the kobold resides in. They only ask for, in return, scraps of food from the dinner table. If they are not given this, they will turn malicious and harmful. Picture: http://webhome.idirect.com/~donlong/monsters/monsters.htm
Improves the Attack and bonus against Infantry of your Warriors
Allows Infantry to attack enemy units from range by throwing shields
All your Ring Forts have Siege Workshops. Springal can be built in Classical Age and has even longer Range
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Danu, Lugh, Dagda
Benefits Defense
Creates a magical Monolith at the targeted location, that improves the armor of all allied units around it.
3 uses, cooldown time 2:00
Special Myth unit. Supernatural woman with magical powers. Can turn Human units into animals. Can summon Black Cats (Scout). Has no regular attack.
Upgrades your Witches to Black Witches with more Range and Hitpoints. Black Cats cost 50% less and have more LOS
Ring Forts can heal, have more Hitpoints and Range
Druids gather favor faster
Villagers gather faster from farms
Danu, Lugh
Benefits Cavalry
Creates a very powerful Hero at target location. Cuchulainn can kill most units instantly when he goes into his war frenzy.
1 use
Myth unit. Swift, monstrous goblin. Summons new Redcaps for every few kills.
A malevolent goblin, redcaps are easily distinguishable for their namesake red hat and fiery red eyes. Their caps are red because they dip them in the blood of their human victims. Redcaps wear iron boots, but are swift on their feet. They reside in castles and watchtowers along the English-Scottish border, however, they move their residence often to avoid detection. Redcaps have sharp talons, with which they kill humans, and an owl-like face with a sharp beak.
Upgrades your Redcaps to Bloodthirsty Redcaps, which have more Attack and Speed and summon new Redcaps faster.
Greaty improves Cavalry Speed and Hitpoints
Improves the Speed and bonus against Infantry of your Scramasax
All Unit line upgrades cost less
Lugh, Dagda
Benefits Archers
In the final battle at Mag Tuireadh he managed to take away the sword of the king of the Fomorians, but had to pay with his life for this feat. His Celtic equivalent is Ogmius.
Any targeted building will temporarily produce units much faster for 2:30.
2 uses, cooldown time 0:30
Take over any enemy building, except TCs, Wonders and Titan Gates.
1 use
Strong, evil-looking giant. Amphibious. Can create temporary Waterspouts.
(Evil) giants are common in Irish folklore. Uath ("Horror") was the water giant who challenged the three heroes Cuchulainn, Laoghaire and Conall to a beheading contest. Each was invited to take an axe and chop off the giant's head, provided that he would then lay his head on the block for the giant to decapitate. Only Cuchulainn rose to the challenge and was proclaimed by the giant as the Irish Champion. Later, Uath revealed himself to be the Wizard King of Munster, Cu Roi.
Upgrades your Water Giants to Horrible Water Giants, improving their Hitpoints and Waterspout size
Greatly improves Archer Pierce Armor and Hitpoints
Improves the Range and bonus against Cavalry of your Longbowmen
All technologies cost less to research
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Lugh, Dagda
Benefits Peons
Three Dragons appear in the target area. The Dragons are under your control and last until killed.
1 use
Powerful Myth unit. Can damage multiple targets at once.
In European mythology, a dragon is a serpent-like legendary creature. The Dragon is sometimes known by the Nordic word, ormr (Old English wyrm means serpent — draca means dragon). Though a winged creature, the dragon is generally to be found in its chthonic lair, a cave that identifies it as an ancient creature of earth, like the mythic serpent, that was a source of knowledge even in Eden. It fights with its razorsharp talons, terrible tail and teeth and bursts of flames from its huge maw.
Upgrades Dragons to Great Dragons, which are invulnerable to Myth Units' special attacks and do more splash damage
Warriors have greatly improved Attack
All Human units regenerate Hitpoints with each kill
Killed Peons will gather resources as Ghost Peons for 3:00
Arawn, available to all three Gods in the Mythic Age, grants Dragons, which are the most powerful Myth Units in the game, and the very good Dragon Lair GP. The Avalon Tech allows your economy to keep running longer when losing Peons to attacks; it creates Ghost Peons (which cannot be attacked) who gather for 3 minutes at 50%, like with Lugh's bonus. Holy Grail allows your units to regenerate Hitpoints for each kill they make and Excalibur makes your Warriors (Infantry) much more dangerous.
Danu, Lugh, Dagda
Benefits Myth Units
Turns several enemy units on the map into chaosed Celtic Myth Units.
1 use
Special Myth Unit. Giant man-shaped construct which "collects" slain units and can be ignited at any moment. Has no regular attack.
The wicker man ritual was described by Julius Caesar in Book Six of The Gallic War, in which he describes the customs of the Celts of Gaul. He writes: "The whole Gallic race is addicted to religious ritual; consequently those suffering from serious maladies or subject to the perils of battle sacrifice human victims. . . . Some weave huge figures of wicker and fill their limbs with humans, who are then burned to death when the figures are set afire".
Flying Special Myth unit. Demonic raven with protruding bones. Can instant-kill Human units. Has no regular attack.
The Celts believed that, as they engaged in warfare, the Morrigan flew shrieking overhead in the form of a raven or carrion crow, summoning a host of slain soldiers to a macabre spectral bane. When the battle had ended, the warriors would leave the field until dawn in order that the Morrigan could claim the trophies of heads, euphemistically known as "the Morrigan's acorn crop."
Naval Myth unit. Large, vicious whale. Good vs ships. Can swallow ships and launch them onto other targets.
St. Brendan (or Brandan) was an Irish monk, born about 484 B.C. in Tralee. According to medieval legend, Brendan embarked on a seven-year voyage through the Atlantic in search of the Garden of Eden. The legends recount Brendan's amazing adventures, including his encounter with a whale, upon whose back he held communion. Brendan and his band of monks eventually discovered a brightly-lit land through which flowed a great river. After wandering the land for 40 days in an unsuccessful search for the farthest shore, they filled their ships with precious gems and returned home. Picture: http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/HNS/Archive/garden97/brendan.html
Increases the attack of all your Human units
Decreases the cost of your Myth Units by 33%
Woad Raiders have improved Hitpoints and the ability to walk over cliffs
The Doom Spell GP turns random enemy units on the map into Celtic Myth Units that are hostile to all. This creates maximum chaos in his part of the map as several heavy and light Celtic Myth units (from Pixies to Dragons) suddenly start attacking his troops, villagers and buildings. Should this GP summon Kobold MU's, then these loveable little goblins will immediately start building chaosed Guard Towers in the area.
Danu, Dagda
Benefits Ring Forts and Siege weapons
After Nuada lost his hand in battle, he was deemed ineligable to by king and was replaced by Bres. His brother Dian Cecht, the great god of healing, fashioned him a silver hand for a substitution. By this time Bres had become a tyrannical leader and was exiled, and Nuada returned to his position as king. He was later killed by the terrifying Fomorian God Balor.
Transforms a Ring Fort or Castle into Camelot, a mighty defensive structure with all military buildings, and which creates a free Knight every 0:30.
Doubles attack frequency of all siege engines on the map for 1:30.
Special Myth unit. Troll/vampire/old hag hybrid. Fugly. Can temporarily lower the armor of enemy units or buildings with high-pitched screams. Has no regular attack.
The banshee in Irish Gćlic, is called 'bean sidhe', which means 'supernatural woman'. She is envisioned with a sunken nose, scraggy hair and huge hollow eye sockets. Her eyes are fiery red from continuous weeping. She is an attendant fairy that follows the old families and wails outside the doors of those about to die.
Improves your Knights' Attack and Hitpoints and bonus against Myth Units
Upgrades your Ring Forts to stronger Castles, with more Hitpoints, Range, and all military buildings
Onagers do more splash damage and cost 25% less
Hero unit (Classical)
Ranged Hero, good vs Myth units.
50F, 150G
Population slots: 3
Built at: Temple, Town Center
Range: 10 meter
Good against: Myth units
Bad against: Human units
Infantry (Classical)
General combat unit, excels vs other infantry
50F, 30G
Population slots: 2
Built at: Town Center, Ring Fort with Barracks
Good against: Infantry, all
Bad against: Archers, Axemen, Hypaspist, Cheiroballista, Scramasax
Archer (Classical)
General combat unit, excels vs other archers
50W, 50G
Population slots: 2
Built at: Ring Fort with Archery Range
Range: 12 meters
Good against: Archers, all
Bad against: Cavalry, Peltast, Slinger, Turma, Huskarl, Woad Raider
Cavalry (Classical)
General combat unit, excels vs other cavalry
30F, 30W, 30G
Population slots: 3
Built at: Ring Fort with Stables
Good against: Cavalry, Siege Weapons, all
Bad against: Infantry, Camelry, Prodromos, Longbowman
Infantry (Heroic)
Hard Archer counter
50F, 50G
Population slots: 3
Built at: Ring Fort with Barracks
Good against: Archers, Siege Weapons
Bad against: Infantry, Cavalry
Archer (Heroic)
Hard Cavalry counter
75W, 40G
Population slots: 3
Built at: Ring Fort with Archery Range
Range: 23 meters
Good against: Cavalry
Bad against: Infantry, Archers
Ranged Cavalry (Heroic)
Hard Infantry counter
30F, 90G
Population slots: 3
Built at: Ring Fort with Stables
Range: 8 meters
Good against: Infantry
Bad against: Archers, Cavalry
Siege Weapon (Heroic, Classical for worshippers of Belunos who research Heaven Torn Asunder)
Weak siege with extreme range
75W, 75G
Population slots: 3
Built at: Ring Fort with Siege Workshop
Range: 30 (?) meters
Bad against: Cavalry, most units
Cavalry (Mythic)
Powerful combat unit, excels vs myth units
50F, 125G
Population slots: 4
Built at: Ring Fort with Throne Room
Good against: Myth units, all
Bad against: Massed Human soldiers
Siege Weapon (Mythic)
Highly destructive ranged siege
250W, 125G
Population slots: 4
Built at: Ring Fort with Siege Workshop
Range: 13 (?) meters
Bad against: Cavalry, most units
The Onager does crush damage exclusively and can can survive quite some punishment.
All Hail Giant Squid World Domination
[This message has been edited by SilentScreams (edited 10-26-2004 @ 01:03 PM).]
I'll provide you with the short outlay soon.
