Heaven’s Reference Pages

Axeman
Age: Tool
Prerequisites: Build Town Center, build Barracks, upgrade to Battle Axe.
Upgrade Cost: 100 food
Cost: 50 food
Hit Points: 50
Attack: 5
Armor: - - -
Range: - - -
Speed: Medium
Upgrade of: Clubman
Special: - - -
Description:
The Axeman has more hit points and attack strength than the Clubman. The Axeman cannot be upgraded.
Researching Toolworking, Metalworking, and Metallurgy increases attack strength. Leather Armor, Scale Armor, and Chain Mail increase armor. The Bronze Shield and Iron Shield increase piercing armor.
Comments
Axemen are an upgrade of the Clubman and are available from the Tool Age. They can attack Scouts, Bowmen and Slingers. Of course, they can attack Villagers too. Axemen are great for rushing - they have the greatest attack strength of the Tool Age units and a fair amount of hitpoints as well. Their shortsightedness is their only disadvantage. In SP games, small groups of Axemen with leather armour are great at massacring Villagers (the Villagers do only 1 damage to them), especially when Villagers attack them. In MP games the Villagers will mostly run from Axemen with armour. They're your best units against Towers (if you don't get Slingers, that is) but use large numbers of them to reduce casualties. With Toolworking they do 1 damage against all buildings, which makes them as good as Slingers. Axers are as poor counters for Bronze Age units as any other Tool Age unit, they fare especially badly against Cavalry because of the attack bonus of Cavalry against infantry. There are, of course, no civilisations with a bonus for this unit. Use them against other Tool Age units and for rushes. Don't expect them to stand up against Bronze Age units.
Peter
History
The Axeman in the game is a generic representation of a stage in a civilisation's history, with little or no documentation in many cases, yet it is not unreasonable to consider any civilisation having gone through such a stage. Having established itself, the civilisation would soon begin to consider alternative uses for the simple weapons they had made. Originally for hunting and defence from animals, Axes and Clubs en masse can be seen to symbolise the first primitive efforts to organise a military force, the faltering first steps towards more sophisticated weapons and armies.
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