Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties

IGNPC: The new Asian civs make use of Wonders and Consulates. How do these work for the Indian civilization? What opportunities do they present to the players?

Brian Reynolds: The Indian civilization has five unique Wonders such as the Taj Mahal or the Agra Fort, and they build one of their choice whenever they want to "age up". Each Wonder provides a unique and lasting benefit or ability in addition to a one-time bonus, so they're more powerful than the Politicians that the European nations use to age up, for instance. By way of example, the Agra Fort is a powerful fortress, which you can choose to build early in the game; whereas the Taj Mahal provides a special "Cease Fire" ability to prevent combat for a period of time.

The Consulate allows you to form an alliance with an overseas European power. The choices available to each civilization depend on which European powers had the most historical contact with them: in the case of the Indians, the choices available are the British, Portuguese, French, and Ottomans. Forming an alliance provides you with an extra bonus (for example, allying with the British provides your units with a hit point bonus, whereas allying with the French gives you a resource gathering bonus). It also allows you to exchange your exports (representing the Tea, Silk and Spice which the Asian powers controlled and the European powers sought) for military and technological aid from your ally. For example if you ally with the French you will gain access to occasional shipments of Cuirassiers and Horse Artillery.

IGNPC: What's the basic story behind the new Indian campaign? What's the overall conflict and what choices will the player have in terms of overcoming those obstacles?

Brian Reynolds: The Indian campaign takes place at the time of the Sepoy Rebellion during the 19th century, when there was a great uprising against the British East India Company. Each scenario features a unique set of challenges, but at the end of the campaign you'll be trying to drive the British East India Company out of one of their major strongholds, facing a foe equipped with some of the best artillery in the game.

IGNPC: Thanks for your time, Brian!

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