A guerrilla warfare masterpiece. Le Loi liberates Vietnam from the Ming Chinese occupation. You start with almost nothing and must use the "Skirmisher" line to ambush patrols, using the jungle terrain to hide your base. This campaign teaches you how to use the Vietnamese defensive bonuses effectively.
The title "Rise of the Rajas" refers to the kings (Rajas) of the Malay Archipelago and the mainland. This era saw the decline of the Khmer Empire, the rise of the Burmese Toungoo dynasty, and the fierce resistance of the Vietnamese against Mongol invasion. This expansion finally gave these cultures the recognition they deserved in the RTS genre. age of empires ii rise of the rajas
The masters of the sea. Their docks can upgrade into Harbors that shoot arrows, and their unique unit, the Karambit Warrior, is a cheap, half-population infantry unit that allows for "swarming" tactics unlike anything seen in the game before. A guerrilla warfare masterpiece
The Malay represent the maritime empires of Sumatra and Java. Speed is their identity. This campaign teaches you how to use the
When was released, the competitive meta—which had been stable for years—exploded.
Naval combat in Age of Empires II has often been dominated by the Viking civilization. The Malay, however, offered a fierce competitor. Based on the thalassocratic empires of the Malay Archipelago, they possess a unique tech that turns Fish Traps into an infinite food source, creating a sustainable late-game economy on water maps. Their unique unit, the Karambit Warrior , is one of the cheapest units in the game, costing no gold. They are essentially "trash units" (units that cost no gold) that are actually effective in mass numbers. This allows the Malay to overwhelm opponents with sheer numbers, mirroring the massive armies of the historical Majapahit empire.