27+2 Vils Drush Fast Castle

This strategy has been nerfed pretty hard over the last few years, but it's still playable if you have a good map for it. Only go for a drush into fast Castle if you can fully wall, or at least wall easily enough to stay safe from enemy aggression. Done correctly, you'll reach Castle Age first with a real tech and economy advantage: you can add Town Centers earlier, get Bow Saw earlier, and pressure with Crossbowmen right away. It's a flexible strategy too, if you get tower rushed or run into trouble after the drush, you can simply decide to stay in Feudal Age and defend instead. You do NOT have to force Castle Age if it's too risky.

  1. [Dark] Send 6 villagers to sheep (pop 6)
  2. [Dark] Send 4 villagers to wood (pop 10)
  3. [Dark] Send 1 villager to boar (pop 11)
  4. [Dark] Send1viltomake2housesthenbarracks. NOTE:Aftermakingthebarracks, continue walling your map with palisades and 1-2 houses (don’t get housed)
  5. [Dark] Send 1 vil to get 10 gold, then go back to boar (pop 13)
  6. [Dark] Make 3 militias and send them forward to harass opponent
  7. [Dark] Send 1 vil to get second boar (pop 14)
  8. [Dark] Send next 5 vils to berries and build a mill (pop 19)
  9. [Dark] Send next 4 vils to wood on 1 lumber camp (pop 23)
  10. [Dark] Research loom (you don’t want to delay loom too much so you don’t lose vils to a Feudal Age scout)
  11. [Dark] Send 4 villagers to gold (pop 27)
  12. [Dark] Research Feudal Age (perfect landing time: 12:35) (pop 27)
  13. [Feudal] Finish walling your map using any villager that’s available. Once finished walling, they can go on any resource you deem necessary
  14. [Feudal] Continue harassing opponent with your militia and scout
  15. [Feudal] Send 2 villagers to gold (pop 29)
  16. [Feudal] Make a range with 2 vils + blacksmith with 1 vil
  17. [Feudal] NOTE: If you get attacked or things go wrong, feel free to spend more time in Feudal Age, and even abandon the FC plan if necessary
  18. [Feudal] Research Castle Age (perfect landing time: 16:05)
  19. [Castle] Start massing archers from 1 range
  20. [Castle] Research double bit axe
  21. [Castle] Research horse collar
  22. [Castle] Research fletching
  23. [Castle] When berries run out, send the vils to whatver you think is best for your follow-up

What next: That's the end of the build. Here are a few ways to continue strategically: – You can add a 2nd Range and go up to 9 villagers on gold for 2-Range Crossbowman aggression. This hurts your economy quite a bit, but if you find a lot of damage, it can win the game outright. – The standard approach is to stay on 1 Range and get Bow Saw plus the Crossbowman upgrade at the start of Castle Age. Get Bodkin Arrow too if you can afford it, otherwise save up for it. – Add a 2nd Town Center quickly, then hold off before adding a 3rd. Consider Ballistics, a Monastery, or Siege first, this helps you stabilize instead of running a fragile economy for another 10 minutes. – The main strength of this strategy is the economic lead from an early 2nd Town Center. It's genuinely hard to lose if executed correctly, since you're always a step ahead on tech. – Play smart and strategic, and use that economic lead to close out the game. GLHF!

All AoE2 build orders · Analyze your replay free