We are excited to announce the next DLC for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition – Chronicles: Battle for Greece, an immersive narrative expansion that transports players to the world of classical antiquity. Coming November 14th, Chronicles builds upon classic gameplay with a reimagined visual experience and a focus on epic, character-focused storytelling.

The first chapter, Battle for Greece, introduces three new civilizations: Achaemenids, Athenians, and Spartans – in a 21-scenario campaign, brought to life through engaging voice acting, animated cutscenes, and much more!

We have been thrilled to work with CaptureAge to present Battle for Greece, the first installment of Chronicles. This new epic narrative experience is a must-play for strategy lovers and history enthusiasts alike.

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Chronicles: Battle for Greece is available for pre-order now on Steam! Coming November 14th!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2805520/Age_of_Empires_II_DE__Chronicles_Battle_for_Greece

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A sharp breeze surges across the Aegean. The dockyards of Athens thrum with activity, the air filled with the acrid smell of pitch, slathered across the hulls of a hundred waiting warships. In the mess halls of Sparta, wolf-eyed warriors slurp bitter black broth, their arms still aching from the day’s exercises. On the shores of the Hellespont, the Great King of Persia watches as a vast host assembles before him, drawn from a hundred different lands. The battle for Greece is about to begin.

Created by CaptureAge, a team of Age of Empires veterans, Chronicles is a series of DLCs set in the ancient world, taking the core gameplay and balance of Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and then pushing it a step further by adding multiple new features inspired by the time period, along with a complete visual overhaul!

The story of Chronicles begins with Battle for Greece. Spanning over a century of history from the Ionian Revolt, through the Greco-Persian Wars, to the end of the Peloponnesian Wars, the 21-scenario campaign contains some of history’s most famous and consequential battles, including Marathon, Thermopylae, and Salamis. Meet fascinating historical figures such as the ruthless Spartan admiral, Lysander, the wise statesman, Pericles, and the fearless warrior queen, Artemisia!


Chronicles will also feature a complete naval overhaul with six types of military ships, new trading options with merchant ships, and a new gold resource which can be gathered at sea: Oysters! Plus, use special civilization mechanics, such as the ability to enact government policies and individually upgrade Town Centers to fine-tune the control over your empire. Innovative gameplay, including a unique naval combat system, and new technologies are all ready for you to explore and enjoy!

• New graphical models: including 55 new land units, 19 new naval units, and 85 new buildings
  
• A 21-scenario campaign covering over a century of history
  
• A fresh approach to storytelling with animated cutscenes, new music, and voice acting
  
• Three ancient civilizations: Achaemenids, Athenians and Spartans (not available in ranked play)
  
• Overhaul of naval combat: with six military ship types, including ramming and catapult ships
  
• Unique civilization mechanics: including customizable Town Centers and government policies
  
• … and much more!

The Achaemenids, Athenians, and Spartans will NOT be available for Ranked Play.
You can read more about this decision below.

At its core, Chronicles is a new series for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, dedicated to narrative and historical immersion, primarily with a single-player focus. To build upon this goal and explore additional possibilities, early in development we made the decision that the three new civilizations introduced with Battle for Greece would not be available in ranked gameplay.

Separating the three new civilizations from the standard balance pool has allowed us to develop fun and creative mechanics, a fresh take on the standard technology tree, and overhaul certain parts of the game such as naval gameplay. These options wouldn't have been possible and would not play in a balanced manner alongside the current Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition civilizations.

We've worked with our partners at CaptureAge who have a deep understanding and interest in the competitive scene - they've been supporting it since before the Definitive Editions released! We unanimously agreed with them that keeping these fresh and experimental civilizations separate from competitive play is the best option, for both our community members who want a unique and expanded single player experience, and those who enjoy well balanced competitive play.

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Chronicles is the first full release from CaptureAge! As a development studio, we've prided ourselves on providing top-quality spectator software across the Age of Empires franchise. From a small team of fans, CaptureAge has grown into a studio packed with Age of Empires community veterans, as well as AAA talent.

We’re passionate about this franchise, and wanted to create something that the community would love. Inspired by the popular Rome at War mod – whose creators are now part of the CaptureAge team – we chose the rich world of classical antiquity for our setting.

Campaigns have always been central to Age of Empires, and fans of the series continue to hunger for more. We therefore decided to make campaign content central to Chronicles – and we’re approaching campaigns in our own unique way, with a strong narrative focus, a new presentation style, and an exciting variety of gameplay styles. Together, the Chronicles DLCs will tell a unified story spanning the ancient world!

We can’t wait to share more details about Chronicles: Battle for Greece with you over the coming weeks. For all of us at CaptureAge, this project has been a labor of love, and we couldn’t be more excited for you to join us on this fresh, ambitious, creative new adventure.

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Hello Age Community and welcome to the Battle for Greece!

The road to today and the announcement of Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Chronicles: Battle for Greece has been a long time coming, and the unlikely path that led us here is worth an explanation. That’s because it’s not just a story about CaptureAge, but also YOU – the Community – and how the passion of players that love Age of Empires can turn into some wild and unlikely adventures.

First let’s talk about CaptureAge. Here at World’s Edge, we started our relationship with CaptureAge several years ago, with a focus on getting their amazing spectator tool (also called CaptureAge) working for AoE II: DE. That tiny project forged some new friendships and confidence, and led to exploring different ways that the CA team might be able to contribute to AoE II: DE outside of what they were already known for. For many years now, they’ve been working rather silently on many small projects within the game, helping to deliver on new features and systems that have been part of the Updates you’ve been receiving over time. It’s been a wonderful collaboration and we’ve been genuinely delighted to watch them grow as a company – talented new people continue to join the CA team, and they’ve been able to express their passion for Age of Empires in new and exciting ways.

But then, as any good story goes, we reached a point of once-upon-a-time when collectively many on the AoE II: DE team took notice of Romae ad Bellum (Rome at War) – a promising mod being developed by a small group of people. Among the many things that caught our attention, they were doing beautiful work with building and unit design, and they were experimenting with gameplay in ways we felt were interesting. Eventually we connected with the Rome at War team to talk about their mod and their creative aspirations, and the vibe was the right one – we liked how they were thinking about AoE II: DE gameplay in a different time period, and it got us thinking about whether or not there was a path to working with them as a content partner. There were big gaps in what they’d be able to take on, but they had the thing that mattered most – a love for Age of Empires and enough passion to push through ambiguity and create something that people were talking about.

So now we have these two teams in the mix, mostly focused on very different things BUT… they both had the same ambition. They both wanted to be developing a true and ambitious content project. And they were both teams that originated in Community, made of people that played AoE II: DE personally, passionately, and daily – and wanted to be doing something interesting and different for the game.

As time went on and conversations continued, what started to emerge was one of those exciting moments where stars align and the opportunity to do something really cool becomes real. With the help of World’s Edge, CaptureAge invited the Rome at War team to join them, and together they became the strongest version of CaptureAge yet – just in time to journey into their first DLC project culminating in today’s surprise for all of you. It was an ambitious and heart-felt effort to launch, because while Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Chronicles: Battle for Greece is definitely inspired by previous mod work from the team, this meant getting to work on a completely new DLC experience, authored entirely from scratch and built from the ground up, together with PhD Historians we added to the team and a desire to build a new type of experience players hadn’t quite seen before. They’ll have much more to say about that story in their own words over the weeks and months to come, but it’s worth highlighting here for a very specific reason.

Age of Empires isn’t just a World’s Edge endeavor – it’s something that belongs to all of us, and it’s been as much a part of your life and story as it has been ours. The examples of Forgotten Empires and CaptureAge teams demonstrate that a vibrant path exists, and for those of you interested in making your mark on Age, we’re watching! We’re fans too and excited to see the things you create! From mods, to music, to cosplay, to fan art – all of it makes us smile because we think it’s as cool as you do! When people and teams pop up in our Community that we can find a way to work with, we’re thrilled! Our connection to our Community is what guides the work we do and the choices we make, and whenever we can grow those efforts by inviting our Community to join us in delivering on the future of these games, it’s a fit like no other! That’s a lot of exclamation marks but also a lot of truth. Not every gaming franchise is like this and the Age of Empires Community stands out as a unique and positive place where this many years later people can still find opportunity in the things they love, and we think that’s pretty awesome.

So this is another encouragement for you to dream big and imagine possibilities. To pick up that editor and speak with your mods. Don’t be afraid of failure, don’t be afraid to get it wrong – it’s a supportive Community! People are there to give you feedback and you might even find others to join you in whatever quest you’ve created for yourself. Just go for it! Because you never know what will happen. You might just get spotted by a Dev, who tells a Producer, who tells a Business Manager, who sends an email, which starts a conversation, which leads to a blog, where we get to praise our Community for being full of amazing people that do amazing things. We genuinely feel that way.

Given the focus on Campaign content in Chronicles: Battle for Greece, alongside the fact that we won’t be adding the new Civs (Achaemenids, Athenians, and Spartans) to Ranked, it seems important to mention that this does not signal a departure from the types of DLC we’ve been delivering in the past that have been reliably adding new Civs for competitive play. In the case of Chronicles: Battle for Greece, we really wanted to try some unconventional things with gameplay, play around with the Tech Tree, and try some new things with Naval that weren’t going to harmonize with the balance in Ranked. So we make choices like this in order to (a) make room for that kind of creativity, (b) respect balance in Ranked, and (c) look for diversity in the types of content we can create for you. A little more about this, from a different angle –

What we’ve been doing with DLCs like Animated Profile Icons, Victors and Vanquished, and now Chronicles: Battle for Greece, is a bit of experimenting. The AoE II: DE community is pretty big and spread out. Our most visible cohort tends to be our competitive community, tournament organizers, and streamers, but there’s a rather massive and understated majority of our players that show up week over week and month over month just to enjoy their favorite Campaigns. They love Campaign content exclusively, and they’re playing them over and over again – hard to blame them (that Attila Campaign, amiright???). There’s some Venn diagram overlap where many of you together are enjoying a lot of Skirmish matches, but the point is that it’s a big game with lots to do and therefore we’ve got many different interests to explore and service. It starts to become important for us to look for ways that we can push Campaign content and do new and interesting things, even if it means some variation in how we roll out a DLC (e.g. Civs not going into Ranked). So when we do something different like this, please don’t be alarmed – we’re just a happy tree growing new branches – the ones that have given you shade in times past are still there and we’ve got plenty of surprises waiting for you. Like, a lot. A lot a lot. Seriously. A lot a lot a lot.

More to say about those surprises in the future!

For now, it’s time to settle in for the Grand Campaign as Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Chronicles: Battle for Greece presents an ALL-NEW experience, not available in any form anywhere else, crafted with love by CaptureAge, and ready to play in just a few weeks!

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Conquer the ancient world with the inaugural chapter of Chronicles: Battle for Greece! Claim victory across the entirely new 21 scenarios of the Grand Campaign. Experience new graphical models including 55 new land units, 19 new naval units, and 85 new buildings, and master three new civilizations - Achaemenids, Athenians and Spartans.

Chronicles: Battle for Greece is now available for pre-order on Steam, Microsoft Store, and Xbox, releasing November 14th!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2805520/Age_of_Empires_II_DE__Chronicles_Battle_for_Greece

Tomorrow is another fun-filled update for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition! This will bring back the Empire Wars 1v1 ladder, plus bug fixes, new quality of life features, balance changes, and more! While there are plenty of notable things to look forward to in tomorrow’s build, here’s some of the big highlights coming with this update:

• 1v1 Empire Wars is available again, replacing the Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado ladder.
  
• Several changes and fixes on Victors and Vanquished scenarios.
  
• New QoL changes.
  
• Bug fixes based on your feedback.
  
• Balance changes.

Be sure to dig down into the post below to get all of the smaller details before hopping in-game and checking them out firsthand.

This is just a small taste of what is coming in the latest update. For a more complete list, please visit our site and check out our blog. Happy Gaming!

[www.ageofempires.com]

💬 DISCUSS: Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition Forum[forums.ageofempires.com]🗣 JOIN: The Age of Empires Official Discord[discord.gg]

Thank you again to our amazing community members, all of whom have helped to make Age of Empires what it is today!

—The Age of Empires Team

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Game

Stability & Performance

• The game will no longer momentarily display a black screen on lower spec machines while switching between Age of Empires II and Return of Rome modes.
  
• Fixed an issue where a black screen softlock could be encountered when restoring a save file of a custom campaign.
  
• Fixed an issue where the game would freeze in certain situations (was encountered mostly when playing custom scenarios).
  
• Fixed a crash which could occur when targeting movable objects on impassable tiles.

Graphics

• Bamboo tree graphics (including felled and stumps) are no longer reduced by Small Trees option.

Audio

• Menu narrator no longer plays if the window is out of focus.

UI

• Bridges are now displayed on the minimap with the same color as shallows terrain.
  
• Corrected the 4v4 map size given in the Ranked Team Queue menu from “normal” to “large”.
  
• Civilization Selection
  
  • The civilization selection dialog sports a new look! The new design includes the ability to mark civilizations as starred. On Console, the dialog now also uses a grid instead of a carousel, making it easier to select any civilization.
    
  • Added the Custom civilization selection mode, which chooses randomly from starred civilizations.
• Fixed an issue where the game language was resetting to the system language at the game launch.

Hotkeys

• Changed the default Drop Off Resources hotkey for HD preset from A to Z, preventing the conflict with Economic Buildings hotkey.
  
• In Return of Rome, changed the default Cancel build hotkey in HD hotkey preset to unassigned.

Xbox

• Fixed an issue where the mouse could not be used in the settings menu.
  
• Fixed an issue where hotkeys could not be set via the mouse.
  
• Fixed an oversight where Fortified Churches were excluded from the “All Back to Work” button.
  
• Fixed an issue where 2013 Xbox One consoles were unintentionally able to join 3v3 and 4v4 ranked queues.
  
• Fixed an issue where Voice Chat to Text setting couldn’t be enabled without a game restart.
  
• The game no longer crashes on the load screen during the Launch Chunk while in ‘Ready to Play’ state of the install.

This is just a small taste of what is coming in the latest update. For a more complete list, please visit our site and check out our blog. Happy Gaming!

[www.ageofempires.com]

:alertalert: DISCLAIMER

This list is subject to change and should not be considered a comprehensive list of all the known issues we’re tracking. The above is to inform you of the team’s current priorities, which will change as other issues arise or take precedence.
For the latest updates and announcements, please visit our social channels.

Minor Update 127161

• Fixed an issue where Italians don't get discounted fishing ships when you create them by using a hotkey
  
• Fixed an issue where using the Hotkey to Produce Fishing Ships at the Dock Produces "Antiquity Mode Fishing Ships" Instead
  
• Fixed an issue where sending a gold miner that is carrying gold to a dock keeps mining it like if it was a gold vein
  
• Fixed an issue with the rebuilding fish trap hotkey.
  
• Fixed an issue where 1 HP Mongol light cav/steppe lancers die when reaching imperial age.
  
• Fixed an issue where AI would not create military ships.
  
• Addressed various crashes related to cloud saves.
  
• Fixed an issues where loading data mods would result in error messages.
  
• Fixed an issue where units would randomly switch to a staggered formation.
  
• Fixed an issue where tool tips would remain on screen even after changing menus.

Dive into epic battles, build your empire, and experience history like never before! 🏰

Grab everything Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition has to offer in the Ultimate Bundle, or pick up a discount on any DLC or digital extras you've missed out on.

https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/45803/Age_of_Empires_II_Ultimate_Bundle/

The Red Bull Wololo tournament is back with Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado starting tomorrow, October 3rd at 7:00 am PT (10am ET / 14:00 UTC)! New legends will soon be forged through the fires of competition at Castillo de Almodóvar del Río in Spain – summoning the fiercest Age of Empires champions to challenge the reigning kings of the castle for their crown and Age of Mythology: Retold‘s first heroes!

Fearless contenders will join us for the main event starting on October 3rd and culminate with four champions proudly taking their new thrones on October 5th and 6th.

Plus, with over twenty-five years of legendary battles in the Age of Empires franchise, Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado will comprise of four titles in which competitors will be able to prove themselves worthy:

October 6

October 3, 4, 5, 6

October 5

October 6

You can catch the main event live on the Red Bull Gaming YouTube and Twitch[www.twitch.tv] channels. Whether you plan to witness the showdown from home or from the castle grounds, there will be plenty of action and activities for fans to enjoy.

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Check out previous gameplay videos from the last Red Bull Wololo Legacy tournament for Age of Empires: Definitive Edition, Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, and Age of Empires IV!

Join us in celebrating the 25th anniversary of Age of Empires II[www.instagram.com] with exciting giveaways across our channels! 🎉

To enter, go to the channel with your desired prize and share your favorite AoE II memory + #25YearsofAoEII[www.instagram.com].

We’re giving away Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition (Facebook)[www.facebook.com], Return of Rome (X)[x.com], The Mountain Royals (Discord)[discord.gg], Victors and Vanquished (IG)[www.instagram.com] and the Animated Icons Bundle Vol. 1 (Official Age Forums)[forums.ageofempires.com]!

Winners will be drawn randomly and notified via DM on October 4th, so be sure to keep your messages open!

We’re thrilled to announce a new and exciting feature for our community—starting today, the Public Esports Tournament Calendar is live! Whether you’re a competitor or a fan, this calendar is your place for staying up to date with every exciting event in our competitive gaming scene.

Access the Public Esports Tournament Calendar here[www.ageofempires.com]!

As the esports scene continues to grow, we’ve noticed the demand for a centralized place where all tournament schedules are readily available and shared well in advance. We understand that keeping track of multiple events across multiple platforms can be overwhelming.

That’s why we’re making it easier for everyone to stay in the loop – whether you’re a seasoned pro or a dedicated fan.

The calendar will include World’s Edge sponsored tournaments for:

• Age of Empires: Definitive Edition
  
• Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
  
• Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition
  
• Age of Empires IV
  
• Age of Mythology: Retold

Be aware that some of the information displayed in the Public Esports Tournament Calendar is incomplete right now, to let the tournament host share more information with you at their own pace. All of the information displays what we can share at this moment and is subject to change.

With the launch of this new feature, we’re taking another step towards fostering a more connected and informed esports community. Whether you’re a competitor looking to plan your next big challenge or a fan eager to follow your favorite player or teams, this calendar will be your go-to source for all things esports.

We’re incredibly excited to roll this out and make esports even more accessible. Stay tuned for further updates and new features that will make following and participating in the esports scene easier than ever!

See you at the tournaments!

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Want a glimpse into all the upcoming World’s Edge sponsored esports tournaments? Have a look at the the Public Esports Tournament Calendar!

[www.ageofempires.com]

Today’s patch is focused exclusively on addressing player reported issues with the Empire Wars maps created for the Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado ladder. For fixes related to anything else, please keep an eye on future updates!

We’ve been really excited to partner with Red Bull in taking this step and trying to provide new and exciting opportunities for our community to enjoy competitive play, and we want to make sure that players attempting to qualify for the Red Bull Wololo main event have the best experience we can provide.

It’s been thrilling to see all of the activity on the ladder, and we can’t wait to see the results when the Ranked Ladder Qualifiers end on July 28th! Wololo!

💬 DISCUSS: Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition Forum[forums.ageofempires.com]
🗣 JOIN: The Age of Empires Official Discord[discord.gg]

Thank you again to our amazing community members, all of whom have helped to make Age of Empires what it is today!

—The Age of Empires Team

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Random Maps

Map Fixes

Cliffbound

• Fixed villagers sometimes not generating in the appropriate number.

Dunesprings

• Decreased the chance of villagers generating trapped inside forests.

Golden Stream

• Decreased the chance of villagers generating trapped inside forests.

Hollow Woodlands

• Fixed villagers sometimes not generating in the appropriate number.

Isthmus

• Fixed resources sometimes failing to generate or generating imbalanced between the players.

Karsts

• Decreased the chance of villagers generating trapped inside forests.

Mountain Dunes

• Decreased the chance of villagers generating trapped inside forests.

The Passage

• When playing on a tiny map with two players, two narrow passages now generate between the landmasses, allowing players to access each other’s islands without using transport ships.
  
• Fixed forests sometimes failing to generate for one player.
  
• The patches of shallows in the water now can generate closer to the shoreline to better accommodate Relics.
  
• The monk has been replaced by a regular scout unit.

River Divide

• Fixed resources sometimes failing to generate or generating imbalanced between the players.

Sandrift

• Fixed forests sometimes failing to generate for one player.

Shrubland

• Fixed player’s gold and stone deposits sometimes generating in an inaccessible part of the map.
  
• Decreased the chance of villagers generating trapped inside forests.

Ongoing...

Investigation

As always, we are continuing to track issues reported by the community for future updates.

For other known issues, please visit this page[support.ageofempires.com] to see what’s being tracked!

:alertalert: DISCLAIMER

This list is subject to change and should not be considered a comprehensive list of all the known issues we’re tracking. The above is to inform you of the team’s current priorities, which will change as other issues arise or take precedence.

For the latest updates and announcements, please visit our social channels.

Today’s patch is aimed at addressing stability and performance issues, as well as some focused fixes for Xbox players.

Be sure to dig down into the post below to get all of the smaller details before hopping in-game and checking them out firsthand.

💬 DISCUSS: Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition Forum[forums.ageofempires.com]
🗣 JOIN: The Age of Empires Official Discord[discord.gg]

Thank you again to our amazing community members, all of whom have helped to make Age of Empires what it is today!

—The Age of Empires Team

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Game

Stability and Performance

• Fixed a freeze that could occur during the Match Found screen in Quickplay games, if a certain number of Team maps were banned.
  
• Fixed a crash related to Intel Graphics drivers.
  
• Fixed a crash that could occur when villagers were trying to reach an obstructed area near the corners of the map.

Multiplayer

• Fixed an error when attempting to update SSL certificates.

Xbox

• Fixed a freeze that could occur during multiplayer games.
  
• Fixed a freeze that could occur during long gameplay sessions, if any of the Narration options, such as Chat Narration, were enabled.
  
• Fixed an issue where some special units & technologies from Victors & Vanquished scenarios would not appear in the radial menu when playing with a controller.
  
• Fixed an issue in Victors & Vanquished where certain scenario-specific buildings had their Command Menus disabled when playing with a controller.

Ongoing...

Investigation

As always, we are continuing to track issues reported by the community for future updates.

For other known issues, please visit this page[support.ageofempires.com] to see what’s being tracked!

:alertalert: DISCLAIMER

This list is subject to change and should not be considered a comprehensive list of all the known issues we’re tracking. The above is to inform you of the team’s current priorities, which will change as other issues arise or take precedence.

For the latest updates and announcements, please visit our social channels.

The Steam Summer Sale is happening now! Complete your Age of Empires collection with up to 75% off on all your favorites - it’s time to Age up your Summer!

Don’t wait – sale ends July 11th at 10 AM PT (17:00 UTC).