Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition News

Hello Explorers!

We have a potential fix for the Out of Sync issues related to ransoming your Explorer/Hero and we need your help! Please opt into our Update Preview - October Hotfix branch and let us know if you are still encountering any OOS issues with our latest changes.

Details on how to participate in the Public Update Preview Program can be found here: https://steamcommunity.com/games/933110/announcements/detail/3061863764824320236
Please join us in strengthening the quality of Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition by sharing your voice on the official 🛠 Public Update Preview forums. (Note that you must own the game and login to Steam to access the PUP forum.) We’re definitely listening, and looking for every opportunity to make this the game you love to play! :)

- The World's Edge Team

Age fans, as we inch closer to our 25th anniversary, we have another special content announcement to celebrate! On October 18th, Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition fans will have the opportunity to access some new and unique cosmetic packs to enhance the in-game experience. These packs will cover previously-released and brand-new heroes from across all of the civilizations in the game. Collect and command heroes to master the lands across the globe! Check out how to gain these new rewards below.

[h2]Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition – Hero Cosmetic Pack – Lizzie: Free[/h2]

Meet Lizzie the Pirate (British):

• Although raised as daughter of an English nobleman, Elisabet Ramsey prefers to be buccaneering in the Caribbean with – and without – Her Majesty’s letter of marque.

[h2]Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition – Hero Cosmetic Pack – Kunoichi: $0.99[/h2]

Meet Kunoichi (Japanese):

• Trained in the martial arts of Ninjutsu, this warrior can infiltrate enemy bases and is capable of defeating the most stalwart of foes with her superior skills and training.

[h2]Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition – Hero Cosmetic Pack – Vol. 1: $4.99[/h2]
Collect and command over 25 Heroes to master the lands across the globe in one mighty Customizations pack.

This Hero Cosmetic Pack Vol. 1 unlocks the following customizations:

         [h2]What are you waiting for? Get your cosmetic packs now![/h2]

https://store.steampowered.com/app/933110/Age_of_Empires_III_Definitive_Edition/

[h2]Join the 25th Anniversary Fun![/h2]

More announcements and fun coming as we lead up to our 25th Anniversary Celebration Broadcast on October 25th! While you prepare for the big day, here are more ways to join the 25th Anniversary Celebration!

Welcome back for another exciting update for Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition!

This time, we’re celebrating the Age of Empires 25th Anniversary! We’ve got a fun event in store, plus some awesome new improvements!

While there are plenty of notable fixes and features in today’s update, here are some of the big highlights of what you can expect to see:

• Ageiversary Event
  
  • New profile icons
    
  • New Hero customizations
    
  • New official mods
    
  • New cheats
• Tons of Balance changes
  
  • Standard units
    
  • Outlaws & mercenaries
    
  • Water balance
• Native & Mercenary cards
  
• Brand-new cards
  
• New politicians
  
• Modding improvements
  
• Deck renaming & Hero name randomizer
  
• Photo Mode Update
  
• 6 new special maps and Special map set
  
  • Black Forest – Arena
    
  • Black Forest – Forest Nothing
    
  • Eurasian Steppe – LOST
    
  • Eurasian Steppe – Survival
    
  • Unknown – LOST
    
  • Unknown – Survival
• Map changes
  

During the event, the appearance of the Town Center and Resource Crates will be altered. These cosmetic effects can be disabled from Options/Game Options under the Game section. The event cosmetic effects will automatically be disabled once the event has concluded.

Thank you for sharing in yet another major milestone for Age of Empires with us! We hope you enjoy all the changes and look forward to sharing in all the adventures yet to come!

—The Age of Empires Team

💬 DISCUSS: Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition Forum
🗣 JOIN: The Age of Empires Official Discord

[h4]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! [/h4]

READ MORE HERE!

         ◆ UPDATE 13.27885 ◆

[h2]Ageiversary Event[/h2]

[h3]           💥 October 25th – November 20th 💥[/h3]

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition is celebrating 25 years of Age of Empires with the coming of the new community event, Ageiversary! For a limited time, you can unlock new portraits and explorer customizations by completing the community challenges!


[h3]🡒 NEW REWARDS![/h3]

Starting October 25th through November 20th complete daily in-game tasks within the time limit to unlock exclusive rewards!

[h2]New Cards & Units![/h2]
Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Age of Empires we wanted to give each Age of Empires III civilization some much needed attention as some of them still have been missing out so far! To make up for your time of waiting we are delivering gifts to many civilizations in the form of new cards and units! Here is a small selection of 5 new exciting cards:

French Royal Army (French, II)

“Enables your Musketeers and Halberdiers to benefit from Combat promotions to receive extra hitpoints and damage for each defeated enemy military unit.”

• Hitpoint and damage tiers for both units: +5% / +15% / +25%.

Prince-Electors (Germans, I)

“You may choose a German Royal House as an ally that will allow you to recruit and upgrade units at the Royal Embassy.”

• You may only pick ONE ally.
• Allied units will now cost population in the Royal Embassy and home city.
• Each alliance costs 50f 50w.
• Alliance options are: Hanover, Habsburg, Oldenburg, Wettin, Wittelsbach.

Mughal Elephant Armors (Indians, IV)

“Improves different resistances of Indian elephant units, +1 Villager.”

• Card costs 500 coin, 500 wood.
• Siege Elephant +10% ranged resistance.
• Flail Elephant +10 % siege resistance.
• Mahout Lancer +10% melee resistance.
• Howdah +10% melee resistance.

Forty-Seven Ronin (Japanese, IV)

“All your Villagers and Shrines turn into Masterless Samurai guardians. Castles are replaced by Wokou Ronins. Wonders and Town Centers are replaced by Ronin mercenaries.”

• Card costs 1000 food, 1000 wood, 1000 coin.
• Masterless Samurai guardians will assume a default formation.

Sovnya (Russians, III)

“Notably increases the melee damage of Cavalry Archers, Streltsy, and Halberdiers. Cavalry Archers inflict area damage in melee.”

• Cavalry Archer +15% melee damage and +1 area damage radius.
• Strelet +30% melee damage.
• Halberdier 25% melee damage.

[h2]6 New Special Maps![/h2]

🌐 Black Forest - Arena[expand]

Knights of the Mediterranean

Each player's starting town is well protected behind stone walls while local settlements and extra resources can be found in the central clearing.

Description: On this classic map, a dense forest rings the perimeter of the map and gives way for a large central clearing containing extra resources. You are safe to boom your economy behind stone walls, but don't wait too long before you try to establish a presence on the map, otherwise you will find yourself pinned down and your economy struggling.

Settlements: variable

Outlaws: variable

[/expand]
🌐 Black Forest - Forest Nothing[expand]

Knights of the Mediterranean

Players battle on a map with no natural resources other than wood.

Description: On this classic map, players spawn into a vast thick forest. There are no other natural resources available, only wood as far as the eye can see. Players will need to chop their way toward the enemy, and sometimes even toward their teammates. Small pockets of treasures may appear all over the map. There is no trade route here.

Settlements: Bourbon, Habsburg, Wittelsbach

Outlaws: Inquisitor, Crabat

[/expand]
🌐 Eurasian Steppe - LOST[expand]

Knights of the Mediterranean

You're LOST in the Eurasian Steppe! Explore the steppe to gather the treasures needed to get your town started in this harsh region! Players begin with only a few of their usual starting units and an extra scout scattered across this vast steppe.

Description: Your expedition got dispersed in the vastness of the Eurasian Steppe, and you are LOST! A few of your starting units are scattered across this extensive landscape. Once you've collected enough wood using your heroes and three villagers, construct a base to establish a foothold in this harsh region. In this remote place you will not receive your usual starting crates and villagers once your first Town Center has been constructed. Plan accordingly and use your resources wisely!

Settlements: Oldenburg, Jagiellon, Tengri

Outlaws: Wokou Horseman, Cossack Daredevil

[/expand]
🌐 Eurasian Steppe - Survival[expand]

Knights of the Mediterranean

Players spawn into a nearly empty map with only some Villagers, a Shipment from their Home City, and their first Town Center. Defeating the enemy will require a unique deck and strategy.

Description: Players spawn into a barren region with only some Villagers and their first Town Center. That's right, no hero or scouting units and no natural resources are present on this map! A starting shipment which arrives quickly and some early infrastructure has been granted to you to help you get started.

Settlements: Oldenburg, Jagiellon, Tengri

Outlaws: Wokou Horseman, Cossack Daredevil

[/expand]
🌐 Unknown - LOST[expand]

Knights of the Mediterranean

You are LOST in the mysterious Unknown!

Description: You are lost in a mysterious uncharted wilderness without even the resources needed to establish a town! Snow or desert, land or water, Trade Routes or Natives or both - you never quite know what you're going to get. It is crucial that your starting hero unit remains alive and as always, expect the unexpected!

Settlements: variable

Outlaws: variable

[/expand]
🌐 Unknown - Survival[expand]

Knights of the Mediterranean

Players spawn into a nearly empty map with only a few Villagers, a Shipment from their Home City, and their first Town Center. Defeating the enemy will require a unique deck and strategy.

Description: Players spawn into a barren mysterious region with only a few Villagers, a starting shipment, and their first Town Center. That's right, no hero or scouting units and no natural resources are present on this map!

Settlements: variable

Outlaws: variable

[/expand]

[h4]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! [/h4]

READ MORE HERE!

[h3]:alertalert: DISCLAIMER[/h3]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.

[hr][/hr]

[h2]Hotfix 13.29366[/h2]

• A fix for an out of sync that occurs when ransoming your Hero/Explorer
  
• A fix for an out of sync error in recorded games for civilizations that have two Hero/Explorer units
  
• A fix for an issue that invalidated some player generated UI mods
  
• Added missing home city cards that were intended to go out with the previous patch
  
• Functional fixes for new cards
  
• Various balance tweaks
  
• Localization improvements
  
• Minor inconsistencies in Hero cosmetic visuals
  
• A fix for Ottoman villagers not showing up in player score
  
• A fix for missing Galley card icons
  
• A fix for the deck rename dialogue showing up in other areas than the deck list
  
• A fix for several missing legacy hotkey bindings for new units
  
• A fix for missing visuals of Sansculottes in the French Revolution
  
• A fix for erroneous train time reduction on the Indian Gunpowder card
  

[hr][/hr]

[h2]Hotfix 13.29985[/h2]

• Fixed Ransom Explorer OOS
  
• Add missing Idle animations to Kunoichi and Nakano second cosmetic
  
• Add missing precomps for Humbaraci and Deli
  
• Additional balance fixes

Hello Age fans and welcome to the giant celebration for the Age of Empires Anniversary extravaganza! We’re so excited to share everything we have in store for you over the next few weeks, but for now, here’s a sneak peek at all the in-game events with unique challenges and rewards starting on October 25th. Don’t miss out on all the fun in Age of Empires IV, Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, and Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition with celebratory cakes, castles, capybaras, and more!

[h2]Age of Empires IV[/h2]

[h3]Season Three: Anniversary Event[/h3]
[h3]🎉October 25 – November 28🎉[/h3]
This October marks the 25th Anniversary for Age of Empires! Come celebrate with us and enjoy everything we love about Age!

Challenges and Rewards highlight units from across the franchise, including an iconic cheat! You won't want to miss out in earning these spectacular Age-aversary rewards! As always, Wololo!

Part II is now live!

[h3]Ranked Season Three: October 26 - February 15[/h3]

Ranked Season Three is almost here -are you ready? The party starts on October 26 and runs until February 15. Grab your swords, garrison your castles, and bring all your friends, it’s time!
Plus, for the first time ever, you can earn Ranked Team rewards too!



[h3]Also included are unlockable taunts![/h3]
Earn taunts for achieving the rank of Bronze or higher in either Solo or Team Ranked when you participate in Season Three.

Rank Achieved (Solo or Team)

Taunt

How to Earn

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

OP.

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

Nice sheep.

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

Remember when you had an army?

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

Well that escalated quickly.

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

STRAEEELBOOORRAAAA!

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

Behold! My amazing army!

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

This is fine...

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

You know, this game has a good tutorial.

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

It has been a pleasure.

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3.

Bronze+ (Solo or Team)

I ... did not see that coming.

Granted for participating in Solo or Team Ranked in Season 3

[h2]Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition[/h2]

[h3]The 25th Age of Empires Anniversary Event[/h3]
[h3]🎉October 25 – November 8🎉[/h3]

Huzzah! This October marks the 25th Anniversary for Age of Empires! Join us as we celebrate everything we love about Age!

Challenges and Rewards highlight units from across the franchise, including a very famous Town Bell. If you haven’t tried playing the other Age games, now’s a great time to check them out!

And of course, a big Birthday thanks to all for making Age of Empires so special, including you!

[h3]New Rewards![/h3]

October 25th through November 8th, complete the in-game tasks within the time limit to unlock exclusive rewards!



[h4]Keep it Forever![/h4]
Remember: if you sign in to Xbox Live at any point during the event, you get to keep all the mods and profile icons you unlock! Sign in, earn your rewards, and enjoy!

—The Age of Empires Team

[h2]Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition[/h2]

[h3]Ageiversary Event[/h3]
[h3]🎉October 25th – November 20th🎉[/h3]

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition is celebrating 25 years of Age of Empires with the coming of the new community event, Ageiversary! For a limited time, you can unlock new portraits and explorer customizations by completing the community challenges!

[h3]New Rewards![/h3]

October 25th through November 20th, complete the in-game tasks within the time limit to unlock exclusive rewards!



[h4]Keep it Forever![/h4]
Remember: if you sign in to Xbox Live at any point during the event, you get to keep all the mods and profile icons you unlock! Sign in, earn your rewards, and enjoy!

—The Age of Empires Team

[h2]Join the 25th Anniversary Fun![/h2]

More announcements and fun coming as we lead up to our 25th Anniversary Celebration Broadcast on October 25th! While you prepare for the big day, here are more ways to join the 25th Anniversary Celebration!

Remember, all the fun starts on October 25th!

WHAT: Server Maintenance (Matchmaking Servers)
WHEN: Wednesday, October 5 @ 2:00p PT / 5:00p ET / 21:00 UTC (Countdown)
EST. DOWNTIME: 1-2 HOURS

[h3]GAMES & PLATFORMS IMPACTED[/h3]

• Age of Empires: Definitive Edition (Steam / Microsoft Store)
  
• Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition (Steam / Microsoft Store)
  
• Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition (Steam / Microsoft Store)
  
• Age of Empires IV (Steam / Microsoft Store)
  

[h3]OBJECTIVES[/h3]

• Routine server updates and maintenance.

[h3]DETAILS[/h3]This coming Wednesday, October 5th, the platform team will be taking the multiplayer servers down for regular maintenance. Please note:

• Ranked matchmaking will disabled exactly one hour before the maintenance window to prevent disruption to newly-formed matches.
  
  
• Any matches still in progress at the start of the maintenance window will be disrupted when it begins.
  
  
• DURING THE MAINTENANCE WINDOW, YOU WILL STILL BE ABLE TO LAUNCH THE GAME, BUT WILL NOT BE ABLE TO MATCHMAKE OR ACCESS ANY ONLINE FEATURES.

To prevent any interruptions, we recommend wrapping up any games at least 10 minutes before the maintenance window. The downtime is expected to last between 1 and 2 hours. You can watch this thread with any changes to the schedule as they arise, as well as the all-clear when the maintenance is complete.

Thank you for your patience!