Strengths
- Closes on archers and Scorpions.
- Simple to use.
- High HP.
Knight
Verifiedcavalry · Stable · castle Age
The Castle Age power unit. Fast, tanky, and simple. Beats archers and siege if it reaches them.
Idle Villager is current for Update 177723, with minor updates through 180059. Facts on this page were checked on 2026-09-19. Counters are not unconditional. Numbers, upgrades, terrain, and micro change the fight.
What it does
The default Castle Age army on open maps. Add a few Pikes of your own if the opponent also has Knights. Upgrade Bloodlines and armor as soon as the fight is real.
Weaknesses
- Gold cost.
- Pikes and camels.
- Monks.
Strong counters
Strategic advice built on verified armor classes and unit access. Not unconditional.
Spearman · cost-effective · needs numbers, surround, or micro
Pikes are the textbook cost-effective answer. Five pikes do not stop twenty Knights. A comparable resource pile of pikes does.
- Archers and Scorpions farm pikes.
- Chokes that prevent surrounding help the Knights.
Camel Rider · cost-effective · can win in equal numbers
Camels win the equal-number cavalry fight.
- Byzantine camels lack Bloodlines.
- Archers around the Knights punish camels.
Situational counters
Monk · cost-effective · needs numbers, surround, or micro
Conversions swing Castle Age Knight wars. Not a 1v1 unit counter.
- Light Cavalry.
- You need several monks and Sanctity.
Knight · spends gold to win · can win in equal numbers
Knight vs Knight is an upgrade and micro fight, not a counter. Frank HP and Briton missing Bloodlines change it.
- Do not treat this as a counter. It is a mirror.
What it counters
- Scorpion
Knights close the gap, ignore most of the pierce armor, and delete Scorpions in melee. This is the default land answer.
- Knight
Knight vs Knight is an upgrade and micro fight, not a counter. Frank HP and Briton missing Bloodlines change it.
- Archer
Knights that arrive win. They cost more gold. If the archers kite in a forest, they lose.
- Skirmisher
Knights flatten Skirmishers. Even Scouts do if they reach.
- Militia
Knights outrun and out-hit militia-line until Champions with full upgrades, and even then Knights raid around them.
- Mangonel
Cavalry dive is the default. BBC is the Imperial siege answer.
- Battering Ram
Knights punish the ram's melee armor. Do not shoot arrows at rams.
- Bombard Cannon
Same dive, more gold. Use if you already have Paladins out.
- Longbowman
Knights win if they arrive. Briton range makes the arrival harder.
- Throwing Axeman
Knights win a fair melee. Axes with Bearded Axe can chip while retreating.
- Woad Raider
Knights win the 1v1. Woads win the raid if Knights are elsewhere.
- Hand Cannoneer
Cavalry close before enough shots land.
Why matchups work
2 pierce armor and 100 HP shrug off early xbows. Spear bonus damage is built exactly to stop that. Monks convert high-value cavalry and ignore HP.
Line, cost, and age
Verified fact from the aoe2techtree dat extract. Base stats, no civ bonuses.
| Unit | Age | HP | Attack | Range | Armor | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knight | castle | 100 | 10 melee | 0 | 2/2 | 60f 75g |
| Cavalier | imperial | 120 | 12 melee | 0 | 2/2 | 60f 75g |
| Paladin | imperial | 160 | 14 melee | 0 | 2/3 | 60f 75g |
Upgrades
- Bloodlines, Husbandryfeudal Age
HP and speed. Franks lack Bloodlines but have +20% mounted HP from Feudal Age.
- Cavalier / Paladinimperial Age
Not every civ has Paladin. Khmer and Britons stop at Cavalier.
Common mistakes when fighting it
- Fighting Pikes in a forest choke.
- No monk defense.
- Assuming Paladin exists.
Supporting units
Civilization-specific exceptions
These sit on top of the generic matchup, not inside it.