Chapter 3
Technologies
Age of Empires Expansion includes four new technologies. For information about all technologies in the
game, see the Technology Costs & Benefits table in the Appendix. For information about which
civilizations can research which technologies, see the technology trees in the Appendix.
Logistics
Age: Bronze
Research at: Government Center
Benefit: Barracks units only count as half a unit toward your population, so you can
essentially exceed the population limit by training Barracks units. For example, if the
population limit is 50 and you build 20 normal units, you can train 60 Barracks units (for a total of 80
units) without exceeding the population limit.
The science of supplying armies on the march was called logistics. The Assyrians were the first great
army to employ logistics consistently, and this allowed them to operate regularly at great distances
from their home bases. Armies on campaign needed food, forage for animals, equipment, armor, and
weapons. In most cases, food was acquired from the countryside through which the army was moving.
But if an army paused to besiege a town, it exhausted local supplies quickly. Food and forage had to be
brought in or the army was forced to retire. The tools of logistics were supply wagons, pack animals,
depots, and troops to keep the roads open. The great conquerors of antiquity mastered logistics.
Chapter 3: Technologies 7
