Cree Coureur des Bois
Cree Coureur des Bois is economic unit in Age of Empires III, available from the Commerce Age; obtained through Trading Post or Tambo on a Cree settlement. Its listed ability is Gathers resources; Builds buildings; Claims treasures.
Recorded values
- Cost
- 120 Food
- Available
- Commerce Age · Trading Post or Tambo on a Cree settlement
- Training
- 29 sec · 1 population · 12 XP per train
- Durability & mobility
- 180 hit points · 40% ranged resistance · 4.5 speed · 18 line of sight
- Hand attack
- 10 damage · 1.5 attack interval · bonuses: 5.0x vs. Llama, 16
- Ranged attack
- 8 damage · 2-12 range · 3.0 attack interval · bonuses: 2.0x vs. Huntable; 2.0x vs. Pet; 2.0x vs. Artillery; 0.25x vs. Villager
- Siege attack
- 6 damage · 6 range · 3.0 attack interval · bonuses: 3.0x vs. Resource enclosure
- Ability
- Gathers resources; Builds buildings; Claims treasures
Role, availability & values
Production is available through Trading Post or Tambo on a Cree settlement. It has 180 hit points and 40% ranged resistance. It moves at 4.5 speed and uses 1 population. Training costs 120 Food; it takes 29 seconds to train. Attack profile: Hand attack deals 10 damage. Ranged attack deals 8 damage. Siege attack deals 6 damage. Hand attack bonuses: 5.0× against Llama, 16. Ranged attack bonuses: 2.0× against Huntable, 2.0× against Pet, 2.0× against Artillery, and 0.25× against Villager. Siege attack bonuses: 3.0× against Resource enclosure. Special ability or role: Gathers resources; Builds buildings; Claims treasures.
Matchup & timing
Hand attack is especially effective against Llama, 16 (5×). Ranged attack is especially effective against Huntable (2×), Pet (2×), Artillery (2×). Siege attack is especially effective against Resource enclosure (3×). Its reduced multipliers against Villager (0.25×) make it less suitable for those targets. Use ranged fire to focus Huntable, Pet, and Artillery before they can close; hold the melee attack for Llama, 16 when they enter contact; reserve the siege attack for Resource enclosure. Keep a frontline between this unit and threats that can reach it safely.
Cree settlement access and limits
The Cree Coureur des Bois is trained at a Trading Post or Tambo on a Cree settlement once Commerce Age access is available. Each settlement can provide at most five, so the unit is a premium supplement rather than a substitute for the civilization’s entire Villager workforce. It costs 120 Food, requires 29 seconds, and occupies one population. A player should account for that cost against both the next shipment and the army, especially because the unit’s best value comes from keeping it alive and gathering over time. Its construction and Treasure-claiming abilities add flexibility, but neither removes the settlement cap nor makes the worker expendable.
Food: livestock, hunts, and buildings
The source-specific Food rates differ sharply. Crates are gathered at 10 per second, herded animals at 2.5, and hunted animals at 1.04. A Mill yields 0.84 per second; Berry Bushes and Cherry Orchards yield 0.83. Farms, Rice Paddies, and Haciendas yield 0.63, while Fields yield 0.625. These are base rates and may be altered by applicable improvements. When safe livestock is available, it is the fastest sustained Food source in this list; crates are a temporary burst, while building-based gathering can remain dependable after nearby hunts are exhausted. Select a source based on safety and remaining supply, not solely on its displayed rate.
Wood and Coin source rates
For Wood, a Hacienda yields 0.94 per second, trees and Mango Groves 0.62, and Fields 0.374. For Coin, mines yield 0.74 per second, Estates 0.63, Fields 0.47125, and Rice Paddies and Haciendas 0.43. This makes source choice meaningful: mines are the strongest listed Coin source, while the Hacienda has the highest listed Wood rate. Access and danger can outweigh a small rate difference, especially when a mine is far from the base or a tree line is exposed. The Cree worker’s durability helps but does not prevent a raid from interrupting income. Reassign the limited group when a resource is exhausted or the enemy threatens the route.
Using the worker’s durability
At 180 hit points, 40% ranged resistance, and 4.5 movement speed, this villager is harder to dislodge than a normal worker. Its line of sight is 18. Those values help when it works at a contested but defensible site or travels with a small group, yet they do not make it a combat unit. It can be defeated by concentrated military pressure, particularly by threats that do not rely on ranged damage. Keep a safe path to retreat and use escorts if a remote mine, hunt, or construction site lies near the opponent. The unit’s investment is recovered through continued work, not by trading it for damage.
Attack values and target bonuses
The hand attack deals 10 damage and has a 5.0 multiplier against Llamas. Its ranged attack deals eight damage at range 2–12 every three seconds; it has a 2.0 multiplier against huntable animals, pets, and artillery, but only 0.25 against Villagers. The six-damage siege attack reaches range six and receives a 3.0 multiplier against resource enclosures. These profiles let the unit defend itself and interact with specialized targets, but their modest base values should not be read as a general military role. The Villager penalty is particularly important: do not expect the ranged attack to efficiently raid enemy workers.
Favorable and unfavorable fights
The listed favorable targets are pets, Villagers, weak infantry, and weak cavalry when the Cree Coureur des Bois are massed. The article identifies most other combat units as unfavorable and calls out Oprichniks as a particularly serious threat. Small numbers are best kept out of fights; the unit’s value comes from gathering and building. If a group must defend itself, focus on weak or specialized targets, use the movement advantage to disengage, and avoid allowing heavy cavalry or strong infantry to close. Units with high mobility can still catch an exposed worker if its retreat route is blocked, so position matters as much as the listed speed.
Construction and Treasure utility
The unit can construct buildings and claim Treasures in addition to gathering. This provides a flexible option when the economy already has enough workers on resources: it can help establish infrastructure or participate in safe exploration without requiring a different unit type. Its 18 line of sight supports that scouting role, although it should not be sent alone toward unknown guardians. Use the Treasure-claiming ability after confirming that the guardian is manageable and that the worker can return safely. A lost specialist worker means both the Food cost and the future income are gone, so avoid placing it in danger merely to collect a marginal reward.
Improvements depend on the resource source
The Cree Coureur des Bois is affected by Villager improvements and Home City Cards, but individual upgrades apply only to their listed gathering sources. The source material includes broad bonuses such as Klamath Work Ethos and Fasting as well as civilization-specific bonuses for natural resources, hunts, livestock, or buildings. Do not assume an improvement for Mills affects hunts, or a mine bonus affects Hacienda gathering. Check the exact source wording and the civilization that can research it. A targeted improvement can compound over time for several workers, while a bonus that does not apply to their assignment contributes nothing. The small per-settlement unit cap makes matching upgrades to actual tasks especially important.
Gathering plan for a live match
At arrival, compare the available crate, livestock, hunt, mine, trees, and buildings with the resource needed for the next age or shipment. Assign the specialist to the strongest safe source, then inspect it again when the mine is depleted or the hunt is nearly exhausted. Avoid sending all five to the same exposed location simply because it has the best rate; one raid can erase the gain. If a Hacienda is available, its Wood rate is strong, but its placement and access may make it less practical than trees. A balanced assignment across safe Food and Coin can be more helpful than maximizing a single resource with no military protection.
Population and opportunity cost
The one population used per Cree Coureur des Bois competes with military production, while the 120-Food price competes with age advances and other units. Five workers can provide a useful gathering supplement, but their value is conditional on time: an early purchase has longer to return its cost than a late one, provided the workers remain safe. Include the settlement limit in the plan and do not queue beyond it. If Food is needed urgently for defense, delay additional workers until the immediate threat is covered. This opportunity-cost check prevents the specialist’s premium statistics from masking the army or technology that had to be postponed to train them.
Practical use summary
Use the Cree Coureur des Bois as a durable, versatile economic specialist. Favor high-rate sources such as crates, herded animals, mine Coin, or Hacienda Wood when they are available and defensible; rotate assignments as resources disappear. Use its building and Treasure skills when they can be performed safely. Keep the five-per-settlement limit, population use, and 120-Food cost in mind. Its 180 hit points and ranged resistance help it escape some pressure, but its attacks remain situational and it loses to a proper army. Protecting the worker and matching upgrades to the exact source are the two decisions that determine whether its premium cost pays back.
Interpreting the source-rate table
The recorded rates describe how quickly the unit gathers from a specific source, not the final economy after every upgrade. A rate listed for a Mill, Rice Paddy, Field, Farm, or Hacienda applies to that building interaction, while the natural-resource bonuses may apply to hunts, trees, or mines. When comparing two choices, use the same resource and consider travel time: a high-rate livestock pen that requires a long exposed walk may return less than a slightly slower safe hunt. The unit can move between sources, so reassess the best assignment whenever the map changes.
Crates are a burst, not a lasting economy
The 10-per-second crate rate is dramatically higher than ordinary gathering, but crates are finite. Use the fast crate collection to meet an immediate shipment or age-up threshold, then transfer the worker to the next resource rather than expecting the rate to continue. A Cree Coureur des Bois can gather from the same crate sources as other workers while retaining its improved durability, but the premium cost does not make a crate renewable. This distinction helps avoid overvaluing short-lived bonuses when planning the later economy.
Livestock and hunt transition
Herded animals provide 2.5 Food per second, more than double the listed hunted-animal rate. Livestock is attractive when a safe herd and an appropriate gathering location are available; if animals are absent or can be stolen, the advantage may disappear. Hunted animals can be gathered at 1.04 per second and often support the early economy before building-based food sites are ready. Later, a Mill, Farm, Rice Paddy, Hacienda, or Field offers a more permanent assignment with lower base rates. Plan a transition before the original food source runs out so the specialist workers do not travel across the map during a vulnerable moment.
Choose coin infrastructure deliberately
Mine Coin at 0.74 per second exceeds the listed Estate rate of 0.63, Field at 0.47125, and Rice Paddy or Hacienda at 0.43. Yet a mine has a finite supply and may be farther from defensive buildings. Estates or agricultural sites can remain useful after natural mines are depleted, particularly when upgrades apply to them. Keep enough Coin coming in for shipments and military production, but avoid sending all five limited specialists to a mine that is about to run out. A safe rotation between natural and building sources can produce a steadier supply than an aggressive single-site focus.
Wood gathering and building plans
The Hacienda’s listed Wood rate of 0.94 per second is higher than the 0.62 from trees and Mango Groves and 0.374 from Fields. If the civilization has a functional Hacienda and an available slot, this can make it an attractive assignment. The decision should include the structure’s cost and exposure: constructing a Hacienda only for a small or short-term Wood gain may not pay back, and a distant one can be raided. Trees remain a direct option without requiring the same building investment. Because the unit can build, it can help establish the infrastructure it later uses, but construction temporarily removes its gathering output.
Upgrade eligibility and civilization limits
Cree Coureurs des Bois benefit from improvements and Home City Cards that affect Villagers, but the listed upgrade set varies by civilization and source. Examples in the reference include Klamath Work Ethos and Fasting, while bonuses such as Civil Servants and Imperial Bureaucracy are limited to Asian civilizations. European food technologies may apply only to buildings such as Mills or Farms, not to every resource source. Read the technology’s precise target before researching it. The same unit name does not imply that every civilization can use every bonus mentioned in a general improvement table.
Keep the specialist group productive
A five-worker settlement cap makes idle time expensive. Avoid leaving the group at a depleted mine or an unfinished building after its task is no longer useful. Assign one worker to help construct a resource building only when the structure will be used, then return it to gathering. If a resource becomes unsafe, move the workers before the opponent can surround them; their speed and resilience help with withdrawal but do not guarantee survival. These small management decisions compound because the group’s value depends on sustained work across the match.
Match the unit to the map
A map with abundant livestock, crates, or secure natural resources can make the Cree specialist especially productive. A map with distant mines, contested herds, or few safe gathering sites may reduce the benefit of training all five. Consider travel distance, likely raids, and the structures required by the best available sources. The unit can also claim a nearby Treasure or construct infrastructure, giving it a useful role when a resource line is temporarily saturated. Use the match’s actual layout rather than assuming the strongest theoretical rate is reachable.
Choose between movement and a permanent gathering site
A natural source avoids the setup time and structure cost of a Mill or Hacienda, while a permanent site can keep production stable after nearby hunts or mines are depleted. Compare the expected time remaining at each source with the travel required to reach it. For Food, livestock is the fastest non-crate option in the listed rates; for Coin, a mine is strongest; for Wood, the Hacienda leads. These choices are only meaningful if the source can be defended and workers are not repeatedly displaced. The Cree Coureur des Bois can construct buildings, so it can help establish the long-term option, but each minute spent building delays its return from gathering.
Protect the economy rather than trading the unit
When attacked, the Cree Coureur des Bois can use its ranged resistance and movement to retreat, but its low damage against Villagers and limited combat strengths make a fight a poor exchange. Withdraw toward a Town Center or a military screen, and use other units to intercept the raider. If the opponent sends Oprichniks or another fast raiding force, move workers before the attackers arrive and avoid leaving a single route blocked by buildings. The unit’s 180 hit points can buy time to escape, not guarantee survival. Preserving the worker protects future gathering and avoids spending Food again to reach the settlement’s five-unit limit.
Plan around settlement capacity
The limit of five per Cree settlement creates a ceiling that a standard Villager line does not share. Decide how many to train based on the actual number of accessible Cree settlements and whether those workers can remain productive. If the player can only field a small group, use the best sources for the match and support them with upgrades that affect those sources. Training all five immediately may delay an army or age advance; adding them after the economy stabilizes can be safer. Their one-population cost also matters in a late-game army, where workers and military units compete for the same capacity.
A limited Native worker with villager improvements
Cree Coureurs des Bois are obtained in limited numbers through a Cree Trading Post, with a limit of five per post in the documented profile. Unlike many Native units, they consume population and function economically like the French Coureur des Bois. Villager improvements and Home City Cards that apply to ordinary workers also affect them. This makes the Cree settlement a source of both map access and worker capacity, but the population cost means the extra gatherers compete with military production. Secure the Trading Post and nearby resources before relying on its workers; a forward post can be denied before the investment pays back.
Gathering strengths and task assignment
Their gathering speed depends on the source. In the documented profile they gather hunted animals at about 1.04 resources per second, mines at 0.74, trees at 0.62, and berries at about 0.83 before relevant improvements. Herded animals are faster still, at about 2.5 per second. These values explain why assigning them to a safe hunt or herd can be more productive than sending them to a distant, exposed task. As with other workers, walking distance, drop-off access and upgrades affect realized income. Keep the Cree Coureurs des Bois on nearby resources and avoid scattering a small, population-intensive group across the map.
Trade Post choice and army balance
A Cree Trading Post can provide more than one kind of value: its Native alliance may unlock units or improvements, while the Coureurs des Bois add gathering capacity. Compare that benefit with a Trade Route post’s experience or resource income, then scout which position can be held. The workers do not replace ordinary Villager production, and a military force still needs population room. If the opponent contests the post, rally the Cree workers toward safety and preserve the alliance with nearby troops. The best use is a protected economic extension that complements the main Town Center rather than an isolated bonus.