Fishing Canoe
Fishing Canoe is Africans economic unit in Age of Empires III, available from the Exploration Age; obtained through Port. Its listed ability is Gathers from fishes and whales; Transports land units.
Recorded values
- Cost
- 70 Wood
- Available
- Exploration Age · Port
- Training
- 25 sec · 1 population · 7 XP per train
- Durability & mobility
- 200 hit points · 50% ranged resistance · 4.0 speed · 18 line of sight
- Ranged attack
- 8 damage · 20 range · 2.0 attack interval · bonuses: 0.5x vs. Villager
- Siege attack
- 15 damage · 20 range · 2.0 attack interval
- Ability
- Gathers from fishes and whales; Transports land units
Role, availability & values
Production is available through Port. It has 200 hit points and 50% ranged resistance. It moves at 4.0 speed and uses 1 population. Training costs 70 Wood; it takes 25 seconds to train. Attack profile: Ranged attack deals 8 damage. Siege attack deals 15 damage. Ranged attack bonuses: 0.5× against Villager. Special ability or role: Gathers from fishes and whales; Transports land units.
Matchup & timing
Use this transport for a planned crossing or landing rather than sending it alone into contested water. Its listed speed is 4.0, so load the army before the route becomes unsafe and allow time for the return trip. Unload where the force has room to form up, keep an escort near the ship, and protect the shore while the last units disembark.
African fish economy and transport
Fishing Canoes are trained at the Port by the Ethiopians and Hausa from the Exploration Age. Each costs 70 Wood, uses one population and takes 25 seconds to train; it has 200 hit points, 50% ranged resistance and speed 4.0. A Canoe gathers Food from Fish at 0.67 per second and Coin from Whales at 0.5 per second in the listed rates, and can transport up to ten land units. The small attack becomes available after researching River Skirmishes, so the Canoe should not be treated as a warship before that upgrade. Use it to keep a fishing economy active, protect a crossing or ferry a force along the coast. It remains vulnerable to dedicated warships and Culverins, and the transported army still needs a safe landing. African players can garrison Canoes in a Port, so place the building where fishing and retreat routes are protected.
Defensive research and fleet upgrades
River Skirmishes unlocks the Canoe’s small ranged attack and siege attack; before that research, its main job is gathering and transport. In the Imperial Age, Legendary Canoes costs 2,000 Wood and 2,000 Coin and upgrades Fishing Canoes, Battle Canoes and Cannon Boats with 50% more hit points and damage. This makes an African fishing fleet more resilient late in the game, but the cost is substantial and should be compared with replacing boats or defending the Port.
A fishing boat first, combat and transport by card
The Fishing Canoe gathers from Fish and Whales and can transport up to ten land units. It costs 70 Wood, takes 25 seconds to train and uses one population, with a limit of 99; its 200 hit points, 50% ranged resistance and speed 4.0 describe an economic boat that needs protection while fishing or carrying troops. Its 8-damage ranged attack and 15-damage siege attack are not part of the ordinary gathering profile: River Skirmishes is required to unlock them. Do not send an unupgraded Canoe to fight ships just because it has a weapon entry in the statistics. Use a group to support the African food economy, then use the transport capacity for a protected crossing if the map objective requires it. Fishing position, available schools and the safety of the return route determine whether the boat earns back its Wood and population.