Landsknecht
Landsknecht is Heavy infantry in Age of Empires III, available from the Fortress Age; obtained through Tavern (Europeans), Monastery (Asians), Saloon (Americans), Palace (Africans), European Barracks (Swedes with German Mercenary Contracts or Contract Landsknecht), Galleon (Swedes with German Mercenary Contracts), Lombard (Italians). Its listed ability is Oberhau*.
Recorded values
- Cost
- 250 Coin
- Available
- Fortress Age · Tavern (Europeans) ; Monastery (Asians) ; Saloon (Americans) ; Palace (Africans) ; European Barracks (Swedes with German Mercenary Contracts or Contract Landsknecht) ; Galleon (Swedes with German Mercenary Contracts) ; Lombard (Italians)
- Training
- 44 sec · 2 population · 25 XP per train
- Durability & mobility
- 345 hit points · 30% hand resistance · 4.0 speed · 12 line of sight
- Siege attack
- 58 base damage · range 6 · attack interval 3.0
- Hand attack
- 43 base damage · attack interval 1.5 · bonus damage: 2.0x vs. Cavalry; 1.5x vs. Shock troops
- Oberhau attack (charged)
- 43 base damage · attack interval 1.5 · area of effect 2 · bonus damage: Same as hand attack · recharge 15
Role, availability & values
Production is available through Tavern (Europeans), Monastery (Asians), Saloon (Americans), Palace (Africans), European Barracks (Swedes with German Mercenary Contracts or Contract Landsknecht), Galleon (Swedes with German Mercenary Contracts), or Lombard (Italians). It has 345 hit points. It moves at 4.0 speed and uses 2 population. Training costs 250 Coin; it takes 44 seconds to train. Attack profile: Siege attack: 58 damage at range 6; every 3.0 seconds. Hand attack: 43 damage; every 1.5 seconds. Oberhau attack (charged): 43 damage; every 1.5 seconds; area of effect 2. Special ability or role: Oberhau*.
Matchup & timing
Send Landsknechts into a clustered fight where their 43-damage melee attack and charged Oberhau can hit more than one nearby target; the charge covers radius 2 and recharges in 15 seconds. Their 58 siege damage also makes them dangerous at a building, but their heavy melee role needs a screen against ranged fire and a safe route into contact.
Role and current profile
The Landsknecht is a Fortress Age mercenary heavy infantry unit specializing in melee damage, anti-cavalry and siege. It costs 250 Coin, trains in 44 seconds and occupies two population in the current Definitive Edition profile. It has 345 hit points, 30% hand resistance, speed 4.0 and line of sight 12. Its hand attack deals 43 damage every 1.5 seconds, with a 2× multiplier against cavalry and 1.5× against shock troops. The siege attack deals 58 damage at range 6 every three seconds. This makes it a powerful but expensive melee unit that can threaten both an army and its buildings.
Oberhau charged attack
Since update 23511, the Landsknecht has the Oberhau ability. It activates automatically during combat on a 15-second cooldown and delivers the same base damage as the normal hand attack with an area effect of 2. It uses the same cavalry and shock troop multipliers. This gives the unit periodic splash damage when several enemies are close together, making it especially dangerous in narrow passages or when opponents cluster around a frontline. It is not a separate ranged attack and does not solve the Landsknecht’s weakness to Skirmishers or artillery. Keep the unit engaged with appropriate melee targets to gain the benefit of Oberhau.
Strengths, weaknesses and comparison
Landsknechts can defeat many hand infantry and cavalry units in close combat and destroy buildings quickly. Their heavy-infantry classification makes them vulnerable to Skirmishers and artillery, so they need protection on the approach. They fill a role similar to Swiss Pikemen, with strong anti-cavalry and siege damage, but are slower and more durable in the cited comparison and use two population. Compared with a regular Halberdier, the mercenary costs Coin and population but brings greater damage, hit points and the Oberhau splash strike. Avoid paying the mercenary premium when the opponent fields an army that can keep them at range.
Access by civilization and building
European civilizations can recruit Landsknechts at a Tavern; Asian civilizations use a Monastery, American civilizations a Saloon and African civilizations a Palace. Italians can use a Lombard. Germans can unlock Mercenary Camps with the Mercenary Camps Home City card. Swedes can train them from Barracks, Blockhouses and Galleons after sending Contract Landsknechts or German Mercenary Contracts. German Battleships can also train them with the Adler von Lübeck card when the Tavern access is available. The exact building and card route depends on civilization, map and edition; do not assume every player can queue the unit from a Barracks.
Upgrades and late-game scaling
The Landsknecht is automatically upgraded in the Fortress Age under the current rule, granting a 25% increase to hit points and damage. The Mercenary Contractor age-up to the Imperial Age improves mercenaries by another 50% hit points and attack in the described rules. Additional cards and technologies can affect mercenary damage, speed, hit points or cost, but eligibility differs by civilization. Before investing in a mercenary card, check the Tavern or equivalent building pool and whether it contains enough Landsknechts to justify the deck slot. The unit’s Coin cost can be easier to sustain with a strong mine economy, but Coin is also needed for age advancement and other mercenaries.
Field tactics
Use Landsknechts to intercept cavalry and punish an enemy that commits hand units into the melee. Their area attack is strongest when targets cluster, and the 58 siege damage can convert a won fight into pressure on a nearby building. Pair them with ranged infantry that can remove Skirmishers and with artillery counters that can handle enemy guns. Their movement speed of 4.0 makes unsupported pursuit risky; do not chase faster ranged units across open ground. Keep them near the force they protect and exploit a flank or choke where their heavy melee damage can connect.
Patch context and population changes
The Landsknecht has had major balance revisions. Older versions showed higher hit points and attack values and used a different population cost; current values are 345 hit points, 43 hand damage and two population. Its Coin price was also adjusted from 240 to 250 in a later update. Older strategy guides may describe a more durable, more damaging unit or different training experience. This entry describes the Age of Empires III mercenary only; similarly named units in other games use different systems and are outside this profile.
Coin investment and production timing
The 250 Coin price and 44-second training time make Landsknechts a deliberate reinforcement rather than an emergency counter. A Tavern shipment or mercenary card may arrive faster than training, but it still consumes a Home City choice. Keep enough Coin for age-up and core production before adding a large mercenary queue. Their two population is lower than older profiles but still limits how many fit into a full army. A small group can protect artillery from cavalry, while a larger group is justified only when the opponent has valuable melee targets or vulnerable buildings.
Facing ranged counters
Skirmishers and artillery exploit the Landsknecht’s heavy infantry classification. Use cavalry or your own ranged infantry to force those units away before sending Landsknechts forward. If the opponent’s army is mostly ranged, stay near cover and do not chase retreating units; the speed 4.0 makes it easy for faster troops to kite the mercenaries. A protected approach through a choke or behind a frontline gives Oberhau a better chance to hit several enemies. Retreating preserves the expensive Coin investment for a later fight.
Mercenary Contractor and civilization options
The Mercenary Contractor is an Imperial Age politician that can increase mercenary hit points and attack by 50%, making it a possible late-game escalation for Landsknechts. Germans can improve access with Mercenary Camps, Swedes can use contract cards to train them from military buildings or ships, and the United States can receive them through the Poker card’s random mercenary pool. These routes change availability, not the unit’s base role. Check whether the card or building is in the chosen civilization’s deck before planning a composition around Landsknechts.
Siege follow-up after combat
The 58-damage siege attack at a three-second interval lets Landsknechts convert battlefield control into building damage. Clear defenders first, then focus on a forward Outpost, Barracks or other production site. They do not need to destroy every building; removing the structure that supplies the opponent’s current counter can be more valuable. Keep ranged protection nearby while they siege, because their heavy-infantry weakness remains even after the battle is won.
Combat rhythm
Let the frontline engage first, then move Landsknechts into clustered melee targets so Oberhau can strike multiple units. Pull back if Skirmishers or guns gain a clear firing line.
Unit identity
This entry covers the Age of Empires III mercenary, not differently named units in other series entries.
Build around the counter
Before hiring them, scout the enemy army. Heavy cavalry makes their anti-cavalry damage useful; massed Skirmishers or artillery makes the Coin investment risky. Keep a supporting ranged unit close, then use the Landsknechts to intercept cavalry or attack a structure once the immediate threat is cleared. Mercenary access differs by civilization, so confirm the correct production building and available shipment before committing to the plan.
Mercenary upkeep
Coin income and two population per unit should be included in the late-game army budget.
Use Oberhau deliberately
Keep clustered enemies in melee range when the charged strike is ready.
Protect the mercenary
Keep ranged support close and retreat from artillery before the unit loses its costly population and Coin investment.
Mercenary heavy Infantry profile
The Landsknecht is a Fortress Age Mercenary hired for 250 Coin, with a 44-second training time, 345 hit points, 30% hand resistance and a two-population cost. Europeans can recruit it at a Tavern, Asians at a Monastery, Americans at a Saloon, Africans at a Palace and Italians at a Lombard; Swedes have additional access under the stated German Mercenary Contracts options. Its 43-damage hand attack fires every 1.5 seconds and has a 2× multiplier against Cavalry and 1.5× against Shock troops. The 58-damage Siege attack helps it damage buildings once a fight creates an opening. This is a costly frontline unit whose melee bonuses punish attackers, but its speed of four and mercenary price make it a poor choice for chasing mobile ranged units. Confirm which hiring structure is available to the civilization before budgeting Coin for a force.
Oberhau timing and formation use
Oberhau is a charged attack that deals the same 43 base damage as the normal hand attack, retains its target bonuses and affects an area of two; it recharges every 15 seconds. Let the Landsknecht reach a dense Cavalry or Shock troop formation before using the charged strike so its area has a chance to matter. The ability does not remove the need for support: ranged Infantry can kite the slow unit, and artillery can punish it at a distance. Use Musketeers, other ranged troops or Cavalry to control those threats while Landsknechts hold the center or protect siege. Their population and Coin demand are substantial, so add them where the enemy’s melee composition justifies their bonuses instead of building a mercenary army with no answer to ranged fire.