Rattan Shield
Rattan Shield is a Shaolin Temple alliance infantry unit with 20% ranged resistance. Its hand attack and modest population use let it contribute as a close-combat screen.
Recorded values
- Available
- Commerce Age · Trading Post or Tambo on a Shaolin Temple holy site; Native Embassy
- Training
- 30 sec · 11 XP per train
- Durability & mobility
- 185 hit points · 20% ranged resistance · 6.25 speed · 12 line of sight
- Hand attack
- 16 damage · 1.5 attack interval
- Siege attack
- 10 damage · 6 range · 3.0 attack interval
Role, availability & values
It is available through a Shaolin Temple settlement or Native Embassy. The recorded profile lists 185 hit points, 6.25 movement speed and one population; it has a hand attack and siege attack but no listed ranged weapon.
Matchup & timing
Use Rattan Shields to close on exposed ranged units or protect a more valuable unit line from fire. Pair them with ranged support for targets they cannot reach safely, and remember their role is melee rather than ranged damage.
Combat profile and fast shock troop role
The Rattan Shield is a Commerce Age Chinese Native warrior from The Asian Dynasties, recruited at a Trading Post or Tambo on a Shaolin Temple holy site, or at a Native Embassy where available. It costs 50 Food and 60 Wood, takes 30 seconds to train and is limited to 16 per Shaolin Temple in Definitive Edition. It has 185 hit points, 20 percent ranged resistance, speed 6.25 and sight 12. Its sword attack deals 16 damage every 1.5 seconds, with no negative damage multipliers, and its siege attack deals 10 damage at range six every three seconds. It consumes no population as a Native warrior. The combination of fast movement, low cost and ranged resistance lets it reach enemy ranged units more safely than many melee units, but its lack of class bonuses means its damage is consistent rather than specialized. Use it to pressure vulnerable ranged formations or raid exposed Settlers when the enemy cannot screen the approach.
Strengths, weaknesses and target selection
The Rattan Shield is especially useful against Light Infantry, counter-skirmishers and Artillery. Its speed and ranged resistance help it close the distance, and once in melee it can disrupt units that rely on maintaining a firing line. It has no bonus damage multipliers, so it does not specialize in defeating one particular class. Heavy Infantry is its main weakness, while Light Ranged Cavalry and Ranged Shock troops can also punish it before it reaches melee. The unit is therefore a supporting shock troop rather than the center of a balanced army. Let it attack ranged counters while heavier units hold the line, and avoid sending it into Musketeers or other anti-heavy-infantry bodies. Its 20 percent ranged resistance is helpful but not immunity; focus fire and area damage still remove it. A group of Rattan Shields can force the opponent to respond to a flank, but the Shaolin settlement limit and slow replacement mean careless trades can end that pressure.
Shaolin upgrade ladder and current costs
Shaolin Discipline Training upgrades Rattan Shields to Disciplined, adding 25 percent hit points and damage. In Definitive Edition it costs 100 Wood and 75 Coin, compared with 200 of each resource before the Definitive Edition. Shaolin Honor Training requires Discipline Training and costs 400 Wood and 300 Coin, adding 35 percent hit points and damage in the current version; the earlier bonus was 40 percent. Legendary Native Warriors or Exalted Natives adds a further 50 percent native hit points and damage where the civilization can research it. Europeans and Mexico generally use a Capitol, the United States uses the State Capitol, and Asian and Native American civilizations use a Town Center route; African Native warriors upgrade automatically. These improvements increase the unit’s ability to survive while closing and its steady melee damage, but they do not create class bonuses. Research them when Rattan Shields remain a major part of the army rather than assuming the rank alone changes their matchups.
Chinese Tigerman variant
In the Independence game mode, the Chinese can upgrade Rattan Shields into Tigermen. The variant costs 60 Food and 60 Wood, uses one population, has a different appearance, gains a 0.25 bonus multiplier against Cavalry and can use Stealth. From the Fortress Age it can be trained at the Porcelain Tower and White Pagoda. This is a specialized Chinese variant and should not be confused with the ordinary population-free Rattan Shield available through a Shaolin Temple. The Cavalry multiplier gives Tigermen a stronger answer to mounted units, while Stealth creates ambush opportunities that the regular unit does not have. Its building access, age and population cost are different from the base native warrior, so use the variant’s own production and army planning rather than applying the normal settlement cap or cost.
Home City access and battle planning
Several Home City Cards can ship or improve Rattan Shields when the player has access to a Shaolin Trading Post. Native Treaties can send four to eligible civilizations that have built on the holy site. Native Alliance, Native Warriors, Native Warrior Combat, Blood Brothers, Liberation March and Fencing School each have civilization restrictions, and the exact card pool differs by faction and revolution. These cards can provide a limited force without waiting for the normal training queue or support native warrior combat statistics. The Rattan Shield’s Definitive Edition build limit is 16 per Shaolin Temple, up from 15 before that edition; the unit’s hand attack also rose from 15 to 16. Since update 13088, it is tagged as a Hand Shock trooper. That tag affects how some unit bonuses and counters interact with it, so do not rely on pre-patch comparisons that treat it only as generic shock troops.
When to invest and how to preserve the group
Rattan Shields are most effective when they can exploit an opponent’s ranged composition or artillery before Heavy Infantry arrives. Their low resource cost and population-free status help fit them into an army that is already near its cap, while their speed makes them useful for map pressure. They still draw from a finite local limit and take 30 seconds to train, so protect the Shaolin settlement and avoid losing the whole group in one unfavorable engagement. If the opponent adds Heavy Infantry, use another unit to handle that threat and keep Rattan Shields on the flanks. Their base ten siege damage is modest; send them against buildings only after the defenders have been driven away or when a raid can end quickly. Native upgrades, Home City shipments and civilization-specific improvements can raise their value, but the unit’s defining purpose remains fast melee pressure against vulnerable ranged troops.
Native warrior cards and faction access
Native Treaties is a Commerce Age shipment that can send four Rattan Shields to eligible civilizations when a Shaolin Trading Post has been built. Other cards, including Native Warriors, Native Warrior Combat, Native Alliance and Blood Brothers, have different faction lists and may provide the unit or improve native warriors. A shipment can bypass part of the normal training wait, but does not remove the per-temple limit for locally trained units. Check the active civilization and game mode before planning around a card: the Chinese Tigerman route is a separate Independence-mode upgrade, while ordinary Rattan Shields are tied to a Shaolin holy site. The unit’s tag as a Hand Shock trooper since update 13088 also changes which card effects can apply. Treat its classification and its actual card access as version-specific details when comparing multiplayer factions.
Using speed without overcommitting
Speed 6.25 lets the Rattan Shield approach ranged units and switch flanks faster than many Infantry, but the unit still needs to cross the enemy’s firing zone. Attack from a side angle, use terrain and let a tougher unit draw fire before the Shields close. Their 20 percent ranged resistance supports the approach, yet does not make them safe under concentrated fire. Once engaged, they deal steady damage without any class multiplier, so focus on isolated or vulnerable targets instead of Heavy Infantry. If no enemy ranged units are exposed, keep the Shields near the army as a reserve rather than sending them on a long raid through a defended base. The unit’s practical value comes from forcing the opponent to guard against a fast melee flank while preserving enough numbers to threaten the next engagement.
Population-free pressure and its limits
Because Rattan Shields are Native warriors, they do not take population space. This can be useful in a late-game army already using most of its cap on Artillery, Cavalry or expensive Infantry. Their 50 Food and 60 Wood price still competes with other production, and the 16-unit limit per Shaolin Temple prevents a player from creating an unlimited force from one site. Their 30-second training time also matters after a lost battle. Use them as a population-free flank that attacks ranged units, not as a disposable body to absorb every volley. If the opponent adds Heavy Infantry, switch the Shields to a safer role or pull them back while another unit handles the frontline. The population benefit is strongest when combined with their fast movement and ranged resistance to force the opponent to defend multiple areas.
Settlement limit and replenishment
The Shaolin Temple cap is local to each temple, which means controlling another site can expand the total available force. The limit rose from 15 to 16 in Definitive Edition, and the listed train time also increased from 20 to 30 seconds. A player relying on Rattan Shields should account for this slower replenishment and protect the holy site rather than assuming that a cheap unit can be replaced instantly. Send the group only when its target and retreat route are clear.
Shaolin Temple shock unit
The Rattan Shield is a Commerce Age Chinese Native warrior associated with a Shaolin Temple holy site. It costs 50 Food and 60 Wood, takes 30 seconds to train and is limited to 16 per temple. Each has 185 hit points, 20% ranged resistance and speed 6.25, occupying one population. Its 16-damage hand attack fires every 1.5 seconds, while its 10-damage Siege attack can assist after a position is secured. This is a fast shock troop that can close on exposed ranged units and protect a firing line from pressure. It is not a ranged unit despite its protective name; keep it behind or alongside troops that can attack at distance.
Use the temple cap and resistance well
The 20% ranged resistance helps Rattan Shields survive projectile damage during an approach, but it does not protect them from melee counters or dedicated Siege attacks. Use their speed to engage a vulnerable flank and retreat before Heavy Infantry or Cavalry can surround them. Native access depends on a Shaolin Temple settlement or Native Embassy, and the 16-unit cap is attached to each temple. A Trading Post on the holy site also gives access to Shaolin technologies, so compare continued training with research. Rattan Shields are most effective when the Chinese banner army or allied troops can cover targets they cannot handle directly. Avoid queuing the full cap if the opponent has already switched to a composition that punishes hand Shock troops.