The Asian Dynasties campaigns
The Asian Dynasties adds three independent campaigns centered on Japan, China and India. They can be selected separately and are not later acts in the Black family trilogy.
Setting & objective
Act I: Japan follows General Kichiro in 1598-1600; Act II: China follows Huang Qiu Ying in 1421-1422; Act III: India follows Nanib Sahir during the 1857 rebellion. Each act has five scenarios.
How to approach it
Use the mission briefing rather than a multiplayer opening: campaign scenarios may restrict buildings, units, shipments or economy. Check which expansion systems are active in that mission before committing resources or applying a general civilization guide.
Three storylines and their dates
Act I: Japan covers 1598-1600 and follows General Kichiro through five scenarios around the struggle for control of Japan. Act II: China takes place in 1421-1422 and follows Huang Qiu Ying and his crew in five scenarios; its voyage draws on a disputed historical hypothesis about Chinese expeditions reaching the Americas. Act III: India is set during the 1857 rebellion and follows Nanib Sahir across five scenarios. The campaigns are available as independent choices, so players do not need to finish one act to unlock another. Their differing periods and protagonists explain why the units, allies and objectives change between storylines.
Civilization systems within scripted missions
The campaigns use Asian civilization themes and may feature Japanese Shrines and Wonders, Chinese Banner Armies, or Indian economy and unit systems when a scenario permits them. They do not guarantee the full skirmish roster: a mission can start with a fixed group, withhold ordinary production, or introduce a special objective that changes how resources should be spent. Read the briefing, inspect the available buildings and use the units actually supplied. Campaign-specific factions should not be treated as complete guides to the Japanese, Chinese or Indian multiplayer civilizations.
Campaign collection and version context
The Asian Dynasties campaign set is separate from Blood, Ice and Steel and from The WarChiefs' Fire and Shadow acts. The three Asian stories were selectable independently in the expansion and remain part of the Definitive Edition campaign collection. Scenario presentation and implementation may differ between releases, so mission walkthroughs should identify the edition they describe. The Japan, China and India campaign entries connect this overview to the individual missions and character pages.
Representative objectives from the three campaign acts
The scenario goals illustrate why these campaigns are not standard skirmish openings. In Act I: Japan, Clearing the Road asks Kichiro to gain all three Trading Sites on the Tōkaidō Road and hold the route for five minutes; destroying Ishida’s base is an alternate way to finish. In Act II: China, Lost Ships requires the crew to find and secure its beached Treasure Ships, with at least one ship surviving, before destroying the native village. In Act III: India, Raid in Delhi combines sabotage and escort: destroy weapon caches to trigger an elephant stampede, free the Shah by razing the Agra Fort Wonder, then escort him out and keep him alive while inspiring citizens at flagged locations. Identify which objective is essential and which tasks are optional before spending the starting force. In escort missions, protect the named unit and route; in timed control missions, reinforce the objective rather than chasing an enemy army across the map.
China: establish a port before attacking inland
Storming the Beaches is the second scenario of Act II: China. Its primary objectives require a Town Center and a Dock, rescuing Admiral Jinhai, and destroying the Zamorin’s Town Center. The secondary objectives add a Wonder to advance the army and a Castle on the beach. This makes the Dock part of the required campaign setup rather than an optional economic extra: plan the opening so the base can support ships and a land force while the rescue and enemy base remain separate tasks. Check the mission’s starting position and available units before following a standard Chinese civilization build order; the scripted objective sequence determines what the army must accomplish.
China: clear the route to finish a fleet
To Finish a Fleet opens Act II: China with a set of linked objectives: destroy the Castle overlooking the captured Dock, complete the Trade Route, liberate the captive shipbuilders, and destroy the pirate lair. Building a Consulate and choosing an ally nation is listed as a secondary objective. The goals connect map control to the fleet: the player must secure the Dock area and route while still freeing the workers and removing the pirate threat. Avoid treating the Consulate task as a replacement for the primary objectives. Use the mission briefing to decide which local threats must be cleared before Villagers or troops can safely work along the route.
India: separate the command post from side objectives
Company Confrontation is the final scenario of Act III: India. The primary objective is to destroy the Company Command Post; the briefing also lists secondary tasks to destroy the northeastern Docks, clear the Company Trade Route, gain native resistance support, destroy Trading Posts on saltpeter sites, prepare for an incoming army, capture the Fort’s Fixed Guns, and destroy the western town’s Mills. Keep the primary victory condition clear while choosing which side goals to pursue. A Dock or Fixed Gun on the route to the Command Post may matter to the current attack, while a distant secondary task can wait if it would divide the force. The mission’s named sites and incoming assault make scouting and reinforcement routes central to the plan.
All fifteen scenarios at a glance
The expansion contains three five-mission acts. The mission names below link to individual pages so the goal can be checked before starting a scenario.
Act I: Japan — five scenarios
The Siege of Osaka opens with an attack on the Osaka Town Center, with optional tasks that free workers and improve the army. Uprising! is a time-sensitive effort to free villages and defeat Uesugi’s arriving force. Clearing the Road turns control of the Tōkaidō Trading Sites into a timed hold, with Ishida’s base as an alternate route to victory. Last Stand at Fushimi pairs combat along the eastern road with the evacuation of thirty Villagers before the Castle falls. The Battle of Sekigahara ends the act with the defeat of Daimyo Ishida; its secondary goals can secure additional support and rewards.
Act II: China — five scenarios
To Finish a Fleet asks the player to restore the fleet’s route, free the shipbuilders and remove the pirate threat. Storming the Beaches requires a Town Center and Dock, the rescue of Admiral Jinhai and the destruction of the Zamorin’s Town Center. Lost Ships is a survival and recovery mission: secure the beached Treasure Ships, keep at least one alive and then remove the hostile village. A Rescue in the Wilderness centers on stopping a prisoner convoy and freeing the captured shipmates. No Empire Lasts Forever sends the crew to the northern beaches before a final attack on the Mutineer Town Centers.
Act III: India — five scenarios
Into the Punjab establishes the campaign foothold through a Town Center and Trading Posts on both the saltpeter sites and the Trade Route. Fires of Calcutta is a pressured advance: move east, destroy eight rebel Barracks and protect the Company Command Post from continuing attacks. Resist! follows the fight through town and into the mines, where weapon caches must be destroyed. Raid in Delhi combines sabotage with escort protection: trigger the elephant stampede, free the Shah by razing the Agra Fort Wonder and get him out alive. Company Confrontation concludes the act by destroying the Company Command Post; optional objectives can weaken its route, docks, defenses and economy first.