Villager
Villager is Africans, Asians, Native Americans, Maya economic unit in Age of Empires III, available from the Exploration Age; obtained through Town Center, Native Embassy (Native Americans, with Kinship Ties Home City Card), Trading Post or Tambo on a Lenape settlement. Its listed ability is Gathers resources; Builds buildings; Claims treasures; Works at the Community Plaza (Native Americans).
Recorded values
- Cost
- 100 Food
- Available
- Exploration Age · Town Center; Native Embassy (Native Americans, with Kinship Ties Home City Card) ; Trading Post or Tambo on a Lenape settlement
- Training
- 25 sec · 1 population · 10 XP per train
- Durability & mobility
- 150 hit points · 20% hand resistance · 4.0 speed · 14 line of sight
- Hand attack
- 10 damage · 1.5 attack interval · bonuses: 5.0x vs. Llama, 16
- Ranged attack
- 3 damage · 2-12 range · 3.0 attack interval · bonuses: 4.0x vs. Huntable; 2.0x vs. Pet; 2.0x vs. Artillery; 0.5x vs. Villager
- Siege attack
- 5 damage · 6 range · 3.0 attack interval · bonuses: 3.0x vs. Resource enclosure
- Ability
- Gathers resources; Builds buildings; Claims treasures; Works at the Community Plaza (Native Americans)
Role, availability & values
Production is available through Town Center, Native Embassy (Native Americans, with Kinship Ties Home City Card), or Trading Post or Tambo on a Lenape settlement. It has 150 hit points. It moves at 4.0 speed and uses 1 population. Training costs 100 Food; it takes 25 seconds to train. Attack profile: Hand attack deals 10 damage. Ranged attack deals 3 damage. Siege attack deals 5 damage. Hand attack bonuses: 5.0× against Llama, 16. Ranged attack bonuses: 4.0× against Huntable, 2.0× against Pet, 2.0× against Artillery, and 0.5× against Villager. Siege attack bonuses: 3.0× against Resource enclosure*. Special ability or role: Gathers resources; Builds buildings; Claims treasures; Works at the Community Plaza (Native Americans).
Matchup & timing
Villagers are the economy’s flexible workforce: each uses one population and can gather, construct buildings or claim eligible Treasures. Reassign them when the next unit or technology changes the resource bottleneck, but avoid leaving exposed groups idle during a fight. Their listed bonuses against livestock and wildlife do not make them a substitute for military units.
Economic unit and basic profile
Villagers are the principal resource gatherers for Asian, African and Native American civilizations in Age of Empires III. They cost 100 Food, take 25 seconds to train and use one population. The shared profile has 150 hit points, 20% hand resistance, speed 4.0 and line of sight 14. Town Centers are the main production building. Villagers gather resources, construct buildings, claim treasures and, for Native American civilizations, work at the Community Plaza. They can defend themselves with a weak ranged attack, but they are not a substitute for military units. Their lasting value comes from the resources and infrastructure they produce over the course of a match.
Food sources and gathering rates
Gathering speed depends on the resource source. Huntable animals yield about 0.84 Food per second, while herded animals yield 2.0 per second. Berry Bushes, Cherry Orchards, Mills and similar sites yield around 0.67 per second. Farms, Rice Paddies and several equivalent economic buildings yield around 0.5 per second, while Fields and some Hacienda work produce about 0.34 per second. These are base rates before civilization bonuses, cards, upgrades, walking time or source depletion. Hunting can provide faster Food than farming, but it exposes Villagers farther from the base and animals may need to be gathered safely. Farms and Rice Paddies trade lower rates for a stable source close to the settlement.
Wood, Coin and special resource sites
Villagers gather Wood from ordinary trees at roughly 0.5 per second; Mango Groves, Haciendas and some Field work also use that rate, while other Fields may be closer to 0.34. Coin Mines, Tribal Marketplaces and Mountain Monasteries yield around 0.6 Coin per second, Estates around 0.5 and Rice Paddies or Haciendas around 0.34. Crates are gathered much faster, at a listed eight resources per second, so collect them early when safe. The numbers are base values and do not include civilization-specific effects or travel time. Mines and natural resources can be exhausted or contested, while Estates, Farms and Rice Paddies provide a stable long-term economy.
Keep the economy efficient
Gathering requires more than assigning a Villager to the right resource. Long walking routes reduce effective income, so build resource structures near safe deposits and use rally points to avoid unnecessary travel. Protect groups working on mines and forests, and move them when the area becomes exposed. A balanced economy supports both immediate production and later age advancement: too few Villagers on Food can delay units, while neglecting Wood can prevent Houses and military buildings. Compare the source rates, distance and risk instead of assigning every worker to the resource with the highest listed number. A nearby 0.5-rate source may contribute more than a distant mine once travel time and safety are considered.
Civilization differences
Native American Villagers can work at the Community Plaza and perform ceremonies that grant civilization bonuses. Asian Villagers generate Export as they gather, which can be spent at the Consulate; their Coin gathering from Rice Paddies begins 10% lower. Japanese Villagers cannot gather Food from animals or livestock, which instead contribute to Shrine trickles, and Japan has a lower Villager limit of 75. The Zen Diet card changes the Japanese Villager's cost to 60 Wood. Indian civilizations receive a free Villager with each Home City shipment. Native Villagers can also be acquired through special map and Home City routes, including up to six per Lenape settlement. These differences affect both economy planning and the value of shipments.
Building, treasure and defense tasks
Villagers construct economic and military buildings and can claim treasures guarded by Treasure Guardians. Their weak combat profile is enough to deal with some easy treasure guards, but dangerous guardians should be handled by military units or heroes. The base Villager has a 3-damage ranged attack with a 4.0× bonus against Huntable animals, 2.0× against Pets and Artillery, and 0.5× against other Villagers. The hand attack is 10 damage and deals 5.0× against Llamas. The five-point siege attack has a 3.0× multiplier against Resource Enclosures. These unusual bonuses support utility interactions; they do not make Villagers a dependable combat force. Garrison or evacuate them when raiders arrive.
Population limits and production planning
The general Villager limit is 99, while Japanese Villagers are capped at 75. Lenape settlements can train up to six Villagers each through their special route. Population space is shared with the military, so the economy should grow in line with the army plan. Continuous Town Center production is strongest when the player has enough Food and population room; if either is scarce, queue timing and resource assignment matter. Villagers also generate experience when trained and defeated, so a large economy can provide the opponent with a reward if it is left exposed. Balance worker count, House construction and army capacity together rather than treating the Villager cap as the only limit.
Version and terminology
The Villager is the functional counterpart to the Settler used by European civilizations, but it is a distinct unit with civilization-specific gathering rules and production routes. It was introduced with The WarChiefs for Native American civilizations and later represents the main worker for Asian and African civilizations as well. Japanese Villagers use a separate no-meat economy, while Native Villagers can perform Community Plaza ceremonies. Older sources may call them by broad civilization labels such as Asian Villager or Native Villager; use the precise civilization's in-game name when an entry exists.
Protect worker time and production
Villagers are a recurring investment: the 100-Food cost and 25-second training time are repaid only if the worker gathers safely over time. Keep Town Center production aligned with available population space, and add Houses before the limit blocks new workers or military units. When an enemy raid arrives, garrison or move Villagers before they are surrounded; replacing a worker costs Food and also loses all the gathering time it would have contributed. Protecting a group of miners or builders can be more valuable than winning a small fight nearby.
Special routes and role differences
Villagers can also be produced through special map routes. Native American players may train them from a Native Embassy with Kinship Ties, and a Trading Post or Tambo on a Lenape settlement can produce up to six per settlement. These units share the economic role but are not universally available. Indian Home City shipments add a free Villager, while Japanese shipments can often be sent twice like other Japanese cards. Factor these routes into the opening economy: a shipment that adds workers can accelerate gathering, but its value depends on whether there is safe land and enough population room.
Gathering and economy across civilizations
Villagers gather Food, Wood and Coin, construct buildings and sustain production across Asian and African civilizations. Their rates depend on resource type, walking distance, upgrades, civilization bonuses and the building used as a drop-off point. Keep workers close to resources and rotate them when hunts, mines or forests become unsafe or depleted. Some civilizations use a different name or a distinct worker system, so do not assume a Villager has identical costs, combat attributes or training rules everywhere.
Protect workers and maintain production
Villagers can garrison in defensive structures where the rules allow it, and some Town Centers need a worker inside to activate their attack. Garrisoning protects the economy during a raid, but idle workers stop gathering; return them to tasks as soon as the threat passes. Use trained units to defend rather than relying on workers to fight. Maintain worker production through pressure when safe, because lost gather time makes recovery harder. For exact limits, upgrades and gather rates, follow the civilization-specific worker entry.