Ruins
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Background
Ruins are any man-made structures that have become dilapidated either through destruction (in war, natural disasters etc) or through abandonment or lack of maintenance. Over time weathering, invasive vegetation etc tend to degrade the condition of the site often leaving it barely recognizable compared to its original form. Ruins can be found all around the world, from Ancient Greek ruins to the sites of lost South American civilizations. These sites can take many forms, from statues to temples, castles to aqueducts, even entire cities. In Age of Empires, ruins are a prized asset of a civilization. The game's ruins appear to be based on monuments like Stonehenge, and have a well at the center. The beta ruin has a different appearance, with broken stone pillars and tiles, and a central region of stone similar to the Egyptian temple.
Ruins give a clue to the past and are useful for historians and archaeologists studying ancient peoples. Surviving ruins are often protected historical sites, and can attract tourists from around the world. These ancient sites are still a source of inspiration today for people from many walks of life, from the traveler to the artist.
Role in play
Five ruins are scattered across a random map, which can be captured by any player. Holding all of the ruins on a map will start a countdown on the 'standard' global victory setting, whereupon the holder will win upon a 2000 year defense. Any change in ownership will break the countdown. Ruins are harder to defend than artifacts, as they require separate defense of each ruin. The ruin can be seen as a stationary version of the artifact, as it shares all the same basic properties besides movement. This is however a significant difference, and tactics for capturing and defending the two objects may vary significantly. Random maps may include ruins, artifacts, both or neither object, even on conquest where they play no direct role in deciding victory, but do contribute to score. Ruins are visible under fog of war, so their colour can reveal activities in the area. For example an enemy player who passes a ruin near their town center may give away their position in a reveal map game, while a ruin belonging to an enemy near a player's base must be a sign of scouting. Ownership of ruins can be monitored via the achievements screen, which is useful when the map is covered in a black shroud.
Mechanics
Gaia ruins become the possession of the first player to see them, while capturing a ruin requires coming into close contact with it when no units of the ruin's current owner are be beside it. Likewise, defending a ruin will require keeping all enemy objects away from it (or keeping one unit standing beside it), except for artifacts, which can capture only Gaia ruins. The ownership behavior is exactly like the artifact, and very similar to sheep in Age of Empires II. The ruins countdown lasts for 2000 years, which represents 15 minutes of game time. Any change in ownership will deactivate the countdown. Ruins are similar to the discovery in that they are a stationary object which can be captured, however ruins have only one owner, while discoveries can be claimed by multiple players and a flag can never be removed once placed. Discoveries also require walking over them, while Gaia ruins can be captured just by spotting them. Ruins can never be destroyed.
Use in scenario design
Ruins are an interesting object for scenario design purposes, both as eye candy and for use in objectives. Using individual and/or global victory a range of possibilities arises. They can be an object to locate, to capture from an enemy. On the other hand, defending an ally ruin could be another interesting twist. Using standard victory a ruins countdown may limit the length of time required for their defence or capture, adding an element of urgency to a scenario. If a ruin should only start a countdown for one specific player (for example the human must capture it before the countdown runs out, but they don't start a countdown themselves when they hold it), another ruin or ruins can be given to the desired player somewhere out of the way.
Ruins make great eye candy, having an ancient and mystical look much like the ancient structures of spiritual and astronomical significance which they represent. They could represent a magic portal, a temple or a well (like the Well of Wyrd). Like all Gaia objects in AoE, Gaia trees can be placed underneath ruins to create an enhanced effect. A ruin with some old trees growing around it can really add a lot of atmosphere to the scene if placed skillfully.
Beta ruin
The beta ruin discovered through data editing can be unlocked by downloading the data files from Age of Empires Heaven granary. This unit is a must as it adds an essential new building style unit to the game, which can be a big surprise to players unfamiliar with this new beta object. The new ruin behaves much the same as the regular version, allowing for ruins victory etc.
However, it is invisible when it belongs to the Gaia player, both in the scenario builder and the game. Luckily this isn’t the case with normal players. It becomes visible again when you switch ownership to regular players (from the editor by selecting another player) or when captured during play. When placed as Gaia in the editor the ruin will be invisible, but can be deleted by painting it over with water, and can be identified by the Ctrl + A method. The invisibility is of little use in game for the human player’s sight, as they own the ruin as soon as it is visible, however CPU units do not capture Gaia ruins unless they are near them as well, so if you wish draw attention to the invisibility of the ruin, use the Writing technology. Using this method to highlight it's appearance the ruin could, for example, be used as a magical portal that appears only when approached.
Unit stats
- HP:1
- Special: Indestructible; can be captured; owning all ruins starts countdown
