Part 1

Navigate the early stages of Age of Empires III with Part 1 of our comprehensive walkthrough. Learn objectives, strategies, and tips for Act I: Blood.

This guide covers the campaign walkthrough for Age of Empires III, specifically focusing on Act I: Blood. It was written by The Protagonist and is based on game version 1.0, completed in January 2024. The guide was originally completed in 2017 and may not reflect updates or patches made since then.

Age of Empires III differs significantly from previous titles in the series, incorporating elements similar to Settlers 5: Heritage Of Kings, Warcraft 3, and Command and Conquer: Generals. Playing earlier Age of Empires games is not necessary to understand this one.

The walkthrough is based on the Moderate difficulty setting. Each level presents Primary Objectives (PO) that must be completed to finish the mission, and optional Secondary Objectives (SO) that offer bonus experience points. Sub-objectives are detailed as they appear, along with their triggers and completion requirements.

The game rewards players with experience points (XP) for various actions, including destroying units and buildings, exploring the map, and completing objectives. However, certain bugs can prevent level completion if objectives are met in unexpected ways, such as destroying an entire enemy base before a critical structure. This guide prioritizes level completion, which may result in less XP compared to alternative playstyles.

For optimal viewing, use a text viewer with a fixed-width font. The Table of Contents at the beginning of the guide can be used with the Find command (CTRL + F) to quickly navigate to specific sections.

The author will no longer be responding to feedback as the guide is considered complete and will not be updated.

General Information:

This section provides notes on game aspects that may differ from previous Age of Empires titles or can significantly ease gameplay. Key points include:

• Town Bell: Use the town bell when your town is under attack to rally villagers to your Town Center, often saving your base.
• Forts: Unlike Age of Empires 2, there are no castles or stone walls. The primary defensive structure is the Fort, which cannot be replaced once destroyed. This simplifies base assaults compared to previous games.
• Industrial Age Buildings: Upon advancing to the Industrial Age, players can choose between a Fort or a Factory. Combined with Home City cards, you can have up to three of these buildings (e.g., two Forts and one Factory, or vice versa). The choice depends on whether you need more defensive capabilities or resource-gathering support.