Mission 1: The First City

Mission 1: The First City

Welcome to your first mission as the Atlanteans in Age of Mythology: Retold! This mission serves as a comprehensive introduction to the unique mechanics of the Atlantean civilization, focusing on their distinct economic model and powerful Hero units. Your primary goal is to establish a thriving Atlantean city and defend it against persistent invaders. Mastering these fundamentals here will set you up for success throughout the campaign.

Mission Objectives

• Primary Objective: Establish a new Atlantean city.
• Primary Objective: Defend your city against enemy attacks.
• Secondary Objective: Research the "Automaton" technology.
• Victory Condition: Survive for 20 minutes and defeat all attacking forces.

Initial Setup & Map Layout

You begin with a single Town Center, a few Citizen units, and a small starting cache of resources. The map is a relatively small, enclosed valley with a central open area where your Town Center is located. Resource nodes are scattered around this central area:

• Gold Mines: Two rich gold mines are located to the northeast and southwest of your starting position.
• Forests: Ample timber is available directly to the west and east.
• Food: Several berry bushes are near your Town Center, and a small herd of deer can be found to the north.
• Water: A small pond to the south offers fishing opportunities, though land-based food is sufficient for this mission.

Enemy attacks will primarily come from two choke points: a narrow pass to the north and a wider path to the east. Be prepared to defend both.

Step-by-Step Walkthrough

Phase 1: Establishing Your Economy (Minutes 0-5)

1. Initial Citizen Management:
   • Immediately set your Town Center's gather point to the nearest Berry Bushes.
   • Train 3-4 additional Citizens from your Town Center. Assign these new Citizens to gather food until you have at least 6-7 on food.
   • Send 2 Citizens to the nearest Gold Mine (northeast).
   • Send 2 Citizens to the nearest Forest (west).
2. Building Your First Settlement:
   • Unlike other civilizations, Atlanteans do not build multiple Town Centers. Instead, they construct Settlements. Settlements act as resource drop-off points and provide a significant boost to your resource income based on their proximity to resource nodes.
   • As soon as you have 200 Wood and 100 Gold, select a Citizen and build your first Settlement. A good location is near the northeast Gold Mine and a cluster of trees. This will maximize its economic impact.
   • Continue training Citizens until you have a healthy economy (around 15-20 Citizens total, split between food, wood, and gold). Prioritize gold and food early on.
3. Advancing to the Classical Age:
   • Once you have 800 Food and 500 Gold, click your Town Center and advance to the Classical Age.
   • God Power Choice: For this mission, Prometheus (Minor God) is highly recommended. His "Valor" God Power allows you to instantly transform any human unit into a powerful Hero, which is invaluable for defense. His myth unit, the Promethean, is also a strong early-game unit.

Phase 2: Early Defense & Hero Training (Minutes 5-10)

As you enter the Classical Age, enemy scouts and light units will begin their attacks. Your Atlantean Heroes are your greatest asset.

4. Train Your First Hero:
   • Immediately after reaching the Classical Age, train an Atlantean Hero from your Town Center. These Heroes are powerful anti-myth unit and anti-hero units, but also excel against standard units early on.
   • Use your Prometheus "Valor" God Power on one of your Citizens to create a second Hero quickly.
5. Building Defensive Structures:
   • Construct 2-3 Guard Towers at the northern choke point. These provide excellent early-game defense.
   • Build 1-2 Guard Towers at the eastern path.
   • Ensure you have a Military Academy built to train regular military units. Place it centrally for quick deployment.
6. First Enemy Waves:
   • The first waves will consist of Norse Gatherers (who can be converted to your side with a Hero's special ability, though not critical for this mission) and a few Raiding Cavalry.
   • Position your Heroes and any trained military units (e.g., Murmillo from the Military Academy) at the northern choke point. Your towers will soften them up.
   • Use your Heroes to focus down the Raiding Cavalry first, as they can quickly destroy your Citizens or buildings.
7. Expanding Your Economy (Second Settlement):
   • Once your initial defenses are stable, build a second Settlement near the western forest and any remaining berry bushes or deer. This will further boost your resource income.
   • Continue training Citizens until you have around 25-30, ensuring a good balance across all resources.

Phase 3: Mid-Game Defense & Automaton Research (Minutes 10-15)

The enemy attacks will intensify, introducing more varied unit types and potentially some minor myth units.

8. Researching Automaton:
   • To research the "Automaton" technology, you first need to build a Temple. Place it near your Town Center.
   • Once the Temple is built, you can research "Automaton" from it. This technology is a prerequisite for training the powerful Automaton myth unit later in the game, but for this mission, simply researching it fulfills the secondary objective.
9. Reinforcing Defenses:
   • Upgrade your Guard Towers to Sentry Towers as soon as you have the resources (200 Wood, 100 Gold). Sentry Towers have increased health and attack.
   • Train more Murmillos from your Military Academy. These are your primary anti-infantry units.
   • Consider training a few Turmas (Atlantean archers) to provide ranged support behind your Heroes and Murmillos.
10. Dealing with Myth Units:
    • Enemy forces may now include Norse Einherjar or even a single Fenris Wolf.
    • Your Atlantean Heroes are exceptionally strong against myth units. Focus their attacks on these threats.
    • Use your regular military units to protect your Heroes from standard enemy infantry.

Phase 4: Final Stand (Minutes 15-20)

The final waves will be the most challenging, but with a strong economy and solid defenses, you'll prevail.

11. Maintain Production:
    • Continuously train military units from your Military Academy to replace losses. Don't let your population cap sit idle.
    • If you have excess resources, consider building a second Military Academy for faster unit production.
12. God Power Usage:
    • If you chose Prometheus, save your "Valor" God Power for critical moments when you need an instant Hero to counter a strong enemy push or a myth unit.
13. Survive the Timer:
    • Keep your Heroes active, patrolling between the northern and eastern choke points.
    • Ensure your Sentry Towers are fully garrisoned with Citizens for bonus attack.
    • As the timer counts down, the enemy will launch a final, desperate assault. Hold your ground, focus fire on the most dangerous units, and you will achieve victory.

Common Pitfalls & Tips

• Underestimating Atlantean Economy: build Settlements! They are crucial for your resource income. Aim for 2-3 Settlements by the mid-game.
• Neglecting Heroes: Atlantean Heroes are incredibly powerful. Train them early, use them actively in combat, and leverage their anti-myth unit bonus.
• Lack of Early Defense: The first few enemy waves can be surprisingly potent if you don't have towers or Heroes ready. Prioritize defense after establishing your initial economy.
• Resource Imbalance: Keep an eye on your resource counts. If you're constantly running out of one resource, assign more Citizens to gather it or build another Settlement nearby.
• Garrisoning Towers: Remember to garrison Citizens into your Sentry Towers to significantly boost their attack power.

Rewards

Upon successful completion of "The First City," you will:

• Unlock the Atlantean civilization for Skirmish and Multiplayer modes.
• Gain access to the next campaign mission: "A New Alliance."
• Receive a bonus of 500 Gold and 500 Food for your next mission (campaign specific).