The Quartermaster is a Commerce Age politician in Age of Empires III, available to all European civilizations except the British, Italians, and Spanish. As soon as the player advances to the Commerce Age by choosing him, 400 wood appears in the Home City shipment point.
Before the Definitive Edition, The Quartermaster is available to the Russians at a level 10 Home City, the Germans at a level 40 Home City, and the Portuguese at a level 60 Home City.
Strategy[]
The Quartermaster wood crates allow the player to have early flexibility, as that wood can be invested in any Exploration and Commerce Age buildings. It may allow the player to build two Trading Posts for getting control of the trade route or native settlements, or it may allow them to build two Barracks for a rush, or Outposts for a better defense, or one Mill in order to start an early food transition from hunting to farming. The wood can also be used for some early troops, such as Pikemen or Crossbowmen. The Quartermaster should also be considered on naval maps, as ships cost a substantial amount of wood, not to mention the player also has to build some Docks.
One combo the player may use with The Quartermaster for a booming strategy is to get Advanced Mill, Advanced Estate, Infinite 7 Sheep + 1 Homestead Wagon and Landgrab in the deck. Having these four cards will reduce very substantially the cost of Estates and Mills, while Advanced Estate will enable the player to build Estates in the Exploration Age. With these cards, the 400 wood of The Quartermaster can be used for much more than just one Mill and start an early transition from hunting and mining into farming and herding, and the player may then send some other improvement for these buildings. The Portuguese are the best suited for this, because the Treaty of Tordesillas shipment enables the Encomienda Manor technology, which improves Settlers recollection on Mills.
The Ottomans may get a bit more out of The Quartermaster if they previously get the Silk Road shipment. The Ottomans may also use the Quartermaster wood for immediately researching Koprulu Viziers and Topkapi, as both technologies costs wood and are key for the Ottoman economy.
Recommended shipments[]
All civilizations[]
- Infinite 7 Sheep + 1 Homestead Wagon: Ships 7 Sheep and 1 Homestead Wagon. Homestead Wagons can be turned into Mills, Estates and Livestock Pens so this may save the 400 wood for something else.
- Native Lore (the Swedes, Dutch, Germans, and French): Native technologies cost -20%. Many native technologies cost some wood so with this the player may save that wood for something else.
- Advanced Trading Posts (the Swedes, Dutch, Germans, and French): Trading Posts get a ranged attack, +20% hit points and -35% cost. With this each Trading post will cost 130 wood, so the player may build 3 of them instead of 2 with the wood of The Quartermaster.
- Frontier Defenses: Ships 2 Outpost Wagons (all except the Russians). This saves the wood for investing it in something else or for more Outposts.
- Extensive Fortifications (all except the Portuguese and Russians): Outpost build limit +100%; frontier fortifications, Walls, and Forts get +25% hit points. The player may use the 400 wood for an Outpost.
- Advanced Mill: Ships 1 Mill Wagon; Mills get +100% hit points and -50% cost. With This the player will safe 400 wood of one Mill since Exploration Age and will be enabled to build another 2 mills in the Commerce Age with the wood provided by The Quartermaster.
- Advanced Market: Markets get -20% buy and +20% sell factors. With this the player is enabled to exchange the wood for a better price if needed.
- Advanced Estate: Ships 1 Estate Wagon; Estates get +100% hit points, -31% cost, and can be built in the Exploration Age. Estates normally are enabled at Fortress Age, with this the Estate cost is reduced to 414 wood so player is enabled to invest the 400 wood out of The Quartermaster in one and get 2 estates very soon in the Commerce Age.
- Advanced Dock: Docks get +100% attack and heal ships 85% faster; warship train time -33%. The labor of The Quartermaster here will be providing wood for some ships.
- Schooners (all except the French and Germans): Fishing Boat cost -20 wood and train time -30%. With this each Fishing Boat will cost 50 wood, with 400 wood it translates to 8 Fishing Boats.
- Land Grab: Mill, Estate, Livestock Pen, -40% and build time -75%: Livestock Pens cost will be reduced to 90 wood, Mills cost reduced to 240 wood and Estates cost reduced to 360 wood, saving substancial amounts of wood for more of these buildings.
- Commerce Age Warship shipments: These ships cost Wood so The 400 Wood may be saved for more ships or something else.
- Admiralty: Admiralty: All Dock warship improvement costs and research times -60%. Dock Technologies costs wood and coin; so with this, the player may save part of the Quartermaster wood for creating Warships.
Swedes[]
- Julita Styckebruk and Engineering School: Ships 1 Leather Cannon and 1 Artillery Foundry Wagon. Leather Cannons cost 300 food 100 wood so with Julita Styckerbruk the player may create 4 more Leather Cannons fast if they also have 1200 food, the player may complement this with shipments like Crates of 300 food, Crates of 600 food, Crates of 700 food to get the food fast for covering the food cost of the Leather Canons and then ship the 2 Leather Cannons card for a total of 7 Leather Cannons in Commerce Age.
- TEAM New Sweden: Ships 1 Torp Wagon. Each torp cost 140 wood, so with this the player may save part of the wood of The Quartermaster for something else.
Dutch[]
- 15 Sheep + 1 Homestead Wagon: Ships 15 Sheep and 1 Homestead Wagon.
- Bank Wagon: Ships 1 Bank Wagon. Banks cost 350 food and 350 wood so with this the player may use the 400 wood for another Bank.
- TEAM House of Nassau: Ships 1 Market Wagon; Hunting Dogs, Gang Saw, Placer Mines, Blunderbuss and Great Coat, are free. The player may save some wood in order to invest it in something else.
- South Sea Bubble: Exchanges all coin for 1.25× the wood.
- Dutch East India Company: Envoys can build Banks; Banks get +100% hit points and -15% cost.
French[]
- Ancien Régime: Ships 1 Royal Embassy Wagon; the House of Bourbon grants access to its royal units, upgrades, and two technologies (Bourbon Reforms and Royal Tax) in the Royal Embassy; Bourbon units now cost population* slots when acquired from the Royal Embassy or the Home City. Both Bourbon technologies have a wood cost so the Quartermaster may ease the player to research them early.
Germans[]
- TEAM Reichsritter: Stables cost -50%. With this Stables will cost 100 wood enabling the player to place 4 of them with The Quartermaster.
- Palatine Settlements: Houses support +20 population; +2 Uhlans. This decreases the reliance of houses for supporting population so the player may save some wood there and invest it in something more useful.
- Prince-Electors: Ships 1 Royal Embassy Wagon; choose any one German Royal House as an ally that will allow you to recruit and upgrade units at the Royal Embassy. Allied units will now cost population* in the Royal Embassy and Home City. Removed cost for Royal Houses alliances; player can choose from Hanover, Habsburg, Oldenburg, Wettin, and Wittelsbach; doubled most build limits for allied native units.
Maltese[]
- Flame Throwers: Ships 1 Artillery Foundry Wagon; Fire Throwers get the 'Flamethrower' charged action which deals burning damage in close range. with this shipment the Quartermaster and coin ( that may be obtained with Chests shipments) the player may be enabled to directly spawn 8 Firethrowers and perform a rush.
- Carmelite Churches: Ships 2 Church Wagons and increases Church build limit by 2.
- Barrakka Gardens: Exchanges all food for an equal amount of wood.
- Auberges: Commanderies now support 10 population and Order Units cost -10% resources (rounded to 5, 10, or 15 less resources). The less reliance on houses the better.
- Hospitality: The next Age up researches twice as fast and Hospital upgrades cost 150 wood, 150 coin less.
- Fort Construction: Grand Master and Sentinels can now build Forts in any age; Fort build limit +1. The Forts cost a substantial amount of Wood and Coin but with the Quartermaster and this shipment the player will only have to gather 200 wood and 500 coin that can be shipped with the Chests of 700 Coin shipment card.
- Gunpowder Mills: All future shipments now grant an additional Depot Wagon: Each depot normally costs 60 wood and 60 coin, this shipment can save a lot of these two resources that may be better spent on something else.
- German Tongue: Ships 2 Settler Wagons and 1 Commandery Wagon; Commandery build limit +1; Commanderies can now train Settler Wagons (build limit of 6); costs 450 wood. Here The Quartermaster is used to pay for the shipment but considering the cost of the Commandery and that the Settler Wagon is an economic unit in the end this pays for itself.
- British Tongue: Ships 10 Order Longbowmen and 1 Commandery Wagon; Commandery build limit +1; Commanderies can now train Order Longbowmen; costs 500 wood. The Quartermaster here is used for paying most of the cost of the shipment.
- Greek Fire: Docks can now train Fire Ships. Each Fireship cost 100 wood and 100 gold so the player may train 4 of them with the 400 wood.
Ottomans[]
- Silk Road: Crates and Trade Routes contain +25% resources and XP. Ottomans should always use this shipment if they want to use politicians like The Quartermaster in order to get the most out of it. With this instead of 400 wood the player will get 500 wood.
- TEAM House of Osman: Trading Posts and Trading Post Wagons cost -40%. With this, Silk Road and Advanced Trading Post the player will be enabled to take very early an entire trade route or several native settlements.
- Derbentler: Janissaries and Azaps can build Barracks, Stables, and Artillery Foundries.
- Sublime Porte: Exchanges all food for 1.25 times the wood.
Portuguese[]
- TEAM Natural Lookouts: Outposts cost -30% wood.
- Navigation School: Warships cost and train time -20%.
- Treaty of Tordesillas: Provides the Church with Encomienda Manor.
- TEAM House of Bragança: Trade Route upgrades are free and available in any age.
- Naval Infantry: Enables Portuguese Warships to train infantry: Caravels can train Crossbowmen, Ordinance Riflemen (if available), Pikemen, and Halberdiers; Monitors and Ironclads can train Musketeers, Cassadores, and Grenadiers (if available); Frigates can train all Barracks units; Battleships can train all Barracks units and Grenadiers. This can safe wood from Barracks if playing on naval maps.
Russians[]
- Landed Gentry/Dragoon Combat:Cavalry Archers can be trained in the Commerce Age and cost 55 wood instead of 60 coin; Dragoons get +20% hit points and attack.
- Tula Arms Foundry: Ships 2 Grenadiers and 1 Artillery Foundry Wagon.
- Detinets: Ships 2 Blockhouse Wagons; Blockhouses get +25% hit points.
Changelog[]
Definitive Edition[]
- Home City level requirement removed.
