Sultans Ascend is an upcoming expansion for Age of Empires IV
Set to be the most comprehensive expansion for the game since its release (2021)
The most recent confirmed content of the expansion is already the second civilization – the Byzantines
It wasn’t that long ago that we wrote about the introduction of the upcoming civilization for Age of Empires IV – the Japanese. She arrives in the game with the Rise of the Sultans expansion, and she won’t be alone. We already know the second civilization from the most extensive addition to the game so far. It was revealed in a very playful way.
“You have met our challenges and deserve this announcement. Let the speculation begin,” reads the caption. The comment refers to a series of challenges that the moderators of the Age of Empires IV forums have prepared for excited fans. They had to come up with a joke about Age of Empires, describe their favorite civilization using only emoticons and share an interesting fact from history that they learned about thanks to the game. Their reward was the first glimpse of a new civilization – the Byzantines.
Detailed information about the civilization is not yet accessible to the public, but as the moderators themselves point out, a few conclusions can be drawn and speculated about from the attached screenshot.
For example, we can already get a picture of the composition of the Byzantine army. In the screenshot, you can see crossbowmen, spearmen, armor bearers, cavalry with spears and knights, whose presence can be recognized from the typical silhouettes. In addition to them, we can also notice a third type of heavily armored cavalry unit. This is exactly what the Byzantines had in Age of Empires II – they were cataphracts.
We can also see a few unique buildings. The four water reservoirs, which seem to be connected by an extensive network of aqueducts, at least that’s what we can infer, are particularly eye-catching. None of the existing civilizations in the game have a similar water management system. So while the functions of the buildings are a mystery for now, they are definitely thematically working with completely unexplored territory.
The release date of Rise of the Sultans is not yet known. It will most likely be a paid expansion, as it has its own page on the Steam store. You will be able to play it with Czech subtitles.
