What counters Macedonian Dynasty in AoE4?

Spearmen, Crossbowmen, Men-at-Arms, Knights. Go 2 TC boom and hold against Feudal cavalry pressure

Is Macedonian Dynasty a good civ in AoE4 right now?

Macedonian Dynasty wins 54.8% of ranked 1v1 games across all ranks (about 70,589 games), which puts it in tier S on our tier list.

What are the unique units of Macedonian Dynasty?

Atgeirmaðr, Hippodrome Horseman, Hippodrome Riddari, Hippodrome Scout, Bogmaðr, Dromon, Varangian Guard, Cheirosiphon, Riddari, Cataphract. Atgeirmaðr: Spearman replacement. Light melee infantry with a passive ability that increases their attack speed when Varangian units are nearby. Bogmaðr: Archer replacement. Light ranged infantry with an ability to bypass armor at the cost of move speed. Early Varangian Guard: Man-at-Arms replacement. Use the Berserking ability to increase damage at the cost of armor. Can construct Transport Ships

When is Macedonian Dynasty strongest?

6:00 — Varangian Guard spam from 3 Strongholds · 10:00 — Free Hippodrome Ridarii arrived and the big attack is coming · 12:00 — Goes Castle with the Golden Horn Tower, then Ridarii spam

Macedonian Dynasty guide: strengths, counters and build orders

Feudal cavalry from the Hippodrome, and a minute-12 Castle with the Golden Horn and lots of Ridarii

Tier S · 54.8% win rate Atgeirmaðr Hippodrome Horseman Hippodrome Riddari Hippodrome Scout Bogmaðr Dromon Varangian Guard Cheirosiphon Riddari Cataphract

Strengths

Highest win rate on the ladder, and his units are easy to play
The Hippodrome produces free self-healing Champion cavalry
Golden Horn Tower is the strongest Castle Landmark and produces free Crossbows
Arsenal upgrades skip 3 tiers for the unit line he plays
Long fights favor him: the War Camp gives back free units

Weaknesses

Weak, predictable economy, and very bad against 2 TC
Each upgrade only serves one unit line
Food runs out around minute 24 without map food
Nerfed a lot in 2026 (Ridarii, Varangians, Champions)

How to counter Macedonian Dynasty

Go 2 TC boom and hold against Feudal cavalry pressure
Early Spearmen against Horsemen and Champions
Against Varangian spam: Men-at-Arms, Knights and Crossbows, or a fast Castle
Don't go inside the Golden Horn Tower, take relics and the other side
Deny him the second deer and boar, and scale with farms

Units that work well: Spearmen · Crossbowmen · Men-at-Arms · Knights

Layla's in-game tip: Go 2 TC and Spearmen, and hold against his cavalry

Power spikes and timings

6:00Varangian Guard spam from 3 Strongholds
10:00Free Hippodrome Ridarii arrived and the big attack is coming
12:00Goes Castle with the Golden Horn Tower, then Ridarii spam

Strongest armies per age (simulator)

Open-field fights in Layla's battle simulator against standard armies of the same cost. Score = resources needed per enemy resource (lower is better; 1.0 is an even trade).

Feudal Age

Early Varangian Guard0.9
Early Varangian Guard + Hippodrome Riddari0.96
Early Varangian Guard + Hardened Atgeirmaðr1.05

Castle Age

Varangian Guard + Crossbowman1.11
Varangian Guard + Veteran Atgeirmaðr1.12
Varangian Guard1.14

Imperial Age

Elite Varangian Guard + Elite Cataphract1.1
Elite Varangian Guard1.15
Elite Varangian Guard + Elite Crossbowman1.15

Civilization bonuses

Villagers extract Silver from Gold and Stone to research unique technologies.
Generate Silver passively on Mining Camps and Town Centers with influence of Varangian Arsenals.
Exceed three tiers of technologies with the Varangian Arsenal by spending Silver.
Access to Early Varangian Guard in the Feudal Age (II).
Produce all unique Varangian units from the Varangian Stronghold.
Varangian units have unique abilities to improve their combat effectiveness.
Reinforce warriors that fall in battle for free with the Varangian Warcamp.
Field units capable of using various forms of Greek Fire.
Transport Ships temporarily increase the move speed of units when unloading.

Landmarks

Grand Winery (built in Age 1; 400F 200G · 190s) Acts as a Mill and Monastery. Villagers gather Food 30% faster when affected by its aura. Relics garrisoned generate Silver instead of Gold.
Imperial Hippodrome (built in Age 1; 400F 200G · 190s) Acts as a Stable. A powerful Champion Scout, Horseman, and Riddari are trained for free over time. Champions provide auras that increase damage of torches,…
Varangian Stronghold (built in Age 1; 200W · 30s) Structure capable of producing any Varangian unit.
Varangian Warcamp (built in Age 1; 50W · 20s) Increases your maximum Population. As the Empire suffers casualties in war, the emperor calls forth more Varangians. Once enough troops are lost in battle,…
Cistern of the First Hill (built in Age 2; 1200F 600G · 220s) Charges an ability used for boosting the work rate of military and research buildings. If used on a Mining Camp, Lumber Camp, or Farm, begin earning 160 Gold,…
Golden Horn Tower (built in Age 2; 1200F 600G · 220s) Defensive building equipped with Crossbow emplacements and large Line of Sight. Generates batches of Crossbowman for free over time. Detects units in stealth…
Varangian Arsenal (built in Age 2; 100W · 30s) Houses advanced technology for the Macedonian Dynasty.
Foreign Engineering Company (built in Age 3; 2400F 1200G · 250s) Allows production of Nest of Bees, Huihui Pao, and Royal Cannons for Silver.
Palatine School (built in Age 3; 2400F 1200G · 250s) Elite Cataphracts can be rapidly produced in batches at this Landmark for Silver.
Cathedral of Divine Wisdom (built in Age 4; 5000F 5000W 5000G 5000S · 600s) Build and defend a Wonder to secure victory. Rival civilizations will be aware of its construction and seek to destroy it.

Macedonian Dynasty build orders

Deer → Hippodrome → RidariiaggressiveFeudal 2:45Castle 12:00
Feudal Varangian Spamaggressive

How Layla reads build orders out live

Macedonian Dynasty matchups

Best matchups

Hardest matchups

All matchups

vs Sengoku Daimyo62.7% · 2,051
vs Holy Roman Empire61.5% · 6,553
vs Chinese60.3% · 5,461
vs Byzantines60.1% · 5,111
vs English58.5% · 17,446
vs Japanese57.7% · 7,952
vs Rus57.7% · 5,922
vs Delhi Sultanate56.4% · 3,053
vs Abbasid Dynasty55.6% · 4,040
vs Ayyubids54.8% · 3,443
vs Ottomans54.5% · 6,899
vs House of Lancaster54.3% · 4,326
vs Zhu Xi's Legacy54.3% · 4,973
vs Malians54.2% · 4,629
vs Tughlaq Dynasty54.1% · 2,039
vs Mongols53.6% · 5,481
vs Jeanne d'Arc53.5% · 2,553
vs Knights Templar52.6% · 14,987
vs Jin Dynasty52.1% · 2,961
vs Golden Horde51.4% · 5,109
vs Order of the Dragon50.8% · 8,384
vs French50.3% · 17,805

FAQ

What counters Macedonian Dynasty in AoE4?: Spearmen, Crossbowmen, Men-at-Arms, Knights. Go 2 TC boom and hold against Feudal cavalry pressure
Is Macedonian Dynasty a good civ in AoE4 right now?: Macedonian Dynasty wins 54.8% of ranked 1v1 games across all ranks (about 70,589 games), which puts it in tier S on our tier list.
What are the unique units of Macedonian Dynasty?: Atgeirmaðr, Hippodrome Horseman, Hippodrome Riddari, Hippodrome Scout, Bogmaðr, Dromon, Varangian Guard, Cheirosiphon, Riddari, Cataphract. Atgeirmaðr: Spearman replacement. Light melee infantry with a passive ability that increases their attack speed when Varangian units are nearby. Bogmaðr: Archer replacement. Light ranged infantry with an ability to bypass armor at the cost of move speed. Early Varangian Guard: Man-at-Arms replacement. Use the Berserking ability to increase damage at the cost of armor. Can construct Transport Ships
When is Macedonian Dynasty strongest?: 6:00 — Varangian Guard spam from 3 Strongholds · 10:00 — Free Hippodrome Ridarii arrived and the big attack is coming · 12:00 — Goes Castle with the Golden Horn Tower, then Ridarii spam

Data from the open game data (aoe4world/data), patch 16.2.10884, public ranked statistics, and Layla Coach's battle simulator. Layla Coach is an independent tool, not affiliated with Microsoft, Relic Entertainment or World's Edge.