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Chinese vs Byzantines: how to win the matchup

Playing Chinese against Byzantines, you win 45.7% of ranked 1v1 games (4,143 games). Here is how to beat Byzantines, what they do and when.

Win rate by rank

  • bronze

    45%

    331

  • silver

    50.2%

    399

  • gold

    43.1%

    1,452

  • platinum

    45.7%

    921

  • diamond

    45%

    553

  • conqueror

    53.7%

    393

How to beat Byzantines

  1. Early rush: kill the stone and berry villagers and deny the second berries
  2. Pressure before their 12-13 minute Castle
  3. Against Cataphracts: upgraded Spearmen, Crossbows and Camels
  4. Against Limitanei: Men-at-Arms or Horsemen; Archers are weak vs Shield Wall
  5. Scout: stone villager count and Cisterns, Winery or Hippodrome, Golden Horn at 10:30

Units that work against Byzantines: Spearmen · Crossbowmen · Men-at-Arms · Horsemen · Mangonels

When Byzantines hits

  1. 4:38Feudal: non-stop Limitanei and mercenary Longbows or Javelins
  2. 9:00Ram timing between 8 and 10 minutes in the Winery build
  3. 13:05Castle: Cataphracts and Longbows, that's his main hit

Chinese strengths to lean on

  • Villagers build twice as fast
  • Officials collect taxes and speed up production by +150%
  • Song Dynasty: villagers produced 33% faster and Zhuge Nu
  • Gunpowder and strong siege in Castle and Imperial
  • TC and towers fire Handcannon shots for free

Chinese weaknesses Byzantines can punish

  • Weakest civ in the stats right now
  • Hard economy that needs APM; misplayed Officials are wasted
  • Average Feudal army that falls to armored units
  • Economy is fragile while investing in Officials and Landmarks

Strongest Castle Age armies (simulator)

  • Chinese: Veteran Spearman + Veteran Zhuge Nu (0.91)
  • Byzantines: Veteran Musofadi Warrior (0.67)

FAQ

Is Chinese good against Byzantines?
Chinese wins 45.7% of 4,143 ranked games against Byzantines (Byzantines is favored).
How do I beat Byzantines as Chinese?
Early rush: kill the stone and berry villagers and deny the second berries Pressure before their 12-13 minute Castle Against Cataphracts: upgraded Spearmen, Crossbows and Camels
When does Byzantines attack?
4:38 — Feudal: non-stop Limitanei and mercenary Longbows or Javelins · 9:00 — Ram timing between 8 and 10 minutes in the Winery build · 13:05 — Castle: Cataphracts and Longbows, that's his main hit

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.

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