Golden Horde vs French: how to win the matchup
Playing Golden Horde against French, you win 51.6% of ranked 1v1 games (12,990 games). Here is how to beat French, what they do and when.
Win rate by rank
bronze
53.2%
898
silver
55.6%
1,664
gold
53.5%
5,397
platinum
50.2%
2,950
diamond
45.9%
1,175
conqueror
42.1%
708
How to beat French
- Scout the School of Cavalry at 2:30 to 3:00
- Get Spearmen before 3:40, and keep sheep and gold under the TC
- Outpost with Arrowslits or Palisade on exposed resources
- Spearmen and Archers together, never send Spearmen alone
- Build behind walls and scale, then meet the Keep push with Crossbows and Springalds
Units that work against French: Spearmen · Archers · Crossbowmen · Camels · Springalds
When French hits
- 3:40First Royal Knights raid (3:40 to 4:30)
- 6:003-5 Knights with Archers (6:00 to 8:00)
- 13:20Castle Keep push with Knights and Arbalétriers
Golden Horde strengths to lean on
- Trains units in batches; with Reinforcements the army doubles quickly
- Ovoo gives free stone without villagers
- Safe food at home from Stockyards
- Khan, Torguuds and Keshik control the map early in Feudal
- Muscovy Yasak gives +2 ranged armor to cavalry and Men-at-Arms instantly
Golden Horde weaknesses French can punish
- Weakest Dark Age in the game, and the Ovoo is usually outside TC range
- Slow age-up, with no Khan or Torguuds while aging
- The Fortified Outpost is expensive: 150 wood and 50 stone
- Weak against 2 TC and against fast Castle behind pressure
- Bad on water and hybrid maps
Strongest Castle Age armies (simulator)
- Golden Horde: Man-at-Arms + Veteran Spearman (0.87)
- French: Man-at-Arms + Arbalétrier (0.8)
FAQ
- Is Golden Horde good against French?
- Golden Horde wins 51.6% of 12,990 ranked games against French (Even matchup).
- How do I beat French as Golden Horde?
- Scout the School of Cavalry at 2:30 to 3:00 Get Spearmen before 3:40, and keep sheep and gold under the TC Outpost with Arrowslits or Palisade on exposed resources
- When does French attack?
- 3:40 — First Royal Knights raid (3:40 to 4:30) · 6:00 — 3-5 Knights with Archers (6:00 to 8:00) · 13:20 — Castle Keep push with Knights and Arbalétriers
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.