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Japanese vs French: how to win the matchup

Playing Japanese against French, you win 49.7% of ranked 1v1 games (22,724 games). Here is how to beat French, what they do and when.

Win rate by rank

  • bronze

    51.3%

    1,921

  • silver

    49.7%

    3,721

  • gold

    49.4%

    10,285

  • platinum

    47.7%

    4,165

  • diamond

    51.1%

    1,370

  • conqueror

    52%

    766

How to beat French

  1. Scout the School of Cavalry at 2:30 to 3:00
  2. Get Spearmen before 3:40, and keep sheep and gold under the TC
  3. Outpost with Arrowslits or Palisade on exposed resources
  4. Spearmen and Archers together, never send Spearmen alone
  5. 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

  1. 3:40First Royal Knights raid (3:40 to 4:30)
  2. 6:003-5 Knights with Archers (6:00 to 8:00)
  3. 13:20Castle Keep push with Knights and Arbalétriers

Japanese strengths to lean on

  • Safe, strong economy: Kura makes free farms and the Daimyo boosts farms
  • Mounted Samurai are very strong in Castle
  • Yumi Ashigaru are cheap and fast, and Bannermen give a damage aura
  • The Shinobi scouts, sabotages and assassinates
  • Best win rate in this group

Japanese weaknesses French can punish

  • Fast Castle leaves him with few units between 5:40 and 8:00
  • Deflective Armor got nerfed (15-second cooldown)
  • Weak against Macedonian Dynasty, Ayyubids and Golden Horde

Strongest Castle Age armies (simulator)

  • Japanese: Veteran Samurai + Veteran Spearman (0.8)
  • French: Man-at-Arms + Arbalétrier (0.8)

FAQ

Is Japanese good against French?
Japanese wins 49.7% of 22,724 ranked games against French (Even matchup).
How do I beat French as Japanese?
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.

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