Age Up Coach / Unit counters
Unit countersAoE4 unit counters: what beats what
Age of Empires IV is built on a rock-paper-scissors core. Know it and you can swap your army before the fight, not during it.
The core triangle
Three basic unit types keep each other in check, and the rest of the game builds on that.
Spearmen carry bonus damage against mounted units. Cavalry runs archers down. Archers hit from range and beat spearmen, who deal little damage to anything that is not mounted.
Quick reference
| Unit | Strong against | Weak against |
|---|---|---|
| Spearmen | Cavalry: horsemen and knights | Archers; heavily armoured infantry |
| Archers | Spearmen and other lightly armoured infantry | Cavalry; armoured units, which they barely scratch |
| Crossbowmen | Heavy, armoured infantry such as men-at-arms | Cavalry that reaches them. They do less against unarmoured targets than archers do. |
| Cavalry | Archers and crossbowmen | Spearmen |
| Heavy melee infantry | Arrows do little to their armour | Crossbowmen |
| Mangonels | Massed infantry and archers | Anything that reaches them. Keep an escort. |
How to use it in a game
1. Look at what they are making. Spearmen and horsemen mean your archers need a wall of your own spearmen. A line of archers means send your cavalry or add mangonels.
2. Switch early and in groups. Armies are won by numbers that arrive together. Change your production before the fight, so the first wave is already the right mix.
3. Keep the economy running while you switch. Counter-building only works if your Town Centers keep producing villagers and no resources sit banked. That is where most players slip, and it is what the idle alerts in Age Up Coach are for.
Civs and unique units break the pattern
Each civilisation has unique units and abilities that bend these rules, and balance patches change the numbers every few months. Treat this page as the foundation: check a unit's in-game tooltip for the exact bonuses before a big fight.
Last checked November 2026. We keep to the stable core of the counter system and leave exact damage numbers out on purpose, since they change with patches.
Next: Recommended AoE4 build orders to get the economy behind your army.