Age of History II: Complete Grand Strategy Guide

How to play Age of History II (AoH2) well: turn economy, movement and diplomacy points, provinces and buildings, warfare, peace deals, vassals and stability. It also covers the editors and Workshop scenarios, plus how the original compares to the new Age of History 2: Definitive Edition.

Researched September 2026 — current as of AoH2 version 1.24 (save/load fix, February 2024) and the separate Definitive Edition (released 15 April 2026). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Status: the original Age of History II (Łukasz Jakowski, Steam release 21 November 2018) still works and is sold, but active development has moved on. Age of History 2: Definitive Edition is a separate Steam product released 15 April 2026. It adds a new 13,892-province world map, 32 religions, capitulation, expanded diplomacy, atomic weapons, more government types, new wonders and a modern UI. AoH2 owners got a 30% launch discount via the Definitive Edition Upgrade Bundle, and a demo is available. The developer also makes Age of History 3. This guide covers the original, and most of it applies to the Definitive Edition too. Where DE differs, it's noted.

Quick Start

• Pick a mid-sized civ for your first game. Tiny tribes are brutal, and huge empires hide the mechanics from you.
• Each turn you have limited Movement Points and Diplomacy Points. Almost every action spends them. Plan your turn around what matters most.
• Gold funds everything. Keep income positive. Armies cost upkeep every turn.
• Build economy buildings in your core provinces first (Farms, Workshops, Libraries and so on), then military.
• Don't overextend. Conquered provinces with a different culture are unhappy and can revolt. Assimilate them over time.
• Stability and happiness keep revolutions away. Watch them after big wars.
• Use peace treaties to take land cleanly. You can take provinces, release vassals, demand war reparations and more.
• Save often. Long campaigns can span thousands of years, and v1.24 fixed a save/load bug, so update if saves are failing.

The Turn Economy

Resource | Used for | Tips

Gold (treasury) | Recruiting, buildings, upkeep, investments | Never run a deficit for long

Movement Points | Moving and recruiting armies | Prioritize fronts; don't shuffle troops aimlessly

Diplomacy Points | Alliances, war declarations, improving relations, treaties | Keep a buffer for emergencies (like calling allies)

Technology | Better combat and economy | Keep research funded

Stability / Happiness | Prevents revolts | Drops with war exhaustion and unrest

War exhaustion | Builds up during long wars | Make peace before it tanks stability

Budget sliders: the budget has four parts: taxes (income), goods (production), investments (economy and development) and research (technology points). Armies also cost upkeep every turn. When you're at peace, lean toward investments and research. In wartime, raise taxes enough to cover a bigger army, but watch happiness.

Provinces and Buildings

Provinces have population, economy, growth rate and terrain. Develop your best provinces first.

Building | Role

Farm | Growth/food and population

Workshop | Economy/production

Market | Income

Library | Research

Armoury | Military bonus

Supply Camp | Supports armies/logistics

Fort | Defense bonus for the province

Watchtower | Vision/defense

Port | Coastal access and naval movement

Wonder | Boosts population growth and taxation income (the DE adds new wonders)

Rules of thumb:

• Build economy in high-population core provinces. Build Forts in border provinces facing strong neighbors.
• Coastal empires need Ports for naval movement.
• Invest in provinces to raise their economy, and Increase Growth to raise population. Both compound over time.

Warfare

• Recruit armies in your provinces (this spends gold and Movement Points). The Definitive Edition speeds up recruitment and movement.
• Terrain matters: attacking into mountains and forts is costly. Use terrain to defend.
• Concentrate force. One big stack beats three small ones.
• Logistics: Supply Camps and nearby friendly territory make it easier to reinforce the front. Don't strand your main army deep in enemy land.
• Plunder occupied enemy provinces for gold if you can't keep them.
• Allies: calling allies costs Diplomacy Points. Make friends with your enemy's neighbors before you declare.

Definitive Edition additions: press and drag the middle mouse button to select and move multiple armies. Right-click or "Move to" can split an army across several provinces. Defeated armies partly retreat to neighboring provinces instead of being wiped. Civilizations capitulate to the opposing war leader when enough of their provinces are occupied and the war score is above 50%.

Diplomacy

Original AoH2 core actions: declare war, form alliances, improve relations, non-aggression pacts, military access, peace treaties, vassals and unions.

The Definitive Edition adds a big list of new actions, including Enforce Peace, Intervene in War, Join War, Send Volunteer Army, Provoke Rebels, Host Diplomatic Summit, Spread Propaganda, Recruit Mercenaries, Impose Sanctions, Share Technology, Request Loan, Offer Debt Relief, Ask to Become a Vassal, Transfer Vassal, Propose Union, Found a City, and Invest in or Build in Foreign Provinces.

Peace deals: take provinces you can hold, release vassals from land you can't assimilate, and take war reparations for steady income.

Assimilation, Stability and Revolutions

• Newly conquered provinces start with foreign culture and low happiness. Assimilate them over time (it costs gold/points).
• Revolutionary risk goes up with unhappiness, war exhaustion and low stability. Revolts can spawn rebel civilizations.
• Keep taxes reasonable and avoid endless wars. A short, decisive war beats a 50-turn grind.
• Changing government lowers happiness in every province (the developer's Definitive Edition notes put it at 10 points), so don't switch right after a big conquest.

Game Setup, Scenarios and Editors

• Scenarios: pick a historical start (the Grand Campaign spans from ancient civilizations into the future). The DE ships with 23 scenarios and 225 formable civilizations.
• Maps: the original offers the default Earth map plus bigger official maps like a 1,787-province Europe map (2020) and a 4,431-province Asia map (Games → Map → Asia → X5).
• Hotseat: play with as many local players as there are civilizations in the scenario.
• Editors: Scenario Editor, Civilization Creator, Flag Maker, Wasteland Editor, Map/Province/Terrain/Growth Rate/Cities editors and more. The original supports the Steam Workshop, and the DE advertises a full Workshop implementation.
• Timelapses at the end of a game replay how borders changed.

Opening Plan (Mid-Sized Civ)

• Turns 1–5: set your budget toward economy and research. Build a Farm or Workshop in your richest provinces.
• Look at your neighbors: find a weaker neighbor that borders you but not a great power.
• Make an alliance with a strong civ that isn't next to your target.
• Build up an army big enough to win in a few turns, then declare war.
• Make peace quickly. Take core provinces and ask for reparations.
• Consolidate: assimilate, build Forts on the new border, and recover stability before the next war.

Original vs Definitive Edition at a Glance

Feature | Age of History II (2018) | Definitive Edition (2026)

World map | Default Earth map, plus official Europe (1,787 provinces) and Asia (4,431 provinces) maps | New 13,892-province world map

Scenarios and formables | Grand Campaign plus official and community scenarios | 23 scenarios and 225 formable civilizations

Religion | Not a system (the DE announcement introduces religions as new) | 32 religions that affect diplomacy and relations, with a Religions map mode

Ending wars | Peace treaties | Peace treaties plus capitulation once enough provinces are occupied and war score is above 50%

Army control | Classic per-army orders | Middle-mouse drag to select several armies; split moves across provinces; defeated armies partly retreat

Late game | Original tech and governments | Adds atomic weapons and more government types

Multiplayer | Hotseat and shared/split screen | Hotseat and shared/split screen

Modding | Editors and Steam Workshop | Editors and full Steam Workshop implementation

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Declaring war on multiple fronts without allies.
• Letting gold go negative. Upkeep will cripple you.
• Conquering faster than you can assimilate, which leads to revolutions.
• Ignoring war exhaustion. Stability collapses in long wars.
• Spreading armies thin. Stacks win fights.
• Forgetting Diplomacy Points for calling allies when you're attacked.

Advanced Tips

• Vassals are cheap buffers. Release conquered land as vassals that guard your borders and pay tribute.
• Economy snowball: peacetime turns spent on investment and growth pay off massively over centuries.
• Coastal play: Ports and naval movement let you strike far-off targets.
• Custom scenarios: the editors are a big part of the game. Try community scenarios for fresh challenges.
• Consider the Definitive Edition if you want capitulation, religion, better AI and QoL. Original AoH2 owners got a discount at launch.

FAQ

Is Age of History II still supported? The original got a save/load fix (v1.24) in February 2024 and an achievements fix in March 2024. Newer development is in Age of History 2: Definitive Edition (April 2026) and Age of History 3.

Should I buy the original or the Definitive Edition? For new players in 2026, the Definitive Edition has the bigger map, more diplomacy, capitulation and a modern UI. The original is cheaper and has years of community scenarios.

Is there online multiplayer? No. Both the original and the Definitive Edition list only local multiplayer: hotseat (as many players as there are civilizations in the scenario) and shared/split-screen play.

How do I get more Movement Points? They refill each turn. The developer's Definitive Edition notes say unspent points can bank up to 150% of your normal amount, and that technology points can also be put into raising your Movement Points per turn. Spend them on moves that matter and don't shuffle troops back and forth.

What's the relationship to Age of Civilizations II? Age of Civilizations II is the earlier/mobile name of the same game line. The forum at ageofcivilizationsgame.com hosts community maps and scenarios.

Does the DE have AI-generated art? The Steam page discloses that some images, such as terrain types, were generated by AI.

Sources

• Age of History II on Steam
• Age of History 2: Definitive Edition on Steam
• Age of History II Steam news (DE launch, What's New 2026, v1.24 fix)
• Age of Civilizations official forum