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Italians

Kite Tank anti-cavalry archer + gunpowder.

Spawn unit Starting age Kills to Castle Kills to Imp Razes to vill Cap Interval
Genoese Crossbowman likely (anti-cav ranged, iconic Italian UU). So... Feudal 300 500 1 80 9 s

⚡ Quick reference

  • Baseline: age-ups cheaper, foot archers + Condottieri armor, Dock/University/gunpowder discounted. UU Genoese Crossbowman (anti-cav). Team unlocks Condottieri. UT Pavise, Silk Road.
  • Requiem v294: starting age Feudal; kills-to-Castle 300; razes-to-vill 1.
  • CBA role: anti-cavalry archer + gunpowder.
  • Post-vill: Genoese + HC + Spear/Condo screen + BBC.
  • Weak vs: Skirms, siege.

📜 Deep playbook

🏛️ Standard DE profile

  • Civ bonuses:
  • Advancing to next age costs -15%.
  • Dock and Fishing Ships cost -15%.
  • Gunpowder units cost -20%.
  • Condottiero available at Barracks in Imperial Age (once ally has Condottiero — actually Italian civ has direct access; allies get access via team).
  • University techs are researched 30% faster (or similar — verify).
  • Team bonus: Condottiero available at Barracks for allies in Imperial Age.
  • Unique units: Genoese Crossbowman (Castle UU, ranged anti-cav). Condottiero (regional/team UU, anti-gunpowder infantry).
  • Unique techs:
  • Castle Age: Pavise — Foot archers +1/+1 armor.
  • Imperial Age: Silk Road — Trade units cost -50%.
  • Notable missing techs: no Halberdier (Pikeman only), no Heavy Camel (they have Camel Rider only? verify — actually Italians have Heavy Camel). Missing: Siege Onager, Heavy Scorpion? verify. Best-known gap: no Halb, no Siege Onager.
  • Walls: Palisade, Stone, Fortified.

🏰 CBA REQUIEM v294 profile

(v294 numbers: Fandom wiki, retrieved 2026-08-21)

  • Starting age: Feudal (Requiem v294 start table).
  • Spawn unit: Genoese Crossbowman likely (anti-cav ranged, iconic Italian UU). Some CBA versions co-spawn Condottiero or Hand Cannoneer given gunpowder bonus. not listed in the v294 wiki table — ask in the Requiem Discord for v294.
  • Spawn interval / cap: 9 s per Castle; cap 80.
  • Kills to Castle / Imperial: 300 (Castle) / 500 (Imperial).
  • Razes to first villagers: 1.
  • Free starting tech: none listed in the v294 wiki table — Pavise is a candidate for the archer build.
  • Silver-UT unlock: not listed in the v294 wiki table — ask in the Requiem Discord; unlocks Elite Genoese and Pavise.
  • Available buildings: standard whitelist. Condottiero available at Barracks.

CBA role & archetype

  • Primary role: Kite / anti-cav range. Genoese Crossbow has +bonus vs. cav — melts Paladin/Camel/Elephant.
  • Secondary role: gunpowder late-game (cheap HC via gunpowder cost bonus).

🌅 Opening play (minute 0–3)

  • Position on the cav flank. Genoese eats cav for breakfast.
  • Set spawn short; Genoese is a range unit that wants to fire, not walk.
  • Patrol in kite lines — always moving away from melee.
  • Take fights: any cav civ, wounded units.
  • Refuse fights: mass Skirm, mass Arb (Genoese loses to pure Arb — the anti-cav bonus doesn't apply), mass Onager.

⚔️ Kill accumulation strategy

  • Safe kill farm: Franks, Persians, Huns, Berbers, Byzantines Cataphract (Genoese anti-cav shreds).
  • Avoid feeding: Britons, Ethiopian Arbs, Mayans Plumes, Vietnamese Rattans.
  • Anti-caging: Genoese + Pavise makes a strong wall defender.

🏚️ Raze allocation

  • 1-raze priority medium. Italians benefit from villagers via cheap age-up (inert in CBA) but Genoese + Condottiero + HC late-game is a strong comp.

👷 Post-villager composition

  • Wall order: front wall (Pavise-buffed Genoese hold well), backwall, gate patch.
  • Standard build: 1 Barracks (Pikeman + Condottiero), 3 Ranges (Genoese + Skirm + HC), 1 Stable (Camel/Hussar cleanup), 2 Siege Workshops (Ram).
  • Imperial composition: Elite Genoese + Hand Cannoneer + Condottiero + Pikeman + BBC + Ram + Onager.
  • Silver-UT priority: Pavise first (+1/+1 armor on Genoese is enormous), Silk Road never (inert).

⚖️ Strong against / Weak against

  • Strong vs: Franks, Persians, Huns, Berbers, Byzantines, Gurjaras (Camel dies), Hindustanis Camel, Mongol/Magyar cav.
  • Weak vs: Britons, Ethiopian Arbs, Mayans, Vietnamese, Chinese CKN, Aztec Jaguar.

🤝 Team synergies

  • Best partners: Britons (Arb + Genoese — Genoese covers cav, Arb covers infantry), Koreans (Onager + Genoese), Turks (BBC + Genoese), Cumans (Kipchak + Genoese range wall).
  • Conflict: pairing with another Arb civ creates cav vulnerability (both weak to Halb).

🎮 Key micro rules

  1. Always kite cav; Genoese anti-cav bonus is the win.
  2. Pavise first — the armor buff turns Genoese into a tank-range hybrid.
  3. Condottiero counter-picks enemy HC/gunpowder civs.
  4. No Halb — use Pikeman + Condottiero for anti-cav backup.
  5. No SO — use standard Onager, don't wait for the upgrade.

Common mistakes: fighting into Arb (Genoese loses); researching Silk Road (inert); skipping Condottiero when facing Turks/Portuguese/Spanish.

🔒 Version-locked (Requiem v294)

  • Genoese anti-cav bonus is DE-standard.
  • Condottiero available to allies via team bonus in Imperial is DE-standard.
  • Spawn unit selection and free-tech grant are none listed in the v294 wiki table for v294.