Assyria

Assyria

Leader	Ashurbanipal
Benefit	Treasure of Nineveh
Unique Units	Siege Tower
Unique Building	Royal Library

Introduction

Assyria is a very militant nation that has its best days in the Classical Era. All three of their unique aspects help with, or reward, military conquest. They're given free Technology for defeating cities, their Libraries give bonus experience to martial units, and their Siege Tower is an absolute horror for stomping cities until the Medieval Era is well underway.

It's obvious that Assyria is a wonderful choice for militaristic players, or for people who want to have an early-game rush. The lack of unique units in the later Eras makes them weaker compared with some conquerors, so be careful if you don't get an edge in the beginning. Also, Assyria has no major economic benefits, so they often have to take on wealthier or more cultural rivals head on!

Passive Benefits

Treasure of Nineveh

When a city is conquered, your nation gains a free Technology that has already been discovered by its owner. Gaining a city through a trade deal does not count (and this can only occur once per enemy city).

Treasure of Nineveh is a perfect way for Assyria to exploit its early strength in warfare and conquest. While your nation races toward Mathematics and Iron Working, other Technologies often fall behind. However, your armies are able to seize land from other civilizations, making them weaker. The extra Technologies you gain in the process shore up the weaker aspects of your nation so you have a strong footing going into the mid-game (with plenty of land, cities, and Technology).

Pair this with Assyria's Siege Towers and a set of warlike Policies so your civilization races ahead in the early game. You can then fall back into other methods of victory once you have that established lead. Or, you can keep fighting as long as your opponents don't get any tougher as time goes on.

Unique Strengths

Siege Tower

The Siege Tower is the crown jewel of the Assyrian nation during the Classical Era (and a bit beyond!). These take over your Catapult slot, but they function in a very different way. First off, they're melee units. You don't have to set them up to attack, though you have to get into close range with a city to smash it directly. This sounds like kind of an even trade, but it's better than you might think. The direct attack from these towers is massive. One of them is a serious threat in a siege, and two of them reduce even hardier cities into rubble.

And that's not the end of the fun. Sapper is a special ability for these units. They give friendly units within two tiles a bonus to their attack against cities as well. Your little Spearmen don't help much in normal city encounters; they soak arrow fire and protect the rear lines until the city is ready to fall. Not so when you're an Assyrian. The bonus from your Siege Towers makes it possible for much weaker units to still contribute noteworthy damage. Your sieges end up taking less time, reducing your opponent’s ability to finish training new units or grab reinforcements from nearby cities.

Because Assyrian forces lack Catapults, you should train an extra Composite Bowman or two to make sure that you have ranged fire for dealing with engagements out in the field. That's when your armies are at their weakest, and that's exactly where rival nations will want to fight you.

Royal Library

Royal Libraries allow the Assyrians to get martial benefits for their units while aiding research for upgraded troop types and other martial items. Build a Royal Library in your best training city and fill it with a Great Work of Writing to help your military units start with even more of an edge than usual.

Royal Libraries are an essential way to keep your army at its best even after the Classical Era gives way to the Medieval. Your Siege Tower advantage fades, but Royal Libraries become easier to build throughout your empire, and you start to get Great Writers to improve them.

The Big Picture

Assyria is a new powerhouse for the early game. Many of the other new nations in Brave New World have a focus on cultural elements and International Trade Routes. Not so here. The Assyrians are ready to fight!

Be very aware of other early-game fighters. Their cities are ripe for the taking if you can get to them before they have many units, but that all falls into ruin if you end up in an open-field battle against a bunch of Companion Cavalry and Hoplites. Instead, pick your targets carefully and rush the other martial brutes ahead of their best times, or feed off of weaker cultural/economic enemies instead!