Sneaky Elephants

Lou Bagel

November 14, 2021

20 Elephants in 20 Minutes

There is a AOE2 strategy to get 20 Elephants in 20 minutes with the Malay. I didn't create this strategy. You might be familiar with it and if not, you can find plenty of results googling 20 Elephants in 20 Minutes.

I enjoy this strategy. The only aspect I don't like is that elephants are slow. Obvious, but it means if they get spotted the opponents have a decent amount of time to prepare. Even a couple of monks ready before they get arrive can really slow the stampede.

So it got me thinking - what if they didn't have to walk so far? What if somehow they were created close to their target? Or even better, with a path where they won't get spotted.

Sneaky Vil

Enter Sneaky Vil.

If we can sneak a villager behind enemy lines to build the stables then we can surprise them with some sneaky elephants.

Of course this will vary by map. Black Forest is pretty perfect for it as people get that sense of security after they wall the choke points. Also, scouts often end up getting killed during walling battles.

So I've done this a time or two on other maps but most often on Black Forest.

And if that Sneaky Vil is successful then it leads to . . .