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Hello all, this is the third post in my series on my ideas for new civilizations in a prospective Age of Mythology 2. My first post detailing the basis ideas and civs is here, and my second one going into depth about my concept on an Aztec civilization is here. This post covers the Celts, their units, mythology and gameplay mechanics.
Celtic history and religion is very long and wide, but admittedly a lot of what I would be drawing from would be Irish legends such as the Ulster cycle that were recorded well after Christianization (though this was also true of the Norse, and similarly they may be clues about pre-Christian beliefs), in large part because this stuff is well attested compared to other mythology associated with Celtic peoples. The reason for this is because Celtic mythology and religion is very difficult to reconstruct, essentially nothing was written down by the continental Celts (ie the Gauls in modern day France and Northern Italy), almost everything we know comes from archaeological evidence and the accounts of other peoples, especially the Romans, who didn't have regard for recording this kind of thing in a flattering light. By far the best sources for what could be an insight into ancient Celtic mythology and religion, as written by Celtic people themselves comes from Early Medieval Ireland, and to a lesser extent Scotland and Wales. In all of these cases the legends were recorded after these countries converted to Christianity, which likely significantly skewed the nature in which these myths were recorded, for example figures that were previously considered gods might have been downgraded to great kings and heroes so as to not step on any monotheistic toes. It still gives us a wealth of information that can be drawn upon. I should mention straight up I am intentionally avoiding Arthurian legend, I know its technically a kind of Celtic mythology but it sort of creates associations that are a bit too medieval for my liking. I might also be a bit too biased towards Irish mythology because I am Irish myself, but I will try to include stuff from things like the Welsh Mabinogion. Lastly the Celtic military units are based on a huge temporal range because the military history of the people we think of as Celts today stretched over gigantic timescales, from early beginnings in the first millennium BC to the Tudor conquest of Gaelic Ireland that ended in 1603 AD.
Celts would occupy a similar role to the Norse (who they replace), a somewhat crude Northern European civilization, a bit more in line with the time period that would match up with Greeks and the like. Playing into certain stereotypes, the Celts are somewhat in tune with nature, they don't have great architecture, similar to the Norse they don't rely on defensive structures much, and their crucial Nemeton is not under their direct control. They have effective light infantry and cavalry but pretty shoddy ranged and siege options.
Celtic Villagers move faster and are quite a lot better when it comes to overall combat stats compared to villagers of other civilisations. They also get bonus work rate from herdables, which are also cheaper to create at the animal pen(see my first post for more detailed information on this idea), and also from huntable animals. however their villagers are worse at gathering all other resources, especially from farming, and building structures. To offset this a Druid can be used to bless buildings, similar to the Egyptian Pharoh's ability to empower, which will improve things like rate villagers construct structures and the buildings' working rate. Overall Celt villagers can be put out further into the map to track down things like huntables and place forward bases, they have considerably better ability to defend themselves from enemy attack compared to other civs, but their farming disadvantage can create issues. Celts as a result put a lot of emphasis on using the animal pen and basing their food economy around herdables than farms. This has advantages and drawbacks, collecting from herdables generally gives you more food quicker compared to farming, and you can quickly exploit it if you need a quick influx of food, but herdables are much more vulnerable to enemy attack, especially since the animal pen takes up more space than a farm while being similarly fragile. Celts also have poor defensive structures, their walls and towers only have one upgrade, up to stone wall and watch tower, so they can't effectively turtle behind walls to defend their economy like other civs might, they really have to be constantly pushing the enemy to prevent them from taking advantage of these kinds of weaknesses.
Celts build a universal drop off point for all resources, a storage pit, like the Chinese.
Fanciful depiction of Druids
Favor mechanic: Nemeton, for every Celtic player on the map there will be a random sacred grove that will spawn nearby their starting location. The player must find and bless these groves with a druid to generate favor. Nemeton Groves are crucial for the Celts, they replace the temple, which they can't build as a separate building. All myth units and various mythological upgrades are found here as a result, and the Nemeton can be upgraded once every age to make it more effective, allowing multiple units to be created simultaneously. Upgrades will also increase Favor generation. Beware however, the enemy player will be able to destroy the Nemeton if they want. If that happens it can be a heavy setback, another Nemeton will randomly spawn after a set amount of time but must be re-occupied and re-upgraded. Lugus players get two Nemetons.
Hero mechanic: Celts have two options for heroes, first they can build a Druid at the town centre or, later, the Nemeton. Druids are similar to the priest the Egyptians have in AOM, but more powerful, letting you heal units and buff buildings (35% faster construction rate, 25% faster technological research and unit creation speed, and 15% extra collection rate for resource drop sites) and fight Myth units at range. You start off with one druid but can create an additional one every age (maybe more depending on the right technology), starting with 1 in Archaic, ending with 4 in Mythic. Proper Druid use is critical to the overall Celtic gameplan, you need to balance them between Blessing buildings to help with production and economy, Blessing Nemetons to generate favor, healing friendly units, exploring with Ravens and fighting enemy myth units if the situation calls for it. They are thus highly micro intensive and a high value, expensive target for the enemy to try to kill.
The other option is dependent on the Nemeton, while under the player's control with Druids the Nemeton will automatically spawn powerful hero units dependent on the age and upgrades on the Nemeton. One hero for each age, except Archaic. Said hero units will be free, and if they die they will respawn after some time (same as the Egyptian Pharaoh) at the Nemeton, but only one of each can exist at a time (again like the Pharaoh). The heroes are particular heroes in the Celtic mythological traditions, similar to the Greek heroes in that regard, but are unique to each minor god instead of major ones which induces more in-depth decision making as you advance. They have their own special abilities and are quite powerful, but if you lose control of the Nemeton you won't be able to get new ones.
Scout mechanic: Druids can train Ravens, similar to ravens that Odin has access to in the previous game. However, these birds cost a small amount of favor, and will vanish after a limited time, like a mercenary. They do offer the upside of flight. If the player has the Morrigan as their major god Crows cost less and last longer. Generally speaking, if the player is good at scouting a Celtic player should have enough favor at the start of the game to not have to produce more in a Nemeton before Classical age.
Gallowglass and Kern from the early 16th century
War Chariot
human units:
Celts have a similar position to the Norse in their overall military outlook, they have versatile cavalry and infantry but absolutely terrible archers. Generally they have to make up for the ranged weaknesses with Myth units but probably have the best overall cavalry in the game. They have three production buildings, the Dún, Cobhsaà and Ringfort, and units upgrades are determined by the building they originate from. Ringforts are the main fortress building with lots of HP and the ability to shoot arrows.
Dún units:
-Kern: Very light infantry. Fast moving compared to most other infantry (except the Eagle warrior) they have a good attack but are poorly armored and don't have a whole lot of health. They really can't stand up to archers at all but can counter cavalry well and to some degree can operate in a raiding role. Available from Classical age.
-Fianna: Another infantry unit, Fianna have particularly good pierce armor and an attack bonus against archers, making them an effective archer counter. They aren't particularly useful in any other role though. Available from Classical age.
-Gaesatae: The only regular ranged unit for the Celts, this Javelineer occupies a similar role to the throwing Axeman for the Norse. It mostly counters other infantry and has a ranged melee attack rather than a pierce attack. As a ranged unit its reasonable, lacking in overall range and power, but it is effective enough in its purpose. Available from Classical age.
Cobhsaà units:
-Gallic Cavalry: One of the better default horsemen, having a good combination of speed, attack and health. Always useful to raid the enemy, kill archers and destroy siege, and can handle themselves ok in a full on melee battle. Available from Classical age.
-War Chariot: As a chariot this is quite expensive but has lots of health and a small area of effect on each attack (the Celts sometimes used Scythed Chariots), so its an extremely formidable heavy cavalry unit. Available from Heroic age.
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Ringfort units
-Gallowglass: Heavy infantry, the opposite of the Kern. They are slow but beefy, wielding a massive Dane Axe that can cut down enemies quickly. They are one of the most powerful overall melee units, along with the Cataphract and Shorn One, but tend to put more focus on health and armor over attack and their speed makes archers difficult to handle. Quite expensive too. Available from Heroic age.
-Chieftain: The leaders of the Celtic forces, they present themselves as very heavy horsemen with a high resource cost, especially in terms of population. They are slower than most other cavalry and, while their attack is powerful its not quite worth the expense, but their main upside is that they carry a Carnyx with them which they can use to periodically buff friendly units attack, like an Einherjar. Available from Mythic age.
-Portable ram: Siege unit, very similar to the Norse siege unit its just some guys carrying a tree trunk, it bashes through buildings quickly and moves fast for a siege unit, but has less pierce armor while still going down fast to melee. Cheaper and more expendable than most siege. Available from Heroic age.
-Crann Tabhaill: Siege unit, a kind of small catapult or very large sling. Has good range and is better against units than other siege, in addition to buildings. Particular weak if enemies get close though. Available from Mythic Age.
The Celtic dock is standard, the warships are the Birlinn (arrow ship), Veneti Galley (siege ship) and War Currach (Melee ship).
Major gods
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Lugus
Lugus is the highest deity in the Irish pantheon, and the leader of the Tuatha Dé Danann (basically the collection of gods), he was portrayed as a great king, warrior and craftsman, possessing a magical spear and sling that he used to slay the monstrous Balor, his grandfather. This information is based on his Irish interpretation as Lugh, and in Welsh he was known as Lleu Llaw Gyffes, Lugus is an older term from the continental Celts to describe what must be the same or very similar figure, likely a sun god. He gives considerable advantages to Nemetons and the armory.
-Lugus players receive an additional Nemeton spawn, resulting in two.
-Nemetons gain additional benefits when upgraded, in the Classical age they begin to block enemy god powers from being used nearby (like the Hesperides tree), in Heroic it buffs the attack of nearby friendly units, and in Mythic it will result in lightning strikes sporadically hitting enemy units in proximity.
-Nemetons can be relocated at a significant expense, being teleported and rebuilt to different parts of the map, allowing you to place them in more tactical locations.
-Armory technologies are 20% cheaper.
God Power: Desertion. Converts one enemy unit to your side (unless they are the enemy starting scout).
Technology: Lugh's spear. increases the damage of Heroes by 20%.
Lugus's wonder is a (fully reconstructed) Hill of Tara, the site of coronation for the High Kings of Ireland.
Pryderi, a famous legendary king of Dyfed from the Welsh Mabinogion, is the AI personality for Lugus. He is slow to get going but tends to move out in the mid game with a big infantry army, though he often over-commits.
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The Dagda
A very important deity who was associated with fertility, agriculture, wisdom and the Druids, the Dagda is usually portrayed as a large bearded man carrying a giant cauldron, magical mace (somewhat comparable to Thor's Mjölnir) and a harp that can control the seasons. A lot of the important figures in Irish mythology descended from him and he had a curious relationship with The MorrÃgan, sometimes treated as his wife, despite the Dagda having a lot of trysts with other women. The Dagda is mostly fixated on Druids, and gives them significant buffs, he also has crucial bonuses to food production.
-Starting from the Classical age 1 additional Druid can be constructed every age, this means that Dagda players can end up with 7 Druids instead of 4.
-Druids are 25% cheaper and have 20% more health.
-Druid blessings are improved, blessed buildings are constructed 50% faster, create units and research 30% faster and improve resources collection by 20%.
-Villagers work 15% faster on farms.
God Power: Great hunt. Similar to Odin's power in the first game, increases the amount of huntable and/or herdable animals in an area.
Technology: Coire ansic. The magic cauldron of the Dagda ensures a small but continuous trickle of food for the rest of the game (like Isis's Flood of the Nile).
The Dagda's wonder is Brú na Bóinne and more specifically Newgrange (these weren't built by the Celts, but later legends considered it the Dagda's abode).
The AI personality for the Dagda is Conchobar Mac Nessa, king of Ulster and a strong contender for the worst husband ever award, considering that relationship with his ex-wife Medb of Connacht got so bad it degenerated into war and that he kidnapped his other wife Deirdre who killed herself by smashing her head on a rock as a result. He is cautiously defensive through most of the game.
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The MorrÃgan
A sinister and mysterious but important figure, the MorrÃgan was a kind of triple goddess that seems to be composed of the different aspects of different goddesses, such as Badb, Macha and Nemain. She was associated with warfare and said to control fate itself, foretelling both death and victory, encouraging acts of great valor and total terror. She has very heavy association with Crows and Ravens and has a particular penchant for shape-shifting, which is reflected in her bonuses, along with her warlike nature.
-In the heat of battle human units have a chance to randomly transform into powerful myth units at no extra cost or population space (they also tend to turn into things that fit their previous role, ie infantry turn into Conriocht, cavalry into Dullahan).
-Ravens created by Druids cost half as much faith and last twice as long.
-Infantry units have 20% more hitpoints.
-Myth units cost half as much faith and 15% less other resources.
God Power: Eyes of the Crow. Reveals an area of the map it is used upon, like Set's vision.
Technology: Fateful Washerwoman. Villager attack increased by 20%.
The MorrÃgan's wonder is a Wicker Man (there's not much evidence this was really a thing beyond Roman propaganda, but its a powerful image I think fits the MorrÃgan well).
Queen Medb acts as the AI personality for The MorrÃgan, the legendary queen of Connacht in the Ulster cycle who initiated a great war when she invades Ulster to steal her ex-husband's magnificent bull. She plays very aggressively from the start, but in clumsy way that leaves her open to attacks at home.
Minor Gods
(availability key: D=Dagda, M=MorrÃgan, L=Lugus)
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Nodens
You have advanced to the Classical age through the Fortitude of Nodens!
Nodens is the ancient Brittonic term for a god that in Irish mythology is known as Nuada Airgetlám, or Nuada of the Silver hand. A king of the Tuatha Dé Danann before Lugh, he lost his arm in battle with the Fir Bolg (a group that lived in Ireland before the Tuatha Dé Danann). A magical replacement was created from silver but his injury meant that he was considered ineligible for kingship (Irish kings had to be physically whole without disabilities or lost body parts, as a result eye gouging was a common practice to exclude rivals from political power). Despite this he managed to reclaim the throne from his despotic replacement, but was killed by the Fomorians. As Nodens he was associated with the sea, healing and hunting. His Welsh equivalent is Nudd Llaw Ereint. (L, D)
Myth unit: Cŵn Annwn. Spectral hounds from Welsh mythology, they hail from Annwn, the otherworld, and are portents of death for those who encounter them, pursuing wrongdoers until they can run no longer. They are intangible, with pale fur, red ears and glowing eyes, they can move quickly but have relatively low health and an adequate attack. However soon after the begin moving they become invisible to enemy players, with this invisibility ending as soon as they stop moving or if they attack something. This can make them useful for raiding, and is also good for a quick retreat.
God Power: Mist of invisibility. Targets a group of friendly units to render them completely invisible to the enemy, they can move into their territory and will not be targeted by any attack (except splash damage from things like god powers). Invisibility is broken when you decide to attack with the units.
Hero: Brian son of Tuireann, part of a trio of brothers who killed Lugh's father, Cian. In recompense they traveled the world on a quest to find powerful magical items, but died tragically after Lugh refused to heal them after their last, hardest mission. Has a special attack where he throws a magical spear that will home in 3 enemies, causing good damage.
Technologies:
ClaÃomh Solais: The sword of light of Nodens boosts the attack of Kern and Fianna by 20%.
Salmon of Knowledge: Druids heal 50% faster and move 25% faster.
Silver Touch: Hunters work 30% faster and carry 5 more food.
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Brigid
You have advanced to the Classical age through the Grace of Brigid!
A very important figure in Irish society up until this day, Brigid appears to the be the Irish interpretation of a goddess name Brigantia on the continent, and it also seems as though she was syncretised into the Christian Saint Brigid of Kildare who is still a popular saint in Ireland. A daughter of the Dagda, she is associated with poetry, art, fertility, spring and smithing. She may have also been a triple goddess, like the MorrÃgan, with separate aspects as a healer and smith. (D, M)
Myth unit: Banshee. A floating grey hag with a terrifying appearance, has a ranged attack and is generally pretty fragile, however they also have a special scream ability, the human unit targeted by this attack will die instantly from the next attack it receives, no matter how much health they have and how much damage that attack would normally do.
God power: Healing Spring. Places a healing spring that can heal your units but can also be captured by the enemy, just like Forseti's one.
Hero: Pwyll. A major Welsh hero and father of Pryderi through the Otherworld woman Rhiannon. Has the ability to 'tame' carnivorous wild animals like wolves and put them under the player's control.
Technologies:
Imbolc: The spring bounty makes all sources of food gather 10% faster.
Cross of Protection: Brigid's emblem gives all buildings 15% more hitpoints.
Artisan Patroness: Armory technologies research 70% faster.
Keening mother: Banshees gain 30% greater range, including on their special ability, and 20% more attack power.
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Cernunnos
You have advanced to the Classical age through the Mysteries of Cernunnos!
Cernunnos is a particularly enigmatic figure, he's almost entirely known from continental Celtic references and does not seem to have played a major role in Britain and Ireland, making it difficult to link him to characters in these mythologies. Nonetheless he was important in places like Gaul and Spain, being depicted as a god with Deer antlers who seems to preside over nature and animals. (L, M)
Myth unit: Conriocht: 'Conriocht' is simply Irish for Werewolf (another potential name is Fáelad), and as such is a man-wolf transformation. Legends of such Werewolves were recorded as them being related to related to royalty in Osraige, or as metaphorical or literal transformations of warriors. In game the Conriocht starts has the usual appearance of a normal human warrior wearing a wolf skin with average stats, but will transform into a Werewolf temporarily to significantly boost its combat stats and replenish some health. The transformation is related to how much damage itself and friendly units nearby have taken, the more damage the quicker the transformation.
God Power: Beast Lord. Places a number of the dangerous animals (ie wolves, lions, elephants) in the map under the users direct control, no matter where cast it will always bring about 20% of such creatures under the users control, randomly choosing animals around the map, with 5 being the lowest amount that you can have. If there less than five dangerous animals still alive it will spawn in some wolves to make up the difference. Can be very useful if you plan to launch a raid as soon as you age up to Classical and hit your enemies villagers quickly, though dead animals will leave some food.
Hero: Diarmuid Ua Duibhne. Son of Donn and member of the Fianna, a great warrior who gets on the wrong side of Fionn on account of a woman and dies with appropriate tragedy. Can bash human units with his shield, throwing them away for high damage.
Technologies:
Horned Serpent: Woodcutters work 20% faster.
Black Horse: Gallic Cavalry attack and melee armor improved by 15%.
Daughters of Airitech: Conriocht gains 40% more hitpoints and they take less damage to transform.
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Callieach
You have advanced to the Heroic age through the Desolation of Callieach!
Callieach is almost the polar opposite of Brigid, a powerful deity of winter. She's usually depicted as a veiled old hag who has the ability to sculpt the land with her hammer, and sits on the top of Ben Nevis as her throne. She drives forward winter either in partnership or opposition to Brigid, and has connections to wild and domestic animals. A more modernized version of the Callieach is the Scottish Beira, the queen of winter. (M, L)
Myth Unit: Fomorian. In Irish legends they are somewhat poorly defined, but generally seem to be the monstrous opponents of the early settlers of the island. In game they are giants with one arm and one eye, as well as various other physical deformities like a hunched back. They have good attack and health and also have a special attack where they open their large eye to do an area of effect attack against multiple units.
God Power: Transformation. Heroic age power, transforms a number amount of your human units into random myth units.
Hero: Scáthach. Cú Chulainn's tutor, Scáthach wields the Gáe Bolg as a javelin like a Gaesatae, this gives her an instant kill ability where the Gáe Bolg essentially turns its victim into a bloody thorn bush.
Technologies:
Eye of Balor: Fomorians gain 15% more health and their special ability does 30% more damage over a larger area.
Glas Gaibhnenn: Herdable animals fatten 30% faster and villagers assigned to work the pen collect food 25% faster.
Frozen Shields: Improves pierce armor for Dún units by 15%.
Gáe Bulg: The spear of Cú Chulainn boosts the attack and range of Gaesatae by 20%.
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Macha
You have advanced to the Heroic age through the Sovereignty of Macha!
Sometimes seen as one of the three goddesses that make up the MorrÃgan, Macha shows up frequently in various Irish myths in curiously disconnected contexts. For example in the Táin Bó Cúailnge she is the mysterious wife of a rich farmer and somehow gets roped into a chariot race by king of Ulster while pregnant with twins. After winning she curses the men of Ulster to be crippled by the same birthing pains she feels, which creates an issue since they are in middle of massive invasion by Queen Medb of Connacht. She is seen as a sovereignty goddess, representing the land of Ireland itself and political legitimacy through relationships and couplings between herself and kings, which likely explains why she shows up so much as the wife or lover of different powerful rulers. (M, D)
Myth Unit: Great Bull. Based off of the great bulls in the Táin Bó Cúailnge, this is a titanic bull with massive horns. It has a lot of health and attack and is just generally highly formidable. Its special ability is a charge attack where the bull will bulldoze (heh) through clumps of enemy units, scattering them away and dealing significant damage. The bull also has a passive ability where nearby herdable animals will fatten and reproduce faster.
God Power: Agony. When cast over an area it will cause the male enemy units in range to keel over in horrible pain, severely reducing their ability to move, attack or do any other activity. This makes them sitting ducks for the users forces to attack without much issue, but a little quirk is that it does not effect the few female units in the game, like the Japanese Onna-bugeisha and various myth and hero units, which means that female villagers can keep working with no fuss.
Hero: Medb. Queen Medb rides in a chariot to battle, she has the ability to boost the movement speed of nearby units, and can be really good when attached to a contingent of cavalry.
Technologies:
Divine Chariot Horses: Speed and health of War Chariots increased by 20%.
Eamhain Mhacha: Ringforts gain 50% more health and fire twice as fast.
Trimarcisia: Gallic Cavalry 25% cheaper and train 30% faster.
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Donn
You have advanced to the Heroic age through the Despair of Donn!
Often seen as a god that presided over the dead, Donn translates to something like 'the Dark one' and was said to live in on a mysterious island off the west coast of Ireland where the souls of the dead congregated. This place was often identified with the Otherworld, and possibly TÃr na nÓg (the land of the young), a magical realm associated as a home for gods, fairies and other supernatural creatures. Despite this Donn was actually considered an ancestor of still existing inhabitants of Ireland, arriving after the Tuatha Dé Danann. Donn appears in the Togail Bruidne Dá Derga where he is identified as an ominous king of the dead dressed in red on a red horse. (L, D)
God Power: Otherworld Passage. Creates a passage between two points on the map that can be crossed instantly (same as Apollo's underworld passage).
Myth Units:
Kelpie: A water horse with seaweed for its mane and an elongated body, a fairly basic offensive water unit, it has an instant drowning kill it can apply to human and myth land units it fights on the shore or shallows, but not boats. Faster than any other naval units.
Aos SÃ: Creatures similar to later legends of fairies and elves, Aos SÃ are fast archers, they don't have a whole lot of health, but they have the useful ability to move through thickets of trees as if they were just regular terrain. Because they are ranged they can attack from within the woods, and this along with their speed makes them extremely useful for raiding, especially on maps that have a significant amount of wood, allowing them to hit the enemy from unexpected angles. They don't have a huge amount of range though, so while melee units can't really do anything about them while they are within woods other archers can handle them effectively.
Hero: OisÃn. Son Of Fionn, leader of the Fianna, OisÃn rides Enbarr, the magical white horse which gives him great speed and the ability to move over water as well as land. Great for raiding.
Technologies:
SÃdhe: Aos SÃ gain additional attack and speed while they are within forests, they also gain a flat 10% boost to health and armor.
Hy-Brasil: Line of sight for all ships increased 40%.
Red Riders: Siege weapons gains 30% extra damage.
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Aengus
You have advanced to the Mythic age through the everlasting Youth of Aengus!
A son of the Dagda and a river goddess called Boann, Aengus was venerated as a god of youth, love and summer. He was probably derived from an older Celtic god called Mapanos, or Mabon to the Welsh. In Irish mythology he gets involved in a lot of curious adventures, including tricking either a god named Elcmar or his own father the Dagda out of ownership of his home in Newgrange, unsuccessfully pursuing the beautiful ÉtaÃn and later tracking down the literal girl of his dreams while they both take the form of swans. (D, L)
Myth Unit: Y Ddraig Goch. The Red Dragon is an old emblem of Wales, defending the country from the invading white (likely Anglo-Saxon) dragon in the Mabinogion. In-game its a powerful myth unit, but is quite slow. It has a very short ranged attack with its fire, and a special ability where it will briefly fly into the air and do a strafe attack on units on the ground, incinerating the area for lots of damage with the fire sticking around for a short time after the attack to continue to damage units.
God Power: TÃr na nÓg. Similar to Hephaestus's plenty vault it erects a palace from the place of Irish legend filled with lush orchards, rivers full of salmon and trees of gold fruit that continuously pump out resources to whom controls it.
Hero: Fionn mac Cumhaill, the leader of the legendary warrior band known as the Fianna. Has the ability to summon a group of 5 Fianna into the field, this can be a invaluable to beef up your front-line at critical moments, but the Fianna vanish after a period of time, unless they are simply killed.
Technologies:
Golden Harp: Improves the buff that Chieftains provide for other units.
Gáe Dearg: Gaesatae do double damage to buildings.
CuradmÃr: Heroes respawn 35% faster after being killed.
Flight of the Swan: Allows the player to create 1 additional druid.
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Manannán
You have advanced to the Mythic age through the Generosity of Manannán!
Manannán mac Lir is this figure's full name, identifying him as a son of the sea, and by extension a sea god. He possesses a number of useful magical possessions including a self-sailing boat and a horse that moves over water and land. He was considered a king of the mysterious otherworld and often lended his items to figures like Lugh. The Isle of Man might be named after him, and he is interpreted in Welsh mythology as Manawydan fab Llŷr, although this character doesn't really have anything to do with the sea beyond his name. (M, D)
Myth units:
Nuckelavee: This creature seems to have some more of a connection to the Norse than the Celts considering the history of the Orkneys, but its still a Scottish beast and too crazy for me to pass up, I also believe it takes on Celtic traditions related to sea horses. Visually it's the skinned top half of a man with very long arms fused to a skinned horse with one large eye. Its slower than most cavalry, including the Dullahan, but very powerful in combat. It can retreat into water, after a short animation, to where it will heal itself, but stays beneath the surface of the water, unable to engage enemies and has slow movement while there. Upon death it releases a cloud of pestilence that will damage enemies, similar to the Scarab.
Oilliphéist: This beast may have been an early influence to what became the Loch Ness Monster, which is first mentioned in a story relating to Saint Columba (though the Oilliphéist is associated with Lough Derg in Ireland). As such it visually has a resemblance to a Plesiosaur, like modern images of Nessie, but with some old Celtic flair. It is the other Celtic Naval myth unit, and has a special ability where it can displace a large amount of water to create a large wave area of attack move that will damage a large number of units.
God Power: Enbarr's Gift. All your units gain a considerable (60%) increase in speed and all land units can move over terrain of any type, including forest and water, while active. If a unit is in the middle of the ocean or forest when this runs out they will automatically be moved to the closest suitable terrain.
Hero: Brân the Blessed. A formidable giant-king of Britain from Welsh Mythology, died on Campaign in Ireland after his sister was maltreated by her husband. Being a giant he has powerful combat stats, and he also has a magic cauldron that lets him periodically resurrect allies that have fallen in the last minute.
Technologies:
Fragarach: The truthful sword of Manannán boosts the attack and speed of Gallowglass and Chieftains by 25%.
Sguaba Tuinne: All ships move 20% faster.
Bloodline of Enbarr: Boosts HP of all cavalry units by 15% and speed by 10%.
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Dullahan
Crom Cruach
You have advanced to the Mythic age under the Demands of Crom Cruach!
Crom Cruach is best known as a pagan deity encountered by Saint Patrick and is described as a very unnerving figure, a wizened, often monstrous god hidden behind dense fog who is placated with human sacrifice until Patrick strikes down his idols and ends his cult. He was later recast as 'Crom Dubh' (dark crooked one). Its hard to reconstruct the reality of his worship, though the fact that he was so specifically singled out by Christian writers and vilified probably implies he was a major threat to the new belief system. (M, L)
Myth Unit: Dullahan. A headless horseman that uses its spine as a whip. Fast and powerful cavalry unit with a great line of sight, the spine whip means that each attack has a large area of effect, similar to units like elephants in other AOE games, extending all the way around the Dullahan and with a bit of range.
God Power: Lakeburst: Causes a large explosion of water around a concentric area, destructive both to units and buildings in the afflicted area, but also leaves behind a small body of water at the center of the event as a permanent part of the map, which messes with your opponent's ability to rebuild their base and can be especially good at wrecking farmland (settlements can't be erased by this though).
Hero: Cú Chulainn. Has the ability to transform into his RÃastrad form while fighting, kind of like an ancient Hulk. This hugely boosts his damage and health, individual swipes bat away groups of units, but has a long cooldown.
Technologies:
Samhain: Myth units gain health back every time they kill another unit.
Soul Reaper: Dullahan gain 20% extra speed and attack.
Sacrificial Idol: Your own units that die have a chance to refund 33% of their cost.
Brain Balls: Crann Tabhaill do 40% extra damage to units and have better armor.
https://preview.redd.it/if3ttw5wlxx51.jpg?width=1002&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6fb3bf803e55ddb69f4b12b6195a15aaab7bf122
The Celts titan is Balor, the great king of the Fomorians and grandfather to Lugh (who killed him) who had a single large eye that he used to inflict great death and destruction, here portrayed as giant laser death eye.
Thanks again for reading, in my Aztec concept post I said that their mythology was confusing, but Celts are almost worse since there are so many different figures that have difficult to untangle relationships to each other and since the Celts can represent such different things at different times and places. The influence of Christianity only makes it worse. Still, I hope that this was robust enough, and I'd very much like to hear peoples opinions or if they want explanations for some my decisions and about the mythology. Again, let me know if I should try to source credit for the artwork used.
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