Guerrero Águila Élite

The Eagle line replaces the cavalry for their civilizations. All Elite Eagle Warriors have a special toggle-able Auto Scout ability. Elite Eagle Warriors also cannot attack timid huntables like Deer, which before an update was a restriction only on the starting Eagle Scout. Elite Eagle Warriors move quickly and have a long Line of Sight, conversion resistance, and attack bonuses against Monks, siege weapons, and mounted units. However, almost every other infantry unit deals bonus damage against Elite Eagle Warriors. Essentially, they help compensate for the Aztecs' and Maya's lack of cavalry. If the Elite Eagle Warrior is compared to the Champion, they end up with the same attack against cavalry due to the former's attack bonus. As such, they are better against cavalry than they might first appear looking at their base stats, but are not a counter to heavy cavalry. On the other hand, using them against light cavalry is viable. Compared to the Eagle Warrior, the Elite upgrade gives +2 attack, +2 extra damage against Monks and siege, +5 hit points, -15 seconds of creation time, +1 pierce armor, and +0.15 movement speed. The upgrade is moderately expensive, but the extra attack is very important given how low the Eagle Warrior's is, and both civilizations will use the units to the point where they will all want to research it. Both Mesoamerican civilizations have a distinctive buff for Eagle Warriors that comes from one of their unique technologies. Because of this, both civilizations can use Elite Eagle Warriors differently. The Aztec Garland Wars technology provides +4 attack, making them better raiders, striking down an enemy Villager with just three hits. Due to their weakness against other infantry, they are sometimes paired with the Aztecs' infantry destroyer, the Jaguar Warrior, or Arbalesters if Crossbowmen were used in the Castle Age. The Aztec Eagle Warriors (and other infantry) are specialized against other melee units. The Mayan unique technology Holcans provides +40 hit points to the Eagle Scout line exclusively, making them more durable and therefore valuable in pitched battles. Pairing them with Plumed Archers works well since the Plumed Archer is a counter for infantry units that can put the Eagle Warrior in danger. Also, the Plumed Archer sits in a similar speed tier, meaning the two units work very well together. The Mayans have the most well-rounded Elite Eagle Warriors and are generally considered to be the best.