Age of Empires II: HD Edition remains a masterpiece of strategic warfare, but even the most seasoned commanders occasionally need a shortcut to victory. Whether you are stuck on a difficult campaign mission or just want to summon a fleet of laser-firing troopers to decimate your enemies, the built-in cheat system is your gateway to total domination.
In this guide, we have curated the most powerful codes for the HD Edition. We cover everything from the classic resource boosts to the legendary “Easter Egg” units that have defined the series for decades.
How to Activate Cheats in AoE II HD
To use these codes, simply press Enter while in a game to open the chat box. Type the code exactly as listed and press Enter again.
Important: While capitalization doesn’t matter for most codes, the food cheat “cheese steak jimmy’s” must include the apostrophe to work. Additionally, cheats will disable Steam achievements for the remainder of the match.
Universal Resource Cheats
Instantly fill your coffers with 10,000 of any resource to skip the gathering phase and jump straight into the Imperial Age.
| Cheat Code | Effect |
| cheese steak jimmy’s | Grants 10,000 Food |
| robin hood | Grants 10,000 Gold |
| rock on | Grants 10,000 Stone |
| lumberjack | Grants 10,000 Wood |
| ninjalui | Grants 10,000 of every resource simultaneously |
Combat & Unit Spawning Cheats
From high-speed cars to invincible infantry, these units can turn a losing battle into a total rout in seconds.
| Cheat Code | Effect |
| how do you turn this on | Spawns a Cobra Car (High-speed, long-range unit) |
| to smithereens | Spawns a Saboteur (Massive demolition damage) |
| i love the monkey head | Spawns a VDML (Fast unit, great for scouting/building) |
| furious the monkey boy | Spawns a small monkey that destroys buildings in one hit |
| wimpywimpywimpy | Instantly destroys your own units and buildings (Defeat) |
| black death | Instantly destroys all enemies (Instant Victory) |
| i r winner | Grants immediate victory in the current match |
Map & Utility Modifiers
Gain total situational awareness or speed up the game’s pace with these environmental commands.
| Cheat Code | Effect |
| marco | Reveals the entire map (Removes Fog of War) |
| polo | Removes the shadow from explored areas |
| aegis | Instant building, training, and researching (Affects AI too!) |
| natural wonders | Gives you control over nature (but lose control of your civilization) |
GGC