It's always nice when a new entry in a long-running franchise tries to do something different and Age of Empires 4, while not completely revolutionising its formula, has added something new.
When playing in a game of Skirmish, a new win condition has been set which asks one player to hold all three sacred sites on a map. The only problem is, how exactly do you control a sacred site? Well, we've got all the info you need to make sure you don't miss out on this alternative win condition.
How to Capture a Sacred Site
While the game doesn't explicitly tell you, there isn't any way to capture a sacred site until you're past a certain point in a match. Feel free to send out a scout to identify where the sites are for reference but you won't be able to capture them until late in the game.
The sites are not live until you have reached the Castle Age. This is the third of four ages you must progress through when playing in a skirmish match. Once you reach the Castle Age, you can then begin to take over sacred sites and work towards a victory.
To control a site, you must take a monk, or your current civilization equivalent, and have them sit on the control point. Best to make sure they have some armed units with them just in case they're surprised by the enemy.
Once all three sacred sites are under your control, just like with the Wonder victory, you will need to defend them. This starts a 10-minute timer where the enemy must regain control of just one point to stop you from winning.
On easier difficulties, the A.I. is unlikely to attack until the last few minutes but will still bring a sizeable force so make sure you have a good mix of units to defend the points. If reclaiming a point, you do not need a religious unit to sit on the site, any unit can reclaim a sacred site.
Once the timer is up, if you've held all the points it's a win!