ESOC/About

What is ESOC?

eso-community.net (ESOC) is an Age of Empires 3 website run by the community for the community. ESOC initially began as a hosting website founded in 2015 for the drought-ending tournament Age of Empires 3 Spring Championship (ASC Spring). The event, a resounding success (its Grand Finals reaching an unprecedented 1000 concurrent viewers!), inspired ESOC to continue to host seasonal, free-to-enter, crowdfunded tournaments.

As the website grew, so too did the brand: tournament notation changed from ASC to ESOC, YouTube and Twitch accounts were launched, and ESOC became the focal point for Age of Empires 3 community. The website now boasts over 8,000 forum members, a balance patch crafted by the game’s top minds, and roughly 40 completed tournaments totaling over $12,000 USD in cumulative prize pool handouts. Through the generosity of community donors and the dedication of an all-volunteer staff, ESOC has created a sustainable model to provide you, the community, with the best Age of Empires 3 content on the internet.

Home to newcomers and seasoned veterans, top players and conscripts alike, the website offers a variety of content we think you’ll enjoy:

• Strategy Wall
• Tournament history
• Active tech support
• Community-maintained ESOC Patch (EP), consisting of:
  • Anti-cheat protection
  • Improved civilization balance
  • More than 50 new and polished maps
  • Tons of bug fixes and quality-of-life features
  • Integrated Treaty Patch, with its own set of changes tailored to that game mode
  • XPMOD
• ESOC ELO Ladder
• General AoE3 discussion
• Recorded games
• Twitch streams with well-known casters