In Age of Empires 3, one can revolt from their home city (for a non asian civilization) in the industrial age.
This converts all villagers into fighters. While factories and banks keep producing money, the economy is usually at a standstill. You get infinite shipments (you can even take infinite shipments of forts) and a small army the second you reach the revolt stage. You still can produce army, but with the limited economy this is not too effective.
I've never been able to make this useful; while it may temporarily stop you from losing it rarely ever gains you the upper hand.
When should one advance to this age?
Best Answer
Using Revolution is in essence you going "all in" (in terms of poker).
The best times to use this is when you want that extra little boost to tip the scale in your favor. This scale tipping doesn't last very long and is rather risky, but if you take advantage of it, that's all you'll need to win the game. There are a couple things that could spell doom for you however:
I usually only use revolution when I don't have the time/resources to advance to the fifth age, and I'm also pretty sure that my enemy doesn't have time either. If I'm right, it usually spells victory for me. If I'm wrong, it usually spells defeat.