Oceania remained the last continent absent from this game. Single DLC containing Australians civ and Oceania maps along with the all-new Minor Nations - Peoples of Oceania.
Convict Labourer: Villagers that come with a sheep when trained, and cost coin and food.
Bushranger: Stronger line infantry that costs more population and resources.
Rum Corpsman: A high damage skirmisher that costs more population than usual.
Pom-Pom: Artillery with a fully automatic rate of fire. Good against infantry.
Waler Horse: Dragoon variant with high hit points and damage, costs more population than usual.
Features
This civilization, like American postcolonial civs, would have access to:
General: The hero of your civilization. Explores, fights, builds Forts and Trading Posts. Cannot die. If he falls unconscious, he can be rescued.
Sloop: Small and nimble warship. Good at exploring, fishing or transport.
Steamer: Powerful, steam-propelled warship resistant to building fire that can train units, construct docks and gather fish.
Ironclad: Advanced armored warship. Saloon: Trains sinister outlaws and mercenaries.
Mill, Estate and Livestock Pen are replaced by a unique Australian building - Station. It is a large building in which food and gold is generated slowly thanks to the garrisoning of Cows and Sheeps in it. It is an expensive building, but requires no Settlers to generate resources. This building attracts wild animals.
Outposts train infantry units - no Barracks for Australians civ. No Outpost construction limit.
Native Estate - a unique building for civ Australians, which provides additional space for the population and allows the training of two random indigenous units from Oceania. Generates wood slowly. Provides unique mechanics (reminiscent of American ceremonies) and technologies.
They start the game with 4 Convict Laborers, 2 Sheep and 2 Cows.
Standard Politicians mixed up with representatives of the Indigenous Peoples as Age Up.
Any Age Up shipment Exploration Wagon (possibility to build Town Center, House, Station, Docks or Outpost).
Oceanian Minor Nations
5 brand new Minor Nations for Oceanian maps like:
Aboriginals
Papuans
Melanesians
Micronesians
Polynesians
Oceania Minor Nations would become a completely new type of Minor Nations. Like the European and African Minor Nations, it would offer what would make them stand out from the rest. I think that they could be distinguished by a greater number of units that could be trained (3-5) and that they would be located by the water and would offer training for Native Ships. The Peoples of Oceania Minor Nations would offer different kinds of ships - fishing, transport and war.
Oceanian Maps
Most of the Oceania maps are maps of tiny islands. For this reason, at the beginning of the entertainment, playing on any map of Oceania, we start with native boats necessary to settle more islands in order to develop our settlement.
I made a proposal for an Australian revolution option for the British, Dutch, and French to replace the US revolution in those civs:
I think doing this makes more sense than having a full civ; from a timeline perspective it fits in perfectly with South Africa and Canada, who are already revolution civs.
I’m still a fan of an Australian civ myself though just because I am Australian so here’s my feedback on your proposal:
Melbourne as capital makes sense, good idea! Lachlan Macquarie is a good choice too, though a little late in the time period perhaps. I would be tempted to go John Macarthur, though obviously he’s a bit controversial and perhaps not as memorable.
I agree Australia NEEDS convicts as a core feature of the economy. In my proposal I have them as free and numerous settlers that can be shipped from the homecity to boom, but who join the enemy when killed. Having them as settlers that start with a sheep is interesting, but doesn’t feel right for the idea of forced labour to me. Instead, perhaps Australian settlers are more expensive and train slower, but come with a free sheep each? That might be more thematic. Maybe then Australia uniquely gets two options for settlers from the TC with convicts being the other option. They would be are cheap and arrive in blocks like Russian settlers but have low HP?
Bushrangers as a core infantry doesn’t make any sense imo, it would be like giving the US the gunsligner as their core musketeer. Bushrangers are much better suited as outlaw units.
Both the Pom-Pom and the Rum Corpsman are to me a little too 19th century and might feel off fighting against the earlier themed units of other civs, though there are the US regulars and gatling guns as well.
I like the Waler Horse, I think Australia should get quick high attack cavalry units but perhaps with low hitpoints. Sort of a light cavalry specialist civ.
Not a fan of an Australian General, an explorer makes more sense. There aren’t really any famous Australian generals or battles of the period, but there are famous explorers.
US style ships are “ok” but european ships would probably be better. There were no Ironclads and few paddlesteamers in Australia.
Saloon has to be renamed to pub (public house) 100%. Might even be preferrable to use the european tavern
Love the Station idea!
Not sure what the idea behind the Native Estate is, seems a bit out of the blue. It sounds interesting but I don’t really understand why it’s included.
Huge map list, I think it would be better to simplify the Australian maps down to a few that represent interesting regions rather than entire states. E.g. Tropical Queensland, Murry River Basin, Nullabor, Van Dieman’s Land, etc. Many of the pacific islands would be very similar too so it would be best to find a few interesting options or archetypes. One I suggested was the archipelago style map they ended up adding in the KoTM DLC.
Something else not mentioned would be the architecture set. Though obvs the DE team has proven reluctant to add custom architecture sets I would love to see an Australian set that starts with rough log cabins and tents that progresses to whitewashed stone house architecture in the middle ages and finally to federation style in the late ages.
Australia should be added as Revolution for the and British.
In addition there could be Mercenaries too and of course some outlaws!
Maori could work well as playable civilisation. They fought wars against the British and used modern equipment.
Other Polynesians weren’t that important because of the size of their islands. Hawaii could potentially be playable but there are a lot better picks around the World. South America only has 1 playable civilisation for example.
Polynesians are extremely culturally diverse.
That would be like putting Indians, Persians and Europeans into one civilisation because they all speak Indo-European languages.
Because of the isolation on the Islands and the time difference of settlement they developed very different cultures.
Exactly. Instead of having Maori as a civ, you could age up via a Maori alliance or something. Polynesian being an umbrella civ would work very well. And then we can have moai and Hawaiian stuff without needing separate civs. It could be like how it was in Civ V.
also Polynesia is more diverse than india EVER was.
It is separated by thousands of Islands with different culture.
It is madness to think they are all the same.
Heck Europe have more similarity than all these Polynesia culture.
Convict Labourer: Villagers that come with a sheep when trained, and cost coin and food.
Bushranger: Stronger line infantry that costs more population and resources.
Rum Corpsman: A high damage skirmisher that costs more population than usual.
Pom-Pom: Artillery with a fully automatic rate of fire. Good against infantry.
Waler Horse: Dragoon variant with high hit points and damage, costs more population than usual.
General: The hero of your civilization. Explores, fights, builds Forts and Trading Posts. Cannot die. If he falls unconscious, he can be rescued.
Sloop: Small and nimble warship. Good at exploring, fishing or transport.
Steamer: Powerful, steam-propelled warship resistant to building fire that can train units, construct docks and gather fish.
Ironclad: Advanced armored warship.
Saloon: Trains sinister outlaws and mercenaries.
