read that most of the problems from the last (unplayable)patch were fixed and decided to try some pvp. it is still bad with lots of issues remaining such as the ui and social features, no ranks or match history, unable to compare decks, performance issues, crashes, losing when winning and buggy unit behavior/pathfinding.
but these problems have been here for years now, and it does not seem that they will be fixed anytime soon sadly. they should be priority. aoe3 de still feels like a single player focused game, mp can’t be taken seriously.
at least the monster truck rallies seem to be a thing of the past.
otherwise here are some balance issues that I think should be addressed soon:
Hausa (and Ethiopia)
javelin riders are still too strong and need to be more specialized. change cost to 80 food 40 gold, hp to 180, resistance to 20% melee, and damage to 8 with increased bonus. this makes them less of a tanky generalist. they are too oppressive and hard to punish with their current price point and durability.
increase Fulani cost by 5 wood and 10 food, but also their damage by 1/heavy infantry bonus to 1.5x. less affordable early, but more effective later. enable the Fulani rifle tech at the university in age 4, and have the tech also switch their wood cost to gold. the tech has been in the game files for a while, it should be enabled.
nerf griot slow to 25% and reduce their hp. allied unit shipments should be cheaper but give less units.
war camp cost increased to 300 from 200, and combined upgrade cost increased by ~20%.
Natives in general
war chief dance split between damage and hp. attack dance changed to 10% hp/damage split at 25 vills. water dance and town dance removed outright and civs balanced without it. warriors should train in a batch and cost pop like minutemen, this dance spawn thing makes the game worse. enable mortars age 4 and mercs age 3.
Inca
huaraca too close to abus and not enough like arrow knights. halve pop, reduce damage to 5, increase their range and bonus vs artillery, buildings and ships, and make their shots instant fire.
strongholds are cool but feel too aggressive. halve hp and damage, reduce cost and build time by 25%, and add 2 to build limit. give them a new non stacking mechanic that increases nearby building hp and damage when linked to an allied town center directly or through other strongholds. makes them more defensive in nature.
reduce mace men pop to 2. they are as common in my games as Hatamoto, grenadiers or ronin. never seen.
Lakota
175 cost bow rider, 4 vill age 1, 4 axe rider age 2, age 2 evening star, 400 cost tc, 200 pop no house, bow rider full damage vs vills, stacking tepee aura, cav war chief aoe troll pole 11x and aura, siege dance, bow riders.
abomination of a civ. people complained about Protoss in sc2, but even at its most infuriating was better designed than this. losing to this civ is among the worst feelings in this game. should have been the first to be reworked and playing against it reminded me why I never switched to tad from vanilla. Lakota people deserve better.
Aztec
eagle runners still an abomination like bow riders. big buttons need to be reworked, pikes need cost and siege damage reduced along with removal of siege trooper tag. coyote runners too effective vs counters, not effective enough vs targets, shock infantry tag still a mistake.
Haud
playing as and against Haud still convinced tomahawk bb is problematic with good treasures. high siege early on without train time or building is bad for game, replace with aenna instead. toma and horsemen wood cost is a tragedy and reason civ will never be popular unless broken.
musket riders need a cape for readability. remove siege pop card. mantlets and rams should be available age 2 with reduced stats, increased move speed, and wood cost changed. move conservative tactics to age 4.
Spain Rework
was excited about Reconquista card, somehow thought it was 1 vet lancer shipped for any 5 infantry trained. instead, its 1 for every 5 archaic infantry dead and in exchange you get a worse version of age 2 dragoon. why this card exists? if you want conquistadors for Spain give them an age 1 embassy alliance card for Jesuits that also enables cannoneers. simpler, easier, and more direct way of giving them access to the units.
unction should never have stacked or affected artillery. missionaries still run when damaged and default melee attack with attack move making it frustrating to use. melee units should be compensated as well. card still problematic and should just be removed or reworked, same for Spanish gold. 2 battleships are an awesome idea, but water still sucks and is not fun to play.
other cards are cool. haciendas feel good. liberation march a great change. lots of fun Mexico vibes.
rod gold cost should be reduced, and xbow/pike should be pure food for all civs Imo. enables better age 2 play.