Rushing feels completely awful to play in some matchups, I wanted to discuss the idea of more civs getting “Equalizer” cards.
Some civs already have these, like Malta’s “Trip to Jerusalem”, or Spain’s “Reconquista” or “House of Trastamara”. These cards are useful to help trying to catch up after a rough all in or lost fight.
I’ve made some example cards for civs that could benefit from having cards of this type:
AZTEC
Nextlahualli(III, INFINITE) - Arrives fast! All current units that benefit from promotions gain one rank. Ships 1 Gold rank Jaguar prowler.
Telpochcalli(II) - Ships one Eagle Scout and 20 food for every 3 War Hut units lost. Improves Eagle Scout HP and Attack by 10%. (MAX: 15 Eagle Scouts + 300f)
(This card would be useful to continue pressure in Age2 after the aztec player lost their initial mass. The eagle scout is a balanced unit for this, as eagle scouts aren’t very strong by themselves, but a great auxiliary force to an existing army, so this card wouldn’t be too broken IMO).
HAUDENOSAUNEE
Reciprocity (II) - Gain a 5% boost to ALL gathering. 8% of all Food, Wood, and Coin gathered from natural sources is granted to you again. (MAX: 600 of each resource)
(A ‘second wind’ card in the style of Lakota’s ‘Great Hunter’. Keeping with the style of Haud’s resource cards being universal across the 3, it would help a Haud player who is playing AgeII either advance to fortress or mass up for another push)
Battle of Fallen Timbers(III) - Ships one Redcoat(Consulate) for every 4 units lost so far(MAX: 15 Redcoats)
(Age III equalizer card aimed to give a boost to a Haud player who is struggling to fight late AgeIII)
RUSSIA
Zemsky Sobor(II) - Arrives fast! Your NEXT age up is faster, and the price is reduced for each unit you have lost. (-8 resources per unit lost)
(Russia seems to struggle fighting age2 against FF, but they also struggle in a FF themselves, this will give them a bit more versatility to age2 play)
Passage through the Volga(III) - Ships one Northern Musketeer for every 4 Russian Infantry units lost so far(MAX: 15 Northern Musketeers)
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Those are a few examples ^^ Let me know what you think about these cards for rushing civs, it’s tricky that cards shouldn’t REWARD players for losing and taking bad fights, but I think early game civs deserve a few tools to help them get back into the game from tough openings.