An alternative to buffing the pike line could also be to introduce a new midgame power infantry unit.
As I proposed earlier and is discussed here.
So whilst pikes are the trash counters, this power infantry line could be somewhat soft-counter Knights but have other specifications like being able to raid and also some micro ability.
The Knights would still have the advantage of just being faster and therefore able to chose either the condiions of the fight or just trading raids / pressure on the economy. So Knights would still have the strategical advantage on more open maps, but at least there would be a unit that can fight them without being basically useless in every other aspect of the game.
I think a power infantry unit is way better suited for that role than eg. camels. As Camels not only counter Knights, they even take away that one strategical advantage why you make Cav in the first place: Having the mobility advantage.
Also that power infantry can be given to baiscally every civ whilst camels only fit to civs that actually used camels… Leaving a discrepancy in the matchups of the Knight civs. I don’t like having too one-sided matchup advantages in a game. And as camels are clearly only designed to dominate Knights, being almost useless against archer civs, there is a really bad lopside in the design.
An power infantry unit can still be useful against Archers as long as it is capable to tank a lot of arrows. Probably not optimal, but you can use it as meatshield for your own unupgraded archery type units and raiding tool. Even as Cav civ it’s probably quite usefull if the opponent techs into Pikes. An alternative to the currently commonly chosen Skirms against that xbow/pike comp.
What? 11
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