Let’s face: it the current devs are, like most people who succeed in this corporate society, bear their success somewhat from luck. These people who have been given the ascendancy were fans, civ crafters and sometimes coders.
But ignore all that. Let’s say somehow the universe let you have something good for once in your miserable life: you get to make an expansion and the coders who don’t have the ideas are at your beck and call… what do you do?
I either make an Oceania DLC with Filipinos, Melanesians, Micronesians, and Polynesians, with one campaign for each and an extra anthology campaign about islands, or I make a Balkan DLC with Albanians, Croats, Serbs, and Vlachs, with the first three each getting a campaign, and then the Magyars and Turks getting one each.
instead of adding more samey content I would try to give back to the community:
Additionally a lot of minor bug fixes and QoL changes.
PS: also fix the Naval battle scenario in Art of War, it still doesn’t account for the naval rework. if we are stuck with it, they should at least update the scenario to teach people correctly how those units work. (the entire scenario doesn’t include a single Hulk)
Sure all that whatever but I want to just say that is off topic to the point: getting real civ crafters at the helm of the game
Just one?
Just to list a few that come to mind immediately.
Foot soldiers can swim back to the coast even the transport ship sinks…
how is this off-topic?
You asked “what would you do if you got to design one expansion”, and I answered “my expansion would not focus on civs, but on lateral gameplay improvements”, even pointing out that capture age should become a proper DLC, fully integrated in the game.
If you just want (yet another) thread about “what civs should be added” that’s the question you should be asking.
At this point - African DLC. But in general, I’m fan of Central Asian people. (Wait, am I the one posting memes to change Persian Architecture. How did you know?) So I’ll make a Central Asian DLC with 2 civs that are highly unlikely to be added - Avars & Hepthalites. If I get enough budget for a 3rd, then Sogdians.
An African DLC and a Balkan DLC (if only it was possible to replace the Viking Sagas).
Tibetans and Tanguts!
I had a mysterious dream last night. That the Saracen fix came as a new DLC, with Mamluks as a civilisation (hello Varangians) and the Crusaders as another civ. The Mamluk campaign was based on Baybars. New architecture set for the Crusaders. And Templars was some kind of Unique Unit. Then I woke up to check if it was true and was disappointed.
Campaign-focused DLCs for civs that don’t have a campaign yet (Slavs, Turks, etc.)
But also chronicles style mega-campaigns covering larger periods/events (Crusades, Hundred Years War, Reconquista, Muslim expansion, Mongol invasions, Macedonian Dynasty, Sengoku Jidai, etc.)
If I had only one shot.. I would like a byzantine dlc that adds nicea, trebizond and epirus… XDXD
No, seriusly I would like either a split of the sarracens similar to the DLC of India or a few more civs from the americas
campaign only dlc covering civs that don’t have their own campaigns yet, with actual campaigns and not ripped off standalone scenarios
Option 1:
Strangers from a faraway land…
“Who are these wizards that move great stones from afar, or share knowledge of events before they pass? And from whence are these beings of many colors whose flesh hangs down from their heads? And these men that breath water like a fish as well as we the air? What brings them to our lands? What do they seek? I must know the answers to these questions.”
Experience the myths and legends of world that never was in this exciting new expansion with four new campaigns and three new civilizations (available in ranked matchmaking for a limited time). Follow the adventures of exciting heroes like Luke of Skye, a simple farmer who questions the motives of these strangers; Ben, an old man sent to explore and document a recently discovered world; or Gial, a cunning warlord who strikes from the sea ensnaring all who stand in his way.
Coming May the 4th
Preorder now!
Option 2:
From deep in the heart of the earth a song rises:
Fist of stone, heart of fire;
Treasures fine; I desire.
Field and farm, sun and rain;
Kept away by their pain.Far from the dragons’ breath,
Ne’er shall we see its death.
Light, bread, and rain above;
Down here no part thereof.Rise, rise! my brothers rise!
Tho’ tree-folk flee, sea-folk scatter,
Why should we fear the skies?
Scale shall quake, and bones shall shatter,
Our strength is great, our courage greater,
We shall chain the great dictator!
Experience what myth and legend have to offer in this fantastic addition to Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition. With a whole new roster of units, civilizations, and bonuses, based on the same familiar mechanics, this DLC is sure to excite newcomers and longtime fans alike.
Coming soon.
I would go for a chronicles dlc based around the mayuran empires with father son grandson trio chandragupta bindusara and ashoka the great.
Since the original format is three civis the candidates would be…
Mayurans aka the kingdom of magadha.TT would be similar to bengalis with chariot archers becoming uu.
Tamils they will represent and can select chola chera pandya kingdoms.pretty much dravidians without guns.
Ptolemaic Egypt so this dosent become india only dlc.TT something inbetween Macedonia and local egypt units.
Elephant archers gets added as regional for indian civis.
Editor units to represent the below kingdoms or full civis if there is room.
Satiyaputras – Located in the region bordering North Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Tamraparni – The island kingdom of Sri Lanka.
We’re goin’ to space 
Okay. My mistake. Tibetans and Tanguts.
Maybe this is a bit off topic but it still is about campaigns. I know we probably wont see that again, but I wish the campaign scenario select screen was left without changes. There was a charm behind seeing a map, a unique icon/icons, clicking on them, being thrown into battle in that exact location. This “chronicles” design being in the main game, plus not matching the older campaign screen designs is a sore in the eyes.
I would make what this game truly needs - a regional skins expansion. 8-10 sets to more or less cover everything. And an “deregionalized” option which makes everything common, including architecture, monks etc. to look the same to appease the competitive MP crowd.