I think it is time to call it (after 4 month of experience), that lithuanians are weak, therefore need buffs. They’re being listed as a cavalry and monk civilization (and I think we can say that they’re intended to be a “trash” civilization aswell), however they don’t really have anything very good going on for them (other civilizations’ cavalry and monk bonuses are better), neither really excel in late game trash fights and they have a mediocore economy with one dark age economy bonus.
The reasons for the above statements:
-Only one bonus affecting monks: +20% monastery work rate. Not really a bonus which makes them a monk civilization (for example spanish, burmese or aztec bonuses are much more heavier and effective), to have decent monks or monastery, they need further bonuses for monks
-One cavalry bonus (the quantity is not a problem, but rather the bonus itself): +1 attack for each relic collected. The reason why this bonus is bad: While other cavalry civilizations get access to their bonuses instantly, for lithuanian players to achieve this bonus, should make heavy gold investments into monks (also should build a monastery), and then manage to get the relics, which is another huge issue if the other player is aware and denying you from getting them. Of course if you manange to get 4 relics, that’s a huge deal, but remember, you made heavy investments, and it is also true that other civilizations got bonuses for free (let’s say those are comparable for lithuanians getting 1,5 relic).
-Avarage in trash fights. While they have +10% speed on their spearmen and skirmishers, their halberdiers are far for fully upgraded (missing 1 melee and pierce armor), and their skirmishers might be good, but 1 pierce armor for 800 food and 200 gold is very expensive. There are many much more better trash civilizations (for example malay, persians, magyars, byzantines, aztecs, etc).
How can these problems be fixed:
-Give them more monk bonuses
-Give them further bonuses helping them get the relics
-Buff their trash units and/or decrease the cost of tower shields
My suggestions:
-Fervor and sanctity free
-Have access to plate mail armor
-Tower shields cost modified to 400 food 250 gold
Why are these suggestions helping:
-Free fervor and sanctity makes their caslte age monks much better, you can compare them to any other monk civilizations’. It also greatly helps on collecting relics, their monks will be +15% faster (which is huge!), and will be much harder to kill, lithuanian monks will be more likely to win a 1v1 fight, in other words they’ll more likely convert the enemy unit before the enemy kills him.
-Plate mail armor makes their halbadiers fully upgraded (even having +1 pierce armor with tower shields), they’ll become competitive in trash fights
-Tower shield is currently too expensive, very hard to get (especially that 800 food is hard to save), this change will make the technology actually reasonable to research in non-extreme situations.
I’ll be happy to read any contructive feedback, aswell other suggestions, convince me!
As a civilization bonus, Barracks and Stable units now receive a +1 melee armor bonus in the Castle and Imperial Age.