Meta shake up! 250 pop for ranked play

Age of Empires II: DE II - Discussion
1

Hey guys, I think the meta could use some shaking up by increasing the population cap to 250. The 200 pop limit is starting to feel a bit stale, and here’s why a change could work:

  1. Better Hardware: Most players now have better computers and internet than when the game was released, so handling larger populations should be no problem.

  2. Game Mastery: Players have become much more skilled over the years, and many matches reach the 200 pop limit, leaving armies feeling limited in size and strategy.

  3. Larger Battles: A 250 pop cap would allow for more dynamic battles, with the potential to manage at least two groups of 60 units, making the late game more complex and engaging without drastically changing the early game.

  4. Compromise: This is a middle ground between the current 200 and the larger 300 pop limit that some players prefer, keeping it more accessible for the majority of the player base. Having a number with a ‘2’ at the beginning might make the change more acceptable for those attached to the 200 pop limit, as it feels less drastic than jumping to 300

  5. Minor Adjustments: Civs like Goths could get 12 or 13 extra pop space instead of 10 to balance the 25% increase.

  6. Modern Features: With auto-farming, auto-scouting, and other automated gameplay elements, controlling a 250 pop army would be seamless for most players. Additionally, lag should be minimal given the improved hardware players have nowadays.

  7. Early Game Unchanged: A 250 pop cap would primarily affect the late game, leaving the early game meta largely intact. This means it wouldn’t have a profound impact on pro-level play, which often ends earlier, but it would add an exciting element to mid and low Elo games—and even high-level matches that reach the late game.

What do you guys think? Will this be accepted by the pros and the diehard fans? Do you think this would be an exciting change? I believe it would be an awesome addition that will lead to some exciting battles.

(Disclaimer: I am currently an 1100 Elo player on 1v1 ranked and 1300 in team game)

2

In general I wouldn’t be against an increase in the pop cap.
But I feel that atm the game already tends to prefer more eco in the midgame. I feel like this could be a appealing change if for some reason the tendency would go more towards 2 Tcs than the current 1 tc vs 3,4,5,6 tcs.

I feel atm it would be more interesting to make 2 tcs more appealing - it’s a bit in an awkward spot as you usually see either 1 tcs all-ins or 3+ tcs. And this feels like a miss in the general basic strategical choice.

Increasing the pop cap would make especially 5+ TC plays more appealing - but atm I don’t feel they are underrepresented in the current meta.