So I have always enjoyed Russia and have played age of empires 3 online off and on for well over a decade. Russia now adays feels like a wet noodle compared to the olden days. With the safer Hunts, Shadowteching and general Power creep of other civs Russia has definitely fallen off the ####### A lot of Russia’s power comes from their age 2 play which I have no problem with that design even though it is not favored at all with the current maps, Meta and general game direction.
The problem I have is age 2 Russia has no answer to the Hussar. Their Cossacks which should trade cost effectively do not come out on top (even with 2 upgrade cards age 2) and their only anti calvary unit is a watered down musketeer. This leaves a civ whose identity is supposed to be their strong age 2 rush with… well no strong rush.
T.L.D.R. I would like to propose giving russia access to Pikeman in age 2. This would help shore up the weakness to calvary early game, give them a strong siege option and synergize well with Strelets due to the Food/wood cost. We already have several civs with some very strong age 2 Xbow/Pike play so I do not feel this would be outside the norm at all. Id love to hear everyone’s opinions on the matter.
Umm no? If the enemy managed to get so many hussars that your cossaks and muskets can’t trade, your rush failed.
Giving them pikemen would make them supremely OP. Not only does the pikemen counter cav, they also trash buildings.
I think if they give the pike to russia we will see many pike strelets rush making the musketeer of little use because he is not strong. At this point Russia becomes very strong.
I think the best buffs for Russia are what Khorix is saying.
Pikemen are almost never used, i fail to see how this would be an improvement.
eh, yeah they do.
untill you are age 3, then you have halberds and horse archers.
russian musketeers are effective vs cavalry, and musketeers have the same melee damage as pikemen vs cavalry, presumably this would also apply to russian pikemen which if math serves me right would have:
6(.4) dmg
96 hp.
Russia is one of the best designed factions in the game, i see no reason to add units to their roster, esp pikemen.
It honestly depends, Malta often uses them spain also uses them even if now more rarely other civilizations use pikemen their kind like the Aztec ones Russia suffers a lot from cavalry especially the good ones and I would say giving them pikemen would break the balance because they are too good for them , low cost surely they would have lower stats but it solves the cavalry problem because they will be stronger than the musketeers and they will have a better siege, with their timing this is quite good, then they will have an army mainly dependent on wood and food and this greatly favors the Russia
With the new card they are even better and I would say now it is useful to make them, before it was less practicable because the halberds have more penalties than bonuses and the horse archers have a bad animation to be used very well even if they were often used to help the Cossacks and Musketeers or to deny opposing raids. Russia in my opinion only needs range for strelets as Khorix said give 2 ranges in each age and if too strong keep the range at 18 in 4 and 5 ages (in my opinion 16 ranges in 3 ages up to 5 should be ok) and a case of a slightly better looking musket against cavalry or a slightly better starting economy to allow you to make more musketeers so you can not get beaten by cavalry so fast, I wouldn’t change anything other than that