Steppe lancers really need a buff!

Hey guys, i am here to discuss with you the steppe lancer issue, steppe lancer really need a buff, they are so weak against everything, they need more hit points, they just have 60 hp, i think they should be at least 75, and their armor too weak, they only good in killing vills, but in fight with other units they are completly useless. The cost too are so high, 70 on food is too high cost i think the food cost must be 60.

So in the next patch the steppe lancer must have:
-increasing the hp from 60 to 75 or 70 at least.
-decreasing the cost to become 60 food and 40 or 35 gold.
-making them attack faster (decrease the rate of fire).

Maybe some of you will say this is too much, but i really tested them they are very weak except in fighting vills!!!.

In 4 to 3 ratio they already trade well against generic paladin if patrolled properly even with current attack rate. So, considering that it is far easier to get to elite SL than it is to get paladin, I say no.

Well i don’t know who is the stupid that want to spend eco on steppe lancer against paladin!!! Everyone just send halbs or pikemen nothing else. Steppe lancer is really weak unit, even if you read the description about them they said it is good for killing vills and in large groups against other units, and with putting their cost in mind against few units or vills they are just a waist. So beacuse they are for vills or light or few skirms their cost should be less than 70 food and 45 gold!!! They are nearly like trash units nothing else.

2 Likes

IMO, decrease the cost to 65f 40g and increase speed to 1.5 are priority. Then can consider increase rate of fire and changing the upgrade cost.

3 Likes

Steppe lancer is a raiding unit. Also historically, light lance units were most effective in pursuing fleeing enemies.
Therefore i would recommend to improve their rading potential and decrease their ability to trade well with equal ressources, whilst trading well against fleeing and smaller enemy groups.
So:
2 Range instead of 1
rof to 3.5
movement speed to 1.7
+8 attack against villagers

So you can try to abuse their range and mobility to trade against weaker groups of enemy units, but you will lose against comparable armies of other units. It needs a lot of micro then, but can be very revarding.
They also could be partially effective against defensive structures because of their range., which also improves their rading potential.
Also quick-walling against them is impossible, then even with houses.

1 Like

I think 2 range is too much, but at least they should increase the hp and decrease the cost, and yeah it is a good idea to put bonus attack to killing vills and to increase the rof and the speed.

1 Like

you know, rof up means they are attacking slower :wink:
steppe lancers can never be a viable core unit for an army, if they are designed that way, they would just be op in masses, as they were before the nerf. They won’t be anything close to what they were back then, it’s something that all players have to accept. No way they ever can be “balanced” right to trade effectively against knight line, it’s just impossible, the way they are designed.
They just can be changed in either being a situational unit with a damage bonus like the kamayuk or improved in their rading potential. Which I would prefer, since they are actually called a raiding unit.

ROF up means they attacking slower?! Hahah i didn’t know that, then they should decrease the ROF :grin:

Rate of fire means how many second for a unit to attack once but not no of times of attack per second. I agree to raise their attack rate like other melee unit 1.9 and atk up to 10. But remain its cost to see what happen in the next patch.

Btw, it seems this is the 2nd/3rd post proposing SL buff in this 2 weeks.

So you want a nerf not a buff in your opinion?! No man they really nead a buff not a nerf, they are completely useless except in killing vills, i think they should have more hp and decrease the rate of fire and also decreasing the cost especially the food cost.

I mean change their attack rate from 2.3 (current)-> 1.9 (before nerf) and atk from 9 (current) to 10 (before nerf). However, the cost should remain (75 Food, 45 Wood) to avoid easier massing of SL. You completely misunderstand my idea.

BTW, are you a newbie to aoe2?

Its an RTS game, balance is most important and not historical accuracy. 2 range, 1.7 speed (1.5 is light cavalry) and +8 vs villagers are just insanely OP. People will micro a lot and kill a bunch of villagers through quick walls and run away. Smaller ranged unit armies can almost never be saved against Lancers with these stats.
The super speed (1.8 after all upgrades) apart from the ability to stack on top of another was what made the Cuman Steppe lancers OP when the game just released.
I think slight decrease in food cost and increasing attack speed from 2.3s per hit to 2.1s per hit should be sufficient.

3 Likes

That’s why I added the ROF of 3.5. This easily offsets the higher range in stacked battles. In total higher range + speed, but lower dps is better for raiding but worse for trading. Espescially against ranged units.
But of course when you catch an opponent of guard it could be game over. So that’s the thinking: it can be high revarding but can also turn into big defeat if your opponent is prepared.

3.5 ROF would just mean no one is ever going to fight them in big numbers vs other armies. But rather spread around 4-5 at multiple places for sniping villagers, monks or mangonels. Still they’ll be very OP with that speed and range while doing hit and runs on open maps and completely useless in late game for fighting armies. Same as their current position but amplified, meaning even more OP on the few situations where they’re useful and even more horrible in other situations.

1 Like

Increase the ROF means they attack slower

I’m surprised that no one is talking first and foremost about Elite SL upgrade itself.

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Because the steppe lancer himself is weak and no one want to spend eco on elite steppe lancer so they should be cheaper

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This you can also do with regular scouts… What is OP with scouts?
The difference is you could use steppe lancers to raid inside the enemy base and deny quickwalls, but it also costs much more and also gold.
Also with good micro you can trade efficient against smaller amounts of enemy units, but it also takes much more micro, even more than archery type units.

1 Like

Literally see viper use them even post nerf. Obviously not that weak