I am trying for Age to be a good game. I stand by the fact it’s bad game design to be so easy to lose such a valuable unit so easily.
I don’t personally lose my scout more often than my opponents lose theirs. What does happen, whether it happens to me or to my opponent, is that the game is at a severe disadvantage for that player.
becuase you asked for it:
imagine the game implemented optional auto aim for mangonel shots attack ground, that is lets just say 90% as good as viper would do manually.
Its would be super lame right. But can you play 90% as good as viper? Most people cant. So the META is for most to just use auto aim instead of ever doing it themself.
(if it was 50% then the argument stays the same, its just the affected players are shifted more and more to lower elos only)
Same for auto scout. I use it becuase its META for me. I dont like using it, but if i stopped using it then I would give up an advantage the game gave me, like playing with an arm tied behind my back.
Optional Options can degrade the game just by existing.
you shouldn’t be using auto scout in the dark age though, it simply isn’t that good. you’re better off using your scout in the Dark Age to actually scout, and then turning on Auto Scout later. you’re actively gimping yourself by using Auto Scout in the dark Age, because it’s DESIGNED to be inferior.
its only inferior if you are capable to do better than it, while managing your eco. Otherwise its becomes meta (relative to elo/skill)
I am convived when i auto scout and 100% manage my vills its actually advatageous for my limited capabilities. Better have worse scouting but a perect fast castle.
Of course point 1 and 2 can’t apply since it’s Dark age, but point 3 should be doable, based off what you scouted before losing the scout or their civ.
It should be 1200ish right now. I’m no material for T90 vids.
Duh what am I supposed to do without a scout to control?
I don’t know for you but I at least always find one of the opponent’s ressources even when I mess uo badly.
As someone earlier said, this is not something which merely happens on its own. If it happens it has to happen on account that the opponent paid enough attention and acted on it combined with that you did not pay enough attention.
Coincidentally I made two YouTube videos earlier this summer on just this topic which are relevant to your issues.
How to not lose scout to enemy TC explained in 50 seconds or less:
How to fully anticipate enemy TC without seeing it and how to dodge TC volleys explained in 38 seconds or less:
Nice videos man! Seems like you should have more subscribers! Good luck on the grind! 
I would question how much advantage there really is with auto-scouting. For newer players struggling to build their early economy and having one less thing demanding their attention, it would be an advantage. Once your skill level increased, I really wonder if there is still real benefit beyond simply having more of the map explored.
I’m not sure what you mean by that. Auto-scouting is an option - does it degrade the game? I don’t think it does in terms off affecting an opponent. In my mind it’s something that could flatten out the learning curve for some players but if they wish to be competitive then it’s something they should drop and get used to all the things you can do with your scout manually that the AI is incapable of doing.
That is pleasing to hear, thank you!
I stopped grinding this week as I need to put more time on studies so I don’t know when I will upload again but if you only just found my channel there should be about a dozen of these short guide videos to see.
Yes, there’s a difference in your understanding of both, and in both, your understanding is flawed, but in chess it’s even moreso.
Yes, you can come back from being down a pawn, or even a piece, in chess. However, these are the exceptions, and they are extremely, extremely rare. Generally you gain something from such a loss (a temporary piece sacrifice or pawn sacrifice for action that should net you the material back, a gambit, is very common) and in those cases they generally are not considered losses. Losing a piece in the early or midgame without significant compensation is practically always resign-able among the best players, and even among 2k+, sub IM level players. Winning while down a clean bishop or knight is practically unheard of in high level play, it’s way worse than being down a scout, and to claim otherwise is just folly.
In blitz, the clock is a far more important factor and it can be used to browbeat your opponent into a loss in even the highest level of play, so as long as you can move, you can get your opponent to lose by flagfall if they are short on time with a material lead. There is generally no time limit in AOE 2, and even in modes where there is (such as the RB Empire wars tournaments) when the time runs out, the player with the material advantage always wins, it can’t be used as a factor in a losing player’s victory.
And I regret to inform you, design, and what is “good” about it, is opinion. It is not a “fact” that losing your scout early is bad game design. It is your opinion. Age is a great game. You could very easily argue it’s the best RTS made in the past 25 years, maybe ever. If you don’t like losing your scout, play with a treaty. If you don’t want to play with a treaty, don’t try to change a game we all like to solve an issue you personally have with the game that can already be solved within the game with an option you aren’t using.
Really man, no worries, Age is already a good game.
It will be interesting for me to see a game of [TheViper] and [[aM] Nicov] at Explored map. Could it be more interesting and with more battles than a game at Black, Unexplored map ???
At Black, Unexplored map, I sometimes manage to steal 2 sheeps and boar from the enemy, but may be the game can be even more interesting with battles from the first 2-3 minutes.
The aim of the Scout is to reveal the Black, unexplored map. But if the map is explored, the players may use the scout for real battles.
it’s not true on those maps either
all of those are xbow maps for novices as well
as long as players can wall, having 1 extra scout is not significant
Guys, this game has evolved a lot in the last 20 years. Almost all changes made it better, from adding helbs to reducing the costs of houses from 30 to 25 wood to giving Scouts +2 attack with reaching Feudal.
To keep Age fun and relevant, we need to constantly improve it.
When I make a suggestion for an improvement, please discuss the actual suggestion. Maybe it’s a bad suggestion, that’s fair. But you cannot invalidate a suggestion by saying the game is good; that’s not helpful!
You’re right. I’m not. I’ve addressed your suggestion three times now. When you don’t accept the rebuttal, and you rebut the rebuttal with the insinuation that the game would be better with your suggestion, it is fair game to remind you that you are trying to improve what might be the best mankind has to offer in the sphere you’re prodding. Maybe the game got this far because of “issues” like this one?
There isn’t unjust cause for scouts being weak to TC’s. Players like Lierey and Hera have made a career off sniping farm villagers that have low HP from the boar. Not to mention, if a player is trying to micro their sheep to avoid multiple decay, they can be far enough away from the TC to steal safely and idle units trying to retrieve them. These are plays with the scout that have an opportunity cost, a reward, and a risk, and nerfing the TC/buffing the scout in early stages of the game will warp that cost evaluation in dramatic fashion. Even the smallest changes and tweaks in the early ages makes a huge difference due to the exponential rate of progression the game has to offer. Every little difference has a butterfly effect.
You don’t like it when players lose their scout to a TC. Unfortunately, you’d have worse problems if that wasn’t a thing. Keep that in mind, and stop trying to fix what isn’t broken. That’s how you break working things.
Good points.
I agree with the butterfly effect description. I see it weighed too strongly to the losing side by losing a scout in Dark Age, of course. (Take 1 arrow volley from TC -> losing scout fight in early feudal -> first 3 archers defended by just 1 skirm -> behind in Feudal -> Losing game)
Counter Point “Hera-snipe”: This is almost always a Feudal Age situation. My suggestion was purely about Dark Age.
Counter point sheep steal: This is a good point, if the scout can dive more easily it changes the sheep meta.
Counter point Drush being stronger: Also a fair point, Drush can dive a bit deeper at least in some of the suggestions.
Still those counter points seems very weak to me.
To me seems very weak your main point man:
I would love some stats. Might be that I focus on it thus notice it a lot. Would bet money it’s at least 10% of open map games at 1300-1800 ELO level. Which is not beginners at all!
I lost my scout once in my past 100 games
yeah, just because you believe something doesn’t make it true. i rarely see higher rated players lose scouts, heck i rarely lose my scout myself, so i highly doubt your 10% comment.