Mesoamerican Overhaul
The MESOAMERICAN civilizations INCA, AZTECS, and MAYANS are known for their strong economies and powerful early to mid-game units. Despite these strengths, all three civs lack cavalry and gunpowder units which causes their military to fall off in the late game. This forces them to rely heavily on archers and siege making them vulnerable to cavalry and artillery units. This overhaul introduces new regional units and structures to improve their late-game options while preserving their historical identity.
Regional Unit Suggestions.
- SLINGERS have a design reminiscent of hand cannons but deal significantly less damage (4 base damage versus 17), have no armor compared to the hand cannon’s 1 melee armor, and possess a slightly shorter range (5 base range, extended to 7 with upgrades, versus 7 for hand cannons). However, Slingers cost less to produce (30 food and 40 gold) compared to hand cannons (45 food and 50 gold), making them a more economical choice.
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Make SLINGERS as a REGIONAL UNIT available exclusively to the AZTECS, MAYANS and INCA.
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They should be trainable starting in the Feudal Age as a weaker, less powerful unit, with the upgrade to ELITE SLINGERS available in the CASTLE AGE, bringing them up to full strength and maintaining parity with their current stat progression.
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Who would get the ELITE SLINGER upgrade? This depends entirely on how the AZTECS, MAYANS and INCAS use SLINGERS in terms of scale and, more importantly, game balance, similar to how the TURKS lack ELITE SKIRMISHERS and PIKEMEN to maintain their unique identity and balance.
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What do about ANDEAN SLING? If it’s retained, that’s perfectly fine; if not, replacing it with IMPERIAL SLINGERS would still preserve the core identity of the INCA.
- ATLATL THROWER has a slightly longer range and higher damage than the standard SKIRMISHER, but is also somewhat more expensive to produce. Its ELITE ATLATL THROWER upgrade follows a similar pattern, balancing increased effectiveness with a higher cost compared to the ELITE SKIRMISHER.
- ATLATL THROWERS would replace the SKIRMISHER line and upgrade into the corresponding ELITE ATLATL THROWER.
- STONE THROWER is a primitive siege weapon inspired by the AGE OF EMPIRES 1 unit of the same name. It launches stones that deal splash damage and can destroy trees in its path, but it’s a less powerful and less accurate version of the BOMBARD CANNON and would inherit the same weaknesses of the MANGONEL.
- It fills a similar role to the BOMBARD CANNON without being overly strong, much like the SIEGE BALLISTA in the Chronicles: Alexander the Great.
- THROWER GALLEON is a smaller, faster, and more agile variant of the CANNON GALLEON, designed to reflect the naval tactics of Mesoamerica. Which historically relied on large numbers of small canoes and watercraft for control of lakes, rivers, and coastal areas. This unit emphasizes speed and maneuverability over heavy firepower, capturing their style of swift, numerous vessels rather than large, heavily armed warships.
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Both the AZTECS and MAYANS would have access to the THROWER GALLEON, reflecting their rich history of naval warfare on lakes, rivers, and coastal waters. Their reliance on swift, numerous watercraft for transportation and combat is embodied in this smaller, faster siege ship, emphasizing mobility and numbers rather than brute strength.
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The INCA, lacking a significant naval tradition, would not have access to the THROWER GALLEON.
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What about ELITE THROWER GALLEON? for historical reasons, I would elect against giving mesoamerican an elite variant
- ATLATL TOWER is a unique replacement for the BOMBARD TOWER, available in the CASTLE AGE. Functionally, it acts like a KEEP that fires ATLATL projectiles, featuring longer range but with reduced damage as a trade-off.
Additional Units.
- Something Akin to the Scout Cavalry that is a pure trash unit, but is weaker than a eagle scout justifying the eagle scout still being retained by the Mesoamerican civilizations but a fast moving unit that can raid in the early game.
Additional Upgrades.
- LEVIES Technology is a BARRACKS technology that replaces the gold cost of EAGLE WARRIORS with food, making eagle spam more viable in the late game as gold resources run out. This upgrade allows Mesoamerican civilizations to sustain their mobility and raiding potential deep into extended matches, maintaining offensive pressure while shifting their economy toward food-heavy production.
- This Technology may effect SLINGERS removing their cost gold and replacing it with wood.