u/devang_nivatkar21

I'd like to present a rework for the Turks based around giving them Steppe Lancers. This rework is going to be constrained by three primary principles:

1. The primary identity of the Turks as a gunpowder civilization must not be diluted. If possible, this rework should be complimentary to their gold & gunpowder intensive late-game

2. The Stable should provide a compelling alternative to their Cavalry Archers in the mid-game

3. The design must be unique & flavourful, but also functional, while being in-line with the currently established identity and parameters of the civ

Steppe Lancers - Cost 70 Food 45 Gold (+5 Gold) / Melee Armour 1 (instead of 0)

Base Steppe Lancer - HP 70 (instead of 60)

Elite Steppe Lancer - HP 90 (instead of 80)

The idea is to shift Steppe Lancers slightly away from the Light Cavalry & Hussar blueprint, and closer to the Knight-line blueprint. This way they can more meaningfully replace Knights for various civs

Now for the Turks specifically:

Technology Tree - Lose Knight & Cavalier / Gain Steppe Lancer & Elite Steppe Lancer

The lower gold cost of the Steppe Lancer (compared to the Knight) should synergize better with the Turks, as they want to save gold for their gunpowder units

Lose - Light Cavalry & Hussar Researches are free

Instead (New Bonus) - Stable Technologies don't cost Gold

While the free Light Cavalry & Hussar upgrades are kind of iconic for the Turks, I think the gold-free Stable upgrades would be more useful overall. You would save gold on Bloodlines, Light Cavalry, Hussar, Elite Steppe Lancer, and Heavy Camel Rider upgrades. The gold savings would be complimentary to the gunpowder based late game. This in turn is an incentive to play Stable units over Cavalry Archers in the mid-game

Pierce Armour Bonus applies to all Stable Units (i.e. Camel Riders & Steppe Lancers as well)

A glaring weakness of Steppe Lancers in the Castle Age is that they have only 1 base pierce armour, making them rather vulnerable to Crossbows. But the Turkish Lancers would have +1 pierce armour from the get-go, giving them the same pierce armour as generic Knights & Light Cavalry. Their own Light Cavalry also already has 3 base pierce armour

Extra pierce armour on Camel Riders is also a deceptively strong bonus, as they can shut down Knights and resist Archers in team games. It used to be a bonus for the Indians before they were reworked to be the Hindustanis. The Turks, however, don't have the same economy as the Indians/Hindustanis, so it should be okay for them. They could also use a slightly better anti-cavalry option

Base Janissary - Base HP 36 (45 after Bonus) / Attack 18 (+1) / Accuracy 60% (+10%) / LoS & SR 9 (-1 each)

Elite Janissary - Base HP 44 (55 after Bonus & +5 compared to current value) // +5 compared to Turkish Hand Cannoneers

Finally some small buffs for the Janissary. The non-Elite Janissary gets +1 HP, +1 attack, and +10% accuracy as compensation for previously having their range reduced by 1 (8 -> 7)

The Elite Janissary gets +5 HP compared to their Hand Cannoneer which kind of overshadow Janissaries nowadays due to the various buffs they've received over the years. The slight increase to their HP would also justify the rather expensive elite upgrade

Thumb Ring as a rule of thumb gives 100% Accuracy to Archer & Skirmisher-type units, and decreases the Reload Time of Archer-type units by 15% i.e. increases their damage output by 17.6%

There are three exceptions to this rule. I think it would be beneficial for the balance of the game to standardize the effect of Thumb Ring for these three units. Not to mention reducing the complexity of having to remember these three exceptions. I'm going to list them in the order of overall importance

Cavalry Archers

Currently Cavalry Archers have a Reload Time of 2, with Thumb Ring reducing it by 10% (instead of the usual 15%) to 1.8. Cavalry Archers should have a base Reload Time of 2.12, with Thumb Ring reducing it by 15% to 1.802. The difference between the final result is negligible. This will however give a small nerf to Cavalry Archers right out of the gate

For specific civs, this will make no difference to the Tatars, as they get Thumb Ring for free. It will be a small (and irreversible) nerf to Jurchen Cavalry Archers, as they will have a Reload Time of 1.696 (effectively 1.7) instead of the current 1.6

As a note, this is the case for only regular Cavalry Archers found in the Archery Range. This does not apply to unique units like Camel Archers, Mangudai, Kipchaks, or Xianbei Raiders. The unique units already benefit from Thumb Ring at the standard 15% reduction

Korean War Wagons

Same situation as Cavalry Archers. They have a Reload Time of 2.5 with Thumb Ring reducing it by 10% to 2.25. They should have a base Reload Time of 2.65 with Thumb Ring reducing it by 15% to 2.2525. The difference in the final result is again negligible. Non-Elite War Wagons were nerfed recently to have 2 base Pierce Armour instead of 3, as they're quite potent if played with a fast Castle Age strat, especially as the Koreans get the Blacksmith Archer Armour researches for free

Chinese Chu Ko Nu

Opposite situation compared to the other two. They have a base Reload Time of 3, with Thumb Ring then reducing it by 20% to 2.4. They should have a base Reload Time of 2.82, with Thumb Ring reducing it by 15% to 2.397. This is again a negligible difference of ~1% as the above two cases. It would actually buff Chu Ko Nus a bit if played with FC strats, but Chu Ko Nus have poor Pierce Armour, and the same Range as basic Skirmishers, so it shouldn't be that problematic

Muisca Temple Guards are available only in Monasteries BUT Temple Guards benefit from Fervor & Sanctity

This makes their design analogous to the Knight, with the Monastery being their equivalent of the Stable

Both Fervor & Sanctity describe themselves as applying to 'Monastery Units', which the Temple Guards would be

With Sanctity they would have 115 HP as non-Elite, and 130 HP as Elite, surpassing the Armenian Warrior Priest by 5 HP as the tankiest infantry unit in the game. 130 HP, 14+2 Attack, and 2/2 Armour is also very comparable to a Cavalier

Currently with Squires, they move @ 1.045 Tiles per Second. With both Squires & Fervor, they would move @ 1.20175, which is comparable to an Inca or Tupi Champi @ 1.21

Their Elite upgrade would be available in the Monastery's slot #15, the same slot as the Thirisadai for the Dravidians

Saracen Team Bonus

• Does not apply to Skirmisher-type units (i.e. Skirmishers, Genitours, Slingers, and Guecha Warriors)
• Applies to Foot Archers & Mounted Archers (except for Genitours)

Mapuche Team Bonus

• Does not apply to Spearmen (overlaps with the Armenians)
• Applies to Genitours & Guecha Warriors (already applies to Slingers)
• Additionally, gives Skirmisher-type units +3 Bonus Damage vs. Class 21 'Standard Buildings' (in addition to +2 Line of Sight)

This way, the Saracens partially regain their old civ bonus of Mounted Archers having +4 Bonus Damage vs. Class 21 'Standard Buildings'. To me, the Saracens are definitely more of a Mounted Archer civ than a Skirmisher civ. The special attack of the Xianbei Raider does not trigger against buildings, so there's no worry of them melting buildings in one special volley

The Mapuche are definitely more of a Skirm focused civ than the Saracens. Currently their team bonus applies to Skirmishers & Slingers, but not Genitours & Guechas. They would get a team bonus with a double effect for a single unit like the Ethiopian one for Outposts