That "New Resources" thread got me thinking...why not have a few new "mounted" units. One idea is to add Camels as a new resource in Desert tiles, and make Camel Archers available to all (and make Saladin's upgraded versions...call 'em "Mamelukes" or something). Here are a few other ideas along those lines:

Wolf: building a wolf kennel (would be the same as a Pasture I suppose) allows you to upgrade your Scouts and Explorers with "hunting dogs", which increases their vision range and attack vs. mounted units.

Cheetah/Lion: these trophy animals provide commerce like fur, and additional happiness with Coliseums.

Oxen: basically cattle, but they can be found on plains and tundra tiles. In addition, having Oxen upgrades your Settlers, increasing their movement speed by one.

Wooly Mammoth: Okay, this ones just for fun. Found in tundra, polar, and plains tiles.

Heh. So if you've got woolly mammoths, do you get to build War Mammoths? Because that would be a little terrifying.

I love the idea of certain resources modifying the abilities of certain units, especially early on when domesticating certain animals was the arms race of the day, but I'm not sure how it would affect balancing. I mean, I have a hard time seeing how the game could be unbalanced by overpowered Scouts, but then again I'm no designer.

Plus, slaughtering large predators in gladiator battles for the amusement of my people would be an apt revenge for all those scouts and settlers I've lost over the years. Can we have bears, too? Pleeeeeeease?

Heh. So if you've got woolly mammoths, do you get to build War Mammoths? Because that would be a little terrifying.Why?, African Elephants are bigger.

Why?, African Elephants are bigger.

And no one ever rode African elephants, because they were too big and angry. The only elephants successfully tamed to date have been Indian and the now extinct Forest Elephants, which did live in Africa but weren't as large as the current kind.

I know, but mammoths are the same size as Indian Elephants

Why?, African Elephants are bigger.

Both Mammoths and African Elephants had several subspecies.

The ones used in warfare (by Hannibal, e.g.) were supposedly of a now extinct forest subspecies of African Elephant and somewhat smaller than today preserved savannah elephants.

I bet that Hannibal would have been glad, if he had had Woolly Mammoths to cross the Alps. They had probably been bigger than his Elephants were, and coldproof. Also, Mammoth tusks were certainly bigger than those of Elephants'.:)

The tusks are indeed bigger, but not the animals. And then would the mammoth usefull, as the african elephant isn't

I thought an Ox was a neutered Bull? Maybe a Yak would be better?!