Sure seems like people think every Civ needs to be nerfed at this point.
I haven't really tried the Shoshone yet but I don't get what all the hype is about. The pathfinder while nice costs 45 hammers compared to the 25 hammers of a scout. Many times, at least on deity, those 20 extra hammers if you go with pathfinder first build compared to a scout first build are going to cost you one if not several ruins. Their horse UU seems pretty meh. I agree that their UA is very strong but I have to say compared to other civs UA it really doesn't stand out as OP to me, I'm not sure Shoshone is even a top 10 civ overall. right now I doubt they are.
The Shoshone make the first 90 turns Really really fun.
But that's it...
That's their inbuilt nerf.
Most UAs last forever. The defensive bonus I feel will be irrelevant after the barracks promotions, ggs, and other boosts
The only thing that does not make sense to me is why the Pathfinder shares strength with the warrior - given their existant ability, the extra buff feels unnecessary.
The fact that they upgrade straight to Composite Archers, that sounds like a bug or an oversight to me. (To be honest, I never liked scouts upgrading into archers... but that's me)
So with normalized strength, and no magical composite archers, the unit is fine. Nothing else about the nation strikes me as overpowered.
The only thing that does not make sense to me is why the Pathfinder shares strength with the warrior - given their existant ability, the extra buff feels unnecessary.
The fact that they upgrade straight to Composite Archers, that sounds like a bug or an oversight to me. (To be honest, I never liked scouts upgrading into archers... but that's me)
So with normalized strength, and no magical composite archers, the unit is fine. Nothing else about the nation strikes me as overpowered.
Ironically enough, the increased strength and upgrade to Comp. Bows go hand in hand. They have increased strength because they are the Shoshone's starting unit. You can't defend squat at high difficulty levels with weak scout strength. And because they are stronger, it would be silly for them to upgrade to an archer which has less combat strength than the Pathfinder. So they just upgrade to the next thing above an archer, the Comp Bow.
A scout with a warrior's strength is hardly that much of an extra buff. It'll just help survive against barbarians a little longer, but it's not like you would want to build an army with them or attack anyone with them. Warriors are extremely weak units. There is no need to reduce their strength.
That makes sense of the situation. And sounds like the problems and compounded by them being a starting unit. Well, make them more like a regular scout and make Shoshone not start with them.
Warriors may be weak, but a warrior-equivalent unit with scout's movement and +50% defense/+10 healing (Survivalism 2, easy to get) makes for units that are really hard to dislodge in the early game. Scout units have lower strength for a reason, and I still hold that this fix would help Shoshone balance immensely.
EDIT: More brainstorming! What if the Pathfinder was simply a unique Melee unit, similar to the Maori warriors. Warrior replacement, no terrain movement cost, native tongue promotion. Upgrades along melee pathway.
You just scout 3-4 ruins. Then pop them at turn 20 and bam religion.