How could America be better?

[Peasley]

So, as everybody knows, America in civ4 has been blessed with the virtues of a UU and a UB that often-times never see the light of day due to their extremely late arrivals (Industrialism and Refrigeration, respectively). However, America also has three excellent leaders - two with excellent warring and REX-ing traits (Washington and Lincoln) and another who is an excellent builder with a faster shot to the GLH than anybody else. My question for you is, how could we make America the civ more viable and fun earlier?

I've got a couple of ideas:

Minutemen: I like musket UUs, personally, because they grant me utility out of a unit I would otherwise ignore. What about a musketman with formation and pinch off the bat?

Rough Riders: Think Teddy Roosevelt's Battle of San Juan. Cavalry with mobility and maybe defensive bonuses would be cool, and man would those be fun.

Town Hall: A courthouse that grants one initially and another with the Universal Suffrage civic enable. I smell big cities.

 

[Mechanicalsalvation]

Leader: T.Jefferson (philo/industrial)-the only combo not taken
UB: Sheriff Office replaces jail, plus one , plus 10% comerce and 2XP
UU: Frontier Cavalry starts with sentry and march promotions

 

[Peasley]

I actually think that Teddy Roosevelt would be cool. Imperialistic/Charismatic or Imperialistic/Organized. And while that combo works for Jefferson, the reason it's untake is because it would be uber-op. Maybe America needs that though.

 

[username804]

So, as everybody knows, America in civ4 has been blessed with the virtues of a UU and a UB that often-times never see the light of day due to their extremely late arrivals (Industrialism and Refrigeration, respectively). However, America also has three excellent leaders - two with excellent warring and REX-ing traits (Washington and Lincoln) and another who is an excellent builder with a faster shot to the GLH than anybody else. My question for you is, how could we make America the civ more viable and fun earlier?

I've got a couple of ideas:

Minutemen: I like musket UUs, personally, because they grant me utility out of a unit I would otherwise ignore. What about a musketman with formation and pinch off the bat?

Rough Riders: Think Teddy Roosevelt's Battle of San Juan. Cavalry with mobility and maybe defensive bonuses would be cool, and man would those be fun.

Town Hall: A courthouse that grants one initially and another with the Universal Suffrage civic enable. I smell big cities.

I like this, but: America is a nation of small towns

America needs a couple of cheats, especially since we didnt start at 5000bc.

The sheriffs office makes sense as do the Rough Riders/ Union Cavalry

Sheriff's office should be a jail with a happy bonus available at Nationalism, +1 Happy with Universal Sufferage, +1 Happy with Nationalism +1 Happy with Free Market

Jefferson was the only president to fund the government entirely by tarrifs, that makes him ORG. He also bought Louisiana, that makes him EXP

our first truly IMP president was Jackson. White Americans love him, everyone else hates him. He'd be FIN/IMP, no banks, no taxes, rich white men do whatever they want. The modern Libertarians want Ron Paul to be like him, much like the Republicans want a Ronnie Ray Gunn part 2. Jackson would have a super rifleman unit with woodsman promos, but by the time you can make them, all the woods would be chopped down... I hate when the AI chops blindly.

Ronnie would be CRE/CHA. Creative because he funded a lot of weird science like Star Wars SDI, and the Stealth planes and also because he litterally BS'd the Soviets to death. By acting crazy enough to plunge the world into nuclear war, he forced the world to disarm, which was his real goal. (He wanted to tell his daugher who was anti nuke what he was doing, but he couldn't because it was a bluff to force the Soviets to disarm)

A Ronnie America would be free ICBMs and TAC Nukes in all cities, double happiness from barracks, +50% to build military units, SuperCarriers can carry 80 planes, double happiness from 80's Movies, 80's Music, and + 6 unhappys in all LARGE cities (democrat hippies!) and +6 happies in all small cities (Christian NRA gun nuts!) double happiness of state religion, +2 unhappy for all non state religion... it was a turbulent time for adults, a happy fun time for kids & teens. Listen to Jello Biafra & DOA Jack Yard Backoff (Ollie for President! He'll get things done!)

TR
AGG/EXP

UU: Rough Rider/Union Cav, March & 3 moves

UB: Barracks +3 CULTURE per turn, We culture flipped PANAMA HAWAII and CUBA

TR used Steel battleships painted white as his "Big Stick" and flaunted them. Spain still had WOODEN ships. The Spanish governor of Cuba never had a chance. He just wanted to escape.

Conversely, the UU could be "steel dreadnought" to replace the Ironclad...
and the UB would be "Shipyard" +50% military unit construction, +3 XP, Land Sea units (think Anapolis)

 

[Radio Noer]

I made a whole mod about America, and it includes Jackson, TR, Rough Riders, Minutemen and billions more things (maybe not billions, but still).

/shameless self promotion

 

[Verarde]

Minuteman would be a great UU for America.

When it comes to leaders, if you would note that generally the leaders for all civs are either iconic or important to their country's history.
FDR, Washington, and Lincoln are all either iconic or important to America's history. I would argue that Jefferson is not one of the first presidents one would think of. Most people would think of Washington or Lincoln, not Jefferson.

 

[Osbiath]

Weren't minutemen just untrained citizens, who were ready to fight at any moment? So wouldn't it make more sense if the minute men were weaker than the the unit they replaced but cost less hammers?

 

[MilesBeyond]

Man forget America, it's Germany that needs it. Sure Freddy is a fantastic leader but their UU and UB are even worse than America's.

 

[calibur]

Weren't minutemen just untrained citizens, who were ready to fight at any moment? So wouldn't it make more sense if the minute men were weaker than the the unit they replaced but cost less hammers?

Worse than a musketman? It'd have to be free.

 

[Rusty Edge]

I guess I thought the way to do a Minuteman in game terms was to make the Minuteman a stealth musketman.

I would also nominate a Humphreys frigate as a UU. Something that was fast as a frigate, but could beat other frigates and defend itself against Ships of the Line.

 

[Mechanicalsalvation]

Minuteman would be a great UU for America.

Most people would think of Washington or Lincoln, not Jefferson.

Thats true. However in reality Jeff surpasses both of them in quite a few ways. Its man from the behind who gets things done...

 

[CocoIsKing28]

I propose creating a "Backwoods Militia/Pioneer" musketman unit with guerrilla, woodsmen, and city raider promotions. Or it could have the pinch promotion, or simply a bonus versus riflemen (as in the Battle of New Orleans, during the War of 1812). I invision a troop of rag-tag looking soldiers with 'coon-skin caps.

As for a UB, I like the Sheriff's Office and the Town Hall. Another option would be a sort of Worker's Union building, adding happiness and production. However, I can't think of a good building for it to replace. I would also like to have a courthouse replacement that lowers (or maybe even takes away) all city upkeep caused by distance from the capitol. This would suit America's history of expansion without making any American leader adopt State Property. It would probably be something common in old western cities, like a Sheriff's Office.

 

[username804]

Historically, all American wooden ships sucked, except ONE: Old Ironsides. American ships were captured by everyone, including the Lybians. The best wooden ships America had, we stole from the British. The main point of American naval warfare was to capture British ships.

America doesnt have a "winter palace" so modding the Sheriffs Office into a "winter palace" and allowing them to be built in all cities would be awesome. An American "Town Hall" replacing the Forbidden Palace, available at Code of Laws, and build-able in all cities, +2 culture, -40% upkeep, +2 happy (decentralized government, localized voting, that sort of thing) +10% commerce, +10% production (bureaucracy, thy name is America)

Probably should generate War Weariness. Washington likes to go to war, but the individual cities and states dont. Drafting generates double unhappiness, Corporations generate income in all cities not just the HQ.

UU: still has to be Blue Coat Cavalry. +10% damage to all units, +1 movement, starts with March, bonus V pre gunpowder units. The Sioux had rifles at Little Bighorn.

A rifleman UU with Woodsman promos makes sense historically, but the game itself chops all forests and doesnt replant them. By the time you get to rifles, there are no forests left to take advantage of a woodsman promo

 

[username804]

A Minuteman UU would have city garrison and drill 1 and be unable to attack, like a scout or a machine gunner and could upgrade to machine gunners, but nothing else.

The Minutemen were regular folks who fought to defend themselves but werent regular army units that went on the attack

 

[Mylene]

UU: still has to be Blue Coat Cavalry. +10% damage to all units, +1 movement, starts with March, bonus V pre gunpowder units.

We also urgently need an auto-win button for America

 

[damerell]

Historically, all American wooden ships sucked, except ONE: Old Ironsides.

Oh, come on, the American big "super-"frigates in general were not bad, and widely imitated... indeed, an Age of Sail fan might make America's UU a 10 44-gun frigate.

Although given their relative sizes, Constitution v Guerriere may have been a foregone conclusion.

(Almost a foregone conclusion. Cochrane would have won. )

 

[username804]

Oh, come on, the American big "super-"frigates in general were not bad, and widely imitated... indeed, an Age of Sail fan might make America's UU a 10 44-gun frigate.

Although given their relative sizes, Constitution v Guerriere may have been a foregone conclusion.

(Almost a foregone conclusion. Cochrane would have won. )

Most American wooden ships built in America by Americans sank, all the American ships in the Great Lakes sank!

The British used the wood to build the best ships, they deforested most of New England and eastern Canada for the ships you think America had. We had to STEAL British ships to have ships to fight other British ships.


BTW:

New American UB: STATE CAPITOL (why hasnt anyone thought of this before?)
Replaces Forbidden Palace, buildable in all cities (makes sense for the map scale)
Similar Bonuses to what I posted before. I think I'll make this happen & let's see what we get.

 

[CocoIsKing28]

Can a UB replace a national wonder? And if so, it might be overpowering to be able to build it in all cities, maybe just the biggest 4 or something?

 

[Te_Wheki]

Especially one avaiable with CoL. Givem Courthouses go everywhere you'd effectively gain the best part of State Property but be running Free Market or Merc instead.

 

[username804]

Especially one avaiable with CoL. Givem Courthouses go everywhere you'd effectively gain the best part of State Property but be running Free Market or Merc instead.

Right, that's the whole point.

What is America's truly unique building? The State Capitol! No one else had them before we invented them.

Even huge empires didnt divide themselves up the way America did. The Provisional Capitols of old empires were mostly just tax collection stations. Even Caesarea in Judea was just a palace. If the Israelites had had self rule 2000 years ago the Revolt of 66 would not have taken place.

Makes sense to me...

BUT somewhere long ago I read someone said they just upped the number of courthouses to 2, which is a huge cheat for all CIVs.

America should have State Capitols, they should make people happy, some kind of bonus under Universal Sufferage, Free Speech, Emancipation, Free Market, AND Free Religion ALL at once or... or... They should ENABLE all 5 at once! once 13 or so are built.

Can you imagine someone playing as America in 5000 BC, beelining CoL just to get a super powered UB that enables cash spending, double culture, rapid growth, massive commerce, and lots of science and happiness, all before 1AD??? Rifles at 1AD are possible, and Hilarity Ensues!

Who cares, it's just a game