Is the American Minuteman underrated?

[Athenaeum]

I really like this unit. It can ignore terrain costs like scouts, so it can cross rivers as well as rough terrain.

But what I like about it most is that it comes with the Drill 1 promotion. Melee units can get +50% siege if they have Drill 2 or Shock 2. That means this unit can come with +50% siege immediately upon production if you have barracks and armory.

Is there any pre-renaissance melee unit that comes pre-packaged with Drill 1 or Shock 1? I can't think of one. I think this is a big deal because you can get Melee Siege promotions (semi)-early game without having to build a military academy and brandenburg gate.

With this promotion the minuteman has 36 combat strength against cities right away.

 

[Mesix]

They also keep the bonuses when upgraded. Having a swarm of experienced Mechanized Infantry which ignore terrain movement penalties can mop up a late game battlefield!

When I play America, I like to built a lot of Minutemen in the period when they are available.

 

[claudiupb]

Is there any pre-renaissance melee unit that comes pre-packaged with Drill 1 or Shock 1? I can't think of one. I think this is a big deal because you can get Melee Siege promotions (semi)-early game without having to build a military academy and brandenburg gate.

If by pre-renaissance you include renaissance (since minutemen are a late renaissance unit), the Samurai comes with Shock 1.

 

[Athenaeum]

If by pre-renaissance you include renaissance (since minutemen are a late renaissance unit), the Samurai comes with Shock 1.

You mean early renaissance? Gunpowder is at the very start of Renaissance.

Yes you're right about the Samurai, I didn't think of that. That is the only other unit I can think of. Then again the Samurai is also a really awesome unit, if for no other reasons than its Great Generals II promotion and ability to create fishing boats (which is obviously nowhere near as great as the general spawn but its still kinda neat).

 

[Athenaeum]

They also keep the bonuses when upgraded. Having a swarm of experienced Mechanized Infantry which ignore terrain movement penalties can mop up a late game battlefield!

When I play America, I like to built a lot of Minutemen in the period when they are available.

In one of my first games as America, I spammed this unit, with Heroic Epic, barracks and armories and everything. But come late-game, my gold was far too pathetic to upgrade them all.

Stupid me..

 

[claudiupb]

You mean early renaissance? Gunpowder is at the very start of Renaissance.

Yes you're right about the Samurai, I didn't think of that. That is the only other unit I can think of. Then again the Samurai is also a really awesome unit, if for no other reasons than its Great Generals II promotion and ability to create fishing boats (which is obviously nowhere near as great as the general spawn but its still kinda neat).

Yeah I thought Steel was early renaissance but it's actually late medieval.

The Samurai are better for the purpose of attacking cities with melee units if you have the open terrain, since they have Bushido, and will deal more damage to the city.

 

[HughFran]

Yeah they are a very good unit but I tend to not like playing as America that much so I've never really tried them out. I can see the potential of building them and upgrading because of their terrain movement costs but America's other in-game attributes just don't interest me as much as other Civs as I tend to play conservative games rather than expansive!

 

[reddishrecue]

The minutemen are great units particularly with the happiness per kill promotion with honor tree complete, youll make gold and happiness per kill.

 

[CraigMak]

Minutemen are a great UU they just come kind of late and belong to a civ that is mediocre at best. When minutemen hit the battlefield they are definitely shown respect.

However, no one respects America as a civ until then.

 

[dasaard200]

Just make SURE that you DON'T hit Rifling TOO early; which 'obsoletes' minutemen, cutting off the source !!!

 

[Athenaeum]

Yeah they are a very good unit but I tend to not like playing as America that much so I've never really tried them out. I can see the potential of building them and upgrading because of their terrain movement costs but America's other in-game attributes just don't interest me as much as other Civs as I tend to play conservative games rather than expansive!

I don't see why you need to expand as America. Because of their tile-purchasing discount? That is the least impactful ability that they have. Their +1 sight is much more mentionable than that.

Yeah the tile purchasing thing kind of sucks, but they have 2 really good UU's and the +1 sight comes in handy. I think this civ is not that bad at all.

 

[kaspergm]

The tile-buying thing only sucks because game has become ridiculously skewed towards Tradition. America seems like a civ that's supposed to go wide, and when you play with Liberty, the tile discount can save you a lot of money.

And with regards to OP, I thought Minutemen were generally considered one of the stronger UUs, so I wouldn't say they are underrated, but they are indeed great.

 

[Athenaeum]

Like I said though, I think tile discounts are probably the least mentionable thing about them. The +1 sight should be a bigger factor in evaluating their UA.

In addition, some civs are determined to be valuable without considering their UA whatsoever. Look at Ethiopia for example. Many people play them as a Liberty civ even though doing so renders their UA practically useless, simply for their Stele.

 

[joncnunn]

I don't know anyone underrating this unit now.

However, this unit got an upgrade during the first BNW patch and so old BNW threads from CD release of BNW to right before then won't reflect this.

 

[Acken]

It's good for a melee unit is how I'd describe it.

 

[Nick31]

It's a random unit to use. Are you going to pop a Great Scientist to get to Gunpowder quickly? I surely hope not. Save and use that GS to pop into Industrialization or Scientific Theory.

You going to use gold to upgrade into them? No, again, to you'll use it to buy a school or a factory.

So, you're going to hope to have big production capital to rush out some Minutemen? And then hope they'll tag-team with some xbows to take out an enemy? A defense force of roads, Knights and xbows can do a job on early gunpowder units, especially Turn-Based. You want the quick-heal option on your frontline melee... so the strategy of city wreckers depends on an enemy that can't fight back.

The minuteman as a unit is fine, but early gunpowder units are just impossible to optimize, unless you're coasting in a game where you can win anyway you want and are trying to be cute.

 

[consentient]

Minutemen are fantastic. No one has mentioned the Golden Age points, which is fantastic really.

America are one of my favourite civilisations and I build warriors and upgrade them all the way. So they'll have access to Blitz and March by the time they become Minutemen.

 

[reddishrecue]

Melee upgrades could be one of the best things along with sacred sites in civilization 5.

 

[George Abitbol]

Is there any pre-renaissance melee unit that comes pre-packaged with Drill 1 or Shock 1?

Winged Hussars come with Shock 1 (+formation 1 and heavy charge), but they're rather late-renaissance units.

 

[Browd]

Samurai are Medieval units that come with Shock 1.