Is the immigration "deck" random?

[KhanMan]

****POTENTIAL SPOILERS****

I'm curious about something that has come up in gameplay, and thought perhaps one of the more skilled code/xml divers might know the answer.

When you go to recruit new units in the Europe screen, there are always three units available at a discount, with the amount depending on how many immigration crosses you have stored up. Are the units in these three slots (and, more importantly, their replacements when you recruit one) truly random, or is there a deck of sorts that determines in advance which units you get next to choose from?

Or to rephrase, if I'm looking to buy a scout and there is none showing, are my chances of uncovering one effected by which slot I recruit from? Does recruiting one from each slot have any different effect on the next available recruits than, say, three from one slot? Does the slot you choose to recruit from determine which unit comes next?

Just curious...thanks in advance for your help
-KhanMan

 

[Dale]

There is a percentage based on unit type, but I also believe that some types are influenced by the timeline of the game. EG: A seasoned scout is more likely to appear at the start of the game, and a veteran dragoon near the end of game is more likely.

 

[Trachmyr]

You know I never noticed that, but you're right... Eras might play into it, as I see fewer scouts in the arly game. It also kinda annoys me that you can't hurry scouts, kinda gives an edge to whoever is lucky enough to get one on the docks.

 

[mabraham]

You know I never noticed that, but you're right... Eras might play into it, as I see fewer scouts in the arly game. It also kinda annoys me that you can't hurry scouts, kinda gives an edge to whoever is lucky enough to get one on the docks.

Scouts can be purchased.

 

[KhanMan]

How and where can you purchase seasoned scouts? I know you can purchase horses, to turn units into scouts, but it is possible to purchase seasoned scouts directly, without having to get lucky on the immigration "deck"?

-KhanMan

 

[mabraham]

How and where can you purchase seasoned scouts? I know you can purchase horses, to turn units into scouts, but it is possible to purchase seasoned scouts directly, without having to get lucky on the immigration "deck"?

-KhanMan

Sorry, by "purchased" I meant hurried from the selection of three on the dock using your gold. Thus, you still need to have been lucky to get one come up. You can also sometimes train one from a native village.

 

[dalgo]

There are four ways to acquire seasoned scouts:

1) You get lucky and one turns up in the immigration queue (this seems to happen more often early in the game). If you are so inclined you could roll a number of starts until you get one.

2) If you visit native villages with an ordinary colonist as a scout there is a random chance that a village will 'season' your scout. ie turn him into a seasoned scout.

3) You might find a village with scouts as their training option. This can be very useful early in the game as you can send your scouts there for training as seasoned scouts first before exploring the map.

4) You can build a schoolhouse and train your own scouts. Of course to do this you must already have a seasoned scout as a teacher.

 

[Apocalypto]

There is a percentage based on unit type, but I also believe that some types are influenced by the timeline of the game. EG: A seasoned scout is more likely to appear at the start of the game, and a veteran dragoon near the end of game is more likely.

This fits with my experience with the game.. seasoned scouts seem to appear more often at the early stages of the game. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Karstedt]

I love my seasoned scouts. And by the time they are done exploring they make great medic II's. I could swear that you can outright buy them though (as opposed to getting one in the immigrant pool). Perhaps I'm wrong though.

And to the guy who said you can get veteran Dragoons... wha??? I've never gotten a Dragoon pre-assembled from the docks or purchasing. I've only ever seen Veteran Soldiers and you have to buy the horses and put them together once they get to town.

 

[drjest2000]

Karstedt, double click the Veteran on the dock, a menu pops up that allows you to turn the double-clicked colonist into a dragoon, soldier, scout, pioneer or misionary

 

[renegadechicken]

Karstedt, double click the Veteran on the dock, a menu pops up that allows you to turn the double-clicked colonist into a dragoon, soldier, scout, pioneer or misionary

WHAT!? Man, this is what I get for buying the game from Direct2Drive... Seriously, I played for a month without figuring out that you could PURCHASE units/ships from the dock! Makes me wonder what else I don't know about this game!