I have a hard time believing the Scout-Scout-Warehouse-Warrior-Settlerx3 build.
Hostile IPs overrun me 3 out of 4 times I try that. It only works when you are surrounded by Friendlies or mountains.
I almost always need 3 Warriors or 2 and a slinger before I start the settlerx2 or 3 sequence.
Like everything, it’s situational. 2 scouts is pretty simple 99% of the time (or more). The next build is determined by IPs (and tech).
If you have hostiles on the doorstep and can build a slinger, build the slinger but don’t rush out to engage.
If you can’t build a slinger, build a warrior. But don’t press a bad fight. Hit, rest, rest, hit or whatever. Bring a scout back as bait if it’s really bad.
Question: are you building farms or woodcutters/mines?
Your first improvements should go for production so you can get things out faster.
Question: do you move your founder or settle in place?
If you move, there’s a chance you are moving towards an IP so that when you settle, they perceive you as forward settling and are aggro instead of friendly.
Question: Is your first warehouse the granary?
(Hint: the answer should be “no” if you’re trying to crack out 3 scouts).
If you do get a military unit built, don’t be tempted to scout too far with them.
The 2-3 scout -> warehouse -> settlers build order is my (and others’) go-to but adjust to conditions.
If you’re on PC you can force end turn (Shift+Enter) to save production as well - handy if your next build tech is a couple of turns away - just don’t forget to do everything else first.