Thank you so much for creating the Mazatl Civ - since starting using Fall Further (from FFH) last week I have completely fallen in love with the civ.
I do have some suggestions. All are based on the premise (derived from the lore in the civ desription) that the Mazatl should be defending against attackers by ambushing/harrying them as they advance through the jungle towards the city, rather than defending by fortifying within a city. Here are the three current problems with this, in decending order of importance, as well as possible suggestions.
Problem 1 - Deep Jungle grants a 25% defensive bonus to the invading army. This creates a situation where you are better of fortifying in your cities. Excluding the possibility of fortifying a wall of your own units along your border and acting as defender (which doesn't fit fit the idea of ambushing/harrying the enemy, imho) and saying you attack the enemy, they will have the 25% defensive bonus, and you will have a 25% jungle attack from being lizardmen - effectivly a wash. Worse if they are on a hilled jungle, which they often are. Compare to fortifying within a city, which gives cultural bonus, fortifying bonus, unit bonuses (warriors, archers, blowpipes), building bonuses, and potentially a hill bonus. Getting woodsman promotion doesn't help much, as you could have instead gotten combat I for most of the benefit, or if city is on hills then hill defense for a greater benefit. I'd suggest doing both of the following:
Suggestion a (changes to lizard racial promotion) - Change lizard attack bonus on jungle and deep jungle to 75% (from 25%). Leave lizard defense bonus at 25%.
Suggestion b - Give lizard a minus to defending cities. Maybe -25%, which would cancel the bonuses archers, blowpipes, and warriors enjoy. Though I'd think -50% would be better.
I don't think these changes would overpower the civilization - mostly they would just switch the balance to attacking outside of cities. However, my suggestions on the second problem will reduce their power anyway. Or, perhaps a penalty to city attack, since they are better in the tactics of the jungle than organized formations of city attack.
Problem 2 - Lizards have the defensive trait, which increases the build rate of walls and pallisades. Contributes to the situation above, though in a more minor way. I'd suggest doing one of the following:
Suggestion a - Eliminate the defender trait and leave them only possessing agnostic and spirtitual. Roll the defender benefits desired into either the lizard trait directly (no reason it can't have the homeland promotion benefits) or do it indirectly by creating a larger attack bonus into deep jungles over normal jungles (since their culutural borders will usually be deep jungles). Downside is this would have to be balanced with the evil lizardmen civ's traits, whereas the other suggestions apply equally to both. Also would reduce build rate of archery range and fletcher.
Suggestion b - Eliminate their ability to build city walls and pallasade. I think this is best, no unintended consequences and further encourages defense outside the city.
Suggestion c - Eliminate defender and have palace grant homeland promotion to units directly (if possible).
Problem 3 - Earth mana is among starting. On the one hand, fits flavor considering their relationship with the earth god, though on the other hand they will get an instance of this if they recover their mountain anyway. Downside is earth mana is predominantly defensive - They can use it to cast wall of stone (which is a problem in that it is for city defense) and to cast stoneskin (which increases defensive strength, again helping defensive strategy). Further, the chance of finding minerals is next to useless - they will be cottaging rather than mining hills that don't have recources, given their civics. Leaves its only benefit as earth elementals, which are fine but...I think a type of mana that offers other options might be appropriate.
Again, thank you for the wonderful mod, and especially for the chance to play as lizardmen,
Tim
(edited to delete suggestion regarding woodsman II - I had forgoten that it is only available to recon units, which already have sufficient incentives not to defend in cities.)
to build and require an AC of 70, is a bit much in any case, and 4 of them would be horrible.
