Odd UU/UB choices?

[Louis XXIV]

We've heard the kerfuffle over the B17, but are there not some other odd UU/UB choices?

I didn't want to start another thread about it, but I was thinking lately how Minutemen aren't really a better unit than other musketmen at the time (probably were worse, actually). It led me to think that a better choice would be more of a Frontiersman (basically a unit that represented all the Daniel Boone type soldier with fur and a coonskin cap that would be just as comfortable ambushing a British redcoat as he would be clearing a path out west. He could have combat bonuses in forests and the ability to build roads and cut down trees). But this is perhaps a conversation better suited for a different thread.

BTW, I wonder why Alexander's horsemen are listed as "Champion cavalry" in the game. I've always heard them referred to as "Companion Cavalry"

I'll also disagree with Satrap's Court being a bad name. If it were Satrap's Courthouse or something, that would be stupid. But I can't think of a better way to represent the Satarpies without at least some kind of building, so I'm not sure what else I'd call it either.

 

[cybrxkhan]

Yes, but we do have a Foreign Legion, and last Civ we had a Navy SEAL. UUs can be extremely specific if they want them to. Plus, the Companions said before.

But not specific to the point where you used a leader's name. That's never happened before, so far as I know.

 

[King Jason]

So now if we had a UU named Alexander's Horsman, bit of a naff name I admit, but when you read it, you know what it's refering to, a man on horse back. Where as if the UU was titled "hetairoi" unless you have already memorised all the UU's you would have no idea what UU your Civ gives you.
So now while names like Mughal Fort aren't particularly imaginative, you know exactly what it is, you don't have to google it to find out what it is.

I'm sorry but this is absurd. No one would need to google anything, and no one needs to know what hetairoi even means. Take fantasy games for example, where they make 80% of all their crap up. If you look on the game menu, or website, or w/e, and you see a factions special ability or "UU' or whatever is titles "Osmocosmigraph extreme!" ~ obviously nobody will know what the heck that even is. Which is why there will be a picture and an explanation right there on the tooltip."

Take a look at the ottoman "Janissary" and "Sipahi" , or the german "Landsknecht" ~ Yea, I'm sure tons of people know what those are off the top of their heads. In fact, I'm will to bet there's a huge demographic of people that don't even know who Ottomans even are. To suggest that we need generic naming so uneducated people can pick up on the concept of what we're talking about is downright silly since all it will take is one playthrough to understand the concept.

"Oh, Hetairoi is a horse unit that replaces the other generic/lesser horse units, cool."

 

[GigaNerd]

The Floating Gardens- Wasn't the Sacrificial Altar a much more fitting UB?

I personally prefer the gardens -- many cultures had sacrificial altars, but only the Aztecs could build their capital city in the middle of a lake!

 

[12agnar0k]

@Longhouse, wasn't the longhouse also the "important" building in a village, you would have a longhouse in the middle, and short houses around it, generally the chief or boss man or whatever would reside in the longhouse, or it would be used for shared meals e.t.c, not sure what it would replace, maybe a courthouse. Both of these buildings are centralised to a community, like a town hall. Thats what a longhouse was basically a town hall? (for a small nordic community) Or am I wrong here.

 

[CHEESE!]

No. The Iroquois lived wholly in Longhouses.

 

[12agnar0k]

Longhouse is not a viking term?

 

[CornPlanter]

Longhouse is not a viking term?

Not only viking. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longhouse

As for army named after leader, we do have Marian legions.

 

[Schuesseled]

I think its nice to have a mix, some units are called panzer and landersknect and jannissary, but others sould just be called eploding-knight-buster. rather hangeryjukiter.

Some work, some don't.

 

[need my speed]

But nearly all the buildings, and some of the units, sound ********. Common, a Paper Making Factory?

 

[Schuesseled]

Do paper making factories in modern day england have a special name?

 

[need my speed]

No (actually, yes, perhpas 1 is called 'Paper of England' and the other 'UK's Paper' etcetera), but Factories in Civilizations IV also don't have an unique name. They are a generic building everyone has. However, the World Trade Center is an unique name, because only 1 country has it. China's unqiue building is a paper making factory, so at least translate its name to Chinese.

 

[Louis XXIV]

@Longhouse, wasn't the longhouse also the "important" building in a village, you would have a longhouse in the middle, and short houses around it, generally the chief or boss man or whatever would reside in the longhouse, or it would be used for shared meals e.t.c, not sure what it would replace, maybe a courthouse. Both of these buildings are centralised to a community, like a town hall. Thats what a longhouse was basically a town hall? (for a small nordic community) Or am I wrong here.

Not really. The Longhouse was the only type of house, but it was more than just a home (and it housed more than just one family). Honestly, you couldn't possibly come up with a better choice, though. They are signature of the Iroquois and I can't think of anything else at all.

 

[WastedEfforts]

Russian UB: Krepost doesn't make sense to me. In my opinion it would be better to add UU: T-34.

 

[Peng Qi]

I didn't want to start another thread about it, but I was thinking lately how Minutemen aren't really a better unit than other musketmen at the time (probably were worse, actually). It led me to think that a better choice would be more of a Frontiersman (basically a unit that represented all the Daniel Boone type soldier with fur and a coonskin cap that would be just as comfortable ambushing a British redcoat as he would be clearing a path out west. He could have combat bonuses in forests and the ability to build roads and cut down trees). But this is perhaps a conversation better suited for a different thread.

Not all UUs in Civ are actually more effective than their contemporaries in other nations; they're just emblematic of the civ that fielded them. Examples: Camel Archer, Jaguar, Redcoat, Cossack, Cataphract, Dog Soldier.

Camels are inferior wartime mounts to horses, jaguars used inferior equipment and tactics as compared to European swordsmen, redcoats lacked the discipline of Napoleon's Grande Armee, Cossacks were basically just cavalry irregulars and would have folded to the likes of Confederate cavalry or winged hussars or French dragoons, Cataphracts were regularly bested by western knights and eastern horse archers, and dog soldiers were just infantry irregulars.

 

[Louis XXIV]

OK, good point. Still, I'd argue the man who went west with a rifle in his hand is equally emblematic and a bit more unique. Still, it was just a random idea that had popped into my head and I felt like writing it down before it went out again

 

[dagriggstar]

I think that its important to choose UU's and UB's based on the type of civ that they've got in mind. Since they want the Arabs this time around to be a very commerce type civ, I think it makes sense that the UB is a Bazaar.

And I also like the idea of the floating garden UB for the Aztecs. Personally, despire all my civ playing, when i think of Aztecs I think of what Tenochtitlan must've been like, not human sacrifice...
Mind you - if the UB gives a food bonus + the ability makes sacrificing pop for production more effective + the early UU =

 

[CHEESE!]

I didn't want to start another thread about it, but I was thinking lately how Minutemen aren't really a better unit than other musketmen at the time (probably were worse, actually). It led me to think that a better choice would be more of a Frontiersman (basically a unit that represented all the Daniel Boone type soldier with fur and a coonskin cap that would be just as comfortable ambushing a British redcoat as he would be clearing a path out west. He could have combat bonuses in forests and the ability to build roads and cut down trees). But this is perhaps a conversation better suited for a different thread.

Maybe a bit old here, but anybody else think the Minuteman should be a cheaper, inferior version of the Musketman?

 

[AfterShafter]

The decision for UU/UB may have been influenced by gameplay goals and not just historical concerns. Let's say they wanted to stress a certain element of a culture that a certain UB doesn't really lend itself to... Say, the agricultural achievements of the Aztecs rather than the fact that they were gung-ho on sacrificing people. If that's the case, then floating gardens make a lot more sense than sacrificial altar.

If the goal is to make each civ really distinctive to play, then sometimes they might have to use their plan B special unit/building pick in order to facilitate a really distinctive civilization.

 

[Schuesseled]

i agree worse but cheaper. Then you could get hordes slightly dodgy muskets.