Recon Unit line should be buffed

[DeusVult17]

Granted Firaxis has done a ton already in R&F, giving an end game recon unit in the Spec Ops, and two UUs in the Okihtcitaw (scout replacement) for the Cree and the Highlander (ranger replacement) for Scotland.

That being said having to sit on 10 strength scouts for the majority of the game until rangers unlock in the (late) industrial era, takes away from this. Rangers can hold up in some combat at that stage of the game since they have a 1 tile ranged attack and similar melee strength to musketman, and when defending on a tree covered hill they can hold their own.

But scouts are 10 strength, 10 less than warriors, and cant fight anything past 40 turns. A mid-tier Recon unit, such as the explorer from Civ4, with 30 or 35 melee strength, coming online with mercenaries or exploration could allow early scouts with promotions to continue to be effective. Another way would be to allow the recon line to continue to benefit from XP gain against barbarians even after their first promotion.

 

[Sostratus]

While I really like that they are adding a military dimension with the Spec Ops' ability to assassinate support units, I think they've sort of hit a conundrum with the ranger-scout transition.
Scouts are best used to explore unknown territory, grab tribal villages, etc. Other than the cree, you'd never use them to take on enemies (save for barb scouts, or weakened units.)

Rangers would be good units but for the fact that they have horrible tech tree placement. Industrialization, Scientific Theory, and Economics all sit on the top half on the industrial tree, with economics leading directly to Replaceable parts.
Rifling requires Ballistics and Military Science - so you can beeline rangers, or be one tech from infantry anyways, while also having unlocked factories, Oxford, stock exchanges, and imo the best wonder in the game- big ben. If they swapped field cannons and rangers on the tech tree, for example, then you might have a better time frame to use rangers.

Anything we do without addressing that is not really getting to the root of the issue.

I am a big fan of filling out the unit trees a bit. A late medieval /early Renn Explorer (at cartography or perhaps Education) that gains the extra strength would be very nice indeed! Having a unit to explore the new world with at the same time we unlock the ability to sail over there reeks of convenience.

Personally, I would really advocate for giving the Recon line the ability to cross rivers for 1MP. This would be a nice QoL buff to encourage us to use recon units to scout and not cavalry by the mid-late game.

 

[Phrozen]

They just need to provide it a full promotion line:

Scout -> Peltasts -> Skirmisher -> Ranger -> Commando -> Spec Ops.

 

[dunkleosteus]

Personally, I wouldn't mind an explorer unit unlocked with the exploration civic. Would make sense.

 

[Einiweini7]

Just my 2 cents worth. Scouts on up should be invisible to opponents when attached to naval units (they are small units that traditionally have been placed by naval ships). The "spec Ops" unit should gain the 12 hex airport advantage if on the same hex as a Carrier. These are small fixes that translate to real world uses and would significantly improve the viability of the unit. Consider a Spec Ops unit landed with a submarine, as long as you don't touch a naval unit you can land him on the enemy coast and he also can't be seen unless a land unit closes to within one hex. Also the unit should be able to enter the territory of any nation not "friendly", "Allied" or "At War" with the same capture penalty applied to spies should an opponent unit move onto the same hex.

 

[Jaybe]

Recon units should all:
have no zone of control
be invisible (like subs, but not have the 'see invisible' trait)

 

[The Disciple]

Suggested elsewhere:

I'd flesh out the unit with a progression path. Why is this relevant? Well, because scouts do factor into ancient and even medieval combat. Of course their not used to apply damage. They are used to provide sight for indirect fire ranged units. Their used to peak over hills without getting trapped for 1 turn. They are used to add flanking and discipline bonuses for mainline combat units. They are used on the flank, or in the rear, or on a border post to spot enemies. They are a very relevant unit to have in latter game stages for military purposes - as they provide a unique and necessary scouting and survival upgrades. The loss of these functions is rather notable in latter era combat.

Unit upgrade path I recommend would be as follows:

Scout - (same as is)

Pioneer - Unlocked about the same time as Caravel, and Musket man. Think new world explorer, like the American Backwoodsman, or Scottish Highlander, and typically brandishing pistol and cutlass. Upgraded CS, but, retaining upgrade paths and "no terrain cost" functionality of the Scout. Balanced to deal with barbarians handily, and hold defensible terrain against contemporary melee for 1 turn. or 2 turns if fortified. Gains ability to embark and disembark without end of turn.

Marksman, or Ranger - Modelled of either the US Army Ranger Corps, or perhaps Napoleonic War Rifle Corps / American Civil War Marksman. Gains range 2 attack (must setup to fire); but (unlike archer units) ranged CS is lower than melee CS. Gains combat bonus against great people (able to snipe GG's). Unit gains stealth to all non-adjacent units and ability to detect stealth if stationary for 1 turn. Cannot pillage tiles, cannot capture civilians. Able to embark and disembark without end of turn.

Spec Ops, Commando, or Scout Sniper - Modern era sniper, equipped with Gillie suit and anti-materiel rifle. Range 2 attack (must setup to fire) with ranged CS lower than melee CS. Combat bonus against great people. Stealth to all non-adjacent units and ability to detect stealth if stationary for 1 turn. Cannot pillage tiles, cannot capture civilians. Gains laser designator ability (range 3, requires line of sight) . When trained on an enemy land unit all attacks from bombers, fighters, and guided missiles do +20% damage during that turn - using laser consumes that turn. Able to embark and disembark without end of turn.