Upgrade Advice

[Ranbir]

Just wondering if anyone wants to share upgrade advice that they've noticed.


Good example:

Samurai have a GG bonus; upgrading them keeps it and is of benefit for your modern infantry units.

Caravels have extra sight (2) promotion. Destroyers have extra sight (3). It will stack.


Bad(?) example:

Artillery are required to set up before firing. If upgraded to rocket artillery, the set up requirement is kept so you end up with a rocket artillery unit that requires setting up.

However, maybe that is worth it if your artillery unit is quite powerful.

Another bad(?) one possibly:

Ranged units like archers etc will eventually be upgradeable to standard infantry units. This leaves any -ranged- combat promotions rather useless.


Thoughts?

 

[Ahriman]

Artillery are required to set up before firing. If upgraded to rocket artillery, the set up requirement is kept so you end up with a rocket artillery unit that requires setting up.

Huh! I wondered why one of my rocket artillery required setup.

That sounds like a bug to me.

It feels like Barrage should somehow "convert" into Drill, or that archer units should be able to upgrade into cannon. Useless promotions are a design fail.

 

[Ranbir]

It isn't a bug, it is a feature that all promotions are transferred to the new unit be it a positive or negative one.

I do agree that it shouldn't be allowed, however. Perhaps when you upgrade a unit you are refunded all the exp points and allowed to rebuy promotions for your new unit, but then might that do away with the transfer of positive promotions?

 

[Ahriman]

It isn't a bug, it is a feature that all promotions are transferred to the new unit be it a positive or negative one.

Its a feature that a rocket artillery unit has to set up to fire, just because it comes from a division that once had field artillery?
What possible logical reason for that could there be?
Nope, its a design oversight/bug.

Its a feature for many bonuses to carryover, like scout ability or blitz or whatever, but not for weird penalties.

And note that not all penalties carry over; AFAIK a Chariot's rough terrain issues don't carry over if you upgrade it (do they?? not 100% sure).

I think that a lot of this is coming from the fact that they're adding unit features through promotions rather than though inherent features. Presumably they thought this would be more transparent, but it adds some weirdnesses. I hope very much for modders sake that this isn't hardcoded, and that its still possible to have inherent unit features that aren't promotions carried through by upgrading.

* * *
Also, on the dumbed down watch:
Am I the only person why is annoyed by the fact that you only get one upgrade choice for units now? We used to get a choice.
If I want to upgrade my warrior to a spearman, I should be able to do so. Or my pikeman to a musketman. Or my longswordsman to a musketeer. Or my knight to a lancer. Or whatever.
Again, I hope this isn't hard-coded.

 

[agentkirb]

* * *
Also, on the dumbed down watch:
Am I the only person why is annoyed by the fact that you only get one upgrade choice for units now? We used to get a choice.
If I want to upgrade my warrior to a spearman, I should be able to do so. Or my pikeman to a musketman. Or my longswordsman to a musketeer. Or my knight to a lancer. Or whatever.
Again, I hope this isn't hard-coded.

First post! I've been lurking for a few days and finally designed to join. *golf clap*

I'm pretty sure this upgrade quirk was in Civ 4. The whole point of upgrading is to bring your unit to it's current "technological" form. For example, if you have Spearmen, but have the ability to make Pikemen... then you should be able to upgrade from Spearmen to Pikemen. It's the technological equivilant (same basic abilities but just new technology).

 

[Ranbir]

The upgrade line is linear which is frustrating.

Example: pikeman -> rifleman -> infantry

You -MUST- research rifleman so you can upgrade along the tree. This was much to my annoyance as I had researched infantry before rifleman with my strategic tech tree navigation.

You can not skip and do a direct upgrade from pikeman to infantry, you have to do it iteratively.