Has anyone considered the possibility that this post was a clever ploy by ES to see how we would react to a patch before it was released? With Wacko on the team, they gain someone who is aware of the various discussions that happen on various boards, and can see firsthand how in-game changes to balance issues have been predicted.
Until the patch is actually released, there is no guarantee that it will unfold exactly like the notes say.As for my opinions on the patch:
Excellent start on Spain, though not enough.
No where near enough done to nerf Iro.
Good start on Dutch, may be enough.
Nice for the Germans, though would like shipment penalty reduced.
Brits = nice.
Aztec = OK I guess that Chinampa cards were really sick, effectively being two cards in one. No ERK nerf?
Ports = usable Organs are nice...
Ottos = Overnerf, methinks... maybe range resist to 30 at first?
Sioux = no opinion, don't see them very much.
Russia = OK, I guess.
Personally, I am of the opinion that many people are forgetting that each civ was designed to play differently; every civ is capable of doing things that others are not. When certain general strats become the norm, it is up to the players to devise new strats that crush the standard ones. I have never seen a bigger group of whiners than on the AoE3 forums that I visit; with any other competitive game that I have played, once a strat becomes popular, the best players devise new strats to crush it. Players should be whining this much only if a particular strategy with a particular civ can be used 100% of the time to guarantee victory 95-100% of the time. (i.e. Tekken 4's Jin)
True balance will never be achieved; there will always be tiers of strong / average / weak civs. Consider what each civ is capable of doing in terms of the entire game, and judge then. If a civ (or unit) can truly do too much (i.e. Iro, who can FF, semi-FF, boom, Col rush, etc. with the best of them; Abus, who kill everything that moves on two legs or wheels), then they are overpowered and deserving of a nerf.As with all games with unequal sides (i.e. different civs / characters / abilities), if playing it gives you this much grief, and you truly cannot cope with the fact that variety in the game leads to imbalanced situations, quit the game and go play chess; you'll never complain about balance issues ever again.
Mercy has no meaning to me.
Common Sense and Common Courtesy should be renamed; neither are very common anymore.