AOE3 Forums

The ports need to catch up to other civs in age 2 with the extra TC.  Once civs are in the fortress age, the ports TC booming advantage is negated once the other civs build their own. 

1 villager in the early game is worth much more than 1 villager later in the game.  The extra TCs simply don't overcome the difference. 

Probably the easiest solution would be to give the ports villager cards, just with less villies for each.  Other civs have booming advantages and villie cards, its silly to exclude the ports. For example brit houses boom much faster than the extra port tc; natives can speed things up with the fire pit, etc etc.  The port tc advantage really doesnt stand out compared to other civs.

Why not give Ports the possibility of making a villager while aging up like Asian Civs do? Aging up takes what . . .1 m? Reduce the time of villager training so that Ports could make 2 villies during aging.

By the time the second TC is finished and ready for a double villie creation we are already with great disavantadge. Reduce time of TC building. That could help.

And why not make the Infantry Combat Card wich gives Gunpowder Infantry (Cassies and Musks) 15% more Hitpoints a Gunpowder Unit Card making our Dragons the best Dragoons in game like ES says . . . just to take the doubts from some people . . .

Moving this card to age II would be excellent.

Giving more Minuteman is a good idea and what about they don´t use . . . pop cap?

Another thought is the Bishop Politician the 2 settler card could change to 3 or 4 settler . . . that could compensate a slower start.

What do you think of making House of Bragança (probably the most useless card in the game) a trickle card for wood and gold. While Capitalism and distributivism gives 1.25 rate HB could give a 1.00 or .75? This would help early port eco.

General chang for all . . .Outposts could have their attack increased . . . I still don´t get why the 2 Outposts card gives 25% more Hitpoints to Blockhouses and not to Outposts. Extensive fortifications could be a great card for Ports or give 3 outposts card whith that hitpoints boost.

PS: Besteiros and Black Riders OUT from church card . . . Mamelukes and Highlander for Ports!!!

Ok guys, as one of the top 10 ports players in TWC supremacy, I think they only need a few things.

1) + 1 starting wood crate

Why? This will allow them to build more than a house (market and some upgrades from it), make it easier to boom, and of course, construct defenses or a forward base!

 
2) TEAM cheap outposts card now gives -15% OR -20% train points for outposts as well as the -30% wood reduction.

Why? Have you ever almost had an outpost up and they just came with pikes and killed it? This has happened to me about 1/4 times I built an outpost. It also helps team, and helps improve this card.

 
3) House of Brigabaca (spelling?)

Effect changed to 40% more efficient trade routes instead of free trade route upgrades.  Still available in age 4.

Example: 100 XP is now 140 XP. 100 Food is now 140 Food. etc. 

 
4) TEAM fish markets

Seriously, this card is a joke. 10% TEAM instead of 25%? Could have just used Economic Theory. 

Suggestion: Increase to 15% TEAM fishing instead of 10%

 
5) Card - Royal Decree to the New World - Bestierios

Bestierios is a little costly. It needs to be reduced a bit and shipment reduced in number.

Suggestion - Lower cost to 1500 wood (instead of 2200 wood) and now delivers 13 Crossbowmen (instead of 22) + Guard crossbowmen upgrade.

 
6) Card - Royal Decree to the New World - Order of the Tower and Sword

A little costly on wood, so why not change it to food?

Suggestion - Change cost of upgrade from 2000 wood to 2000 food.

Why? This upgrade is not used much because of its cost of wood. It is much better to change it to food, or at least save some wood for the Portuguese. Otherwise, it is fine.

from the hand of,

murdilator 

1 extra wood is not good enough to help Ports early eco. They definetly need a BOOST in Discovery - Colonial.  Making Ports a more used civ. Only experts can handle them well.

I completly agree with the Fish Market card.

Team cheap Outposts is supposed to help Ports to build a better defense against rushes, but they take to long to be built and a few pikes and hussars will take them down easilly and the time you´ve wasted building an outpost you could have gather more resources, not to mention the 175 wood burnt!!!

Reduce Building Time like you said + 25 % hitpoints - perfect!!!

Besteiros - the problem with this unit imo is : the cost and even with your idea of 1500 wood and 13 besteiros. i would have built with that amount of wood a siege workshop, and built a few organs or horse artillery. Why waste that precious resource (wood is the hardest to get) to build 13 besteiros that would be owned in age 3 by just 6 vet hussars and a couple of skirms (maybe just 6 hussars would wipe them out)?

British have Highlanders, Spain has Halberdiers , Dutch have Stradiots . . . Ports have a Highly cost Guard crossbowmen . . .ridiculous!!!

Black Riders . . . Imperial Jinetes are just as Good if not better. Redundant Unit.
 

House of Bragança . .. it´s an idea but it would not be very useful if you only have 1 or 2 trading posts.(in many maps you only have 3 trading posts and one you can´t build).  Why not make instead a XP generator to our Town centers? From time to time XP points . . .that could help rushing shipments.

dragonshinobi:

maybe they should get a free random resource crates. 200 first, 500 second, 700 third, 900 fourth. 

i got another idea, their TCs could que 2 vils for free on every age up and when built, that could give them spare food for doing troops on early game...

To resume my ideas on Ports changes and some of the contributions other guys made: 

Cards That could change:

To improve early economy: 

Bishop Politician - 3 / 4 settlers or the 500 food - 600 food card 

Team Fish Market - 15% Gather rate instead of 10

House of Bragança - Trickle card for resources or XP for TC, a villager card, or lower costs of villies or military units.

Medicine - Villagers train points decrease 20% 

Ports can train villies while moving to Age II (in water maps we can build boats while aging, that´s one reason why we are better in water maps)

To improve Defenses: 

Team Cheap Outposts : faster building 15%-20% and - 30% wood cost.

2 Outposts card - Make it 3 Outposts and 25% more Hitpoints (for all civs who don´t  

 have Extensive Fortifications)!!!

TC could have more Anti ship Attack, before the Patch Ports had one (rare) advantadge over the other civs.  

To improve Military:

Team Infantry Gunpoweder turns into Team Gunpowder Unit making Ports Dragoon the BEST in game like ES says they are (Fully upgraded Jinetes only have more range than the british dragoons)!!!

Also moving this card to age III or II. One of the military upgrades for Ports must go to Age II . . .at least one. In Age 4, (if Ports manage to achieve that stage) . . .the shipments cost more XP points takes more time to send 1. And we send the 2 factories, perhaps the heavy cannon or a resource card, by the time we send an upgrade card the game is over for ports!!!

Team Artillery -  15% hitpoints and 15% Damage - improving our organ guns!!! It would be fantastic!!!

Dragoon Combat was an excellent boost in the patch, but cassadors just need 1 more point damage to 18.

 Church Card: Lower the cost of the units or change Wood for Food. Also if at least the Black Riders could be substituted by Mamelukes (8 for 2000 food perhaps)!!!

Besteiros . . . infinite card in Age III as suggested by GuitarHeroMatt!!!

The 3 Iroquois Mantlets and 2 scouts Politician - Does anyone use this Guy? Another Politician maybe sending Hussars?

And 6 cassadores politician could send 7-8 cassadores.

Ragefinding - Could also affect Monitors since it is a Mortar on a ship. It would be logic.
 

Useless cards that could be much better and give Ports a more variable deck:

White Fleet - A joke card. In Age 4 the food is gone!!! and the few whales can only have 4 boats gather. In Water maps Ports have schooners making boats to cost only 40 wood.

A card Like this should move to age III and instead of the boats could give us a Caravel wich could fish or attack. If this card remained in age IV then each Dock would spam an Upgraded Caravel with 25%(or less) more Hitpoints and Damage!!! White Fleet could be a bit like The Spanish Armada only not so powerful!!! 

Bandeirantes: Why not make the 2 new explorers the ability to train colonial Militia. It would be Fantastic. Or maybe a boost becoming like powerful musks that can´t die, or like unction card making nearby soldiers more powerful. (Pick one)!!!
 

PS: don´t let this Post die. . .Ports really need a boost. Almost everyone agrees . . .just ES don´t!!! 

i just started becoming a Port player, and all theses suggestions i can all ready tell will defently help out the Ports. SO PLEASE EO, LISTEN TO THEM!!!!!! 

And also, If anyone can help me with my stragy a bit, like point me in the right dirrection. thanks

BHcataclysm:

Did you realize how unbelievably OP ports could become if you gave them all those boosts? Maybe 2-3 at most.

sure they won't use all these changes or else ports would be OOOOOOOP but they could choose the best ones