18 Pop Scouts into Skirms
Steps 12 · 6 → 18 pop · ~9 min
Recommended Civilizations
Open with Scout Cavalry off an 18-pop Feudal landing, then layer in Skirmishers the moment the opponent shows Archers, giving you a cheap answer to both ranged play and Spearman responses.
Step Timeline
Follow the villager rail and resource-split columns while you play.
Opening
6 steps · pop 6–12- 6
6 → sheep under the Town Center - 8
+2 → wood, drop a lumber camp - 9 +1 → lure and eat the first boar
- 10 +1 → hunt under the Town Center
- 11
+1 → build a house, then a mill on berries - 12 +1 → lure the second boar
↳ Once all sheep are found, lure deer with your scout to stretch the food
Feudal
6 steps · pop 18 8:50- 18
+6 → hunt under the Town Center; research Loom and click up 8:50 ↳ Feudal landing ~8:50 on 2 wood / 16 food
- 18
Move 6 hunters → wood (8 on one lumber camp) and 4 more → berries; then 2 hunters build a Barracks + a House, then a Stable with the same 2 before walling or going to wood ↳ Ends on 8 wood / 8 food
- 18
Start Scout Cavalry; research Double-Bit Axe (Horse Collar optional); seed farms as the hunt runs dry - 18
When the opponent commits to Archers, drop a Range fast, move 2 to the woodline, and start Skirmishers - 18
Build a Blacksmith; research Fletching and infantry armor ASAP to power your Skirmishers ↳ Keep adding farms until about 13-15, then click up after Wheelbarrow
- 18
Berries out → 2nd lumber camp; move 6 → gold with a Mining Camp; research Wheelbarrow
Strategy Notes
- Scouts come first to pressure villagers and force a reaction; the Skirmisher switch is reactive, so only commit to the Range once you actually see the enemy leaning on Archers.
- Skirmishers are gold-free and hard-counter Archers, so this opening shrugs off the most common Feudal aggression while your Scouts keep punishing anything that steps outside walls.
- Keep the economy on wood and food early — Skirmishers and Scouts cost no gold, which lets you delay the gold move until berries are spent and you split 6 onto a Mining Camp.
- Blacksmith into Fletching plus infantry armor is the key power-spike: it lifts your Skirmishers above the enemy's Archers and keeps your Scouts alive in the skirmish.
- Franks, Huns, Malians, and Lithuanians all fit: Franks for hardier cavalry and free farm upgrades, Huns for skipping houses, Malians for cheaper farming, and Lithuanians for the early food bonus that speeds the whole opening.
- In Castle Age this transitions cleanly into Elite Skirmishers backed by Knights — the Skirmishers screen against Crossbows while the Knights provide the punch your gold-light Feudal lacked.