the most slept on USA card

So USA has excellent cards, as we all know. They have access to the absolute best shipment in the entire game (Virginia Plans) as well as tons of others... but a lot of cards go... overlooked by united states players. For example when I see various builds and strategies for age 2 play in particular with united states, everyone is always quick to go with Virginia for Virginia Planning, forgetting its crucial weakness of being slow as balls, as it delays your first REAL shipment by 40 seconds, for 80 seconds total (assuming your next shipment doesn't arrive fast or slow). Its best used for fast fortress strategies or strategies with intense card setup such as the USA villager push. But its not made for age 2 fighting. Speed is important in the second age in particular after all.

Therefore, for all of you who seek and desire age 2 united states play, allow me to introduce you to the Massachusetts Federal State, and its completely slept on card i have been using for LOTS of age 2 strategies and is ENTIRELY overlooked. This card, is Boston Tea Party.

Boston Tea Party is a resource transferal card that lots of civs have, and trades everything you have of 1 resource for much more of another. They are generally not used in supremacy and are mostly used for treaty players. However, the United States and Mexico civs have a special variant on these shipments. Obviously I can't speak very much on Mexico, but I'll absolutely be testing it out with them too. For now, let me talk about United States and Boston Tea Party

There are 2 aspects of the United States and Mexico resource transfer cards that make them unique:

1. No matter how much or little food (or wood if your Mexico) you're going to transfer, you get a bonus 350 coin stacked on top of it.
2. The shipment arrives fast, specifically, 5 seconds.

Neither of these changes affect treaty much at all. When your playing treaty you could very well be working with 100,000 resources to get transferred, so an extra 350 doesn't make a difference, and neither does the fast arrival...

BUT

For supremacy it's excellent, as receiving flat bonuses of resources mean much more in the early stages of a game when your opponent could run into your base at any second, and it arriving fast means you don't need to wait for it to come in at all like you might 700 coin, and can begin massing right away. In short, although these are resource transfer cards usually associated with treaty, United States' and Mexico's in particular are DESIGNED to be used in the early stages of the game.

In early united states age 2 play, the most common unit that comes to mind is the state militia, however lately after the nerf i have found the unit to be generally underwhelming and prefer other units... and every other united states unit costs coin. So I propose to you this build order i often employ against Lakota and ottomans and other civs prone to early aggression that potentially stops the fast fortress you're probably used to doing:

Start with the standard opening of 3 CDB and aging with 15-16 vils

In transition, decide what unit you would like to start. If you would like to start hussar, regulars, or sharpshooters, set 5 to wood until you get a house and then everybody to food. If you would like to start with age 2 carbines (remember they aren't shit anymore) set about half and half to macro for a house and lee's legion immediately upon aging (as soon as you have 350 wood total switch everyone back to food)

As you hit age 2, if you need to send a card to get access to your desired age 2 unit (long rifles for sharpshooters, lee's legion for carbines) do so immediately and follow with Boston Tea Party.

If your starting hussar or regulars, build your military building far enough away that you can place your flag at its base and THEN pop Boston Tea Party

No matter what you do, after Boston Tea Party, comes Springfield Armory to get your unit upgrades while you mass. From there play it by ear, if you need to mass more do it, if you need Hamiltonian do it, if you need to age do it. Its very open ended. You will very often find your able to ignore coin for a while as the tea party can easily give you anywhere between 1500 to 2000 of it

I used this strategy yesterday against an ottoman player who massed age 2 janissaries. I massed sharpshooters and got counter infantry rifling for a whopping 3.5 multiplier with 22 range. He got absolutely demolished. By contrast, if i had gone state militia it would have been much more of a shootout with heavy losses on both sides, and would also result in me funneling all my resources into a food-wood army, Making it much more difficult to mass anti-cav at a moments notice (which i had to do in that game) mass cavalry at a moments notice (which i also had to do that game), or have good siege (which i also had to do that game)

Overall, lately i have started doing this strategy against any manor of opponents who attack me early, out micro them with superior units, and have a strong eco behind it. And i think this is an incredibly slept on card

Soon i will try to get a YouTube video showcasing this strategy... preferably before Mexico releases. BTW expect more posts videos, and invented build orders from me for Mexico!!