Unit Concept: Thief/Smuggler

DISCLAIMER: I haven't played AoE2 in a while. Take this with a grain of salt.

Just a crazy idea that popped into my head, after getting feedback for the Gathering Soldiers one.

Drawing inspiration from the merchant ships of AoE1, what if there was a sort of...aggressive economic unit, that not only serves as profit to their respective faction, but also to potentially undercut the economies of enemies. Like a late-game form of laming. It could also benefit factions that are dependent on lots of gold, like the Turks.

The general idea is that this unit would move like the trade cart/trade cog, but might be a bit sturdier, and/or faster. They could be sent to the enemy market, along with their lumber camps, mining camps, mills, docks and even town centers. They would drop off their goods, and effectively steal a resource from the enemy stockpile, and returning to deposit those resources into your stockpile.

It's less of a mutual benefit unit, and more of a form of subterfuge. It could also be used to punish enemy units for placing economic buildings too aggressively, or leaving them lying around. Now, the targets for smugglers wouldn't be identical. Doesn't seem sensible to send one to an enemy lumber camp, deposit goods of stone, and drain the enemy's gold stockpile, and have them add food to yours. There should be a general specialization & hierarchy.

• Lumber camps will only provide wood.
• Mining camps can provide an amount of stone and/or gold
• Mills will only provide food
• Docks will provide food and/or gold
• Markets will provide gold, but won't reduce the enemy's gold
• Town Centers can provide any single resource, or a combination of them all

In the interest of balance, I feel that there should be some notable features, compared to trade carts/cogs. Some ideas:

• Cannot be sent to allied structures
• Cannot carry as many resources, as a trade cart/cog

• Enemy gets a small fraction of the resources you put in (you paid 50 stone to make these goods, enemy gets 20 stone, and they pay 25 of another resource) NUMBERS UNOFFICIAL

  • I'm unsure if trading one resource for the same should run as a benefit, deficit, or break even. (If you trade stone for stone, what's the point?)

• Trade is not instant, but ticks. Smuggler has to stick to the enemy structure for a few seconds, to complete the trade. Thus if the building is guarded, the smuggler could be killed.

• Trade goods have to be made in advance--at a cost. Maybe like how farms are queued in a mill.

  • This could be a way that the lost Trade Workshop could be implemented into the game.

• Possibly more steps to route: Trade goods at enemy building, drop off stolen goods at your corresponding building, then pick up more goods at market/workshop.

• Costs no/less coin, but more food/wood.

So, what do you folks think? Think there's potential? Think it might be too complicated? Or is it overpowered, or underpowered? Feedback appreciated!