I was wondering if someone could explain to me why Mongol players almost always build toward Mangudai in 1v1s. It seems to be a common consensus that Mongols will be strong in early Feudal Age, then drop off during Castle Age and become dominant in mid- to late-Imperial thanks to Mangudai and siege. And when it comes to assessing the relative strengths of civilizations, the Mongols' weak Castle Age is always counted against them, as though it is a given that the Mongols will be spending Castle Age preparing the transition into Mangudai.
However, just from looking at the tech tree you'd expect Mongols to have a very strong Castle Age if they're willing to postpone or abandon the transition into Mangudai. Liereyy showed this in the first King of the Desert when he beat Viper with all-in Castle Age knights + cavalry archers + siege. Mongols can also pull off a pretty decent fast Imperial into arbalest, as we see quite often in team games with Mongol flanks.
Why do we so rarely see players in 1v1s exploit the flexibility of Mongols in Castle Age and early Imperial? Is their economy not strong enough? Are Mangudai just that good that they're impossible to pass up?
However, just from looking at the tech tree you'd expect Mongols to have a very strong Castle Age if they're willing to postpone or abandon the transition into Mangudai. Liereyy showed this in the first King of the Desert when he beat Viper with all-in Castle Age knights + cavalry archers + siege. Mongols can also pull off a pretty decent fast Imperial into arbalest, as we see quite often in team games with Mongol flanks.
Why do we so rarely see players in 1v1s exploit the flexibility of Mongols in Castle Age and early Imperial? Is their economy not strong enough? Are Mangudai just that good that they're impossible to pass up?