I've been having some fun with this little strat lately.
Looking fwd to the new patch 1.01, I think it's potential will only grow.
Musket Powah :twisted:
Target?
20 musketeers + 8 xbows or 3 hussars around 6'20" - 6'30" in enemy base, while maintaining a solid eco.
Age I
The usual, pick up crates, gather 800 food while exploring as much as possible. Find a good fwd location (hunt or gold mine) and explore the enemy base. Ship 3 cdb as first shipment.
Age up with the 400 wood politician when you have 14 cdb
Transition
Foward 2 cdb and try not to get spotted.
You will need to gather 200 wood by the time you age up, so I usually put 5 on wood. As soon as I have the 200 wood I change them to gold, except for 2, leave those on wood, they will help getting the wood for houses later on.
You need 4-5 on gold and the rest on hunt.
Queue already 2-3 cdb, so you won't forget it

Age II
This is where you need to pay attention and act fast.
Build rax 1 at the foward location
Use the wood choppers to pick up the 400 wood (because they should be close to your TC)
Ship 700 food
Build rax 2 at the foward location
Build 2 houses
Once your second rax is build, queue musks (from both raxes)
The food shipment should help you to get 2x 10 musks out - if not, practise harder.
You should have enough wood for another house, and a 3rd shipment should be ready soon.
I often go for 8 xbows, so that my early mass is bigger, but there are good alternatives:
- 4cdb: if you plan on harassing and building up more eco
- 3 hussars: if facing infantry (skirms, xbows...)
- 700 wood: grab a TP, build a market (+ upgrades) and get a stable up
some key cards:
age I: 3 cdb, eco theory
AgeII: 700 food/wood/gold, 4 cdb, 8 xbow, 3 hussars, wilderness warefare
Age III: tirailleurs, 1k wood, 8 skirms, 2 falc, 5 goons, royal mint, refridgeration
Age IV: both factories, thoroughbreds
The reason I leave Tirailleurs in the deck is because it can mislead you opponent (thinking you will xbow rush).
Don't forget to keep making cdb and you should be fine.
Overall, a very solid strat that is easy to perform.
Have fun with it!