ADVANTAGES: forge alliances with tribes to learn new technologies and enlist additional troops.

Per your orders, I continue to scout west into the territory. The number and diversity of the native tribes I have found on this continent are boggling. The Aztecs in the south build cities of stone, and their warriors are dressed like eagles, jaguars and other animals. The Iroquois Confederation to the east builds longhouses of wood and ambushes its enemies in the forest. I feel certain that alliances with these peoples could provide us a significant edge in the coming conflict. Allying with the Comanche I recently encountered would give us horse breeding techniques without rival, while the Aztecs might share with us their cotton armor, which can resist arrows or blades but remains more comfortable than armor in the humid, jungle environment. We must be cautious, however, for these alliances are fragile, and if our enemies signed treaties with the Comanche or Aztec before we did, our foray into the New World might come to an end.