What's the point of the outpost you build with a pioneer? Can you convert it to a city?

[Oddible]

I can't build any improvements on the land of an outpost, is it just adding workable unimproved tiles to a city at a distance? Is this something I should use until I have a settler? Can I convert it to a city?

[parent child bowl]

You can put trade posts on resources there (and some other stuff down the line).

There's also the culture power to turn an outpost into a T2 town which is really good.

[Oddible]

Absorb Outpost doesn't seem to work on outposts created by Pioneers does it?

[parent child bowl]

It does, but it needs to share a border with a region that has free town slots.

[Yograin]

Combined with the explorer power to create pioneer for 60 engineer mana i think creating outposts and absorbing them to L2 towns is the best way to add cities.

[Cythil]

They have a few functions. First function. There simply a outpost you can put near some other civ to keep a eye on them. If you upgrade them to a castle they can be a decent defensive work. There at least better then no defence. But they do lose potency longer in to the game. This also can be used to block them off or even your own vassals from expanding.

Getting access to resource. This is likely the main reason you build them. Almost all resource can be put in export to the city they are linked with as long as you build a trading post on them. (Aether is for some reason a exception)

Building special improvments. This include monestarties and castle villages. There are a few diffrent improvmenets like this. Note that regular outpost and castles have diffrent improvments. But you can build the first set of improvments and then change you specilization of you outpost.

And of course you can try to do all 3 with your outposts.

There is a 4th final use. You can use them way to expand your city. Rather then building a small town, building a outpost can let you push boarders more quickly. And the town will be of better quality to. Note that you should unlike the other situations above not focus on improvments. Since they will be scarpped once you absorb the outpost. Absorbing outpost are more efficent in many way then making new towns. But there is also some extra costs of course with making outpost to being with. So it depends a bit if you rather go with this over just putting down a town.

[Rhudda]

Another use is to build roads through difficult terrain, if you have the XP to spare to summon a few pioneers. The range, according to the wiki, is five tiles.

[Cythil]

Oh true. That is a 5th use for them. Good catch.

[TheCollector]

Downside is that a pioneer/outpost is an undefended soft target unless you turn it into a castle for 40 Ing XP. Every enemy unit simply moving into the outpost tile will kill it, so you need a permanent army there.

[archonsod]

Originally posted by TheCollector:

Downside is that a pioneer/outpost is an undefended soft target unless you turn it into a castle for 40 Ing XP. Every enemy unit simply moving into the outpost tile will kill it, so you need a permanent army there.

Or you take spice traders and the caravanserai ability.

[Mossflower]

I would add that if you want to grab a lumbering town (extremely powerful), the best way to do it is with a Pioneer making an outpost and then turning it into a town. This is because forests (in most cases) take a long time to absorb in your empire. So if you try to place a border town, you often will wind up with a town at the border of the forest. An outpost can be plopped directly in the middle of 6 trees with no issue. Thats 6 logs which can be turned into 6 manuscripts (+6 knowledge) or 6 lumber (+24 production) plus all the lumber town bonuses on top of that.

[lebeststratege]

There is also another great use for outposts : you can use your powers to spawn unit from them. Do not underestimate the power of mana comboing from an outpost :
=> culture power "raise army" (or stronger raise mercenaries)
=> raise a scout/explorer/conquistador
=> using one or 2 artists to culture power twice/thrice in a row

=> enjoy steamrolling the enemy via an army from "nowhere"

edge case with colonialism => you move 4 with explorer, do it multiple times through military power, pop an outpost with culture power, spend 2 or 3 artist to get mercenary armies => you brought 12 unit in the front of the enemy in a single turn.

Far from those edge cases, I often use such outpost to spam merchants/envoys/clergy when reaching the second continents for quick diplomatic treaties (which they all like because you don't share a border with them)