New Q&A at Gamespot

[Antagonist]

Gamespot have a new interview (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/medieval2totalwar/news.html?sid=6146146) up regarding MTW2. Just skimming through it, there doesn't seem to be a tremendous amount of new information, but there may be a few nuggets. There are also a few new screens, including a shot of the Aztecs.

Antagonist

[TB666]

I like the look of this
https://img106.imageshack.us/img106/5599/20pi.jpg

[The Blind King of Bohemia]

Hats off to CA, this game looks truly more amazing by the minute. Those Aztec settlements look great, shame we can't get some close-ups of their units.

[hellenes]

Hats off to CA, this game looks truly more amazing by the minute. Those Aztec settlements look great, shame we can't get some close-ups of their units.

My wallet had a heard attack on this screen:

https://img56.imageshack.us/img56/5926/medarab8bm.jpg

UPGRADE IMMINENT :no: :no:

Hellenes

[Mooks]

Here are some interesting Q AND A'S that I picked out....

GS: Is the diplomacy system in Medieval 2 going to be improved? Previously, you could only make alliances with other nations, but alliances kept breaking left and right without any consequence. Will nations remember if you betrayed them this time? Will you be able to trust in your allies?

BS: The diplomacy system has been improved. We're going to give the player a lot more information about how the artificial intelligence feels both about them and about the offer on the table. However, at the same time the AI will take offence at insulting offers and will have a better memory of past dealings. You should be able to trust your allies, but only up to a point.

GS: Will we see the return of trade routes, like those seen in Rome? The first Medieval abstracted trade quite a bit, but Rome's trade routes gave you a much better sense of who was trading with whom, at least by sea. Will we have a better sense of trade and the economy in Medieval 2?

BS: The actual trade route system is based on that featured in Rome; however, there are several significant improvements surrounding the way trade works. For example, merchants can go off to far-flung lands to make exotic and valuable goods available to trade in your capital. Merchants will make more money if they make trade agreements with the resource owners, and if they can prevent other merchants trading in the same region.

GS: Will certain provinces still provide special modifiers for units that are built there? For instance, Spain has such a rich history in metalworking that in Medieval, Spanish units got all sorts of weapon and armor bonuses if the right buildings were constructed. Or certain units could only be built in certain provinces, such as Welsh longbowmen.

BS: We deal with region-specific units via the same mercenary system as in Rome, rather than restricting the availability of a faction's core troops. Units don't get bonuses for being built in particular regions, but where regions have a specialty, such as sword making in Damascus or Toledo, then they're more likely to attract guilds, which certainly do give bonuses to units.

Those are some nice questions, wtg GS.

[Ludens]

GS: Is the diplomacy system in Medieval 2 going to be improved? Previously, you could only make alliances with other nations, but alliances kept breaking left and right without any consequence. Will nations remember if you betrayed them this time? Will you be able to trust in your allies?

BS: The diplomacy system has been improved. We're going to give the player a lot more information about how the artificial intelligence feels both about them and about the offer on the table. However, at the same time the AI will take offence at insulting offers and will have a better memory of past dealings. You should be able to trust your allies, but only up to a point.

GS: What improvements will there be in the artificial intelligence? Will the computer play by the same rules as the player, or will it get special bonuses or be predisposed to attacking the human player? Will nations gang up on whoever is in the lead, regardless of whether it's the human player or a computer player?

BS: We're definitely committed to improving the AI on both the campaign map and battlefield and plan to make a significant step forward from Rome. Making an AI for a game as deep as this is an enormously difficult job, but we're confident that experienced players will face an even sterner challenge at the highest difficulty settings in Medieval 2.
~:thumb:

[Martok]

GS: Will certain provinces still provide special modifiers for units that are built there? For instance, Spain has such a rich history in metalworking that in Medieval, Spanish units got all sorts of weapon and armor bonuses if the right buildings were constructed. Or certain units could only be built in certain provinces, such as Welsh longbowmen.

BS: We deal with region-specific units via the same mercenary system as in Rome, rather than restricting the availability of a faction's core troops. Units don't get bonuses for being built in particular regions, but where regions have a specialty, such as sword making in Damascus or Toledo, then they're more likely to attract guilds, which certainly do give bonuses to units.


So now anyone can hire Longbowmen, or Vikings, or Varangian Guards? Or am I reading that wrong?

[Voigtkampf]

Some very fine info there. Way to go, boys! :thumbsup:

[econ21]

So now anyone can hire Longbowmen, or Vikings, or Varangian Guards? Or am I reading that wrong?

My reading is that, if they are mercs and you are in the right region, then you can recruit them. But if they (e.g. longbowmen for England) are your non-merc troops, you can train them anywhere. ie. Factions will not have non-merc troops that can only be trained in specific regions.

[screwtype]

My reading is that, if they are mercs and you are in the right region, then you can recruit them.

It sounded to me more like you can hire any kind of merc anywhere.


But if they (e.g. longbowmen for England) are your non-merc troops, you can train them anywhere ie. Factions will not have non-merc troops that can only be trained in specific regions.

This is not a good change. It makes the game more bland. Not to mention making it too easy.

I hope the modders will have the opportunity to fix this.

[Orda Khan]

This is not a good change. It makes the game more bland. Not to mention making it too easy.
I have to agree, units should be region specific or better still, since I suppose training, drill, weaponry etc would be introduced by a new regime; better quality units of the same type should be region specific. Therefore if you conquer Italy, you can still produce Longbowmen there but not to the same standard as those back home

.....Orda

[econ21]

It sounded to me more like you can hire any kind of merc anywhere.

Your interpretation would effectively mean there were no region-specific units - if you can both train and hire them anywhere, they are not region-specific. But what was said was:


: We deal with region-specific units via the same mercenary system as in Rome, rather than restricting the availability of a faction's core troops.

In the Rome merc system, what mercs you can hire depends in large part on the region you are in - they are region-specific.


I hope the modders will have the opportunity to fix this.

They'll be able to mod this - you can already do in RTW and there's no hint M2TW will be less moddable. Modders have been doing it since at least WesW and his "homelands" concept for MedMod for MTW. Restricting training of core (let alone region-specific) units is a key constraint in RTR and EB - it helps keep it real and slows down expansion.

[screwtype]

Therefore if you conquer Italy, you can still produce Longbowmen there but not to the same standard as those back home

.....Orda

Personally I think I'd prefer that each individual region produced its own kind of indigenous troop types, which would be the only kind you could recruit in that province (aside from a few generic unit types perhaps).

It would give the game more character IMO.

[screwtype]

I like the look of this

Yes, when I think about it, the ability for archers and maybe other units to build stake defences to protect themselves could add considerably to tactical complexity - assuming that is that the AI is actually smart enough to make proper use of them. Otherwise it will probably just end up being a big tactical plus for the player.

[Duke John]

Modders have been doing it since at least WesW and his "homelands" concept for MedMod for MTW.
More modders have indeed come up with this concept and well before WesW did so.