"RTW Nostalgy" RPG game

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Ave,

I guess just like many others I picked my old copy of RTW once I heard R2TW was announced. It brought back many good memories of all the crazy battles I fought and all the interesting developments on campaign map. However, playing it alone is not exactly the same as playing it with other people in a RPG setting.

So, I thought perhaps there are people who are interested in a almost Vanilla RTW rpg game?

If you want to play and are interested in it then I ask these things from you:

1) What faction shall we use? I personally would like to pick a Roman faction just because the game is called Rome Total War.

2) Each player can propose 3 rule/objectives/modding suggestions. With modding suggestions I mean we can give units to factions(like archers for Carthage), change some units stats/abilities or something similar. Basically easy stuff. No new provinces or something like that.


Other than that basic rpg game rules from previous games will be used (each player have an in-game character; each player fights it's own battles: etc).

[Nightbringer]

I would say go with Julii for the classic red, even if it isn't technically historical.
Plus, I always found fighting phalanxes a little tiring.

As for rules, I think we could reasonably rule out pvp. It can get messy rules wise, and I think competing for senate offices should provide a fun way for players to compete against each-other as well as the computer.

With that in mind, I would definitely say ignore in game offices and use our own system for allocations offices. We could figure out a system to determine the senatorial influence of each character, and use that to determine who gets offices, following the cursus honorum of course.

It could be the influence stat (if I am correctly remembering that being a thing) * prestige. Prestige would come from winning battles, capturing provinces, holding games, etc... This score would then essentially be the number of senatorial votes a player is able to cast in determining who gets offices. It isn't exactly historical, but I think it could be fun if others do as well.

The main possible problem I can see with this is that we will only have control over one family of the faction, but perhaps we could simply ignore the others in terms of offices, or simply let the game's decision for offices to those factions stand, and vote on the rest.

What do you guys think?

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I myself like the Julii as well.

And I agree that PvP should be left out.

As for the senatorial offices I like the idea. Perhaps we could give points for every battle fought + checking characters Influence + the factions standing in the Senate?

Also, one thing to consider is army sizes. Normal characters could recruit only lower tier troops and could command a small number of them. But a Consul(don't have to be FL) could a full stack army?

[Zim]

Always like the Julii myself.

As far as offices I could see a bonus in troops for the Consul. Maybe full stack versus a half stack for lower offices?

[Ibn-Khaldun]

And perhaps characters without offices can't have more than 1/4 stack and can't recruit mercenaries? It would make the offices really important and desirable.

[Nightbringer]

Sounds good to me
no office = quarter stack no mercs
random office = half stack
consul = full stack

How should we do finances for the game" I like the personal finances system I tried for LotD, but it definitely adds a lot of work on everyone's part.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I think we should keep the game simple and not have personal finances. Although, if people want it then it can be implemented.

However, any other ideas?

[Zim]

I like personal finances in general but I agree with keeping it simple for this game. I'd suggest keeping it fairly light for this one and leave some of the more complicated stuff for a RTW2 rpg if we do one when it comes out.

[Myth]

Well we do have a sucession game in EB for the Romanii but I always keep forgetting it and the others I think have given up on it. I'd play this if it were not overly complicated with personal finances, estates, upkeep and so on.

Why don't we just go a conquerin' and use the faction's finances? Just have a set number of victories and settlement captures to get to an office. The Roman Republic is a highly militaristic society, and any advancement in political office was closely tied with military success, unlike later on when offices could be bought.

For the stacks - make it so everyone starts with a halfstack that costs up to 6800 florins (go to custom battle to compose it then prestent it here). Oh, and also in RTW we can always keep one governor in a city of our choice and we can all choose the Enslave option when we conquer a city. This will bloat the governed city's population considerably and we can have the Marian reforms kick in in about 15-20 turns from the start if we all do this.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I had some thoughts on the current proposals..

1) "Cursus Honorum" and ranks

First of all, I think that the person who ends the turn should be a "treasurer" or something like that. Electable office within the family and he will stay in office as long as he wants or someone else brings up he candidacy. If there is a vacant office he will receives his powers(unless there is a Consul present).

Faction Leader - Should be treated as a regular character. I would allow him to call meetings if needed. No bonuses to the army size. This may change if Civil War is started.

Faction Heir - It would be just a honor being chosen as a heir.

To gain one of the republican offices player first have to meet the required terms. High enough Senate standing + characters influence + certain number of victories. If these are met then I'll throw a dice to determine whether the player receives the office or not. With each throw the chances to get the office would get higher.
Also, I think offices should last 10 turns (5 years). Do we need the age requirement? I don't think we need.
Perhaps there can only be one consul, one praetor etc?

Tribune - All non-office holding characters. Can lead 1/4 stack.

Quaestor - Can lead a 1/2 stack. Can set the tax levels in cities.

Aedile - If possible, can create gladiatorial games and races. Can lead 1/2 stack.

Praetor - Can lead a 3/4 stack. If the Consul is unavailable he will get's his powers as long as the Consul returns.

Consul - Can lead a full stack. Can set the tax levels(if there are no quaestors), create games(if there are no aediles), can call meetings if he thinks they are needed, determine when players can recruit higher tier units from conquered cities(if there is no Censor).

Censor - Can lead 1/2 stack. Can determine when it is allowed to recruit units(higher than City Watch) in conquered cities.

Pontifex Maximus - Just a honorary title. Can lead a 1/4 stack.

2) Personal Finances

While all the factional troops can only be recruited by the "treasurer"(or Consul) then all mercenaries can be recruited by the players using their personal finances. This does not mean Consuls/treasurers can't recruit mercs using the factions finances. Mercs bought using the factional finances belong to the faction.

Everyone will receive a set amount of denari each turn that they can use for recruiting mercs. Once recruited players must pay for the upkeep of these mercs as well.

Non-office characters - 500 denari
Offices - 1000 denari
Consul - 1500 denari
Faction leader should get a small bonus(like 300 denari).


However, are there any other ideas?

[Andres]

I had great fun with LoTR, but I've always felt regrets for not discovering the Throne Room earlier to take part in the WotS game.

I'm not sure if I have enough time to dedicate to a WotS-like R:TW RPG nowadays, but I'm certainly very, very tempted.

[Andres]

Put something on the frontpage about this; let's hope it helps in drawing in more players.

Yes, I'm excited to get the chance of making good for missing out on the WotS fun.

[GeneralHankerchief]

You have to come out with this the week I'm rereading KotR.

Don't have much time to comment on the rules right now, but I'd personally select Scipii as the faction due to flexibility of targets. With Julii, you're basically limited to barbarians (and Carthage if you're lucky). With Brutii, have fun killing Hellenistic factions. With the Scipii, you're probably going to kill Carthage first, but after they're dead you can stay in North Africa, hop to Spain, maybe go to Greece, poke a sleeping dragon and go after Egypt, etc. Far more variety for generals that way.

[Myth]

Pontifex Maximus is the one allowed the choice of temple in a newly conquered settlement and the choice of changing one existing settlement's patron deity per turn.

Consuls should receive a free "consular army' which is a full stack of the best units available for the faction if enemy troops invade italy. This army is only granted for the defence of the Italian settlements and cannot venture off the peninsula, Sicilly or above the Alps. If he accepts this army, the consul must in turn grant his personal units as a garrison in a settlement for the duration of the consular army's activity. Once the threat has been quelled, the consualr army returns to the faction's capital in Italy.

We must determine whom gets to build buildings and how faction finances are allocated. The admin can spawn event armies, such as an Epirote invasion of Italy, Hannibal's armies and so on. Also, we need a set goal to end the game.

[Nightbringer]

Pontifex Maximus is the one allowed the choice of temple in a newly conquered settlement and the choice of changing one existing settlement's patron deity per turn.

Consuls should receive a free "consular army' which is a full stack of the best units available for the faction if enemy troops invade italy. This army is only granted for the defence of the Italian settlements and cannot venture off the peninsula, Sicilly or above the Alps. If he accepts this army, the consul must in turn grant his personal units as a garrison in a settlement for the duration of the consular army's activity. Once the threat has been quelled, the consualr army returns to the faction's capital in Italy.

We must determine whom gets to build buildings and how faction finances are allocated. The admin can spawn event armies, such as an Epirote invasion of Italy, Hannibal's armies and so on. Also, we need a set goal to end the game.

I like the idea of admin created events, but I don't think we will need the help of a free army spawning. I don't want the game to be too easy, and I think we all are capable of doing some serious damage to any AI stack with whatever we happen to have.

[Myth]

Well I want to recreate the dread of a consular army, but perhaps this is too much.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Put something on the frontpage about this; let's hope it helps in drawing in more players.

Yes, I'm excited to get the chance of making good for missing out on the WotS fun.

Thank you! I noticed it on the frontpage and I really hope other will as well.

Pontifex Maximus is the one allowed the choice of temple in a newly conquered settlement and the choice of changing one existing settlement's patron deity per turn.

Consuls should receive a free "consular army' which is a full stack of the best units available for the faction if enemy troops invade italy. This army is only granted for the defence of the Italian settlements and cannot venture off the peninsula, Sicilly or above the Alps. If he accepts this army, the consul must in turn grant his personal units as a garrison in a settlement for the duration of the consular army's activity. Once the threat has been quelled, the consualr army returns to the faction's capital in Italy.

We must determine whom gets to build buildings and how faction finances are allocated. The admin can spawn event armies, such as an Epirote invasion of Italy, Hannibal's armies and so on. Also, we need a set goal to end the game.

I like that Pontifex Maximus idea.

Consuls should be able to create their armies by recruiting new units or being able to take units from other players armies(not personal mercenary units). This way it should be easy to get a full stack in maximum of 2-3 turns. Once Consuls term is over(10 turns) he can once again command 1/4 stack(he should be able to pick what units he wants) and the rest of the army should be distributed between garrisons or sent back to Italy.

Who builds, recruits etc? If you check my previous post then I proposed just a simple "treasurer"(we can name it better though) office. Player does not get any bonuses for being one. It would just fill the space if other more important offices are not fulfilled. So, "treasurer"s powers may vary from time to time.

About the GM created events and stuff like that. I think we can't do it without it. The AI needs some financial aid from time to time and some units to bolster it's borders especially against players. So, all that will be done by the GM.

@GeneralHankerchief - Scipii sounds good choice as well. Plus they have Deceres and Corvus Quinquiremes!

[Ishmael]

I've never really noticed the Throne Room before, but now that The King mentioned this in another thread I'm willing to give it a shot if you'll have me. A word of warning in advance - I am really not very good at this game. I struggle against equal-sized armies on medium, let alone whatever you guys will be playing it on. So I will probably end up being the Leeroy Jenkins character who constantly needs to be bailed out of trouble .

As for the faction, I do like the idea of Scipii simply because I never really played as them much. Also, random question - about how large is a compressed save file for the purposes of downloading/uploading?

[Myth]

But I like my red Romans and their temples of Ceres... Plus I know the Julii can go and conquer Greece before the AI Brutii if we act quickly enough.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I've never really noticed the Throne Room before, but now that The King mentioned this in another thread I'm willing to give it a shot if you'll have me. A word of warning in advance - I am really not very good at this game. I struggle against equal-sized armies on medium, let alone whatever you guys will be playing it on. So I will probably end up being the Leeroy Jenkins character who constantly needs to be bailed out of trouble .

As for the faction, I do like the idea of Scipii simply because I never really played as them much. Also, random question - about how large is a compressed save file for the purposes of downloading/uploading?

This is basically a Vanilla RTW game. So, it shouldn't be that hard.
Also, saves in RTW are small. Should be around 200-300 kb(compressed) at the start. The save will get larger later but still not too large.

But I like my red Romans and their temples of Ceres... Plus I know the Julii can go and conquer Greece before the AI Brutii if we act quickly enough.

Like I said in my OP small scale of modding is allowed. If Scipii are chosen then I could mod temples of Ceres available for them.

[Myth]

And Mars, don't forget Mars. Although a combination of Mars + Vulcan will make our legions seriously overpowered.

[Nightbringer]

Welcome to the throne room @Ishmael!

Don't worry, no one will mind and we can all teach you some tricks too maybe!

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I'm going o put together some basic rules once I get back home from work. I'll try to keep it simple and not over complicate things.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I apologize for my absence. Had less free time than I expected. However, I have not forgot this game here and I hope we can set it up soon.

[Nightbringer]

I apologize for my absence. Had less free time than I expected. However, I have not forgot this game here and I hope we can set it up soon.

Hey @The King,

If you are still busy, no problem, I just wanted to check in with you. It seems we have several people raring to go on this game!

[Ignoramus]

I'd be up for something like this.

Is there an easy way to remove the Senate & other Roman factions from the game, as we could then just play as "Rome" rather than the Julii or Scipii?

Regardless, I would suggest:

1.) Either modding out, or outlawing Incendiary Pigs (except maybe against factions with elephants, and even then a limit of one unit max) & definitely wardogs.

2.) Initiate 4 "houses" within the Roman faction we play, based on the 4 lines of the faction tree. This creates a stable number of factions to debate/seek their own interests and IMHO was the main cause of KotR's longevity, large player-base and success.

3.) I really like the sound of The King's Cursus honorum ides, with one or two small modifications:

I. Leading of Armies:

a) Make it that only Office holders (Consuls and praetors) can lead field armies, while Governors of provinces may maintain a smaller (1/4 - 1/2 stack) provincial garrison.
b) Non-officeholders may accompany a consul, praetor, & governor, but may only lead the army in the case of the consul, praetor, or governor dying.
c) Non-officeholders may be invested with imperium (the right to command armies) by a 2/3 majority vote of the Senate.


II. Age Requirement: Perhaps rather than not having an age requirement for the offices, we could lower the age requirements by a bit to make sure there are a decent number of candidates to choose from, while retaining the sense of "climbing the ladder" which is so strong throughout the Roman Republic.

Maybe the following:

Military Tribune: 16+

Quaestor: 24+ (must have served as military tribune for 5 years)

Aedile: 30+ (must have served as a quaestor)

Praetor: 34+ (must have served as an aedile)

Consul: 36+ (must have served as a praetor)


III.

[LooseCannon1]

Guys, you can count me as a player for this when you're ready to start. I've just acquired Rome and this looks like a more fun way to learn the game.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I actually wouldn't want to remove other Roman factions from the game. Because they allow us to play the civil war that would be hard if we have only one Roman faction. And I liked the civil war part in Vanilla.

Also, I was thinking allowing our "Senate" to lay claims on provinces. This would mean that characters are allowed to enter there and fight battles against the enemy faction. However, only Consul or Praetor or someone with the powers from the "Senate" can attack the city in that province.

[Ibn-Khaldun]

I'm slowly starting to get back on track with my life and free time so I was thinking to resurrect this game idea. I may even have the basic rules for it (if I look hard). Anyone still interested?

[Myth]

I would be.