PseRamesses
03-10-2006, 19:34
At the risk of being a bit picky I´d like to correct some unhistorical features of the game since you´re all so keen on being realistic in the mod. Since my main passion in life is ancient egyptian history and I´ve studied it extensively since 1989 I do have some knowledge in this area.
Location of cities:
Almost all ancient egyptian settlements are located on the east side of the Nile due to religious beleifs. In later periods settlements doesn´t follow that pattern. Memphis is one of the oldest cities and was founded on the east side of the river. Even main Cairo, today, is on that side.
*Therefore Memphis is located on the wrong side in the game.
*Due to higher sea levels in anciet times Alexandria was unacessable by land from the west. You have to go over atleast 3 riverbranshes to reach her from that direction. This is why it was located there - hard to reach and easy to defend.
Transportation:
Even during the Ptolemaic era the egyptians main transports was done by boat and "roads" was scarce. The rivercrossings in the game are not sufficently depicting this. Nile rivercrossings always (95%) occurs at a settlement. There are some in the Delta that wasn´t founded in, or outside, a settlement. Now. we can´t place rivercrossings inside a settlement but we can place the just outside them, right!? When it comes to major rivercrossings the two biggest was, ofcourse, located at Mephis and Thebes (portrayed as Diospolis Magna in the game)
*There should be rivercrossings in the immediately vincinity of all settlements along the Nile in the game and nowhere else except the one you have in the delta region. Further movement penalties should be applied in this region.
Wonders at Giza:
On the battlemap they are not located along the Nile as in reality. Today they are quite a distance from the Nile. The river was almost 15m higher in ancient times and during the millennias she has buried her way almost 60m into the land in some places. So she was shallower and in some places, especially in the long "stretch from Abydos to Mephis she was some 4-6 times wider than today. This was NOT the case during ancient times ass the temple connected by causeways lay at the immediate riverbank. If you move Memphis to the appropriate riverside then the Pyramids and Sphinx complex can be moved one tile further to the east almost connecting it to the river.
Climate:
In the game most regions in Egypt are represented by an arid but nevertheless to temperate portrayment. Beside the actual river valley all climate should be set on desert, rocky and sandy. Even at the time of Egypt´s foundation some 5.100 years ago they feared moving outside the valleys due to the severe climate there. "Kemet" meaning roughly "the black (riversoil) and the red (desert) land" was the egyptians own name for their land. Also the god Seth is one of the most prominent gods in the pantheon and he was the patron-god for the desert, storms, war, death etc. This should give you an estimate on what were dealing with here.
All movement through the desert areas are poorly portrayed in the game since whole armies can haul ass all over the african continent with ease. Ex: at one point the Libyans in Cyrene launched an attack with an army hitting the egyptian settlement at the Siwa Oasis which came as a complete shok to the Egyptians at that time. Then there were only three ways into Egypt: south via the Nile from Nubia, west along the coast into the delta and east from the Gaza strip into the delta. This was why ancient Egypt was such a stronghold.
*Implement severe movement penalties in ALL desert regions, except along rivers and coasts, in the game.
Thanks for you attention and keep up with the good work on this epic mod.
Location of cities:
Almost all ancient egyptian settlements are located on the east side of the Nile due to religious beleifs. In later periods settlements doesn´t follow that pattern. Memphis is one of the oldest cities and was founded on the east side of the river. Even main Cairo, today, is on that side.
*Therefore Memphis is located on the wrong side in the game.
*Due to higher sea levels in anciet times Alexandria was unacessable by land from the west. You have to go over atleast 3 riverbranshes to reach her from that direction. This is why it was located there - hard to reach and easy to defend.
Transportation:
Even during the Ptolemaic era the egyptians main transports was done by boat and "roads" was scarce. The rivercrossings in the game are not sufficently depicting this. Nile rivercrossings always (95%) occurs at a settlement. There are some in the Delta that wasn´t founded in, or outside, a settlement. Now. we can´t place rivercrossings inside a settlement but we can place the just outside them, right!? When it comes to major rivercrossings the two biggest was, ofcourse, located at Mephis and Thebes (portrayed as Diospolis Magna in the game)
*There should be rivercrossings in the immediately vincinity of all settlements along the Nile in the game and nowhere else except the one you have in the delta region. Further movement penalties should be applied in this region.
Wonders at Giza:
On the battlemap they are not located along the Nile as in reality. Today they are quite a distance from the Nile. The river was almost 15m higher in ancient times and during the millennias she has buried her way almost 60m into the land in some places. So she was shallower and in some places, especially in the long "stretch from Abydos to Mephis she was some 4-6 times wider than today. This was NOT the case during ancient times ass the temple connected by causeways lay at the immediate riverbank. If you move Memphis to the appropriate riverside then the Pyramids and Sphinx complex can be moved one tile further to the east almost connecting it to the river.
Climate:
In the game most regions in Egypt are represented by an arid but nevertheless to temperate portrayment. Beside the actual river valley all climate should be set on desert, rocky and sandy. Even at the time of Egypt´s foundation some 5.100 years ago they feared moving outside the valleys due to the severe climate there. "Kemet" meaning roughly "the black (riversoil) and the red (desert) land" was the egyptians own name for their land. Also the god Seth is one of the most prominent gods in the pantheon and he was the patron-god for the desert, storms, war, death etc. This should give you an estimate on what were dealing with here.
All movement through the desert areas are poorly portrayed in the game since whole armies can haul ass all over the african continent with ease. Ex: at one point the Libyans in Cyrene launched an attack with an army hitting the egyptian settlement at the Siwa Oasis which came as a complete shok to the Egyptians at that time. Then there were only three ways into Egypt: south via the Nile from Nubia, west along the coast into the delta and east from the Gaza strip into the delta. This was why ancient Egypt was such a stronghold.
*Implement severe movement penalties in ALL desert regions, except along rivers and coasts, in the game.
Thanks for you attention and keep up with the good work on this epic mod.