Kraellin
05-09-2002, 21:57
ok, i was looking at some screenshots on .com at tosa's suggestion and we were talking on icq about textures and tiles and so on and as i was scrolling thru the various screenies and chatting, an idea occurred to me about the old multiplayer campaign game idea.
it occurred to me that it would be very easy to make, not a complete campaign for multi, but that a smaller, variable idea might very well be possible and not have to tap CA's time and resources all that much. it could almost be done completely from the multi interface and also draws on some of magy's online campaign stuff.
the idea is this, when a host hosts a game, there could be an option to allow a series of maps to be played all as if it were one game. they just get played in sequence. this could also be set to play a number of random maps or the same map over and over, like a castle map being sieged. the host sets the number of maps and sets a 3 part gold set up. the first part is the total amount of gold a player starts with. this is simply set by the host at any number he wishes. the 2nd part is the amount of that first part that he wants to allow to be used to buy the starting army. and the 3rd part is the amount one can spend to replenish your existing army after each battle. thus the host would set 3 different fields, something like 40,000/10,000/3000. 40,000 total, 10,000 for starting army and 3000 to replenish troops after each battle. first one out of gold or men, loses. or man with the least amount of gold at the end of the series of maps, loses. something like that.
and perhaps even better, you give a starting total amount, a starting army amount (which comes out of the total) and then divide the rest between the numbers of maps designated. or, you allow a player to spend as much as he wants of his remaining gold to replenish his troops. if he doesnt spend wisely, he'll be out of gold and lose.
this would make sieging a castle more realistic. it might take several games to achieve or fail, with money being spent to bolster the castle defenses each map or the reinforcements of troops for the attacker and so on. it would add a new dimension to the total war series without the complexity of a full multi campaign, but at least be heading in that direction for later total war games.
the other part to this is that after each battle period you keep your remaining troops to be carried over into the next part. this might be a little trickier to code, but it's a far cry from doing a complete campaign. thus, a general might tactically withdraw his troops from one field of battle to replenish, rest, and get a better tactical position, knowing that he still has a chance to win the day overall.
this is actually workable. this could actually be done. it wouldnt require days to play out like a full campaign would, just hours. it might be more difficult with 2v2 or more, but could certainly be done on a 1v1 basis. it wouldnt require a big drain on CA's time and resources either and would add a LOT of playability to the game.
the host could designate an exact series of maps, or random maps, or one map like a castle map, or a set of maps to be played randomly and so on. gold amounts are set by the host and could also be set in a number of ways. there could even be a number of win/lose conditions. weather would still be weather, but it would all stay within whatever season was set by the host.
this is a very workable idea and if anyone has mr. de plater's email addy, i hope you copy this post and send it to him. it may well be too late to implement for the initial release, but it's even not that much that it couldnt be included in a patch or at least in the add-on that's sure to follow the game itself and it would satisfy, at least to some extent, the old promise of a multi campaign game that couldnt be realized in the original game.
DT/CA/ACT, this could work, folks.
K.
------------------
The only absolute is that there are no absolutes.
it occurred to me that it would be very easy to make, not a complete campaign for multi, but that a smaller, variable idea might very well be possible and not have to tap CA's time and resources all that much. it could almost be done completely from the multi interface and also draws on some of magy's online campaign stuff.
the idea is this, when a host hosts a game, there could be an option to allow a series of maps to be played all as if it were one game. they just get played in sequence. this could also be set to play a number of random maps or the same map over and over, like a castle map being sieged. the host sets the number of maps and sets a 3 part gold set up. the first part is the total amount of gold a player starts with. this is simply set by the host at any number he wishes. the 2nd part is the amount of that first part that he wants to allow to be used to buy the starting army. and the 3rd part is the amount one can spend to replenish your existing army after each battle. thus the host would set 3 different fields, something like 40,000/10,000/3000. 40,000 total, 10,000 for starting army and 3000 to replenish troops after each battle. first one out of gold or men, loses. or man with the least amount of gold at the end of the series of maps, loses. something like that.
and perhaps even better, you give a starting total amount, a starting army amount (which comes out of the total) and then divide the rest between the numbers of maps designated. or, you allow a player to spend as much as he wants of his remaining gold to replenish his troops. if he doesnt spend wisely, he'll be out of gold and lose.
this would make sieging a castle more realistic. it might take several games to achieve or fail, with money being spent to bolster the castle defenses each map or the reinforcements of troops for the attacker and so on. it would add a new dimension to the total war series without the complexity of a full multi campaign, but at least be heading in that direction for later total war games.
the other part to this is that after each battle period you keep your remaining troops to be carried over into the next part. this might be a little trickier to code, but it's a far cry from doing a complete campaign. thus, a general might tactically withdraw his troops from one field of battle to replenish, rest, and get a better tactical position, knowing that he still has a chance to win the day overall.
this is actually workable. this could actually be done. it wouldnt require days to play out like a full campaign would, just hours. it might be more difficult with 2v2 or more, but could certainly be done on a 1v1 basis. it wouldnt require a big drain on CA's time and resources either and would add a LOT of playability to the game.
the host could designate an exact series of maps, or random maps, or one map like a castle map, or a set of maps to be played randomly and so on. gold amounts are set by the host and could also be set in a number of ways. there could even be a number of win/lose conditions. weather would still be weather, but it would all stay within whatever season was set by the host.
this is a very workable idea and if anyone has mr. de plater's email addy, i hope you copy this post and send it to him. it may well be too late to implement for the initial release, but it's even not that much that it couldnt be included in a patch or at least in the add-on that's sure to follow the game itself and it would satisfy, at least to some extent, the old promise of a multi campaign game that couldnt be realized in the original game.
DT/CA/ACT, this could work, folks.
K.
------------------
The only absolute is that there are no absolutes.