Modding the city view feature in

[alpaca]

Hello everyone,
I developed a script that allows a fairly close representation of the city view feature for M2TW, and the feature will definitely go into our mod (Mediaeval Auctoriso (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=161)). I am posting this thread here, because I thought maybe players who enjoy vanilla would be interested in such a mod, but since it's a lot of work I don't want to create it without having a good chance of a larger number of downloads.
Here's a description of the feature (taken from our preview thread):

I'm sure you all remember the view city feature from Rome: Total War and a lot of you will have enjoyed seeing how your small capital grows to be a prospering metropolis over the course of your game just as much as I did and were sad to see it gone in M2TW.
Well, don't fret anymore. I found a way to script something that allows you to check out your cities again, and with the new graphics it's much more impressive than in RTW. I couldn't reproduce the peasants running around, but that's a small price to pay and you'll get to see your army there instead.
From a player perspective, the feature will look like this:

https://img261.imageshack.us/img261/2176/cityview1px7.th.jpg (https://img261.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview1px7.jpg)
As you can see, I made a fully built-up English city to show off my wealth. It even has a huge cathedral which really dominates the skyline as they say in the description :yes:

The first step is to open the construction scroll for the settlement you want to view

https://img248.imageshack.us/img248/628/cityview3gv2.th.jpg (https://img248.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview3gv2.jpg)

On that scroll, you have to click on "Locate position of settlement" which will open an advisor asking you whether you want to view the city on the battle map or not.

https://img470.imageshack.us/img470/8431/cityview4xt0.th.jpg (https://img470.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview4xt0.jpg)

If you click on "Show me how", you will immediately be taken to the battle screen. You'll have to start the battle as normal (start deployment, then start battle)

https://img85.imageshack.us/img85/7613/cityview6ho6.th.jpg (https://img85.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview6ho6.jpg)

But afterwards you will be able to roam your city freely:

https://img292.imageshack.us/img292/9353/cityview9gg4.th.jpg (https://img292.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview9gg4.jpg)https://img247.imageshack.us/img247/2324/cityview11bw1.th.jpg (https://img247.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview11bw1.jpg)https://img512.imageshack.us/img512/7691/cityview12jf3.th.jpg (https://img512.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview12jf3.jpg)

Of course you'll have to pay an obligatory visit to the Pleasure Palace:

https://img237.imageshack.us/img237/9659/cityview15ur4.th.jpg (https://img237.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview15ur4.jpg)

To remiss your sins afterwards, you should also have a little prayer in the Cathedral:

https://img186.imageshack.us/img186/2769/cityview10xg3.th.jpg (https://img186.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview10xg3.jpg)https://img294.imageshack.us/img294/8443/cityview13jg4.th.jpg (https://img294.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview13jg4.jpg)https://img409.imageshack.us/img409/4923/cityview16fy0.th.jpg (https://img409.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview16fy0.jpg)https://img524.imageshack.us/img524/9451/cityview14hp6.th.jpg (https://img524.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview14hp6.jpg)


When you're all done, you simply press Esc and the battle will end after a short while (you'll win it, but don't worry, our trait triggers won't react on that):

https://img242.imageshack.us/img242/364/cityview17wt7.th.jpg (https://img242.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview17wt7.jpg)https://img260.imageshack.us/img260/7933/cityview18jl3.th.jpg (https://img260.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview18jl3.jpg)


Nothing changed on the campaign map, either:

https://img174.imageshack.us/img174/9128/cityview19kc2.th.jpg (https://img174.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview19kc2.jpg)


Okay, now on to the explanation:
As most of you probably figured out by now, the script works by spawning an army on the campaign map and giving it the order to attack the settlement. Once in battle, the AI for the catapult will be disabled so it won't attack your precious city walls:

https://img515.imageshack.us/img515/5237/cityview8br4.th.jpg (https://img515.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityview8br4.jpg)

When you hit Esc, the catapult will be killed and the battle ends. Then you go back to the campaign screen.
The only problem is that the stats will show you won a battle more than you actually did, but if that overly annoys you, simply refrain from using the city view feature.

Please let me also hear more personalised opinions, if you have any to give ~;)


Edit: Ok, I already set to work on this mod. However, I need help testing it to get any possible bugs (such as certain cities not working). If you'd like to give me a hand with this, please send me a PM

Edit2: I decided to make a release here (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=86226)

[sapi]

*supports it - I'd use it occasionally for cities that never get combat but get heaps of upgrades :yes:

[Ciaran]

A definite download! The city view is a really nice little feature of RTW, and it´s sad it got lost with M2TW, which has so much more splendid cities - and castles! I´d rather call it the "castle view" :wink:
:applause: to your skills, Alpaca!

[alpaca]

A definite download! The city view is a really nice little feature of RTW, and it´s sad it got lost with M2TW, which has so much more splendid cities - and castles! I´d rather call it the "castle view" :wink:
:applause: to your skills, Alpaca!
Well settlement view would probably be more appropriate :laugh4:
I wanted a city for the cathedral as it simply looks astonishing. Still a bit too small though.

[Shahed]

EXCELLENT ! I'd love to see it, please get to work !

[crpcarrot]

i'd rather hve civil war or faction remergences would never use well maybe once or twice

[Shahed]

There are already mods for that. ;) (Emergent factions anyway)

[Tamur]

All for it here. This is what converted a couple of friends to RTW, seeing the detail in the cities in City View. It would be great to have the possibility again.

[Patricius]

This rocks:bling:

:hippie: :jumping:

There is a sense in which being able to see my empire up close gives a real sense of ownership. Massillia in RTW has a wonderful view over a river valley. There is also enough of a difference in the surrounding landscape to justify being able to study the view.

Great work.:balloon2: :balloon2:

[Martok]

Well I'm certainly all for it. It was one of the relatively few features from Rome I truly enjoyed. :yes:

[Whacker]

Well I'm certainly all for it. It was one of the relatively few features from Rome I truly enjoyed. :yes:

Agreed. There's a lot of so-called "little stuff" that was yoinked from us from RTW. I'd definitely download/install this lil' mod Alpaca.

[Flavius Merobaudes]

I would download it. The game emphasizes graphics so much over gameplay that I'm a bit disappointed it is lacking this feature.

It would also be a good opportunity for studying your city map before a siege defence and could help you decide where to set up your resistance.:yes:

[alpaca]

I would download it. The game emphasizes graphics so much over gameplay that I'm a bit disappointed it is lacking this feature.

It would also be a good opportunity for studying your city map before a siege defence and could help you decide where to set up your resistance.:yes:
Only if you're not already under siege :laugh4:

[Kovvers]

Yeah sounds good, I would use it.

[Ars Moriendi]

Well I wasn't too sure about it, but the cathedral screenshot bought me in. I realized that I've never seen one in my campaign sieges, and probably never will as it will probably only get built in well developed core cities, and the chances of enemies getting to assault them are slim at best.
It seems rather wasteful to have graphics soo cool in this game that can only be viewed on very rare occasions.

I voted "yes, do it", but if it's too much work to make it, better invest in something that impacts the gameplay.
Still, if it gets done, it will definitely be on my shopping list.

[Patricius]

Will it be a standalone mod as well as being part of a mod?

[alpaca]

Will it be a standalone mod as well as being part of a mod?
That's what this vote is all about, silly :director:

[Patricius]

That's what this vote is all about, silly :director:

Don't call me silly:whip: . What I meant is that will it precede MA in terms of release?

[alpaca]

Don't call me silly:whip: . What I meant is that will it precede MA in terms of release?
Yes, probably by a fair amount of time.

[Gorm]

:shocked: Holy Mercenary Cavalry, Batman! I have been playing Rome Total War for months and never knew there was a city view feature.

I wonder why CA didn't leave this feature in for M2TW? :inquisitive:

[Zenicetus]

This would be much appreciated. It was fun in RTW to view a newly captured settlement, especially if there were cultural differences from your faction. I'd like to see what the developed settlements in M2TW look like, without the distraction of managing a siege attack or defense.

[Patricius]

Please release as soon as you can.

[HoreTore]

Hmm... Would it be possible to make a script allowing you to see the battlefield an army is standing on?

[sapi]

Doubt it'd be easy, but I'm sure it's possible...

Something like that, considering how often it would be used, really would play with your win/loss ratio.

It would also depend on whether the battlefield is the same depending on the direction of approach (ie whether each square had 8 possible maps or one)

[alpaca]

Hmm... Would it be possible to make a script allowing you to see the battlefield an army is standing on?
No because to instigate combat you'd have to know the name of the target which you don't.

On topic: It looks like I'll be doing this. I'm searching for beta testers now who give it a whirl before I make a public release, any volunteers please send me a PM.

[sapi]

@alpaca

Slightly off topic, but with HoreTore's suggestion, would it be possible to have a custom character (moved around with the move_character cheat) with a known name instigate the battles?

On topic: sounds good :yes:

[alpaca]

@alpaca

Slightly off topic, but with HoreTore's suggestion, would it be possible to have a custom character (moved around with the move_character cheat) with a known name instigate the battles?

On topic: sounds good :yes:
No, you need to know the names of both the attacking and the defending character. What I meant is that since you spawn him you know the name of the attacker, but you don't know the name of the target/defender

[sapi]

Well, what I was thinking was to have the player relocate a known character (the defender) to the battlefield that he wished to view and use that info, plus a known attacker, to generate the battle, but anyway, :focus: :grin2:

[Patricius]

Hmm... Would it be possible to make a script allowing you to see the battlefield an army is standing on?

A very early RTW preview said that it would be possible to watch the armies. Sadly that proved not to be.

[hoom]

Yes, City view and Army view would be awesome!

I had imagined RTW would do Army view by loading the battlefield & either having the army march in from one side of the field & back out on the other if the army had been moving recently or milling around & parading by a camp if they had been static for that turn.

We were even supposed to get gladiator games & chariot races in RTW.

[alpaca]

Ok, progress report: The script is basically ready, but I only have one kind soul to test it. As I'm too lazy to do extensive tests myself, you'll have to wait a few days or beta-test it

[alpaca]

Since the testing so far didn't reveal any problems, here (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=86226)'s version 1.0 for you.
If you have any bug reports, please post them in that thread.

[Whacker]

Since the testing so far didn't reveal any problems, here (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=86226)'s version 1.0 for you.
If you have any bug reports, please post them in that thread.

Sweet! So far by itself it works fine. I gotta use your readme and incorporate it into my personal frankenmod that I always play.

[atheotes]

:shocked: Holy Mercenary Cavalry, Batman! I have been playing Rome Total War for months and never knew there was a city view feature.

Me neither...:shame: btw how do we do it? :embarassed: sorry for being OT

[atheotes]

double post

[alpaca]

Just to show everyone who didn't download yet what you're missing:

https://img230.imageshack.us/img230/2513/cityviews1mi3.th.jpg (https://img230.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityviews1mi3.jpg) http://img111.imageshack.us/img111/4628/cityviews2hf0.th.jpg (http://img111.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityviews2hf0.jpg) https://img162.imageshack.us/img162/9594/cityviews3qu0.th.jpg (https://img162.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cityviews3qu0.jpg)

I think CA should really have included this feature, the cities that are usually not sieged just look best :smile:
Particularly the Cathedrals/Jama are awesome. I could really imagine them standing right there in a city (especially the Southern European one since I know the Dome of Florence a bit).

[Martok]

That really is sweet, alpaca. I agree it's a shame this feature was left out. :yes: