I am starting this separate thread as the original Napoleonic thread has become too long and it is possible for the signals to get buried in the noise.
This is a humble request for help from the CA programmers and designers to make the Napoleonic Mod for MTW as realistic as possible.
My background in the Napoleonics Wargaming goes back to the TalonSoft hex based games. I have played Waterloo:Napoleon's Last Battle from BreakAway Games as well. All the while the longing was there for a true 3D Napoleonic game that takes into account terrain features, has decent sprites, has weather properly modelled etc etc. It was a recurring wet dream for me to imagine how it would look if somebody does a Napoleonic game on the Shogun engine.
Then came MTW with the thundering cannons and fusil-wielding musketeers. I found myself ever so close to the dream of 3D Napoleonic nirvana. The start of effort by Lord Krazy and the other good lords to do a Napoleonic Mod was the final spark. I threw myself into the fray to contribute my little iota of modding goodness.
When I look at the MTW engine for use in a Nap mode, I almost cry; it is almost there but not quite You know that feeling when a beautifully crafted tool would almost fit your needs but not quite The story is the same with the MTW engine. We need a few changes before we could faithfully simulate Napoleonics using this jewel.
To begin with, cannons were not movable. The good Lord Krazy fixed that. We now have horse guns that gallop along with charging cavaliers This is a good example of playing around with the graphics and the unit data files to get a new unit. There is other stuff that would require something more drastic. So enough of the rambling and let me come to the point.
We, the modders that are working on the Napoleonic mod for MTW would like to get some help from the CA programmers and producers on the following topics. It is understood that not all of the requests could be honoured but hey I still believe in Santa Claus We also understand that the schedules for the programmers are extremely tight but we believe that the Napoleonic mod would only give the MTW longer legs.
To aid clear communication, I have numbered the wish list items below. I have also classified them into two categories, easy and challenging. Without further ado here it comes:
1* (Easy) In the tactical battle screen does the AI have an unfair advantage if I set the difficulty level at EXPERT? When tuning the troop stats I always set the difficulty level to EXPERT in my custom designed battles (for example to test the melee results between heavy and light cavalry). I have a feeling that the AI has an unfair advantage at the EXPERT setting. Is this true?
2*(Easy) Column #45, Unit Specialties Labels in the Crusaders_Unit_Prod11.txt has the following strings and enumerated values for some of the units :"DEFENDING_RIVER(1), DEFENDING_CASTLE(1)". Are there any other strings that the AI would recognize? For example "DEFENDING_FOREST(4), DEFENDING_BUILDING(3)". I am trying to make light infantry deadly in the woods, forests and other broken terrain. I have not found a way to fix this. This might help.
3*(Easy) Lancers and heavy cavalry had an advantage when attacking infantry. Lancers had a longer reach and the heavies could just break through by sheer weight. There is a column that says Cav_Attack_Bonus. But none for Infantry_Attack_Bonus. How do I give an infantry attack bonus to an unit?
3*(Challenging) How to make infantry form square when being charged by cavalry? The square formation should be nearly impervious to a cavalry charge but should be vulnerable to volley fire from deployed infantry and should be very vulnerable to artillery. I have played quite a few battles with the Napoleonic mod on the MTW. The inf vs cav interaction is just not right When charged by cavalry, infantry almost always runs away. Rather it should form squares and weather the charge.
Could we change the animation for one of the formations, say the wedge, and change it into a square formation? The wedge is not a Napoleonic formation anyway. Is it possible to change the animation for the W command from a wedge to a hollow square and give anti-cavalry bonus to the unit only when the unit is in this formation? If we could it would be perfect.
Enough for now. More coming later. Thanks for a wonderful game.
-Cuirassier
