Vanilla Balance Mod v0.2 BETA testing pack released

Following on from the work done by myself, Byzantine Emperor and our kind supporters in this thread, I am pleased to announce the release of the Vanilla Balance Mod v0.2 BETA testing pack. The purpose of this release is to enable the initial build of this limited mini-mod for the vanilla imperial campaign to be tested so that feedback can be given.

The aim of VBM is to rebalance the Imperial Campaign to create a fairer and more level playing field so that the same factions do not die out early all the time, and the world isn't left always to the same few superpowers. It is not a conversion such as Rome Total Realism or Europa Barbarorum, but works within the confines of the vanilla campaign, modifying as little as possible. In addition, while this is not a "realism" mod in any sense, we have avoided making changes that flew in the face of history, so there are no flagrantly incorrect faction starting positions (or at least no more incorrect than they were in Vanilla)

As yet this mod is far from complete, in that there has not been sufficient testing of the effects that the balance changes have on various factions. We would therefore be very grateful for any feedback which BETA testers can give us on how the factions fared, so that we can perfect the balancing for a future 1.0 release.
VBM 0.2 BETA testing pack incorporates a "Perfect Spy" script which can be used to gain detailed information on every AI army and town, just as if you had a spy right next to it. This will help to see how the AI factions are faring, what troops they're building etc. The script is activated by pressing F1 while at the campaign map to bring up the Keyboard Shortcuts scroll, then clicking on the question mark to bring up the advisor. When he/she appears, click the "Show Me How" button and the Perfect Spy script will be activated.
To complement this it is recommended to play with the Fog of War turned off, which can be accomplished through RomeShell. With the Fog of War on, press ` (located above Tab and to the left of 1 on most keyboards), type "toggle_fow" (without the quotation marks) and hit return, followed by ` again to exit. With the combination of this and the Perfect Spy script you will be able to see exactly what is going on all over the map, the better to give feedback!

Download Vanilla Balance Mod v0.2 BETA testing pack here

PLEASE READ THE README CAREFULLY BEFORE INSTALLING. (Reproduced at the end of this post).

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has contributed ideas and support thus far, and to thank in advance those who test this mini-mod and help us to create a better balanced Imperial Campaign where all factions are more or less viable for the AI as well as for a human player.

Barbarossa82

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===VANILLA BALANCE MOD V0.2 BETA TESTING PACK===
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README CONTENTS
===============

1. Most Important Notes
2. Installation Instructions
3. Uninstallation Instructions
4. List of changes



MOST IMPORTANT NOTES - PLEASE READ THESE IF NOTHING ELSE
========================================================

1. There is no uninstaller provided with this mod. If you wish to have the opportunity of easily uninstalling and returning your game to its previous state without a reinstall of RTW, follow the instructions contained in this readme about backing up your files.
2. This mod is at Beta stage. It is not finished or close to finished. The balancing is far from perfect. The purpose of the release of this testing pack is to give players the opportunity to test the mod and identify weaknesses and areas for improvement.



INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
=========================

1. (Highly recommended) make backup copies of the following files. All file locations refer to subfolders of your "Rome Total War" folder, which by default is located at C:\Program Files\Activision\Rome - Total War.
Data\descr_model_battle.txt
Data\export_descr_advice.txt
Data\export_descr_buildings.txt
Data\export_descr_unit.txt
Data\text\campaign_descriptions.txt
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign \descr_strat.txt
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign \map_britons.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign \map_carthage.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign \map_egypt.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign \map_seleucid.tga

2. Open the Vanilla Balance Mod 0.2 WinZip archive. Click "Extract", and enter the location of your "Rome Total War" directory in the "extract to" box, for example: C:\Program Files\Activision\Rome - Total War .

3. Select to extract "all files", and make sure the option boxes for "use folder names" and "overwrite existing files" are ticked (checked).

4. Click extract. Vanilla Balance Mod 0.2 Beta Testing Pack is now installed.


UNINSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
===========================

1. Replace the files backed up during installation (see list at installation step 1) with the backup copies.
2. Optionally delete the following files:
Data\scripts\show_me\perfect_spy.txt
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_armenia.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_britons.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_carthage.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_dacia.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_egypt.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_gauls.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_germans.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_greek_cities.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_macedon.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_numidia.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_parthia.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_pontus.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_scythia.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_seleucid.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_spain.tga
Data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign\leader_pic_thrace.tga


LIST OF CHANGES
===============

INTERFACE
* All factions are now playable except for the Senate and the Rebels
* Leader portraits, maps and campaign descriptions for all factions that lacked them
* Revised maps for factions whose starting positions have changed

NON-ROMAN GENERALS
* All non-Roman factions use the upgraded version of their generals' bodyguards from the beginning of the game. This does not affect the Britons

BRITONS
* Starting denarii reduced
* Samarobriva lost to Gauls
* Navy decommissioned
* Family member Belenus moved to Great Britain, his army disbanded
* Chariot morale reduced

GAULS
* Starting denarii increased
* Samarobriva gained from Britons, modest garrison installed

GERMANS
* German Spear Warband is no longer phalanx-capable. Has same stats, abilities and costs as the regular warbands of other barbarian factions

SPAIN
* Carthago Nova lost to Carthage
* Family member Matugenus moved to just South of the Pyrenees
* Morale and formation settings for Iberian Infantry and Scutarii swapped, since from their descriptions and the levels of barracks buildings required to train them, it seemed inappropriate that Iberians should be more disciplined than Scutarii
* Iberian Infantry defence skill slightly increased

CARTHAGE
* Starting denarii increased to same level as Roman families
* Spy on Sicily moved closer to Messana to prioritise war with Scipii instead of Greece
* Navy under Admiral Timasion expanded to four biremes, with admiral now ranked 4-star.
* Second navy's admiral promoted to 2-star
* Medium-level barracks in Carthage, sufficient to raise Libyan Spearmen
* Forces on Sicily under Hasdrubal strengthened
* Carthago Nova gained from Spain, with garrison.
* Carthage can now recruit Scutarii at a City Barracks.
* Changes to Scutarii and Iberian Infantry noted under Spain apply to Carthage too.

BRUTII
* Amulius Brutus loses Natural Military Skill trait

GREEK CITIES
* Diplomat moved from Sicily to Aetolia
* Spartan Hoplites now have a standard bearer

PONTUS
* Chariot morale reduced
* Scythed Chariots can now be recruited only from a level 2 smith and above instead of level 1. Chariot archers are recruitable only with a level 3 smith.

SELEUCID EMPIRE
* Starting denarii increased
* Militia Barracks in Antioch allows training of Levy Pikemen from the start of the game
* Sidon gained from Egypt with garrison
* Chariot morale reduced
* Scythed Chariots can now be recruited only from a level 2 smith and above instead of level 1

EGYPT
* Shrines removed from all cities to make presence of garrison more necessary
* Sidon lost to Seleucid Empire
* Numerous adjustments to cost of recruiting and maintaining units, to bring them into line with similar sized units with similar stats from other factions.
* Bonuses and immunities of Egyptian troops when fighting in hot conditions removed. Although characterful, this created an unfair advantage over Egypt's enemies, since the faction almost invariably fights in hot conditions. They now suffer the same heat penalties as equivalent units from the Greek and Carthaginian cultures.
* Chariot morale reduced
* Scythed Chariots can now be recruited only from a level 2 smith and above instead of level 1. Chariot archers are recruitable only with a level 3 smith.
* Starting chariots disbanded
* A few other starting troops disbanded

REBELS
* Army of Judaean Rebels begins game in Judaea (currently this does not work well as they disband after a few turns, probably because Jerusalem is still in Egyptian hands)
* Garrisons of Petra, Bostra and Apollonia increased, within reason


Credits

Mod Team Leader: Barbarossa82
Coder/Tester/Ideas: Byzantine Emperor
Ideas: Woad Warrior
Scutarii unit cards: professorspatula
Additional thanks: Seasoned Alcoholic
Wikipedia (for material used in faction descriptions)
Creative Assembly (for making the game in the first place)

I am currently testing the next version of Vanilla Balance Mod, which from current indications looks very promsing.
As you testers may have noticed, there are a couple of issues with the current 0.2 build - rampant Gaul, Super Pontus, the Scipii unable to compete on sicily and the Seleucids still going for an early shower after 10-20 years. It looks as though 0.3 may have solved those problems, and as soon as I've done some further testing and fine-tuning, it will be released.
In my test campaign, it's 210 BC and so far the following has happened (so far as is relevant to the factions I've modded):

Britons: sitting comfortably on their island building up their power base but not running amok on the continent
Gaul: Going under to the the Julii but still very much alive thanks to seizing land from Germany
Carthage/Scipii: this has been really interesting. The Scipii won the struggle for Syracuse and ended up controlling both that and Messana, but the Carthaginians massed a huge army and took both cities from them, securing the whole of Sicily for themselves. However, while the Carthaginians were subduing Numidia and absorbing all their lands (except for Palma, which the Numidians have taken from Carthage), the Scipii built up their naval superiority. They then landed a vast invasion force on Sicily and took the whole island back. After a brief lull to reoganise, they then landed two full stacks in Africa and took Carthage. However, the Carthaginians have ralled and re-taken the city, deploying huge forces including Poeni Infantry, elephants and Sacred Band. It's gonna be a long war!

Seleucids/Egypt. This may need a bit of rebancing now. After a shaky start in which they lost some of their Eastern lands to Parthia, the Seleucids have gone berserk and obliterated all resistance to them in Asia Minor (which they own the whole of), also taking over Arabia, Nabataea, Palmyra and Elymais. They then turned their attentions to Egypt and despite a valiant fightback by the Ptolemies, the Seleucids conquered Jerusalem and Alexandria. The situation for the Egyptians was so dire that Carthage, who are their allies, sent around four stacks of troops to aid them, but just as they were about to engage the Seleucids news reached them that Carthage was under attack by the Scipii, and they turned and headed for home, leaving Memphis to fall to the Seleucids after a valiant defence.

A full, proper version of the Vanilla Balance Mod will be released some time in the next 10 days. The balancing has now got pretty good and the factions are now in a state where the same old powers no longer inevitably rise to rule vast swathes of the world. The steamroller effect is still present as it is an underlying feature of the Total War strategic model, but the colour of that steamroller is now anybody's guess.

In my experience of the current build, the following tends to happen:

GAUL/JULII - Julii win 60-65% of the time, else Gauls ravage N Italy until stopped by Senate army

SCIPII/CARTHAGE: Almost perfect 50-50 balance. Carthage normally strong early on, Scipii normally take Sicily but find conquest of Africa far more difficult. At any rate, a campaign played with Vanilla Balance Mod will see Poeni Infantry, Sacred Band and elephants because the days of early Carthaginian collapse are gone.

NEAR/MIDDLE EAST: Seleucids are now much more robust, and likely to emerge as a world power unless the face war on multiple fronts. In my games they have always expanded to some degree, and if Pontus is particularly weak, the Seleucids can end up as the regional superpower. Egypt, though not the powerhouse it once was, is still capable of building an empire. Even if the Seleucids do go down they now last a lot longer so you will probably get to see their cool troop types like Silver Shield pikemen and legionaries.

I just have to build the installer and uninstaller (yes, there will be one this time) and it'll be released.