http://www.totalwar.org/gal/ETW/Empi..._artillery.jpg
Printable View
Goan blast thum :daisy: ! :gring:
sweet
I see you can easily identify on the mini map if a unit is infantry, artillery or cavalry. Nice. I wonder if the little icons on the unit cards in the first picture means that they're hidden.
Interesting unit numbers, also, on the minimap the opposing armies look like they are right next to each other, however they clearly are not. This suggests that CA have implemented maps which are truly huge in scale, also, notice the predominace of hills?
This is very good.
Wow! These screens are fantastic. The game looks beautiful,. Especially from long range. Close up the graphics are only slightly better than Med 2. But from far away, wow.
And that last screenshot, Spain vs. Austria. The fields, hills, fences bushes and walls really bring the battlefield to life.
I really, really want to see a demo now. :laugh4:
The Spanish one looks especially authentic, the mini map has lots of detail and textures in it, if the game is to be released in March, if there is to be a demo it should come out imminently, well we can hope that it does.
Also the battle speed is interesting, it looks like you can have half time as well as pause, incredible visuals too naturally.
Nice screenshots, many thanks.
Two things seem odd to me though:
-Cavalry seems too neatly deployed
-The pirate ship is a 15th/16th Centuries Galleon :inquisitive:
Terrain looks great.
I suppose the cavalry or in quite neat ranks, but the formation may loosen once they get moving.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lusitani
It was much more common that you might think for Galleons to be around, especially during the early 1700's. Galleons, Caravels and other old styles stuck around in the form of old ships and even some new ones built in the old style. It makes sense for pirates to be using outdated technology, they couldn't afford newer, sleeker designs.
I think the US units are, the general, two army units, two minutemen units, four army units, two green units which I can't figure out, two dragoons, one cav unit I can't put a name on, two arty units, two militia and two rocket units (captured from the English maybe?).
That's just speculation on my behalf. The minimap in the screenshot with the Spanish is massive, I can't imagine what it would look like with more armies on the field.
Majestic!:2thumbsup:
Thats a very good way of describing the third screen shot. There's just something... stately and grand about the art style and graphics. Colourful uniforms, fantastic hats and fearsome facial hair, it really captures the spirit of the period. :2thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by Sol Invictus
As good as the screen shots are, my first thought was “Yikes! Turn off all of those unit flags! They ruin the scene!”.
I’ve been turning them off for as long as the option has existed. Do folks usually leave them on during play? They annoy me to no end.
Yeah, the giant banners are an eyesore. Always the first thing I turn off.
Sir Beane, yeah, if it weren't for the giant banners, I can almost imagine that I'm standing on a hill watching a battle.
Where do you go to turn off the banners?
I absolutely love the graphics, zoomed in, but particularly zoomed-out! And, moreover, I love how the units are spread across a large swatch of land, much like in NTW. This will be pretty sweeeet!!!! :jumping:
Yes, I noticed this! Awesome!Quote:
Originally Posted by Bopa
Well, I can't really answer for Empires, but in previous total war games, you can turn them off in the preferences.txt document just outside of the RTW main directory. Do a search in the RTW and M2TW forums for it.Quote:
Originally Posted by bloodshed
Thanks med2 is much better.
Don't thank me. Thank TosaInu for presenting these fantastic screenies for me, and me alone. :snobby:
Or give me a balloon...
Are those 2 units of Colonial Cuirassiers in the first picture? Did they even have such a unit?
For some reason I can't see the screenshots, but i'l assume it's just some software issue.
I shall assume they are awesome and await the awesome demo soon to come.
They are sooo awesome, Polemists. Godly, even. Their glory shines greater than that of even the sun itself, so magnificient are they. All the wonders of bygone days stading together would be nothing in comparison to these miraculous works of art.
It is too bad you cannot view them. :evilgrin:
the pocket watch for the timer in the first screenshot is a nice touch. doesn't appear in the others though maybe they where from battles with no time limit.
WHY DO YOU TORTURE ME SO!!! I CANT EVER PLAY THIS GAME ON MY CURRENT RIG!!! WHY TOSA WHYYYYY?!?!?!
*Cries in a cornor pulls hair over to one side and finds razor blade*
I really cannot get over the unit numbers, they are so much smaller than I expected, the average unit being 60-120 men. The graphics look very nice, but not in a way which makes my wallet suffer from internal bleeding.
It seems that perhaps this time CA have taken the speed off the GFX just a bit, I also like the way the overall look of the game is far more, ummm, limited? minimal? mature? than the previous two titles. Colours look more refrained and realistic, it looks grayer, dare I say it, it is reminding me a bit of MTW...:sweatdrop:
The artillery units do not appear to have an ammunition level, does this mean unlimited ammo for your artillery? (see rockets and cannons on screen 1)
Also on the third ('SPAIN') screenshot there are two units on the bottom row, I presume dragoons, same unit card, one with an ammo level and one without?
Yes, they are indeed dragoons, I believe they differ in that certain respect because one unit is dismounted, thus the ammo level, and one is still playing the role of cavalry, thus no ammo level as it would be impossoble to shoot from the saddle.Quote:
Originally Posted by pdoyle007
Nice screenies, Tosa. Me likey. :2thumbsup:
Perhaps it was so rare for artillery to run out of ammo in battles that CA decided it was easier to just not include it in the game? Not sure. :shrug:Quote:
Originally Posted by pdoyle007
Heh; nice catch. I hadn't even noticed that.Quote:
Originally Posted by pdoyle007
My first guess is that it's a bug of some kind. Unless there are two separate dragoon units, one more focused on skirmishing....
I don't know if my eyes are deceiving me, but those look like cuirasseurs to me. I can clearly see the brass helmet with horsehair and the cuirasse. I'd say one has drawn pistols while the other is drawn swords or exhausted ammo, but they both look like cuirasseurs. The one next to the second cuirasseur (with the three-corner hat) does look like a dragoon unit.
Look alot like a dragoon unit, and their is no cuirasse as far as I can tell, just some deceptive white lining on the coat of the unit.Quote:
Originally Posted by SwordsMaster
As I already stated two posts above, I think it can be explained by the ability of dragoons to be used as dismounted infantry with carbines, and a mounted regular cavalry.
Yeah, I think you're right. If you look at the screenshot there appears to be a unit of horses with no banner above and no one is riding 'em.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bopa the Magyar
First unit is Generals Bodyguard which doesn't have a cuirass, next 2 cavalry units are dragoons, next is a standard regiment of horse.Quote:
Are those 2 units of Colonial Cuirassiers in the first picture? Did they even have such a unit?
Bingo.Quote:
Yes, they are indeed dragoons, I believe they differ in that certain respect because one unit is dismounted, thus the ammo level, and one is still playing the role of cavalry, thus no ammo level as it would be impossoble to shoot from the saddle.
And yes artillery do not have an ammo limit.
Aha. Yeah, that would make sense. Thanks for the clarification, JL. :bow:
Thanks TosaInu for the fabulous screen shots.
And Thanks Jack for the explanations.
I have a couple of questions if someone cares to guess…
Are the units in Buckskins in the first shot Frontier Riflemen or just American Militia?
What type of unit are the Spaniards in the Slouch Hats and not ammo restrictions?
Long Rifle Men.Quote:
Are the units in Buckskins in the first shot Frontier Riflemen or just American Militia?
PikemenQuote:
What type of unit are the Spaniards in the Slouch Hats and not ammo restrictions?
Excellent information Jack, thanks! :2thumbsup:
Also it's good to know that pikemen still make an appearence in game.
No ammo limit for artillery eh? Exellent! Now I can blow things up to my hearts content. :laugh4:
@ third screenshot.
Droll... on... my keyboard...
Like Homer. :daisy: sweet. Am I imagining things, battle distances have been at least doubled?
Wow! Thank you so kindly Jack! Especially for such a speedy reply! :bow:
I was just thinking that. Those mini-maps cover a huge area.Quote:
Originally Posted by Praxil
And those water effects, beautiful. :2thumbsup:
Ok; above the right hand artillery flag, on the first rise on the opposition’s side, is a lone horse with a rider. Is that a white horse, or an appaloosa?
:charge:
This is so cool!
Great job Tosa, and thanks Jack :bow:
I think one of the units is dismounted....doesnt explain the ammo bars though...Quote:
Originally Posted by pdoyle007
Well it does, because they can’t load and fire from horseback and don’t have the bar when mounted.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lusitani
One question about those large maps - are these taken from an MP game, or from a battle fought during the SP campaign? I'm pretty sure in M2TW that the MP maps were bigger than those you fought on during the SP games.
I'm so glad I'm looking at this thread at work and not on my gaming computer. I think my poor graphics card would have a fit if I were to show it the instruments of torture to which I will be subjecting it.:2thumbsup:
Excellent news! While it seems a little unrealistic to have cannons which can keep firing indefinitely (or until they explode), it's definitely better than the situation in TWs past, where I would find myself having to abandon sieges because my artilllery had run out of ammo. Would it not make sense for my gun crews to be able to bring up more ammunition faster than the defenders can rebuild their walls, or even better, for my gunners to simply stock up a massive pile of cannonballs before the assault?Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack Lusted
Indeed Sir Beane, I am aware of that. I know that many robust and sturdy older ships were still available in the early 18th century, but lets face it, if you were a pirate...would you be using such an old and slow vessel when you could have a sloop or a xebeq?Quote:
Originally Posted by Sir Beane
Another interesting detail i noticed on the spanish army screenshot is the dismounted cavalry unit horses lying there on the right side of the screen.
In the third screenshot on the right we can see a unit of riderless horses, presumably those from the dragoons. I must say that they've been incredibly well trained to say in formation even without a rider. :laugh4:
Also I notice that the pirate symbol being used in the second screenshot is the Jolly Rodger of 'Calico' Jack Rackham. It's one of the better pirate flags, in my opinion, good choice CA! I wonder if we might see a variety of flags for pirates?
Jack Lusted explained a while back in some forgotten thread how the battlemap's dimensions were to be extended by a considerable amount. I suppose we are now witnessing the fruits of that labour. And they look like pretty tasty fruit, too... :smile:Quote:
Originally Posted by Monk
I wonder if ammo limits for arty can be modded in...
This thread worries me a little.:embarassed:
I only get all three shots to load about 1 of 4 tries…I hope it is the connection…and not my machine…:sweatdrop:
It's probably being caused by either your connection or by high traffic, I wouldn't worry too much about it. :2thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by Fisherking
I agree with the others who have mentioned the size of the new battlemaps. But we have to remember, it isn't the size of CA's battlemaps, it's how they use them. Until we get a demonstration of their huge battlemaps in action I don't think any of us will be truly satisfied.
(All innuendo in the previous sentance was entirely intentional)
Going purely by the screenshots however the battlemap looks not only larger but also more varied and more 'real' than previous battlemaps.
Great stuff! :2thumbsup:
This thread reminds me that not only do I love this game, but that my comp. needs another gig of RAM. I'll probably blow $200 or so updating my comp. for this game. :sweatdrop:
I bought an £800 brand new PC so I could play Empire properly. :sweatdrop:Quote:
Originally Posted by ConnMon
It will all be worth it though, once I boot it up and see the thing in action. :2thumbsup:
This game had better not suck! Please don't let it suck CA.
I was gonning to buy a brand new gaming laptop, so i could play for longer with out missus getting mad at me.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sir Beane
"are you coming down for lunch"
"why yes i am" [with my latop in hand ETW still running]:juggle2:
Hahah! Don't get too carried away with that though, or we could be seeing some interesting newspaper headlines.Quote:
Originally Posted by batemonkey
"Local Man Leaves Wife For Videogame!"
The best thing to do is try and get her into the game as well, that way she'll understand. :2thumbsup:
Of course then she might end up taking over your laptop and ignoring you for the game. :laugh4:
I hope I can squeek by with my current computer, but I think I will need a better vid card at least. I am close to needing a completely new system so I may bite the bullet and buy a new one. If the game is as good as I hope it is, a new comp will be worth it.
My advice would be to play the demo and see how well your system holds out before commiting the money to buy a new one. Of course if the demo is good enough you might just want to buy a new system anway. :laugh4:Quote:
Originally Posted by Sol Invictus
Most people don't know this but in M2TW you can go all the way down to .1 speed. Yup you can have .1,.2,.3.4 , etc and even do 1.1 speed. It is somewhat amusing to play at .1 speed and watch a cannon ball or musket shot to fly through the air till they hit their target.Quote:
Originally Posted by 777Ares777
Anyways AWESOME screen shots. I upgraded mainly for this game but some other games too.
How?Quote:
Originally Posted by Belgolas
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sir Beane
That's the plan.:2thumbsup:
Megas, I think it is holding down Shift and clicking on the - button for speed. I loved this feature and desperately hope that ETW has something similar. I always have thought that the slowest speed in TW games was a bit too fast.
I think the small increments of speed and a max of 6x are a Kingdoms feature. Regular M2 has the standard pause/1x/2x/3x.
Excellent question!Quote:
Originally Posted by Megas Methuselah
Let me see if I can reach him.
Like Sol Invictus said, you hold down shift while clicking the buttons in order to adjust time in increments of .1 rather than 1. Slow-mo cavalry charges are fun, as are massed volleys using rocket launchers.Quote:
Originally Posted by Megas Methuselah
You need Kingdoms in order for this to work however.
Sure! The one I didn’t/haven’t get/gotten because of issues I won’t discuss here…Quote:
Originally Posted by Sir Beane
Maybe not when you consider the possibility of four armies per side in multi-partner multiplayer?Quote:
Originally Posted by Monk
I hope that this release will be fully playable multiplayer online (eight players).
Our Clan vs. Clan team competitions had to drop to 3v3 with Rome (from Medieval and Viking games), and have never been able to recover the lofty status of the truly “ultimate game contest” of 4v4.
:smile::smile::smile::sad:
I can imagine that. 80 units on each side with just 800 meters versus MTW large maps of 1000 meters for just 64 units. That is 10 meters/unit versus 15.5 meters per unit while ETW will have 17.5 meters so at least there is improvement there.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tomisama
The other problem is missile range with MTW having 100-120 meters while RTW/M2TW boosted that up to 160-180 max. ETW will now have lots of artillery and from the few vids I have seen musket range still seems quite high.
CBR
With the predominance of ranged weaponry on the battlefield I think we will probably have to seriously recalculate what's big enough for a battle or not.Quote:
Originally Posted by CBR
Units can now engage each other at distances of several hundrerd metres (further for snipers and skirmisher units). I'm hoping we will see longer battle lines and a more spaced out feeling to battles.
In previous games units all tended to end up in a big mob somewhere in the middle of the map (in A.I battles at least) because it was usually the best way to win.
I guess we will have to wait for the demo to really get a feel for the flow of the new battles. :2thumbsup:
Well yes, players would most likely want to use units in 2-4 ranks but there is little reason to spread out and have big gaps between individual units. There might be some kind of assault column formation in ETW so you still gonna see big mobs heh.
AFAIK we still don't know how the game handles armies of more than 20 units but singleplayers will no doubt feel they have a lot more room. I fear those of us remembering old MTW 4v4 MP with large custom maps might not be as happy.
I have never understood why CA decided to boost up missile ranges as all it did was to make battlefields feel smaller with less room for maneuver. I certainly do hope we don't see yet another boost in ETW.
CBR
I think we will see a another boost to missile ranges simply because it's historically accurate, especially so for artillery of the time period.Quote:
Originally Posted by CBR
ETW is all about ranged combat. Instead of positioning units for a flank or a charge we will be positioning them for maximum field of fire, or to be able toperform enfilade fire. Cover and height should give units a significant advantage this time around.
Melee won't disappear completely of course. A bayonet charge is still the best way of breaking an enemy army. But missile fire will be the main show, rather than the prelude as it was in Med, Rome or Med 2.
Hopefully the increased range will be counteracted by the increased size of the maps and the new emphasis on being able to use cover.
Another benefit to the ranged combat centric system is that you can't just run your troops wherever you want, or they will get shot to bits. Instead it encourages thoughtful, careful deployment and manouvering. Massed charge tactics (a surefire way to beat the A.I) will hopefully be a thing of the past.
There also seems to be a lot of dead space in the battle fields portrayed in the screen shots.
Areas where troop movement is unobserved and covered from direct fire weapons.
Who knows maybe some units like Native Americans and Rangers can low crawl into position.
That could spoil your flank security!
There is so much we don’t know! The vast ignorance we posses is astounding.
:dizzy2:
Yes but realistic compared to what? Individual soldiers, units, overall army size or size of terrain features and battlefields? The armies in ETW will even at huge scale be similar to less than a real life brigade.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sir Beane
If we focus purely on the soldier scale then we still have unrealistic space taken up by soldiers as ETW cannot handle close shoulder to shoulder formation. And Total War games have always had units marching faster than real life. Now obviously I don't know if ETW has improved but earlier games never had a realistic difference between max range and point blank kills either.
If we can accept such unrealistic elements then why focus too much on what realistic missile range should be based on soldier scale.
Cover and firepower will certainly play a big role in ETW and it will be nice addition to Total War games if done properly. But for 4v4 MP we are very much depending on room for maneuver because if not enough room it will just be frontal fighting the whole way.
Just to use some historical examples:
Even assuming a rather long max range for artillery of 1500+ meters some 18th century battlefields were 5+ such artillery shots wide. In M2TW I think some artillery had 500+ meters range. ETW could be perhaps 600 or 700 meters which would make battlefields 2-2.5 shots wide.
An infantry battalion might be around 140 meters wide. ETW infantry units on huge scale in 3 ranks could be perhaps 60-70 meters wide. Since infantry could start firing at 200+ meters (although not very effective fire) then by giving muskets a max range of 100 or 120 meters and you have each ETW unit representing a battalion.
That is really all it takes when looking at battlefield and units for scale instead of individual soldiers.
CBR
We do model firing cones for guns so yes close range fire is more deadly.Quote:
Now obviously I don't know if ETW has improved but earlier games never had a realistic difference between max range and point blank kills either.
Muskets in Empire have ranges of 70-80m, rifles 125m, cannons 400m.
Now that is good news indeed!Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack Lusted
Please tell me you guys have also taken a hard look at movement rates for these lower missile ranges :beam:
CBR
Just guessing that that is not the maximum range but more like primary effective ranges for those weapons.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack Lusted
Yes? No?
No that is the maximum range, and yes we are fully aware they are not accurate.
Muskets weren't terribly effective at long ranges anyway, so it's no great loss that the range has been shortened. I fully support historical innacuracy if it means better gameplay.
It looks like you got your wish CBR. :2thumbsup:
Well thank for the speedy reply Sir!
And I am sure we will live with it!
Develop tactics to fit and go with what you have got!
Thanks again Jack
~:cheers:
Realizing that completely accurate ranges are not possible, my only quibbles are that I would like Rifles to have a tad longer range and for Artillery to have a moderately longer range. Maybe 150m for Rifles and 600-800m for Artillery.
But there isn’t much to be done about it at this point
I am sure it can be moded later by someone.
Edit: I am sure it is a balance issue. The 125 is half again the 70. The cannon doesn’t shoot from side to side of the battle field and so on.
Indeed. This is IMO a very important design decision for both gameplay reasons as well as the correct feel of this era. And that goes for SP as well as MP.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sir Beane
CBR