New Campaigns for Fall of Rome Mod

[SicilianVespers]

I have begun working on a series of campaigns for the Fall of Rome mod. The campaigns will probably begin with the the following dates:

406 AD - Stilicho is the Magister Militum, the Empire is still intact, but the Ostrogoths and Visigoths have been granted land inside the Danube frontier.

420 AD - Visigoths in Aquitania, Suevi in Portugal, Vandals in Andalusia and Morocco, and Ostrogoths in Hungary. Huns strtching from Danube frontier to Khazar.

450 AD - Huns stretch from the Rhine to khazar. Most of the Germanic tribes are part of Hunnic Empire.

476 AD after the fall of the Western Empire.

These are the factions I currently have in the game:

Western Roman Empire
Eastern Roman Empire
Lombards
Ostrogoths
Visigoths
Suevi
Vandals
Germans - may break this faction up into a few Germanic factions (ie. Burgundians, Alemanni, Rugians, Saxons)
Huns (former Bulgars)
Anglo-Saxons
Sassanids (former Turks)
Arabs

Factions removed:

People of Novgorod
Slavs
Magyars
Khazars
papacy (no longer playable)

I am also planning on adding the Berbers in Africa.

The beta is completed, but I just have to add the proper Latin titles, new names/heroes, and work out the Crusading/barbarian migration feature.

I made warbands buildable with a fort for the Germanic peoples, and also added lots of warbands in the initial setup.

I am also planning on adding Fara (Clan warband units - ex EarlyVarangianGuard) units to the Germanic factions.

So far, 12 years into the campaign. I have managed to build up my Limitamei (frontier guards) and my Comitatenses (mobile field armies) in Italy, Gaul and Hispania. But the situation is a stalemate with the barbarians inside the empire(I made them VERY powerful). the Vandals and Suevi are at war in Spain, and I am siding with the Vandals because I wasn't ready for a two front war in Spain and Africa.

The Huns are at war with The Eastern Empire and the Ostrogoths. They managed to capture and execute the Emperor, but the Ostrogoths are holding their own.

I still have alot of play testing to do before it ready.

You will need to have the Fall of Rome conversion mod installed to use this mod.

Is the original creator of the Fall of Rome mod still around? You did an excellent job with the Roman units

[SicilianVespers]

Would there be any demand for a sub-roman, Romano-British faction led by the Dux Arturius?

I am thinking it would have access to Roman Limitanei type units and Sarmatian type cataphracts, etc.

[maximus decimus meridius]

Hello Sicilian Vesper, i'm still around; thank's a lot for your compliments, i am very happy to see that there is some people that appreciate my first mod of MTW-VI (... but I 've taken the the body of roman soldier from King David Patrician Mod, i've only modified some shields and weapons..).

Anyway let me explain just only a few things about Fall of Rome.

I've almost finished the 2nd version of Fall of Rome, actually I'm working on some Roman cavalry .bif files, i have added others shield types (from the "Notitia Dignitatum" of late Roman empire). Also I am making a half armoured horse .bif file (with leather or glued felt armour) in order to use it with the Avar heavy cavalry and Byzantine Kataphraktoi and Optimatoi ( ...not Klibanophoroi...). The work is in progress.. I think that I will upload some screenshots ... but the work is hard due the lack of time.

Also I have made two starpos file, the first of them corresponding to 430 AD, with :

Romans
Byzantine
Vikings (Norse)
Arabs
Anglo-saxons
Franks
Germans
Slavs
Rus of Novgorod
Visigoths
Ostrogoths
Persians
Suebi
Khazars
Magyars
Bulgars
Lombards
Vandals
Papacy


and the second one around the Justinian era, with:

same factions, with Avars instead of Romans..



also I've added some new units, so the mod will contain:

Legionarii
Auxiliae Palatinae
Equites Scutarii
Equites Sagittarii Clibanarii
Equites Dalmatae (RomanLightCavalry)
Lanciarii
Scholae Palatinae
Balistarii
Equites Mauri
Sagittarii
Milites Limitanei
Sarmatian Cavalry
Alan HeavyCavalry
Excubitores
Tagmata Cavalry
Isaurian Infantry
Optimatoi
Skoutatoi Spearmen
Visigothic LightCavalry
Visigothic Cavalry
Vandal HeavyCavalry
Heruli-Rugian Warriors
Turingian Warriors
Scola Cavalry
Breton cavalry
VisiGothic Infantry
Gothic RoyalCavalry
Gothic HeavyCavalry
Gothic Spearmen
Burgundian Infantry
Saxon Infantry
Alamannic Warbands
Warbands
Gasindii (Lombard HeavyCavalry)
Scara Infantry
Avar HorseArchers
Bulgar RoyalCavalry
Persian Clibanarii
Varjag Warriors
Turkish TarkhanCavalry
Turkish HeavyCavalry
Bulgar Cavalry
Bulgar Infantry
Magyar RoyalCavalry
Hun Cavalry
Hun Nobles
Khwarizmian HorseArchers
Andalusian Cav
ArmenianInfantry

apart from some original early units.

Besides there will be other changes, like the use of the original infopics/review-panel files and some tweakings about the combat factors and production of units.

My intentions were to make a mod that would cover the period between the 375ad and the 8th century in the medieval era, so I think that your campaigns ideas are very interesting, probably the most interesting is that of 405 ad.
Also is very interesting the crusading/barbarian migration feature.

I am also thinking abuot to separate the period of the mod in two or three periods ....

[SicilianVespers]

That sounds excellent. I am just getting ready to start testing the crusading feature, but Re Berengario's Millenium mod has put me back in the Medieval mood, so it will be slow.

I have also used the Notitia for the provincial titles, and offices, all in Latin ( I lost these files when my harddrve crashed )

It gave a really good feel to the game.

Here are some of the changes I made in my version, you may want to try them:

I made the warbands buildable with a fort, so we don't get alot of barbarian peasant armies. I also gave them lots of Warband at start, and put only 1 Limitanei in the border provinces. You already has the Comitatenses in Gual & Italy.

I removed the EarlyRoyalKnight, and gave the Lombards Gasindii (Excellent, I love this unit&#33, the Ostrogoths and Visigoths Gothic Heavy Cavalry, the Franks Scola Heavy Cavalry, and the rest of the Germanic barbarians Germanic Heavy Cavalry as their Royal bodyguard units.

I was in the process of turning EarlyVarangianGuards into Fara, this would be the body guard unit for the non cavalry type Germanic tribes. I was thinking to make them available to all the tribes. As I am sure you already know, the Lombards conquered Italy "in Fara", and Gisulfo of Friuli had his choice of the Fara to take to Friuli.

The Visigoths, Suevi, and Vandals are in much stronger positions with this setup.

Cosmetically, I was going to rename Royal Estates to Imperial Villas, and Baronial Estates to Senatorial Villas, These would allow you to build Buccellarii.

If you like, I could just wait for your second version, and do a few scenarios for you to include?

I still haven't played out my battle with the Suevi, I will try to get to it this weekend to see how it turnd out.

[maximus decimus meridius]

Well done Very good ideas Sicilian Vesper.

I will test all your modifies in order to put them in FallofRome, especially concerning the Warbands buildable with forts. I

think that it is modifications with a important strategic impact on the game...

... and I've alredy planned to change the royal units for most of the factions, for instance i made the Excubiti as royal

byzantine units, the Scholae Palatinae as royal roman units and Ostrogothic Royal cavalry as royal unit for the ostrogoths,

and so on ....), also I have employed the original EarlyFootRoyalKnights as royal units for Germans, Anglo-saxons and Suevi.

... but i think that Fara infantry should be available only for the Lombards, buildable with castle and swordsmith, or not?

well ... I will also think something about the Buccellarii (cavalry unit or infantry unit ? what do you think?).

Also I will be very happy if you'll make some scenarios for the 2nd version of FallofRome ..I will try to finish and upload

the mod as soon as possible

I'm thinking to build completely new bif files for some units, in future ...

bye.
..just only another thing.. I've upload a screenshot of avar heavy cav with half armoured horse in the upload section (the armour is made of leather or heavy felt in my intentions).

(oh .. i'm sorry for your hd, i have also lost mine before christmas holiday ...I understand you)

[SicilianVespers]

That all sounds excellent

As for the Fara, I thought I read somewhere that the Ostrogoths and Rugii also had Fara. I can look into it some more.

I was thing to have Fara buildable with Royal Palace and swordsmith.

I think the Buccellarii should be cavalry, or maybe both Buccellarii Cavalry and Buccellarii infantry? They were the private armies of Nobles and Generals, so I supposed we could have both.

The Half-Barding sounds excellent, I was actually thinking of doing the same thing. This will be good for the Optimates

[maximus decimus meridius]

... mmmhh It seems to me that probably the Buccellarii were only cavalry, with the capacity to dismount before the battle ....

I've read something about this in the "Gothic War" of Procopius of Caesarea, I think at the battle of Taginae .. but i'm not sure.

But there is a unit of Buccellarii in the Notitia Dignitatum, the 'Comites Catafractarii Buccellarii' of the Eastern Roman Empire, and it is surely a cavalry regiment.

[SicilianVespers]

I think dis-mountable cavalry sounds good for the Buccellarii.

Historically the Generals probably used cavalry. If you want to add Buccellarii for the provincial Nobles, they could probably be either. But I am not sure if it would be necessary to get into that much detail.

I know Belisarius' Bucellarii were surely cavalry, I believe he had something like 5,000 Buccellarii in Italy (a good part of his army).

[maximus decimus meridius]

I have uploaded some screenshots about Fall of Rome 2 in the upload section of the site: Avar heavy cavalry, Roman Legion (probably the Ioviani or Herculiani regiments) and Roman Lanciarii shooting at Visigothic spearmen with mattiobarbuli/plumbatae.

The work on this version is almost finished. Now the Lombards have the Fara infantry and Romano-Byzantine can build Buccellarii cavalry.

I think that the mod will be ready in about ten days, i must finish some cosmetic modifies.

[Antalis::]

I think it would be good if you post the images here.
What I´ve seen looks really good.


Antalis

[maximus decimus meridius]

Thank you very much Antalis..
..but I've some problems with the UI ... I will try again...

[Rhaegar]

I just wanted to say that i loved the first fall of Rome mod and eagerly await the changes you are proposing

[maximus decimus meridius]

I think that i will upload the 2nd version of Fall of Rome in a few days...
sorry but i've been very busy these last days ...

[Mummer]

I just want to say that Fall of Rome is one of my favorite mods, if it were not for Hellenic Total War, it would be my NUMBER ONE favorite game. I just wish I knew how to work with unit graphics, so I could help make some new Sassanid units. Hmmm... maybe I'll learn...

[maximus decimus meridius]

Actually I'm working on a completely new animated bif for Late Roman Infantry (and perhaps cavalry), i'll put them in Fall of Rome 3.0 (ASAP)... (but it will be a long work, i think ..)

... but new sassanian bif files Great you can see Duke John's definitive guide to unit graphics , in the forum ...

any help will be appreciate..

[Grifman]

Where can I find the Fall of Rome mod and where are the screenshots posted as mentioned in this thread? I'm interested. Thanks.

Grifman

[maximus decimus meridius]

You can find Fall of Rome 1.0 (VI) at this link:

[URL=http://www.totalwar.org/Downloads/MTW/Stats.shtml]

... and some screenshots of Fall of Rome 2.0 at:

[URL=http://www.totalwar.org/Downloads/Mtw_Uploads/MTWupload/Bak/]

Fall of Rome 2.0 will be uploaded in a few days.

cheers

[Thoros of Myr]

Quote[/b] (maximus decimus meridius @ Feb. 11 2004,19:53)]Fall of Rome 2.0 will be uploaded in a few days.

Nice

[Grifman]

Man, those screenshots look really good all things considered. I'm looking forward to Version 2.0. Will you post here when it is uploaded? Thanks.

Grifman

[Hross af Guttenburg]

I had missed this thread completely and begun recently asking around if anyone wated to strat a mod bassed on the Huns, Vandals etc. So if you gys need any written info, for unit descriptions, faction introductions etc. give me a shout coz' I got loads of really well written narrative material, all well researched. Or else I could write up new stuff catering to your needs.

By the by, I could never get into Fall of Rome as it stil looked to medieaval, beginning with peasants and militia, still same flags, colours and names on the strategy map. Did I do something wrong in the download/installation and miss some imortant files or was it meant to be this 'B'?
I hope this new version will be more historically accurate and unique. NTW and HTW have succeeded, METW is coming, they create whole worlds...what are you gys doing to give atmosphere and an extreme makeover?

[maximus decimus meridius]

Hi
Grifman

I've uploaded Fall of Rome 2.0 at:

http://www.totalwar.org/Downloads/Mtw_Uploads/MTWupload

Hross af Guttenburg

I hope to have given the mod a more realistic look (end of empire I mean....) but the work is in progress (and it is long), in the next version i would like to put new animated bif for Romans and new banner and new heraldric symbol for germans amd barbarians ...

by the way have you any descriptions about german/hun heraldry? I've found the Notitia Dignitatum for Romans, but nothing for Barbarians.
I am very interested in your unit descriptions/faction introductions, I will be very honoured to put this material in the mod. really Could you write anything? for ex. faction descriptions .


cheers

[Hross af Guttenburg]

I'd love to I can start work straight away, my email address is rossalexdowning@hotmail.com if you send a 'hello' i then have yours and can send you the info in attachments etc

looking forward to the Beta.2, i'm downloading right now

[maximus decimus meridius]

Hross

I will sent you my email at once.

cheers

[A_B]

maximus decimus meridius,

Great mod. I spent Saturday making some adjustments to the game, which i thought i'd share with you. The changes were to make playing the two Roman Factions harder. First, I made both Roman Factions Orthodox. I then made all the Germanic Barbarians 'Christian', and renamed Christian to 'Germanic'. The reason is twofold. First,they can now Crusade - representing new waves of Germanic migration. Secondly, if you play as the western empire, you have a Pope representing the rotten core of Rome - siding with the enemy, paying them bribes, etc. The Papacy now has access to all roman units, so if you wipe them out and they respawn, you have a massive Rome ON Rome civil war.

Steppe factions are all barbarian. They can build a temple now. Turk and Egyptian are muslim, and called 'Eastern Nations'.

I tried to eliminate all the religious units, but couldn't get the game to run without them. So i made them (0) priority to build, and made them cost 40,000.

Finally, I made all units that aren't Roman or Byzantine cost 1/2 to build and 1/3 to maintain. This keeps most factions economically viable. The Romans must keep trade up to stay in the game.

I'll send you the files if you want to check them out. The changes put you - as a Roman - in a much more desperate situation.

AB

[maximus decimus meridius]

Thanks A_B

my email is: maximus2004ad@yahoo.com, I'll be very happy to check the files.

..but are you playng with 1.0 version or 2.0 version?

because in Fall of Rome 2.0 both roman factions are orthodox, germanic factions are christian and steppe factions are pagan.

I'll check the other changes you made, surely


cheers

ps.please report me any bug you find and I'll try resolve the problem in the next version of the mod.

[A_B]

Great minds think alike

I'll email you the files right now.

AB

[Hross af Guttenburg]

ME TOO-ROSSALEXDOWNING@HOTMAIL.COM
Please.
is this for version 1 or 2?


Maximus, this sounds a lot like the kind of corrections I meant, maybe version 3 can be more on these grounds at least in the programming.

[maximus decimus meridius]

Hi all

I'm testing the crusade/barbarian invasions option for the german tribes ..... it seems to that it works well enough.

anyone know if is it possible to suggest the AI players the target of the crusade (for example Wallachia instead of Carpathia) ?

cheers