Age of Empires (esque)

[Al Khalifah]

This is mod is all about the units in truth, therefore the first priority of this mod is the units and their balance with relation to one another. This is where I will put most of my focus early on. So using models and factions already in the game I will work on new units and their stats until the mod takes the desired feel in a custom battle. This will go on until at least the base units in each unit class (e.g foot archers) are performing to my satisfaction against one another.

How close are you going to stay to AoE? Will all units be the same size, so that their strengths are more apparent? This would be the closest thing to the one unit at a time setup of AoE.

Most normal unit sizes will be the same at first, unless I feel this is having an adverse affect on game balance. Some units will obviously have to be smaller in terms of size. As a guide for 100 infantry there would be 12 elephants. Archer units may be larger to give them more of an impact in battle.

Next priority would be factions and their balance in battle. I will try to keep the factions strengths and weaknesses as true to their Age Of Empires originals as possible. I'd take a cross-section (heavy infantry, archer attack, siege) of faction types at this point and work on them.

Would you keep all of the civilizations, or add new ones:

Most likely keep all of the civilisations, except maybe the Far Eastern ones. I'd really like to have them in there though, because they were always interesting in AoE. I'm not sure about this at the moment though.

At this point buildings and the map would then become a considerations, although this is where the mod gets fun so I will try to get there as soon as possible but not at the expense of quality.

Also, would you use a custom map or a map of Europe? If you choose a real-world map, I would go with mundus magnus, to accomodate the Babylonian, Persian, et cetera civilizations.

I'd move the map to the East and South and zoom in. This would give more of the Arabian peninsula and Persia and a bit more of Egypt. By zooming in, more provinces can be added in some of the more crowded areas of the map such as Greece and the Holy Land.

Actually, make a province randomizing campaign if possible, but also have a 'historical' campaign which makes the map strategically interesting, for example, give Phonecia colonies in Carthage and Sicily, half way across that map from its capital.

I'll try to keep the factions lands as close to the truth as possible in 'historical' campaigns, but remember that won't be entirely possible. With Carthage as a faction, the Phoenicians can't also have Carthage as a province and Sumer and Assyria's lands conflict heavily with the Persian Empire (possibly to due with Sumer disapearing as an Empire long before the Rise of Rome).

[richyg13]

I've already started on something extremly similar to this. heres the link to my site...

http://www.dhost.info/crazypaul2k4/row_dawnofwar/

I have been considering moving my mod to a fantasy world however but if theres an interest in keeping it going then ill finish it.

[Laridus Konivaich]

This is mod is all about the units in truth, therefore the first priority of this mod is the units and their balance with relation to one another. This is where I will put most of my focus early on. So using models and factions already in the game I will work on new units and their stats until the mod takes the desired feel in a custom battle. This will go on until at least the base units in each unit class (e.g foot archers) are performing to my satisfaction against one another.

Yes, a unit balance mod would be different compared to what most mods do. This concept really should not need very many new models, the main thing that you might want to do would be to get the elite archers to have longer bows.

Most normal unit sizes will be the same at first, unless I feel this is having an adverse affect on game balance. Some units will obviously have to be smaller in terms of size. As a guide for 100 infantry there would be 12 elephants. Archer units may be larger to give them more of an impact in battle.

I would say men to elephants should be 10:1, and maybe give elephants less HPs. I don't think archers need to have larger units - they should be the same size as infantry units. Also, what can be done with priests, since they are one of the more interesting units, especially in what they can do.

Next priority would be factions and their balance in battle. I will try to keep the factions strengths and weaknesses as true to their Age Of Empires originals as possible. I'd take a cross-section (heavy infantry, archer attack, siege) of faction types at this point and work on them.

Yes, this is also important, I am assuming that you have the game's reference materials, but in case you need any info, I have all of the originl manuals too.

Most likely keep all of the civilisations, except maybe the Far Eastern ones. I'd really like to have them in there though, because they were always interesting in AoE. I'm not sure about this at the moment though.

I'm not sure if any civilizations were particularly interesting in AoE, I mean, they all looked pretty much the same, except for their building styles. So maybe just remove the far eastern factions, and don't add any more, or if you do add more, constrain them to the areas that already have factions, so the map stays smaller.

At this point buildings and the map would then become a considerations, although this is where the mod gets fun so I will try to get there as soon as possible but not at the expense of quality.

I'd move the map to the East and South and zoom in. This would give more of the Arabian peninsula and Persia and a bit more of Egypt. By zooming in, more provinces can be added in some of the more crowded areas of the map such as Greece and the Holy Land.

Interesting - I actually would not zoom in on the map, but rather just add provinces, to make the areas more crowded - since it really wouldn't take that long to move around, and there never were huge distances between you and the enemy in AoE, as I recall. This would give the feeling of 'the world was smaller' idea, since everthing will be close together. Also, the map would be a much easier if you don't change the size.

I'll try to keep the factions lands as close to the truth as possible in 'historical' campaigns, but remember that won't be entirely possible. With Carthage as a faction, the Phoenicians can't also have Carthage as a province and Sumer and Assyria's lands conflict heavily with the Persian Empire (possibly to due with Sumer disapearing as an Empire long before the Rise of Rome).

Yes, there will be quite a bit of conflict for lands, since the civilizations existed in the same areas at different times. After thinking about it more, factions that might replace the far-eastern factions: etruscans; dorians (depending on how far north the map goes);

//

Also, richyg13: I don't see how you mod is similar to this. Maybe I'm just missing something... could you say why you think that they are similar? That would help me to understand.

[richyg13]

The similarity is the same technology tree idea... where everyone has the same units they can produce in all factions. The only thing majorly different is in my mod each nation has only 1 starting province.

[Myrddraal]

Moved

[Laridus Konivaich]

One starting province each actually might make sense for and AOE game - since you always started with just a town center...

The map that you want is the one from Successors: Total War - it covers about the area that you would want.

Unless this idea,like many others, died?

[Al Khalifah]

Not dead. I'm just working on it, the post I made in the general section was the first real consideration this mod was given, so I have been unable to open with a bang and say "Hey look at all these cool screenshots I took of my mod." I am working on a more complete description of the mod in general to go in the post at the top of the page though, hopefully with pretty pictures and everything. I'm also monitoring the thread to answer any questions that get asked.

The map that you want is the one from Successors: Total War - it covers about the area that you would want.

That would require their permission first. With all the mud that's been flying around the org of late about people stealing maps, I don't think I'' be doing that. I will bear it in mind though. If not, a zoomed in Mundus Magna map might work too. The real places that need more cities are Greece and Mesopatamia.

One starting province each actually might make sense for and AOE game - since you always started with just a town center...

It might do, but I still want to give the factions some regional bases and set up some starting conflicts. The three Greek nations can fight for supremacy of Greece or the Carthaginians will be poised to strike Rome. There will also be quite a blast in Arabia as the Sumerians, Assyrians, Persians and Babylonians will all be fighting over the same crowded land (I love the crazy time frame). It will be total war in the Middle East that's for sure. Some factions may have more starting land, but their territory might not be so well developed or they may have developed cities that are not connected (e.g Phoenicians)

[Laridus Konivaich]

That would require their permission first. With all the mud that's been flying around the org of late about people stealing maps, I don't think I'' be doing that. I will bear it in mind though. If not, a zoomed in Mundus Magna map might work too. The real places that need more cities are Greece and Mesopatamia.

It might do, but I still want to give the factions some regional bases and set up some starting conflicts. The three Greek nations can fight for supremacy of Greece or the Carthaginians will be poised to strike Rome. There will also be quite a blast in Arabia as the Sumerians, Assyrians, Persians and Babylonians will all be fighting over the same crowded land (I love the crazy time frame). It will be total war in the Middle East that's for sure. Some factions may have more starting land, but their territory might not be so well developed or they may have developed cities that are not connected (e.g Phoenicians)

I of course didn't meant that you should just take people's work - I would NEVER consider something like that. I jsut menat that their map has seems to have the area that you want, and it would really help this mod if it could find a map, and focus all of its development on gameplay/balance.

The starting regions gets back to how closely it follows the concepts of AOE. It just struck me when I was replying there, that you only started with a town center, which made expansionism important - otherwise you didn't get any resources. (BTW: how was it that all the good gold mines were near the AI's towns anyway? )

That brings me too another idea: can other resources be made eshaustible, the way slaves are in RTW? That would be very good for modeling antother aspect of AOE.

And for the battlefield, make it so that all units get a 'never routs' trait, that will make the game just like aoe - your army either came out, or it died, none of this silly routing and fighting again in the next battle!