The XL mod

[Dayve]

How many people here prefer the XL mod over vanilla? I got MTW Gold a couple of days ago which has MTW and the expansion all in one game and both games are awesome without any mods... Much more depth and all that good stuff than in RTW and ITS expansion.

But anyway, i tried the XL mod yesterday and to be honest i don't like it so much. I played a game on hard and it was clear that it gives the AI troops stat bonuses over yours because my l33t ones were getting ripped apart by low end militia...

[desdichado]

question:

What was valour of opposing general and your own troops?

AFAIK XL mod does not give any extra bonuses to AI troops in battle so assume what happened to you in this battle the result would have been the same in a vanilla game.

Can't say for sure though as I am having some problems with CTD since installing XL mod - my old rig is starting to play up a lot lately so overdue for a replacement yes.

but two small battles I fought I won with about the losses i would have expected - playing on hard btw.

[Dayve]

I didn't look but it was right at the start of the game and i was playing as the Vienese fighitng the Genoese and the Genoese hadn't fought any battles yet with anybody so their general couldn't have been that good. Besides i had my king leading the battle and he was pretty damn good so i can't see why on earth low end militia units would be ripping up my spearmen and feudal sergeants.

[ajaxfetish]

XL Mod doesn't give AI troops any bonuses outside of those in the vanilla game. It would depend on the valor of his general and individual units. Also, militia units' value can be underestimated. Militia sergeants will do well against vanilla spearmen and I suspect against feudal sergeants with a slight valor advantage, and even urban militia can give you a nasty surprise if deployed right.

The advantages XL does give the AI are on the strategic level, and thank God for those. It can manage the XL economic system much better, so it can field larger armies of better troops, and like you it starts off with more than in vanilla.

I love XL (other mods do just as well, but I haven't played them personally), and think it adds loads of content and replayability to the game. Give it some time and see if you don't change your mind, or play the regular game till it starts to get boring and then try it again. I think you're judging it a little too quickly.

Ajax

[Martok]

I second ajaxfetish. I've found the XL Mod has enhanced my playing experience tremendously, although it did take a little getting used to. I know that while VikingHorde did tweak a few of the units' stats, he left the militia units alone. As ajax said, militia units can actually be pretty effective if used correctly.

I would follow his suggestion to just play the regular game for a while; you can always come back to XL later on. Personally, I played MTW/VI for over 2 years before I felt the need to try out any of the mods (such was the quality of this game).

[Banquo's Ghost]

I didn't look but it was right at the start of the game ...

Therein lies your problem. I's always a good idea to scout the enemy before hand. Particularly in XL, there are often new units (not saying these were) which surprise you. Even basic units can turn you over when unprepared - I remember getting whupped thoroughly by a bunch of woodsmen that I had dismissed as filthy and cowardly peasants. (The kind of over-confident mistake too many generals have made in history).

I love surprises and challenge, so I love the XL mod, but even in vanilla it's wise to know who and what you're up against before battle.

[Odin]

The XL mod does 2 things that make it more challenging then vanilla.

1. Land is power: This concept increases the land income values and decreases the trade values. Since your fairly new to MTW in vanilla you can set up a mamoth trading empire with lots of income. The AI struggled with this and could never compete economically with the human player. Now it at least can develop land and get a similar income.

2. Better units: The AI in XL dosent seem to employ crap units as much, it seems to spend its money and get better quality units. While certainly not insurmontable for a human, its a harder fight for sure.

Points 1-2 are stated by ajaxfetish when he talks about the AI ability to manage its economy. I agree with him and I believe its the the increased land values that make the AI have more income, build upgraded buildings and therefore produce more units.

Most mods find away to do this, I just happen to play XL exclusively because it does everything well enough for my taste. I have played it for sometime and dont think I will ever go back to vanilla. The additional music scores are nice as well, They have grown on me. So yes I like it, but MTW has been around so long that there are 4-5 very good well developed mods for the game, try them all and find one you like.

[Ciaran]

Keep in mind, on the average the XL mod increases Morale of all units by two, that means units will stay in battle much longer than in vanilla. This little tweak alone has a huge impact on how the battles play and it takes a while to get the feeling for the battles back. I found it frustrating as well when I started, but after a while you´ll get the hang on it.
A second issue, XL has removed peasants. That sounds not big, but it has a definite impact. There is a difference of whether you´re attacked with sixteen peasants or sixteen Urban Militias.

That´s the battle part, the various strategic changes have been mentioned already.