A: Palamedes from CA has reported that the AI is smarter at higher battle difficulties. And that morale and fatigue have stronger affects (although apparently on both the player and the AI). In the manual it states VH as being the most realistic level to fight on.
These claims are supported by testing by Hashashayyin:
As far as I can tell, he finds on VH battles, the computer does well when terrain is a big factor. This may be due to smarter AI tactics and/or an increased effect of fatigue (climbing hills) on the human's troops.
Q: What does campaign difficulty do?
A: On the diplomatic effects:
Originally Posted by Bob the Insane
To explain H and VH are normalised to Abysmal and will shuffle that direction every trun (with VH moving faster).
Easy is normalized to Perfect so relations will continually improve (provided you do not do one of the other many things to anny the AI).
Medium is normalised to Neutral so if bad relations will improve but if good they will worsen.
Add to this the AI is effectively set to Medium difficultly when the AI factions interact with each other.
And the relations for the top 3 scoring factions will tend to worsen with everyone as well.
Lastly when you fight a member of a particular religion everyone else in the religion will start to take a dislike to you.
You can see how easy it is to get bad relationships with everyone, especially on Hard or Very Hard.
VH campaigns presumably have financial effects too, as in RTW: the AI can afford to hire more troops on harder difficulty levels.
Q: What are the unit size settings?
A: For the largest units, 150/112/75/60 compared to Rome's 240/120/60/40
Q: How do I unlock other factions?
A: Finishing a campaign unlocks the "unlockable" factions (not Mongols, Timurids and Aztecs). Eliminating a faction in a campaign also unlocks it.
In addition, there are two ways to mod the game to unlock factions, EITHER:
Originally Posted by Throumbaris
Open medieval2.preference.cfg and add this:
Code:
[misc]
unlock_campaign = true
OR edit the descr_strat.txt file. Delete lines number 10 and 11, ie:
Code:
end
unlockable
Q: How do I get the game to display years in stead of turns?
A: Delete the line "show_dates_as_turns" line in descr_strat.txt.
Originally Posted by Chosun
Or you can put a ; in front of the line...
example: ;show_dates_as_turns it makes it easier to change back if you want to for any reason.
Q: How long is the game?
A: 225 turns. It starts in 1080 and ends in 1530. You can elect to play on beyond that, however.
Q: What's up with the passage of time? Characters don't age properly!
A: It's a temporal paradox. One turn covers roughly two years. But characters age one year every two turns. I recommend not thinking too hard about it.
OK, you're not satisfied? Well, in defence of CA, characters will last as many turns as in RTW, which arguably is long enough to get used to them but not so long they last forever. Two year turns arguably allow technology to develop before the player has completed his victory conditions - in MTW, most players would never get the chance to play with Gothic knights.
You can mod how years relate to turns. But so far, characters will always age at one year per two turns.
Originally Posted by Lusted
Characters age 1 year every 2 turns, so if you mod it to 2 turns a year, they will age 1 year a year. But the campaign wil last for 900 turns.
To carry out the change Lusted mentions, edit the "timescale 2.0" line in the descr_strat.txt to be "timescale 0.5".
Still not satisfied? I recommend not thinking too hard about it.
Q: How do I edit the descr_strat.txt file?
A: The file is usually located in:
C:\Program Files\SEGA\Medieval II Total War\data\world\maps\campaign\imperial_campaign
First, make a backup copy of the file, just in case.
Second, change the file so that it is not read-only. Right click on the file, choose properties and untick "read-only".
Then, edit the file using a text editor. Double clicking the file should open it in notepad.
Note: the game only reads the descr_strat.txt at the start of a campaign. So if you mod it, you will need to start a new campaign for the changes to take effect.
Q: How do I reduce rebel spawn?
A: There are two lines for the spawning of rebels and pirates in your descr_strat.txt file:
Originally Posted by Derfel von Saljeth
you have to higher the value... more high it is, less chances of spawn
I've set x4 , and their spawn is realy low .. almost none :)
brigand_spawn_value 120
pirate_spawn_value 168
Q: How do I get rid of banners?
A:
Originally Posted by Thorn Is
In the medieval2.preference.cfg in the video section there is a line that says showbanners = 1
turn this to 0
Q: How do I get rid of the green circles under the selected unit(s)?
A: In medieval2.preference.cfg, there is a line that says: disable_arrow_markers = 0
Just change the 0 to 1
Q: How can I disable in-battle cutscenes?
A:
Originally Posted by Whacker
Look for the [game] section in your medieval2.preferences.cfg file and change the following:
event_cutscenes = 1
to
event_cutscenes = 0
Q: How do I get rid of the user interface in battles (e.g. to get better screenshots)?
A:
Originally Posted by Pevergreen
In the options panel, under gameplay, there is an option for Minimal UI. Enable it.
OR
Options in battle, same thing.
Q: How do I get rid of the radar map?
A:
Originally Posted by D Wilson
You can set it to hide during the battle by pressing esc, finding the UI options, having minimal UI selected and selecting hide (or slide if you want it to appear when you mouse over that area). I play with the radar hidden, the orders bar on slide so it's out of the way most of the time, and the unit cards in view permanantly.
Q: How do I open the battle editor?
A:
Originally Posted by Orda Khan
Open your M2 preferences.cfg file and add the following......
[features]
editor=true
Be aware that there seems to be a bug at the moment. Those lines will disappear next time you start up the game, hopefully CA will fix this. In the meantime apply the change before you start up the game
Q. How do I open up the console (Medieval Shell) to enter cheats?
A: This seems to vary with people's keyboards. On some it is the '/@ key, next to the semi-colon. On others it is the ` key, next to the 1! key.
Q: How do I remove fog of war:
A: Open up the console and type "toggle_fow"
Q: What other useful cheats are there?
A: I have found the five very useful in PBMs (typically to help the AI):
(1) add_money: For example, the console command to give 10000 florins to Hungary is:
Code:
add_money hungary, 10000
The names of the major factions recognised by the computer are in your descr_strat.txt file and listed in the spoiler:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
england
france
hre
spain
venice
sicily
milan
scotland
byzantium
russia
moors
turks
egypt
denmark
portugal
poland
hungary
(2) show_cursorstat: This gives the x,y coordinates of your cursor. It is useful for teleporting units using:
(3) move_character: This will move a specific unit. For example:
Code:
move_character "Captain von_Mahren" 199,200
would move Captain von Mahren to the location x=199, y=200
(4) character_reset: to give a character back their full movement points. For example:
Code:
character_reset "Captain Jack"
(5) "create_unit": generates units with experience and armor/weapon upgrades. The format is as follows:
create_unit "PERSON/PLACE" "UNIT NAME" W X Y Z
W = Number of units to spawn
X = number of exp chevrons the unit has
Y = armor upgrades
Z = weapon upgrades
would create 2 units of DFK in Ragusa, both with 1 silver chevron and bronze armor and weapons.
Q: What other cheat commands are there?
A:
Originally Posted by zstarjerski
add_money 99999
add_population "London" 99999 (or any other settlement)
process_cq London (or any other settlement) (Finishes the Construction Queue of the settlement)
give_trait this Fertile 3 (or any other trait) (a full list is here in the forums)
toggle_fow (removes fog of war)
create_unit "London" Longbowmen (or any other)
give_ancillary
There is no list of confirmed M2TW cheats, but several cheat commands from RTW still work. Here's one list of RTW cheats:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Originally Posted by Finn
toggle_tow : shows/hides the tabbed output window
add_money : adds an amount of money to a faction's coffers, can be negative, default is player faction
add_population : adds an amount of population to a settlement, can be negative
move_character , : moves named character to position on campaign map
auto_win : the attacker or defender wins the next autoresolved battle
create_unit : creates one or more units of the specified type
toggle_fow : toggles the fog of war on or off
toggle_restrictcam : toggles camera restrictions on or off
give_ancillary : gives the character an ancillary
give_trait : gives the character a trait at level (default = level 1)
process_cq : Completes all (possible) construction pending in queue
character_reset : resets the character back to it's start of turn settings
show_cursorstat : shows the cursor position and region id
bestbuy : sells units cheaper
oliphaunt : the biggest around
jericho : and the walls came a-tumblin' down
write_ui_cache: writes out the ui texture cache to disk
toggle_terrain : toggles the terrain to display various data sets, no param resets to normal
give_trait_points : gives the character points for trait
list_traits : lists all the available traits
list_ancillaries : lists all the available ancillaries
mp : gives the character movement points
list_characters : lists all the characters in the world or those belonging to a faction
show_landings : shows the landing positions available to the ai from a given region, default hides them
filter_coastlines : applies filter to world map coastlines
toggle_coastlines : toggles strategy map coastline display
set_building_health : sets health of a building of the specified type (eg core_building) in a settlement, so that the final health percentage is as specified; for building chains see export_descr_building.txt
ai_turn_speed : sets the maximum speed of turn processing during the ai round
amdb_min : sets aerial map overlay depth bias for min zoom
amdb_max : sets aerial map overlay depth bias for max zoom
amdb_offset : sets aerial map overlay offset towards camera
zoom : zooms to specified aerial map zoom
set_ranking_interval : sets the denominator of the faction ranking graph interval which is calculated as (number_of_turns / denominator). If set to 0, then the denominator will be set to number_of_turns, giving an interval of 1
regenerate_radar: Does what it says on the tin
adjust_sea_bed : adjusts whole sea bed to specified height
reload_shaders : reloads all vertex shaders
reload_textures : reloads all textures
toggle_perfect_spy : toggles everyone's spying ability to perfect and infinite range, and off again
building_debug: toggles building debug mode. TAB to toggle view modes, RIGHT SHIFT-TAB to reset mode, LEFT SHIFT-TAB to go back modes. G damages mouse-over building. P displays plaza.
reset_display: Forces a display_close(); display_open() display reset cycle
toggle_underlay:
toggle_overlay:
process_rq : Completes all (possible) recruitment pending in queue
force_diplomacy : Forces the negotiator to accept or decline a proposition
diplomatic_stance : Set the diplomatic stance between the two factions
shadow
ie
invulnerable_general : makes that named general invulnerable in battle
test_ancillary_localisation: adds all ancillary to the character info display. Ancillaries aren't actually added to the character
perf_times: Toggle display of simple performance times of game update vs display
burn_piggies_burn : ignite all the piggy winks
test_message: Test the event message specified in descr_event_enums.txt
show_terrain_lines : display defensive terrain features
message_collation_set: Set the message collation on or off (sets all factions)',0
show_all_messages: Show all messages to all factions (on/off)
clear_messages: Clear all the current stacked messages
puppify_my_love
reapply_rigid_model_influence
toggle_flowing_water: toggles display of campaign map flowing water
nw_stats: toggles display of network stats.
toggle_pr: toggles pr mode.
list_units : lists all of the units in an army, with details.
victory : show victory message for faction for short or long campaign.
trigger_advice: triggers an advice thread
damage_wall : Damage wall of settlement. Forces 40% damage to a random gatehouse and a nearby straight section. Destroys gatehouse if 'gate' parameter present; breaches wall if 'breach' present'
test_victory_scroll : 'Opens up the victory scroll declaring that the given faction is the victor
date : changes the campaign date to the given year
season : changes the campaign season to the given season
upgrade_effect : triggers unit upgrade effect
force_battle_victory : forces the local player's alliance to win the battle, completely destroying the enemy alliance
force_battle_defeat : forces the local player's alliance to win the battle, completely destroying the enemy alliance
output_unit_positions : output the positions of all units in the battle to the specified file
show_battle_paths : show all valid processed paths in the pathfinder
show_battle_paths_for_unit : show all valid processed paths in the pathfinder for a specific unit given a unit id
show_battle_street_plan : show the street plan for the settlement
show_battle_marker : display a marker at (x, y) for t seconds
show_battle_circle : display a circle at (x, y) of r radius for t seconds
diplomacy_mission : creates a diplomacy mission
event : creates an event at position
kill_character : kills a character with the given name
control : switches player control to specified faction; old faction may not act correctly as ai faction
create_building : creates a building of the specified type in a settlement; for building level id's see export_descr_building.txt
capture_settlement : evicts any resident characters and armies and gives the settlement to the local player
disable_ai : disables the ai, so that it does nothing
halt_ai : halts the turn sequence just before the start of the specified faction's turn, or the current faction if no faction given
run_ai : re-starts an ai turn sequence after disableai or haltai has been triggered
Q: Which RTW cheat codes are the same in M2TW and which ones still work?
A:
Originally Posted by majesticchapel
Well they have certainly changed, I've tried some of them for you:
add_money: Works, though I couldn't get it to give money to another faction.
create_unit "City or character name": Works, units from other factions will not work for you however ( you get riderless horses for gothic knights).
process_cq:Finishes buildings you wanted to construct. Works, somewhat, it doesn't finish the ENTIRE building queue only the first building in the queue.
list_names: Doesn't work anymore.
give_trait: Will only give traits to characters with one name, create_unit and other character specific cmds still seem to work with double names.
process_rq "City name": Doesn't work.
move_character "name" x, y :Works
show_cursorstat: Works.
add_population "city name": Works
I can't get the other ones to work, I didn't try them all though...
Most notably process_cq is now only for one building, which may be a bother for modders, give_trait seems to ignore ALL names except single ones (Henry, Heinrich, Leopold, Robert) it won't work with underscores like Henry_Squirrel or "Henry Squirrel". This means you can't add traits to assassins, spies, admirals, princesses, merchants or priests since all of them ( except maybe the one you get in the beginning ) have multiple names.
This is the list of commands that Caliban of CA reported work in the retail 1.2 M2TW; whether all work directly from the console - as opposed to scripts - I do not know.
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Originally Posted by Caliban
add_money
add_population
auto_win
bestbuy
bounds
character_reset
clear_password - hotseat only
control
create_unit
disable_ai
disable_vnvs
george
give_ancillary
give_trait
halt_ai
houston
istanbul
logoff - hotseat only
logon - hotseat only
madras
move_character
process_cq
puppify_my_love
remove_ancillary
remove_trait
rogan
run_ai
set_email - hotseat only
set_option
set_password - hotseat only
show_cursorstat
surrender_regions
toggle_fow
toggle_terrain
Q: How can I use cheat codes to give my characters a trait if they have a long name?
A:
Originally Posted by GeneralAsh
use:
give_trait this GoodAssassin 5
etc
Will work with all names - first select, right click, the person (I always move them out of a city so they are on their own) then run the console command.
For me, it works with all my characters.
Alternatively, for names of three words, an underscore between the second and third will allow the game to recognise the game. For example, Huo de Cervole would be Hugo de_Cervole.
Q: How do I turn back on the videos, if I ticked the "show no more similar videos" button but want them back?
A: In medieval2.preferences.cfg change
infiltration_movies = 0
to
infiltration_movies = 1
Q: How do I play a hotseat campaign with my son?
A:
Originally Posted by Lusted
Here is the code i used to activate hotseat in 1.2:
A: The main benefit to me from the RTW Strategy Guide was being able to browse all the units and their stats. However, it seems the stats in the Strategy Guide are wrong, so caveat emptor:
I think it is based on a beta, so one or two details are wrong (thanks to Katank for spotting these):
- Bordeaux starts as rebel
- Helsinki looks connected to Stockholm in this while it should be connected to Novgorod.
Q: What are the system requirements?
A: Note that you need a DVD drive:
English version of Microsoft® Windows® 2000/XP.
Celeron 1.8GHz Pentium 4® (1500MHz) or equivalent AMD® processor.
512MB RAM.
8x Speed DVD-ROM drive (1200KB/sec sustained transfer rate) and latest drivers.
11.0 Gigs of uncompressed free hard disk space.
100% DirectX® 9.0c compatible 16-bit sound card and latest drivers.
100% Windows® 2000/XP compatible mouse, keyboard and latest drivers.
DirectX® 9.0c.
128MB Hardware Accelerated video card with Shader 1 support and the latest drivers.
Must be 100% DirectX® 9.0c compatible.
Monitor must be able to display 1024x768 resolution or above.
Q: How do you take a screenshot, and what folder does it go to?
A:
Originally Posted by Quillan
It's the PrintScrn button, and it goes into the Program Files/Sega/Medieval II Total War/tgas folder, if I remember correctly. They always seem to scale down to 1024x768 in size, and are always .tga files, so I wind up having to fire up PhotoShop to convert it into .jpg format.
With RTW, I got into the habit of using FRAPS for screenshots and Irfanview for converting to jpg. Both programs are available to download on the web.
Q: The screenshots are in TGA format. How do I view them?
Pro-tip : TGA files are huge, use Irfanview's Batch Conversion ability to compress them to jpegs, reducing their size 20-40 times. Helps with storage and uploading / posting.
Q: How do I view replays of custom battles?
A: [QUOTE=Sinan]I think it's Single Player -> Load Game -> Load Battle Replay
Note - to record a custom battle, press the save replay button on the post-battle screen.
Q: Why do battle replays sometimes show different results from the battle I actually fought?
A: Apparently, replays save only the forces and your commands. The effects of those commands may differ depending on other factors. There are reports are some very large discrepancies, with player micromanagement of units not being apparent in the replays, so the replay function may not be reliable:
ShellShock has released an excellent little utility to help manage M2TW mods and save games files. It allows you to change difficulty and unit sizes, within a ongoing campaign, by editing the save. Particularly handy for game mechanics researchers. See this thread for more details:
A: To stop people asking how to do stuff that's not in M2TW, note:
You can't change your faction heir.
You can't view your settlement outside of battle.
Originally Posted by Lusted
Unit recruitment doesn't affect settlement populations like in RTW
Towers on walls are not automatically manned: they need a unit near them to fire. Driving away nearby defending units will stop the towers firing.
5.3……………..Bugs
Both the Org and the .com maintain comprehensive buglists, see those for more information.
Q: Is it important to patch my game? What were the "passive AI bug", "shield bug" and the "two hander bug"?
A: The 1.0 game suffered from "passive AI". Sometimes on the attack, a powerful AI melee oriented force would march up into range of your missiles and stand there forever as you shot them down. The AI could also be very passive in response to a sally. The general passive AI problem was largely fixed in the 1.1 patch, although the problem in sallies in particular was only fixed in 1.2.
Before the 1.2 patch, there were two serious bugs affecting unit performance.
The two hander bug was that the animations with some units with two handed weapons reduced their effectiveness, particularly making it almost impossible for them to kill cavalry after their initial charge has worn off.
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Originally Posted by Lusted
The 2 handed bug affects all units with the 2 handed axe animation which is the following units:
Billmen
Bill Militia
Heavy Billmen
Heavy Bill Militia
Berdiche Axemen
Varangian Guard
Norse Axemen
Gallogiach
Religious fanatics
Eagle Warriors
Dismounted English Knights
Dismounted Noble Knghts
Dismounted Portugese Knights
Free Company Men-At-Arms
Tabnarayyra(or however you spell it)
The shield bug was that experimentation with varying the shield parameter implies that raising it reduces defence. This implies that infantry with large shields have a -12 to their defence stat beyond that intended. It particularly manifests itself in spearmen being unable to hold off a cavalry charge.
Both bugs are only of historic interest, having been fixed in the 1.2 patch.
Re: Citadel FAQ and Strategy Tips
Originally Posted by Bob the Insane
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