What Factions would you like to see in Empire Total War

[Jolt]

No problem! ^_^
Many people assume it was the UK Government initiative to send Opium to China, although the reality is far from it. Most (If not all, I'm not sure) of the fighting was done by BEIC Divisions (Basically Indian Soldiers under British leadership). It's actually obvious once we realize the proximity of British India to China, and the necessity to keep many divisions (Due to constant Indian rebellions), in contrast with UK directly Administrated colonies, whose colonies most close to China (e.g. Sri Lanka/Ceylon; Australia; Canada) were either too small (Ceylon) or did not need a great military strength, since there was little instability in those colonies thanks to more passive natives (Australia; Canada). The other possibility would be to bring troops from the UK, halfway across the world.

[Zaleukos]

I'm a bit torn with respect to "native" factions. On one hand you want opposition rather than empty areas in the new world or wherever you want to build colonies, but on the other hand you dont want nonsensical Huron colonies in South Africa either. So the best way would be to have such factions but make them very defensive or limited (maybe unable to build ships). But then players will complain about not being able to colonise with those nations:p

I guess the best solution is to have such factions in the game with restrictions, but make the game at least as moddable as the predecessors so those who want to build Huron colonies in Scotland can do so...

[PBI]

Yeah, that seems easy enough to do; something like the Aztecs in M2TW. There are plenty of mods which give them the ability to build ships.

Maybe the native factions could build some sort of shallow-water boats like canoes which would enable them to hop around island chains like the Caribbean, but not duke it out with a ship of the line or sail to Europe. Then again, bear in mind that the "native" factions are going to include some fairly advanced civilizations like those in India, who most certainly should be able to build ocean-going vessels.

[Zaleukos]

Then again, bear in mind that the "native" factions are going to include some fairly advanced civilizations like those in India, who most certainly should be able to build ocean-going vessels.

For such advanced nations it'd make more sense to simply flag the AI to not perform naval landings, a bit like the M2TW 1.0 :D

[rajpoot]

I might be totally wrong, but the way I see it, keeping in mind that this time ships aren't just small units on the world map, I doubt if modding them would be so easy.
btw, I think that the natives should have the capability to build the ships they did, and cross the oceans with them, but if it's kept accurate enough, then even after this no native can colonize Europe unless the player is a real pro. I mean hey, if a veteran can manage to beat musketeers with spearmen, then he should have the option of going on.

[PBI]

The only reason it would bother me if the "natives" were able to colonize the Old World is if the AI were to do it all the time, and we end up with a game where the Prussians and French are routinely overrun by a huge Comanche empire. I have no problems whatsoever with the player being able to do it. If people don't like the idea of the native Americans carving out a huge European empire, no one's forcing them to do it.

Maybe the acquisition of ocean going vessels could be handled by the new technology system, so native factions will be able to travel overseas, but not right from the start and they will have to invest lots of time and money into doing it. Or maybe it could be handled like the acquisition of horses and guns for the Apache in Kingdoms, by sufficient contact (either through combat or trade) with the Europeans.

[seriousbusiness]

In 1700 France (with its large colonial empire - much larger than the English colonies (keep in mind the UK was not formed until 1707, IIRC) - was almost indisputably Europe's Foremost power. Spain had declined in the late 1600s and while the Dutch (with much naval control) and Austria acted as something of a counterweight, Louis XIV's France was scarily powerful. However Louis XIV is getting older and his successor Louis XV is not made of the same stuff (the Seven Years' War was one of France's most catastrophic defeats ever and ruined France's credibility and finances. Sweden is a major player in the north. Peter the Great's Russia is emerging as another major player with enormous potential. The Ottoman Empire, although relatively less powerful than in much of the previous 2 centuries, remains potent. Britain has just had a mostly lacklustre century - civil wars, public execution of Charles I (the horror! ), dictatorship and so on, emerging with a relatively small colonial empire less powerful than most people assume. The situation is looking a little dim for Poland-Lithuania, with terrible defeats at the hands of the Swedes and Prussia and Russia looking to their lands for quick 'n' easy expansion (Polish partitions were an important geopolitical consideration which made Prussia and Russia considerably stronger). They had to work very hard to gain what they eventually did. Domestic reform is also key - a landlocked, industrialized empire (say, Austria) might easily beat another great power in a local European war.

I'm annoyed Austria isn't playable at the beginning. I very much hope it is unlockable. They were easily more powerful than the Dutch or Swedish and before the Prussian-Austrian war appeared to be in pretty good shape (they might well have won that war, too)

The Mughuls are a can of worms in my opinion. I would personally like to see ETW focus entirely on the European balance of power (let's face it, few foreigners have ever beaten a European force - Ethiopia (Italy) and Japan (Russia) are possibly the only ones I am aware of. If the Mughuls are playable then before you know it people will be wanting the Mayans, Incans, Inuits, Aussie Aborigines...