Improvements I'm looking forward to or Why I'm patiently waiting for EB II

[Horatius Flaccus]

It's based on Kingdoms, so all those options are available. And there will be permanent forts representing lesser settlements.

[QuintusSertorius]

It's based on Kingdoms, so all those options are available. And there will be permanent forts representing lesser settlements.

For someone who's never played M2:TW, what do permanent forts mean? Are they like mini-settlements? Do they impact your economy or ability to recruit if you take them?

[Horatius Flaccus]

In Vanilla? No. They are just forts like forts in Rome, only permanent and from stone (hence the name: Permanent Stone Forts (PSF's)). But the mod Dominion of the Sword has made scripts that influence your province income depending on whether or not you control certain PSF's.

[Alrik]

For someone who's never played M2:TW, what do permanent forts mean? Are they like mini-settlements? Do they impact your economy or ability to recruit if you take them?

They are like normal forts on the battlemap, but on the campaign map they are owned by the faction that held them last, even if left unguarded (and as permanent insinuates they don't dissapear if you leave them empty for a turn)

Also in M2TW you have a number of slots in settlements that offer to pay the upkeep for garrisoned troops, the different campaigns handle this differently. The main campaign requires that it is a unit with "militia" in the name that the settlement can build (But the main campaign have no permanent forts) and Britannia, which is the only one of the other three campaigns that I've played offer these freeslots to any unit that the settlement can currently build. (There are factions in the main campaign that have very limited militias compared to others, so "militia only" is very favourable for the Italian factions.)

I think it's something like:
Village - 2 slots
Town - 2 slots
Large Town - 3 slots
Minor City - 4 slots
Large City -5 slots
Huge City -6 Slots

Permanent Forts 2 Slots (But as they can't build anything they offer those slots to ANY two units.) If a Family Member is present he can also reqruit Mercenaries in the fort without leaving it, but that's the same as a normal fort, i think.

There's also Castles (Two types of settlements in M2TW), but I don't see the use of them in EB, not as castles anyway, though I do suppose they offer the EB crew an option of citytypes. Castles doesn't have any free garrison slots. (But you can convert a castle into a city and vice versa until they reach the higher tiers, well you can always convert a castle to a city, but not the other way around, I think it is large city = no going back.)

Edit:
Oh, I haven't checked, since it's quite some time since played Britannia (a tiny map with incredibly easy settings even on VH/VH), but I recall the forts being placed on roads and that possibly the ownership of them along with the diplomatic relations with that owner had an impact on the trade of said roads. This i spelucative, but at the time I didn't know of the impact rebels blocking roads had so it didn't occur to me then, it's a purely retrospective thought.

[B-Wing]

There's also Castles (Two types of settlements in M2TW), but I don't see the use of them in EB, not as castles anyway, though I do suppose they offer the EB crew an option of citytypes. Castles doesn't have any free garrison slots. (But you can convert a castle into a city and vice versa until they reach the higher tiers, well you can always convert a castle to a city, but not the other way around, I think it is large city = no going back.)

Actually the team stated in one of their previews that they will probably replace the Castle settlement type with Nomadic Camps or something similar, to be used out on the steppes. And castles can have free unit upkeep, I've seen other mods do it.

[GenosseGeneral]

Actually the team stated in one of their previews that they will probably replace the Castle settlement type with Nomadic Camps or something similar, to be used out on the steppes.

It was the Numidian Preview.

[Cute Wolf]

not wuite, actually....

[Satyros]

Hello , quick question :

I was rather impressed after reading about XAI BAI/CAI . Haven't tried it yet though .

Does the team plan on doing something similiar , well suited for the gameplay ( as desired by them ) of EB2?

Satyros