**PRO DEO ET REGE v0.3A BETA FEEDBACK AND DISCUSSIOn**

[ENSAIS]

I really like the direction you are going with this by including updated versions of some of the best specific mods out there (eg recent orders update stuff).

Currently playing as France, which is a bit more satisfying than England was (because no longbows or billmen for England was too similar to generic faction for me... I know you already said you'd address this later).

I think from a gameplay perspective, as you have taken the step of putting a starting general or family member in every province, starting LOYALTY (if not command and piety) should be placed at 3 across the board as a temporary stopgap measure for nonfamily until you redo them in depth.

Also (dunno because I have not had a chance to see it) but can order units be free upkeep units? Seems to me that if you have an order chapter house you should be able to have, say, 2 free upkeep order units garrisoned there. A major chapterhouse 3, etc...

Just a couple ideas.

[Socal_infidel]

I really like the direction you are going with this by including updated versions of some of the best specific mods out there (eg recent orders update stuff).

Glad, you like the new Orders mounts! The Order Knights look a lot better IMO with the new mounts than they did with their faction mounts. Before they looked kinda out of place.

Currently playing as France, which is a bit more satisfying than England was (because no longbows or billmen for England was too similar to generic faction for me... I know you already said you'd address this later).

I actually was fiddling around late last night with an event trigger that fires when England takes a Welsh province. I need to refine it, but I'm pretty sure I can now limit recruitment of Longbowmen in the export_descr_buildings.txt file to this new event. In which, case you don't have to wait around for Longbowmen if you've already conquered Wales. Which makes more sense, I think. But I may beef up Wales slightly so getting them earlier is more of a challenge.

I think from a gameplay perspective, as you have taken the step of putting a starting general or family member in every province, starting LOYALTY (if not command and piety) should be placed at 3 across the board as a temporary stopgap measure for nonfamily until you redo them in depth.

I'm going to try for a v0.2 Beta release this weekend. And starting loyalty traits for all generals will definitely be included. Because, especially with the BBB 2.0 rebellion stuff, generals really are ripe for defection.

Also (dunno because I have not had a chance to see it) but can order units be free upkeep units? Seems to me that if you have an order chapter house you should be able to have, say, 2 free upkeep order units garrisoned there. A major chapterhouse 3, etc...

I may look into that. But if I did, I would probably limit even further the number of Order Knights available to recruit. Because from what I've read the most Knights fielded in the Outremer was around 1200 at the Battle of Hatting including around 300 or so Order Knights.

Thanks for the feedback! Appreciate it. If you want to try a faction that gets exposed to a lot of different Regional Levy Units try Venice. They start out with a province in Zara and are exposed to a wide array of Balkan units.

Or the Byzantines (whom I'm planning on reskinning soon), they probably have the widest roster of regional units from the start, as they start out in the Balkan, Cuman, Anatolia and the Levant AOR Regions.

Cheers!

[Socal_infidel]

UPDATE!

BYZANTIUM RESKINNED!

Thanks to the great efforts of WhiteWolf and DisgruntledGoat, the Byzantines have been completely reskinned! Goodbye ugly purple people eaters! All hail the glory of the Roman Empire!

Images!

Byzantium versus the Turks!

The Byzantine General and his bodyguard survey the field of battle moments before squaring off against the Turks.

These Kataphractoi brace themselves for battle.

Moments later, the Kataphractoi put these Askaris to flight!

The Byzantines versus the Italo-Normans!

These Trebizond Archers unleash a flurry of deadly arrows into the Norman advance!

These Byzantine Infantrymen taunt the upstarts Normans!

Amidst the chaos of the battlefield, these two Norman horsemen survey the field for foes to strike down!

Many special thanks again to the wonderful work of WhiteWolf and DisgruntledGoat! Restoring the glory of the Roman Empire through their modding skills!

ALSO UPDATED THE UNIT_SPRITES TO MATCH THE NEWLY SKINNED BYZANTINE UNITS!! THANKS TO CALIBAN FOR THE HOW-TO!

MORE TO COME!

[onefistedboxer]

Can i suggest toning the pope down a little, i'm not sure to what extent he's hard coded. Just to make sure he'll act on behalf of only high piety factions.

I love the AOR system, and i think you could definitely develop it more, by developing more units - either as standard units or AOR. I think this is your strongest asset in the mod.

I've encountered some missing unit cards (the one for the unit details screen) that i'm sure your aware of, as well as some missing text for new units.

I think pirates could betoned down, they are more powerfull than France/England and Scotland combined in the British isles.

I hope you chose to expand the mod with a full team in the future and get it to the level of development of existing mods, in terms of new factions ect.

Good Job!

[ENSAIS]

Can i suggest toning the pope down a little, i'm not sure to what extent he's hard coded. Just to make sure he'll act on behalf of only high piety factions.

I love the AOR system, and i think you could definitely develop it more, by developing more units - either as standard units or AOR. I think this is your strongest asset in the mod.

I've encountered some missing unit cards (the one for the unit details screen) that i'm sure your aware of, as well as some missing text for new units.

I think pirates could betoned down, they are more powerfull than France/England and Scotland combined in the British isles.

I hope you chose to expand the mod with a full team in the future and get it to the level of development of existing mods, in terms of new factions ect.

Good Job!

I agree that the AOR system is what is making this mod stand out from other mods.

I eagerly await the polish for WIP units to get unit cards, for new graphics for placeholder buildings, etc...

I see pirates and lesser factions armies as a block to crazy blitzing, though. Considering them "lesser factions" instead of rebels alows my displaced perception to think I am dealing with a startup grand duke somewhere, or some minor pretender kingdom bordering me that will not accept my rule... yet.


Speaking of a "mod team" I am completely unfamiliar with doing any of my own modding. What can a technically ignorant guy like myself add to this mod besides playtesting (which I am informally doing within the limits of staying married and working...)?

[Socal_infidel]

Can i suggest toning the pope down a little, i'm not sure to what extent he's hard coded. Just to make sure he'll act on behalf of only high piety factions.

I love the AOR system, and i think you could definitely develop it more, by developing more units - either as standard units or AOR. I think this is your strongest asset in the mod.

I've encountered some missing unit cards (the one for the unit details screen) that i'm sure your aware of, as well as some missing text for new units.

I think pirates could betoned down, they are more powerfull than France/England and Scotland combined in the British isles.

I hope you chose to expand the mod with a full team in the future and get it to the level of development of existing mods, in terms of new factions ect.

Good Job!

Appreciate the feedback. Ideally, I'd like to see a wider range of units, as well. The problem is for now we're limited by the number of entries we can have in the modelsdb file. And I'm saving some room in there for new units should I eventually decide to add new factions.

Thanks again for your response. And yes, I'd love to expand this mod, too. I may have to look for someone with 2D/3D design skills to help out, as I'm afraid I have very little skill in this area (I'm an attorney).

Cheers!

I agree that the AOR system is what is making this mod stand out from other mods.

I eagerly await the polish for WIP units to get unit cards, for new graphics for placeholder buildings, etc...

I see pirates and lesser factions armies as a block to crazy blitzing, though. Considering them "lesser factions" instead of rebels alows my displaced perception to think I am dealing with a startup grand duke somewhere, or some minor pretender kingdom bordering me that will not accept my rule... yet.


Speaking of a "mod team" I am completely unfamiliar with doing any of my own modding. What can a technically ignorant guy like myself add to this mod besides playtesting (which I am informally doing within the limits of staying married and working...)?

Just keep playing when you get the chance and post any feedback you have.
Maybe try out a wider range of factions to see how they play out. As I mentioned I'm limited in time. So when I'm not working, I'm modding this thing. Which leaves me little time to actually PLAY it. So any feedback I get from people on how it plays is really appreciated. Running auto-run campaigns only tells you so much.

Also, if you're knowledgeable about a certain faction, post any thoughts on how to make it more realistic (e.g. "you're crazy Socal, Bucharest was not even around at this time, or why did you make that unit recruitable in that AoR region!?!?!").

Thanks again for all of your responses.

Cheers!

[ENSAIS]

I may have to look for someone with 2D/3D design skills to help out, as I'm afraid I have very little skill in this area (I'm an attorney).

Yipes! I guess I have to rethink my "open season on attourney's" hunting policy.

[Red_Russian13]

Maybe I missed something, but I can't install it. Or I've installed it and it doesn't matter because I'm still playing 1.02. I don't know. Been screwing with this all day.

v1.02 is installed. I installed PDER v0.1 beta, then the update as directed...lo and behold...still playing vanilla 1.02.

Do I have to replace the original data folder with the one for PDER?

Edit: Okay, I figured it out. However, since I installed PDET the update, version .01a, should the game reflect the "a"? Right now I have v0.1.

[Socal_infidel]

Maybe I missed something, but I can't install it. Or I've installed it and it doesn't matter because I'm still playing 1.02. I don't know. Been screwing with this all day.

v1.02 is installed. I installed PDER v0.1 beta, then the update as directed...lo and behold...still playing vanilla 1.02.

Do I have to replace the original data folder with the one for PDER?

Edit: Okay, I figured it out. However, since I installed PDET the update, version .01a, should the game reflect the "a"? Right now I have v0.1.

No mate, the Splash Screen should still say v0.1Beta in the lower right-hand corner even after you install the 0.1A update.

Basically, the update overwrites your PDER descr_strat and a few other files to get the early-game economy going a little better.

Cheers!

[Red_Russian13]

Roger that, Infidel! Thanks for the reply. Looks good so far.

[Icefrisco]

I have been playing since the day it was released so here is my greatest amount of feedback so far:

AOR System- For a Beta it is excellent. Of course there will need to be more units but for now it is great.

New Units- They are very good and add a lot to the mod(especially dismounted mailed knights). However, some lack unit cards and good descriptions. However, for a beta the new units are great.

Reassigned Factions- Genoa is very hard, which makes them boring. I think i had said before that adding another Ligurian province(This time rebel) could really spice things up. Also, nearly everything about them is the same as Milan. As for Kiev, I have not played as them though they seem like everythings fine.

New Historic Events- For the first time in a mod I am actually reading them! Very good descriptions.

Names- For the names changed they were good and accurate. However, not all the names were changed so it is a little inconsistant.

New Regions- Very good. The regions and city names are all correct and they are in the correct places.

Nice Job! I really hope the update comes out soon!

[Socal_infidel]

I have been playing since the day it was released so here is my greatest amount of feedback so far:

AOR System- For a Beta it is excellent. Of course there will need to be more units but for now it is great.

New Units- They are very good and add a lot to the mod(especially dismounted mailed knights). However, some lack unit cards and good descriptions. However, for a beta the new units are great.

Reassigned Factions- Genoa is very hard, which makes them boring. I think i had said before that adding another Ligurian province(This time rebel) could really spice things up. Also, nearly everything about them is the same as Milan. As for Kiev, I have not played as them though they seem like everythings fine.

New Historic Events- For the first time in a mod I am actually reading them! Very good descriptions.

Names- For the names changed they were good and accurate. However, not all the names were changed so it is a little inconsistant.

New Regions- Very good. The regions and city names are all correct and they are in the correct places.

Nice Job! I really hope the update comes out soon!

Thanks for the great feedback arfrisco! I'm going to take everything you said into account.

I'll probably be releasing the next update sometime this weekend!

Cheers mate!

[CtrlAltDe1337]

I've been playing for a few hours and I have to say that this is one of the best strategymap mods out there. The AOR system is great and forces you to expand slower. I'm playing the HRE and I actually can't rampage through Europe in the first 70 turns.

The new units and other tweaks are also very good, but I would suggest slightly altering the factions' starting positions. I would give the Turks, Kievan Rus, and the Egyptians one or two more starting provinces, as they aren't doing much in my campaign. Also, Portugal needs the province right below Porto so they can expand down to Lisbon without fighting the Castilians (spelling?) right away. In my campaign, the Portuguese attacked and destroyed Castile around 25-35 turns into the game (I think they killed the royal family off). Also, you might want to re-ad the land bridge at the Strait of Gibraltar so the Moors can move into the Iberian Peninsula and give the Catholics some competition.

Other than that, everything is pretty much perfect from what I have seen.

[Socal_infidel]

I've been playing for a few hours and I have to say that this is one of the best strategymap mods out there. The AOR system is great and forces you to expand slower. I'm playing the HRE and I actually can't rampage through Europe in the first 70 turns.

The new units and other tweaks are also very good, but I would suggest slightly altering the factions' starting positions. I would give the Turks, Kievan Rus, and the Egyptians one or two more starting provinces, as they aren't doing much in my campaign. Also, Portugal needs the province right below Porto so they can expand down to Lisbon without fighting the Castilians (spelling?) right away. In my campaign, the Portuguese attacked and destroyed Castile around 25-35 turns into the game (I think they killed the royal family off). Also, you might want to re-ad the land bridge at the Strait of Gibraltar so the Moors can move into the Iberian Peninsula and give the Catholics some competition.

Other than that, everything is pretty much perfect from what I have seen.

Thanks for the kind words

Yeah, I plan on revisiting some of the starting positions, armies and treasuries for some of the factions that seem not to expand quite as well as some of the others.

And yes, I'll probably be giving Portugal Coimbra the next go-around. Because right now they either get killed off right away or accumulate a massive war-chest because they're not really doing anything in the beginning and then going nuts and wiping out Spain.

As far as the Moors are concerned, they usually take Granada early on in the campaigns I've seen so far. Maybe I'll start them out with an army on Iberia to get them really going.

Glad you're liking the AoR system! I was hoping it would slow down the blitzing.

Look for an update sometime this weekend!

Cheers!

[Icefrisco]

Sorry I forgot to add this in before so I will add it now:

Hungarian Adoptions- For some reason, when people were adopted into the Hungarian Royal family they didnt appear. It hasnt happened with anyone other then hungary.

Moors Not in Iberia- Instead of adding a landbridge why dont you script dates for the arrival of Almoravid and Almohad armies into Iberia.

England- Fun but a little too generic. Maybe adding longbowmen early on could help.

I really hope that the new version comes out soon!

[Socal_infidel]

Sorry I forgot to add this in before so I will add it now:

Hungarian Adoptions- For some reason, when people were adopted into the Hungarian Royal family they didnt appear. It hasnt happened with anyone other then hungary.

Strange. I'll look into this. Thanks for reporting it.

Moors Not in Iberia- Instead of adding a landbridge why dont you script dates for the arrival of Almoravid and Almohad armies into Iberia.

I think I'll start them off with an army just across Gibraltor in the next version. I don't want to go the route of using scripts to force them a certain way, because what if someone wants to play them. I'd like the situation to be as close to historical at the start but ultimately how the course of history unfolds is left to YOU!

England- Fun but a little too generic. Maybe adding longbowmen early on could help.

I agree, their early roster is a little boring and non-unique. I'm going to try to script an event trigger that allows England to begin recruiting Longbowmen once they capture the Welsh castle.

That way if the player wants them right away they can plan on an early Welsh campaign (but I'll probably makes Wales a tougher nut to crack).

Thanks again for feedback! Cheers!

[Woad-Warrier]

Wow...

[Socal_infidel]

UPDATE!

ALL NEW BANNERS!

Thanks to joedreck's Kings Banners expect to see a wider variety of banners!

Portugal prepares to take on the Moors!

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Venice takes on Egypt for control of the Holy Land!

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Also thanks to Matko from the amazing Magyar Mod Team Hungary has been given all new Banners!

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Pro Deo et Rege v0.2 Beta! Coming Soon!
Cheers!

[Icefrisco]

Nice! I cant wait!

[Icefrisco]

I got a CTD when a comquered Coimbra. Is this a known bug?