BROKEN CRESCENT: Mod Progress

[Drtad]

IS IT RELEASED????

No.

@ SOAD-- I like Toxicity but for some reason Lost in Hollywood is my favorite song by them.

That's not a bad song (except for the fact that Daron is singing). It's a lot better than Vicinity of Obscenity.

[zznɟ ǝɥʇ]

IS IT RELEASED????

Now all we need is an arabic-looking Treebeard and we can add 'sadiq.'

Sorry mirage I had to

[teh.frickin.pope]

IS IT RELEASED????

Are we all dancing in the streets? er...at our computer desks?

[Miraj]

Haye guythz kan u pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeze reelees this modes now????? Pleeese??? R wee thayr yet??



No it's not released yet.

[Darkarbiter]

Me predicts all the other tasks are just a cover up for the fact that the person making the music hasn't finished yet. The more tracks the better

Anyway looking forward to that at least... (I'd say the skins as well but then I realised I need a new graphics card)

[cardboardboxer]

I don't know where this goes, but as a forum newbie and a dedicated BC lurker, I'd like to congratulate everyone who has worked on this mod. It's really awesome!

The only other big mod I've played is RTR, and that one blew me away, when compared to vanilla. However, I never did lurk around the forums for that mod because I had found the mod after it was made.

In this case, I've been following this mod since March, and I am astounded not just by the pretty (understatement?) units, new factions and nice map but by the entire thought process as well. The wide public consultation also impresses me!

And the mod release dates (approximated) being shifted around? I don't mind at all. You guys seem to be busy doing stuff (one of you is studying engineering I think? I feel for you) but not only are you working on this but you're all responsive and easygoing (as easy-going as can be with typed words in a forum)!

Now my opinions on random things in the BC forums:
- I really like the ERE, but without Europe it doesn't work for me, so Oman it is (even without the extreme amount of port mercs that were originally planned)
- And about that ERE, the lack of horse archers is tolerable to me, but only if the merc HAs are as truly abundant as you say.
- How descriptive will things be in-game? I download random M2TW mods for the features they describe, but in-game I can't really find them
- Will there be more types of buildings, or replacements for existing buildings, like irrigation system => saqiya (water wheel) or madrassas or qanats (underground water channels) or special buildings such as Muslim universities?
(I don't have artisitic skills for this, and I can only mod text files, and only editing code, not writing new stuff, so I couldn't add this stuff even if I wanted too)

There's my highly appreciative rant! GO BC TEAM GO!

[Miraj]

I don't know where this goes, but as a forum newbie and a dedicated BC lurker, I'd like to congratulate everyone who has worked on this mod. It's really awesome!

Thanks. We appreciate it.
[QUOTE]

And the mod release dates (approximated) being shifted around? I don't mind at all. You guys seem to be busy doing stuff (one of you is studying engineering I think? I feel for you) but not only are you working on this but you're all responsive and easygoing (as easy-going as can be with typed words in a forum)!

We try, but we're human... so yeah we have to push things back or realize something well take longer, etc.

- I really like the ERE, but without Europe it doesn't work for me, so Oman it is (even without the extreme amount of port mercs that were originally planned)

That's understandable. The type of ERE we designed was supposed to be a more older, almost eastern style, lots of the art was motivated by stuff dating from even the Arab conquests. So we tried our best to create a eastern tailored ERE as much as possible.

- And about that ERE, the lack of horse archers is tolerable to me, but only if the merc HAs are as truly abundant as you say.

They are quite abundant indeed.

- How descriptive will things be in-game? I download random M2TW mods for the features they describe, but in-game I can't really find them

In terms of documentation? We'll supply a read me file. But we're not exactly EB or even RTR, so I doubt learning curves will be high. The higher learning curve will be the cultural one... and in that case we've tried to be as accessible and descriptive for the units as possible.

I hope that's what you were asking. But I probably misread the question.

- Will there be more types of buildings, or replacements for existing buildings, like irrigation system => saqiya (water wheel) or madrassas or qanats (underground water channels) or special buildings such as Muslim universities?

There are a few new buildings. Not exactly a lot, but its there. There are special muslim universities called "Nizamiyyas" buildable in certain cities. There are monasteries and madrassas. We have no new farming type buildings, though its a good idea. The most important building line currently in 1.0 is the 4 tier slave markets/barracks that Muslim factions get. It gives them access to each factions ghulams and is buildable in only certain settlements (but both cities and castles).

There's my highly appreciative rant! GO BC TEAM GO!

Once again, thanks.

[IrAr]

Now all we need is an arabic-looking Treebeard and we can add 'sadiq.'

Doesn't he have rather semitic features already, though? Look at him, his jaw, his nose, his eyes.

[Armatus]

Doesn't he have rather semitic features already, though? Look at him, his jaw, his nose, his eyes.

Speaking of features which this is kind of off topic, but in general I always thought some of CA's vanilla eastern troops look rather retarded with their helmets/caps appearing to sit on the top of their head exposing a rather large forehead (which would be prime for an axe or a spear blow.) But that's neither here nor there. I'll be happy when this mod comes out.

If I may make one criticism/inquiry what does everyone think of the Indian faction? To me them see a little rushed compared to the others. But again this mod is great overall and the level of detail in everything else is astounding.

[Ahiga]

Why do you feel the Indian faction was rushed? Not asking in offense, since constructive criticism is good, just wondering what gives it that impression.

As for that, I was mixed on CA's eastern troops. The fact that Byzantium, Russia, and the turks all got units with meshes nobody else had (Byzantium had almost everything above the levy-type troops with a mesh nobody else had) was good, and I did like the Russian meshes and Byzantine once the colors were fixed, but Hungary and Poland were really not attractive at all. And the wizard hat they gave the light eastern mesh wasn't anything like the Cuman pointed hats

[Armatus]

"wizard hat" lol


Looking again now, the Indians are not that bad, in fact quite good actually.

I thought were some pieces of metal where the texure seems flat such as on the middle unit with the anchor shapped face covering don't get me wrong I think that helmet is sweet, maybe I'm looking at it from a not so perfect angle?



I thought it didn't shine or capture the feel of metal, but otherwise great job. The shields are great! I think I made that assumption when I looked over the elephants, they seem to be plain with no paintings on their skin, sporting a flat looking ribbon tied around them. Oh and the tower is somewhat generic, just a wooden box no coloring or ornaments.

I do like the heavier ele, but I can't get a good look in the last pic. It does remind me of some of the museum photos I've seen with the lamellar covered eles.

I'm sorry for jump saying that blanketed, just the first tier eles is really all I was referring to.



Oh here's a pic of what I mean about the vanilla foreheads

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Armatus]

sorry wasn't checking my grammar & spelling, plus I added a couple of comments above.

[Roman Knight]

"wizard hat" lol


Looking again now, the Indians are not that bad, in fact quite good actually.

I thought were some pieces of metal where the texure seems flat such as on the middle unit with the anchor shapped face covering don't get me wrong I think that helmet is sweet, maybe I'm looking at it from a not so perfect angle?



I thought it didn't shine or capture the feel of metal, but otherwise great job. The shields are great! I think I made that assumption when I looked over the elephants, they seem to be plain with no paintings on their skin, sporting a flat looking ribbon tied around them. Oh and the tower is somewhat generic, just a wooden box no coloring or ornaments.

I do like the heavier ele, but I can't get a good look in the last pic. It does remind me of some of the museum photos I've seen with the lamellar covered eles.

I'm sorry for jump saying that blanketed, just the first tier eles is really all I was referring to.



Oh here's a pic of what I mean about the vanilla foreheads

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

That's off POTW, that week Argent Usher absolutely owned

[AlphaDelta]

The rajputs are rushed? Absolutely not..They have been worked and re-worked for over 6 months

There's a couple of huge problems with trying to design and visualise a medieval Indian faction.

1) The sources are few and far between. The medieval period is widely regarded as the "Indian darkage" and as such the resources are limited. See if you can find an Osprey book (or similar) that covers the Rajput states during a period of roughly 1000 - 1400 AD. You can't, because there isn't one.

2) The general impression we get is that a rajput army would be one of levies and elites. Poor as hell levied Indians wearing loin cloths and running around with clubs, sticks, knives, whatever they could get a hold of. The elites of the period, however, we have absolutely NO IDEA! Our source for that period is "Indianboy" and he claims that they used plate armour, in the 12th century!! So what the heck were we supposed to do?

3) A two tier army would be a boring as heck army to fight with. So instead we devised a series of medium tier units that prevent that two tier feeling. They use a wide set of sources, some are from antiquity. Artistically they aren't the best in the mod, but they fullfil our primary goal to generate a faction that feels Indian, and contrasts well with the eastern Muslim states.

4) The picture you posted is of their "elite" unit. It's a unit that is from the late Moghul period, though Ahiga has reason to believe the armour style is appropriate for the 1400's, so it's not quite so bad as it might seem. I'm not sure I understand you point about the helmet visor. It's made using an alpha cut, and alpha is very much bugged in M2TW so I did the best I could. Making it with out alpha cutting would of used an awful lot of polygons, and no one likes the frame rate hit. There is a far more pressing issue with that texture which has since been fixed. Hats off to anyone that can see.

5) Regarding the early tier phants. I've always wanted to rip that box off it's back. I'd really like to have the early tier elephant unit be 3 guys kneeling on the back of an elephant, two of them throwing javelins. The middle tier longbow elephant unit I'd like to model a new basic wooden box, something that looks rough and poor. The late tier elephant unit I'd really love to model fancy boxes and give them those classically Indian large umbrellas. The final thing I'd like to do is reduce the size of the elephants as they are somewhat huge in vanilla.

However, the bad news is that I haven't gotten very far into the animation system and I've had very little time to experiment with the mount to mesh tool. My results with mount to mesh have been frustrating at best. Plans for elephant changes are very much on hold.

Cheers

[Armatus]

Sorry I didn't mean to downplay your work, the original statement I made was one out of order. Everything really looks good, I wasn't commenting on the type of units themselves, and really just said that after looking at the elephants, but it sounds like you know exactly what the elephants need.

I've had a little exposure to Indian history and I think it's out there, just harder to find. I wouldn't blame anyone for missing it though. From what I know Indianboy is probably right about the plate armor it did come later, as the lamellar/plate & chain style. You can find fully mailed Indians carrying muskets in the museums online. It may have been more of an eastern Islamic influence of the Moghuls, but I'm not here to debate it. I hope I didn't offend anyone!

[boerekovic]

Kill the Devteam for destroying my Life!
im totally stalking this forum too long!

[kelvintyk]

Kill the Devteam for destroying my Life!
im totally stalking this forum too long!

Be patient if you want a good mod. They are already trying their best.

[Icefrisco]

I havent looked at this mod in a while so I was wondering if someoen could just tell me what still has to be finished? I am really excited for this mod.

[Miraj]

Check out the first post. We just recently completed and integrated the new ERE and Khwarezm units. Balancing, faction previews and some testing issues still remain.

[Bluice]

Take your time Mirage, this seems to be an epic in the making that will put Stainless Steel in its place (as much as I love SS )

I would love to use the mod in one of our future Democracy Games with permission of course.