Real Recruitment1.3/Real Combat1.8/CBUR/BFTB/BGR IV Compilation - 2009 Version - April 8 with update April 23
April 23 Update (save-game compatible) at end of the post
REAL RECRUITMENT 1.3 / REAL COMBAT 1.8 for STAINLESS STEEL 6.1 BETA
Real Recruitment ('RR') is an attempt to more accurately simulate the dynamics of recruiting, retention and training during the medieval period covered by the M2TW game. There is a guide included in the download. RR includes Real Combat.
Real Combat ('RC') is an attempt to create a more realistic M2TW combat experience via the modification of a number of crucial unit stats for all units, using a consistent and detailed framework. A guide is included in the download.
Includes by kind permission:
- 6.2 patch Release Candidate 4 by Gracul.
- BATTLE FOR THE BALTIC by Caesar Clivus
- COMPLETE BYZANTINE UNIT ROSTER by Anthonius II and Caesar Clivus
- BGR IV (optional) by Byg
- 1100 mod by AWellesley
- Knights Templar units from Lord_Calidor's KT mod
- 1450 Campaign by JaM
- Hundred Years War and Italian City States Mini Campaigns by Lusted
- SSTC by Chimaeira
- Real Horses by Argent Usher
- Mapmod by Charge
- Crimson Tide by Magus
- City and Castle models by Agart
- Timurid Reskin by Dave
- Nostalgia patch by mr.blonde
- CampaignAI by TheSavage
- BattleAI by Germanicu5
- Lord Condormanius's Mailed Knights
- BETTER GRASS by david.coole
- plus other submods as included in 6.2 patch Release Candidate 4 by Gracul
RR 1.2 changes:
-Much improved event code to better model the changes in army compositions from High Era onwards up to early 1600's
- more realistic introduction of new weapons such as pikes, polearms, corned powder firearms, wheelocks etc
- reduction in importance of Feudal System, availability of Feudal units, free upkeep etc as time progresses, though this effect varies by faction
- increase in professional men-at-arms until Late Professional units become more dominant
-AOR for Locals and Early Professionals
- Locals are available to any faction that controls the region, but more to the original owning faction. It will take some time for new factions to be able to recruit these units, and their availability is reduced
- Early Professionals are fully available to the original faction in their original regions, and also in those regions originally owned by factions that can also recruit those units; elsewhere their availability is reduced
-Generally improved RR code for most factions
-ME factions received particular attention
-High-level barracks has limited ability to upgrade armor, as for a lower-level smith. This particularly helps the AI
-The following units are added:
* ME Heavy Spearmen
* ME Heavy Archers
* Moorish Auxilliaries
* Fari Noble Cavalry
* Armored Pikemen
* Swiss Armored Pikemen
* Armored Tercio Pikemen
* Corned-Powder Arquebusiers
* Pavise-shield Handgunners
* Halberd Men-at-Arms
* Swiss Halberdiers
* generic Archers (available to most factions in early era)
* Men-at-Arms, mounted and foot
* Mounted Arquebusiers
* Soldatos Reformados Arquebusiers
* Black Band Arquebusiers
* Janissary Arquebusiers
* Late Matchlock Musketeers
* Noble Knights
* Arbalest Militia
* Urban Spear Militia
* Pavise Spear Militia
* Urban Crossbow Militia
-The following units are available to many more factions:
* Demi Lancers
* Gendarmes
* Reiters (Pistoliers)
* Pike Militia
* Halberd Militia
* Italian MAA
* Arquebusiers
* Musketeers
* Pikemen
-Updated mercenary file
-Norway and Denmark feudal system more infantry-centric
-Improved and Advanced Metallurgy available to some factions, allowing extra armor upgrades
-Militia upkeep cost increased
-Militia replacement rates reduced
-New Mongol recruitment system
-Re-worked unit priorities has resulted in much improved AI army composition, with greater proportion of heavy units
-Plus many, many other fixes and updates
RC 1.7 changes:
Units, Classes and Categories
-Slight reduction in morale (by an average of 3); however AI morale and experience are boosted at difficulty levels of 'Hard' or 'Very Hard'
-Formations more consistent and dependent on unit quality
-Unit sizes altered depending on category and faction - Late Professional, Urban Professional and Urban Militia (except cavalry) units are typically larger. Early Era armies will therefore tend to be smaller overall and consist of a small core of heavy units, while later armies will be larger with more professionals
-Unit costs raised in proportion to unit sizes (unit costs are calculated per soldier and multiplied by unit size)
-Addition of 'Exceptional' unit quality class. Complete list is: Exceptional>Elite>Superior>Average>Militia>Peasant Militia>Peasant
-Exceptional, Elite and Superior units have received slight attack boost relative to other units
-Overall clearer distinctions between melee and missile, foot and mounted and different quality level units
-Heavy foot units now move more slowly than lighter units
-Reiter (pistolier) now uses sword
-Later-appearing, more advanced units are more likely to be recruited than early units if both are available at the same time
-Some unit names slightly changed to add historical flavor
-Completely re-worked heat system that considers armor, weapon weight, shield weight, geographical origin, missile weapons, mounts tiring and unit quality
-Managing unit stamina is now an important consideration
-Completely re-worked terrain bonus and penalty system that considers foot unit armor type and encumberance, mount type and geographical origin
Missile Combat
-Missile units now melee at 2 levels less, rather than 1 level
-Updating of all missile accuracies/velocities/ballistics, to reflect heavier 'war arrow' loads
-Horse archer arrows are faster but lighter. At very close range they have comparable energy to the heavier yet slower arrows shot by foot archers, but at longer range lose energy and effectiveness by comparison
-Lower quality bow users shoot with slightly lower velocity
-Updating of most missile accuracy values. In general, bows>=crossbows>muskets>arquebus>handgun>=javelin; however, at lower skill levels, crossbows are better than bows
-Accuracy values and damage effects better reflect weapon characteristics and advantages/disadvantages of more/less user skill and training
-Bows attack reduced. Combined with armor model changes above, bows now have more difficulty handling opponents in armor better than Heavy Mail
-More variety in rate of fire between heavy and light firearms
-Armor Piercing attribute removed from all AP missile weapons and attack value increased, for greater effect versus light armor, and reduced effect versus heavy armor
-All missile weapon armor penetration effects normalised based on joules of energy delivered to a point, with firearms firing soft lead balls having that energy converted to 'point' delivery equivalence
-Firearm lethality increased. Those without armor and/or hit at short range will usually be casualties
-Bows divided into 'Missile' and 'Skirmish' types, with their own updated animations
* 'Missile' units shoot faster but with less accuracy to a greater range - these units create a real 'arrow shower' over a wider area
* 'Skirmish' units shoot more slowly but with better accuracy, over direct sights (ie a shorter range). Foot skirmishers are the most accurate archer units
-Horse archers shoot faster. HA are likewise divided into 'Skirmish' and 'Missile' types. Skirmish HA are typically lighter and faster units and usually shoot from very close range (60m)
-Removal of exploding cannon ammunition
-Reduction in area of effect of artillery ammunition vs units
-Missile weapons and gunpowder artillery shoot better at close range
-Costs and training times for firearms units reduced to reflect ease of training
-Archer training costs increased to reflect training duration
-Early bombard fires stone balls which shatter on impact; it is best used versus walls rather than units, though retains the grapeshot option
-Non-gunpowder siege artillery less accurate versus units
Mounted Combat
-Cavalry mounted attack bonus and defense penalty both increased
-Some reduction in cavalry mass values, especially to medium horses, eastern horses and ponies.
-Faster horses receive a slight charge bonus for secondary weapons and non-couched lances ;slower horses receive a slight penalty. Fast mounts are good for hit and run attacks but not for breaking a line
-Cavalry lance attack values slightly reduced
-Cavalry sword charge bonus slightly reduced
-Horse armor effect reduced
-Cavalry more vulnerable to missile weapons
-Most eastern cavalry units now use 'Eastern Horse' (lighter but more agile) rather than heavy horse. Eastern Armored horse also lightened
-Many western light and medium cavalry units now use 'Medium Horse' (lighter and cheaper)
Armor System
-Increasing armor from Heavy Mail to Plate+Mail now counts as 2 armor upgrades, ie Plate+Mail and better armor now more effective than before. Upgrading from Heavy Mail to Plate+Mail will show as 2 upgrades (ie a silver shield).
-Updated shields stats to better model their effect versus missiles, and their effect on heat/fatigue
-Mail armor less effective versus missile weapons than in melee, but reduced heat penalty compared to other metal armors
-Improved and advanced metallurgy armors featured
Melee Combat
-Shieldless 1H weapon units get +1 attack bonus and attack faster
-Updated modelling of spear units. As well as fighting in closer formation, spears now more effective versus infantry and less versus cavalry
-Spears attack slightly more slowly
-Pikes reduced in melee effect versus cavalry. While pikes are still by far the best versus a cavalry charge, polearms are the best killer of cavalry (especially armored cavalry) in melee
-Overall 'rock-paper-scissors' effect in tactical combat is blurred
-Improved cohesion (thanks banzai!) - units (including cavalry) will prefer to shuffle forward rather than backward (except spear units which tend to hold in place) - this counteracts the 'units spreading out in melee issue'
-Further updating of mental stats for many units, in particular militia and some 'individual-combat' oriented units (eg knights) employ less tidy formations
-Pikes better balanced. Pike formations improved. Better-quality pike units hold their formations better
-Better-quality pike units have more 'aggressive' animation set
-Phalanx polearms better balanced
-Poleaxe units get their own animation class. Attacks similar to 2H axe + some halberd, defends as halberd
-2H axe units use 2H axe animations again, rather than 2H sword
-Some attack animations added to 2H axe class
-2H axe more effective versus cavalry
-More eastern and middle eastern units armed with 'light sword', with lighter damage, faster attack time and less heat penalty due to light weight
-Very slight reduction in mass values for some ME foot units
Patch to RR 1.3 / RC 1.8 Feb 20:
Mongol artillery crews fixed
Byzantines can build higher tier gunsmiths
Armour upgrade system made more detailed and realistic; close to 30 armor types
More complete treatment of when armor types become available
Metallurgy improvements are available significantly earlier at smiths in Italian regions
Events notify player of technology changes in arms and armor better
Grapeshot working for Bombards and Grand Bombards
Gunpowder artillery dates of availability re-worked (generally available later)
Some gunpowder artillery types have more pieces
Gunpowder artillery more accurate versus units
Siege engines in sieges screened by infantry (that won't skirmish away and expose the siege engines even if skirmish or missile infantry)
Some units adjusted in quality
French Feudal and Chivalric Knights added
German Feudal and Dismounted Feudal Knights added
Halberdiers added (Late Era Pike-breaker and assault unit)
Spanish Arquebusiers added
Moorish Auxilliaries added
Early Reiters added
Reiters shoot faster, at a rate simulating shooting pre-loaded pistols
Reiter ammunition reduced
Some BGR category fixes
Mongol recruitment system updated
Some Mongol unit number changed (reduced infantry/unit)
Med 2 Faction recruitment categories removed
Elephants working and visible
More detailed faction descriptions for some factions and eras
Animations added to phalanx polearms, balance also improved
Unarmored horses now relatively more vulnerable
All horse armor types have higher heat penalty
Gracul's 6.2 patch RC4 integrated
mr. blonde's MTW Nostalgia patch added (alters some portraits)
Turbo's modifications to faction standings and relations added
Battle AI updated, skirmish cavalry now more effective
Firearms now fire in synchronised volley with approximately historical reload times
Heavier firearms take longer to get into firing position, but better quality troops do it quicker
Firearms have more realistic tactical ranges and accuracies
Some other animation updates
Some minor changes to formations
AI recruit priorities updated so Renaissance-type units more likely to be recruited when available
Reduced heat penalties for some later armor types
Most feudal units for western european factions become unavailable by mid 16th century
Customised faction recruitment priorities (WIP)
and a special thanks to Caesar Clivus for his excellent unit cards for the new units and units belonging to new factions :original:
Patch to RR 1.3 / RC 1.8 March 9:
Completed faction recruitment priorities
Coat of Plates introduced as armor upgrade between heavy mail and partial plate for some factions
Updated BattleAI by Germanicu5
New StratAI by TheSavage
Further refined armor system
Early Reiters with Gothic Armor and Armored Horse, with model by Caesar Clivus
Reiters fire much faster to simulate just replacing loaded pistols rather than reloading new ones
Slowed reload times for other mounted gunners
Improved accuracy for mounted gunners
Pike attack speed slowed slightly for better balance, they also take longer to respond to flank attacks. Militia pike units are now more for holding actions rather than offensive use
Slightly increased interval between spear attacks
Updated and more realistic dates of availability for later medieval and early renaissance units
Mosts starting units in 1450 campaign begin with extra armor upgrades compared to earlier eras
Gunners that use fire-by-rank better than in ETW
New Splash Screen by Caesar Clivus
New RealCombat 1.8 Guide included in SS6 folder, which shows details of new armor system
More frequent events detailing technology progression
Latest Patch to RR 1.3 / RC 1.8 April 8:
-AWellesley's excellent 1100 mod, for details please go to:
http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=226617
Its pretty much all included (though with some EDB changes to fit RR), any omissions aside from that are likely accidental so please let me know
-Knights Templar units (now part of Crusader States roster) are more available in the Holy land, less outside of it
-Most Knights Templar units use the fantastic models and textures from Lord_Calidor's KT mod
-Late era and renaissance units added to Crusader States to make it a viable late-game faction
-Timurids back in campaign and custom battles, expect them to invade a bit earlier than in vanilla, because the SS map extends further east
-BattleAI by Germanicu5
-New text files for Late Era to give more historical flavor
-Ireland removed, though some Irish units remain as mercs and rebels
-Longbow gets more arrows
-Mongol Heavy Archers set as skirmisher cavalry
-The 1370 Campaign works but is very much WIP
DOWNLOAD AND INSTALLATION:
Download Here
Install in SS6 Folder. Requires SS6.1. Best installed on top of a clean SS6.1.
If you have VISTA, best to turn of UAC!
Please then also extract the attached CAMPAIGN_PATCH.rar file into the Stainless_Steel_6 folder (see the bottom of this post).
***If you get a CTD on startup, please download the following file and put the contents in your Medieval II Total War folder***:
new_exe.rar
After installing, copy the SS6/symbols4.tga.dds and SS6/symbols7.tga.dds file to the C:\Program Files\SEGA\Medieval II Total War\data\banners folder
- Default setting is TheSavageAI, and no BGRIV
- To use BGR IV with TheSavageAI, copy the contents of the SS6/Data_BGRIV_TheSavageAI folder to the SS6/data folder
- To use BGR IV with Byg's AI, copy the contents of the SS6/Data_BGRIV_BygAI folder to the SS6/data folder
- To use BGR IV with Gracul's AI, copy the contents of the SS6/Data_BGRIV_GraculAI folder to the SS6/data folder
- To remove BGR IV, copy the contents of the SS6/Data_BGRIV_REMOVE folder to the SS6/data folder
Alternate Text Files
If playing after about 1400, recommend you copy the contents of the SS6/Data_Campaigns_1370_1450 folder to the SS6/data folder. This updates the text (and bodyguards) to be more era-appropriate. Its save-game compatible.
To use early-era text files again, copy the contents of the SS6/Data_Campaigns_Early_Late folder to the SS6/data folder.
Recommend to play as England in the Hundred Years War Campaign, and as Venice in the Italian City States Campaign. Also highly recommended to use BGRIV, which runs very fast and works particularly well in these smaller scenarios.
BGRIV: Please see the BGRIV Recruitment Guide included in the SS6 folder. You should also read the instructions on the bgrIV forum for BGRIV. The finances for nobles are displayed by hitting the faction button. These two popup summaries should show what the nobles give and take from the faction's economy. It will take time to learn how to manage an economy with the new system. This mod hopefully reflects the true costs of maintaining a "nobility" or "elite" class in any society (bit of politics there). In this period a nobility is essential, but best kept to a minimum until the economy can support it.
New Splash Screen by Caesar Clivus, install into the SS6/data/menu folder: http://files.filefront.com/splashtga.../fileinfo.html
If you want to use another BattleAI, make sure that you have the following text at the top of the data/battle_config.xml file:
<config>
<!-- global combat balancing factors -->
<combat-balancing>
<missile-target-accuracy>
<infantry>1.0</infantry>
<cavalry>1.5</cavalry>
<elephants>0.75</elephants>
</missile-target-accuracy>
<melee-hit-rate>2.00</melee-hit-rate>
</combat-balancing>
Also I recommend you don't use another descr_formations_ai file as it may cause a crash due to the new 'Skirmisher' class.
Please check my .sig for regular patches and updates :original:
If you have Vista and after few battles game have unspecified error (black screen crash) turn off advisor. Advisor can be turned off ingame - pres ESC, click on Options and look for advisor settings.
Update April 23 (save-game compatible):
(note: if you are using BGR, best to install this update then copy over the BGR file set you were using again)
Originally Posted by Plautus
I have situated myself to play the late campaign straight away,rather to skip the eras of spear militia and little else right to the height of medieval warfare and the birth of the modern era.I have selected to use the HRE as often I do but I was caught off guard to see that I share a border with...the Crown of Castile?????????????????????I may have missed somethnig along the way here,but at what point did the crown of castille hold its capital in Vienna????????I mean this with no sarcasm,it is just that if this is not a bug,mistake,or oversight,I would really love to be enlightened to this.Thanks again for another great mod
