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Thread: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

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    Default Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI


    Letter from the asst Editor
    Ahhh! Nothing like a cool summer breeze on the lake. Cookouts, picnics, family fun, you know just enjoying the summertime. Yet we still wanted to bring you another edition of the Eagles Standard for your viewing and reading pleasure. Many of us have had our semesters winding down and other real life obligations that required our attention this month. And hey, that's just the way it is sometimes, but we still do our part, just for you. Here we bring you a short, but sweet release of the Eagle Standard.
    Also, our beloved Calvin will be stepping down as Chief Editor of the Eagle Standard, but not completely vanishing from the ES. He'll drop in from time to time to lend support and insight. We want to thank him for his service, dedication, and hard work with the Eagle Standard. As I will be taking over his duties, I only hope to be half of the Editor you were my good sir. We also wish to extend him and his fiance all the best with their upcoming wedding and beautiful union together. You know you have our support friend.
    Also, to those interested, the Eagle Standard is always looking for eager minds to join us. If you are interested in becoming a writer for the Eagle Standard, please feel free to send me a private message or contact Empress Meg. Because the expression of one, is the gift to many.

    B. Ward


    Table of Contents

    Round Table



    PotW & TotW




    An Interview with Immortal of Canaan: Total War
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    This month, I sat down with Immortal, leader of the Canaan: Total War mod, and he was kind enough to give us this interview.


    Q: Thanks for giving this interview to myself and the Eagle Standard. Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got involved in the world of Total War and its mods.
    A: Well I’ve always been good with computers and enjoyed many video games. So eventually I came across Rome Total War, it turned into one of the best buys ever. After a while I came across a mod from randomly typing in “lord of the rings” with “total war” after it. This of course brought me to Lord of the Rings Total War and the modding community. Soon enough I wanted to know how these mods were made, so I researched at the TWC and in the files themselves. After figuring out so much I wanted to make my own mod. So I began Civil War Total War for Medieval 2, this died soon after but it taught me much about modding. Then after some time I watched Bible Battles on the history channel and since I was already thinking of modding again this was a perfect idea. Now it’s what you see as Canaan Total War.


    Q: What is the objective of the Canaan:Total War team, in a nutshell?
    A: The objective of Canaan is not only to make the first Biblical mod that’s about the Conquest of Canaan by the Israelites, for the Total War series, but to also make a challenging, fun, and historical mod.


    Q: How important is historical accuracy to you and your team?
    A: Extremely important, we’ve used many resources to ensure the most accurate account of this time.


    Q: Since you started the mod in mid-December, you’ve had to deal with a number of people who wished to ridicule your mod as fantasy. How, in brief, would you answer their criticisms?
    A: Well let’s just say if you can actually support your opinion, and are able to not run away after I show my proof, unlike all the others, then feel free to ridicule this as fantasy.


    Q: With many mod teams these days switching their operations to Empires and the vast majority focusing their attentions on Medieval 2, what was the determining factor in basing your mod on the Rome platform?
    A: Well Rome has almost perfect animations for Canaan. If we were to base it on the others we would have to create many animations or (for Medieval 2) wait to use Europa Barbarorum 2’s animations.

    Q: From my own experience, modding can often be a notoriously slow process. That said, how are things progressing with C:TW?
    A: Well Canaan has come a long ways. But progress is still slow. A real pain for Canaan has been Unit Modelers. Every time we get one they seem to disappear without ever saying they quit so we can look for another.


    Q: How long will the game be? How many years, turns, etc.?
    A: It should be about 6 years, with 52 tpy (turns per year).


    Q: Will there be any major changes to the way the game plays versus vanilla, or should the player expect a largely vanilla-style game playing out in a far different setting?
    A: This mod will make you think, and give a challenge to the player. Only one city will allow you to train troops other than AOR (city unique) units. That means you must choose battles wisely and not let everyone die in one glorious battle. Also the cities have been changed to dislike you more when conquered. So you must station more units while also trying to conquer the rest of Canaan. If you haven’t figured it out yet, it will be much harder than vanilla.


    Q: How large is your team at present and in what areas specifically are you looking to recruit new members?
    A: At the moment we have 7 (maybe 9) members. Yes we are always happy to have new members, especially ones who can do Unit Modeling, making Campaign Maps, and even composers for music.


    Q: What are your future plans—looking past the release of C:TW? The Bible chronicles many wars in the time of the judges, following the conquest—would you look to expanding your mod to cover that time period?
    A: Well after Canaan I have thought of “Wars of Saul,” this would include the wars between Saul (Israel) and the Philistines. Yes this also has David in it.


    Q: Any previously unreleased renders you could show us or information you’d care to divulge?


    The white dots are the cities.

    A: This is the rough look of the future campaign map. I have all the files made but we need a mapper to implement it since I can’t seem to fix it. So any mappers wanting a job that is quicker than making one from scratch here it is.
    I wish we could’ve had more but that’s the way modding is, slow.


    Q: Any last words?
    A: I would first like to thank the Eagle Standard and Theodotos for the interview, second to the C:TW team, and lastly to the entire community for making this happen.



    An Interview with Theodotos I of The Frontier
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    Well, the Medieval II section has been getting some increased activity lately. Largely due to the "Who am I?" and "Thread Wars". But, as usually, I can't write an entire article on those. So today I bring you a word from Theodotos I about "The Frontier" A Kingdoms Modification





    1.So tell us a little about yourself Theo
    Well, first off, I’m a writer, as most readers of my AARs know. Writing is my primary love, followed by history as a close second. I joined the world of TW back in the days of MTW:VI(still the best game of the series), and arrived on the totalwar.org forum shortly after the release of EB 1.0. I came to TWC just over a year ago now and really enjoyed the forums. So I stayed.


    2. So when did you decide to go into modding?
    I found
    The Frontier shortly after my arrival here on TWC and was instantly enamored with the concept. America’s colonial days had always been a period of special fascination for me—and it was the first mod to be set in my country(unless you count the pitiful Americas campaign, which I don’t). I joined the team with the understanding that I would use my writing ability to come up with unit and building descriptions for the mod. I have since branched out and learned a few actual modding skills, but I wouldn’t necessarily describe myself as a modder.


    3. What is the goal, or aim really, of your mod?
    To represent the New World as it was in 1655, with detailed attention paid to both Native American and European factions. From there, history is in your hands, though you will not be entirely left alone. . .


    4. How accurate is "The Frontier" compared to real history?
    If I have my way, it will be very accurate, and fortunately the entire team is equally dedicated to that goal, if not more so. Obviously we’re up against the limitations of the TW system, but we plan to stretch those as far as possible. One thing we’re especially looking into is the use of the “Historical Event” system to complicate things for the player, particularly a player of one of the European factions. Basically, anything that happened in Europe and had a direct effect on the colonies will be represented through historical events. But these aren’t notifications alone—they will have a dynamic impact on gameplay. For example, allegiances will swing wildly in 1660 with the Restoration of Charles II to the throne of England, and back again in 1688, representing the ascension of William and Mary. Additional events include the Treaty of Utrecht and the 1767 expulsion of the Jesuits. At times, the player will feel that his home government does not have his best interests at heart, which was historically the case.


    5. Have you had any difficulties with "The Frontier"? If so, what are they?

    Oh, sure. Lawyer Murphy is always hanging around—the minute you think you’re starting to make substantive progress someone’s computer crashes, or they get a new job and can’t commit the same amount of time, or their wife has a baby—all the crazy real-life stuff that can get in the way of one’s hobby. Obviously, if we could pay everybody a salary and count on 40-hr work weeks, we would be able to progress faster. But we’ve got a good group of people and I feel confident in our ability to pull this off.


    6. What type of player do you see as being attracted to your mod, in general?
    Well, I think all types should enjoy The Frontier to one extent or the other, but it will be primarily rewarding to cautious players. The Frontier is not primarily about expansion, certainly not rapid expansion. In fact, players that try to blitz the map will find themselves faced with all sorts of wonderfully nasty surprises—factional reemergences, disloyal generals, large-scale uprisings and historical rebellions, to name but a few.


    7. How do you plan to balance the native and European factions so that the Indian tribes will stand a chance against the colonists?
    Well, interfactional balance is certainly something we’ve devoted a lot of thought to. Essentially, we want no two factions to play exactly the same, but be balanced against each other. And the native factions will have many advantages not possessed by the colonists, such as bonuses in woodland fighting, hand-to-hand combat, etc. By the time our mod starts, there was a virtual parity between the Indians and Europeans in terms of firearms, so that shouldn’t be perceived as a European advantage. Indeed, life for a European player will be made very “interesting.”


    8.
    Being one of the leaders of "The Frontier", it must be tough. How do you handle this and still manage to be active in the Total War community?
    Well, first off, I’m not necessarily one of the leaders. I describe myself as the team cheerleader, but I’m officially in charge of PR and recruitment. When I see a hole, I try to plug it, either by doing it myself or recruiting someone else. One way or the other, I end up spending quite a few hours per week brainstorming. As for the rest of my activities—well, let’s just say I’m not married(translate: available), and I have no children, so I have a good bit of time to spend on my hobby.
    (Message from Celsius: You here that ladies )


    9. What phase is "The Frontier" at now?
    This is a dangerous question, and I’m afraid one I must decline to answer. We’re significantly farther along than when I first joined the team, but that’s all I’ll say.


    10. Do you have any eye candy you would like to show the readers of the Eagle Standard?
    Well, most of our work in recent months has been devoted to things taking place on the strat map—which is what makes the game, but doesn’t look very exciting. However, we do have a never-before-seen shot of Miskito Spearthrowers, created by our very talented unit maker, Jaguar Paw.

    (Message from Celsius: I love Moskito eye candy )



    11. Who (if you can think of them all) helped you with this mod?

    I can’t. We’ve had a bunch of good people—I’m just a bit player compared to them. However, I will name four people without whose dedication the mod would be nonexistent. First off, there’s Tommyknocker, the mod’s founder and mapper. Without his stellar work and persistence, we would be nowhere. Then there’s Kundich, current mod leader, without whose skills in scripting and team management, we would be equally lost. And Vopohame, our redoubtable historian, who has been an invaluable resource of Amerindian information through this development process. And finally I’d like to recognize Jaguar Paw, our beloved historian and unit maker, who learned a whole new skillset for the cause of the Frontier and kept our hope alive through dark months when it looked like everything would fail.

    12. Have you done any other modding other than "The Frontier"?

    None, though I plan to. I’m currently working on an idea for a project called Total War Center: Total War, which I foresee as a completely comical mod showcasing the forums themselves as warring factions with prominent forum members starring as faction leaders.


    12. Anything else you would like to add Theo?

    Yes, feel free to drop by our forums, ask questions, add a note of encouragement where you think appropriate. And we’re still recruiting. Anyone with extensive knowledge of the Native American tribes of the period is welcome, as well as anyone with unit-making skills. We’ve got good modelers and skinners, but anyone with those skills on this forum inevitably find themselves stretched thin. We need more manpower! Come with us to the Frontier! If you dare. . .




    Well you heard it here folks. The Frontier looks very promising. I personally have never played any type of mod, but I will most likely play this one. Also a special thank you to Theodotos for the patience

    Good Day


    God Save the King: Role-Playing meets Modding
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    God Save the King: Role-Playing Meets Modding

    Its a commitment now

    There are some things in life one should never really do,whistling Yankee Doodle in Dixie is a good example or trying to cross three lanes of oncoming traffic whilst blindfolded would be another. However in my case the day I announced to members of the God Save The King Role-playing game over in the AAR forums, that I was going to create a mod based upon the games and adventure we have had in the forum must class as my most “You should never do that” moment.

    For those of you who do not know what the hell God Save The King is I think a little explanation Is in order, it is a forum role-playing game set in England during the fourteenth century and it involves trying to rise the ranks of feudal power whilst generally stabbing all those who get in your in the as you try to progress. The game has created its own history its own family's and dynasties in its eleven month history, and so it was I thought why the hell not create a mod based upon our own alternate English time line.

    Now my modding experience up until this point had been making small maps for my own enjoyment nothing more but now project God Save The King was born into my hyperactive and feverish mind and so I began on my own (Yes folks its a almost one man mod, although I do now have a couple of other people pitching in to help me), the first thing I needed was a map of England now I could have created my own from scratch but, after a few frustrating attempts at getting it looking something like I took the easier route of simply expanding the size of the Britannia Kingdoms campaign map.

    So that was step 1 I made a 300x300 map and then set about adding the regions to it. Now to begin with I had thought about fifty regions would be fine but then I discovered something odd, adding regions to maps is addictive and the the thing soon went past the fifty mark and was looking very nice,when a stroke of genius\madness you decide which, hit me why not add more Irish and Scottish factions and some new Welsh ones as well just for good measure (This is a one man project remember) and so I wrote down roughly what I wanted faction wise and ended up with around twenty six factions which I wished to put into the game, so back to the regions after this little diversion the map began to grow even bigger until I finally called a halt at around the one hundred and seventy mark and I was pretty damned please with the results. So there I had it my big map of the British Isles plenty of regions and a few factions added for testing was elated and gave my self an imaginary pat on the back....

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Then I decided to have a go at adding some new factions and after having a long read in the Mod Work Shop of what I needed to do I began phase two. Now for those of you who have never had a go at modding but were thinking of learning let this next piece be warning for you, to add factions, or in this case clone them you need to open the battle_models file inside the games unit model folder, this file is the creation of Satan I tell you, it is actually one of the most daunting looking files you will ever come across and the tedium involved in adding or cloning factions is indescribable.
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    It all seems pretty straight forward at first and then you start adding and adding and adding and what at first looks like perhaps an hours work begins to eat way at your whole day, I learnt very quickly to add perhaps four factions at a time then save test, scream out loud as the game crashes go back correct the mistakes test carry on and on and on. Do not do as I did and get so carried away you forget to test because believe you me if you have made a mistake the actual trawling back through this file just to find perhaps one number or a misplaced entry will have your eyes burning from the strain and your brain will play tricks on you as you, bypass the mistake perhaps a half a dozen times by which time you will be ready for throwing something, before you spot it, it is as I say a file created by Lucifer I truly believe this now.
    After a few days of this tedium and there are still many more to come yet I ended up with a few cloned factions, in Ireland and Scotland and the Mod now looks something like. I have months yet to go but its a learning curve for me a big one,I am not changing any of the units skins I am merely going with what is in the Kingdoms campaign but it is as I say looking quite good on the map (In my eyes anyway you may think otherwise) but the map looks chunky and needs to be smoothed off somewhat but that is in the future, I can not back out of this project it is a commitment I have made and will continue working diligently on it and perhaps next year the thing will be almost ready to go
    perhaps longer I don't care but it will be finished and released that is a promise made not only to myself but to my fellow Forum members in God Save The King.

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 



    An Interview With Subrosa Florens of Amazon: Total War
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    Amazon: Total War


    A few months after I first started playing RTW, I heard mention of an Amazon: Total War from a good friend who is now also involved in the Content Writing industry: Selifator. I was most intrigued and interested with the screenshots he showed me and the links he led me to at Total War Heaven, and resolved myself to getting the mod. However, unfortunately, I never got around to it. Hence, imagine my surprise and joy when I noticed an Amazon: Total War subforum had appeared. in the RTW Modifications area! I immediately decided to have it featured in the Eagle Standard - may I introduce Subrosa Florens:

    1. Tell me a little about yourself.

    I am an elderly spinster who never leaves the house and plays computer games all day surrounded by my herd of cats! Okay, maybe not yet, but I do have one cat and I have liked computer games since I first bought a Packard Bell 486, rebuilt it up into a gaming rig from scratch, and discovered Doom (the first one - I still have fun playing that game).

    I have been an avid computer gamer since. Now I am a network technician, and spend my days surrounded by servers, switches, routers, and all kinds of fun technology (except of course when it breaks at 3am and I have to fix it!).

    I have also always been an avid fan of reading, especially history and science fiction/fantasy. It took me a long time to realize this, but I have always been drawn to anything that would transport me from this world to another, albeit only vicariously. I have always been an outsider, even from childhood, and while other girls were at playing jump rope or later going to the mall I was reading about Alexander the Great and Frodo Baggins and dreaming of other times and places where the current rules did not apply.

    Finally, I am both a lesbian and a Witch. The first is one of many reasons why I have always felt different from other girls (but far from the only one). The second is something I discovered a little over five years ago, and has really helped make things in my life make sense. Mainly by giving me a different perspective on the world and a sense of internal grace I had lacked before.

    Most of these things came together when I first saw Shogun: TW. I remember eagerly installing the demo from a PC Gamer cd, trying it out, and being most awfully thrashed by the AI every time I played it. I have never been any good at RTW games, ever since I tried the first Warcraft game. This led me to soon give up, until Medieval: TW came out. I tried the demo for that, and was just as abysmal as before. Then later came Rome, and you guessed it, I was awful at that too. Then a few years later I saw it was on sale at Meijer for an insanely cheap price and on a whim I bought it. This time I found I could handle the RTS style of play through judicious use of the pause button. It has been a whirlwind romance ever since.

    2. When and how did the idea of making Amazon: Total War first begin?

    When I first started playing RTW I came across a little unit mod by Wierdshady that added an Amazon Archer to the Greek factions. I liked the idea of a female unit, and like archers in any case, so I quickly starting using it in all my campaigns. But it used to cause CTDs something awful, so I stopped and decided to create my own Amazon archer using the Rebel Amazon Chariots as a base.

    By that time I was looking beyond the vanilla game and was spending a lot of time both playing and looking at mods. One thing I quickly noticed was that where the vanilla game had a scarcity of female units, most mods had even less, usually none at all, in spite of both the historical and archeological evidence of women fighting in the ranks of many societies. Nature abhors a vacuum, so I gradually began thinking that since no one else would do it, maybe I should?

    By then I was used to tinkering with the game to make it how I liked it, so I decided to give it a go. A mod that just added some more female units did not inspire me. Since I was going to do it, I resolved to really do it big. There was of course a legendary society of warriour women out there - the Amazons. They were close enough to the right time frame, had the right look and weapons, and are quite well known by all. So I threw history to the wind and focused my mod on the Amazons from myth and legend.

    3. What has been the process of the creation of Amazon: Total War?

    I started in May of 2007 laying the ground work of ATW by doing research before that, both in terms of modding to see what I could and could not do with the game, and of course on the Amazons themselves. Essentially I created a mission statement that laid out my goals and the plan to execute them.

    By June I had created the mod folder and started the actual coding on an entirely new culture for the Amazons. Given the way the game is created under the premise that all generals are male and all females are non-combatants, there was no other option. It was a lot of work, but it did teach me a great deal about the inner workings of the game. That laid the foundation for me to create my first Amazon faction, that of Amazonia, which at the time was all I had intended to do.

    By then I had put out an alpha release, which had a decent reception in spite of being very, very incomplete. The units especially were rough, as most of their models and skins were just temporary placeholders. But that and following alpha releases and the feedback I received from them enabled me to get the bugs out and create a stable version.

    By then my skills at modelling and skinning were improving, and I was able to create new, permanent units for Amazonia, and I created a mirror faction of New Amazonia with the intention of it eventually being a rebel faction shadowing Amazonia. According to legend the Sarmatians were born from a fusion of Scythians and Amazons. So I created a new Sarmatian faction on the steppe alongside Scythia as well.

    Around that time I was talking to a forumer about Amazons and pointed out to them that the original Amazons were in fact from Libya. Someone else - I believe it was Andalus - suggested I create them. The idea took root in my brain, and eventually I created the Gorgons from it, an Amazon faction returning from the depths of the Sahara to take revenge upon the society that had nearly destroyed it a thousand years before.

    Until then I had been using the RTW executable. After this I created a separate version using the BI executable, allowing me to make the Gorgons a horde as I had originally envisioned them, and give many of the barbarian factions that ability as well. Of course I was able to implement other features from BI as well, such as night battles and shield wall. Since then I have been releasing separate RTW and BI versions. That has created a lot of extra work for me, so I have only now decided to stop work on the RTW version and concentrate solely on using BI for future versions of the mod.

    My last major change was to discard the idea of a rebel faction shadowing Amazonia as by nature it was a carbon copy of its parent faction. Something different would be more interesting, so I changed New Amazonia into the Valkyrja, an Amazon faction with a very strong barbarian influence. This left me with three very distinct Amazon factions in different parts of the map requiring different skills to succeed with. The Gorgons are a desert faction, with the strongest cavalry base of all thanks to their elephants. The Valkyrja are practically barbarians and possess entry level horse archers and berserkers. Finally Amazonia are your classic Amazons, a balance of strong hoplites and axewomen, excellent cavalry, and the most devastating archers in the game.

    4. Is there a chief aim of the mod?

    My primary goal is to put women in Total War by focusing the mod on three fictional Amazon factions. I also have worked on putting women in the rosters of some of the other factions where there would be a historical precedent for it, or where it would make sense given the nature of the ATW universe. That and I just want to make a mod that is fun to play of course!

    5. What are some of the major new features of Amazon: Total War?

    ATW adds a new culture, that of the Amazons, and four new factions. Three are Amazon factions - Amazonia, The Valkyrja, and The Gorgons. The last is the Sarmatians. Naturally there are new temples, traits, and ancillaries to go with this new culture and the factions. While not new, Thrace has received a major makeover as well, receiving many new units and a completely new temple line-up. I even released Thrace in a separate mini-mod called Thrace: The Serpent Reborn, which puts my new Thrace into vanilla RTW as something of a teaser for ATW.

    While it is based on the vanilla map, ATW adds 33 new territories. The goal of this is to change the way the vanilla game funnels activity toward the center of the map and instead make the outlying areas more interesting. So now North Africa, the Steppe, and hopefully soon Great Britain are fun places to play due to the new regions and larger number of factions there.

    I have also tweaking numerous other things, such as giving Barbarian factions a 4th tier of buildings, giving all factions onagers to make sieges a bit easier, many factions have new units, etc... I have also created a unique Legendary Artifact for each faction. These are items from history and myth such as Hippolyta's Belt, Penthesilea's Spear, the Gorgoneion of Alexander, etc... Each can only be possessed by its parent faction, and will respawn later in the game if its user dies.

    6. How historical is this mod on a scale of 1 - 10, 1 being hardly at all, and 10 being very? Is it more gameplay based?

    I would probably put it about a 4 or 5. In spite of the fact that ATW is myth-based, I try to stick to history wherever it does not get in my way. For example, when creating new territories I have always tried to do the research to find cities and cultures were there and use them. This is why Gelonos (which was supposed to have been founded by Greek colonists) has militia hoplites even though it is on the steppe. But when I have to make a choice between gameplay and historical fact, history loses. I want ATW to be balanced and fun to play more than anything else.

    7. What aspects of Amazon: Total War do you think players will like best, and why?

    I think what people seem to like best is that ATW is a mod that takes women seriously. I have had numerous emails and private messages from people telling me how not only how much they like seeing female units and factions, but especially ones that are portrayed realistically rather than as pin-ups our out-and-out porn. It is also just plain enjoyable to play.

    8. What was the greatest challenge for you in creating this mod?

    I think the unit creation has been the most difficult. 3ds Max is not an easy application to learn, I have been using it for well over a year and still can only do the basics. When it comes to 2d artwork I am even less gifted. I have zero artistic talent. So all of my skins are simply cutting and pasting things from other units, recolouring them, adding textures I find on the web, things like that.

    9. What is your favourite aspect of the mod?

    Playing with the girls!

    10. Are you planning any other projects or mods after Amazon: Total War?

    If I ever get ATW to the point where I consider it completely done and stop working on it, I do have some ideas kicking around in my head. One is to create Amazon Invasion, a sequel set in the Barbarian Invasion timeframe that adds several Amazon factions to the mix and would changes the vanilla game as dramatically as I did with the original ATW.

    One other idea is to create the fantasy setting I used to write some fiction a while back, which was loosely based on Classical Greece, with Celto-Germanic barbarians, steppe tribes, and desert nomads thrown in the mix as well.

    The final idea is to take Harry Turtledove's Misplaced Legion books and make a mod of it.

    11. Any last words for the ES readers?

    If you have an idea for a mod that you are passionate about, and no one else has already done it, create it yourself. Do not let a lack of knowledge in modding stop you. I did not know anything about modding when I started ATW. The same is true of every other modder. There are plenty of articles out there to learn from, and the modding community is always willing to answer questions when you cannot figure something out. All you need is hard work and your vision will become reality.

    Important Links:
    Amazon: Total War Forum
    Amazon: Total War Download
    ATW Announcements
    General Info
    ATW Screenshots
    The Daughters of the Dragon: A Valkryja AAR

    The Eye Candy.

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 








    Picture of the Week Roundup
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    Picture of the Week Report for the month of June

    Brought to you by B. Ward, PoTW Manager & ES PoTW Reporter




    A picture is the expression of an impression. If the beautiful were not in us, how would we ever recognize it?



    Ernst Haas, Author





    The PoTW & UESW competitions are held every Monday for members of the TWC community to showcase their talents in capturing and for some manipulated various screenshots and images from various total war games. The PoTW forum doesn't only stop at the competitions, but allows members to post their creativity in the form of screenshots, images, and videos in their own user galleries represented by threads started by our many artists.

    The PoTW & UESW competitions never lacks in creativity and enthusiasm. Here are your winners for the month of April. Please click the links to see the full thread.

    Week of June 1st
    PoTW 149 - MarcelP


    UESW 62 - Baron Vlad Felix


    Week of June 8th
    PoTW 150 - Thanatos


    UESW 63 - B. Ward


    Week of June 15th
    PoTW 151 -molls


    UESW 64 - Thanatos



    Week of June 22nd
    PoTW 152 - Marcus Bestia


    UESW 65 - sud commander




    There's still time to vote and submit your images for the current PoTW & UESW competitions. Vote PoTW here. Submit PoTW here. Vote UESW here. Submit UESW here.

    Until next time, stay creative.





    Tale of the Week Roundup
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    A winning streak is shattered, a new hero rises, and the Nazgul, um, excuse me, king returns.



    The month got off to a thrilling start in TOTW 42, which saw Sunbird Alkibijad seize the laurels from Astaroth with his story, Pray for Rain. . .



    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    PRAY FOR RAIN


    "Just another swing, please!"..."Just...another...one..."


    Swing...Blood spurt...Swing, a hacked limb...
    I can feel the cold sweat slowly flowing down my cuirass, and dampening the skin of my back...Who would have thought, that a single thought like:
    "God Almighty, give us rain today, flush this damned heat away!" would actually reach the heavenly ear of Allah...

    Patiently, hiding just as we were thought from the day we learned to stand, my Hashashin brethren watched the Infidel crusader column moving in the morning heat, clad in that wretched steel armor...It would start soon, the slaughter is nigh...A single cloud in distance gives me hope, ever so slight
    but still hope.

    I slowly speak to my brethren: "Now we do what we're bred for, for Allah and our beloved Sultan. Death to Infidel Prince, the white skinned slayer of children and women..."

    Clouds now come ever closer, as if stalking the column, just like we are doing, Allah-u-Akhbar...Sun finally seems to fade behind the darkness of the clouds and the air comes into my chest without scorching my soul as intensely as it did this morning.

    Sallah-din should be commencing the assault with his cavalry any moment, just as we agreed...Buying us time to do our holy duty, the one we were brought into this world for. And just as the thought went past in my mind, the familiar sound of Sultan's brave bodyguard, comes charging into our eardrums. It has begun...

    The dust cloud becomes ever larger as the cavalry charge nears the quick forming line of Infidel armored infantry. And the carriage that holds our precious target gets left with but a few guards..."Now is the time! Thread fast, and slide like the "rih al khamsin" does in Sahara..."

    Just as we're about to enter the arrow range from the carriage, one of men trips and draws attention from bodyguards. "Damned fool! Our cower is blown, CHARGE NOW!". The cursed charge into the midst of the Infidel's best bodyguard begins, and hopes are high we can reach the wretch in the carriage before we're completely overpowered. And at last...

    The heavens open up in a furious bursts of water drops, deafening in noise, and suffocating the screams of the bodyguards for reinforcements! The sweat on our backs is replaced with bucket-worth amounts of water in mere seconds, but now even visibility is minimal as well. There's our chance! "Allah-u-Akhbar!" I utter one more time, while sending yet another bodyguard to hell.

    Only 2 of them stand between me and my prized target now, "I must endure...".
    My blade moves ever slower now, and my swings become heavy as the weight of water the heavens have unleashed upon this field today.
    First guard of the two is down, and the last one charges towards me..."DIE YOU BROWN-SKINNED COWARD!" I can hear him screaming something, "Is he cursing me?"...

    As I propel my body with last bits of my strength, my saber cuts into the neck of the last bodyguard...

    The swing...the blood spurt...Time has all but stopped as I watch the huge water drops exploding on the blade and my armor...Turning slowly around, I see the shadow jumping out of the carriage and dissapearing in the flurry of water, as another wave of bodyguard's shades grows ever larger upon me...
    "Who would have thought..."



    And then, in TOTW 42, Sunbird flew to victory again against stiff competition with the epic poem Roma, marking the first time a poem has ever won the Tale of the Week competition.



    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    "Roma"


    Charon awaits, coins at ready.
    Enemy comes, hold steady.


    The wretched boatman, fear of olde.
    Hold no anger, but behold.

    Hades longs, for your shades.
    Appease him not, my brigades.

    They step closer, to their doom.
    For their souls, sorrowfull gloom.

    In times that come, world on fire.
    Torches lit, the moment's dire.

    Unleash the javelin, let it fly.
    The more in air, the more will die.

    Unsheath the sword, make no error.
    Watch them panic, enjoy that terror.

    Hold the center, press the flanks.
    Reinforce the line, shred their ranks!

    Form testudo, arrows come.
    Let them waste, until there's none.

    Quivers clear, now let's charge!
    Are they brave, as their number's large?

    Howl like mad, make them shiver.
    Meadow blooded, by crimson river.

    Foe that falters, in eternal shame.
    For us no more, but an easy game.

    Broken spirit, rout is close.
    How they run, on their toes?

    Wounded pride, their defeat.
    Enjoy your victory, a mighty feat!

    For our children, ground foe to dust.
    Barbarian's nemesis, to be we must.

    On this field, monument erect.
    Savage army, here was wreck'd.


    What's done here, forever known.
    How bravely we, put those down.



    Proud men, of Aeneas' blood.

    Today's heroes, how tall you stood.





    Centuries that come, remember fame.

    Mother Roma, shout her name!







    And it would take the return of Nazgul, oh, excuse me, TOTW legend Juvenal to stop Sunbird's winning streak in TOTW 43 with the hilarious story Power of the Ring. . .



    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    Power of the Ring


    The Orc fights well, frothing at the mouth, tortured red-rimmed eyes focussing on the


    silver-clad Gondorian, hateful cause of all its pain.


    But yet again, the Man is just too strong. He charges with his shield, his immense weight

    pushing the little Orc off-balance, and thrusts his great sword deep into its gut. The Orc

    screams and collapses to the ground, curling up around its wound and howling out its

    death-agony.









    Damnation! I really thought that one was going to win! Clucking with disappointment, I

    jump from the poor thing's shoulder and look for a fresh mount among the huddled mass

    cringing behind the battle line. The Man doesn't notice me of course, I am invisible to Men

    and Orcs alike.









    I am Zyzyx chief of 11th Orc Riders (Sauron's Own). I am proud of my job, my boys

    have fought in many battles against the foul forces of self-styled 'Good', sacrificing legions

    of trusting Orcs. Without us the enemy would be easily triumphant and Sauron's realm

    would bear their stain forever.









    We go unremarked and yet our work is crucial. Orcs are mild-mannered pathetic peaceful


    creatures, much given to basket-weaving, group-hugs and contemplating cave-fungi.

    Without us Imps whispering into their ears, they wouldn't be able to fight at all.




    We are running short of mounts, but just in time, 4th Delivery Troop brings up a new batch.

    I pick out the best specimen and return to the fray.





    He is magnificent, working easily up to his battle rage with just a few well-chosen words

    from me, and we score a kill almost straight-away.





    He is so good I steer him toward the enemy leaders. We have felled five Gondorians now,

    an unprecedented score. I glimpse the enemy chief surrounded by his bodyguards. One of

    them is even shorter than an Orc and has hairy feet (must be scraping the barrel for recruits

    these days). But wait! There is a dread feeling coming from this one, what is that thing he

    wears around his neck hanging from a fine cord? I can't make it out, but it feels as if I were
    gazing at the Dark Lord himself!











    Distracted, I don't see the enemy chief until he swats the sword from my mount's hand.

    My Orc cowers and I prepare to jump ship, but no, the hairy footed one is pointing at me

    and the enemy leader looks straight into my eyes! How can this be? I jump down and run,

    but the human stamps his foot on my cloak.









    “DON'T LOOK AT ME!” I command. “I don't exist. Even now Trolls prepare to strike you from behind!” For a moment he is confused and looks wildly around, unable to remember it

    was me speaking and not his own thoughts.





    The idiot still has his foot on my cloak, I fumble with the clasp, but the hairy-footed

    bodyguard comes closer and the Man's confusion fades. I see him sighting down his sword

    as he prepares to strike...


    And the month closed out with the nail-biting victory of Viking Prince over fierce competition in Tale of the Week 44, with his story, Learning the Ways of the Warrior.
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    Learning the ways of the Warrior



    The day started early. The old man had promised a full education on the ways of the warrior....

    ...Later that evening long after the midday food was digested another ceremony took place with the family men. This was supposed to be after fasting I was told, but I should experience it as well as I could under the circumstances. We returned to the lodge. It was cool now and candles and electric flashlights illuminated the walls. Prayers were chanted in Spanish (I think it was Spanish, but maybe a mix of an older language as well).

    A dry object was blessed upon the table. A bag of smaller dried objects was passed around. I was asked to take four, they were dried mushrooms. I was asked to eat them as I would communion in church. The first one tasted so foul, that I spit it out on the ground. The next ones were easier, like taking medicine as a small child. I eventually threw up. Tobacco was passed to be chewed and then crude fashioned cigars were lighted up to help take the taste out of my mouth.

    I sat and thought. I listened to the stories of the old man. I heard stories of his father and the days before the reservation. I heard stories of days before the white men who did not speak Spanish came into their lands. I heard stories of hunting for food and worshipping of the gods before man brought the faith from across the waters. Their gods were animals of great imagination. I soon was seeing the animals in what seemed a bit like a dream. The lodge walls seemed to be the edges of a fog. There was no reason to question or to be distracted. I could concentrate on the thoughts that were important to me. I then fell asleep.

    I am awakened by the morning sounds of people were moving about. I was still in the lodge covered with a blanket. The others were gone. A new day has begun and now I must leave my guests. I have learned a small bit of what it is like to be a warrior.
    And this has been the TOTW round-up for June, with Theodotos I reporting, from the Eagle Standard.

    Go Vote in TOTW 45!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    Submit Your Best Story to TOTW 46!!!!!!!!!!

  2. #2
    Carl von Döbeln's Avatar Crossing the Rubicon
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    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Extraordinary work as always

  3. #3
    y2day's Avatar TWC STORE NOW OPEN!
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    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Great work everyone as always.




    TWC Graphics Workshop Art Competition!!!
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    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Good job, people!
    Son of PW

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    Calvin's Avatar Countdown: 7 months
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    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Great job
    Developer for Roma Surrectum 2 || Follow my move to the USA in Calvin's Corner
    Son of Noble Savage || Proud patron of [user]Winter[/user], [user]Lord of the Knights[/user] and [user]fergusmck[/user]

  6. #6
    Xavier Dragnesi's Avatar Esse quam videre
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    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Great work, everyone!

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    loet66's Avatar Senator
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    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Great work !

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    Horsa's Avatar Artifex
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    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Awesome mates!

  9. #9

    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Brilliant, just brilliant, amazing work + REP

  10. #10

    Default Re: Eagle Standard Volume VII Issue VI

    Great work!

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