ES - Christmas Shogun Special Edition/Shogun themed Mods
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Eagle Standard CONTENT INDEX
Shogun 2 News
TW:S2 Summarised Update
TW:S2 Detailed Update (Timeline)
Will TW:S2 end MTW2 Modding
What does TWC Expect from TW:S2
Ren no Jidai Interview
Shizoku no Senso Interview
Kon’nichiwa honourable followers, and Kangei (Welcome) to the latest edition to the Shogun 2 news. Whether you’re a casual strategy gamer who is mildly interested in what new features will be added, or if you’re a fanatical total total war fan, fear not faithful Shinja, we have your monthly fix of information! A recent dramatic increase in announcements and updates regarding Shogun content has hyped up the community with discussions and debates about features and screenshots filling the forums. The community has been hemorrhaging suggestions and queries for months. CA have been diligently crusing the forums reading them like technical ninjas and their presence on the forums has instilled a level of purpose and seriousness to most discussions. These suggestions and discussions shall be covered in a later article, in the meantime article I shall be reporting to you the things that have been made certain, such as the archer animations, the battle report, the interview with Kieran, and much more!
Firstly, Ninja’s. Yes, as mentioned in the last article, Ninja’s will be featuring in this game, though some of you may not be totally aware that assassination movies are making a come back...
Not too stealthy is he? Nonetheless, the classic ninja videos have returned and, in this humble reporters opinion, still retain an essence of style that the older videos had. It would also be sensible to point out that this same video could run for one of your agents, and, as opposed to be captured and killed which is still a possibility, he may be utterly stealthy and avoid all of the guards and traps etc, but may not be able to kill the general. It all depends on your Ninja’s skills. Also note that Kieran has introduced the new feature of a 3D Map. Yes, we all know that Rome and all those that followed it had a 3D map, but here we see the use of the camera being capable of circling the map at a full 360 degrees. Neat!
In past Total War games, to be an archer required a degree of magical skill. Nay, some say the word “wizard” was a synonym for archer. What do I mean? In past Total War games, an archer was capable of drawing back the string of their bow, being devoid of an arrow and also not bending the bow by doing this, and, after releasing, was able to release an arrow presumably drawn from another reality, and pound it into another living thing. But this isn’t where the magic ends, after two seconds, the wizard archer is capable of making the arrow disappear, probably returning to the plane of reality from whence it was drawn. However, this is a power not held by the Samurai archers of Total War: Shogun, for the grand developers at Creative Assembly have now implemented bow animations. The video can be seen in a later article, but in the opinion of this humble reporter... shock and awe! I understand that some freelance modders on TWC have been able to do bow animations before, but the archer in this short animation seems to be so fluid, with such a degree of focus in the numerous muscle movements and the grace with which the archer releases the arrow and moves to take another. One would have to be a hub of sour attitude to not enjoy that four second clip.
For those of you who haven’t played the original or would just like a quick summary of the context of the period Shogun 2 is being set in (Sengoku Jidai) then perhaps a quick glance of this video would do some good.
The cinematic capability of the new installment to the Total War series is proving to be phenomenally excellent, and it is likely we will be seeing a swarm of original movies soon after its release. I digress – the video you have just watched is much like a mini history lesson, yet is capable of invoking a series of emotions in one that cannot be described in words, but simply in the action of buying Shogun 2, whacking it into the DVD drive of your computer or laptop and pacing impatiently whilst it installs until the blissful, euphoric moment when you hear the little “bing” to signal to you that it has finished its process and that you can now play to the moment your eyes start to bleed (which I imagine will be somewhere between one to three hours due to the intense amount of detail put into the aesthetic design of the game.) To put this simply – “I feel all gooey again”.
Did someone promise “The Revelation of Amazing Shinjitsu (Truth)?” Also known as: me telling you when the release date is. I think I can hear a few of you salivating already, so I shall simply state it thus.
15th March 2011.
That’s right, about a month before Easter. When that day comes round, you will rush downstairs, see the hordes of chocolate in front of your blood-shot eyes (because you’ve been playing far too much Shogun 2 to be deemed healthy anymore) and fall to your knees as you shout “Isuta!” More importantly, however, thats means it is just four months away!
The final note I shall be issuing today is another video (sorry guys, but I did say that news via articles and stuff was a bit short this week) which is an interview with our favourite human being in the world, Kieran Brigden, developer for CA.
The video does not reveal a lot that has not been said before in earlier ES articles, but for those of you who find my language or my style of writing very unclear, and much prefer a sequence of pretty pictures and Kieran’s face, then the video should’ve been much to your liking. However, two new things (well technically two “more deeplt explained” things) were exposed to us in this video. Characters, such as the ninja, the general, the monk etc will all have a mild PG element to them so as to create a very close vibe to the game. You will be able to design a certain character to be whatever you want them to be and will be ever happier to see them victorious and will mourn their passing in a far more real way than ever before. Kieran also nearly lets slip on some information about the multiplayer mode revealing only that “it will be on a much larger scale.” Intriguing stuff to say the least.
For those of you who read the article with the first battle report in it will likely know how I felt about that video – the only times I’ve felt more joy were Christmas and my birthday. Now, faithful readers, here is the second Battle report. Enjoy, I shall report on this after the video.
When you analyze over the banter between Gudmunsson and Brigden, some of which made me chuckle somewhat, you emerge into a place that reveals a great deal. One more clan has emerged – the Hojo. Details into the dynamics of Castles and sieges have been revealed, showing that, although less expansive than some may have thought (i.e. there aren’t many buildings save a few small house looking things and the main fortress complex) and that, if you look closely, each soldier appears to be equipped with a ninjaesque claw and rope so as to scale the sides of the fortress walls. I am unsure as to whether this is strictly accurate, but a part of me feels as if this small aspect has been somewhat over exaggerated. We also see the difference between the Samurai archer and the peasant archer, and the devastating effect that No-Dachi can have on the battlefield. For those of you who have played the original, you may remember that the No-Dachi samurai had an uncanny ability to win at everything that didn’t involve cavalry. Unfortunately for Kieran, he only had Shingen as his only cavalry unit, and so it was unsurprising that he was defeated. But, let us look into the units with more detail: because of this distinction between the archers, and the varying skills between them, it isn’t going to surprise anyone that a degree of caution must be exercised when deploying these men in separate areas of the field. Of course, most Total War players will already know this, but it must now be considered that range, effectiveness, ability to promptly follow orders and with strict cohesion are factors that, in previous games, haven’t played a major role. The depth of this game is getting deeper and deeper, and this reporter is loving it.
I must bid thee Sayonara, faithful followers, and I can only hope that this article has left you with a warm feeling in your gut and a sparkle in your eyes. Please, read on to the next articles, they will humble me to a great degree.
-Sun
Monthly Talking point - Shogun, what do we expect? What will become of the Modding community?
Will TW:S2 End Eras/MTW2 Modding - Antwerpen
Will Shogun end the era of Rome/M2 modding?
All of us know that in March, 2011 we will be able to get our hands on the newest game in the Total War franchise: Shogun 2. But how will it affect the current stance of the modding community?
We can't tell for sure, whether Shogun 2 is going to be easy to mod or is it going to be locked away from any modding, relying on the DLC. But what we know for sure is that a new era in the TW modding community is dawning. Could Shogun be the killer of Rome and Medieval? Even though it is not very likely to happen, one must not forget that 4 new games were released after Rome: Total War, that is without counting the numerous add-ons, expansion packs and DLC. But there are still a lot of great mods for RTW in development. The Medieval 2 community is also very active, so I guess even Shogun won't be able to deal with all of TWC's knights and kings. Even now there are 40 people viewing the M2 General Discussion and only 27 users browsing the Shogun forum.
However, a large shift of interest is sure to happen when the game is released. Some will ask for tech help, some will rant about the game, while the others are praising it; some will seek ways to alter the game and discover a whole new world: the Shogun 2 modding.
But it is obvious that people will not forget Rome and Medieval. Even if we don't count those who play these games because they like the era or the atmosphere, there are still lots of people who prefer mods over completely new games, as mods are free, they sometimes present a better quality game without affecting the performance (and thus able to be played on low-end computers). Right now there are quite a few mods revolving around Japan - pretty much the topic Shogun covers. At first I was a bit surprised: what is the point of starting a Japanese mod when there is Shogun to be released in 3 months? But then I got it: mods are the heart of the TW community, for modders are always here with us and they will listen to us - something CA rarely does.
In conclusion, I predict an interest shift caused by the pre-release hype, but the earlier games' modding community will survive and prosper. A new era might be coming, but no way it is erasing the old one.
by Antwerpen
What does TWC expect from TW:S2 -TheDutchDevil
Total War: Shogun 2
March 15th, 2011, hopefully everyone knows what that date means. For those of you who don’t have a clue, grab a marker and write down page wide: “March 15th, 2011 release date Total War: Shogun 2” Then proceed to learn the date until the only thing you can think of is this.
Creative Assembly already revealed that Shogun 2 will have some new features some brand new and others are just improvements off the old features we’ve been used to since the beginning of the series. But what do the users actually want, what does Joe the average gamer actually wants featured in his dream version of TW: S 2?
One of the relative new features, naval battles, will be expanded upon. Part of this will be the change in era of course. But another thing is the introducing of shallows, rocks and islands on the naval maps. A lot of people already asked or this since ETW and were disappointed that this was not featured in NTW. But now they can sigh revealed with the knowledge that this will be featured in TW: S 2. And with the announcement of this new feature the rumor was started that real-time naval invasions would also be supported. But it’s too bad that the real-time naval invasions will not be featured, which led to disappointment amongst the fans.
Something purely aesthetic which made a lot of fans happy is the bowstring animation. A lot of people are excepting a lot of this feature especially because it’s new. Other small things which the community is praying for are things like unlockable clans through conquest; you know good ‘ole Rome Total War.
Other things that are on the wish list of many players are things like unit stacks with more than 20 units, Even though a lot of people are rooting for this change there also is a part of the community which thinks 20 is fine, and any above that would just be too cumbersome.
Another function recently introduced with Napoleon Total War is the area of effect of your general, and the recruiting of generals out of a limited historically based pool, forcing you to bond with your war hero. But still people who enjoyed the role playing part were not entirely satisfied. They can sigh relieved with the knowledge that Shogun 2 will expand upon this massively!
This is done by having unique skill/experience trees in which you can advance your general upgrading his skill set. And for everyone expecting even more role playing; you will also be able to capture core provinces, giving your units upgrades. Or you can go for retainers giving your armies bonuses on the battlefield.
So all in all Shogun 2 will satisfy some of the requests that the community has, but sadly some things can’t be done now, some come with limitations of the engine. And as third we’ve got things like the AI everyone wants it to be good, but we won’t know if it lives up to our expectations until we can play against it.
by The Dutch Devil
Agree or disagree with the articles? Feel free to have your say by PMing any member of the ES Staff and having your piece published!
Cant wait till March to experience Total War in Japan? Check out these awesome mods!
Ren no Jedai Interview - Lord William
Welcome everyone to the Special Edition of Lord William’s Corner where we will be taking an extensive look into an exciting mod called Ran No Jidai and one of its lead creator WUndai. As always I hope you will find this addition interesting and insightful, now let us give a warm welcome for star Guest WUndai.
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1. To begin, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
My nickname is Wundai, and I live in the Netherlands.
I started modding about 5 years ago.
And have been doing it every since, its like wanting to contribute to something bigger, and making such a thing internationally for all to see is a great thing, in my opinion.
2. What is your favorite part about modding, and what do you consider your expertise?
My favorite part is modelling and texturing buildings, this I also consider to be my expertise.
3. The Team for Ran No Jidai is quite large can you describe how it was working with such a large group?
I was not there at the beginning, but I can say that I have seen 3 distinctive mod groups come and go, large and small. The larger the group, the harder it becomes I think.
Because everyone has an opinion, and this makes discussions to long sometimes, so that we forget what the goal is, "to mod"
In these cases we really need a strong modleader who says "This is what we're going to do"
4. How did you come across this idea/mod and decide to help create it?
I actually found the Ran No Jidai forum by chance when googling for Samurai games.
My interest in Japan and the Samurai was apparent at that time, but I really didn't know anything about it.
When I joined the forum, I was a fan for like 1 month.
Then they asked for a Buildings Modeller, and I thought to put my (newbie) 3dsmax skills to use and show them a building.
Both Seijitai and Kagemusha former member and modleader of the mod decided to take me into the modding world of TWC at that time
5. This is not the only Japanese based mod in TWC, so can you tell us what distinguishes the mod from the rest?
At this time I would say this mod distinguishes itself with its historical Accuracy.
I'm not saying the mod is 'better' than mods like Blue Lotus or Battles of Asia. But every single member has put tons of research up to even the little details to make this mod see,feel and play authentically.
6. We all understand that this is a samurai based mod, but for those of us who unaware of the history could you give us an overview of the conflicts that may arise or have already risen?
For the people new to the history.
This mod is based on the Sengoku Jidai period of Japan.
You can call this a period of "Civil War".
Many clans in the country fighting to become that one dominant power and eventually Shogun, to rule Japan.
As for conflicts, you will find enough for your taste, because treason is not uncommon in this era (and it neither is in the game the mod was build for RTW: Barbarian Invasion)
7. While working on this mod, what were some of the major breakthroughs and what were some of the setbacks throughout the process?
As for Major Breakthroughs, I would have to name both the Beta and the Campaign.
Our fans have waited for Years and Years to see this thing release.
That means to finally give them what they wanted was a great breakthrough.
After that, the story is the same with the campaign.
As for Setbacks, there I would have to name setbacks to the changes of the team itself.
This mod has changed modleadership so many times, I could call it unbelievable.
A little list to show an example, The Creator: Prometheus who started it all, after that it was Kagemusha who carried the mod on his back for a very long period.
Then came the time of the Tri-Alliance, consisting of Shogun144, Juntao, and myself.
After that Juntao unfortunatly became less active, and I lost motivation and perspective and had to quite the modleader position, leaving Shogun144.
Then Shogun144 himself lost the time to keep working on the mod in an active way.
Leaving the new modleadership to Vermicious Knid.
And then even Vermicious had to quit due to issues in his personal life. Leaving us with the current situation:
I am kind of leading the Art side of this mod, and we are trying to find a Responsible Co-modleader to do the same for the Textual Side. History is completely in the hands of Juggernaut at this point.
8. This Mod has been out since 2006, how much progress have you made and how more needs to be done?
Actually most progress has been achieved in the last year (ofcourse this was all based on things done in the previous years, but our fans got to experience most of it last year)
As for completion, there is still a long way to go, but we now have a base for the mod with alot of elements going strong.
Which means we are now in the perfectioning stage at this point, where we try to add things and perfect them to make the mod "better, player-friendly,more unique and bug-free"
9. I’m sure the reader’s are interested to know when will be the next expected release and you describe what will be fixed/changed?
I'm sure they are, like any fan wanting to know the much used word "release date" unfortunatly I cannot give estimates for the simple reason of not wanting to let anyone down.
What I can tell you is that there are 2 kinds of patches planned.
1. Is a Hotfix Patch, including Fast Fixes and Eye Candy to help weed alot of common bugs out of the mod (also with help from our Fan Contributers) this patch will come rather sooner than later.
2. Is a bigger patch, where we try to include bigger features.
As these features require more time and research, it is yet to be decided when we can release it because alot of that still needs to be done.
10. With the upcoming release of shogun 2, how does that affect you and your team?
We are aware of the release, and ofcourse Shogun 2 will have a big effect on our mod and its team.
Yet we continue with doing what we like to do best, which is modding.
There is still a fanbase out there interested in this mod, even with Shogun2 around the corner.
And this also has to do with the fact that "they" as fans have more influence on a mod-team, than they have on a Game Company, which means they can easier communicate their desires, and we can easier tell them if we will include them or not
11. Since the mod is based on the shogun period, it would be interesting to gain your perspective on Shogun 2?
Hard question, for I wonder what of 2 things you could mean.
1. My personal perspective of Shogun 2 and what I think of it?
2. The way we could let everything we see from Shogun2 influence our mod.
As for 1. Shogun 2: Total War(yes people, I like to use this name) will be a great game I think, adding alot of features as any new game does.
What I can only hope is that it also feels Authentic and Real like the feeling you have when watching a Japanese Samurai Movie, or reading such a book.
If they can achieve that, the game is worth gold in my eyes.
As for 2. actually Shogun 2 itself does not have much infuence on our mod, we aren´t really adapting anything as of yet because `Shogun 2 has it too`.
12. What are some things that you would like to see implemented into the new Shogun which you were unable mod?
Hah good question, well for me that would be One Thing above all: A good Besieging System of a City.
With the siege we have and period we have to handle, we cannot really implement the sieges and make them as exciting as we like to.
Something I thing CA IS able of doing
13. As the interview is coming to a close do you have any closing remarks?
I do actually:
This mod has been here for a long time, modleaders came and left, whole teams did as well. AND Fans we also lost and some dared to have hope for this mod and came back even after all these years.
That is why to the fans(new and old) we have now, I would like to say "Arigato" the Japanese word for Thank You!
To the Old for sticking with us.
and
To the New to have come and discover our mod by playing it.
Thank you for the Interview Lord William.
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Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Well Ladies and Gentlemen we have come to the close of our informative interview by WUndai and now I would like to thank him for taking time away from his busy schedule to answer a few of our questions. I want to wish you the best of luck on your future endeavours and a Happy Holiday
Shizoku no Senso Interview - AussieGuy
Hello ES readers, I am AussieGuy (but you can call me sexy for short) and I am the newest member of the content staff team. I am here to talk about a mod in development called Shizoku no Senso.
Shizoku no Senso is a mod set in feudal Japan where numerous clans fight it out to become the sole owner of Japan or the Shogun. I was lucky enough to play a very eary beta which only had a few factions and no campaign but what I got to play was fantastic. The unit models look great and they looked very oriental. Although I only played an early beta, I can see this has the potential to became a great mod. It will satisfy our urge to play a Japan based game before STWII comes out. I also did a interview with the head honcho of the mod: Swagger.
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1. So, tell me a little bit about yourself, what hobbies and Interests do you have?
Hello, my name is Eduardo Carvalho aka Swagger, and I’m a handsome 17 year old dude. From Portugal the not Spanish province. I play handball at my school team and tennis, besides other interests like skim board during the summer and such, I like to hang out with my friends and sit back playing videogames
2. What made you go to the TWC forums and what made you stay?
I joined TWC with RTW when I was having problems installing it.. Cool hey? After I found the wonders of mods I kept visiting it to download some and play them and meanwhile I made some friends and saw how great it is (I hope I get some reps for this cheap propaganda), and as i got introduced into modding it became my home for that hobby of mine.
3. What made you get into modding?
A: hm, the major factor was this Portuguese mod called Portvcale, although I already had messed with the most simple files, I hated that the 1st version of that mod had some errors, like wrong capitals and factions too weak/strong, so I tweaked it and fixed what I could, as I got into it I started modding other stuff until i had a average knowledge overall when it comes to modding. Some members around were key to introducing me into modding.
4.Who where those members?
A. First, Lord Condornanius and Boicote,. I’ve befriended several other great modders along, but I was already a decent modder so they don't count , i did make tons of friends meanwhile, though i'm not mentioning as i would forget some, those who're my friends know that very well.
5.What gave you the idea to create Shizoku no Senso?
A. Curious story. since med2tw was out several mods attempted to bring shogun to med2tw engine, though they all failed so this other member and modder Druvatar started with his own project of making a Shogun mod, though due to several reasons (namely his focus on the recently released Claimants, Heirs and Conquerors) I asked him if I could lead his project and make it mine as i already had some stuff we could use, this was right before and after Shogun 2 TW was ironically announced.
5. Who has helped you create this mod?
A.I contacted several modders to aid on the project, such as Uanime5 who I know he had several Japanese unit models and gigantus for the map, although the team has changed a lot, it's mainly contributors other than full time members. Just to mention a few, Uanime5, Gigantus, IVIarkI2I, Borissomeone, Cedric37, C.M and Druvatar were of one way or another very helpful.
6. So can you tell us a little bit about the mod, the story, etc?
A.Shizoku no Senso (War of the Clans) is a mod about Feudal Japan, taking place during the bloody war that occurred during the XV-XVI centuries, the so called "Sengoku Period" Japan by then wasn't a unified country but an agglomerate of clans eager to expand their territory and influence by means of war, attrition and diplomacy with the ultimate goal of becoming The Shogun. it will feature 13 clans, brand new Japan map, high quality 2D artwork and units.
7. When we will you release a public beta?
A. When it's done and when I’ve got enough rep , well there's always drawbacks so they delay and delay a estimative... a modder isn't trustworthy when it comes to tell a release.
8. Do you have any future plans for this mod or new ones?
A. I’ll release this one and then fix or expand it until I see it has reached its potential, or the potential I wanted or am willing to achieve for it, especially with Shogun 2 coming, although it's engine will be super-duper hard to mod to the same extent/freedom we were used in RTW/M2TW so that's one key factor of why I haven't given up of it as I’ve great liberty to mod it, after it I’m quitting modding and I’ll just finish some unfinished projects and help some fellow modders on their own projects, but i will certainly not launch a new mod on my own namely African Conquest Total War, Patria Libera, etc
9. Do you have any advice to help new and upcoming modders?
A. yes I have some advice, use the goddamn mod workshops and read it's tutorials, and for god sake, start using the ing Search button since within 4 years since the release, all
possible questions have most likely been answered over and over.
10. And on that cheerful note, would you like to say anything else to close?
A. yes, too bad CA doesn't hire modders
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Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
The mighty host of my Army
In the middle are the Yari Ashigaru. They are cheap, numerous and can hold their ground against foes but don't expect to win the battle with them. They are mainly farmers who would flee if the battle turns sour.
Holding the flanks are Samurai. They are professional warriors, trained from birth. They hold a long, 2 handed sword and medium armour. They are a great front line troop and they can destroy most opponents.
Protecting the flanks of my army are the steadfast Yari Samurai. They are experts at protecting the flanks and archers by taking down Calvary.
Here are the strongest infantry on the field. Staying behind my front lines as reinforcements, Noidachi Samurai are men you will fear in battle. They carry a heavy 2 handed sword and the best armour money can buy. They are best used as as shock troop as they have small numbers.
Here are the Sohei. They are Buddhist monks, trained to fight for their religion. They wield a might 2 handed polearm and light/medium armour. They are best used as a shock troop as they have low armour and numbers so they unable to fight by themselves.
The archers of my army are the Yumotori. I don't know much about them yet but they promise to be a improvement of the average archer with a better range and rate of fire.
Here are the Generals bodyguard. They look absolutely fantastic and high detailed. They are the best of the best and will protect the General to the death.
Well, if I, Belisarius, the Black Prince, and you all agree on something, I really don't think there can be any further discussion.
- Simetrical 2009 in reply to Ferrets54
ES - Christmas Shogun Special Edition/Shogun themed Mods
Originally Posted by Double A
