The Hardcore Fantasy Battle campaign - An Expansion for Beginning of the End Times

[Wyrmnax]

Reiksfart,

You comment that version 0.9 is 100% complete for CoW 1.44, but i didnt ever see any link to its release.

Am i being blind, stupid, or you actually never released it for CoW 1.44?

IF you never released it, why? You say its pretty much complete, might as well get it out and get some people to see it while you work on the version for the new CoW release...

[Reiksfart]

Sorry, that is a little misunderstanding. I didn't plan on releasing for 1.44 otherwise would have not waited until 1.5 was released before starting the main coding for this submod. The 1.44 EDU was just for testing purposes to develop the ruleset. What I was trying to say was the EDU is done, I just need to finish updating the new 1.5 EDU, so it can be considered done and I'm working hard on coding everything else and implementing all the models, textures and some of my older work from my reiksfart's stinkers submod.

If Gigantus can't fix 1.5 and make it stable I will likely go back to 1.44, transplanting the animations, battlemod and some other files to 1.44 to make my own 1.45-1.49 version. Hope not to, that would mean a lot of work.

This is stunning Reiksfark
But is it planned for 1.4.4 (Gigantus version?) or 1.5 ? And do you have an aproximative first release date ?

I wanted to have something for a few people to test by the end of this month, but that will not happen. So much to do and only me working on it. I want to play this campaign more than anyone so it won't be a very long wait. Done when it's done and released after a small closed beta to iron out any issues and make sure the campaign is balanced.

[Reiksfart]

Previously unreleased nurgle marauders added.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Kahvipannu]

Hey, Reik, not sure if this is asked before, but does the Flagellants have new animation for theyr weapon? I have never seen flail animation in M2, sling-animation is propably most closest to it And are they recruitable by crusading-armies, or just normal recruitment?

Also have you had time with the Chaos-Mammoth?

[Reiksfart]

Unfortunately no new animation. So flail chains are shorter and flail heads will be placed and replaced until I can find a position for them which looks natural when walking and fighting. There is an unfinished flail animation available but then we are back to the major problem of selfish developers not giving us unworthy submodders access to the original CoW animation folder. So nothing I can do about it. Unless I make my own animation folder, remaking every animation the CoW devs have made.

No...


I haven't touched the mammoth for a while, but will work on it again when the campaign is built and I need to finish up unfinished models (lots don't have comments and still some small details to add for many). I got a little burned out on modelling so much, so had a good break.

[Reiksfart]

New splash screen for this submod. I really don't like the new one for 1.5. I know this is no work of art, but the new 1.5 splash seemed very rushed.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Gryffon]

nice, cant wait

[thy.gromovnik]

Oooooo, shiny!

Looks great and i'm looking forward to your mod Reiksfart, the vanilla CoW is in a desperate need of a good balancing across the board.

[Klierowski]

Great! .
I also wait for this mod... Vanillia unit stats always were strange.

[mr.blonde]

most excited about this! good luck getting your project done and rolling!

a small question although since i didnt read the whole thread. You mention a sandbox campaign in your preview and i wonder if that means for e.g war between the empire counts be possible and encouraged. Personally i have no interest in a such campaign and i wonder if there would be a "hardcoded" option.

Thanks in advance and good luck again! Cheers!

[Reiksfart]

a small question although since i didnt read the whole thread. You mention a sandbox campaign in your preview and i wonder if that means for e.g war between the empire counts be possible and encouraged. Personally i have no interest in a such campaign and i wonder if there would be a "hardcoded" option.

Sandbox campaign is a secondary campaign which won't change the main campaign. I'm not interested much in it either except to check faction balance and tweaked campaign AI without the invasion scripts working.

Sandbox campaign will play no differently to original medieval 2, with all out war between every faction unless they form a (breakable) alliance. I haven't looked much into it yet, there is far more important work to finish before that is added.

[Reiksfart]

Night goblin Fanatics.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Not finished yet. Before anyone asks, no it won't have the spinning animation. Not possible without supportive devs, and to be honest I might not be experienced enough to make an entirely new animation like that.

They won't be their own unit, they will be hidden in new units of night goblins giving the benefits of the fanatic unit and also in a way adding the negatives. Glass cannon type unit, giving the night goblins some more line breaking ability.

[paradamed]

So they will be officers?

[thy.gromovnik]

Heh, i remember those little bastards a way, waaaaay back, from Warhammer Dark Omen game. One of the best goblin units imho. Good job on modeling them. I don't know if i understand you correctly, will they add mass to the unit, making them better at breaking enemy ranks or will they lower the morale of enemies making them break and flee the battle?

One more question, and i know this is a mortal sin to ask any modder, but how is the general progress going? Can we expect something playable soon(ish)?

[Reiksfart]

Not officers, they will be a variant, with enough regular goblin variants so there are not too many fanatics in the unit. Will be going for on average 10-15 in a unit of 250. Not perfect by any means, but it will have to do. I'll look into handler/dog type unit when I have them in game, but the squig handlers don't even work, so I don't know.

Until I have looked at the rules for them and figure out how to implement them, and have them in game I can't answer exactly what. Certainly a mass which will be higher than a spear unit.

Progress isn't what I hoped it would be. Yesterday I added all new projectiles are in, arrows_ballistic_skill3 / 4 +, crossbow bolts, handguns, pistol, javelins etc. Cannon shots. Mage 'spells' Also added in my version of the 1648 smoke and firing effects yesterday. Didn't exactly copy, but used their mod as a guide and inspiration. Will make a new smoke graphic later rather than use theirs.

Still working on EDU and balancing. With the new found info about unit radius etc, that's making it easier to tweak, but also adding more time.

Still need to work on campaign script, export_descr_buildings, descr_strat and balancing campaign. Also a lot of models which need adding in, which takes quite some time, plus adding texts, unit cards, unit info pics.

So in short about having something playable soon.

I don't know....

[Reiksfart]

By the way, I'm looking for someone to help with balancing opinions before I release a campaign for testing by a few people. Need to know tabletop rules and stats and how units should perform versus other units.

Working on balancing Empire vs orcs at the moment with the new found radius, height and formation code, so when I'm relatively happy with everything I'll send an EDU and other needed files with those two factions for one person to test(backup originals). Unit vs unit (e.g 5 empire spearmen vs 5 orc boyz) and army vs army with and without missile and artillery units.

Overall at the moment, full battles are a real challenge, neither orcs or empire being a pushover for the player and quite likely the player can lose on medium battle difficulty. But a second opinion by another ex, or current tabletop player is wanted.

[Gryffon]

I would love to help but no warhammer experience..
Just posting to show my support since I can't rep yet

[Reiksfart]

Slaanesh giants added to game. Still only 3 variant heads, I plan to add a couple more plus some slaaneshi style mutations.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I have all the giant variants balanced very well. They are elephant based again rather than infantry. Powerful and effective, but not overly, and killable by anything in melee. My new understanding of radius and height has helped immensely with coding descr_mount. Some of you might remember giants in vanilla CoW pre-1.44 were stupidly overpowered, ran around knocking over hundreds of men and were unkillable by many infantry. No longer like that, they stand and fight what they charge into.

[Reiksfart]

Warlord Skarsnik the night goblin leader added to game. He's not supposed to be mounted, but he'd lag behind his unit if on foot, or look silly running so fast. Also only supposed to have a single giant squig, but needs more for game balance.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Reiksfart]

Night Goblin allied giants added to game.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: