**V.1.6: Ancillary Spam fixed for Eastern/Greek/Egyptian Factions! New Ancillary Portraits! New Trait Cards!**
Hey all.
Like most of you, I've been wholly disappointed with the way generals and agents have been portrayed in Rome II. The family tree is gone, marriage is currently broken, and characters die much faster with CA's decision to make the game 1 turn per year. Besides those, a lot of their retinues, traits, and skills had very negligible effects; 5% reduction on building temples? How useful is that exactly?!
The aim of this mod is create a more immersive system for character management, in particular by revamping the traits, skills, and household of generals and agents. Family trees might be in CA's hands for now, but I was playing around with the files and discovered that the values for several retinue modifiers can be changed, so that's what I did. In v1.2 I've also come up with a completely new skill tree overhaul that aims to replace the vanilla skill "ladder" for a skill tree with more branching options and more player choices. If there is enough interest, future plans include improving and adding more traits, talents, and toadies.
News!:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Current Features:
*ALL 800 retinue/household effects (triggers yet to come) have been changed in some way or another with the following guidelines in mind:
- Most basic combat values from retinues/ancillaries have been doubled from 5% to 7%-10% (morale, melee, defense, charge, etc.). Slight variations exist; for instance, the 'loaded die' gives a much lower morale bonus than a 'barbarian hero' retinue (as it logically should), charge-modifying retinues for Germans are higher than their Roman/Greek counterparts, while Greek defensive retinues are also higher than Roman/Barbarian counterparts.
- If a retinue is highly specialized, as in the case of values that modify temple construction costs or attack values for generals, their values have been upped significantly (sometimes from the meager 5% to upwards of 20%-30%)
- The modifiers that increase chances to evade/wound agents that harm your generals have also been upped significantly from 5% to 10%-20% depending on the quality of the retinue. For instance, the 'slave bodyguard' might have some issues of loyalty in terms of protecting his master, but a 'roman veteran centurion' should be able to lay down his life for his master willingly.
- Most of the retinue that modifies authority, cunning, or zeal (+1 usually) has been left unchanged for the most part (with some exceptions). They already seem powerful enough to me especially with stacking and leveling up with skills. The only exceptions are for those retinues that had some negative effects along with the attribute pluses; for those, I upped both the positives and negatives in order to make them more interesting.
- *NEW (v1.5): Partial Ancillary Spam Fix (WIP)
*NEW (v1.5): New Ancillary Images (WIP)- *NEW (v1.5): Dynamic Triggers for Ancillaries!(WIP)
- See here for what's been done so far! (1.5 documentation are WIP)
1. Ancillaries for 'all' factions
2. Ancillaries for 'barbarian' factions
3. Ancillaries for 'eastern' factions
4. Ancillaries for the 'egyptian' faction
5. Ancillaries for 'hellenic' factions
6. Ancillaries for the 'roman' faction
7. Ancillaries for the 'punic' faction
What the heck does this mean exactly?
As you can see, I've further revamped the effects for each ancillary. Although it might look like a lot, the stats are really aimed for flavor while still providing slight bonuses. After all, 'Gallic Bards' tend to increase public order and spread some culture when in towns and taverns and not on the front lines.
To recap, here's the overall goal for each ancillary:
- Edit scripts/triggers to fix ancillary spam
- Revamp effects to add more flavor
- Create new ancillary portraits to cut down on reused pictures
Anyway, as I mentioned before, and since most people here has been in agreement. I think I'll go for the incremental release for the ancillary spam fix. So far, I've managed to script the 'ALL' ancillaries (applicable to all factions) and the 'Barbarian' ancillaries in time for v.1.4. This means that (theoretically anyway) ancillary spam as well as revamped effects is currently fixed for barbarian factions! The only drawback to this is that the new portraits art style might clash a bit with the vanilla ones since they're all not replaced yet, but I don't think it's that much of a bother.
This is a WORK IN PROGRESS and that means balancing changes will happen. And ancillary spam still occurs for non-barbarian and non-Roman factions until I can finish all of them!
So please, bear with me as I finish all of them. You can help me by reporting any ancillaries that tend to be spammed or if those that I've fixed don't trigger.
By my last count, that's 600/800. 200 more to go!
*Completely overhauled the skill tree for generals.
- For specific current skill changes: CLICK HERE!
- Color-coded and unique skill cards for ease of use
- Increased skills per general level from 1 to 2
- Streamlined most skills and combined similar skill effects
- A separate skill tree dedicated to city management and politics
- Took out boring and redundant skills
- More RPG and immersion options!
- The long-ish description:
The problem that I've found with the vanilla skill trees is that it was too limited and becomes redundant across a long playthrough; you start off with the same basic skills, and it wasn't really a skill "tree" as much as it was a skill "ladder." I've tried to remedy that with this overhaul by giving the player more options from the outset.
After ranking up, each general will have access to all the red skill cards. As of now, this only gives the basic authority/cunning/zeal increases. After investing a single skill point in a red skill, all of the branching skills from that will open up to the player. Each skill still has 3 levels each and each rank will yield 2 skill points, with each general at max level theoretically being able to gain 6 full skill cards. Each level 3 skill gives it's corresponding attribute increase along with its powerful bonuses. This new system allows the player to have more options for specialization and RPG purposes. A general might be heavily invested in tactical skills (affecting the battlefield map aspects of war) while another might be more inclined for logistical capabilities (affecting the campaign map aspects of war).
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
*Governors and Generals!
- To complement the civil skill tree, generals can now be governors! They can gain slow but steady experience just by being in a settlement, facilitating trade, building structures, and keeping the peace!
- Let me illustrate with Governor Lucius Libo, who has been governing Roma for a while now:
Governor Lucius Libo gains a new rank!
Governor Lucius Libo has been developing his skills as a city manager, and has attracted a Master Trader to his cause!
*New Dynamic XP gain for Governors!
1) +1 XP for having the second to the highest tax level
2) +1 XP for having >25 public order in a region
3) +1 XP for just being in a garrison
*Bug fixes from vanilla:
- The 'dancer' retinue used to give +5 cunning (for being 'flexible'). I'm assuming this is a bug/typo by CA, and it has been promptly nerfed.
- Toned down the LikesXfaction traits
- Toned down the 'Loyal' traits
- Removed being an aloholic or religious for the trigger for insanity
*Turns Per Year:
- I've added an optional 2 turn/year mod (tpy) to help with immersion and attachment to characters. You can also use other tpy mods as you wish.
FAQ:
(Please Read)
1. Q: You said the turns per year mod was optional; what exactly did you mean by that?
- A: The included startpos.esf file changes the turns per year (TPY) from the vanilla 1 TPY to 2 TPY.
- A: The faction unlocker mod extensively changes the startpos.esf file. If you're using that, disregard my own startpos.esf file and use theirs instead.
2. Q: Is this compatible with mod XYZ?
- A: Short answer: it should be with most mods. Long answer: there's not a lot of mods that edit the traits/ancillaries/skill files so there's not a lot of conflict. The only sources of conflict are the startpos.esf file mentioned above, or the character experience skill DB tables. I've addressed the startpos.esf conundrum above, as for mods that alter the character experience skill table (e.g. Radious's), just download the .MOD version and make sure TTT is loaded last.
3. Q: Is this mod save-game compatible?
- A: Your save game will not crash, but if converting from vanilla (or a previous TTT version with skill changes), your general's skills that were removed will disappear (obviously) and will not be refunded. Otherwise, it should work. But I highly suggest starting a new campaign nonetheless.
4. Q: Rome II UI sucks. How can I see which of your new skills leads to what?
- A: I still have not cracked how to change the online encyclopedia (it's a work in progress), but I do have an excel sheet of the current skill trees with their corresponding effects and an image file for easy view. It is accessible online, so what I suggest is to copy it and paste either one in an open browser using Steam Overlay (shift-tab while in-game) so you don't have to alt-tab all the time.
5. Q: Is this compatible with non-English versions of Rome II?
A: Check out the Unit Compatibility Project (UPC) here.
To-Do List:
*Increase ancillary effects to be more significant
*Overhaul the skill tree to remove redundancy and create unique specialties
*Creating a more logical system for gaining TTT instead of the deluge of 3-5 every turn
1. Ancillaries for 'all' factions
2. Ancillaries for 'barbarian' factions
3. Ancillaries for 'eastern' factions
4. Ancillaries for the 'egyptian' faction
5. Ancillaries for 'hellenic' factions
6. Ancillaries for the 'roman' faction
7. Ancillaries for the 'punic' faction
*Adding historical characters as ancillaries
*Revamping ancillary portraits to cut down on repeats
*Creating a proper promotion system, especially with the Roman cursus honorum
*Moving on to agents (dignitaries/spies/champions)
*Adding a way for generals to gain XP administratively (that lead to the administrative skills)
*IF CA adds family trees, a bloodline system
Compatibility:For .MOD Format (for better compatibility)
Compatible with both CA PATCH 5 and the Nomadic DLC!
*Should be compatible with all mods that don't change any of the traits/skills/ancillary files.
*If you have questions about a specific mod, just post here.
Disclaimer:
*This is my first ever Total War mod. Please bear with me as I learn the ropes and hopefully improve. Feedback and especially suggestions (ideas for possible ancillaries/traits/skills) are very much welcome.
File Links:
For .MOD Format Download Here!
For .MOV Format Download Here!
For the optional 2 TPY Mod, Download Here-- Outdated, use Dresden's version here on TWC or on Steam
To see which skill leads to what, Download Here!
To see the ancillaries that I've fixed and changed so far, Download Here!
Installation Instructions:
1. If previously using the .MOV format, make sure to delete that version first! If using pre-v.1.4, delete any TTT-related files in the UI (skills and ancillary portraits)
2. Put the file into C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Total War Rome II\data
3. Use the built-in Rome II mod manager to activate TTT
4. Enjoy!
For .MOV Format
1. If using pre-v.1.4, delete any TTT-related files in the UI (skills and ancillary portraits)
2. Put the file into C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Total War Rome II\data
3. Enjoy!
Steam Workshop Version (RECOMMENDED)
1. Click "subscribe" on the Steam page
2. Make sure the mod is activated in the Rome II built-in mod manager
3. Enjoy!
*NOTE*: I suggest copying the link for the online excel file listing all the skill effects and branches which you can then paste onto a browser using the Steam Overlay while in-game so you can see where each skill leads without having to alt-tab.
Changelog:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Credits:
New TTT Team Member: Please welcome Dresden, creator of many popular mods (all compatible with TTT_1.5 by the way!). Dresden has been a big help with the new ancillary portraits, so shoot some +Rep his way to give him a warm welcome!
*Big thanks to redxavier, Thaetre, and others for helping me figure out how to script the experience gain
*Pnutmaster for the banner image
*Champlain, gwink, and others for skill ideas
*budist for the range increase fix