In this preview, we shall delve into some of the new mechanics and campaign gameplay features of Ancient Empires.
- Over 500 New Traits
- Internal Faction Politics: Ruler traits, family member traits & usurpers
- New Attributes
- Redesigned Army Traditions
- New Ancillaries & Mentor mechanic
The character menu has seen one of the most ambitious changes introduced with the mod. With over 500 new traits, 100 new ancillaries and new character skills, the character menu features new mechanics that simulate internal faction politics. First, though, let's take a closer look at the traits.
The trait system in Ancient Empires has been created from the ground up. There are over 500 new traits in the mod, which serve to create a unique identity for each character and simulate their progression throughout the campaign. These traits can be divided into a few broad categories: personality, intelligence, health, courage, ability and fame. Upon the important day that is coming of age, a character's base personality becomes defined. A courageous, sharp and rash young nobleman, or one lily-livered, insecure but ambitious? Only fate will tell. Far from being definitive, a character's personality will develop throughout their lifetime depending on their actions and circumstances. Good health may deteriorate due to acute sickness, fear may be replaced with courage and insignificance with great fame earned in war or politics.
Traits can carry immense impact on a character's ability to govern or lead, but also affect health, political and social standing. A particular area traits influence heavily is the reworked Character Attribute system, which we shall soon analyse in greater detail.
- Discriminatory: "Gods.. I hate mercenaries. My grandfather hated them, too. Even before they deserted him."
Effect: -1 to mercenary morale
- Slothful: This man is content to live on his family's reputation (and wealth).
Effect: -1 Command, -1 Management
- Drillmaster: "Drill is worship! Worship of the gods of war!"
Effect: +15% campaign movement range, +2 integrity to commanded force, can rally troops
- Gambler: This man is sooner to gamble his own wife than admit defeat.
Effect: -12% tax rate in governed province
- Military Genius: Gifted with an unusual brilliance for leading other men.
Effect: +3 Command, can rally troops
- Sunbaked: A supposedly lucrative posting on the frontier has deprived this man of his faculties.
Effect: -20% campaign movement range, -8 to Health (increases chances of dying prematurely)
Although traits are a great way of discerning your character's strengths and weaknesses, we've decided to emphasize these further with character attributes. Traits carry a great impact on character attributes. In turn, character attributes summarizes some of the most important things of that character, such as their ability to command an army or govern a province. In Ancient Empires, the old attributes have been replaced by a new, intuitive system: Command, Management and Popularity.
Command is your character's ability to lead a force. A confident character (e.g. courageous, gifted militarily) will instill confidence in his troops, increasing their morale and the force's cohesion.
Management determines a character's effectiveness at governing, how able they are to extract taxes and reduce squalor in large cities.
Popularity is a dynamic measure of your character's standing with his subjects - the people. Generous, just characters are more well-liked and will help to maintain the public order in a region, as well as inspire loyalty in the men they lead. They also tend to become more influential. Thus, Popularity benefits both generals and governors, but also men who seek a career in politics.
Wait, I hear you asking. More traits?! Yes, a lot more.
Have you ever wanted a traitorous family member intent on sending you to the afterlife and claim the throne for themselves? No? My answer would be similar. Yet, in Ancient Empires, characters of the royal dynasty pick up special traits that allow this scenario and many others to play out. These are called Ruler Traits. Your faction leader's personality and achievements determines his standing with his subjects, the nobility and the common folk. The algorithm is based on existing traits, i.e. Ruler Traits are picked up depending on your character's well-defined personality and accomplishments. A faction leader will only have one Ruler Trait in their lifetime, but there is plenty of opportunity to shape a character prior to their becoming ruler through decisions taken in the campaign, as well as the use of personal mentors, as we shall discuss later.
Ruler Traits summarise how a faction leader is perceived by his subjects. They reflect on his authority and overall popularity. Because a king or chieftain wields the ultimate power over a faction, their ruler trait makes a strong imprint on internal faction politics. In essence, these special traits have both powerful faction-wide and personal effects, such as to change the way the player needs to approach the campaign during a certain ruler's lifetime. The ruler traits for civilised factions are diverse and may confer effects in many areas: integrity of armies, loyalty of subjects, public order, research rate and trade income to name a few.
- Imperious: "You clutch to power with a fist of iron, one that strangles those who get in the way. You are called a tyrant. The people do not know it is for their own best. They need a shepherd to lead them. There must be some sacrifice along the road, when the wolves come to feed."
-1 Subject Loyalty, -4 public order (global), +2 Integrity (all forces), -2 Popularity
- Pretentious: "Your palace is grand and frequented with lavish parties, thrown in the honour of elegant guests and visitors from exotic lands. You have learnt that the architecture of an empire is the pinnacle of a great rule. Although, as your master of treasure keeps reminding you, an expensive one. One that people feel in their already thin pockets. Their anger is misdirected, for such a venture is the most noble one can shoulder in a lifetime - and most enduring."
+18% Building upkeep (global), +10% Corruption (global), +1 Subject Loyalty, +3 Popularity
Barbarians
Barbarian factions face unique challenges in Ancient Empires. Their struggle lies with keeping a short leash on subject chieftains and warriors. Famous chiefs who have forged a solid reputation through victories may become disloyal. With a tribal structure and warrior mentality, warriors remain loyal to their commander only for as long as there is fame and spoils in it. In defeat, they will eventually seek glory elsewhere. Barbarian factions have a special set of ruler traits which focus on the authority of the king or chieftain - which is of crucial importance for keeping the leash short on subjects, keep them under control.
Family members
Family members - the heir and sons of the faction leader - get their own, unique "heir traits". These, similarly to ruler traits, serve to represent how well-liked they are, as well as their personal ambition and motivations. These traits provide a good indication of what type of ruler they might one day become. Depending on their personality, family members may also be ambitious and try to overthrow the current order by means of open rebellion. Some may simply be unpopular, others beloved by the people due to their great accomplishments in war or noble personality.
Usurpers
But wait, there's more. Should a faction leader be overthrown by a general in civil war, the new faction leader will gain a unique Usurper trait. Former members of the royal dynasty who might have survived the conflict will react in various ways to the new rule; either embracing it apathetically, or waving hostile banners in revolt against the crime and injustice that has been commited against their line.
The mod features almost a hundred new ancillaries. Companions are now divided into two types: followers and mentors. Followers aid your character with his tasks. Administrators, drillmasters, torturers and mercenary commanders can all be attained as retinues. There are also poets, orators and heralds, and many others. Certain followers can help your character develop traits; all of them also add immediate effects. Mentors is a new addition in the mod. Unlike followers, mentors generally don't provide their own immediate effect, but instead can be assigned to characters of young age to help them develop. A mentor may influence a character towards developing a certain personality and set of skills.
As in vanilla, there are many apparels and items for your character to don or use.
- Classical Sophist (mentor): 'Another teacher in rhetoric and philosophy!? Pray it is coin well spent. No that wasn't rhetoric or philosophy, that was a threat!'
- Old Veteran(mentor): 'I was there. The scoundrels claimed an eye, shattered my illusion of courage, but death did not claim my mortal body. In truth, both armies were equally brave... but we were brave for a little longer.'
- Sturdy Armour: 'My tailor of choice... the blacksmith.'
+ 2 armour to bodyguard
- Beastmaster: 'Play dead or make dead, my pretties can do it all.'
-20% cavalry & elephant upkeep, +1 cavalry & elephant morale
Set in 202 BC, the grand campaign features contemporary military traditions that serve your army in its path towards conquest. Military Traditions have been redesigned completely in the mod. In order to appreciate the changes, we ought to first look at the structure and organisation of societies and armies at the time. While some powers such as Rome had a centralised rule and went on towards developing semi-professional armies, other cultures were far less politically centralised. Their armies or warbands were raised in times of conflict, and largely disbanded in times of peace. Much as the social and political progress set cultures apart, so did their mentality and familiarity with strategies. Training, discipline and logistics varied widely as a result. This is something we've tried hard to capture in the mod, and keep it consolidated in one and the same place to make the interface accessible and intuitive. Military Traditions are now divided into two separate sets: Legacy Traditions and Unlockable Traditions. Legacy Traditions represent a faction's unique military; their training, mentality, degree of centralisation and organisation. Unlockable Traditions are akin to vanilla, organised in a tree with different paths that allows the player to choose their army's specialisation.
Each army of a certain faction has the same legacy traditions. Their effects are always active, influencing the army's strategical capacity. This creates a unique challenge for each culture. Whereas some boast cohesive forces with where men are never short in supply, others are challenged with maintaining integrity through continuous victories, lest the soldiers seek glory elsewhere. For yet others, mercenaries serve a main role, and they must find a way to keep soldiers from different regions together, loyal to their general. Decades of military practise and knowledge of how to survive in harsh environments are other main themes with legacy traditions.
Unlockable traditions are organised into the familiar skill tree, although culturally themed and inspired from historical battles and military practices from a variety of historical sources, including Tacitus, Vegetius and many others. The pooling of experience allows a force to better survive in harsh climates and lay siege to cities. As the soldiers and officers harden, they'll be tougher in combat and more resilient on the campaign.
Roman Legacy Traditions
- Roman Legion: The legion is the home for men of serving age and hosts a plethora of professionals. Practitioners of medicine, engineers, career officers and writers, the legion is a veritable community on the march. Aided by strict discipline, its men have an unmatched reputation to uphold.
-20% attrition in all climates, +6% replenishment rate, can build fortifications without the use of movement points
- Corporal Punishments: A deserter is an enemy and should be treated as such.
+2 Integrity
- Night Watch: 'I've served. For almost twenty years. Bother someone else.'
-30% enemy agent success chance
- Loaded March: 'The worst day of my life. For 'twas heavy.'
+15% campaign movement range
- Romanisation: Seemingly wherever the Roman legion sets its iron-shod sandals, aqueducts, latrines, the marvels of Roman culture, tend to spring up.
+3 to local conversion to faction culture
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