[Hotfix] Battle Test Pack - 03.20.18

[KAM 2150]

This is now included in the main mod as update 1.2.2k. Please head to the download thread to get the new version, thanks! http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?746128
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Hi All,

Due to latest issues from CA patch and our changes, I had to redo a lot of stuff that were not working as intended.

One of the culprits turned out to be, among other, secondary attack, which caused armour to be ignored for the most part.

I did a ton of tweaks today to get most of combat systems in line to fix latest issues.

Changelog:
-reworked armour values for higher durability of heavier units
-reworked armour also changes dynamics between certain units. For example Polybian Hastati are assault units, meaning their pila and charge plus initial combat will be punishing even for heavy units but in prolonged combat, you will feel their lack of armour.
-small boost to infantry charge
-reworked entity size (virtual unit size, not model size), units should not "iceskate" now or do it in rare cases
-due to change in entity size, unit are slightly more spread out in combat and have a bit more room around (hence less glitching and easier to watch animations)
-added new armour entries for super heavy units, limited to few regiments
-tweaks to ranged damage
-field artilley a bit more useful
-few fixes to stamina levels of certain units
-slight reduction to fatigue penalties for defence (but still high)
-Roman units lose their Expert Charge Defence sine with new stats it got a bit too strong and made using Fulcrum or Spear Aux units redundant
-added entries for cavalry swords and cavalry axes since they were using infantry entries now (which have different values and bonuses compared to regular cavalry weapons)
-elephants slightly reworked - their charge is more deadly now, they are a bit tougher in melee but their kills in prolonged melee are not OP
-slight reduction to falx damage
-cavalry charges improved vs ranged troops
-intervals between melee attack reduced from 3 to 2 seconds
-tweaks to spacing of some units
-Nabatean Bodyguard Infantry tweaked as they had incorrectly assigned phalanx while now they serve as medium assault spears


Overal combat seems fine again with those tweaks, I even had impressions that AI performed a bit better but that most likely was a placebo. Combat as a whole gets a bit slower, hence battles take more time but AI also seems a bit more responsie now.


Download and Install:
[Already in the main mod]

Simply download this file and copy it into your Rome2/data folder. Enable out of date mods. It should load before DeI. Do not use it with faster/slower combat submods.

[Roma Invicta753]

So the point of increasing armor value is for better resistance against missile damages right? I wish it also performed a bit better in melee...

[♔Greek Strategos♔]

So knock yourselves out guys...feel free to report anything.

[KAM 2150]

So the point of increasing armor value is for better resistance against missile damages right? I wish it also performed a bit better in melee...

No, it was changed especially for the melee. Against ranged attack, I lowered shield protection value so heavy units are still tough due to higher armour value while lighter units might take a bit more casualties.

[PurpleScotch]

Great to see this, thanks. The extra spacing is a great decision IMO, it makes everything function better, makes things clearer, and as an added bonus it makes units and battles look much bigger.

I'm still getting lots of unit sliding, "iceskating" (in a wobbly "back and forth" way), and the teleporting issue though.

[KAM 2150]

Define lots because in 2 hours of battles I only saw it once in the background and not upront as before ;P You can also list units with which you saw it.

[♔Greek Strategos♔]

Great to see this, thanks. The extra spacing is a great decision IMO, it makes everything function better, makes things clearer, and as an added bonus it makes units and battles look much bigger.

I'm still getting lots of unit sliding, "iceskating", and the teleporting issue though.

As you know, these are very old remnants of the base game's engines combined with new animations etc. We're trying to reduce them though. As KAM already said, please report any units having them.

[PurpleScotch]

Define lots because in 2 hours of battles I only saw it once in the background and not upront as before ;P You can also list units with which you saw it.

I just ran a custom battle, and I had the glitches I mentioned happen on Marian legionaries (volunteer and first cohort) as well as Syracusian levies, colonists and heavy infantry. May be something from my side, but I thought I'd report that I still have some persistent issues with the sliding and sudden movements. A lot of it happens at super lightning fast speed. It's a bit hard to describe lol. As always though, I appreciate your hard work KAM.

As you know, these are very old remnants of the base game's engines combined with new animations etc. We're trying to reduce them them though. As KAM already said, please report any units having them.

Your efforts are much appreciated.

[Falco]

Thank you so much KAM, your work is very much appreciated!

[Colest]

Looks neat, KAM. Which of your changes were targeted toward unit size issues or is that for a later fix?

[♔Greek Strategos♔]

I just ran a custom battle, and I had the glitches I mentioned happen on Marian legionaries (volunteer and first cohort) as well as Syracusian levies, colonists and heavy infantry. May be something from my side, but I thought I'd report that I still have some persistent issues with the sliding and sudden movements. A lot of it happens at super lightning fast speed. It's a bit hard to describe lol. As always though, I appreciate your hard work KAM.

I have seen similar issues but not so often lately, to tell you the truth. I'll need to play-test more with KAM's latest fix pack though and we could certainly use your reports and feedback.
If you don't use other battle mods or you have no other pack files from older versions in you data folder, then your feedback is solid.

Thank you so much KAM, your work is very much appreciated!

I'm expecting your feedback mate.

Looks neat, KAM. Which of your changes were targeted toward unit size issues or is that for a later fix?

Which unit size issues ?

[Colest]

Which unit size issues ?

300 size units are kicking the out of 200 size units. Painted Warriors are beating best Roman infantry. It seems to be from the extra attack rolls from extra men in the larger unit since matched combat is gone but that's just speculation on my end.

[♔Greek Strategos♔]

300 size units are kicking the out of 200 size units. Painted Warriors are beating best Roman infantry. It seems to be from the extra attack rolls from extra men in the larger unit since matched combat is gone but that's just speculation on my end.

Well I believe that was already fixed. If not, @KAM will give you more info.

[KAM 2150]

This pack should also fix that.

[meerkatology]

so in the 3/15 update in the main thread, armor/ap values were changed again and ap was 1 point lower on all units, in the fixpack the armor differential is bigger but the AP value is back to where it was before the march 15 update. is this intentional? spear still 4ap and gladius 5ap in this fixpack, higher than the march 15 update

[KAM 2150]

Yes because melee got to slow and some unit types were not doing anything vs other types. Initally I had AP loweded even more for this pack but it ended with cataphract legionnaires killing 250 Arverni before they lost first guy. Also without that AP thing hoplites and pikes were again killing unit that were flanking them. This is typical thing with battles as if you need to change one thing, you need to pretty much go through all else.

[meerkatology]

Yes because melee got to slow and some unit types were not doing anything vs other types. Initally I had AP loweded even more for this pack but it ended with cataphract legionnaires killing 250 Arverni before they lost first guy. Also without that AP thing hoplites and pikes were again killing unit that were flanking them. This is typical thing with battles as if you need to change one thing, you need to pretty much go through all else.

i see!

[Falco]

300 size units are kicking the out of 200 size units. Painted Warriors are beating best Roman infantry. It seems to be from the extra attack rolls from extra men in the larger unit since matched combat is gone but that's just speculation on my end.

What painted warriors are you talking about? I just tested Pictone Neitos against Legionarii Veteranii, the Pictone Neitos lost fairly handily.

[KAM 2150]

I think he was refering to standard DeI. The source of the issue was different though. I can elaborate more after work.

[geala]

...
-field artilley a bit more useful

....

Your reasoning is good, as always. I will try it out.

But to the artillery, I still have concerns about the base system. Siege artillery is best for field battles (especially as you can position it in a safe spot behind your main line). Field artillery is mostly still a waste of a slot.

Would it be possible to make all siege artillery fixed artillery? It is hard to live with big catapults moving over battlefields like motorized howitzers. Fixed artillery can be a problem in sieges however, I think. At least I would make the little polybolos throwers movable; if few people can move big catapults weighting tons over uneven battlefield terrain, they should also do it with small ones.

I also greatly decreased reload speed of siege artillery while increasing it for field artillery, to make siege pieces worse in field battles. It can shoot only two times or so before the armies clash. I have to admit that you are lulled a bit this way in sieges but I take this anytime over fast firing in field battles.