BrandonMod (Working Title) :)

[BrandonM]

Since there has been some interest in this here's my plan:

Release my personal mod -
Which is a Grand Campaign using Kingdoms
Start Date is 1125 - Faction Leaders & Heirs have been updated to appropriate names/ages (This is to make it make sense that the crusader kingdoms are established)

Base Retrofit mod
Incorporates Antioch Faction & Units
Incorporates Jerusalem Faction & Units
Incorporates Byzantium New Units
Incorporates Turks New Units
Incorporates Egypt New Units

Map
BigMap + Expansion + Even more regions

Skin Packs
Byzantium Armor Progression By WhiteWolf
Burrak's Textures (Low & High Period)
Salty's Shields (Might need permission here)
DG's Byzantium Shields (Might need permission here)

Other Tweaks
Character Names Project (Might need permission here)
Building Progression - Only peasents/peasant-like are recruitable at castles, everything else requires a building of some sort.


Personally, I like the vanilla gameplay so things like diplomacy and battle ai, unit stats, etc will remain original/retrofit.

To keep it legal, it will only include the required data/text files. For the animations, models & textures from kingdoms it will include a batch file to copy the required files into the mod folder.

Name it something cool... like Retrofit Expanded

It's mostly done already, just working out a few issues still, and would need to write the batch file/installer file.

Ideas/Suggestions?

Thanks,
BrandonM

[monkeyman]

if you plan on making the map larger you should think of adding the kingdom of georgia and maybe some more islamic factions.

[DrJambo]

Base Retrofit mod
Incorporates Antioch Faction & Units
Incorporates Jerusalem Faction & Units
Incorporates Byzantium New Units
Incorporates Turks New Units
Incorporates Egypt New Units

I would love to see this as a separate entity from the other things, or at the very least to have options to include the others at the user's discretion. For instance, I might be interested to try out the remodeling skin packs in conjunction with the above, but I think the rest, e.g. big map, would be better as options since they're more subjective. Plus many people might have their own modified files, e.g. export_descr_buidings.txt being a popular one.

There's something else which would be quite cool to include in this and that's unique battle and strat map faction leader and faction heir models. So :

Base Retrofit mod
Incorporates Antioch Faction & Units
Incorporates Jerusalem Faction & Units
Incorporates Byzantium New Units
Incorporates Turks New Units
Incorporates Egypt New Units
Unique models for faction heir and faction leader

How would the Jerusalem and Antioch factions be incorporated? As emerging factions or right at the start? Might be a bit bizarre for the crusading aspect of the GC if they already exist...?

Thumbs up though and +rep.

[DrJambo]

Personally, I like the vanilla gameplay so things like diplomacy and battle ai, unit stats, etc will remain original/retrofit.

Yep definitely. Gives people the option to then include their own preference.

[BrandonM]

Here's an Update:

I've successfully merged in the Crusaders factions & units into the Grand Campaign. I'm working on Lithuania and Teutonic Knights now.

here is a link to all the text/data files needed: http://www.mediafire.com/?58ndjgnttht

You will need to copy all the animations and graphics files from the crusaders unpacked directory into the mod directory. I will post a full list later on this evening.

I've played through a campaign to about 100 turns with no issues.

[raven27679]

YES!!!!!!

If possible release both, but you are on the right track here. This is what the game needs. They should have done this with the expansion, but you are def. making it right. I suck at modding this game, so I cant help you but I wish I could. If you get a change could you say what to copy over to the retrofit to make this work?

[DrJambo]

Brandon,

Firstly, nice job!

Secondly, I was wondering how the new factions have been fitted into the Grand Campaign?

Along those lines, would you consider making a 'lite' version of the mod, say a BrandonModLite - where you might only add new units for the already existing GC factions, e.g. Turks, Egypt and Byzantium? I've heard some posters suggest that adding extra factions to the GC can have a detrimental effect on the ability of existing AI factions expanding....?!

Cheers

[BrandonM]

The easiest way (I typed up a full file list but it didn't save the post) is to unpack the crusades game and copy everything to a new mod folder (mods\retrofitexpanded)
Then copy everything from the Byzantium Armor Progression into it.
Then copy everything from retrofit overtop of that
Then copy everything from my data pack on top of that.

That should make it work.


DrJambo -
What I did for the new factions was put them in the same place they are in the expansion pack location - Kingdom of Jerusalem starts with Jerusalem and Acre, Antioch gets Antioch and Edessa. Lithuania and Teutonic Knights start up in the Baltic Area I forget the names of the Territories but it's the same places and they are in the expansion campaigns. (They aren't in my released version though so...)

I've played a few campaigns and yes sometimes the original factions have a hard time expanding - but othertimes the new guys loose out - it makes the world a lot more crowded so of course factions are going to fight earlier and someone is going to loose - it's not always the original factions. I've seen the Turks kill Antioch, Jerusalem kill everyone over there, and Byzantium kill Antioch & the Turks and Antioch kill the Turks and Byz(4 diff games). Lithuania seems to die a lot and the Teutonic Order seems to be pretty powerful but the HRE seems to be able to keep them in check sometimes depending on how many other people are eating away at the HRE.

[raven27679]

Yeah, I still cant get this to work. No problem I will just play the expansion and wait for your mod to be released :]

[BrandonM]

Dupe post - removed

[BrandonM]

Just thought I'd give an update:

The original purpose of this mod was simply to integrate the new units/factions from the Kingdoms expansion into the Grand Campaign. I'm hoping I haven't strayed too far off course.
I felt that the BigMap was needed because 1 - I like it and 2 - with the new factions I think you need more space. I only included the provinces / regions, I didn't include any of the AI or game mechanics changes (except for the capital effect radius because of the bigger map area)
I included the Character Names Project because I feel that it improves the game, but for those of you who don't like it, you can pretty easily convert back to vanilla.
Same with Byzantium Armor Progression - this is purely a visual change, it has no game mechanics effect.
I chose the 4 new factions that I did because they seemed like the more significant factions of the new factions. I would like to have added Ireland, but I don't think I have enough room for their units.

New Faction Integration - 100% Done
These are the new factions added to the Grand Campaign.
Antioch
Jerusalem
Teutonic Order
Lithuania

Faction Abilities - 100% Done
Antioch & Jerusalem can recruit a single Marshall of their Order, Jerusalem can recruit a Constable as well.

Lithuania starts as Pagan and has pagan temples & priests. Periodically they are asked if they want to convert to Catholic - if they do they get access to new units/tech/buildings but all the pagan guys are lost.

Teutonic Order does not have a family tree - The generals get special ranks for taking cities/winning battles. (Integrated VnVs from teutonic game)

Teutonic Order & Lithuania are using the AI from the teutonic campaign which means they really hate each other, but after Lithuania converts they don't hate each other as much.

New Faction Units - 100% Done
The following factions have all the new units from the expansion:
Byzantium
Turks
Egypt
(Most original factions also gained the Mangonel)

- Other Mods -
Expanded BigMap integration - 100% Done (Using only the regions/provinces, none of the AI, etc)
Character Names Project Integration - 100% Done (Merged the Kingdoms & Original CNP into one file)
Byzantium Armor Progression - 100% Done

I had to remove all traces of Normans and Saxons as I ran out of unit space in the EDU. I also had to remove the unique kings from the original EDU (which were never used as far as I could tell).

All changes are based on the Retrofit and/or Vanilla files - I didn't simply replace files with the kingdoms version unless the only changes were the addition of the new features - I more often than not went through the files and copied the new features into the original files. This was pretty time intensive, but I hope it prevented any unwanted changes.

Things left to do:
King / Heir Strat Map models - they should look different and they're not, still researching that.
Hero abilities - I have added the buttons and can assign the abilities, but I'd like to work out a system where a new general has a random chance of getting a hero ability.
Installer - Need an installer to setup mod folder and to run unpacker (if needed) and copy only the required files from the Teutonic & Crusades folders

Thanks,
BrandonM

[Seljuk]

it will be a great mod exactly what i was wishing for, its too bad that there is not enough space left for irish though, anyway can't wait to play
thanks brandon

[Snakesword]

Maybe the Danes can get updated too. Kalmar Union might show up and danes receive the units like in the tuetonic campaign. Just an idea, great work on the mod and hope to see it out soon

[DrJambo]

I've heard some modders have had CTD problems with the Character Names Project. Any truth in that? Otherwise, looking very neat and looking forward to release.

I know Lusted also had problems adding the heir and faction leader models to the GC. Could trying doing in it via descr_strat and campaign_script if you're having no joys?

Any plans to make a more vanilla-like version? I.e. Just adding new Turk, Byzantine and Egyptian units to the standard map?

[BrandonM]

I could include a descr_strat that didn't have the new factions easily enough - the new factions would still be in the game for custom battles, but wouldn't be in the campaign. I'll put something like that in an option folder.

As far as CTD's with Character Names Project - I don't know. I've never had it crash on the strat map. I have had it crash when entering battles but usually that's because I forgot a texture or model. I would think the CNP - if it causes issues - would cause them on the strat map part of the game.

If it's something that becomes an issue it would be straightforward to revert to vanilla (but enough work that I don't want to do it unless it's needed)


As far as heir/leader models - I'm not sure what I'm missing. I can get the custom battle models in via campain_scripts and that works just fine. As far as I know, the files that control the strat map is descr_character & descr_model_strat. All the entries are there, but it ignores them for the faction leader. I can't find a difference between mine and any of the kingdoms games.

The descr_strat controls which bodyguard unit a starting general starts with, but that shouldn't affect the strat map.


As far as the Danes go - I can look into seeing how many new units they have and if I can fit them in. I know I'm very close to the unit limit as I had to delete some, but I didn't count how many I have. I'll do what I can though. A whole faction (Kalmar Union, Norway, Ireland, Wales) is pretty much out of the question unless they mostly reuse the existing units.

[Snakesword]

Norway uses similar units to the danes in the brittania campaign so the units are reusable. Ireland and Wales have totally different unit rosters compared to other european factions, though you might find similar models under a different unit name.

[The Walrus]

Good job

[Turbo]

Any other DL links? That one doesn't work for me.

[Hunter Makoy]

Sounds like your doinga great job. i will check it out when i get back to school. 2 questions tho. could u tell me a lil more about the unique kings models u found? i might want to try to gett them to work. and also, do u think this might be along the lines of where in some mods the general in the gen. bodyguard unit uses the 'duke william' style skin?

[Vanchelon]

Hey there, glad to hear yer working on this
Ive been itching to play the GC with kingdoms features on the "bigmap".
Any ETA on a first release?