Questions about swap factions

[Spartan198]

Question 1:
How will custom battles be handled? I understand that having modfoldered campaigns allows for more than 21 factions because each modfolder can have one faction substituted for another without affecting the whole game, but I don't know of any way to mod the .exes to enable more than the max number of factions without cracking the .exes.

Question 2:
Is there a list of decided-on swap factions? I've read a number of threads and what I've been able to gather is as such.

China (though I've been looking but haven't yet found any previews for a Chinese faction)
Bosporan Kingdom
Syracuse
Athens
Crete
Rhodes
2 additional, unrevealed (as far as I've seen) Gallic factions

What's the situation here?

[Brusilov]

1) It's illegal to crack the exe and it's aganst the ToS to talk about it.

I presume a custom battle would be limited to the factions that appear in the version of RSII that you are playing.

2) There are two swap factions planned - Bosphoran and Syracuse. Some units have been done and do appear in-game (I've seen the Bospohoran ones but not the Syracuse). No idea of when these will be ready as there is a lot of work to be done - I think Syracuse may not even be started (maybe research has).

The China one was a joke that keeps getting repeated (I may have started it). I think that was started as a answer to some people that were aksing about how far the map extended (so it was intended as misdirection). There was also mention of the Carthaginina Flying Citiies - that was also a joke.

[Spartan198]

1) It's illegal to crack the exe and it's aganst the ToS to talk about it.

I wasn't trying to start a discussion about it, sorry for phrasing my question as such.

2) There are two swap factions planned - Bosphoran and Syracuse. Some units have been done and do appear in-game (I've seen the Bospohoran ones but not the Syracuse). No idea of when these will be ready as there is a lot of work to be done - I think Syracuse may not even be started (maybe research has).

Which existing faction will be swapped out? I initially believed it was Sparta, but some other posts made by DVK (I think) also said Pergamon. Perhaps maybe we'll be afforded a choice as to which faction we want to swap out?

The China one was a joke that keeps getting repeated (I may have started it). I think that was started as a answer to some people that were aksing about how far the map extended (so it was intended as misdirection). There was also mention of the Carthaginina Flying Citiies - that was also a joke.

That's somewhat of a relief. Not that China as a faction would be bad (I'm sure you guys would make them awesome), it's just that I prefer more locationally relevant factions. And I like the Bosporan Kingdom more.

[Brusilov]

The last I heard was that the faction in the exisitng rota that would be removed to make way for a swap faction was Sparta - based on the fact that it's a bit of a 'fudge' being there in the first place.

The inclusion of a swap faction is still a long way away. As far as I am aware no-one is working on the factions at the moment. I think there is still interest in doing it.