Attila - Introducing the changes (OP updated October 22nd)

[LestaT]

I`m very much interested to know more about the seven seals.

[Robin de Bodemloze]

Deleted off topic posts on patch 15. Please stay on track.

[Lionheart11]

How about adding more unique animations that you unlock via tech tree eg. advanced spear

Unique faction cut scenes, Breakable oars with mechanics, progressive weather on sea maps etc.

[PointOfViewGun]

You can change religions.
Agent's functions get opened up as they level up and develop skills.
New axe animations.
Different technology trees for Eastern and Western Roman empires.
Sassanids are playable.
You can marry into other factions.
New and bigger forts.
Agents to convert the local population.
Hadrian wall is on the campaign map.

[lilalex20]

You can change religions.
Agent's functions get opened up as they level up and develop skills.
New axe animations.
Different technology trees for Eastern and Western Roman empires.
Sassanids are playable.
You can marry into other factions.
New and bigger forts.
Agents to convert the local population.
Hadrian wall is on the campaign map.

Wait whaaaat?! Was that on the live stream!?

[PointOfViewGun]

Wait whaaaat?! Was that on the live stream!?

Yeah. I was typing as I watched it though my connection was horrible so missed many things they said in between.

[Hresvelgr]

Tech trees and skill trees also seem different, generals for example no longer have that set of cards like in R2 but now a tree as in S2. And I think they said something about there being cutscenes for special events. I also heard something about Greek fire. I think they said that although the nominal campaign length is about 75 years, you can keep on trucking like in any campaign so they give you the option of developing 7th Century technology or something like that.

[LestaT]

Originally posted by Martijjn at the official forum.

I have not verified it yet but this can be view at the official Twitch channel.

Written version
Main campaign details
- All religions have their own buffs and benefits. 9 different religions in the game.
- Building Browser!
- Diseases can spread trough trade routes, armies and more and can cause diplomatic penalties.
- Constantinople will be a unique settlement and big. Very big.
- Minor settlements CAN have walls in ATTILA!
- There will be civil wars in ATTILA but they will work out different as Rome II's wars.
- More dillema’s, events and more.
- There will be cultural-specific music themes.
- There will be new army stances. Forced march now gives fatigue penalties when attacked.

Characters
- An assigned governor will grant an edict and bonusses and will be represented on the battle map when his city gets attacked.
- You can marry people from other factions to get them in your family tree.
- Different characters will bring different personalities in diplomacy. Because of this diplomatic relations will be more dynamic.

Agents
- More agent actions will unlock when you level up an agent!
- Results of agent actions will be displayed as 2D animations.

Attila
- ATTILA will always attack other nations. This cannot be avoided.
- Attila can be killed or wounded

Units and Factions
- Sassanids, Saxons playable, more playable factions will be revealed overtime.
- A lot more specialized ships. Boarding, ranged combat, ramming.
- There are male and female units in Total War ATTILA.
- Some Immortals and Cataphracts units will be in the game.

[shawn858]

Originally posted by Martijjn at the official forum.

I have not verified it yet but this can be view at the official Twitch channel.

ahhhh!

I'm loving this game more and more every time I hear about it. I'm really resisting the temptation to pre-order when able, because of the rome 2 fiasco, but seeing all of these amazing features and changes makes it so hard not to want to get it

[lilalex20]

ahhhh!

I'm loving this game more and more every time I hear about it. I'm really resisting the temptation to pre-order when able, because of the rome 2 fiasco, but seeing all of these amazing features and changes makes it so hard not to want to get it

You are not alone! I usually barely have the money for the game itself and I rather avoid another preorder( besides Rome 2 three other games that I preordered this year were all screwed up as well) but damnit those features make me drool!

[Abdülmecid I]

Somebody in the official forums said that changing your capital and trading regions won't be back.

[legate]

The game is a standalone expansion, similar to Napoleon (Empire) and Fall of the Samurai (Shogun 2)

As I am led to understand, possibly wrongly, the release will be Q1 2015.

[legate]

CA might well be promoting this as a brand new total war game, but in reality, and in the minds of most of the community, Atilla is to Rome 2 what Barbarian Invasion was to Rome 1, Kingdoms to Medieval 2, Napoleon to Empire and Fall of the Samurai to Shogun 2.

Its a stand alone expansion in simple terms.

Its set on the same map with some provincial changes, like Emperor Edition done to Rome 2.

[texoman81]

CA might well be promoting this as a brand new total war game, but in reality, and in the minds of most of the community, Atilla is to Rome 2 what Barbarian Invasion was to Rome 1, Kingdoms to Medieval 2, Napoleon to Empire and Fall of the Samurai to Shogun 2.

Its a stand alone expansion in simple terms.

Its set on the same map with some provincial changes, like Emperor Edition done to Rome 2.

well said. we need to quit getting caught up in the terminology and marketing gimmicks that CA and Sega choose to use and just call the games what they are. Attila is Barbarian Invasion II. The campaign will be about the same change from EE as EE was from GC. They are going to re-add some cut feature (though not all) from previous total war game then the ridiculously overpowered and overused fire gimmicks. After Rome II we complained that torches could burn down metal gates, but now fire is unavoidable in sieges and an entire province goes up in flames in an instance and is burt to the ground when you abandon a settlement. It looks like a nuke has gone off. Then they add the unrealistic portrayal of climate change that is noticeable year to year and apparently take the phrase Dark Ages to literally. Not to mention that the time period of this game isn't even in the dark ages, the dark ages began with the fall of the western roman empire by its most commonly used definition and other definitions are even later, especially the 10th and 11th centuries. Barbarian Invasion II will actually be set during the period of Late Antiquity. Depending on how your game goes, the Dark Ages could begin during the campaign but that certainly isn't the starting time period. Chalcedonian Christianity didn't begin its division into Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholicism until 1053. It seems like there was separate projects for BI2 and a Dark Age title and they just sloppily combined them.

edit. ok this is a late edit but it just hit me that even Chalcedonian Christianity is anachronistic for the start of BI2. The Chalcedonian Schism didn't occur until 451. The correct term would be Nicene Christianity. Even the Nicene Creed was developed between 325 and 381 so it was very new. Nicene Christianity had only become the official religion of the Roman Empire in 380. To already have Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox as separate denomination in 395 is just sad.

[legate]

well said. we need to quit getting caught up in the terminology and marketing gimmicks that CA and Sega choose to use and just call the games what they are. Attila is Barbarian Invasion II. The campaign will be about the same change from EE as EE was from GC. They are going to re-add some cut feature (though not all) from previous total war game then the ridiculously overpowered and overused fire gimmicks. After Rome II we complained that torches could burn down metal gates, but now fire is unavoidable in sieges and an entire province goes up in flames in an instance and is burt to the ground when you abandon a settlement. It looks like a nuke has gone off. Then they add the unrealistic portrayal of climate change that is noticeable year to year and apparently take the phrase Dark Ages to literally. Not to mention that the time period of this game isn't even in the dark ages, the dark ages began with the fall of the western roman empire by its most commonly used definition and other definitions are even later, especially the 10th and 11th centuries. Barbarian Invasion II will actually be set during the period of Late Antiquity. Depending on how your game goes, the Dark Ages could begin during the campaign but that certainly isn't the starting time period. Chalcedonian Christianity didn't begin its division into Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholicism until 1053. It seems like there was separate projects for BI2 and a Dark Age title and they just sloppily combined them.

And at full price too. I remember when expansions were half of what the full games cost.

[Butan]

Why is that thread title "Introducing the changes" and so many of the listed stuff is in Rome 2 already with no changes at all? It should be renamed "Gameplay features in Attila", or to me it looks like trying to do imitate CA marketing strategy: brand everything new and shiny and stuff, mislead people with deceptive advertising. The forum owner and staff themselves creating and updating that thread is not a good image to the objectivity of the TWC website, especially since what I described is the #1 thing people despise about Attila and to a certain extent, Rome 2 too.
Either change the thread's title accordingly or restrict the listing to features that are not present in Rome 2, and create a second thread including every and all features of Attila with no restriction.




Not exhaustive list of features listed in the OP under the "Introducing the changes" title that are not new or changing features:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

-Dynamic seasons - climate change on the map

-Small RPG elements for generals, in that you can customize his skill tree to suit them for specific areas such as improving their melee on horseback to improving their governorship etc.
-Trading with other factions will increase the likelihood of having diseases brought over to your cities etc

Family tree upgrades
-political and dilemmas involved

Multiplayer
-same style as Rome II,
- no player progression like Shogun II

Campaign map
-climate change will effect everyone, (barbarians moving south towards Rome to "shelter" from the cold etc, effect economic output and food production)

Campaign
-there will be a priest agent, which will help with converting or spreading their nations culture and religion
-diseases will only take effect on the campaign, not shown in-battle


Characters
- Different characters will bring different personalities in diplomacy. Because of this diplomatic relations will be more dynamic.

Attila
- Attila can be killed or wounded

Units and Factions
- A lot more specialized ships. Boarding, ranged combat, ramming.
- There are male and female units in Total War ATTILA.

Not exhaustive list of features listed in the OP under the "Introducing the changes" title that are debatedly not new or changing features:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

My favorite screen shots so far:




Concept art of winter progression, this looks really good on the campaign map:




Some concept art:




Various models:



-the campaign is going to last 70 years, at the start Attila wont be born, however the hunnic hordes will be present from the beginning.
-the hunnic faction will not be scripted, but rather allowed the chance to become powerful, CA have added such implications that will direct them towards west. However they feel that they want it to be sandbox, and that history is re-created by you.
-New voice scripts/acting and music
-sea warfare is more about boarding and missile attacks, rather than ramming (which is given due to the time period)
- There will be cultural-specific music themes.
- More dillema’s, events and more.
- Some Immortals and Cataphracts units will be in the game.
- Sassanids, Saxons playable, more playable factions will be revealed overtime.
-Saxons will be a playable faction (they were really highlighting on the fact that you'll play as minor factions who will start really small, so perhaps as playing as the saxons you'll have to find a new home)
Agents
- More agent actions will unlock when you level up an agent!

[Geronimo2006]

You can't play as Atilla as CA have made clear the Huns are not going to be a playable faction. I would like to play as the WRE but if it's like Rome Barbarian Invasion it will be an almost impossible challenge. Which is why I will play as them....

[texoman81]

You can't play as Atilla as CA have made clear the Huns are not going to be a playable faction. I would like to play as the WRE but if it's like Rome Barbarian Invasion it will be an almost impossible challenge. Which is why I will play as them....

they made that clear initially but then they backtracked and said that the playable factions haven't been decided and will be announced. They have started announcing playable factions one per weekday, so it won't be long before we find out if the Huns will be playable or not.

[Holger Danske]

You can't play as Atilla as CA have made clear the Huns are not going to be a playable faction. I would like to play as the WRE but if it's like Rome Barbarian Invasion it will be an almost impossible challenge. Which is why I will play as them....

Wait, what? Is this seriously true?

So you can't play as the faction that the spin-off expansion is about. Well, that wouldn't surprise me, seems like a very typical move from CA. Well maybe they'll release a DLC short after where you can actually play as Attilla <3

They might as well remake Alexander and have the macedonians unplayable while they're at it.

[NostalgiaFan]

Wait, what? Is this seriously true?

So you can't play as the faction that the spin-off expansion is about. Well, that wouldn't surprise me, seems like a very typical move from CA. Well maybe they'll release a DLC short after where you can actually play as Attilla <3

They might as well remake Alexander and have the macedonians unplayable while they're at it.

Actually because of the leaked special edition preview the Huns have been shown to be one of the 10 playable factions from the base game without dlc. Go check it out if you do not believe me.