[Proposal] - Siege Map Randomizer?

[agent 47]

I'm loving attila at the moment but already I'm starting to find fighting in the same siege maps a bit tedious, as well designed as they are.

I was wondering if it would be possible through modding to make the game pick from a set of siege maps for the siege type (Eg, Coastal port, flat hilly etc.) instead of just the one for each culture, which is completely randomized and picks from a set of user create sieges for each type, along with the originals. Would it be possible through LUA or something similar to allow the game to look outside of its predefined siege maps? I'm aware that TED will allow us to replace the existing ones, but the problem is those will get boring too. The key here is as much variety as possible, not just different maps which you also have to play again and again.

If not, i guess something along the lines of Darth's launcher could work, where it puts in and takes out pack files with different sets of siege maps randomly, but that would mean the siege maps would only change each time the game is restarted, since pack files can't be changed after game start up as far as I'm aware.

[Princereaper]

In a few months the new mod tools will be released and we be able to make unique battle/siege maps for attila.

[agent 47]

In a few months the new mod tools will be released and we be able to make unique battle/siege maps for attila.

Ye i know, you need the map editor to make the maps in the first place. What I'm wondering is, is it possible to make the game choose from more than one siege map per environment and settlement type. So for example in a small unfortified roman plains siege map it wont always be the same map apart from climate vegetation changes.

[terzer]

I bet that the modding tools will only able to change/edit battle maps, not cites. The cities have unique nav meshes and so many other hardcoded code which communicates with the BAI, it will be impossible to make new city... sadly. If it would be possible, I will make every city unique and historical.
The custom unique cities should be one of the major addition for culture packs DLCs in AT and R2. Every culture DLC should add at least 2-3 more cities to the game. The biggest immersion breaker for me in R2 and AT is the identical and repetitive sieges (although the city design is brilliant). But this is another argument for another time...

[agent 47]

I bet that the modding tools will only able to change/edit battle maps, not cites. The cities have unique nav meshes and so many other hardcoded code which communicates with the BAI, it will be impossible to make new city... sadly. If it would be possible, I will make every city unique and historical.
The custom unique cities should be one of the major addition for culture packs DLCs in AT and R2. Every culture DLC should add at least 2-3 more cities to the game. The biggest immersion breaker for me in R2 and AT is the identical and repetitive sieges (although the city design is brilliant). But this is another argument for another time...

I think you're wrong there. The wouldn't be a point otherwise because the other battle maps are generated from the campaign tiles. I remember seeing mention of an AI pathfinding tool or something similar.

[Causeless]

I bet that the modding tools will only able to change/edit battle maps, not cites. The cities have unique nav meshes and so many other hardcoded code which communicates with the BAI, it will be impossible to make new city... sadly. If it would be possible, I will make every city unique and historical.
The custom unique cities should be one of the major addition for culture packs DLCs in AT and R2. Every culture DLC should add at least 2-3 more cities to the game. The biggest immersion breaker for me in R2 and AT is the identical and repetitive sieges (although the city design is brilliant). But this is another argument for another time...

Why would the nav meshes be hardcoded? That doesn't really make sense.

[terzer]

Because of the buggy engine. CA needed a year to fix siege battles AI, and still they are buggy sometimes. Warscape engine AI needs to be guided always by tons of scrips and code. Otherwise it stops working completely. (early Rome 2 sieges)
Remember Rome 1? CA released a campaign map editor and battle map editor. You couldn't edit cities. I think with the new tools you can generate a map from the tiles and add clutter to it, add roads, rivers, elevation, trees and so on and you can script the camera movement (like in historical battles), maybe a fort or a whole city. Just like Rome 1.
Believe me, I want to be wrong and CA to release city editor, but as always their modding tools are always too basic and limited. A clue is that you can't edit city position on the campaign map.
If I'm wrong I'll buy the whole forum a beer