Fans suggestion thread for future releases

[isa0005]

Custom formations that we can select in the battle UI if thats possible... would like to be able to array my romans in the manipular formation without having do it manually and then loose it all at the wrong click of a button!!

Cheers!
isa0005

[romanius24]

I had some agent ideas that i thought would be interesting but i am not sure how well they can be implemented.
The plan is to specialize agents more using traits and make the 'agent game' more interesting than just playing with percentages.

Assassins:
They should generally move much slower and have a limited skill set outside of specific traits.

For those agents, their missions should require a 'set up' period for higher changes of success. Assassins that stay in an enemy region will enter a trait chain that improves their skill over a number of turns but those traits would reset once he leaves the region or completes the mission.(not sure how it would work)

Reconnaissance: "This agent has gathered information on the most important elements in the area using bribery, theft and infiltration. Now he will begin to plan out his mission."
+ agent skill + line of sight
Criminal Network: "This agent's influence in the area has extended through the use of informants, traitors and criminals.
++ agent skill ++ line of sight - personal security - movement
Conspiracy: "This agent has gathered all the necessary tools and allies needed to accomplish his goal and is ready to strike. Only the Gods can stop him now"
+++ agent skill + line of sight - movement



I have some other ideas but i am wondering what you guys think of this first.

[svramj]

I had some agent ideas that i thought would be interesting but i am not sure how well they can be implemented.
The plan is to specialize agents more using traits and make the 'agent game' more interesting than just playing with percentages.

Assassins:
They should generally move much slower and have a limited skill set outside of specific traits.

For those agents, their missions should require a 'set up' period for higher changes of success. Assassins that stay in an enemy region will enter a trait chain that improves their skill over a number of turns but those traits would reset once he leaves the region or completes the mission.(not sure how it would work)

Reconnaissance: "This agent has gathered information on the most important elements in the area using bribery, theft and infiltration. Now he will begin to plan out his mission."
+ agent skill + line of sight
Criminal Network: "This agent's influence in the area has extended through the use of informants, traitors and criminals.
++ agent skill ++ line of sight - personal security - movement
Conspiracy: "This agent has gathered all the necessary tools and allies needed to accomplish his goal and is ready to strike. Only the Gods can stop him now"
+++ agent skill + line of sight - movement



I have some other ideas but i am wondering what you guys think of this first.

Sounds very realistic! Also, how about presence of enemy agents? I.e if agent is in our own territory long enough, he mush gain skills to spot enemy agents.

Also, another Idea I can think of is a presence of spy should assist the assassin in gaining the traits quicker than normal.

[wojtekimbier]

Sounds very realistic! Also, how about presence of enemy agents? I.e if agent is in our own territory long enough, he mush gain skills to spot enemy agents.

Also, another Idea I can think of is a presence of spy should assist the assassin in gaining the traits quicker than normal.

I don't think any of this is possible, but gaining skill and reduced movement when standing in enemy territory like romianius24 suggested would almost certainly work.

[romanius24]

If this applies to all agents, then the longer an AI agent is in your territory the more vulnerable he will be since he loses personal security by getting involved personally in the local affairs.

You can make other type of assassins too but i am not sure what the game allows.
For example, an assassin that gains similar traits while in friendly territory.
Working together with a spy to uncover conspiracies against their masters.

For spies there is currently a "guild master" trait that they have if in a friendly town. Maybe we could make this a progression similar to the traits i suggested above.

Defensive spy:

Investigation: "Using all his experience to uncover plots against his masters."
+line of sight + agent skill
Informant Network: "This agent now has informants from all over the region working for him."
++ line of sight ++ agent skill - movement
Local Guild Master:"This agent has a collection of informants, other spies and all the resources of the local Guild available. Nothing moves in this region without him knowing about it."
+++ line of sight +++agent skill -- movement

I think that this last trait should be more restricted, maybe only the more experienced and older spies should get it.

Note that the first trait for both the assassin and spy doesnt have a movement penalty. This is necessary in case you just happen to end turn in a region. The longer they stay, the more they are needed there so movement isnt really possible.

Infiltrator spy:

Scouting "This agent has gathered information on army garrisons and governor actions in the region"
++ line of sight ++ movement
Military Spy: "This man is now intercepting orders and is aware of all troop movement in the area."
+++ line of sight - personal security + movement

Infiltrator:"This agent can now work from within the enemy city and his experience allows him to steal any information"
+++ line of sight --personal security - movement +++ agent skill

Diplomats:

Emissary: Very fast moving outside the borders but not very skilled. Just used to establish contacts with other nations.
+ bribery - line of sight ++ movement - influence - personal security
Ambassador: Local politician who is speaking in the name of the city.
- bribery + line of sight --movement ++ skill ++ influence + security

[Rad]

Please boost the morale of lower level units in general. Even +1 should do. Especially for skirmishers, because Ive read that they are getting a number cut - which is a most welcome idea.

[Anubis88]

Please boost the morale of lower level units in general. Even +1 should do. Especially for skirmishers, because Ive read that they are getting a number cut - which is a most welcome idea.

I don't see levies getting a boost. They are your avarage joe forced in combat. They will run for their lives and not care what others think really fast.

[Tactics Mayers]

If the Macedonian Reformed Phalanx (the ones with mail and wooden composite shields) are expected to be in the roster, will the other Hellenic Factions have this unit as well by some other means?

[QuintusSertorius]

Please boost the morale of lower level units in general. Even +1 should do. Especially for skirmishers, because Ive read that they are getting a number cut - which is a most welcome idea.

I don't see levies getting a boost. They are your avarage joe forced in combat. They will run for their lives and not care what others think really fast.

Not only that, if we raised the morale of levies, they'd be too depleted by the time they fled to ever rally. In the current system, they may rout easily (as they should), but if you don't pursue them, they tend to return to the fray.

If the Macedonian Reformed Phalanx (the ones with mail and wooden composite shields) are expected to be in the roster, will the other Hellenic Factions have this unit as well by some other means?

No plans for a reformed phalanx. It's not in the unit list and the Hellenistic one is almost complete. No one has ever mentioned any plans for it as far as I can see. My working assumption is tha there won't be a reformed phalanx unit.

Again, I feel the need to remind people that nothing is assured nor should be assumed to be planned just because it was in EB1.

[Rad]

I don't see levies getting a boost. They are your avarage joe forced in combat. They will run for their lives and not care what others think really fast.

Some of them have quite good equipment and a warlike reputation. I dont see them as cowards. Giving them a morale value of 2 does not do them justice.
On the game side, it makes it way too easy to start a mass rout, and I play on hard-very hard battle dif.
At least set the minimum for all types of units on 3.

[Tactics Mayers]

Not only that, if we raised the morale of levies, they'd be too depleted by the time they fled to ever rally. In the current system, they may rout easily (as they should), but if you don't pursue them, they tend to return to the fray.



No plans for a reformed phalanx. It's not in the unit list and the Hellenistic one is almost complete. No one has ever mentioned any plans for it as far as I can see. My working assumption is tha there won't be a reformed phalanx unit.

Again, I feel the need to remind people that nothing is assured nor should be assumed to be planned just because it was in EB1.

I don't mean the EB1 unit. I meant: will there be phalanx pikemen armored in mail?

[QuintusSertorius]

Some of them have quite good equipment and a warlike reputation. I dont see them as cowards. Giving them a morale value of 2 does not do them justice.
On the game side, it makes it way too easy to start a mass rout, and I play on hard-very hard battle dif.
At least set the minimum for all types of units on 3.

The minimum morale for line infantry levies is 3. Some are 4.

Only skirmishers/missile units are 2.

I don't mean the EB1 unit. I meant: will there be phalanx pikemen armored in mail?

Nope, not as far as I can see.

[Rad]

We are talking about both line infatry and skirmishers-archers that are levies, who are not highly motivated and properly equipped. Being lighter, skirmishers and archers can withdraw instead of routing. Line infantry have to discard their heavy shields to retreat in a fast manner if pressed hard. Without them, they would be useless and would not come back to the fight.
The option to skirmish does a fine enough job to represent archer-skirmishers unwillingness to stay in melee, low morale makes it too much.
Skirmishers and archers should also have a minimum of 3.

[QuintusSertorius]

We are talking about both line infatry and skirmishers-archers that are levies, who are not highly motivated and properly equipped. Being lighter, skirmishers and archers can withdraw instead of routing. Line infantry have to discard their heavy shields to retreat in a fast manner if pressed hard. Without them, they would be useless and would not come back to the fight.
The option to skirmish does a fine enough job to represent archer-skirmishers unwillingness to stay in melee, low morale makes it too much.
Skirmishers and archers should also have a minimum of 3.

The earlier a unit routs, in terms of losses, the more likely it is that they'll rally and return to the fight. This works in skirmisher/missile units favour, with their lower morale. It also combines with their greater mobility.

[Rad]

You cant argue that low morale can be good thing for a unit, especially a AI controlled one. There is a chance that they will return, and there is a chance that they will run for good. Cavalry makes the chance of return irrelevant, since it will mow down any fleeing unit. I am not going to make some house rule that states that I should allow routed enemy units a chance to reorganize. It would be highly inaccurate not to exploit such an opportunity. If the battle allows, I will chase after them and get them all, especially if I am playing with a cavalry centric nation. +1 morale is not that big of an impact, but it could improve AI survivability, thus making the game more interesting.

If it is too much work for you folks, give me the unit file, I will edit values that are 2 to 3.

[TheCataphract]

If I may, I suggest adding wonders/landmarks to the campaign map like in Rome total war and the mod De Bello Mundi. It would be good for some campaign map immersion and of course this is just a minor suggestion.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Pharos Lighthouse and the Pyramids shown below

[romanius24]

Even better would be adding them to battle maps. There are a lot of wonders in the city buildings menu right now.

[Tactics Mayers]

Will there be extra death animations added later? Like the ones in Stainless Steel where they quickly fall forward or backward aside from the slowly kneeling to your death animation?

[QuintusSertorius]

Will there be extra death animations added later? Like the ones in Stainless Steel where they quickly fall forward or backward aside from the slowly kneeling to your death animation?

Unless we get an animations specialist, no. We've just removed them all, because they were buggy, and indeed they impede battlefield performance.

[parthian8]

Hi Quintus,

I have played he new game through to about 160 turns twice now on H/H.
I read that you have games testers playing the bottom off it. I also can't see if there is a thread dedicated to old-style faction progression reports.
Does this mean independent feedback on this issue is no longer required?