Azeroth Total War

[Vladyvid]

You could probably find a lot of useful tutorials and tips in the workshop section here on twc, especially in Tools, Tutorials and Resources:

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/forum...I-Mod-Workshop

[Molochwalker]

My suggestion would be to mine as much content as we can from Warcraft games and other mods. Tatw is a good place to start - many factions would only need a recolor/retexture from other mods models. At least for v. 1.0.

- Elves from TATW have female faces in the texture files. Recolor these and make the gilded armour black and you will have your nightelves.
- Harad have great "savage" looking weapons for kalimdor factions.
- Rhûns models are off limits. The creator does not give permission to use them.
- Troll men of Harad can make a great Orc model for the first version. They are slightly bulkier than the standard human model, and would only need a retexture/recolor.
- Wolf mounts can be found in Rage of Dark Gods.
- Minotaur from RoDG can be used as a Tauren template model.
- Kodo beasts can be extracted from WoW.
- RoDG has a multitude of undead units that can be used for the Scourge. For the Forsaken I suggest just recoloring/retexturing human models.
- TATW has very good Dwarven models that can be used with and without their current textures.
- TATW has a spider model that can be used for Nerubian units aswell as some Quraji units (in later versions)
- RoDG has bear mounts (for the later Amani faction), but I don't know if they have battle animations, so they might not work for in-form druid units.
-TATW can supply an ent model that can work for an Ancient Protector unit.

It doesn't have to be perfect for the first version. If we borrow content from other mods we can get a functional 1.0 up faster, and possibly attract the attention of some good modelers for later releases.

Also, there are sites that host free 3D models for non-commercial use. Tf3dm.com, for example. Beware of the maximum poly count of the engine though, it shouldn't exceed 800-1000 for the mod to run smoothly.

Also, still working on sounds. I'll soon host some stratmap voice files, so you guys can check them out.

[IAmNotShazam]

To my knowledge, TATW assets are off limits unless it's for a submod.

[Molochwalker]

As far as I have read, most of them are accessible on request, a few are free to use, and Rhûn is completely off limits.

[Blastoise Groudon]

If you guys need any help with anything let me know!

[Molochwalker]

Could another option be to just rip all models off of WoW? I mean, I think you can export models, textures and animations straight from WoW model viewer.

[jim501]

Could another option be to just rip all models off of WoW? I mean, I think you can export models, textures and animations straight from WoW model viewer.

I think some models would require to be custom made for diversity.
Also WoW's models are very cartoony and some very low-rez compared to the aesthetics of Medieval 2.

[Molochwalker]

I think some models would require to be custom made for diversity.
Also WoW's models are very cartoony and some very low-rez compared to the aesthetics of Medieval 2.

I agree, but honestly, the amount of work required to custom make all models and textures is daunting at best. Even if you'd have a pro team of modelers it would take years to bring the mod completion. Call of Warhammer and Elder Scrolls Total War uses models and textures from the games they derive from, even if they don't directly fit the aesthetics of the game, because when you work with a fantasy universe as diverse as Warcraft, the original human model of the original M2TW just doesn't cut it. You'll need seperate models, skeletons and animations for each of the races.

Ones you have your orcs, you need your taurens, your elves, the million varieties of undead, nerubians, quaraiji, dwarves, centaurs, quillboars, murlocs, perhaps draenei and so forth. Not all of these are planned to go into the mod, but how can you have a Warcraft game without murlocs?

I honestly would advice us to at least consider this. Warcraft IS cartoony, why not just embrace it?

[jim501]

I agree, but honestly, the amount of work required to custom make all models and textures is daunting at best. Even if you'd have a pro team of modelers it would take years to bring the mod completion. Call of Warhammer and Elder Scrolls Total War uses models and textures from the games they derive from, even if they don't directly fit the aesthetics of the game, because when you work with a fantasy universe as diverse as Warcraft, the original human model of the original M2TW just doesn't cut it. You'll need seperate models, skeletons and animations for each of the races.

Ones you have your orcs, you need your taurens, your elves, the million varieties of undead, nerubians, quaraiji, dwarves, centaurs, quillboars, murlocs, perhaps draenei and so forth. Not all of these are planned to go into the mod, but how can you have a Warcraft game without murlocs?

I honestly would advice us to at least consider this. Warcraft IS cartoony, why not just embrace it?

Warcraft is cartoony but that is mostly done so that the MMO wont have problems running on multiple systems and in order for the art style not to get old quickly.
I think it clashes a lot with the medieval 2 aesthetics and believe a more realistic approach would be a brath of fresh air hoenstly.

For example compare the Stormwind's soldiers' armor in-game and the artwork that could potentially be worked itno a custom model :

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

The mods for Warhammer and Lotr which went to a more "realistic" aesthetic were pretty good.
Also Third Age as far as I know had custom models didnt it ?
Modders could always ask permission form other mods like the aforementioned 2 to use their models as base to save time

Anyway, this is only my preference, it is up to the modder to decide the aesthetic he wants.

[Molochwalker]

Warcraft is cartoony but that is mostly done so that the MMO wont have problems running on multiple systems and in order for the art style not to get old quickly.
I think it clashes a lot with the medieval 2 aesthetics and believe a more realistic approach would be a brath of fresh air hoenstly.

For example compare the Stormwind's soldiers' armor in-game and the artwork that could potentially be worked itno a custom model.


The mods for Warhammer and Lotr which went to a more "realistic" aesthetic were pretty good.
Also Third Age as far as I know had custom models didnt it ?
Modders could always ask permission form other mods like the aforementioned 2 to use their models as base to save time

Anyway, this is only my preference, it is up to the modder to decide the aesthetic he wants.

I think custom models would be great too, but as of now we have no one working on it, and no planning going on, only a few who have expressed the desire to maybe learn it for the express purpose of working on this mod. Learning how to create, map and animate 3D models is a hugely complicated endeavour, and is a type of skill you'll be progressing on your entire life, not something you'll learn in a few months and then just know how to do. It's more like painting or composing, rather than riding a bike - the quality of the work increases with time and effort. Even if some of us could learn how to make functional models, making great models or just models that work good enough to not break immersion is years in the future.

If we want custom models, we need modelers with experience now, or else I guarantee everyone will tire or forget about this project long before we even have a working model. If we want this game out this decade, I say forget about custom models. I could be dead wrong and it's most definitley not up to me to decide, though.

TATW has some custom models, the spiders, the trolls and the Ents for instance, and some static and unanimated objects such as weapons and shields. The rest is mostly just retexturing of the original soldier, some with slight modifications, which aren't too hard to do. The custom models are far from perfect, though - they are often glitchy and behave strangely to their surroundings. But it's also worth taking note to the fact that TATW had a large team of experienced modelers, something we don't have.

I was under the impression that Call of Warhammer uses models from some Warhammer game, but I could be wrong about that. If that's all custom then I'm thoroughly impressed, because that's one hell of a piece of work.

[Darrowmere]

Hey guys sorry i haven't been on here in a while working on the map will hopefully show my progress in a couple days.

What faction placeholders are you using for the 13 factions? I am currently experimenting with sounds and music, as I'm on call with work and nobody's calling, so I might aswell do something worthwhile.

The Kingdom of Stormwind (England)
The Kingdom of Khaz Modan (Scotland)
Night Elves (Hungary)
The Nation of Durotar (Egypt)
The United Tauren Tribes (Moors)
Forsaken (Saxons)
The Scarlet Crusade (Poland)
The Dark Iron Empire (Holy Roman Empire)
The Dark Horde (Turks)
The Scourge (Byzantine Empire)
Dalaran (Milan)
Drakkari Tribe (Aztec)
Neutral Hostile (Slave)

If you guys need any help with anything let me know!

Thanks for the offer what are your skills?

[Darrowmere]

Un'Goro Crater

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Zandalar

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Dustwallow Marsh

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I have come to the conclusion that the Gnomes should replace the High Elves as a faction and to make both the Gnomes and Darkspear Trolls Horde factions that will need to retake their homelands.

[Frunk]

Impressive progress on the map, mate! +rep

[TheHappyCrusader]

Mapping the world of Azeroth is fun, yes? Seeing this project makes me all nostalgic for my WTW days.

[jim501]

Mapping the world of Azeroth is fun, yes? Seeing this project makes me all nostalgic for my WTW days.

I had seen that mod a few years back.
Seemed promising but pity it ended abruptly.

What if you started again fresh this time in this project ?

[Vladyvid]

Or you could ask him for some of the stuff from his mod. There was a great map there, would save a lot of work. There were some units aswell, quite a lot of stuff.

[Darrowmere]

Hey all been without internet for about a week but been able to edit the map so will upload some screenshots later today.

Impressive progress on the map, mate! +rep

Thanks

Mapping the world of Azeroth is fun, yes? Seeing this project makes me all nostalgic for my WTW days.

Yeah very enjoyable the only part annoying me is getting the heights in Northrend to work with inland lakes haven't figured out how todo it yet i'll get round to it after azeroth and Kalimdor are done.

Or you could ask him for some of the stuff from his mod. There was a great map there, would save a lot of work. There were some units aswell, quite a lot of stuff.

Also if you any of the files left over from WTW are available and with your permission could they be used on this project? Thanks either way seeing your mod years ago helped inspire me to get this far. +Rep

I just hope that you will include Northrend and Arthas/the Scourge as a playable faction. They are way cooler than the Forsaken. I rather play as King Arthas and continue where the Frozen Throne ended. That's pretty much vanilla WOW as that came just after. Also, the High Elves were Blood Elves in the end of the Frozen throne - so they should be blood elves in vanilla wow.

Vanilla WoW is four years after Frozen Throne so Lich King Arthas and the scourge will be a playable faction in Northrend. Yes i have decieded to replace the High Elves faction with Gnomes and the blood Elves will be present as their own faction under the leadership of Lor'themar.

I'll suggest replacing one faction with the Blood Elves. Even though they weren't playable in vanilla WoW they still existed in that world - as they are in WC3:FT. Always wanted to play as them and the Scourge. I was so disappointed at the units of WTW.

Blood Elves will be in the post V1.0 release.
Here's the faction list for post V1.0 as it stands:

Alliance factions:
The Kingdom of Stormwind (The Light) 6 regions
The Kingdom of Khaz Modan (The Light) 6 regions
Night Elves (Druidism) 5 regions
Meritocracy of Gnomeregan (Intellectualism) 0 regions [Horde faction]
The Kingdom of Stromgarde (The Light) 1 region
The Nation of Theramore (Intellectualism) 2 regions

Horde factions:
The Nation of Durotar (Shamanism) 6 regions
The United Tauren Tribes (Druidism) 6 regions
Forsaken (Cult of the Forgotten Shadow) 5 regions
Darkspear Tribe (Loas) 0 regions [Horde faction]
Frostwolf Clan (Shamanism) 1 region
Warsong Clan (Shamanism) 2 regions

Independant factions:
Wildhammer Clan (Shamanism) 2 regions
Grimtotem Clan (Shamanism) 3 regions [Nasty Tauren]
Nazjatar Surfacers (Old Gods) 3 regions [Naga]
Kingdom of Quel' Thalas (The Light) 3 regions
The Scarlet Crusade (The Light) 3 regions
Kingdom of Gilneas (Druidism) 2 regions
The Dark Iron Empire (Old Gods) 4 regions
The Dark Horde (Demonic) 5 regions
The Trade Coalition (Greed) 4 regions [Goblins]
The Undead Scourge (Cult of the Damned) 5 regions
Undead of Lordaeron (Cult of the Damned) 5 regions [2nd scourge faction to accurately represent the power of the scourge but avoid overpowering]
Magocracy of Dalaran (Intellectualism) 4 regions
The Amani Tribe (Loas) 3 regions
The Gurubashi Tribe (Loas) 1 region
The Drakkari Tribe (Loas) 4 regions
The Farraki Tribe (Loas) 1 region [Tanaris Trolls]
The Zandalar Tribe (Papal faction for Loas) 1 region
The Burning Legion (Demonic) 4 regions [Remnants of Legion on Azeroth]
Neutral Hostile (Old Gods) Lots of regions [Rebel faction]

[Mr_Nygren]

Hey all been without internet for about a week but been able to edit the map so will upload some screenshots later today.



Thanks



Yeah very enjoyable the only part annoying me is getting the heights in Northrend to work with inland lakes haven't figured out how todo it yet i'll get round to it after azeroth and Kalimdor are done.



Also if you any of the files left over from WTW are available and with your permission could they be used on this project? Thanks either way seeing your mod years ago helped inspire me to get this far. +Rep



Vanilla WoW is four years after Frozen Throne so Lich King Arthas and the scourge will be a playable faction in Northrend. Yes i have decieded to replace the High Elves faction with Gnomes and the blood Elves will be present as their own faction under the leadership of Lor'themar.



Blood Elves will be in the post V1.0 release.
Here's the faction list for post V1.0 as it stands:

Alliance factions:
The Kingdom of Stormwind (The Light) 6 regions
The Kingdom of Khaz Modan (The Light) 6 regions
Night Elves (Druidism) 5 regions
Meritocracy of Gnomeregan (Intellectualism) 0 regions [Horde faction]
The Kingdom of Stromgarde (The Light) 1 region
The Nation of Theramore (Intellectualism) 2 regions

Horde factions:
The Nation of Durotar (Shamanism) 6 regions
The United Tauren Tribes (Druidism) 6 regions
Forsaken (Cult of the Forgotten Shadow) 5 regions
Darkspear Tribe (Loas) 0 regions [Horde faction]
Frostwolf Clan (Shamanism) 1 region
Warsong Clan (Shamanism) 2 regions

Independant factions:
Wildhammer Clan (Shamanism) 2 regions
Grimtotem Clan (Shamanism) 3 regions [Nasty Tauren]
Nazjatar Surfacers (Old Gods) 3 regions [Naga]
Kingdom of Quel' Thalas (The Light) 3 regions
The Scarlet Crusade (The Light) 3 regions
Kingdom of Gilneas (Druidism) 2 regions
The Dark Iron Empire (Old Gods) 4 regions
The Dark Horde (Demonic) 5 regions
The Trade Coalition (Greed) 4 regions [Goblins]
The Undead Scourge (Cult of the Damned) 5 regions
Undead of Lordaeron (Cult of the Damned) 5 regions [2nd scourge faction to accurately represent the power of the scourge but avoid overpowering]
Magocracy of Dalaran (Intellectualism) 4 regions
The Amani Tribe (Loas) 3 regions
The Gurubashi Tribe (Loas) 1 region
The Drakkari Tribe (Loas) 4 regions
The Farraki Tribe (Loas) 1 region [Tanaris Trolls]
The Zandalar Tribe (Papal faction for Loas) 1 region
The Burning Legion (Demonic) 4 regions [Remnants of Legion on Azeroth]
Neutral Hostile (Old Gods) Lots of regions [Rebel faction]

That's a nice list of factions. But you are forgetting Quel'Thalas is pretty much the Blood Elf capital.

[Darrowmere]

That's a nice list of factions. But you are forgetting Quel'Thalas is pretty much the Blood Elf capital.

Thanks.

The blood elf faction is Kingdom of Quel'thalas. I'm not fully sure what you mean by your comment. Quel'thalas is the name of their kingdom and their capital is Silvermoon or Silvermoon City.

[Mr_Nygren]

Thanks.

The blood elf faction is Kingdom of Quel'thalas. I'm not fully sure what you mean by your comment. Quel'thalas is the name of their kingdom and their capital is Silvermoon or Silvermoon City.

Then i misunderstood your text. I thought that list was the list for the first version- and you said there would be no Blood Elves in that version, therefore i thought Quel'Thalas was the High Elves. And then i mentioned the Blood Elves because the High elves are outdated.

Yes, you are right - i didn't remember Silvermoon.