DEVELOPMENT DISCUSSION & COMMENTARY (Share, comments, questions, and sugestions)

[PikeStance]

I've only played the ancien regime version of the mod until now and thought that was great but I just installed and started playing Rise of the Republic and I just have to say great work! So far its really excellent and seems very well put together

This is great to hear; thank you for sharing!

[oleg2242]

Russian unit icons:

[Napoli23]

Oleg when will the Russian units be released for ROTR?

[oleg2242]

Oleg when will the Russian units be released for ROTR?

Hi, currently I am introducing them into the game, adjusting stats, etc.
Units will be included in the next update - 100% sure. When will be the next update released and what else we will add - still must discuss inside the team.
Thanks, for your interest.

[oleg2242]

Some pictures from my test campaign:

Winter Palace is just built.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Still only 1790, but Suvorov already sieging revolutionary Paris.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Cossacks are charging persian artillery battery - Middle East campaign.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

The last ottoman stronghold.

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[Anakonda]

Truly looks splendid!

[Eldgrimr]

Just wondering, is the 1700 version of the mod still being worked on?

[oleg2242]

Just wondering, is the 1700 version of the mod still being worked on?

Not really, we stuck with the late campaign for the moment.
To start proper work on the early campaign (main campaign) it is still necessary to make tones of researches about quite many factions, at least for the different to cultures technologies (european, eastern, indian, tribal), units types, theirs areas of recruitment, possible stats, etc. Then, overal gameplay can be tuned, faction traits given, and will be logical and interesting. Otherwise, the game will be unbalanced and messy, some stuff will be difficult to find and correct. So, currently nothing more is done about early campaign, but I wish to.
Here is the approximate list of factions we need to research:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Algiers
Algonquians
Apache
Arcot
Bengal
Cherokee
Creek
Crimean Khanate
Durrani Empire
Inuit
Hyderabad
Iroquois League
Kartli
Moldavia
Morocco
Mughal Empire
Mysore
Ottoman Empire
Portugal
Rajput States
Safavid Empire
Sikh Confederacy
Sioux
Tarki
Tripoli
Tunis

And here is the unit rosters, how it should look like before any modeller will start working on units:

[Goreuncle]

@oleg2242

I wish I could help with the research for those factions, unfortunately, I have no "first hand" knowledge about most of them.

I'd love to see a 1700 version of this mod, though! There's definitely a public for this kind of mod out there, people still play Empire and look for interesting mods they can use.
Your work is much appreciated, don't think for a second that nobody is interested in this, some of us still are, very much so!

Btw, If I may, I'd like to make some suggestions (probably requested by other people too):

- Implement drum & fife, please! (I'd be willing to help with this, although I've never modded Empire before)

- Make it 4 turns per year. Better yet, allow players to choose the amount of TPY.

- If possible, allow players to choose between different firing modes for infantry units (fire by rank, platoon firing, etc.).
I'm currently playing as Netherlands in regular IS, problem is that Dutch units use platoon firing by default (once the infantry drill tech has been researched).
I'm more of a "fire by rank" kind of guy, although I prefer platoon firing for skirmishers.

(Btw, I seem to recall that there was a "submod" for Darthmod (basically, a bunch of .pack files), which set the firing mode for Darthmod units.
Players could simply copy/paste those .pack files, depending on the kind of firing modes they wanted for each type of infantry.)

- Allow tech exchange via diplomacy (restrict it if you want, but at least allow it at some level).

- Allow some units to place defensive structures during battle deployment. (Perhaps it's already implemented in IS and I've simply missed it)

- I feel like the economy nerf is too severe in IS. I think it would be a good idea to let players choose between different nerf levels. For instance, take the current economy balancing in IS and buff it by 25 - 50%, let the players choose between different buff levels.


Keep up the good work!

[oleg2242]

Thanks,

• drum & fife mod must be compartible, if it is not overwrite any other files except those, but in future it for sure will be added
• 3 turns per years will be introduced, this perfectly reflects summer prolonged campaings comparing to winter's breaks, this also good fitted to our three periods system concept; here is submod for 3TPY http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...turns-per-Year
• I entirely agree about fire drill options, unfortunatelly game does not allow to make a choise on the battlefield, the other variants (technologies or submod) are to think about
• technology exchange will not be possible as they will be unique to faction/faction group/culture
• the economics will be reworked http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...ubmod-FYI-ONLY, there were somewhere submod allowin recruiting bigger army erlier, but I could not find it unfortunatelly, maybe Pike will poin out

[Goreuncle]

@oleg2242

Thank you so much for the links and information!

I'm definitely looking forward to the next release!

PS. Btw, yesterday I noticed that fortifications were missing in siege battles. Whenever I besiege a settlement (which is fortified, according to the model on the campaign map), the assault battle happens in a regular open field, no forts / fortresses (as if the defending army had sallied forth).
Is this a bug / corrupted installation issue or a built-in feature in IS? Also, are units allowed to deploy defensive structures in battle? If so, I seem to have missed the relevant icons in the battle UI.

[PikeStance]

@oleg2242

Thank you so much for the links and information!

I'm definitely looking forward to the next release!

PS. Btw, yesterday I noticed that fortifications were missing in siege battles. Whenever I besiege a settlement (which is fortified, according to the model on the campaign map), the assault battle happens in a regular open field, no forts / fortresses (as if the defending army had sallied forth).
Is this a bug / corrupted installation issue or a built-in feature in IS? Also, are units allowed to deploy defensive structures in battle? If so, I seem to have missed the relevant icons in the battle UI.

Not a bug, forts removed. The campaign economy is being reworked. I had a closed beta test. I am now doing the long process of doing detailed changes. Once I do that, they will be an open beta. The economy will allow for larger armies since it is possible to have 40 unit armies.

[Elianus]

It seems that only the first rank can fire. Why is this? If memory serves, the "light infantry behaviour" trait can make all ranks fire. Usually that means the first two, unless you have the high ground. Is this intentional? The exception to this are some units that still use drills and I assume those have simply not been touched yet.

[Quintus Hortensius Hortalus]

It seems that only the first rank can fire. Why is this? If memory serves, the "light infantry behaviour" trait can make all ranks fire. Usually that means the first two, unless you have the high ground. Is this intentional? The exception to this are some units that still use drills and I assume those have simply not been touched yet.

What you mean is the trait "mass_fire". The problem is that we are aiming towards historical correct formations which are closer than in vanilla ETW. In order to achieve this we have to switch to "volley_fire" because otherwise the formations spread out before firing (which already happened in vanilla with platoon fire).
In addition volley fire allows the individual soldiers to fire independently which creates a bit more atmosphere to the battles as the units don't always fire clean volleys.

[Elianus]

What you mean is the trait "mass_fire". The problem is that we are aiming towards historical correct formations which are closer than in vanilla ETW. In order to achieve this we have to switch to "volley_fire" because otherwise the formations spread out before firing (which already happened in vanilla with platoon fire).
In addition volley fire allows the individual soldiers to fire independently which creates a bit more atmosphere to the battles as the units don't always fire clean volleys.

No, I mean the "light infantry behavior" trait. I did some modding a few years ago and I am pretty sure that this is the one that enabled all ranks to fire, independently as you say. "Mass fire" is not as "fluid" and they all fire together. What I am seeing right now is units with ONLY the first rank firing, just like it was in vanilla before researching the drills.

[Quintus Hortensius Hortalus]

No, I mean the "light infantry behavior" trait. I did some modding a few years ago and I am pretty sure that this is the one that enabled all ranks to fire, independently as you say. "Mass fire" is not as "fluid" and they all fire together. What I am seeing right now is units with ONLY the first rank firing, just like it was in vanilla before researching the drills.

Not sure about this but "light infantry behavior" kicks the square formation button from the UI, so it's no solution for line infantry. The ability to form square is simply needed to be able to fend off cavalry.
But we'll do some further testing and look into it but most likely it stays as it is right now, sorry.

[Elianus]

Not sure about this but "light infantry behavior" kicks the square formation button from the UI, so it's no solution for line infantry. The ability to form square is simply needed to be able to fend off cavalry.
But we'll do some further testing and look into it but most likely it stays as it is right now, sorry.

Ah, it has been a few years so maybe that trait was used in Shogun 2 for that purpose, not Empire and I am mistaken. I think that it may be the "can skirmish" option that enables the men of all the ranks with LOS to fire at their pace! So, a combo of can skirmish and volley fire is what should allow more than one rank to fire at will.

[Quintus Hortensius Hortalus]

Ah, it has been a few years so maybe that trait was used in Shogun 2 for that purpose, not Empire and I am mistaken. I think that it may be the "can skirmish" option that enables the men of all the ranks with LOS to fire at their pace! So, a combo of can skirmish and volley fire is what should allow more than one rank to fire at will.

Yes thanks, this combo was it. Enabled this for all mod units It will be available in the next update.

[Elianus]

Yes thanks, this combo was it. Enabled this for all mod units It will be available in the next update.

That's great! I have a suggestion. Vanilla square is not so useful against cavalry charges but there is another formation that works really well: pike square. It may not look right but it works, at least in the hardcore realism submod for LME it works very well against cavalry. You could check it out and see if it is suitable.

[MAIAN]

[CITA = Eliano; 15681957] ¡Eso es genial! Tengo una sugerencia. El cuadrado de vainilla no es tan útil contra las cargas de caballería, pero hay otra formación que funciona realmente bien: el lucio cuadrado. Puede que no se vea bien pero funciona, al menos en el submodo de realismo incondicional para LME funciona muy bien contra la caballería. Podrías verlo y ver si es apropiado. [/ QUOTE]

the best square is "Pike Square"