Yeah, AI really is the 'great wall' to modding, there are a lot of cool ideas of modifications made, but then the AI is not taught how to use it so it becomes a total exploit for the player which sort of ruins the feature, as the AI has no way to fight back! We are currently looking at what we need to code to get one of our features working with the AI, which will probably not be a great fix, but I hope if we can modify a few features of the component then we will be able to put the player and computer on a more or less level playing field, there will probably be some exploits open to the player, but I hope I will be able to minimise the strength of these exploits using other limiting factors that force the player to walk slightly closer to the ai's code restrictions, BUT keep the whole thing feeling 'realistic' and 'reasonable' to the fallout world.
Going on the Col topic, one mod proposal was a 'Vault Dweller' mod, where you take on the role of leading a vault expedition out into the world and Europe becomes your 'Home Vault' and the King becomes the 'Overseer' and the mechanic would be something like the Westward Ho! Capital City system, where there was a city on the map that you travelled to to gain access to 'Europe' The mod was actually one of my favourites, mostly because of the Trains (For some reason I get a real kick out of trains in Col...) Unfortunately the mod had some CTD bugs and was abandoned some time ago..
This Concept could certainly be developed to more or less include the 'historical' origins of BoS, NCR, Enclave, Super Mutants, Vault City and maybe some others that I cannot think of.
Like I said I had real problems trying to mod col, and I abandoned my efforts fairly early on...
I think the Medieval mod would be a good potential starting place, as it has a lot of different trade options, and is moving towards the core concepts of col being different, where you are birthing a European Nation, rather than it's colonial efforts, and like you say the tech tree and the different weapons and armour system, could be expanded and adapted to fit very nicely with a Fallout system. Going beyond the quick things you suggested, you could include concepts like train networks (F3NV NCR) Vertibirds for transportation, you have 'natives' in the form of tribals, raiders etc. the Vassal system would work quite nicely, especially if it was expanding to provide 'recruits' a bit like 'Native Conversion'.. As well as the concept of the 'Different Invasions' depending what team you play, as the standard 'Independence' Scenario doesn't really make a lot of sense in Fallout (It could work but I think it would be rather a 'crowbar' solution) But a Super Mutant/Robot/Enclave Invasion could all be plausible 'End Game' Events.. I could go on and on, but my plans for FTTW are equally as ambitious.
I can certainly see a very fun mod being made with Fallout/Col, and I would certainly be willing to contribute to one (I would certainly be willing to offer my talents as a creative Director
), but I would want other people to volunteer to do the boring stuff like coding it
(Mostly because my brief efforts led to a lot of explosions
) and I have put so much work into FTTW (Just look at the .dll mod list for starters, not to mention all the Total Conversion content we have already done) to ever abandon FTTW for a Col Mod Project.
FTTW was a concept I started many years ago, and for the first time since then the mod we have now is the closest I have come to really seeing the idea in my head come out into the real world, and now with the GREAT team of guys (I never thought I would attract and keep such a team) that have felt the call of the Waste and joined me, I really hope and feel we have the potential for a very strong mod that I hope people will eventually enjoy as much as some of the other great Civ mods, and maybe even see it as the GREATEST EVER FALLOUT STRATEGY GAME!! Then we get given loads of money and make a real FTTW game and the world hails it as a benchmark and revolution and the single greatest achievement of games design in the 21st century
Like you say... We can Dream!
hehehe