Strategic Availability MOD

[Cobalt_Blue]

My first mod for Civ V!

STRATEGIC AVAILABILITY v7
Available on the in-game mod browser under "Game Rules" or "Terrain->Resources"
Available here: http://forums.civfanatics.com/downloads.php?do=file&id=16801

Intended as a middle ground between normal and "Strategic Balance" resource settings, this mod will give Major Civilizations one (1) of a strategic resource upon researching a certain tech in the tech tree, which has been chosen to:
1) make sense historically; and
2) be farther enough down the tech tree (from the tech which enables you to see the resource) to maintain not only an advantage in resource abundance, but also a degree of time advantage to those who have natural access to the resource.

[U]RESOURCE        VISIBLE AT: (SAME)          (NEW!) 1 BECOMES "AVAILABLE" AT:[/U]
Iron            Iron Working                Steel 
Horse           Animal Husbandry            Horseback Riding
Coal            Scientific Theory           Railroad
Oil             Biology                     Must have BOTH Biology & Combustion
Uranium         Atomic Theory               Nuclear Fusion

This mod is designed with the following in mind:

IMMERSION: These resources were so historically important in part because they were available and were used in mass quantities by all peoples. Countries with no natural access to one of these resources could and did get them through trade. People in the Industrial Revolution could get Coal. People in the Iron Ages had access to some Iron.

BALANCE: This mod is balanced to allow some little production of units/structures by all major civilizations, but WITHOUT removing the high strategic importance of gaining control of further resources. 1 Iron is helpful in allowing you to build 1 Trebuchet for defense, but it will not allow you to start a war with an Iron-rich foe.

Please: Let me know what you think! Or if you have suggestions for improvements! Or bug reports!

Change Log:
v7: Forgot to update Readme. :/
v6: Coal now granted at Railroad. Player must have both Combustion AND Biology to be granted Oil.
v5: Added English text to all extant localizations
v4: Added text to tech tree, cleaned up code.
v3: Fixed bugs.
v2: Initial Release.

 

[Cobalt_Blue]

Version 4 out. Added text to the tech tree in-game (english_US), so you know which tech grants you a resource. Also cleaned up code considerably.

 

[Ramstorp]

I played some and like it quite a bit.
Could perhaps infantry and artillery be made of iron now?
And provide more than one free iron, maybe 3, at some later tech.

 

[Cobalt_Blue]

I played some and like it quite a bit.
Could perhaps infantry and artillery be made of iron now?
And provide more than one free iron, maybe 3, at some later tech.

Thanks!

I don't think I would change any unit costs in this mod; that would be in a different mod if I were to do it.

I could potentially add more resources, but I worry that it would take away from the strategic importance of acquiring tiles/allies with those resources, which I really don't want to do with this mod.

If I were to do it, I'd probably add 1 Iron each at Steel and Machinery, 1 Horse each at Horseback Riding and Chivalry, 1 Coal each at Steam Power and Railroad, 1 Aluminum each at Electronics and Rocketry, and leave Uranium as it is (1 at Nuclear Fusion).

Opinions? Is two of every resource going too far? Does it reduce the strategic element too much?

 

[Ramstorp]

I'm not sure if more free resources would ruin the strategic value of plots or not.
I was somewhat torn about the effect of the initial 1 extras to begin with.
It would maybe just make for a different type of game for a change.

I wonder if it would be hard to turn it into a game option where you can choose the amount of extra strategic resources available (ex. none, few, some, many)?

 

[Cobalt_Blue]

I'm not sure if more free resources would ruin the strategic value of plots or not.
I was somewhat torn about the effect of the initial 1 extras to begin with.
It would maybe just make for a different type of game for a change.

I wonder if it would be hard to turn it into a game option where you can choose the amount of extra strategic resources available (ex. none, few, some, many)?

Yeah, I'm not sure how I'd add an option to the mod... But I think that would be for the best in this case to maintain the balance of the original. I'll definitely look into it!

 

[Cobalt_Blue]

Version 5 out.

Adds English text to all extant localizations.

 

[Ramstorp]

I played some more.

Just wanting to hear a dissertation on why not to give iron at metallurgy instead of steel, or especially coal at railroad instead of steam power.

Somehow I want to feel like my first factory runs from coal that I have dug out with my own index finger.

It would make a difference at slower game speeds.

 

[Cobalt_Blue]

I played some more.

Just wanting to hear a dissertation on why not to give iron at metallurgy instead of steel, or especially coal at railroad instead of steam power.

Somehow I want to feel like my first factory runs from coal that I have dug out with my own index finger.

It would make a difference at slower game speeds.

Well, from a gameplay perspective, by the time you get to metallurgy, you've almost no need for iron anymore. Chemistry is at the same level and gives you cannons, which negates what I feel is the most important reason to have iron - catapults and trebuchets.

Coal could be changed potentially though.

Coal currently sort of sticks out in terms of the speed between which you might see and then get coal (versus horses, iron, and aluminum). With those you can beeline two more techs and get the resource. Coal is only one tech away, but that tech has more prerequisites - you need Military Science as well. So I think it balances out OK. Plus it makes sense historically.

But railroad might work just as well for coal. Makes sense historically too, and gives players with natural access a longer time period where they have a factory and others don't.

So yeah, I think I might change it. Good idea.

The other one that might need to move, is Oil/Combustion. It makes sense historically, and it's the right distance, but the tech that lets you see Oil (Biology) isn't even a prerequisite of Combustion. So you could potentially get 1 free Oil before you even know Oil exists. But it just makes so much sense there... Maybe plastics?

 

[Ramstorp]

The other one that might need to move, is Oil/Combustion. It makes sense historically, and it's the right distance, but the tech that lets you see Oil (Biology) isn't even a prerequisite of Combustion. So you could potentially get 1 free Oil before you even know Oil exists. But it just makes so much sense there... Maybe plastics?

How about some multiple prerequisites:
Biology, combustion, and flight?

Would that be hard to do?

Plastics feels too modern.
Didn't every industrialized nation basically have some oil in the 1920s or something?

 

[Cobalt_Blue]

Plastics feels too modern.
Didn't every industrialized nation basically have some oil in the 1920s or something?

Yeah, I don't like plastics either.

How about some multiple prerequisites:
Biology, combustion, and flight?

Would that be hard to do?

That literally didn't even occur to me. Multiple prereqs is a really good idea.

OK, done deal. 1 Free Coal at Railroads instead of Steam Power. And 1 Free Oil after both Biology AND Combustion.

Thanks for all the input, Ramstorp!

 

[Cobalt_Blue]

Version 6 is out.

• Coal now granted at Railroad.
• Player must have both Combustion AND Biology to be granted Oil.

EDIT: Whoops, now version 7 is out, too.

• Forgot to update the readme.