I essentially don't, they just are too weak to make a difference, having a few planes for reconaissance is ok, but I have never built them for anything else.
[BtS MOD] Wolfshanze 1850-1920 Enhancement Mod v2.0
- Thread starter Wolfshanze
- Start date
I essentially don't, they just are too weak to make a difference, having a few planes for reconaissance is ok, but I have never built them for anything else.
Hey! I like air units! Sure, I don't spam them as much as I do tanks or (mechanized) infantry, but I try to make sure I have at least two planes covering the same area in my empire, and I try to get at least 2-5 bombers total.
I only rarely come out with SAM Infantry and Mobile SAM, and that's mainly to reinforce an attacking stack against helicopters (though the extra chance of interception doesn't hurt) or to better protect a vulnerable resource of mine (like my only source of oil found on my enemy's border. Damn French!). >>a
Edit: As for giving machine guns interception in order to help the AI because they don't build air units until air superiority - it'd be better to just add something in the AI that would make it more likely to build planes and stuff, if possible. >>a *Shrug*
Wodan
Deity
Yeah. I'm not disagreeing, just saying it seems strange.
I poked around a bit and it seems that all Zeppelins used diesel or gasoline engines. I didn't look into other nations' programs.
The "problem", if there is one, IMO is that it's currently polarized. Either the human has tons of airpower that overwhelm the defense, or the defense has tons of intercept that overwhelms a reasonable amount of air support. Thus the human shouldn't bother unless he goes whole hog and builds a ton of offensive air units.
Wodan
Wolfshanze
CFC Historian
Well now see... that's my point... there's nothing wrong with folks thinking like that, I'm just trying to make airpower useful and/or decisive, as it is/was in history... and the answer is not more ground-based AA units... airpower is nerfed enough as-is, I'm trying to make it useful again and/or make the proper counters needed (your own air force instead of more ground-based AA units should be the answer). I don't want to empower players with tons of ground-based AA units so they too can ignore airpower.
I'm trying to change the way everyone thinks of airpower... it should be important and decisive, especially by the time of WWII airpower... I am (in-fact) nerfing WWI fighters a bit, as I thought they were able to do too much (bombing cities and improvements is a bit much for a WWI Biplane), but I refocused it's mission as a true fighter and zeppelin buster (improved stats there). The addition and changes made to Carriers, Light Bombers and modern Jet Strike Fighters should encourage to all the importance of airpower (I'm hoping).
In my experience, I have seen the AI ignore Flight like the plague... at least as-it-is out of the box... I have been working to change that... while the AI is very good at spamming airships (as everyone knows and complains about), when it comes to flight, fighters and bombers, I've seen the AI avoid it and research everything but flight.
In my last few versions of the Wolfshanze Mod, I have been slowly bumping-up the importance of at least researching flight for the AI (an unannounced change... I'm sneaky like that). Default Civ4 gave flight a very, very low importance for the AI to research it. I've been bumping that up until I see the AI start to research it a little more like it should... and in my current game I'm finally seeing the AI bite on it.
The human swamping the AI with airpower is something I'm trying to fix (I always did it myself)... the reason seemed that the AI wouldn't bother researching Flight, which I'm trying to fix. If I make the AI research flight, the human shouldn't be overwhelming the AI from the skies anymore (well, in an equal-footing situation)... as for the AI vs the human... well, I would think if the AI was blasting you from the skies a human would be able to make the logical conclusion what he should research next.
I'm hoping if the AI uses it, the human will want a counter, which is why I'm avoiding adding more and more ground-based AA units... the proper counter should be your own air force... I also moved some important units and wonders to Air Superiority as another incentive (especially to warlike civs... peaceful civs can ignore Air Superiority if they want... well, as long as the AI isn't going to town on you from the air).
I'm enjoying the changes to airpower (call me focused... maybe cuz I'm a USAF vet)... I hope you guys appreciate it as well... even if it makes some of you have to create your own airforces when before you would ignore it.
I completely agree, if the airforce were stronger, I'd use it but as it is, it just is a waste of resources imo. So I go with jets killing units too
Wolfshanze
CFC Historian
Nah... I'm okay with the current events.
...in other news...
I've completed some more changes... I'm introducing a new promotion called "AA Upgrade" for certain ships (any modern or nuclear-age ship with AA ability). This gives a 10% boost to intercept ability (just like the intercept promotion), but it's a one-time promotion only (you can't get more then a 10% boost) available only to certain ships. It will also come with it's own unique promotion button (new artwork).
Update
Drat... adding a new promotion breaks compatability with saved games... will have to hold back on that one awhile (gotta finish my own game first!).
The way I use air in my games:
I tend to use it as a replacement for artillery, it finishes off the cultural defense by the time the tanks get there. I use fighters to deal with enemy fighters, and as ghetto bombers occasionally. The air unit I tend to use the most is paratroopers of all things (really good pillagers and intercepter of reinforcements)
I tend to use it as a replacement for artillery, it finishes off the cultural defense by the time the tanks get there. I use fighters to deal with enemy fighters, and as ghetto bombers occasionally. The air unit I tend to use the most is paratroopers of all things (really good pillagers and intercepter of reinforcements)
Kilroywashere
Chieftain
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2008
- Messages
- 88
Wow I really touched a nerve when I brought this up.
But there are two things that people are assuming that aren't exactly what I first said.
Everyone that's sided for more ground-based AA thinks that they should be made stronger. But what I meant to suggest is that they should be weaker, maybe 5% or even like 2.5%, but more of them. The only effective way of using ground-based AA was to mass them together. Even with SAMs during Vietnam; it was considered effective AA if they could take down a SINGLE B-52 with THREE missiles.
And I didn't necessarily say that MG's should get the intercept bonus, (though I admit thats what it sounded like) but I orginally said is that MG's should get the Intercept Promo line, like the SAM infantry, but no original intercept bonus.
As for ANY UNIT having an intercept value of over 40%, even with promotions is an affront to history.
But there are two things that people are assuming that aren't exactly what I first said.
Everyone that's sided for more ground-based AA thinks that they should be made stronger. But what I meant to suggest is that they should be weaker, maybe 5% or even like 2.5%, but more of them. The only effective way of using ground-based AA was to mass them together. Even with SAMs during Vietnam; it was considered effective AA if they could take down a SINGLE B-52 with THREE missiles.
And I didn't necessarily say that MG's should get the intercept bonus, (though I admit thats what it sounded like) but I orginally said is that MG's should get the Intercept Promo line, like the SAM infantry, but no original intercept bonus.
As for ANY UNIT having an intercept value of over 40%, even with promotions is an affront to history.
this article says that HUNDREDS of infantry men shooting at a airship COULD bring it down. And it reports that three airships were taken down out of over 1000+ attacks, and these three were weighed down by carrying extreme payloads. Even though it proves that Airships COULD be taken down from ground based AA, the interception chance would <0.3%, combined over multiple rifle units.
Kilroywashere
Chieftain
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2008
- Messages
- 88
Is there a way to change artillery back to how it was in the Vanillia Game? when it was an actually unit that could destroy another unit, not just die to cause collateral damage.
Wolfshanze
CFC Historian
Simple... change:
<iCombatLimit>80</iCombatLimit>
to
<iCombatLimit>100</iCombatLimit>
Can you or I change the names that appear for each country in game on the score list? I play another mod where instead of the actual leader's name, it's the name of the countries on the list. I like the feeling it gives me when I know I'm at war with Korea, not at war with "Wang Kon". You know what I mean?
Wolfshanze
CFC Historian
I've seen what you're talking about in a screenshot before, though I'm not 100% certain how it's done... I have a "smiley face emoticon" score menu-mod where you can see who's mad at you at a glance, but I don't have one that changes the leader name to the nation name.
Would like to know how that's done myself (probably not too hard).
Wolfshanze
CFC Historian
After an initial realease and two further (requested) updates, I'm finally satisfied with the USS Iowa model to go into the Wolfshanze Mod. Right now these are the new models planned for the next release:
Austrian Infantry
Austrian Machine Gunner
American Iowa class Pre-Dreadnought
Still not sure when/if the next release is immiment or not... the broken backwards compatability with saved games if I introduce the new promotion kinda makes me hesitate.
Austrian Infantry
Austrian Machine Gunner
American Iowa class Pre-Dreadnought
Still not sure when/if the next release is immiment or not... the broken backwards compatability with saved games if I introduce the new promotion kinda makes me hesitate.
Paasky
Good News Everyone!
I wonder, could you refresh me as to where I can find the civ-specific unit gfx XML stuff?
I also wonder if you have any knowledge of compiling the SDK? I'd like to rename civs, and python can't do that
EDIT: New graphics is always a good reason for updates
I also wonder if you have any knowledge of compiling the SDK? I'd like to rename civs, and python can't do that
EDIT: New graphics is always a good reason for updates
XML/Art/CIV4ArtDefines_Unit.xml
XML/Civilizations/CIV4UnitArtStyleTypeInfos.xml
I also wonder if you have any knowledge of compiling the SDK? I'd like to rename civs, and python can't do that
but xml can
XML/Text/CIV4GameTextInfos_Objects.xml
Paasky
Good News Everyone!
I mean ingame, for example Kingdom of Prussia -> German Empire.
Wolfshanze
CFC Historian
I usually upload to the net what I have on my computer... I tested a few things out, saw that they broke my saved games, and took them back out! My tests did work as hoped/expected however, so I DO want to put them in a future update... probably not just yet though, since I myself want to finish my current game (great game going on right now for me).
Maybe I'll release one-more v2.6x mod (that works with current saved games and includes the new models I previously mentioned) then release a v2.7 with my new ideas (most of which are going to break saved-game compatability... some new naval promotions, maybe a new aircraft, and probably Poland).
