C4C: Ancient Mediterranean MOD

[thamis]

Because it keep the basic game concept of Colonization and just transports it into a different era. Having full nations and no home region makes it more like CIV and less like Colonization. We already have a TAM mod for Civ.

 

[Stacmon]

Because it keep the basic game concept of Colonization and just transports it into a different era. Having full nations and no home region makes it more like CIV and less like Colonization. We already have a TAM mod for Civ.

This is generally my feeling too.

But what's particularly exciting is that we likely don't have to choose between the two. People on each side of this discussion are in a position to collaborate by putting together the basics including units, city graphics, leaderheads and native tribes. Once we make it that far, it wouldn't require much more effort to create the individual scenarios that will appeal to each group.

But the big question is, do you have anyone here with the technical capability to build (or at least start working on) the mod?

 

[Ekmek]

I'm with thamis. I'm going with Greek and Phoenician. once this one is finished it won't be too hard to had Romans, egyptians, etc if people want them. But I'd like to see the basics done first. I already signed up to do all the leaderheads. (see my sig for other work)

 

[Ekmek]

cool. give me some leaderheads to start working on!

I think for phoenicians we can use Amra's Hiram (king)with Hannibal and Dido as leaders

But who should we use for the greeks? any leader names and pictures I can go with?

 

[Ekmek]

i was thining if someone ever ported the colonization code to civ4 you would have to sail or go to the city with palace and hit the trade negotiation button there to open the "europe screen".


I like the idea of having the mother city, but I think in the beginning lets concentrate on adding the ancient med stuff graphically and xml wise, get it playable and then move into code.

 

[AlazkanAssassin]

I thought I'd chime in and say this mod is a great idea. Unit art conversions from Civ4 take a little work, but are doable.

An idea for an alternative to a war of independence, you could have a major foreign invasion occur in late game that you have to fight off to win.

 

[Stacmon]

I've just had an idea, rather than having the home nation "off screen" why not actualy have it on the main map. So when the game starts your home civ is somewhere in the corner of the world and your galley is next to some other islands. The map is still completely blacked out, apart from the cities owned by your home nation, and a thin trail of coast which leads to your starting position. That way when you send your ships to "europe" it actualy travels on the map all the way to your home city and only then does it enter the "europe" screen. Would that make it more fun?

I really like this idea. While limiting the scope of the map to Western Europe/North Africa would still make for a great mod/scenario, I also think that having a "core" area on screen that you actually have to travel to on the map would work out very well. This would really underscore the importance of maritime trade to the growing Mediterranean powers.

There's another advantage to broadening the scope. As thamis's map shows, making a scenario that covers the entire Mediterranean would allow us to also include the Black Sea, Anatolia (modern day Turkey), the Levant (Lebanon/Palestine/Syria), Egypt and Libya. There's no realistic way to do this, without greatly distorting the map, if you want the core areas (Phoenicia and Greece) to be off the screen.

Finally, it would give us a lot more variety and flavour in our native tribes, because we would already have a lot of great, user created or Civ IV assets. Think of Egyptian city sets and units!

 

[Darkhour]

ok oka.. people like the Greek/Phoen start initially. thats all good and fine but I thought I'd just propose some modification. I know it would take more work to do what I proposed and I know Thamis that there is already the Anc. Med. mod for Civ4 but I like alot of the mechanics of Colonization that I haven't seen implemented as successfully in Civ4 that would add another demension to Anc. Mod. or equiv. within Colonization.

I think if you could ramp up the war aspect of Col. and simplify the micromanagment of trade a bit, it would be a lot better in fitting this idea.

I suppose also what I ask is it going to be purely based on colonies independence from these states? other victory conditions? Im personally not a fan of the idea of defending against independence from Greek/Pheonician states.. it doesn't seem to fit properly.. if your home land that you could trade with was the Greek/Pheon and the states you were fighting against were someone representative of real power, that would be cool.. maybe greeks and dorian invasion?

regardless it would be good to see an ancient version and I agree, it could be modified later to suit any historical aspect..

 

[thamis]

I think we should just mod the game as it is currently without changing game dynamics, and then once that is complete, we can go ahead and make something more complex.

 

[Ekmek]

I think we should just mod the game as it is currently without changing game dynamics, and then once that is complete, we can go ahead and make something more complex.

sounds good. when do we begin? any leaderhead ideas?

 

[GeoModder]

New ones, you mean? For the Phoenicians Hiram I as the motherland king comes to mind.

 

[Ekmek]

I plan on using Amra's Hiram for King with HAnnibal and Dido as the colony leaders.

I really need ideas for the greek civs: Ionians, Dorians, Achaeans

 

[GeoModder]

For the Dorian 'king', Lycurgus of Sparta comes to mind. I know he's a bit closer to us then 8th century BC, but did establish the ground work of one of the most important Dorian city states.

Or perhaps Periander of Corinth would be a better choice, since this city was a maritime power like Athene and founded colonies.

Btw, I'm only posting leaders from which I find some sort of depiction.

 

[GeoModder]

For the Ionians, Solon of Athens comes to mind as 'king'.
Btw, perhaps we should call all the Greek 'homeland' leaders tyrants instead of kings. It seems in this period it was the upcoming title for city leaders.

 

[GeoModder]

An Achaean colony leader could be Milo of Crotos.
Another Achaean colony leader I stumbled upon is Leucippus

Herodotus of Halicarnassus might be usable as a colony leader (Thurii), but likely not as a Achaean leader, since this colony was a mixed affair.

I can't find any Achaean 'king' names from the early Magna Graecia period.

 

[GeoModder]

I suppose this could be useful for the mod, if it can be ported?

 

[Stacmon]

Some great suggestions.

Does anyone know of forum members that are involved with the Civ4 Ancient Mediterranean mod? I'm sure getting in contact with them would be really useful and a few of them may even want to help out with this project.

 

[GoodGame]

Thamis is one who posted above. The BTS version of TAM is probably more actively developed, by other modders.

Just my 2cents, I think Phoenecian glass would be a more realistic trade good then clay. And the trade in tin was pretty important, and a good early 'international' trade good.

 

[thamis]

Erm... I'm the guy who did the Civ4 Ancient Mediterranean mod... Otherwise Shqype is dealign with it right now as well.

 

[civ4ludo]

I like this idea for a mod. I think the idea about using the whole map is also fine. Now, in order to keep to the spirit of Col, I wonder if it would not make sense - game-wise, that is, not historically, of course - to assign each particular colonizing civ to a homeland far-far-away in the East, that would not show on the map, like in the positions occupied by China, India, Khmer, and so on but with different names.
Why not have as "Europe" a bunch of things called "Proto-Greece", "Proto-Egypt" or something like that?
Just my 2 cents.