[Development Thread]WW1 Mod: Blood and Iron

[snafusmith]

@Skitters & nutnut - Definitely some good ideas for naval units. I especially like the idea for an event to deal with the Ottoman Empire gaining the Goeben and Breslau.

Here's another fighter, this time for Austria-Hungary:

The Aviatik D.I


I've also tried my hand at python for the first time, and thanks to the work of mechaerik, The_J, and Frekk, B&I now includes War Prizes. I've modified it to better suit the needs of the mod though - now nearly all land units can capture, but only certain units (early tanks, armored cars, artillery) can be captured. I also made the odds much less that this ever happens (5%) and cut down the HP of captured units (5%) so you pretty much have to take them back and heal them in your territory. So far with testing it seems to be working pretty well.

-Smitty

 

[snafusmith]

Need some ideas from folks -

I have multiple skins for some aircraft, and need ideas on what to do with them. For example, I made a set of skins for the Fokker Dr.1 from the different famous aces that flew that plane. However - I can't use them in the game as-is. If aircraft worked as land units, I could just add in another unit, and give it the new skin. But they don't, so I'm stuck.

So - anyone have any ideas?!?

-Smitty

 

[asioasioasio]

Maybe someone with proper C++ knowledge could tweak Events a little bit - so they could affect the look of the unit. For example if unitclass is ........ and they earn Level 4 ....... it changes the model skin + of course event "Your brave unit, blah blah blah..."

 

[storical]

Need some ideas from folks -

I have multiple skins for some aircraft, and need ideas on what to do with them. For example, I made a set of skins for the Fokker Dr.1 from the different famous aces that flew that plane. However - I can't use them in the game as-is. If aircraft worked as land units, I could just add in another unit, and give it the new skin. But they don't, so I'm stuck.

So - anyone have any ideas?!?

-Smitty

I have one idea, and don't laugh, but you could make certain aces enter the game for their civ. Maybe up the ratings for the ace, and make it so that ace unit can only be built once. So number of world instances for that unit should be set to 1. I did this with generals for my Napoleon mod. You could also create an event that would put the ace fighter unit on the map as well.

Now wait a second you can't add the skin to a different unit? Not sure exactly what you mean, can't you make a copy of the DR1 folder and rename it and put the skin in there, you could call the folder Red Baron for instance. I did this when I improved an older WW1 mod. I had a DR1 that was red for Germany and a regular colored version for Austro-Hungary. Any thoughts on how long for the first version to come out?

 

[Skitters]

I noticed a couple of typos/poor grammar in the previous batch of civ entries so here are revised versions.

Revised entries

-Heavy Artillery

As the war developed the need for howitzer like artillery pieces that could fire larger shells at a higher elevation so that the explosive would have more impact on fortifications became apparent. Would often require assembly before they could be fired, but were road transportable.

-Observation Balloon

Aerial platforms could provide intelligence gathering and help locate submarines but primarily, these hydrogen balloons would be employed a couple of miles behind the front lines to prove essential reconnaissance for artillery that could fire well beyond the visual range of ground based spotters. The flammable nature of these balloons, and because they were often well defended by anti-aircraft guns and fighters, made attacking them risky – but a risk that was welcomed by some “balloon busters”.

-Seaplane Tender

Normally converted merchant vessels, with a hangar but no flight deck, seaplane tenders were the worlds first aircraft carriers. Cranes would lower the seaplanes to the sea for takeoff and be used to recover the craft after landing. This required smooth seas for both takeoff and landing and could take 20 minutes.

-Torpedo Boat

Small, fast craft making use of the internal combustion engine for speeds of between 30 to 50 knots. These would generally carry one to four torpedoes plus machine guns and be used to make quick raids.

-Destroyer (this one pretty much re-worked)

With the development of fast Torpedo Boats it became apparent there was a risk to slower moving capital ships. The Torpedo Boat Destroyer was therefore designed to be an ocean going fast ship that would provide a screening role for the fleet. A natural extension of this role was to also screen for submarines. It quickly became apparent that Destroyers could themselves be used in a Raider role, and as the war developed they began to act as escorts to merchant ships.

-Pre-Dreadnought

A general term for battleships built between the mid 1890's to 1905 the designs were considered obsolete on the launch of HMS Dreadnought in 1906. Pre-Dreadnoughts developed from ironclad battleships, carrying several different calibers of guns for different ship to ship combat. Main armament was usually four 12 inch guns in two aft and fore turrets plus a secondary battery of 6 inch guns. The ships typically managed around 18 knots.

The final two
-Aircraft Carrier

As aircraft perfomance improved the disparity in performance between land based aircraft and seaplanes became greater. Navies began to experiment with Cruiser sized hulls, adding flying off decks to enable the take off land based planes. Experiments also began in how to land aircraft back on Carriers leading to the gradual development of full flight decks and housing the ships bridge in an island. The Dreadnought was still considered the primary vessel in the fleet, but these experimental designs would help pave the way for the supremacy of the Aircraft Carrier.

-Mine Tender

Used to lay new, and to maintain and expand existing mine fields, mine tenders had an important role to play in protecting ports and sea lanes from surface ships and submarines, but were at risk themselves from quick raids by Torpedo Boats and Destroyers as well as from Submarines.

 

[snafusmith]

Thanks for the update Skitters!

Just wanted to let all of you know, you can get the PKZ-2 (early Austrian helicopter) and Tsar Tank from my latest unit pack: here.

 

[stumpjumper]

Any chance for an anslado sva for itlay to go agisnt the austrians

 

[Vygramul]

Need some ideas from folks -

I have multiple skins for some aircraft, and need ideas on what to do with them. For example, I made a set of skins for the Fokker Dr.1 from the different famous aces that flew that plane. However - I can't use them in the game as-is. If aircraft worked as land units, I could just add in another unit, and give it the new skin. But they don't, so I'm stuck.

So - anyone have any ideas?!?

-Smitty

Do you want all of them in at the same time and selectable/random? Or would having them change as time goes on suffice? In the latter case, you could (and this is a little cumbersome) have a new DR1 with each subsequent tech, and install the obsolete unit mod component to render previous DR1s unbuildable.

Or you could have several UUs for the Germans, all with unique skins but the same stats.

 

[snafusmith]

Some quick previews today, I've been working on re-skinning some tanks for the game.

First, the German 'Beutepanzer'


Second, a new skin for the St Charmond:

 

[mamba]

Nice, how is the mod coming along, will there be a beta soon ?

And while we are at it, when will the tank pack see the light of day ?

 

[snafusmith]

Nice, how is the mod coming along, will there be a beta soon ?

And while we are at it, when will the tank pack see the light of day ?

Blood and Iron is coming along well, and an early version should be out around the middle of November sometime.

The tanks themselves are already available in my WW1 tanks pack - though that one includes the Firaxis Mark IV, not my own. The skins will be in the game, but I might post them separately.

 

[nokmirt]

Blood and Iron is coming along well, and an early version should be out around the middle of November sometime.

The tanks themselves are already available in my WW1 tanks pack - though that one includes the Firaxis Mark IV, not my own. The skins will be in the game, but I might post them separately.

Yes, I cannot wait. Your units are excellent and I have used several while reworking Trip Shafer's WWI mod. Snafu, tell me, how did you work out the trenches problem?

 

[snafusmith]

Yes, I cannot wait. Your units are excellent and I have used several while reworking Trip Shafer's WWI mod. Snafu, tell me, how did you work out the trenches problem?

Actually, I haven't solved the trench problem, not yet. It'll take some reprogramming of the SDK or python to make it work. The ideal solution would be to have an improvement that the player can build, that then gets removed and replaced with a feature.

 

[mamba]

Blood and Iron is coming along well, and an early version should be out around the middle of November sometime.

The tanks themselves are already available in my WW1 tanks pack - though that one includes the Firaxis Mark IV, not my own. The skins will be in the game, but I might post them separately.

Great, looking forward to this mod.

In Asios WW2 thread you mentioned a set of tanks for each civ which you wanted to upload soon. That was the pack I was referring to (sorry for not being clear enough). How is that coming along ?

 

[nokmirt]

Actually, I haven't solved the trench problem, not yet. It'll take some reprogramming of the SDK or python to make it work. The ideal solution would be to have an improvement that the player can build, that then gets removed and replaced with a feature.

I was thinking about this whole idea. It seems trenches were rudimentary at first, and then they got rather complex, especially on the German side. So normal infantry can dig a basic trench, but perhaps an engineering unit of some sort could build a better trench or system of fortifications in a tile. There is also the question of forts, like in Belgium around Liege for instance, needing heavier artillery to destroy forts. Have you looked into creating heavy artillery from 230mm on up to what was it 420mm?

I think the nations who had large artillery can build it and other nations, could research the ability to create another nations heavy artillery. One example of why I like your idea for this researching of patents for designs, is because the Russians used Italian built ships in their Black Sea fleet. These were Garibaldi class cruisers built for export by Ansaldo in Genoa. Of course there are more than several examples in WWI, of using one nations designs to help another nations military shortcomings, in one or more categories, be it army, navy, or air force.

 

[nutnut]

I was thinking about this whole idea. It seems trenches were rudimentary at first, and then they got rather complex, especially on the German side. So normal infantry can dig a basic trench, but perhaps an engineering unit of some sort could build a better trench or system of fortifications in a tile.

I think having some form of upgradeable trench ould be better and more realistic. On the Western Front trenches started off as little pits and then got improved over time. I don't know how to code this but a modified Cottage System might work (instead of them impoving over time an Engineer Unit comes along and builds them).

 

[nokmirt]

I think having some form of upgradeable trench ould be better and more realistic. On the Western Front trenches started off as little pits and then got improved over time. I don't know how to code this but a modified Cottage System might work (instead of them impoving over time an Engineer Unit comes along and builds them).

So in other words they improve over time as more about trenches and fortifications is learned. Yes indeed, this would work great. But even still the trench needs to be intially constructed as an improvement, perhaps infantry would be given a basic trench building ability. I suppose an engineering unit of some sort could come out with a later trench related tech, where the unit could build a stronger initial trench. This way you can build trenches where you see fit, it adds an element of strategy, a must in this game. And of course the trench can evolve by itself as time goes on, after it is intially built. Trenches should also be able to be demolished as well, another aspect of strategy, to say shorten your lines, it is better to remove part of the trench system, rather than leave them for the enemy. From there the trench can evolve as new techs are discovered. Then we can look at demolition teams and stormtroopers and things like that to try to break down trenches a bit. There is no doubt of course, that it has to be very difficult to break the trench system down, but I do not think it should be completely impossible.

 

[wotan321]

How is the mod going? Can we expect to see it soon?

 

[nokmirt]

I was wondering how naval mines would be used in this mod? I am trying to figure out how I can apply them to my own mod. I was also wondering is the US going to be present on the map?

 

[PPQ_Purple]

Might I sugjest that you make the mines into a module if at all posible becouse there are a lot of us out there that would love to add the feature to... well every mod we play.