DPII's Unit Previews

[Dom Pedro II]

Yeah, I know it's been a while folks...

Anyway, here are some of the units I've been working on lately. Note that this does not mean that I have abandoned the ones you've seen previously.

In order of appearance, we have the Inca Arquebusier, the Aztec War Elephant, the Zulu Musketman, the Zulu Spearman, and the Zulu Zebra Knight.

There are, in fact, pictures of Zulus fighting the British with guns they'd taken from the dead or stolen, and indeed, my Zulu musketman looks... eh... nothing like them.

Why you ask? Simple. In Civilization, the Musketman unit is a true specimen of pomp and circumstance whilst the Rifleman is much more conservative. Hence the reason why my Roman fulminata, my Inca Arquebusier, utahjazz's Aztec gunpowder unit (based on a sketch that I made), and the Zulu Musketman all sort of have that look like they just fell out of Elton John's closet.

My Zulu Rifleman will look much like the kind of guys the British were fighting. And also why my Iroquois Musketeer will look much more flamboyant than utah's Indian Rifleman.

Now, why the Aztec War Elephant? Well, basically, the Americas had no large species of animal fauna to domesticate or tame because we humans exterminated them all. And I really just have something about Aztecs on horses that doesn't sit quite right with me... so then I decided to put an Aztec on an even more absurd animal, right? Well... not completely. We know from fossils that elephants (probably in the form of mastodons and mammoths but perhaps more modern species) occupied the region. And there is a carving on a Mayan wall in Copan that seems to depict elephants with riders suggesting that they had at least seen them and possibly at one time or another used them.

SO I want your opinion then...

Should I:

1) Make the unit with a modern elephant & with your suggestions
2) Make the unit with a mammoth-like species
3) Accept that I'm way off the mark on this one and trash it

I do need some suggestions (should I continue this) on how to make this unit look more Aztecky and less like a bad idea

 

[Ozymandias]

Ah, Dom Pedro, Greetings & Salutations! --

I vote for "1) Make the unit with a modern elephant & with your suggestions" with the following rationale -- I believe that an elephant resource (not ivory -- recall the African elephant cannot be domesticated) should be available and required for elephant units; hence it's a strategic resource which can be traded -- And if the Aztecs want to trade something for the ability to breed elephants, why methinks that's just part of the fun of Civ.

Best,

Oz

 

[Ozymandias]

... And point #2 -- I presume the knight is riding a painted horse, not a zebra (also not domesticable), but I point this out because it would have made perfect sense to paint horses like zebras for warfare. After all, zebras are colored the way they are to confuse predators by way of making individuals difficult to pick out -- it certainly might confuse somebody's aim ...

-Oz

 

[Goldflash]

The Aztec War Elephant is.. um.. a unique idea. The Graphic is beautiful, but I'm sure someone, probably Xen, will yell at you about it. Also, you should put a big ole' Quetzequotal Mask on the Elephant, and maybe a War-box on the his back. Can't wait for the Zulu units, though! Mmmmm good! Glad tyo have you back, DPII!

 

[Dom Pedro II]

Ozy,

With regards to the elephant, I agree whole-heartedly about requiring an elephant strategic resource. My only counter to that is that it need not narrow it down to the modern species of elephant but rather elephants in general.

I haven't really settled my mind on that one yet.


And yes, the Zebra Knight is riding on a painted horse and not a zebra. It's much easier to see in the Zebra Rider preview that I guess is no longer around, but you can sort of see the back leg of the horse which is tan-colored. The whole back of the horse is in fact not painted, but you can't see it from this angle.

 

[Kal-el]

cool stuff, DPII. I see no reason why the Aztecs shouldn't have elephant riders, but at the same time they should not be excluded from horses either. This is Civ afterall, and horses could pop up near the Aztec starting location.

 

[gorn]

AZTEC War Elephant? Why the hell NOT make it a mammoth?? Sounds like a great idea to me! I like the idea of it having a hideous mask, too!

 

[Antiochus VII]

I think the modern elephant would be more generally useful and appropriate even though the mammoth would be cuter.

I also think you could make it in Aztec style by having coverings - woven armor or a hanging cover under a woven fighting box on the back - done in a Meso-American style. This would take a little extra work but I think it'd be worth it.

 

[Goldflash]

Infact, Many Mods have an Elephant Line of units, so Why not Flavor Elephants?

Also, Ithink the Elephant should go bash tuff and stmp on stuff while the Mahout (Or another rider) flings Atl-Atl Javelins.

 

[Dom Pedro II]

Yeah, of course, if we start talking flavor elephants, then I have to do it for the Arabs, Carthaginians, Europeans, Polynesians... etc.

I have elephants replacing horses for the Indians in my mod. And sure, I'd love to have elephants, camels, and horses for all of the civilizations, but... we need somebody to make them though.

 

[Ekmek]

The aztec elephant is awesome, but I agree it should have some Aztecy designs on it like masks and colors...

But if I had a wishlist I'd like to see the Zulu Musketman and Zebra knight first. But could you tone down the stripes on the Zebra Knight? Its great on the horse but putting the simple Impi stuff on horse back would be fine by me.

 

[Mobilize]

.....an Aztec Elephant....

It is an interesting idea, but there are more important needs for Elephants than an Aztec Elephant, such as a new Carthaginian UU, a Persian/Indian Culverin Mahout, a British-topped Elephant, etc.

However, there were probably evolved mammoths (aka elephants) in Central & South America because Africa and the Americas were once connected, and many species of animals and plants have been found on both continents when they aren't found on others. Too bad llamas can't carry human weight.

Well it's nice to have you back, I was worried that the Hwarang was never going to be completed.

 

[Zeekater]

I think the elephant, weither a mammoth or a modern one, would need some more 'accesoires', some coloring and stuff to make it look more incan just an idea of course

 

[Redking]

You might consider putting the Aztec on a mastodon if you can find a model of one (roughly, lower and longer than that African loxodont you've used, and with smaller ears, like a asiatic elephas). The mastodons died out relatively recently in central/south america, so it's a little more credible... you probably don't recall my suggestion many moons ago for a mastodon rider. Anyhow, it looks good nonetheless - just a suggestion.

EDIT: An "Iroquis" Amerindian might more appropriately be on an Imperial, or Columbian Mammoth - bit larger than the African Loxodont, smaller ears, and the fantastic, long, inward-curving tusks that you see in some fantasy art like that of Frazetta...
I guess if you're gonna follow this vein to its ad nauseum conclusion, then perhaps a paleo-European on a Woolly Mammoth, or a Roman on a North African Loxodont (reportedly bigger than the remaining Southern and Eastern African savannah elephants).

BTW, the game's stock Indian UU uses an African elephant. So, maybe if you want a Carthaginian (or broader Mediterranean, or Zulu) elephant, the stock Civ War Elephant would be more appropriate, and the Indians need a new unit.

Also BTW, the elephant indigenous to the bantu geocultural epicenter is the African Forest elephant - loxodonta clyclotis - now pretty definitively considered a distinct species. It's much shorter than it's neighbors on the veldt. While not especially domesticable, if fancy wishes to take flight, it might make a good Zulu war elephant.

All right, I think I'm done with all the BTWs.

 

[Dom Pedro II]

I can model the African elephant to look like what you speak of. I also have very large tusk attachments if I need those.

 

[Louis XXIV]

Here's a thought. What about an Aztec riding a Jaguar. I doubt this happened, though.

 

[Kal-el]

have to be one mighty big jaguar.




or did you mean something like this:

 

[MSTK]

Aztec riding a jaguar sounds -ish.

But I seriously doubt that the Aztec had access to any form of elephans aside from the surviving wolly mammoths (which were extinct...and even if they weren't, Darwin and the Chaos Theory would have its head).

 

[Louis XXIV]

Jaguars are the Third Largest Cat, but I suppose they might be a bit small to ride (definately smaller than an Elephant). I was just thinking of the Wolf-riding Orcs in LOTR to give me the idea.

As for the other kind of Jaguar. I wouldn't mind seeing that either

 

[Ogedei_the_Mad]

That would make a great 'joke unit' actually . A "Jaguar" warrior shooting arrows while driving a "Jaguar." A nice little countermeasure to the Spanish Conquistadors.