[Feature] Late game content and building changes

[Leoreth]

I have started working on another feature for 1.16. This time it is about expanding the content for the late game era, in particular the Digital era. When the new tech tree was introduced, many of these technologies were very barren and often useless besides the space victory. While the new wonders have added more content to this part of the game, I wanted to make further additions there. The main purpose here is to add to the immersion and give players something to do if they want to play into this period, even if most games are already decided at that point.

I also took the opportunity to make some mechanic changes for buildings, improvements and health in particular. I have received a lot of feedback that the health penalties in the Industrial/Global stage of the game were too punishing, and that some buildings that were effective in providing health in vanilla were nerfed too much, and I hope this addresses the issue sufficiently.

To access these changes, you can switch to the lategame branch on git.

As usual, please do not include the contents of this branch into any modmods until they are eventually merged into develop.

Improvement changes:
- removed unhealth from Village and Town
- Clean Fallout now requires Nanotechnology
- Farm, Paddy Field, Pasture: +1 food with Genetics
- Plantation, Orchard: +1 commerce with Biotechnology
- Town: +1 food with Biotechnology
- Mine, Quarry: +1 production with Robotics
- Nature Preserve: +2 commerce with Tourism
- Well, Offshore Platform: +2 commerce with Automation
- Windmill, Watermill: +1 commerce with Renewable Energy
- Workshop: +1 production, +1 commerce with Nanotechnology

Building changes:
- added Warehouse (Measurement): +25% gold, +1 merchant slot
- added Container Terminal (Radar): +50% commerce from foreign trade routes
- added Supercomputer (Computers): +25% science with power, +1 scientist slot
- added Logistics Center (Telecommunications): +25% gold with power, +1 merchant slot
- added Fiber Network (Superconductors): +10% commerce with power
- added Automatic Factory (Automation): +25% production with power, +1 engineer slot, +1 unhealth
- added Vertical Farm (Biotechnology): +10% food with power
- changed Custom House: +50% commerce from foreign trade routes
- changed Distillery: +1 commerce on Wheat, Rice tiles, +2 commerce on Wine, Sugar tiles
- changed Park (now Biology): +2 health, +2 happiness
- changed Railway Station: requires Coal or Oil, +1 unhealth, +1 trade route, +1 engineer slot
- changed Public Transport: +1 health, +2 health with Oil
- changed Bunker: now requires Rocketry
- changed Security Bureau: now requires Radar
- changed Recycling Center (now Ecology): -50% corporation unhealth
- Persian Apothecary now replaces the Pharmacy and requires Medicine
- Iranian Caravanserai now replaces the Post Office

Miscellaneous changes:
- increased costs of Digital era technologies
- added a civilopedia category for buildings constructed by Great People
- the Internet now requires Computers
- removed Alchemist III promotion

This isn't everything I have in mind for this branch, in particular I want to expand the space element of the mod somewhat. Ideas here include:
- replacing the Apollo Project with a series of projects required to ultimate reach the space race victory
- some purpose of going to space even without going for space victory, e.g. building satellites for economic benefit
- rebranding the Space Victory projects from Alpha Centauri spaceship parts to modules of a Mars colony base (i.e. instead of building the space ship you would build the Mars base part by part)

But my plans here are still vague and I need some time (and suggestions) to decide what to do exactly, so I wanted to push the current state already to get feedback and more ideas.

 

[Steb]

Yay! Comments:

• No late game building for culture? It doesn't quite feel necessary, but it also feels like it's missing.
• Do you intend to change how the Internet project works?
• I think I've said this before, but I'd like the "clean fallout" option to become available roughly at the same time as nuclear weapons, e.g. at ecology. I mean, Hiroshima and Nagasaki have recovered. Unless fallout is meant to represent disasters of another scale, in which case basic nuclear weapons shouldn't cause any.
• Television is still a tech with nothing else than wonders, right? Maybe it could get the security bureau, since Radar has another building anyway
• Not sure if watermills should get extra commerce with Renewable Energy: are they meant to represent small hydro plants or riverside industries?

 

[cmakk1012]

Unless fallout is meant to represent disasters of another scale, in which case basic nuclear weapons shouldn't cause any.

Hmm, should there be more than one class of nuke?

 

[Leoreth]

Yay! Comments:

• No late game building for culture? It doesn't quite feel necessary, but it also feels like it's missing.
• Do you intend to change how the Internet project works?
• I think I've said this before, but I'd like the "clean fallout" option to become available roughly at the same time as nuclear weapons, e.g. at ecology. I mean, Hiroshima and Nagasaki have recovered. Unless fallout is meant to represent disasters of another scale, in which case basic nuclear weapons shouldn't cause any.
• Television is still a tech with nothing else than wonders, right? Maybe it could get the security bureau, since Radar has another building anyway
• Not sure if watermills should get extra commerce with Renewable Energy: are they meant to represent small hydro plants or riverside industries?

• A culture building is missing mostly because I couldn't think of anything, open to ideas.
• I'd like to consider it, but I am not sure how. I kind of want to give projects as a whole another look and introduce the idea of global collaborative projects, maybe that is a better place for the internet. But again, there should probably be a new effect for it but I don't have ideas.
• I guess that's reasonable, but I also don't want to have fallout as a trivial problem. Maybe the cleanup time needs to be increased instead.
• Oh, Security Bureau would make sense if we think of it as CCTV etc. Good idea.
• Both, kind of. Do you have another tech in mind where it could fit?

 

[merijn_v1]

A culture building is missing mostly because I couldn't think of anything, open to ideas.

Karaoke bar!

 

[Imperator Knoedel]

Not sure if watermills should get extra commerce with Renewable Energy: are they meant to represent small hydro plants or riverside industries?

Ah yes, the eternal Watermill question.

 

[merijn_v1]

The warehouse has the same art as the Trading Company NW. This art is used in RFCE and colonization for the warehouse.

Speaking of art, the 4th building of this set could be used as a model for the Shalimar Gardens, if the flag is removed. It is still not a perfect representation of the Shalimar Gardens, but IMO better than the current one. (I know this should technically this should be in the new wonders thread, but combining it is easier.)

I think the container terminal should require a harbor present in the city.

 

[Leoreth]

Ah yes, the eternal Watermill question.

Looks like we have an expert in the field here now

The warehouse has the same art as the Trading Company NW. This art is used in RFCE and colonization for the warehouse.

Oh dang. But I saw nice art for the Trading Company somewhere (another EU3 export I think), so I'm going to change that.

Speaking of art, the 4th building of this set could be used as a model for the Shalimar Gardens, if the flag is removed. It is still not a perfect representation of the Shalimar Gardens, but IMO better than the current one. (I know this should technically this should be in the new wonders thread, but combining it is easier.)

True. This set also contains versions without flags for all models (see the Guadalupe Basilica art there). Do you want to make a PR against develop?

I think the container terminal should require a harbor present in the city.

Doesn't it? Either that or a Wharf.

 

[merijn_v1]

True. This set also contains versions without flags for all models (see the Guadalupe Basilica art there). Do you want to make a PR against develop?

I will make a PR.

Doesn't it? Either that or a Wharf.

It does indirectly. It requires a customs house already, which requires a harbor. I must have missed that somehow.

 

[Leoreth]

Okay, yeah it makes more sense that that's what I did

 

[Steb]

• A culture building is missing mostly because I couldn't think of anything, open to ideas.

(Video) Game studio? Probably the most important new form of art/entertainment of the past 50 years, and there are many cases of governments taking initiatives to attract these companies to their cities.

• I guess that's reasonable, but I also don't want to have fallout as a trivial problem. Maybe the cleanup time needs to be increased instead.

Consider that a civ that is targeted by a nuclear weapon might not even be at the nuclear weapon tech level. I think increasing cleanup time is indeed a better way to make fallout a problem.

• Both, kind of. Do you have another tech in mind where it could fit?

Not really, I guess it's fine as is. I have no strong opinions on watermills.

 

[Leoreth]

(Video) Game studio? Probably the most important new form of art/entertainment of the past 50 years, and there are many cases of governments taking initiatives to attract these companies to their cities

Not really convinced it's culturally significant enough for that 25% bonus.

I have no strong opinions on watermills.

I am relieved to hear that.

 

[Imperator Knoedel]

Not really, I guess it's fine as is. I have no strong opinions on watermills.

Apathy is death.

 

[cmakk1012]

For a culture building, what about an Arts Center/Complex? Like the Lincoln Center in New York or the Los Angeles Music Center, large consolidated groups of buildings that cover an American* block or more?

*I’ve been to Europe, I know how tiny everything is over there

 

[Leoreth]

Isn't that just a conglomeration of various other established types of buildings (cinemas, theatres etc.)? What is modern about it besides the big bunched togetherness? I have never been to any of these types of buildings and they seem to be an American phenomenon, where everything is big and bunched together.

 

[DC123456789]

What about just cinemas as the modern culture building? Or is that too early/irrelevant/already used?

 

[KeeperOT7Keys]

the Internet cafe, gives +1 happiness with access to games, which you can produce with building Firaxis as a game wonder (though probably developers of early mmos would be a better choice). I don't know the culture of Internet cafes in Europe because I've only seen them once or twice during my stay in Nürnberg; but they are a huge deal in Turkey and also in far east countries iirc.

 

[Imperator Knoedel]

Perhaps there could be a building that represents a city's connection to the Internet, similar to how the Electric Grid and Public Transportation buildings represent widespread infrastructure rather than a single building in a single place. Would "Internet Connection" be too abstract?

 

[Leoreth]

What about just cinemas as the modern culture building? Or is that too early/irrelevant/already used?

Cinemas already exist, but they are late Industrial buildings (Film tech), followed by Broadcast Tower as the first +25% culture with power building. So it would have to be something after Broadcast Tower in the tech tree.

the Internet cafe, gives +1 happiness with access to games, which you can produce with building Firaxis as a game wonder (though probably developers of early mmos would be a better choice). I don't know the culture of Internet cafes in Europe because I've only seen them once or twice during my stay in Nürnberg; but they are a huge deal in Turkey and also in far east countries iirc.

Interesting, my feeling is that with the availability of smartphones, mobile data and widespread wifi in all types of restaurants/cafes/pubs etc. the Internet Cafe as a separate establishment is mostly outdated, and if so it is probably too shortlived to warrant representation with a building.

Perhaps there could be a building that represents a city's connection to the Internet, similar to how the Electric Grid and Public Transportation buildings represent widespread infrastructure rather than a single building in a single place. Would "Internet Connection" be too abstract?

Not necessarily, that is what the new Fiber Network building is also getting at, although technically a "normal" internet connection is not represented yet. However I don't see the internet itself as a primarily cultural vector in society, it also has profound influence on science/commerce which is why Fiber Network boosts all commerce types equally.

 

[cmakk1012]

Isn't that just a conglomeration of various other established types of buildings (cinemas, theatres etc.)? What is modern about it besides the big bunched togetherness? I have never been to any of these types of buildings and they seem to be an American phenomenon, where everything is big and bunched together.

Well, yes, it’s exactly that, but with dedicated spaces for various fine arts—so for opera, ballet, philharmonics, theatre, and so on. It’s more like an upgraded Theater/Opera House than anything new, I’ll grant, but it is the modern “upgraded” form of that building line IMO.

As for bunched together, at least in America we don’t have urban areas so tightly squeezed together that the cars barely fit!