Feature question

[Chibiabos]

Apologies many times over if its been addressed already, but I didn't see it in the beginning of the features list and reading so many pages of replies to it is a bit daunting.

Yes, I know the map is 3D ... but will you or will you not be able to 'travel' over the poles? Namely, can you send submarines under polar ice (as happens in 'real' Earth) and/or send ICBMs, bombers, etc.?

 

[toft]

Its just a matter of xy-wrapping like in civ3...

 

[Commander Bello]

Apologies many times over if its been addressed already, but I didn't see it in the beginning of the features list and reading so many pages of replies to it is a bit daunting.

Yes, I know the map is 3D ... but will you or will you not be able to 'travel' over the poles? Namely, can you send submarines under polar ice (as happens in 'real' Earth) and/or send ICBMs, bombers, etc.?

At the moment, nobody really knows about.
My personal assumption is that it will not be possible, as this would require a real globe. On any square-oriented map, you will run into problems with such a concept - and to be honest, except for a handfull of nuclear powered ships and some adventurers, in real life nobody crossed the (northern) polar regions. Additionally, you almost cannot do that at Antarctica. Even planes use other routes, so there seems to be almost no benefit in having such an option in the game.

 

[Turner]

The only option I'd like to see is ICBMs/Satellites, those kinds of things, being able to fly over the polar region.

But then, that's more of an orbital thing than a flying thing.

Subs under the caps would be cool, too. How hard would it be to have a terrain type that allowed submersible units?

 

[Commander Bello]

[..]
Subs under the caps would be cool, too. How hard would it be to have a terrain type that allowed submersible units?

As far as I see it, you will need different "layers" for subs and invisible units anyway. Otherwise, you will always run into the problems as experienced in Civ3. Therefore, if you adopt this idea, you could also have subs diving under the polar ice regions quite easily.

 

[MamboJoel]

I hope one day Civ will be played on a real globe.

 

[Turner]

As far as I see it, you will need different "layers" for subs and invisible units anyway. Otherwise, you will always run into the problems as experienced in Civ3. Therefore, if you adopt this idea, you could also have subs diving under the polar ice regions quite easily.

See, that doesn't sound that hard to implement, to me. Okay, I'm not a game programmer.

Have two, maybe three layers. First layer is subterrain/underwater. Call it 'sub-sealevel', but that's not necessarily accurate. Call the second one 'sealevel', and it's your ground type units. Then have an 'airlevel', for anything that's above ground level. You'd also have to have a 'height' and 'depth' attribute for the terrain, as well. Unless you just made it that sea-type tiles are surface only, and land type tiles go 'all the way' down. Then you could have Coastal, Sea, Ocean and Icecap tiles for sea-type tiles. The advantage there, land units could use the Icecap tiles. Oh, no, they're too heavy! "Sire, our Modern Armor dropped through the IceCap!"

Simple theory, but like I said, I don't program games. So I don't know how hard it would be to code.

 

[Luthor_Saxburg]

I hope one day Civ will be played on a real globe.

I heard from safe sources that the patch 3.45 of Civ VIII will make this possible!!! Great, ain't it?

 

[sgrig]

See, that doesn't sound that hard to implement, to me. Okay, I'm not a game programmer.

Have two, maybe three layers. First layer is subterrain/underwater. Call it 'sub-sealevel', but that's not necessarily accurate. Call the second one 'sealevel', and it's your ground type units. Then have an 'airlevel', for anything that's above ground level. You'd also have to have a 'height' and 'depth' attribute for the terrain, as well. Unless you just made it that sea-type tiles are surface only, and land type tiles go 'all the way' down. Then you could have Coastal, Sea, Ocean and Icecap tiles for sea-type tiles. The advantage there, land units could use the Icecap tiles. Oh, no, they're too heavy! "Sire, our Modern Armor dropped through the IceCap!"

Simple theory, but like I said, I don't program games. So I don't know how hard it would be to code.

They had multiple layers in Civ2 "Test of Time" expansion pack. Some mods used this very well to model submarines, aircraft etc. Of course there were problems, but it was a good idea. Unfortunately, they did not include it in Civ3, and doesn't look like it will be in Civ3.

 

[Chibiabos]

Hopefully, Civ V they'll switch to vector-based terrain (instead of tile-based). They could do a lot more intricate maps, and that would be much easier to implement a globe.

Planes and subs going over/under arctic ice have actually been somewhat significant, and the threat of ballistic missiles as well. IIRC, that's how we got so many bombers to Russia in WW2. And as 'worthless' as the arctic seems, that's where NORAD started -- putting radar stations to provide early warning of a potential surprise air and/or missile attack by the Soviets over the Arctic. And a submarine under arctic ice has one additional advantage -- no anti-submarine surface ships to worry about (just other subs).

As for the reference about Antarctica -- yes its a solid landmass, but you forget -- Civ has non-Earth-based maps. You could get an "Arctica" continent but just a floating ice cap over the Antarctic pole ... or both poles may be landmasses.