please continue, discussing stuff helps me get motivated ^^ and xml changes are quick to make mostly so 'ill probably end up adding most of the balance feedback i want to add in the update itself.
As for the update, it's not so much interface issues than a large bunch of interface work. It's not the area i'm most used to, so it's taking a while getting it done properly ^^
Awesome! Ok, here's some of the issues I've hit lately:
Odd thing:
1) Many units can upgrade to berserker that probably shouldn't, like slaves, apprentices, etc, once you have the rage tech. This is because they are marked as potential upgrades to the lunatic unit, and even if you never develop mind stapling, the upgrade path will let them skip it and go straight to berserker. I'd say disable the upgrading of lunatic to berserker (more fun and flavorful to upgrade to lunatic anyway, and having the later upgrade will I think prevent those units from going for lunatic, which is a sad loss of an interesting mechanic). Also most civs won't be octopus overlords, so it seems wrong to let them turn these odd units into berserkers because of the potential existence of lunatics.
Balance feedback:
1) I think there is a serious problem with how the necropolis is structured with the +production it gets based on number of health resources. Namely, It is way too powerful, and distorts the intended role of the building.
The health benefits and elimination of unhealthy dissent are the intended mechanics, and function well. The intended purpose based on the lore is to allow your huge cities to escape the cycle of unhealth, by absorbing the remaining non undead population by giving them the gift.
However, by the time you get the tech, a well developed scion empire very well might be capable of having sufficient life mana and health resources to get the +10 production per turn. Since it costs 120 on normal, you pay back construction cost in 12 turns, and then have pure profit. And even if it is a size 1 city, it still gets the full +10.
It then means the building actually becomes most important in tiny cities, synnergizing with the scions already existing incentives to found tons of pop 1 or 2 production houses, and forcing them further into this as a dominant playstyle even as it makes it even more overpowered. The building essentially functions to double or triple the production of a small city, with an investment that is paid back in a negligble amount of time. It makes it the first choice building everywhere, and also helps the scions in an area they didn't need more benefits in (production).
Assuming the production bonus is desired, harnessing the essence of the living and such, it would be better done on a percentage basis , perhaps granting up to a 20% production increase at maxed out health resources to replace the +10 base production. The amazing thing is that that 20% production rate would be a huge nerf to the building (as it would take a base 50 production city to equalize), which points to how dramatic the original version was. It would also make it more valuable in large powerful cities, as it should be, and make its cost something of an investment.
Alternatively, to fit the role of the building in allowing mass giving of the gift, perhaps it should keep the straight hammers boost, but only if reborn are being constructed (like the currently existing open borders boost, which grants a straight hammers amount also). Although that doesn't fit the lore of 'harnessing the energy of the living' as well. Perhaps then the best solution would be both--up to a maximum of +10 hammers for reborn, and a +20 percent bonus to production overall.
EDIT just realized the combined solution wouldn't work, given the conditional nature of the reborn production boost system from open borders and the need to keep everything in one building. At any rate, I think anything that gives a boost that scales with population would be fine, including happiness from the new citizens ascending from their lower class ranks or the production of that distilled life energy drink mentioned in the civilpedia to a foreign trade boost from the excess food resources to be sold to simple unit XP would all be viable choices. I really just dislike the straight hammers boost because it doesn't scale.
Its funny but even the combined solution would represent a serious nerf to the scions production potential, especially on large maps and if they spread out, but I think that is a good thing. I also have some ideas on the scions that would represent a strengthening in other areas, and I'll write those up more comprehensively in a day or two.
2) The Event "An issue long thought decided is being discussed again amongst our people" dealing with practice of necromancy, suffers from a couple of problems.
a) the order solution giving a golden age seems overpowered. And I don't think suppressing people wanting to talk about necromancy should launch an entire order following civ into a golden age.
b) Many civs/religions have no way of dealing with it, no matter what preparation is made, which doesn't seem fun, especially for a repeatable event, even when many of them should have better options that the civs currently programmed to have them (ie, the scions, or amurites, both lack anything to respond).
c) The tooltips for the events report the -1 happiness is permanent for your cities. Should it instead say temporary, and this is a tooltip problem, or is the unhappiness really permanent? Because on a repeatable event with no way to forestall, that seems very bad.
EDIT: If I understand correctly it is indeed making the happiness permanent, meaning repeatable permanent -1 happiness to all cities:
<EventInfo>
<Type>EVENT_THREAD_NECROMANCY_6</Type>
<Description>TXT_KEY_EVENT_THREAD_NECROMANCY_6</Description>
<iHappy>-1</iHappy>
<Button>,Art/Interface/Buttons/Process/Blank.dds,Art/Interface/Buttons/Beyond_the_Sword_Atlas.dds,8,5</Button>
<iAIValue>100</iAIValue>
</EventInfo>
Also the event is set to <bRecurring>1</bRecurring>, so both the golden ages and the permanent all city unhappiness are repeatable I think.
EDIT2:
Questions:
1) If <bGlobal>1</bGlobal> is marked for an event, like in the treasure hunt quest from moreevents, that means on the same turn every civ will get the message regarding the start of the quest and be able to start? Even if they don't meet the prereqs, like in that example of the treasure chest <PrereqTech>TECH_ASTRONOMY</PrereqTech> ? Or would they have to meet the prereq to participate? Just trying to expand my knowledge of how these things fit together, but couldn't find info online to answer that question.
2)Rites of Ohgma is listed as "1 allowed every 0 turns". A little confusing--I can certainly start building it during the game (I tested), what does the 1 every 0 turns mean? EDITNOTE: tested and the ritual is repeatable every single turn, no wait. maybe it was intended to be something like 1 every 200 turns, but a 0 was entered by mistake?
EDIT3:
1) I was trying to figure out bane divine, and found a note valkerion posted saying it now kills all disciple units. probably should update the in game strategy text, it still says it reduces them to level 1.
2) Curse the land has the never tech as a prereq, is it intended to be unavailable? Is it because the AI couldn't handle the mechanics of the rituals to correct it?
3) I had thought I remembered that The Deepening ritual wears off, at least for the terraformed terrain, but I ran on quick speed for over 50 turns and the terrain that had changed did not change back. Is there a different mechanic for ending it, either because of rife or the frozen module, or did one of them make it permanent?
4) Completing asscenssion as the illians grants them two auric ascended units, one has the additional promotions that the previous auric commander mortal unit had, one has the base promotions. Two gods of winter at once seems like overkill.
(note--the code works fine for the frozen and taranis completing the ritual, only 1 taranis ascended appears as it should)
5) Speaking of overkill, although auric ascended is blocked from receiving blood of the phoenix through the ritual, mortal auric isn't, and he carries it over into his auric ascended form. So it is possible to get a reincarnating god, even should you happen upon the godslayer. Not sure if that is worth changing or not on its own, but maybe auric ascended shouldn't carry over promotions, it gets a little weird him having random city garrison and such promotions. Only thing I would really want to carry over is magic items.
6) Should the Frozen really end up locked in a teammate relationship with whoever summons them? Given the lore from the civilpedia, it makes it sound like the illians summon them and then they go rogue seeking their own ascendency, which is in conflict with the locked team relationship (especially given taranis's goal to ascend instead, he doesn't seem like the loyal sort of guy, instead better to do like hyborium, start friendly but not teamed).
7) This one is just another question: is there any spells or other ways to raise hills in this mod? I searched the civilpedia but didn't find anything, makes sense there wouldn't be, too powerful for certain civs and such, just curious.
8) I think it is strange that the ancient warrior burial mound event flattens the hill if you elect to build a tourist trap. Just seems odd that something otherwise unachievable by magic or feets of worker labor (as far as I can tell), would be done with a simple tourist site construction.