BvBPL
Pour Decision Maker
So I played my first game of RifE and I found it highly enjoyable. After a couple false starts, one with the Dural was blasted apart by a barbarian horde (including a barbarian assassin who was the Chosen of Aeron. Unfair!), and a Mekara one that I got bored of as I didnt understand the commander mechanic, I played some 400 turns of Mechanos before switching to the Mazatl lizardmen. Heres my end user experience, for those who may be interested. This is w/ no SVN content, just the mod, patch, and hotfix.
Memory Allocation Errors: Okay, this was my big problem with this mod. After some 400 turns with the Mechanos on a large map, my computer started crashing with MAFs. I played with my page file (which it turns out was abysmally small) and performance settings, but in the end it was too much and I had to abandon the game. MAFs are particularly frustrating because they generally occur after youve invested a fair amount of time into a game.
-I hope 1.4 will be more stable.
-Are there any steps the end user can take to reduce MAFs?
Mechanos: Fun civ. I did find the adeptus to be less than fully explained though. It was only after I received alteration (or something like that) in a tech trade that I realized that the adeptus could cast a few spells. Knowing that I could have terraformed would have been nice since I started in the frosty north. Additional adeptus documentation would be helpful.
Mazatl (and other terraforming civs): Theres a real lack of documentation on the terraforming civs. I know the Mazatl spread some kind of wetland, but I cant tell how that works. Does it work in a desert? Does it require fresh water? The swamp mechanic is not exactly intuitive either. Trying to figure out where it would work by trial and error is frustrating.
AI: Dull as a sack of wooden spoons. This isnt really too much of a problem, but itd be nice if it was able to use transports and what-not to launch sea invasions. Maybe Im just spoiled from Tholals mod.
Barbarians: I like the lair mechanic, but sometimes it can take many explore lair functions to clear one out. It would be nice if there were a function that allowed one to rapidly clear out a lair. This would allow for (say) a scout with the appropriate function or promotion to sneak into a lair and clear it out quickly. This could be risky if the leashed guard is still around, but it would be a welcome way to clear out spawn beds early in the game.
Commander mechanic: Cool mechanic. I do wish it was easier to select the commander and minions in fewer clicks and with less fiddly stuff. Also, when multiple commanders have slots open it can be annoyingly difficult to get the right unit with the right leader. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms mod has a really cool commander system. That mod also has an easy interface for editing what unit is with what leader. Well worth checking out if you havent already.
Sidar: Oh my goodness is the mist freaking annoying. Mechanos, in particular, had a hard time dealing with it. Additional documentation and tips on how to beat the mist would be very welcome (such as assigning recon units to a scouting commander to raise perception). I never did get into the mist, the MAFs were coming too fast by the time I figured out how to raise my perception. The Perfect Sight promo (above Sentry II, Archery and Recon only) should add a perception rank and maybe provide some other bonus against the mist. How does the AI deal with the mist? Is it just incapable of attacked cities in the mist?
Very enjoyable mod. It exceeded my expectations. I am looking forward to 1.4. Thanks.
Memory Allocation Errors: Okay, this was my big problem with this mod. After some 400 turns with the Mechanos on a large map, my computer started crashing with MAFs. I played with my page file (which it turns out was abysmally small) and performance settings, but in the end it was too much and I had to abandon the game. MAFs are particularly frustrating because they generally occur after youve invested a fair amount of time into a game.
-I hope 1.4 will be more stable.
-Are there any steps the end user can take to reduce MAFs?
Mechanos: Fun civ. I did find the adeptus to be less than fully explained though. It was only after I received alteration (or something like that) in a tech trade that I realized that the adeptus could cast a few spells. Knowing that I could have terraformed would have been nice since I started in the frosty north. Additional adeptus documentation would be helpful.
Mazatl (and other terraforming civs): Theres a real lack of documentation on the terraforming civs. I know the Mazatl spread some kind of wetland, but I cant tell how that works. Does it work in a desert? Does it require fresh water? The swamp mechanic is not exactly intuitive either. Trying to figure out where it would work by trial and error is frustrating.
AI: Dull as a sack of wooden spoons. This isnt really too much of a problem, but itd be nice if it was able to use transports and what-not to launch sea invasions. Maybe Im just spoiled from Tholals mod.
Barbarians: I like the lair mechanic, but sometimes it can take many explore lair functions to clear one out. It would be nice if there were a function that allowed one to rapidly clear out a lair. This would allow for (say) a scout with the appropriate function or promotion to sneak into a lair and clear it out quickly. This could be risky if the leashed guard is still around, but it would be a welcome way to clear out spawn beds early in the game.
Commander mechanic: Cool mechanic. I do wish it was easier to select the commander and minions in fewer clicks and with less fiddly stuff. Also, when multiple commanders have slots open it can be annoyingly difficult to get the right unit with the right leader. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms mod has a really cool commander system. That mod also has an easy interface for editing what unit is with what leader. Well worth checking out if you havent already.
Sidar: Oh my goodness is the mist freaking annoying. Mechanos, in particular, had a hard time dealing with it. Additional documentation and tips on how to beat the mist would be very welcome (such as assigning recon units to a scouting commander to raise perception). I never did get into the mist, the MAFs were coming too fast by the time I figured out how to raise my perception. The Perfect Sight promo (above Sentry II, Archery and Recon only) should add a perception rank and maybe provide some other bonus against the mist. How does the AI deal with the mist? Is it just incapable of attacked cities in the mist?
Very enjoyable mod. It exceeded my expectations. I am looking forward to 1.4. Thanks.
