Camber
Resident Family Therapist
Rhye's of Civilization has quickly become my favorite mod in the last 6 months. In many ways, it is my ideal mod, especially the Expansion module. But in other ways, it leaves me wanting more. This thread is devoted to a mod of the mod, which I call RoC-Unleashed!
Unleashed mainly refers to my attempts to "take the lid off" the incredible expansion to the RoC mod. This is done with three main features:
1. The addition of an entire Future era, with future resources, units, and buildings.
2. The addition of the entire inner solar system to the game map.
3. The addition of rare and specialized units throughout the ages, requiring highly transient resources called "Innovators."
I'll outline each of these features in greater detail.
1. Future Era.
I'm scrunching together the Industrial and Modern eras, so that the Modern era ends in the early "Modern Era" tech tree page. They actually don't look much more scrunched than the tech trees of the 2 earlier ages, which were more densely packed than the last 2 (in the traditional RoC).
I have changed the RoCX tech tree slightly as far as the pathways between techs are concerned, mostly to allow a more coherent tree when it is scrunched a bit, but with an attempt to maintain historical and scientific realism. The Future Era, as I have developed it so far, will have the following techs:
Miniaturization (enables Silicon resource)
Space Flight
Synthetic Fibers
Globalization
--
Robotics (requires Miniaturization; enables Titanium resource)
The Laser (requires Miniaturization)
Satellites (requires Space Flight)
Ecology (requires Synthetic Fibers and Globalization)
Cataclysmic Apocalypse (requires Globalization, triggers obsolescence for many buildings)
---
Supercomputers (requires Robotics)
Superconductors (requires Miniaturization and The Laser; enables Superconductors resource)
Post-apocalyptic Anarchy (requires Cataclysmic Apocalypse; enables numerous "salvage" resources)
Rise of the Machines (requires Cataclysmic Anarchy; enables Technocracy gov't)
---
Fusion Power (requires Supercomputers and Superconductors; enables Fusion Cells resource)
Space Warfare (requires Superconductors and Satellites)
Terraforming (requires Ecology; enables some resources located off-planet, required for terraforming Mars and Venus)
Rise of the Mutants (requires Post-apocalyptic Anarchy; enables Mutocracy gov't; enables mutant-related resources)
Insurgency (requires Post-apocalyptic Anarchy; enables Insurgency gov't)
Living Fuels (requires Rise of the Machines; enables Biofuels resource)
---
Novum Imperium (requires Fusion Power; enables Imperial Theocracy gov't)
Magnetic Manipulation (requires Fusion Power and Space Warfare; enables Mag Cells resource)
Integrated Defense (requires Space Warfare)
---
Energy Weapons (requires Fusion Power; enables Power Cells resource)
Artificial Gravity (requires Magnetic Manipulation)
Genetic Engineering (requires Terraforming)
Biorobotics (requires Post-apocalyptic Anarchy and Living Fuels)
---
Advanced Composites (requires Artificial Gravity; enables EDC--Energy-Dampening Composites (armor) resource)
Guided Mutation (requires Genetic Engineering and Rise of the Mutants)
---
Focused Plasma (requires Energy Weapons and Advanced Composites; enables Plasma Cells resource)
Ecobalancing (requires Genetic Engineering)
Artificial Life (requires Guided Mutation and Biorobotics)
---
FTL (Faster-Than Light) Drives (requires Focused Plasma)
Energy Shielding (requires Focused Plasma)
Harnessed Antimatter (requires Focused Plasma; enables Antimatter resource)
As one reads over this list, a few things should jump out.
1. There are three pathways that are mostly independent of one another: a traditional sci-fi warfare path, an eco-terraforming-genetics path of peaceful science, and a post-apocalyptic path. These three paths allow a player to choose between two high-cost, high-returns paths to victory (peaceful or warlike), and an alternative path for those who have limited access to resources (the apocalyptic path). This also allows those who don't like certain sci-fi futures (such as the post-apocalyptic ones) to avoid them altogether.
2. The tree is very resource-heavy and government-heavy. This is intentional and allows for leaner tech-tree boxes while still giving a fair number of buildings and units per tech. In this mod, a large number of units and buildings will not be "tech-enabled" in the editor, so that they don't show up on the tech tree visually. Instead, they will be resource- or government-enabled. This allows the tech tree to not look so dense, with smaller boxes.
For example, the Mutocracy government will allow a player to upgrade most of his units to "mutant" versions, as will the Technocracy and Imperial Theocracy governments. So for a given resource, such as Mag Cells, it will enable several different space fighter units of similar function and stats. The direction of upgrades within each unit type (where "regular" means a unit flavor not associated with any future gov't) will be insurgency->mutocracy->regular->technocracy->imperial theocracy, so that a player switching from mutocracy to imperial theocracy would be able to change his units to the new appearance, but not the reverse. This path was determined based on the projected research costs of getting to the three futuristic governments and the projected unit costs of the government "flavor" units. Insurgency units will cost the least but will also be less powerful. They will also have very few resource-tagged units, instead using more of the guerilla-type units. The Imperial Theocracy flavor of any given unit type will be the most expensive and pack a heavy punch. Balance will be achieved through government features, such as corruption, unit support, and war weariness.
Unit Flavors
-----------
The look of the four governments will reflect four distinct strains in sci-fi worlds. The "regular" units will, for the most part, look generic and won't be associated with a particular sci-fi "franchise." Examples would be most of Neomega's and bhiita's futuristic units.
Insurgency units will look like Star Wars Rebel Alliance units but will include other rag-tag units. I'm not very committed to this, and might drop the Insurgency goverment altogether. It is meant to function mostly like a later version of Despotism.
Technocracy units will look like an amalgamation of Terminator and Star Wars Imperial units, especially favoring robotic units. The whole Rise of the Machines vision of a post-apocalyptic future is borrowed mostly from Terminator, Matrix and similar sci-fi fiction.
Mutocracy units will be a combination of Fallout and Ork units from the Warhammer 40K universe. The idea is that following a cataclysmic apocalypse (nuclear war, severe global warming, asteroid impact, take your pick), mutants became a sizeable and powerful force on the planet.
Imperial Theocracy units will mostly borrow from the Warhammer 40K universe Space Marines, but may also include various mech units from other sources.
In summary, the future era will be packed full of a lot of sci-fi stuff that I certainly enjoy, and hopefully stuff that other people enjoy too. The Star Trek stuff is probably the only sci-fi artwork that I won't use. I feel that it is too iconic to be a part of a non-Star Trek mod. Maybe other people feel the same way about Star Wars or WH40K, so that is certainly up for discussion.
Here is the current modpack:
Unleashed mainly refers to my attempts to "take the lid off" the incredible expansion to the RoC mod. This is done with three main features:
1. The addition of an entire Future era, with future resources, units, and buildings.
2. The addition of the entire inner solar system to the game map.
3. The addition of rare and specialized units throughout the ages, requiring highly transient resources called "Innovators."
I'll outline each of these features in greater detail.
1. Future Era.
I'm scrunching together the Industrial and Modern eras, so that the Modern era ends in the early "Modern Era" tech tree page. They actually don't look much more scrunched than the tech trees of the 2 earlier ages, which were more densely packed than the last 2 (in the traditional RoC).
I have changed the RoCX tech tree slightly as far as the pathways between techs are concerned, mostly to allow a more coherent tree when it is scrunched a bit, but with an attempt to maintain historical and scientific realism. The Future Era, as I have developed it so far, will have the following techs:
Miniaturization (enables Silicon resource)
Space Flight
Synthetic Fibers
Globalization
--
Robotics (requires Miniaturization; enables Titanium resource)
The Laser (requires Miniaturization)
Satellites (requires Space Flight)
Ecology (requires Synthetic Fibers and Globalization)
Cataclysmic Apocalypse (requires Globalization, triggers obsolescence for many buildings)
---
Supercomputers (requires Robotics)
Superconductors (requires Miniaturization and The Laser; enables Superconductors resource)
Post-apocalyptic Anarchy (requires Cataclysmic Apocalypse; enables numerous "salvage" resources)
Rise of the Machines (requires Cataclysmic Anarchy; enables Technocracy gov't)
---
Fusion Power (requires Supercomputers and Superconductors; enables Fusion Cells resource)
Space Warfare (requires Superconductors and Satellites)
Terraforming (requires Ecology; enables some resources located off-planet, required for terraforming Mars and Venus)
Rise of the Mutants (requires Post-apocalyptic Anarchy; enables Mutocracy gov't; enables mutant-related resources)
Insurgency (requires Post-apocalyptic Anarchy; enables Insurgency gov't)
Living Fuels (requires Rise of the Machines; enables Biofuels resource)
---
Novum Imperium (requires Fusion Power; enables Imperial Theocracy gov't)
Magnetic Manipulation (requires Fusion Power and Space Warfare; enables Mag Cells resource)
Integrated Defense (requires Space Warfare)
---
Energy Weapons (requires Fusion Power; enables Power Cells resource)
Artificial Gravity (requires Magnetic Manipulation)
Genetic Engineering (requires Terraforming)
Biorobotics (requires Post-apocalyptic Anarchy and Living Fuels)
---
Advanced Composites (requires Artificial Gravity; enables EDC--Energy-Dampening Composites (armor) resource)
Guided Mutation (requires Genetic Engineering and Rise of the Mutants)
---
Focused Plasma (requires Energy Weapons and Advanced Composites; enables Plasma Cells resource)
Ecobalancing (requires Genetic Engineering)
Artificial Life (requires Guided Mutation and Biorobotics)
---
FTL (Faster-Than Light) Drives (requires Focused Plasma)
Energy Shielding (requires Focused Plasma)
Harnessed Antimatter (requires Focused Plasma; enables Antimatter resource)
As one reads over this list, a few things should jump out.
1. There are three pathways that are mostly independent of one another: a traditional sci-fi warfare path, an eco-terraforming-genetics path of peaceful science, and a post-apocalyptic path. These three paths allow a player to choose between two high-cost, high-returns paths to victory (peaceful or warlike), and an alternative path for those who have limited access to resources (the apocalyptic path). This also allows those who don't like certain sci-fi futures (such as the post-apocalyptic ones) to avoid them altogether.
2. The tree is very resource-heavy and government-heavy. This is intentional and allows for leaner tech-tree boxes while still giving a fair number of buildings and units per tech. In this mod, a large number of units and buildings will not be "tech-enabled" in the editor, so that they don't show up on the tech tree visually. Instead, they will be resource- or government-enabled. This allows the tech tree to not look so dense, with smaller boxes.
For example, the Mutocracy government will allow a player to upgrade most of his units to "mutant" versions, as will the Technocracy and Imperial Theocracy governments. So for a given resource, such as Mag Cells, it will enable several different space fighter units of similar function and stats. The direction of upgrades within each unit type (where "regular" means a unit flavor not associated with any future gov't) will be insurgency->mutocracy->regular->technocracy->imperial theocracy, so that a player switching from mutocracy to imperial theocracy would be able to change his units to the new appearance, but not the reverse. This path was determined based on the projected research costs of getting to the three futuristic governments and the projected unit costs of the government "flavor" units. Insurgency units will cost the least but will also be less powerful. They will also have very few resource-tagged units, instead using more of the guerilla-type units. The Imperial Theocracy flavor of any given unit type will be the most expensive and pack a heavy punch. Balance will be achieved through government features, such as corruption, unit support, and war weariness.
Unit Flavors
-----------
The look of the four governments will reflect four distinct strains in sci-fi worlds. The "regular" units will, for the most part, look generic and won't be associated with a particular sci-fi "franchise." Examples would be most of Neomega's and bhiita's futuristic units.
Insurgency units will look like Star Wars Rebel Alliance units but will include other rag-tag units. I'm not very committed to this, and might drop the Insurgency goverment altogether. It is meant to function mostly like a later version of Despotism.
Technocracy units will look like an amalgamation of Terminator and Star Wars Imperial units, especially favoring robotic units. The whole Rise of the Machines vision of a post-apocalyptic future is borrowed mostly from Terminator, Matrix and similar sci-fi fiction.
Mutocracy units will be a combination of Fallout and Ork units from the Warhammer 40K universe. The idea is that following a cataclysmic apocalypse (nuclear war, severe global warming, asteroid impact, take your pick), mutants became a sizeable and powerful force on the planet.
Imperial Theocracy units will mostly borrow from the Warhammer 40K universe Space Marines, but may also include various mech units from other sources.
In summary, the future era will be packed full of a lot of sci-fi stuff that I certainly enjoy, and hopefully stuff that other people enjoy too. The Star Trek stuff is probably the only sci-fi artwork that I won't use. I feel that it is too iconic to be a part of a non-Star Trek mod. Maybe other people feel the same way about Star Wars or WH40K, so that is certainly up for discussion.
Here is the current modpack: