Brucha
King
- Joined
- Oct 22, 2007
- Messages
- 622
It is 9,500 BC, and the Stone Age is coming to an end. The way of life of the hunter-gatherer is also coming to a close. Mankind is taking its first steps towards the first civilizations on Earth. Yet, many perils exist in the world on Mankind's path to becoming the dominant species on the planet. Can you lead your hunter-gatherer tribe to glory or will you and your people be lost to the darkness of the past?
I am working on a new mod for myself and a friend. the reason for it is really so that I can play it, though perhaps someone out there might enjoy it. The road taken in designing this mod was after searching the available scenarios for a completed scenario suited to playing early man in the Neolithic period, before the rise of civilizations. I found three scenarios involving this:
Each of these scenarios had some of what I wanted but not completely - combined, they had much of what I wanted in a single scenario, but still missed some key issues I was looking for. Thus the reason for this mod.
In general, the following is what I wanted in the scenario:
1. New civs, not ones designed after Classical one - ie. Greece or Egypt. I wanted civs based after Neolithic cultures such as the Vinca or Natufians. I also wanted city names to not reflect the more modern Classical world - ie. names like Ujvar instead of say Athens. Likewise for Leader names and leaderheads - no Alexander or Cleopatra leaderheads. Also, the text in the Diplomacy Text to reflect the time. So, a more primitive feel all around.
2. I wanted the scenario to begin very similar to the scenario, Paleolithic, with no techs and no ability to perform any Worker tasks from the beginning. Each civ would start the game settling their first settlement and leaving the hunter-gatherer lifestyle behind for the first time.
3. I wanted the game to progress through the Neolithic Period and end with the Iron Age just before the onset of the rise of Hellenism and the rise of Rome.
To make the game more interesting, and to fit the time period, I decided on the following for the mod:
1. All Wonders in the game would be based on Neolithic-era things, like Stonehenge, Moai or Angkor Wat.
2. Population, City Growth and Civ Expansion would be greatly curtailed. Since the game would end before wide-spread settlement of the Earth, I wanted to slow down expansion, so that, even at the end of a game, there would still be wide swaths of land outside of city borders. Settlements would be slowed in growth as well. Settlers will cost more to make (both in shields and in Population cost) to make the founding of new cities a much slower rate. Cities would grow at a slower rate as well. Settlements would have a lower maximum size limit as well. Settlements would be: villages (max pop of 3), towns (max pop of 6) and cities (max pop of 12).
3. I want to add some things that, historically, would not be accurate but I think add enjoyment to the game. Since no civ will have beginning techs, and all Worker actions will have to be unlocked by techs, I thought of a starting resource based on megafauna, such as woolly mammoths or rhinos, etc. These resources would add 1 Food, but would have a zero percent Appearance Ratio and a high Disappearance Probability. Tech for future agrilcutural resources, such as Goat and Cattle Domestication would allow Goat and Cattle Domestication with a Food Value of 1 and 2, but with a higher percent Appearance Ratio and a lower Disappearance Probability. This would reflect the belief that megafauna's demise might have been added by overhunting by early man. As an addition, to represent the dangers of hunting such things as mammoths, I would have to include a new form of Terrain, that would be tied to these megafauna resources, so that they - the terrain and resource - causes Disease. The megafauna resources would be placed only on megafauna Terrain tiles. Basically, you clould get an extra Food for having it within the borders of a village or town, but the disease factor would add some danger to it as well. Since these megafauna resources would be placed on the starting map (and can't be generated after the start as new sources of the resource), this will work just fine.
4. The Tech Tree is divided into four eras: Hunter-Gatherers, Dawn of Settlements, Age of Metals, and Dawn of Civilization. Progression through a tech tree would be slow, and the game would last 600 turns, with each turn representing 15 years in the game. Thus, the game begins in 9,0000 BC and ends in 500 BC. The names of the eras are still being decided on so these are temporary at best. I want to combine the various techs from all three scenarios, plus others so that the tech eras have a good deal to research.
5. Revamp the the entire unit line-up along with unit graphics. There is alot of great early man units in the library, such as the Tribal packs, for new units. There would be a gradual increase of newer combat units, but civs would begin with pathetically weak ones, such as a Hunter or Warrior unit. Cavalry would come relatively late in the game. Likewise for naval units. Some civs would get canoes and the like, then fishing boats or such, but no ships that can safely cross, say the Atlantic. I believe that this will create a situation of civs from far away, and especially on islands, may never have contact with others, or at least not until late in the game.
6. I want to also include a second .biq map to add in neanderthals, as in march of the Neanderthals, just because I think that would be a heck of alot of fun.
So, there you have it. I would love some suggestions as to further additons/corrections that I should include. I just wish I could find a mammoth resource icon....
I am working on a new mod for myself and a friend. the reason for it is really so that I can play it, though perhaps someone out there might enjoy it. The road taken in designing this mod was after searching the available scenarios for a completed scenario suited to playing early man in the Neolithic period, before the rise of civilizations. I found three scenarios involving this:
- March of the Neanderthals
Paleolithic
Great Lost Civilizations
Each of these scenarios had some of what I wanted but not completely - combined, they had much of what I wanted in a single scenario, but still missed some key issues I was looking for. Thus the reason for this mod.
In general, the following is what I wanted in the scenario:
1. New civs, not ones designed after Classical one - ie. Greece or Egypt. I wanted civs based after Neolithic cultures such as the Vinca or Natufians. I also wanted city names to not reflect the more modern Classical world - ie. names like Ujvar instead of say Athens. Likewise for Leader names and leaderheads - no Alexander or Cleopatra leaderheads. Also, the text in the Diplomacy Text to reflect the time. So, a more primitive feel all around.
2. I wanted the scenario to begin very similar to the scenario, Paleolithic, with no techs and no ability to perform any Worker tasks from the beginning. Each civ would start the game settling their first settlement and leaving the hunter-gatherer lifestyle behind for the first time.
3. I wanted the game to progress through the Neolithic Period and end with the Iron Age just before the onset of the rise of Hellenism and the rise of Rome.
To make the game more interesting, and to fit the time period, I decided on the following for the mod:
1. All Wonders in the game would be based on Neolithic-era things, like Stonehenge, Moai or Angkor Wat.
2. Population, City Growth and Civ Expansion would be greatly curtailed. Since the game would end before wide-spread settlement of the Earth, I wanted to slow down expansion, so that, even at the end of a game, there would still be wide swaths of land outside of city borders. Settlements would be slowed in growth as well. Settlers will cost more to make (both in shields and in Population cost) to make the founding of new cities a much slower rate. Cities would grow at a slower rate as well. Settlements would have a lower maximum size limit as well. Settlements would be: villages (max pop of 3), towns (max pop of 6) and cities (max pop of 12).
3. I want to add some things that, historically, would not be accurate but I think add enjoyment to the game. Since no civ will have beginning techs, and all Worker actions will have to be unlocked by techs, I thought of a starting resource based on megafauna, such as woolly mammoths or rhinos, etc. These resources would add 1 Food, but would have a zero percent Appearance Ratio and a high Disappearance Probability. Tech for future agrilcutural resources, such as Goat and Cattle Domestication would allow Goat and Cattle Domestication with a Food Value of 1 and 2, but with a higher percent Appearance Ratio and a lower Disappearance Probability. This would reflect the belief that megafauna's demise might have been added by overhunting by early man. As an addition, to represent the dangers of hunting such things as mammoths, I would have to include a new form of Terrain, that would be tied to these megafauna resources, so that they - the terrain and resource - causes Disease. The megafauna resources would be placed only on megafauna Terrain tiles. Basically, you clould get an extra Food for having it within the borders of a village or town, but the disease factor would add some danger to it as well. Since these megafauna resources would be placed on the starting map (and can't be generated after the start as new sources of the resource), this will work just fine.
4. The Tech Tree is divided into four eras: Hunter-Gatherers, Dawn of Settlements, Age of Metals, and Dawn of Civilization. Progression through a tech tree would be slow, and the game would last 600 turns, with each turn representing 15 years in the game. Thus, the game begins in 9,0000 BC and ends in 500 BC. The names of the eras are still being decided on so these are temporary at best. I want to combine the various techs from all three scenarios, plus others so that the tech eras have a good deal to research.
5. Revamp the the entire unit line-up along with unit graphics. There is alot of great early man units in the library, such as the Tribal packs, for new units. There would be a gradual increase of newer combat units, but civs would begin with pathetically weak ones, such as a Hunter or Warrior unit. Cavalry would come relatively late in the game. Likewise for naval units. Some civs would get canoes and the like, then fishing boats or such, but no ships that can safely cross, say the Atlantic. I believe that this will create a situation of civs from far away, and especially on islands, may never have contact with others, or at least not until late in the game.
6. I want to also include a second .biq map to add in neanderthals, as in march of the Neanderthals, just because I think that would be a heck of alot of fun.
So, there you have it. I would love some suggestions as to further additons/corrections that I should include. I just wish I could find a mammoth resource icon....
