A newbie asks...

[JonBrave]

OK, so (if I may), here are some random complete newb questions which occur to me. I shall add the odd one as I go.

• When I tell it to generate a small world (a dozen or so provinces, 1 AI opponent) it takes like 5 minutes to complete. Now, I acknowledge I only have 1Gb of RAM and a CPU that's pretty old, but even so... Civ can make a whole world in fraction of the time. OOI, what in the world is it actually doing that could even begin to take that long??
• When in Battle View, could moving the mouse to the edge of the screen please scroll? I thought I had seen something saying it did this, but I admit it is not listed in the short cuts.
• In battles, I'm a little confused about casting distance. Do I have to move my casters to the enemy and/or with my troops so as to get them close to enemy/keep up with my guys for effectiveness? If so with what order?

That'll do for now, 'coz it's my first post

[Foodstamp]

Jon,

Welcome to Dominions!

1. The map generation in Dominions is completely processor based. If you have a multicore processor, it will only use one core, and it is uses as much of the processor as it can get it's hands on. Same thing for turn generation.

2. I don't think this is possible. I have always used the arrow keys.

3. Most spells have limited range. You can position your mages closer to the front to cast certain spells, just be aware that it leaves them exposed to enemy magic, flanking and arrows. You can script a mage to attack for a round to move closer to the front line as well. You can also script certain spells towards the end of your script so they fire off when the enemy closes in with your army.

Goodluck!

[Muse]

Originally Posted by JonBrave

[*]When in Battle View, could moving the mouse to the edge of the screen please scroll? I thought I had seen something saying it did this, but I admit it is not listed in the short cuts.

Originally Posted by Foodstamp

2. I don't think this is possible. I have always used the arrow keys.

Holding the middle mouse button (Mouse 3) and moving the mouse will scroll the screen.

Page Up and Page Down will change the height of the camera.

[JonBrave]

Originally Posted by Muse

Holding the middle mouse button (Mouse 3) and moving the mouse will scroll the screen.

Page Up and Page Down will change the height of the camera.

M3 sounds great. Unfortunately, I am on a laptop with touchpad. I believe there is some way of "M3-ing", but I think you need 3 hands. To then move the mouse would require a foot. Do Shrapnel supply a middle-button for laptop owners?

[JonBrave]

OK, so now I besiege a fortress. After X turns I get announcement that "wall has been breached and you can now storm" or similar. So I do storm. Unfortunately, my besiegers were archers with existing "fire" orders. They stood around outside a lot. Ho-hum

• Could I just have maintained the siege longer and the occupants would have surrendered/weakened?
• The "breach" just seemed to be the main gate was open/gone. I had expected bigger damage or even no walls! Was that it? If I hadn't waited/besieged at all, I suppose there would have been a gate with hitpoints I'd have had to break down?
• Looks to me like you just want melee troops for storming?

[thejeff]

The sieging/storming mechanics are pretty simplified.

You can't storm until the wall has been breached. Which essentially means the gate is down and there is a way in. The size of the entry depends on the fort you're storming.

What you want once you attack depends on your strategy. Archers are at a penalty trying to shoot anyone behind the walls, but I've had luck holding back and letting his troops come out to attack me. If he has mostly mages and archers then you really want fast melee troops to get in and reach them.

[Fantomen]

Flyers are good, flies over the walls. Tramplers or thugs or other units that dish out lots of damage quickly are good to get you through the gate. Making the enemy rout works as well, with spells like panic or terror.

If you are uncertain of storming successfully Just staying on siege may weaken the defenders if they have supply problems, or on a grander scale if that fort is important for recruitment or income. Like sieging a capital can be strategically sound even if you are unable to breach the walls, just to deny capital only mage recruitment and gold.

On the flip side mages inside a sieged fort can still cast summoning rituals and the like (if there is a lab), so the defending army may very well grow stronger during the siege.

[fantasma]

Are you sure it matters what fort you storm? I thought the entrance was always the same, two squares path, or the like. I'm not saying you are wrong, I'm just curious that I never noticed.

[WingedDog]

fantasma
Yes, it really depends on fort type. Some forts have large breaches, some small.

[Gandalf Parker]

To answer one of your questions... You can just maintain the siege. You can tax to the extreme, blood hunt for slaves, pillage, do all kinds of things. And preach. Eventually you can starve whoever is inside. And if there is a pretender you can "domkill" it by pushing your own dominion by preaching (replace all the red candles with whilte candles to remove his power). Every once in awhile you can use a cheap commander such as a scout to attack the people inside just to get a peek at who is left and in what condition