Mod: Tasilondren - Mid

[DrPraetorious]

This mod doesn't have any graphics either, but I'm having a ***** of a time balancing it.

I'm not, actually, all that enamored of my own concept but I'm pleased that I came up with a nation that plays very differently from existing nations (somewhat like Late Ermor).

Anyway - if other people want to try playing a few games with it, and have any suggestions, I'm all ears.

The idea is this - you cannot hire any mages at all, you have to summon them (you start with one.)

However, unlike Late Ermor, who has to do the same thing with all their characters to boot, you get a better deal on Mages than other people who summon them. A *much* better deal.

Even so, you end up with fewer mages than someone would who just hires them - especially of the larger mage types which are still quite expensive in gems. This also saps your ability to equip those mages with gems and actually use them, so it's a disadvantage, however awesome those summoning spells may look on paper (note that they are 30% cheaper than listed, because you have a 30% thaum bonus in your capital. This is intentional.)

You also get a strikingly good deal on summoned sacred units - heavily armored immortal Yazads, for no price increase.

You get an odd - but clearly superior - military, which is hired with money, but is generally gold-light and resource-heavy.

Anyway, I'll probably scrap the concept, but re-use whatever stats I come up for something different if I can get it balanced.

[Sombre]

Is it that you don't like it because you based the nation on a gameplay mechanic rather than a culutural/flavour concept? There's something to be said for mods than paint a rich picture, use new graphics well and whatnot, even if they don't play in a very original way (Zepath's Teutanion for instance).

I'll give it a go soon. One problem with the gameplay concept is that the AI probably can't handle it too well. It doesn't do very well with Sanguinia for instance.

[DrPraetorious]

Well, no, it was based on a concept. I just don't like the concept very much Also, some concepts grow on you - I like Padmassa, but the original concept was just "Circle Masters! Woo! Evil!". Likewise, this one was originally "Crystal Mages! Woo! Crystals!".

Talisondren (EA) was going to be crystal mages who governed a highly disciplined, professional army through their crystal telepathy. Excellent stats (mor, att, def, not hit points) on all their stuff. I decided it wasn't different enough from Marverni (it was more powerful, but that's not much of a trick,) and that Padmassa shouls get the crystal mind control stuff instead, so this nation was gutted.

(MA) is what is shown here. They've grown soft and decadant and now only schoolgirls have magic powers. It's very anime.

(LA) was going to hate magical beings, b/c of what happened to their flourishing civilization when they lost in (MA) and they were abandoned by all the magic being/schoolgirls they had. It was going to have death bards and be emo (all your stuff gets old at 20 I kept changing my mind about how and why they were all cursed and dying. High magic resistance, fairly weak mages but powerful national combat spells. As a tactical setup, I decided that was better suited for LA Frostlings (who I like better anyway), so I didn't finish it.

Talis were originally going to be the hanseatic league, but then I decided that the frostlings should be Hansa/Russians instead, and the Talis kinda lost any rooting in actual history or folklore.

As for artwork - I agree with you, 100%. Amos' mods pull down their pants and pee on your pathetic concept of "game balance", but the concept and the artwork is great. I can't draw, but I think I write very nice flavor text - not everything that seems like a good idea really is, though.

I mean, I dunno, maybe other people think Padmassa is stupid. Maybe they think Talisondren has a cool concept, it's a subjective thing.

[Sombre]

I for one much prefer padmassa and I think you generally did a very good job on the flavour text in it. I'm looking forward to seeing it get to a v1.00 or so. Right now it's a bit of a turn off to summon buck imps and get eskimo atlantians,.. and of course aurochs are a major thing in that faction. Of course gameplay wise there's no difference,... but Dominions is a game that has very strong 'flavour' - it gives you a world to get lost in which makes up for some slightly dodgy gameplay quirks and AI.

I think there's a lot you can do with very little artwork, although I think you need one or two new pieces just to be the centrepiece of the nation. Ulm Reborn is going to have very, very few new graphics, but I really like the concept (which is nerfix's) and it translates into a couple of nice key units which will stand out just enough (I hope) to make the nation seem fresh.

I've made one mod with all new graphics and while it does look pretty awesome (especially in you've played exile) I actually prefer the feel of Vaettihiem and Ulm (both of which have few new graphics). I pretty much suck at drawing too but having given it a go editing sprites captured from dom3 it isn't that hard to make something that looks different but doesn't stick out as ugly.

As for this nation - I guess just wait and see what people think. There's a good gameplay concept there that's for sure.

What nations are you working on right now btw?

[DrPraetorious]

- Padmassa, Pure Water and Pure Fire (MA, Persians.)

- Padmassa, ??? (LA, Arabs.)
The epithet is going to be a reference to the ride out of Mecca, I think.

- Wu-Shan, Snake, Crane and Dragon (EA, Monks).

- Wu-Shan, Eunuch Sorcerers (LA, Eunuchs).

- Holmgard, The Blue Horde (EA, Frostlings/Russians/Tartars)

- Holmgard, Glory to the Republic (LA, Forstlings/Hanseatic League)

and I have some abandoned hoburg and korean projects.

[Sombre]

Well there is already a good hoburg MA nation. A Korean based nation seems lke it might have been interesting, although I don't know much about their culture.

It sounds like you have a lot of plates spinning all at once. Are you working on all of them at once or concentrating on Padmassa/Tasilondren for now?

[Wrana]

Necromancing it!
Sorry, just stumbled upon it and couldn't resist.
Nation seems too strong, but also quite funny.
Here I got pair of sprites for its girl mages. Hair is color-coded for player's convenience! Will probably make sprites for sacred troops as well - as soon as I understand what to base them off...
Recruitable priests may remain with copied sprites, but I changed them to be different - also for convenience.
Normal troops may need some slight rework to be in similar style. Plus some "crystal" image for flag...