[Mod] 12 Ages Mod

[Fireb]

Ok, the tech tree has been revamped (a lot, including about 10 techs I missed the first time round!), the xml files updated and I'm about to try it out to see where it blows up

Quite a few changes, from the feedback and to ensure that units appear in the right ages, e.g. harbours in the bronze age seem appropriate. The techs and the units/buildings they enable will need to be altered slightly I think.

STONE
Mysticism, Fishing and Hunting

COPPER
Agriculture, Mining, polytheism, meditation, sailing, pottery, archery, the wheel

BRONZE
Bronze working, masonry, priesthood, writing, alphabet, animal husbandry. philosophy, currency, compass, code of laws

IRON
Horseback riding, Ironworking, monotheism, monarchy, literature, drama, mathematics, calendar, astronomy, construction, Civil service (can’t have macemen before swordsmen…), construction

MEDIEVAL
Metal casting, feudalism, divine right, Guilds, gunpowder (I'm not convinced this should be here...), Machinery

RENAISSANCE
Theology, Music (copper?), Banking, Paper, Engineering, Optics

AGE OF REASON
Education, Printing press, Liberalism, Nationalism, democracy(bad name…how about something like representation or egalitarianism), constitution, economics

INDUSTRIAL
Rifling, corporation, replaceable parts, steel(separate cannons/ironclads into different techs?), Chemistry, Military tradition

AGE OF STEAM
steam power, railroad, Assembly line, artillery, Scientific method

AGE OF ELECTRICITY
Communism, Fascism, , physics, electricity, combustion, industrialism(atomic age? Remame to something like ‘steel plating’?), Biology

ATOMIC
Medicine, Refrigeration, Fission, flight, rocketry, radio, mass media.

INFORMATION
The rest

Comments welcome of course.

[Fireb]

Ok, it blew up

As expected I need to define the eras, (in the assets/xml/Game info/civ4EraInfos.xml file). Which also defines the soundtrack, wild animals, barbs, etc for each era (i'll just use the current settings for now).

Edit - a couple more files need to be altered...so much for encapsulation...Is there an xml dependency tree available, or will that be in the SDK?

Edit - Wow! It seems that each building has era attributes, and each leader has a potential music for each era for each type of diplomatic situation...this is going to take a while...

Edit - Hmm...that's interesting. When I start a new game most early/later (but not medieval) techs are already discovered, and instead of a warrior/scout I have a machine gun...

[alms66]

Originally posted by Fireb
Edit - Wow! It seems that each building has era attributes, and each leader has a potential music for each era for each type of diplomatic situation...this is going to take a while...

Yes. This will take a while, and a lot of changes will be needed - which is why I stated in the OP it will take weeks to get a first version out.

BTW, you listed 'Code of Laws' in the copper age, not bronze.

There's been some discussion, with lots of new ideas, but I wanted to reiterate - the basic version comes first and the basic version will do nothing but add the new eras and try to rework the timeflow somewhat to balance time spent in each era. No new rules, no new gadgets to play with - still the standard game, just with a bunch of new eras.

The extended version will bump up the number of turns/units/buildings/techs/etc. And there will be room for other tweaks as well.

[Fireb]

Right. Code of laws has been changed to bronze.

These are the files I'm currently messing with:
Globaldefines.xml (default era: ancient -> stone)
Technologies/civ4techinfo.xml (technology era attributes changed)
Gameinfo/erainfo.xml (type and description, but not strategy changed. Extra eras added)
Buildings/ CIV4BuildingInfos.xml
Civilizations/CIV4LeaderHeadInfos.xml
Buildings/Civ4CityLSystem.xml Buildings/Civ4PlotLSysetem.xml
Interface/CIV4ThroneRoomStyleInfos.xml Text/CIV4GameTextInfos_Objects.xml

All these files have references to ERA's...

However, after modifying all references to the ANCIENT era in all those files, when I try to start a game I get a ‘cvlsystemload era_ancient is not recognised as an era type ‘ exception (followed by an exit-to-desktop operation). I think I've looked in all the XML files, I was hoping not to have to mess with the python scripts yet...The only 'ancient' references I have left alone are the following:

ANCIENT_SOUNDTRACK's
CITY_ANCIENT

any suggestions?

[Agrona]

You guy's are doing a great job at refining this, Im looking forward to this mod.

This is just an idea I thought of.

When you finish researching a technology you find that there are say 5 different inventions that come with that tech, they would be prominent inventions only.

And now you will have a choice to further research those 5 inventions or continue onto the next Technology.

The benifits of the researched inventions would give you an advantage untill they became obsolete by advanced technology.

It ( the invention) would have the same kind of effect as Wonders and add to your overall civilizations output depending on the Invention researched.

eg: You research Agriculture, you then have the option of researching the invention The plow or crop rotation and other early agricultural inventions.

Basically you would research it like a sub tech and it would behave just like wonder adding to your civ output, or if you like you can continue onto researching the next tech without research the inventions.

This would cover all the different technology discoveries of the civilization
agricultural
millitary
financial
cultural
science
production
religion

All of them would have 5 major inventions associated with them.

Well there it is, I dont know if it's doable but I think it's a good idea nontheless. It would add more to the tech choices.

[Fireb]

Ok, I'll do what I probably should have done from the start...adopt a methodical iterative process, i.e. first change the name of one era (but not the first), test; then add a new era, test; then change the tech tree order, test, and then slowly expand from there. It's more work, but at least I'll know what's working and what isn't

alms66 - Just curious, which part are you working on now?

Agrona, that sounds very interesting. I don't know what alms thinks about it, but I can certainly see how it would fit in well with the theme of the mod

Keep the ideas coming

[Fireb]

So far so good.
Eras renamed, new eras added and techs changed. The only sticking point remains the ancient era. How about calling the stone era the ancient era for a while?

Mathematics has been changed to Bronze,
Monotheism changed to Copper (I confused it with Theology, lol).
Mining and the wheel now need a stone age tech before they can be researched.

edit - Everything now (appears to) work fine up until the medieval age. After that it also works fine, but I havn't changed anything yet. The only things now missing are era music/graphics. Is anyone interested in helping out?

So I guess the next step is making each era last for...an era .Alms, what ideas do you have on how to implement this? Deadmad's mod probably has quite a few things that we could ask to reuse, and a few other mods/ideas here and there as well.

[alms66]

I haven't been able to do much since I started the thread. As always, when I start/join a project, work rears it's ugly head and I end up with delay after delay. Last night I was at work until 10pm and had to be back for 6am again this morning. I'm leaving at 5 tonight though so, assuming I get the files from you by then (email me), I should be able to try a game out and get a better idea of what needs to be done to re-pace the game - if you haven't already beat me to it by then. BTW, I'm not commenting much on the "new" ideas because I want to try to avoid drastic changes for the basic mod, and hopefully not add/change anything at all, but the eras themselves and possibly a few tech costs to rebalance pacing. For the extended mod, however, the gloves will come off.

Regarding music/graphics (era splash) use the current files for ancient for stone/copper/bronze, medieval for iron/medieval, renaissance for renaissance/reason, industrial for industrial/steam and modern for the rest. Consider it placeholders for now.

BTW, if you're having problems with the stone age still, by all means - rename it ancient.

[terje439]

Originally posted by Fireb
STONE
The activities of this period should concentrate mostly on survival and exploration. Very little research, no mining or agriculture yet, as these require development and sophisticated tools. There should be some possibility for early tribal raiding and squables over territory.

Mysticism, Fishing and Hunting are the only appropriate techs that I see for this age, which means that either each of them should take a long time to research, or else the tech tree redesigned to reflect this period in greater detail.

COPPER
An age of expansion, development, agriculture, mining

Mining, polytheism, meditation, sailing, pottery, archery. Maybe something to reflect copper weaponry and the edge it gave to those who had it?

Why the placement of agriculture and pottery in copper-age? (if it is just to balance the ages, then ignore this post) They do both belong in the stone age

[Fireb]

Originally posted by terje439


Why the placement of agriculture and pottery in copper-age? (if it is just to balance the ages, then ignore this post) They do both belong in the stone age

Erm, no idea actually Thanks for correcting this.

If you say they belong in the stone age, then you're probably right as I don't know much at all about that period . Are you sure about pottery though? Doesn't that require the wheel?

[Fireb]

Originally posted by alms66
I haven't been able to do much since I started the thread. As always, when I start/join a project, work rears it's ugly head and I end up with delay after delay. Last night I was at work until 10pm and had to be back for 6am again this morning.
I'm leaving at 5 tonight though so, assuming I get the files from you by then (email me),

Don't worry about work holding you up, it happens to us all

Err...maybe I've missed it somewhere, but what is you're e-mail? .I can send you an e-mail through the forum form, but not an attachment. PM it to me if you don't want to publish it. Otherwise I can always zip the files and upload them here?

[terje439]

Originally posted by Fireb


Erm, no idea actually Thanks for correcting this.

If you say they belong in the stone age, then you're probably right as I don't know much at all about that period . Are you sure about pottery though? Doesn't that require the wheel?

"Wheats and barley, pulses, and flax, along with cattle, pigs, sheep and goats - were originally domesticated in the Near East shortly after 10.000 BC" (T.D.Price, Europe's first farmers).

About pottery, that depends upon what you decide to call pottery. If by pottery you mean ONLY clay turned into different objects, then you are right, if however you see pottery as the idea of having certain storage units to hold your surplus food, then it belongs in the stone age.

[terje439]

sorry just realized something - animal husbandry too belongs in the stone age (see post above)

[Fireb]

Well, can't argue with scholars

Tusen takk terje, I'll change it

[terje439]

?! A norwegian speaking frenchman?! Hehe