[Faction][Ideas] The Possiblities of Creative Variations

I am so addicted I am considering lying about having smallpox and locking myself in my bedroom unitl October. All kidding aside, it is foolish to fear dissapointment from a game that is specifically made with variation in mind. So far factions have't been differentiated, as every troll with an internet connection has been pointing out this week, but the fact that they are so similiar is a good indication that they will get a lot more work in the future. I am currently thinking about how to create five or six types of economy that any race can specialize in given their location and the goods they have been given. Of course special buildings and unit bonues are a good way to flavor a faction or race, but this game allows so much more creativity:

-It should be possible to make one race survive on trade, another on conquest, and yet another on magical creation; all based on what resources they start near. This could be done with alchemy, resource exchange, and giving certain factions bonuses to loot, even getting weapons and armor.

-It should be possible to have some factions and races spawn soldiers/denizens very quickly, allowing for weak and numerous armies to be built very soon, while others may have a single soldier defending their vast lands. Having a quick breeding race that doens't need a lot of food or money to make a hundred soldiers when others have maybe 10.

-It should be possible for a mage society to conjure massive armies to defend their realms. Necromancy, demonic possession, and soul stealing come to mind. Even to the point where they gain corpses in their loot.

-It should be possible for there to be a totally mundane faction, whose Sovereign is some kind of void-magic anomaly, not affected by magic at all and has a special kind of hatred towards magicicians. Think BG2's Wizaed Slayer, with an entire army at her side.

-It should be possible for a Sovereign to gain his magical abilities from the worship of his followers (like the Ori in the mediocre ending of Stargate SG-1). A temple in every city or even a population based stat that isincreased by temples and faction based wonders. A whole spellbook could be based on this (like the Bible).

-It should be possible to have a faction that relies on technological advancement, never having lost any tech from the cataclysm thanks to their Sov's underground fortress they have been living in for the past 100+ years. (Yay! A Fallout style faction falls right into our laps!)

Any other ideas?

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James009D

Join Date 01/2005

+67

I've been playing around with this recently. I took the Nords from Elder Scrolls and quickly made them into a faction, they're tougher then normal folks but lack some in diplomatic and economic abilities. I also successfully made an all female Amazonian race which is certainly unique. They have no male units and I had to design replacements which leaves me to wonder how the AI would handle them. Regardless, they're certainly interesting!

I think I'll probably make a "tech" race who is weak but has excellent researchers, I'll try making a trade race (AI can't use it yet), and a couple almost "minor" factions for filler civilizations.

I'm very curious to see what the boundries are for factions and how easy/difficult it'll be to make something truely unique. Right now, its rather easy to make new factions but they'll be based upon the pre-created ones. We need more options, more settings, and more creation. I think for truely unique factions we'll have to create new "racetypes" and tech trees which probably will not be easy.

I'm looking forward to eventually seeing everything you proposed, lizard races, orcs, vampires, and, hopefully, creature/monster races. Time will tell if this is possible... I think it is.

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I have spent hundreds of hours making tech trees for galciv 2 TA and it is probably the best part of that game. I look forward to this update in modding for the sake of it. Many times I only made the techs for the AI to use. I am curious to see how effective Frog's Ai will be at handling new units and factions, given that the current similarites in the Beta 4 factions are certainly in part due to having a primitive AI.

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