[0.95][Feedback] Monster Density. Sparse is better?

I'm the exact opposite.  I have to set monster density to dense to make it any fun at all.

I do think that under no circumstances - except a direct attack towards trespassers - should a monster leave their lair completely undefended.

I usually run with dense monsters too, since I want more stuff, more spoils, and more creatures to battle, id love if the monsters would pose a wall between me and the enemies, but frankly that setting is far from here yet.

Sincerely
~ Kongdej

Do you find that the AI sets off the monsters?

How do you survive an early ... I don't know... Iron Slag rampaging through your lands?

Maybe monsters need a 'roaming' distance from there lair? Maybe different monsters get different distances?

Also, what actually controlled WHEN a monster is aggro'd?

• I had cases when I just walk beside the monster and he attacks.
• I had cases when the monster started ramaging 2 turns after I walked by.
• I had cases when the monster started ramaging when it entered my zone of control.
• I had cases when the monster started rampaging 6 turns after being in my zone of control.

There doesn't seem to be a pattern I can depend on...

Since beta 4 i find that very rarely do i find strong+ monsters near my starting location.  The distribution is very good, and having a bunch of weak - medium mobs within say 8 tiles of my starting location on a large map helps with hero leveling and keeps the game interesting early on.

BTW I also set resources and magic to dense as well.  Much more fun.

I don't have strong monsters near my first city starting location, but I've always had some within the first 10 tiles or so (i.e. at 2nd or 3rd city) which given that you need to expand rapidly in the early game or be left behind is effectively "starting location"ish.  Early militia or spearmen (0th/1st tier war tech) can't hope to beat them, even 2rd tier (axe/hammer) may or may not beat them depending on champion level/gear.  And almost certainly won't without being able to bring 3-5 of them to the fight (i.e. some of the army expansion techs are mandatory) . In short, beating one strong monster is a major undertaking in the early game.  I'm surprised you're not encountering it with more regularity especially with monsters set to dense.

P.s. - Love the Whammy.

Completely agree with OP. After 8 hours of playing a VERY enjoyable game, some HUGE monster thing came out of nowhere and destroyed 2 of my cities and my army. Not many options after that but a restart. I too like the proliferation of weak to medium and even strong monsters, but these huge marauding juggernauts really suck. Let them stay in their lairs and sleep until someone attacks them or some faction gains a particular technology or builds a particular wonder or something!

tbh i always use dense monsters

thats the point of the game imo surviving  a wild world

but as said in other thread they do need some rebalancing

First regarding the above,  I don't survive a slag running through my lands. Cause even with my taxes upped to normal (were low for a while to get some early game techs )  I can't afford the wages for a bunch of city defenders.  The city is focused usually on income/growth in the early game and that kind of trouble I absolutely cannot deal with.  My problem with this is A) I don't settle near calamity causing monsters and The butthole who did set it off didn't get his towns and units whacked.  The AI are all guilty of city spam and outpost spam. 

2nd)  I've been doing some thinking about the game and what improvements are needed and how I think things could be improved.  Monsters aren't aggressive enough.  Lair monsters need to attack stupid AI and players alike who think they can just cruise on by.  This is silly!  Cause currently you can do that.  It would force both AI and players to deal with powerful monsters, and even plan for it.  Even weaker wandering types should be licking their chops at lone units strolling by - like first on their priority list.  Any notion a lone pioneer can flee past some wolves and settle a town is silly.  Even more silly is the wolves won't attack town on next turn!  Free lunch.  This needs to end.  Pioneer need to be escort  (I have some thoughts on pioneers also but I am staying OT with the monsters) Outposts, why the heck aren't they targeted?  That is what should be angering the monster.  This is MY territory! *MUNCH* And even if there was a way to drop an outpost and build an upgrade on the same turn, The lair monster should be IMMUNE to not being in the offending player's territory - and should go munch away on offending outposts/city/units.  Larger, more dangerous monsters should have even bigger radius.  You thought ogres were bad - these guys really mean business and stay the F--- away unless you got the army to back you up.  None of this one square radius crap.  Maybe even 3 or 5, or random 3 to 5.   This would create a much more dangerous world, as it should be IMO. Spamming is not a viable tactic, new cities will have to be founded with an army (or two when you consider need for escort ).

When you get right down to it, I think altering costs for subsequent pioneers is not necessary ( cause they're going to get munched anyways if they're not protected - same goes for the outpost and town they build/spam. )

There's my latest 2 guilder.

If town guards (units in a city) required a reduced upkeep that would certainly help.  I have the same issue, I can only afford so many troops, there's no way to protect all my cities.  Maybe a special unit trait "guard" which would be a unit which cannot leave a city but has reduced upkeep costs.

I certainly wouldn't mind more aggressive monsters, it certainly would help with the expansion spam at the start of the game although it would make Tarth godlike. LOL  Of course, this all assuming that Frogboy can code the AI to handle the extra complexity.

I also always use dense monsters. I just want more for my heroes and armies to do, and it seems to help a bit with the massive city spam that the AI does (blech).

Bring on that setting!!!

I almost always use the trait for scouting that lets you move through dense terrain for normal cost and it says 'monsters usually ignore you'.

Maybe this trait is why I never have problems with monsters. In fact I wander deep into the 500 hp special mob groups and steal all of the artifacts often.

Mike.

Do the monsters even attack the AI at all? I like to play on Dense as well, but on that setting my Scouts can hardly get 5 tiles away from the town before they're mauled. The AI's scouts just run around willy-nilly without a care in the world. I will also come upon AI outposts and cities with very powerful critters just hanging out within the area of influence like it's no big deal, whereas if it was my outpost they would turn it into paste

I have noticed this as well. Other factions that don't have the scout ability building cities RIGHT next to big monsters. Baffling.

It's not fair.  AI cheats and bribes monsters! ! 

Seriously though, they need to learn AI units/outposts/city taste as good as a human's.  Be more aggressive and claim territory ( have ZOC ).

I would welcome it, applied fairly.  The current state of AI causing all the ruckus and getting ignored, I can't deal with.