NOVICIUS Finnal Map Project

I make poll now just to know what you think about two factions. I always thought that Rhoddoks and Swadia is the best match ever. In native I love to play Sarranid because they have the best horse in the game for cav. They have the best archers (only in PW). Veagirs were always not good enough for me.[You have all staff but you prefer Sarranid for that,Swadia for another thing and Rhoddoks for another]. I will not use Nords because they are the best faction to play outsiders. There is no better I can think of. What is the best match ever?
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Sorry for new thread. It is map thread only. I like to use all data I got to make map.

FIRST IDEA(archive)
[accidently lost map file somewere in my comps...maybe I will find it one day]

NEW/OLD IDEA:



Main concepts:
1.The goal of the map - WAR,sustainable and endless. Factions will not fight to conquest but for gold and glory.
2.No-man Land - Battlefield and only place to mine gold
3.Warlords - Lord of Faction to be key figure in Faction success or failure. He has all the money. He has to pay or motivate his soldiers to create the force, which will be able to hold no-man land.
4.Team play - almost no place for non-faction players, almost no way to leave faction once joined,everything sold or bought in Faction Land brings taxes to Lord chest.
5.Crafting/serfing - RTS style were everything is close and connected for better efficiency. If your armory is overloaded with arms and stocks are full of resources - Good for your faction. Time to use it for War.
6.Safety - Entry to Faction Land blocked by castles and sea. All Faction Land population should belong to the faction - if not it is Lord of the Faction problem.
7.Threat by sea - Faction Land could be raided by sea. Watch for ships passing by! Every Faction has own way to deffend against it.
8.Special weapons/armor/horses - can be made only in Lord Castle. Lord has to employ master/serf and supply him with goods needed. Special is to be unique, expensive and cherished.
9.Every job is important - I do my best to equal reward or even increase it on less popular/difficult jobs -> more you know about game better money you should get.
10.Interfaction trade - stimulation for transporting basic resources to industry/crafting areas + A LOT of carts/sacks/baskets/chests (to stop players fighting over it)

Layout:
3 Main Factions:
Red - Swadia
- Almost unconquerable small castle of Swadian Lord
- "Invasion bridge" - is only way to enter or exit Swadian Land by land.
- Castle is Lord House - faction chest/lord training/lord keep locked by faction key = only Lord of Faction can enter castle (while close) without building a ladder -> secret entry.
- Buildable palisade for "crafting village" to protect it against searaiders -> Castle can become small town.

Blue - Nord
Green -Rhoddock
... and one mercenary port.

WIP...(do not wait  )

Advise :  plan where the outlaws would be (mountain or island) and add a teleport for the nord castle from main spawn.

It's look like an event map but it's may work however you should add some unvaluable RP area (like remote tavern )

Aldric said:

Advise :  plan where the outlaws would be (mountain or island) and add a teleport for the nord castle from main spawn.

Click to expand...

Whole idea of the map is to focus players on 2 Faction endless war (clans) . Outlaws will be outlaws and they will have hard life. No place to hide really. Island is for those who do not want to be part of main factions. They will have ships and some [engineer level max] weapons+armor+resources to make it. It is randomers faction really.

Other two factions are for those who like to play (possible RP)TDM in organize way:

Aldric said:

It's look like an event map but it's may work however you should add some unvaluable RP area (like remote tavern )

Click to expand...

It would not be event but everyday reality of this map. Clans can make event from it if they want to. Just get all your members on time and see who can play it better.

There are 3 stages:
1.Those who like to enjoy mod features - [serfs/craftsmen/healers/militia/huntsmen/traveller] - You can RP with or without money medieval village life if you want to - True is that whatever you do (production wise) you are just 1st chain of war machine.
2.Those who like to make more money/get involve in war supply/support chain/become eventually soldier and fight - [engineers/sailors/mercenaries/doctors] - you can [and you should] RP this stage as well, whatever you do here will have consequences as you can support ruling faction or be against it. However if you will make money you will support faction supply line. - {I still think here about alternative - "peacefull town" in the middle which would connect two sides - it may break whole project but I will leave space for it}
3.Those who like fight [soldiers professions + master smith] - This stage is for factions who will be able to protect+organise their supply lines [at stage 1 and 2] to have enough armors+weapons+soldiers to fight against opposite faction. Whatever you do here you will die and you have to think about your second life. If you will be part of the team some glorious battle are ahead. If you be a moron you will become outlaw - no place to hide.

There will be teleport to every stage from the spawn and there will be "heaven" in which you can choose were you want to spawn in your "second" life.. I have not thought yet about how you get to island [Nord/Viking/Berserk/rRandomers] Faction. I have to focus first on two main faction and supply line.

This bring the question I can almost hear (from those who knows me) : NOVICIUS why you have not finished all the other projects?

1.I have never enough time for playing+mapmaking+real life
2.I have never had project which can survive another mod update.
3.It was learning process, which lead me to this point. I WANT TO MAKE THIS MAP!

If you like the project I am more than happy to share this experience with you. PM/Steam me.
If you have suggestions or You hate the project..post. It always helped me in the past. I will do what I want to do anyway, but some things can change.

I make poll now just to know what you think about two factions. I always thought that Rhoddoks and Swadia is the best match ever. In native I love to play Sarranid because they have the best horse in the game for cav. They have the best archers (only in PW). Veagirs were always not good enough for me.[You have all staff but you prefer Sarranid for that,Swadia for another thing and Rhoddoks for another]. I will not use Nords because they are the best faction to play outsiders. There is no better I can think of. What is the best match ever?

If you're going to need all the island space, it's a good idea to move it away from the scene edges or you'll risk having only a fraction of the island space reachable for the players.

Dark_Hamlet said:

If you're going to need all the island space, it's a good idea to move it away from the scene edges or you'll risk having only a fraction of the island space reachable for the players.

Click to expand...

I usually cover edges with mountains or water. I hate when player face invisible wall on the map. At this stage there is no problem with island space as this can be modify at any time.

I have crazy idea about island. - There will be all gold in the world. One of the main faction could use it by creating "Silver Fleet" (like Spanish in XVI/XVII century) as all rivers will be saleable and (at the moment) castles will be only places to sell gold or silver. I have not check this yet but apparently we have ships which can be loaded. Silver will be "lucky find" in the mine.

I see this land as native Nords invaded by Swadia and Rhoddock.

Some picks to show what I meant, plus I have worked on this project almost all day so time to show off 



General view on beginning of supply chain (number 1 in blueprint):
- Orange Wall of spawn barrier
- Lumberjack for beginners
[jobs to do: rising selling prices so all will bring at least 100 profit per piece]
- Farm with first training post[serf] and first horses
[jobs to do: testing "boarlet buy" position - it spawn in front of farm not in the back as intended; replacing craftable staff with some stick for scearcrow - I can craft it/buy it, but I can not pick it up]
- Craftsman area and training(not finished as I left clothing for later)
[jobs to do: removing swords -he can not make them; bring smelter back to standard size - smelting fire looks funny]
- Fishing and Huntsman area and training
[jobs to do: further testing on dear behavior - attempt to limit it to the hunting forest]

General jobs to do:
- further testing prices - I made 5k buying and loading cart of wood at lumberjack, and selling it at village/craftsman storeroom.
- adding butchery/bakery/brewery - maybe as one big complex = Tavern. -> healer and traveler training.

This info is for myself, so I will not forget. 

Nov tell me whenever you want to test your map. A live review could be better to give an opinion.
Also, where are going to be mercenary training to take back taken castle ?

Well the best fun in war in my opinion is Swadia vs Rhodoks. Reasons is, that they both have sergeants, knights, crossbowmen. They are like eachother, which makes it a fair & fun fight

Anyways, good luck with your map!

- Maximus

Aldric said:

Nov tell me whenever you want to test your map. A live review could be better to give an opinion.
Also, where are going to be mercenary training to take back taken castle ?

Click to expand...

I am sure I will. Thanks for that  . You now me  - it will take some time..as always. It is hard give up playing for mapmaking and I do not have time for both. I will do my best.

I have few solutions and no decision made yet:
1.Mercenary in every Tavern - Taverns in villages - this to give opportunity to make revolt and retake castle from the back. Tempting as it would force lord to be carefull with his policies in case population will give support to mercenaries who will take over.
2.Mercenary in RP locations - I plan two of those - Pirate port (right side of the map) and monastery (left side). - this option is more disturbing to the general (two warring factions) idea of the map.
3. Mercenary as ever present.. mercenary. Group of soldiers united in one faction without castle who hire them self to both factions. I checked stats end I see more than possible to play as mercenary through whole game. It is a bit like militia. You have to get few players in one group. Hiring mercenary would be risky as they have power to take over faction they work for. I like it a lot.
Normans conquer southern Italy as mercenary. + in my concept of the map mercenary would be only profession with some skills to use Xbow to give them edge.

It seems you don't understand the purpose and implementation of the mercenary training stations: they are always associated with a faction rather than a castle (the faction that starts the mission owning that castle number), and are only available for training when the faction owns no castles, so factions can capture another castle for full activity again. The stats are a decent mix of useful skills (though none are high level) to allow groups to build up more easily when having no access to castle armories and training stations. If you had ever tried to train as a mercenary before, you would have found out that nothing happened (apart from a rejection message) unless the faction was inactive, owning no castles any more.

Mercenary for commoner side-steps that part nicely, if that's what you're looking for NOV.

I did tried to set up mercenary training for commoners it's a bad idea. The lack of a "tag colour" render this idea very messy and people tends to random any armed commoners during fighting.

For mercenary just put training post and banner in 2 differents side of your map so people can retake castle and such.
But having mercenary group could be hard to handle.
remember , if a faction got a castle/village, people can't train as mercenary class.

I believe I got it right.

The main 3 faction would have absolute monopoly in case of training. If somebody would be commoner that would mean peasant profession.

In this project I understand faction as sort of player citizenship. Once player get involve in the game he has to belong.

The only ways to be out of this system are:
1. Become outlaw
2. Remain peasant
3. Train as mercenary

Training as mercenary give players opportunity to create guild with own color,banner and own lord. Limitation here is only one profession - mercenary.

What I do not like in corrent maps is the fact that half of players play as commoners. This allow them to do whatever they want without consequences and almost in anonymous way. In medieval times everybody knew everybody in community. Unknown would mean total stranger. Person without obvious belonging would be put in prison and questioned just in case. To be a "stranger" you would have to belong to some kind of order with own banner or particular way in which you dress up (like monks, or artist)

Technically: There will be only 3 capture points on the map which leave space for 3 "mercenary" factions all the time. If I will make some kind of mercenary/pirate castle it would not be possible to conquer it. It would be just location. 

looks like a very nice map with a different gameplay then the others but i think sarrads vs swadia would be better the rhodok vs swadia cause swadia and sarrads looks more different. Although it would add a bit of "crusaders" feeling. And think about that ether swadia nor rhodok  have bows

BananaBob said:

looks like a very nice map with a different gameplay then the others but i think sarrads vs swadia would be better the rhodok vs swadia cause swadia and sarrads looks more different. Although it would add a bit of "crusaders" feeling. And think about that ether swadia nor rhodok  have bows

Click to expand...

I agree

BananaBob said:

looks like a very nice map with a different gameplay then the others but i think sarrads vs swadia would be better the rhodok vs swadia cause swadia and sarrads looks more different. Although it would add a bit of "crusaders" feeling. And think about that ether swadia nor rhodok  have bows

Click to expand...

Swadia vs rhoddok for me is cavalry vs infantry = mountains vs flat terrain. Because both faction originally have good Xbowmans (and I do not want Xbowmans training to make my mercenaries company idea more realistic and attractive) I can take it away from them without changing to much.

How much I like "crusaders feeling" sarrads vs swadia are preatty the same with few twicks plus sarrads have the edge with their archery and fast horses. [I recently betrayed swadia in native and found out that sarranids are the best option for horseman]
I like to see more "face to face" combat with archery as support not main threat.

Quick list of what faction should have at their disposal:

Swadia:
- horse armor
- 2h swords
- long lances
- flat terrain
- training: lord/MAA/seargent/lancer/huntsman/militia

Rhoddok:
- cleavers
- polearms
- hills
- training: lord/MAA/seargent/footman/huntsman/militia 

Just to add Nords:

- NO HORSES
- 2h axes
- long and short bow
- island
- training: Lord,MAA,Seargant,Archer,Huntsman,Sailor,Militia

ALL POSTS UNTIL THIS POINT ARE ARCHIEVE
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I love making castles 
..especially tinny tiny ones..

well. It seams as a good sollution:

I get in this barn area (closed by ai.barrier exept door) up to 6 animals which is more than enough for a butcher. I have placed here (inside of the barn) one herd spawn (var6 - calf) and one calf import. Player can wait or speed it up by buying calfs. Once you get 3 cows you can butcher one of them, or you can wait a bit longer and invite friends for grand butchering day. BTW my first attempt failed as I made corral to small. Cows have died. This size seams to be the best as it produce enough cows for industry yet not over populate server with animals.

not bad