We're still alive, and we're working!

Despite the fact that no posts have been posted here for a while, and it's been a long time since the last release, we are still working, and 0.8 is getting a little closer all the time.

The past versions of Brother Against Brother were done using the Unofficial Editor, but with the new version of M&B, we are switching over to python.  Even though python is a lot more powerful than the UE, it's also a lot more difficult to get rid of the Native stuff so we can work from scratch, so progress is kind of slow.  There is progress, however!

One new feature that I have recently implemented is desertion.  Unlike the deserters in Native, who rampage around like maniacs, and really are no different from bandits, our deserters will split off from larger parties and try to run home (and will, unless you stop them).  Despite the simplicity of this idea (it only takes about five or six lines of code), it is, I think, original to Brother Against Brother, and has never been seen before!

Some screenshots, to satisfy your curiosity:

First here is a Union Division, before anyone leaves them:


And here they are again, with two recruits running home at the top of the screen:



JHermes and I will keep you updated as Brother Against Brother slowly but surely progresses to version 0.8 .  Please keep giving us your suggestions and comments!

Nice. I'll get the new map to you in a bit.

Hmmm. what are the factors that contribute towards desertions? just random, set rate?

itd be cool if some of them became sympathizers instead of just deserting, i dont know how comen this was during the civil war, but generelly if you run away you get killed for treason, so running to the enemies lines and fighting for them would be more prefereble for some people.

maybe also have a mutiny battle before they desert, so the player could join in on one side or the other.

Here's the code that makes the desertions happen (for the Confederates - Union is the same except for the party names):


Basically it spawns a deserters party, whose size can be anywhere between 1 and 33, checks to see how many men are in it, removes that many men from the original party, and then tells the deserters to go to a random town of their country.  This way, as you level up, more and more men desert at once, which makes sense as the war goes on.  Later we might change the script to make it be affected by more factors, and have it so that deserters can leave any party, not just divisions, but this is how it is for the moment.  I'd like to have it later on so that your own men desert you, too, if you lead them into too many battles at difficult odds, or starve them or something.

Logan, as far as I know (I'm not an expert on the Civil War, so don't take this as gospel), the reason that most men deserted during the Civil War was because they missed their families and were sick of hardtack.   I doubt that there was much side-switching during the war either.  At the beginning at the war, at least, a lot of the soldiers were volunteers, so if they didn't like the side they were on, they probably wouldn't join.  Also, considering the fact that any deserters, for now at least, will be outnumbered by their mother party by at least 25 to 1, mutiny battles would be rather rare.  Does anyone out there know of any historical examples of mutiny during the Civil War?  It may have happened, but I just don't know about it.

And JHermes, please send me the models and things, too.  It's really hard to debug dialogs and stuff when you have to click through four or five "RGL error: mesh not found"s on each screen!

Also, if there's anyone who would like to do some more modeling, we could use some new map icons and healthbar and ammo GUI graphics for in-battle.

mkeller said:

Also, if there's anyone who would like to do some more modeling, we could use some new map icons and healthbar and ammo GUI graphics for in-battle.

Click to expand...

Tell me exactly what you want, some quick sketches or images etc, and ill have it done asap!

For the map icons, make a little ring of six houses with a flagpole and flag in the middle for the towns, we can add textures to make the flag Union or Confederate. For the troops, make groups of four infantrymen, four cavalrymen, single civilian, and one with two infantry and a cannon. The map icons should be pretty simple and low poly, just six-face cylinders for the arms and legs, etc. The cannon can just be five cylinders. The troop icons should have skeletal animation for a walking motion, just five or six frames is plenty though. Pretty much like the party icons in normal M&B, just without swords and with rifles.

More features...

Now you can waylay the deserters (if you can catch them), in which case they will plead for mercy.  You can then either be merciful and let them go, press them back into service, or execute them, as was customary.

I also have implemented a simple orders system in which you can command parties of lower rank than yourself.  Basically you can tell them to hold position, follow you, or go back to patrolling.  I haven't been able to test it yet (due to the fact that M&B completely shuts down whenever it can't find a model in conversation screens), but you ought to be able to have as many parties following you as you want.  This way you can really gang up on enemy parties!

No screenshots yet - I'll post some once the BRFs are finished.

Hint, hint. I know, I'm doing it. Slowly but surely.

Shouldn't desertion be based on morale? It doesn't make sense that there would be as many deserters when there's plenty of food and they're winning every battle as the opposite.

Morale is always low among conscripts, especially in the Civil War when they could all run a few miles back to home and then come back to the army later (which most didn't do)

mkeller said:

Logan, as far as I know (I'm not an expert on the Civil War, so don't take this as gospel), the reason that most men deserted during the Civil War was because they missed their families and were sick of hardtack.   I doubt that there was much side-switching during the war either.  At the beginning at the war, at least, a lot of the soldiers were volunteers, so if they didn't like the side they were on, they probably wouldn't join.

Click to expand...

Desertion is technically impossible for a volunteer. As far as I understand it, desertion mainly occurred by accident rather than design - soldiers becoming seperated from their unit in the confusion of battle and failing to return to it afterwards (although these may be put down as MIA). Those who did purposefully desert did so for a variety of reasons, from lack of supplies (such as footware) to simply wanting to go home.

After the outbreak of war there was no official side switching, at least not on a large basis (it's perfectly possible that the odd soldier serving on one side might be found on the other later on, but if it happened it wasn't recorded). The only real switching you see happened in the civilian or political population, usually in response to one side's fortunes rising or falling.

Mark, can you post the list of models I sent you so our crew can start working on the textures? We should be getting this done soon.

mkeller said:

There is progress, however!

Click to expand...

Hooray for progress

I played the version for 0.70X but got a little dissapointed, I've got good hopes for the new version tho.

*crazy-fan-shout*

I know this is an old thread, but I was wondering, what kind of health bar do you guys want?

this is intirelly my own opinion and has not been discussed with the rest of the team, but it would be cool i with the face of an officer from your team that slowly got more and more bruised and with a more and more down beaten face as you lost HP

That would be cool, but you can't refresh textures without reloading the scene. It might be possible with an animated texture, but I don't know. The healthbar uses normal loading bar graphics, and I don't know if we could pull that off.

everything can be done if you devote enough years for it but as im drunk right now (for the first time in 1 year 3 months and 28 days) its slightly difificult for me to come up with a solution ^^ (note to self, next time you go to town and get drunk, remember to bring a girl back home  )

Still working there guys? 

well, iv been afk for a while, working on some stuff for my portfolio, but im gonna make some more models in the comming week.