This patch intrdouces a new technology that promotes mercenaries to advanced rank but increases their training time by 20%, and a technology specific for Carthage that promotes advanced rank mercenaries to elite rank but increases their training time by another 30%.
Details
Details
Being classified as mercenary, besides the 50% of food cost replaced with metal cost, is sign of vetaran soldiers serving their experience to a faction, which should be seen as a peculiarity and not as a ballast.
Units lost during a game session are enough to keep players from prefer an army of mercenaries instead of investing metal in more powerful units.
Diff Detail
Diff Detail
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- rP 0 A.D. Public Repository
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| binaries/data/mods/public/simulation/data/technologies/upgrade_rank_advanced_mercenary.json | ||
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| 4 ↗ | (On Diff #1843) | spaces before } |
| binaries/data/mods/public/simulation/data/technologies/upgrade_rank_advanced_mercenary.json | ||
|---|---|---|
| 4 ↗ | (On Diff #1843) | again |
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Is it intended that all already produced mercenaries will rank up to advanced when this tech is researched?
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actually yes.
I guess there is no way to let an eventually affected structure to train advanced mercenaries since the applymodification doesn't replace strings as far as i know.
Also, the same side effect applies when the Agoge technology is researched for sparta and SIlver Shield technology is researched for Macedonians.
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The tech description reads like only newly produced once will be at advanced rank. So I'd either change the tech description or the tech functionality.
(Won't be this a way to work around the increased train time? Just first produce the mercs and then research the tech...)
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Yes.
For the second comment it's often a problem with self balancing techs :) (cost vs bonus) but I m fine with that.
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Sounds ok, simple and clear enough, letting choice to player. I would commit that.
Other opinions? @mimo @scythetwirler @elexis ?
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Persians also have mercenaries, but those are champions, so okay.
Tested and works. Checked all templates and complete.
Why isn't the elite rank tech added? If it's OP, make it really expensive.
Created new icons for both techs.
That arrow might be hard to notice if scaled down for the tech panel. Should have more contrast or a different color (golden?) ideally. But I guess the artist goes on vacation next week.
The numbers were confirmed by borg- right? I recall him playing two games against Grugnas with this patch.
| binaries/data/mods/public/simulation/data/technologies/upgrade_rank_advanced_mercenary.json | ||
|---|---|---|
| 9 ↗ | (On Diff #1904) | get -> require |
| 14 ↗ | (On Diff #1904) | indeed upgradearmoy sounds better than techcomplete |
| 4 ↗ | (On Diff #1843) | {
"all": [
{ "tech": "phase_town" },
{ "any": [{ "civ": "athen" }, { "civ": "cart" }, { "civ": "mace" }, { "civ": "ptol" }, { "civ": "sele" }] }
]
},? |
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There was a discussion about introducing the elite rank tech added as Carthaginian only peculiarity tech.
The reason of this choice is because Carthaginians, despite they inspired the introduction of the patch and historically notorious for their wealth and mercenaries usage, citizen soldiers mercenaries can be trained very easy because there isn't any building limit on buildings capable to train mercenary citizen soldiers.
The Elite Mercenaries tech would be a peculiarity of Carthage only as civ bonus and eventually followed by an hero to promote a mercenary based strategy.
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Elite Mercenaries tech added for Carthage only for 500 wood 500 metal.
Mercenaries train 50% slower than basic units and rise mercenaries metal cost by 40%.
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I am sorry for that. The main idea was to upload it once the Advanced rank Tech was accepted and commited since it it relies on this diff.
I can assure you that there will not be any other change on this diff though.
| binaries/data/mods/public/simulation/data/technologies/upgrade_rank_elite_mercenary.json | ||
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| 2 ↗ | (On Diff #2037) | names of tech are both ok but a bit inconsistent |
| 5 ↗ | (On Diff #2037) | Ok. There is two kind of techs:
That one would be of the first type. I really like that kind of techs, but they should be rare (prone to mess, hard to maintain or to balance...). Moreover doing so we decide to change the design (giving a speacial tech or a civ bonus). Why not (it makes sense), but it should be acted as such. |
| 13 ↗ | (On Diff #2037) | 1.2 * 1.5 = 1.8 |
| 14 ↗ | (On Diff #2037) | As you spend the metal on the techs, it's perhaps useless. |
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| binaries/data/mods/public/simulation/data/technologies/upgrade_rank_elite_mercenary.json | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2 ↗ | (On Diff #2037) | the intended name was "Art of War" |
| 13 ↗ | (On Diff #2037) | The affecting target logic is different from the tech advanced/elite_unit_bonus. |
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technology moved in the proper folder since it is a civ bonus. Technology name changed into "Art of War".
Extra metal cost removed because, as fatherbushido pointed out, there is already a consistent amount of metal investend into the technologies research, moreover the "Art of War" technology requires City phase which foresee metal usage.
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(One could also differentiate the techs for the 3 embassies for carth...).
I will suggest to wait a bit finally and include that in a more global thing.
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My plan would be to extend the Embassy count limit from 2 to 3 and limit the single civ embassy to 1 entity only in order to have 3 different embassies with part of their cost in metal.
They would share the same promoting mercenaries technology because units trained may change due the situation while research 3(or even 6) different technologies would be probably too costly.
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ok, nice ;-) (many people have plans I guess :p)
| binaries/data/mods/public/simulation/data/technologies/upgrade_rank_advanced_mercenary.json | ||
|---|---|---|
| 12 ↗ | (On Diff #2350) | (I guess we don't really need the second affects) |
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Hannibals icon is just too noticeably a copy of the tower upgrade icon and the arrow is almost invisible ingame. So I'd rather use the unused icon in your patch. Other than that it's still correct and complete as mentioned above.
As noted by others, we can first train all units and then upgrade them, but that has the disadvantage to the player that he might lose them in an early surprise battle.
A good thing that the tech choice offers is keeping the basic mercenary actors present.