Interestingly enough, because Medieval 1 and Shogun are sufficiently old and use sprites, I don't actually find them visually offensive compared to Rome now. I played Medieval 1 recently and didn't mind it at all. it was just different.
What I find interesting is that Medieval II can look so much better without an excessive drop in performance. When I tried Rome, it went to really small (40 strong) units as default and ran at ~ 40 during the tutorial. In Medieval II, I'm running with everything maxed and with Huge (200 strong) units, and the only time it drops below 30 are horrible clusterfuck sieges (When it drops to <10).
Yeah. There is a disctinct point at which someting happens. Either a massive drop in LOD or turns them to sprites or something. But its a huge increase in quality over Rome and runs well enough.
Yeah. There is a disctinct point at which someting happens. Either a massive drop in LOD or turns them to sprites or something. But its a huge increase in quality over Rome and runs well enough.
It's sprites. Sometimes you can catch them turned the wrong way and it looks really awkward.
For the most part, though, I never really notice the sprites unless I'm looking for it.
God I love that screenshot so much. Rome: Total War is quite possibly the only game I'm a master at, due to the AI being so bad I can exploit it without even trying to.
No clue why that other dude is on the wall. Rome is just bad like that. I have a few shots of Soldiers "running" (walking slowly with the icon saying they aren't) and chariots in a feeding frenzy.
MTW 2 is a huge step forward graphically. Mostly due to the effects, though the models and textures are better.
I bought MTW to bide my time before RTW came out, after seeing previews of it. Funny how it turned out being so much worse. On the plus side, MTW 1 was one of the best games I've ever played. 2 is a worthy sequel.
Pancake you need to use your Hochmeister more in battle, he is like a Chaos warrior transported to the Baltic to purge the heathens.
Let's compare!
Also, Stainless Steel make pikemen much more fun to use. The problem in vanilla is the pikemen on the fringes of the formation switch to their swords and put their pikes down which lets them promptly get slaughtered. SS fixes this by making them always hold onto their pikes, and now these boys are absolute beasts against all kinds of cavalry and most infantry. I've been playing as the HRE in a grand campaign and even when heavily outnumbered against the French or English they just break like water against rock when they hit the wall of pikes. Out of 150 pikemen per unit I rarely see their numbers drop below 130 - even when flanked.
Pikemen are a good balance even in MTW 2 vanilla, though. Compared to the walking deathmachines of Rome. Just set some muskets directly in front of them, so that the ends of the pikes are in front of the guns. Instant strong defensive position.
My unbeatable Rome army was a semi-circle of Phalanx, with cataphract archers on the flanks.
There's absolutely no chance that Games Workshop used real life armor as a guide when making its chaos warriors, as it does with 95% of its designs.
Well, strictly speaking they are demonically possessed. It give them some leeway when it comes to realism. :P
Actually, was Mark of Chaos any good? It looked a lot like Warhammer: Total War, and that alone makes it intriguing.
I played the demo. It was alright, but not interesting enough to make me want to buy the full version.
It's just that a new, standalone expansion came out with Orcs & Goblins and Dark Elves. Makes a man consider his options, you know?
Also, am I the only one looking forward to Hochmeister Siegfried descending into full blown alcoholism or utter madness? All good faction leaders in a military heavy campaign eventually become totally corrupt. Eutropius the Killer, the monster I mentioned earlier, had 3 Loyalty, but 10 Command Stars, 10 Influence, and 10 Management. He was also about 80 years old, so I kept him on a nicely profitable backwater in Sicily. I look forward to seeing Siegfried meet a similar fate.
My generals rarely get stats that high , as they rarely engage in combat themselves. My strategies are all heavy defense. The only times my generals engage in battle is if the shit has hit the fan (unlikely in single player), or I see juicy targets nearby and can't resist.
Well, in all fairness Eutropius was sitting in a Huge City with a Ludus Magna, so it stands to reason after over 50 turns he had some fairly impressive attributes.
I tend to use my Faction Leader in combat early during a campaign if only because his bodyguard replenishes very rapidly, becomes huge, and is generally very powerful in combat. It has ended badly occasionally, but flank charges with 50 or more strong units of elite cavalry tend to break just about anything.
Oh man when I played M2:TW my friend had set it up for me so that I had infinite actions on my turns. Basically I could amass awesome cities and armies before marching on to my enemies. I never knew how the "real" game played because of this, though. It was still fun with this cheat method because it felt more like an RTS, and the boredom of always winning was shattered by the Mongols, of course.
I'm going to have to pick up the expansion and try this out the real way.
I do also have Rome:TW, but only played a couple of tutorials before losing interest in it. I'm not sure if it was the overworld screens that did it, or the whole Rome thing, but I couldn't get into it. I kinda want to play it now after watching the Shotime Rome series, but the graphics... wow.
Well, in many factions, General's Bodyguard is the only strong offensive unit you have in the beginning. Though, even then I often just zerg with spearmen untill I can make a proper army.
Don't even know what was going on in that one. Probably should have saved the replay. Russia is kind of crappy. Must have been a siege.
Accursed time limits can defeat my tactics in some cases though, making you lose battles you'd otherwise win.
But they are necessary for defensive sieges, so it evens out.
Any PAers good at multiplayer, by the way? I'm kind of tired of beating my friends, and I'm sure many of you could defeat me.
Mark of Chaos was alright. I only played the demo and I didn't think it was fantastic. The only similarity it has with the total war series is that there are largish units. The gameplay is more conventional RTS in style.
Man, I haven't gotten my Total War: A Game Of Racial Hatred on in ages, I think I might need to give this a shot. I would have been all over it had it been released during my empire building phase, but I think I was immersed in tales of high adventure at the time.
The first thing this game will require is a faction based entirely around charging lines of Musketmen with axes.
The second thing it will require is the rule of spades. One shovel for every man in every fox hole on a Sunday. It's amazing how well a trench works against an idiot who's standing upright, given a rifle that you can aim- I imagine this game won't have any of those. It does whet my appetite for commanding a trench war, though. More guns, more guns!
I'm really looking forward to seeing how they handle this in play, I've never encountered a game set in this era that wasn't out of a history channel.
The first thing this game will require is a faction based entirely around charging lines of Musketmen with axes.
I'm really looking forward to seeing how they handle this in play, I've never encountered a game set in this era that wasn't out of a history channel.
Something like this faction
In all likelihood, England and Scotland will be united when the game starts in 1700 rather than be historically accurate and have them join together in 1707. I'm pretty confident that they would put the Jacobite Uprising in the game simply because the painting above kicks so much ass.
For those why are curious, Imperial Glory had a crack at doing a total war style Napoleonic game. It was decent. Not fantastic, not terrible, but was pretty fun. It was a really good game let down by poor controls and unwieldy combat. I paid $25 Australian for it and considered it well worth it.
Yaaahahahha! After a two hour installation and some amount of time spent failing miserably, I can safely say that this game is awesome.
Also I have executed a lot of Englishmen. Presumably my troops are drinking green beer and talking about leprechauns in celebration. Thank you, Pancake, you've encouraged the slaughter of thousands in yet another parallel universe.
Is there any way in Vanilla MTW2 to play as more the five factions given for the grand campaign? They left out some of the fun ones from MTW1, like the arab dudes and Danes and stuff.
Yep. All you have to do is win. That unlocks a whole mess of other races, including the Danes and Moors. Alternatively change the ini files. But I can't remember how to do that.
I recommend playing a short campaign in order to unlock the other races.
I gotta try this stainless steel mod. Does it still crash a lot?
My experience says yes. Crashes at faction selection, crashes at loading screens, and crashes when entering battles.
Fun stuff.
Shit, you running 6.1?
I really wanted to try it. Reminds me of how much fun I had with the Rome:Total Realism mod....
Then try it.
Thing is, having an awesome game ruined by desktop crashing bugs is the ultimate tease. The more fun it is, the more a crash in the middle of an awesome battle hurts.
Rome Total War has a lovely soundtrack, especially Melancholy. Jeff van Dyck.
*nods.
The somber music you get when you lose a battle is awesome. It felt especially bad when a city where I had been hoarding worthless family members was sacked and I lost about ten sons.
You can be Prussia. I'm totally going all Frederick William I on their asses.
Building me an army of tall men.
What, you're going to be a brutal, little fat Lutheran that executes his gay son's lover? :P
I actually get that reference (hope you got mine)...Postdamn Grenadiers, right? Didn't he kidnap a good number of them with a bunch being mentally retarded as well, due to gigantism?
Anyhow, if a British unit plays and/or sings "Harlec Men" while opposing Zulus who do traditional tribal chants I will never play another game in my life than Empire:Total War.
Posts
What I find interesting is that Medieval II can look so much better without an excessive drop in performance. When I tried Rome, it went to really small (40 strong) units as default and ran at ~ 40 during the tutorial. In Medieval II, I'm running with everything maxed and with Huge (200 strong) units, and the only time it drops below 30 are horrible clusterfuck sieges (When it drops to <10).
That bugs me, though, as I have weapons-grade silicone in this rig. I think I'll double-check my graphics settings...
...
/redundant post.
It's sprites. Sometimes you can catch them turned the wrong way and it looks really awkward.
For the most part, though, I never really notice the sprites unless I'm looking for it.
Yes, that second one is the same one I post over and over again.
Spain is a pretty tough game, you get rushed by the gauls immediately. Once you survive that, though, you get some decent units.
No clue why that other dude is on the wall. Rome is just bad like that. I have a few shots of Soldiers "running" (walking slowly with the icon saying they aren't) and chariots in a feeding frenzy.
MTW 2 is a huge step forward graphically. Mostly due to the effects, though the models and textures are better.
I bought MTW to bide my time before RTW came out, after seeing previews of it. Funny how it turned out being so much worse. On the plus side, MTW 1 was one of the best games I've ever played. 2 is a worthy sequel.
Just begun... the clone war has.
Let's compare!
Also, Stainless Steel make pikemen much more fun to use. The problem in vanilla is the pikemen on the fringes of the formation switch to their swords and put their pikes down which lets them promptly get slaughtered. SS fixes this by making them always hold onto their pikes, and now these boys are absolute beasts against all kinds of cavalry and most infantry. I've been playing as the HRE in a grand campaign and even when heavily outnumbered against the French or English they just break like water against rock when they hit the wall of pikes. Out of 150 pikemen per unit I rarely see their numbers drop below 130 - even when flanked.
It was a stick.
My unbeatable Rome army was a semi-circle of Phalanx, with cataphract archers on the flanks.
So, you posted the in game image and then some concept art. What's your point?
Well, strictly speaking they are demonically possessed. It give them some leeway when it comes to realism. :P
Actually, was Mark of Chaos any good? It looked a lot like Warhammer: Total War, and that alone makes it intriguing.
I played the demo. It was alright, but not interesting enough to make me want to buy the full version.
It's just that a new, standalone expansion came out with Orcs & Goblins and Dark Elves. Makes a man consider his options, you know?
Also, am I the only one looking forward to Hochmeister Siegfried descending into full blown alcoholism or utter madness? All good faction leaders in a military heavy campaign eventually become totally corrupt. Eutropius the Killer, the monster I mentioned earlier, had 3 Loyalty, but 10 Command Stars, 10 Influence, and 10 Management. He was also about 80 years old, so I kept him on a nicely profitable backwater in Sicily. I look forward to seeing Siegfried meet a similar fate.
I tend to use my Faction Leader in combat early during a campaign if only because his bodyguard replenishes very rapidly, becomes huge, and is generally very powerful in combat. It has ended badly occasionally, but flank charges with 50 or more strong units of elite cavalry tend to break just about anything.
I'm going to have to pick up the expansion and try this out the real way.
I do also have Rome:TW, but only played a couple of tutorials before losing interest in it. I'm not sure if it was the overworld screens that did it, or the whole Rome thing, but I couldn't get into it. I kinda want to play it now after watching the Shotime Rome series, but the graphics... wow.
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Don't even know what was going on in that one. Probably should have saved the replay. Russia is kind of crappy. Must have been a siege.
Accursed time limits can defeat my tactics in some cases though, making you lose battles you'd otherwise win.
Any PAers good at multiplayer, by the way? I'm kind of tired of beating my friends, and I'm sure many of you could defeat me.
Empire TW Teaser
http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=9F_ArkVG0jg
Empire TW Screenshots of land combat.
It was a stick.
The British are coming!
It'll have such totally different ways of battling though; I wonder how they'll deal with it.
The second thing it will require is the rule of spades. One shovel for every man in every fox hole on a Sunday. It's amazing how well a trench works against an idiot who's standing upright, given a rifle that you can aim- I imagine this game won't have any of those. It does whet my appetite for commanding a trench war, though. More guns, more guns!
I'm really looking forward to seeing how they handle this in play, I've never encountered a game set in this era that wasn't out of a history channel.
Something like this faction
In all likelihood, England and Scotland will be united when the game starts in 1700 rather than be historically accurate and have them join together in 1707. I'm pretty confident that they would put the Jacobite Uprising in the game simply because the painting above kicks so much ass.
It was a stick.
You can be Prussia. I'm totally going all Frederick William I on their asses.
Building me an army of tall men.
This gold edition sure does come with a lot of campaigns.
Pity about the manuals being on a cd, but I suppose I'll manage.
*nods.
Also I have executed a lot of Englishmen. Presumably my troops are drinking green beer and talking about leprechauns in celebration. Thank you, Pancake, you've encouraged the slaughter of thousands in yet another parallel universe.
I recommend playing a short campaign in order to unlock the other races.
Then highlight everything under "unlockable", cut it, and paste it under "playable."
Thing is, having an awesome game ruined by desktop crashing bugs is the ultimate tease. The more fun it is, the more a crash in the middle of an awesome battle hurts.
Margaret Thatcher
The somber music you get when you lose a battle is awesome. It felt especially bad when a city where I had been hoarding worthless family members was sacked and I lost about ten sons.
What, you're going to be a brutal, little fat Lutheran that executes his gay son's lover? :P
I actually get that reference (hope you got mine)...Postdamn Grenadiers, right? Didn't he kidnap a good number of them with a bunch being mentally retarded as well, due to gigantism?
Anyhow, if a British unit plays and/or sings "Harlec Men" while opposing Zulus who do traditional tribal chants I will never play another game in my life than Empire:Total War.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1csr0dxalpI&feature=related
Ever.
Margaret Thatcher