RevTKS

Join Date 07/2007

Wish List

Some things I'd like to see before 2.0 or last update

I just wanted to beg and/or grovel

for some things for TotA before the 2.0 update is released. Basically, I would like to see the game opened up as much as possible so that it can be customized, tweaked, and/or modded as easily as possible for the upcoming time when we will be left 'on our own' until GalCiv III is released. (The editors you have provided have been a great step towards this end already...thank you!)

You guys have created a great game that is deep, complex, and feature rich. Before it's left in 'final form' in the 2.0 (or later update) it would be great if those of us who aren't programmers/coders have easy access to parts of the game so that we can tinker and that those who are more skilled will have an easier time making mods for the rest of us.

Basically, anything that you guys can add a menu option for, or a front end to, or an editor that allows us to change the way the game works I would hope that you would. Don't worry about Balance or concepts such as that, the point is to let the player access these things and be able to see how it affects the game. It lets those who want to play a certain style or play through 'what if' scenarios do that and gives freedom for modding and such as well.

I have a list of some things below but I am sure that there are many more. Hopefully, most things could simply be added with a menu option.

Wishlist:

Add a way to adjust the percentage used by the Military/Social/Research sliders. Right now it uses 100% as the default limit but it could be set to a range of 1% to 300% to allow for almost no usage of resources to complete usage at 300%. (Don't overthink the reasons why, it allows for tinkering

.

Add a way for the 20,000bc limit/cap on income (after which penalties to reduce income are applied) to be edited...including a way to simply have no cap if so desired.

Create an editor for invasion tactics and anomolies.

Add an option to set starting cash amounts for the player and AI opponents.

Add options for changing Planet Quality settings when starting a game. Preferably a range 0 - 72, and allowing for certain planet types to be allowed/prohibited. For instance allow/prohibit Barren Worlds.

Throw in any .png images that you guys have 'lying around' that are not already included in the game that could be used by modders (like me) who have no artistic ability but like to create items and techs. For example, when I create a planet improvement, I have to pick my icons from the existing Gfx art resources in the game. I generally use an item from another race so that it doesn't duplicate for me during the game. But, it would be cool if the directories also had graphics that had been created, but aren't in the game for whatever reason, and then we could use those as well. (To go even further, when the new starbase icon was created, just leave the old one in the directory for those of us who might use it for something else.)

If it would be too huge, then add it as a seperate D/L in the Galactic Library.

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Add a way to adjust the percentage used by the Military/Social/Research sliders. Right now it uses 100% as the default limit but it could be set to a range of 1% to 300% to allow for almost no usage of resources to complete usage at 300%. (Don't overthink the reasons why, it allows for tinkering

eh?

How could you allocate more than 100% of your people? Perhaps I'm just missing what your asking for lol.

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I just want it to quit crashing. Think I may go back to Dark Avatar and turn off the music.

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I just want it to quit crashing. Think I may go back to Dark Avatar and turn off the music.

Have you posted any debugg.err or sent in a Smart Exception report to try and find out what causes your crashes?

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Umm, 100 percent is the maximum. You can have Military be 100 percent now, or social or research. But if any of these is 100 percent, then there is 0 percent left over.

What you are asking is to be able to literally triple your alloted spending. That is a cheat and you could use the cheats to do something very similar now.

Perhaps I am missing something too, but how can you have 300 percent of your spending?

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Add a way for the 20,000bc limit/cap on income (after which penalties to reduce income are applied) to be edited...including a way to simply have no cap if so desired.

another cheat that you can do now

Add an option to set starting cash amounts for the player and AI opponents.

see above

Add options for changing Planet Quality settings when starting a game. Preferably a range 0 - 72, and allowing for certain planet types to be allowed/prohibited. For instance allow/prohibit Barren Worlds.

Dude, this is cheating too

You start a game, see that you have the normal class 12 planet and figure, "Nah, I think I'd rather have a class 72?!" But, you can create your own maps now with the PQs of your choice, or you can cheat using the cheat mode.

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In response to some of the comments so far:

1. I am not aware of a cheat that circumvents the 20,000bc hard-coded income limit...but I would like to have it as a feature.

2. I am not aware of a cheat that allows us to give the AI a set amount of cash at the start of the game either. I can get cash for myself with a cheat...but I have to use diplomacy to give money, which as you might expect, boosts my standing with other races if I just start handing out cash. Basically, it would just be nice to be able to change the starting cash for everyone at game start.

3. "Add options for changing Planet Quality settings when starting a game. Preferably a range 0 - 72, and allowing for certain planet types to be allowed/prohibited. For instance allow/prohibit Barren Worlds.

Dude, this is cheating too You start a game, see that you have the normal class 12 planet and figure, "Nah, I think I'd rather have a class 72?!" But, you can create your own maps now with the PQs of your choice, or you can cheat using the cheat mode."

3. (response) You are obsessed with this 'cheating' comment. I don't want to custom edit a map and create a galaxy's worth of PQ's everytime I want to play a game with different PQ's. I enjoy the random editor and I would love to see more control over the type of galaxy it creates. I also don't want to have to use the cheat mode to modify every planet on the map, especially since you can't edit what you can't see in the fog of war. The point is to allow us to envision different galaxies and give us the ability to make them come alive without having to be a coder or serious modder. Some of us have day jobs, and just love to be able to tinker around without getting a Ph.D. in GalCiv. (Although that actually sounds like a fun degree

)

So, I'm not looking for a way to 'cheat' I'm just looking for the ability to customize the game even more than I can now, and without having to edit maps or change individual items during the game.

Modding is about changing something that exists into something a bit different, or more to one's own liking. This is a great game, and before the Devs wrap up on the final update I just think it would be even better for all of us with as much customization built into the game as is feasible.

If people are playing the game, modding the game, and tinkering with it while the developers are off making other great games...there should be a happy audience waiting for GalCiv 3 when it comes out. I admit I'm already looking forward to it

And if it makes any difference to the Devs...I'd buy another expansion to GalCiv to get this stuff...I've bought the entire GalCiv lineup so far and have loved it.

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If you want the ability to custom whatever planets you want without having to put in much work, --- since you have a day job and all

--- use the map editor and randomize the stuff untill you find whatever setup you like, then ONLY fine tune any PQ you want with the simple clicks of a mouse. It doesn't get any easier than that and your work life will not suffer.

2. I am not aware of a cheat that allows us to give the AI a set amount of cash at the start of the game either. I can get cash for myself with a cheat...but I have to use diplomacy to give money, which as you might expect, boosts my standing with other races if I just start handing out cash. Basically, it would just be nice to be able to change the starting cash for everyone at game start.

In your first post I did not notice you meant the AI, my bad for the confusion there.

Right now it uses 100% as the default limit but it could be set to a range of 1% to 300% to allow for almost no usage of resources to complete usage at 300%.

What?

You are obsessed with this 'cheating' comment.

I emphasized the cheating because of all the options you can do using them. I don't care if you cheat, I doubt any one does, you shouldn't feel that this is some sort of knock on you. You have to think outside the box a bit to get the exact results that you want, but there are good options via the cheats and current modding abilities out there.

1. I am not aware of a cheat that circumvents the 20,000bc hard-coded income limit...but I would like to have it as a feature.

You can easily mod this too, its listed somewhere in these forums, I'll try and find it. (edit) The solution that was out there turns out to be a bad idea, so I guess there is not way around this issue. All I can say is to use the "Add 10,000 BC" cheat

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use the map editor and randomize the stuff untill you find whatever setup you like, then ONLY fine tune any PQ you want with the simple clicks of a mouse. It doesn't get any easier than that and your work life will not suffer.

Why would I want to edit a map by hand, when the game can generate a random galaxy? I'm just asking for the ability to provide more parameters on what type of galaxy the game creates. Selecting a few options and letting the computer do the work is much easier than opening a map, futzing around until I like it, and then saving it again and firing up the game.

Right now it uses 100% as the default limit but it could be set to a range of 1% to 300% to allow for almost no usage of resources to complete usage at 300%. What?

Basically the sliders represent Military Production, Social Production, and Research. There are some individuals who propose allowing the use of 100% of EACH of the three...100% Military, 100% Social, and 100% Research. Currently in the game, that is not possible and there are perfectly good reasons for the limit. If someone wanted to see what it was like to play without those limits, it would be nice to be able to do so.

So allowing a range of use from 0% to 300% would allow someone to adjust how much production was available to the player.

You see, the caps/limits that are currently in the game are there for play balance reasons and that is perfectly fine.

But lets imagine that someone wants to change how the game is played, and wants to alter the balances that are in place. I am just advocating that anything that can be opened up for change by players, modders, and goofballs like me would be a benefit.

Let's also not forget, this game is coming to the end of it's production life cycle. At some point here in the near future: No more patches, no more updates. So, I would just like to see the game opened up as much as possible before it's put to rest.

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Currently in the game, that is not possible and there are perfectly good reasons for the limit.

Like the existence of the production slider...

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Regarding the feature that lets us choose planet quality settings - why the resistance? What is so wrong with that? Didn't Master of Orion allow you to alter the average quality of habitable planets???

Yes, a PQ slider should DEFINITELY be added! Nothing to do with cheating, it should effect all planets and all homeworlds equally.

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Currently in the game, that is not possible and there are perfectly good reasons for the limit.Like the existence of the production slider...

*sigh* Even with the Production slider at 100%, you cannot max out all three of the other sliders.

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*sigh* Even with the Production slider at 100%, you cannot max out all three of the other sliders.

No, you can't - and that is exactly the point. It forces you to make a strategic decision on how you want to allocate your available resources.

If all 3 could be set to 100% individually, it would take away that element of the strategy - as everyone would just leave all 3 on 100% all the time.

If you really want to do it, it is dead easy - just edit planetimprovements.xml, make each research building generate 3 times as many RP, each factory generate 6 times as many PP, and set your sliders to 33/33/34 - job done, facility already exists to mod it into the game with nothing more complex than a text editor.

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*sigh* Even with the Production slider at 100%, you cannot max out all three of the other sliders.

That is because those three sliders are where you put your people you have on the planet. It's not exactly the same as your wish to have them each go to 100% because in your analogy, then if you didn't have 100% in a bar, then you'd have people sitting around eating cake. The current system allocates everyone on the planet as long as that production slider is at 100%.

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I'm not trying to debate whether the sliders represent people, or robots, or giraffes...

The sliders are just a game mechanic and I would like to be able to adjust more of the game mechanics.

Anyway, it's just one example...I'm just talking about more ways to customize the game.

Not sure why so many people are missing the point here. (You mean he just wants to be able to customize the game parameters and game mechanics through menu options rather than editing files? Oh...he's a moron. He just needs to edit some files.)

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One of the devs (not going to drop the name) has said on a few occasions that adding more sliders and options will eventually just make it turn into a huge pile of options and far less game.

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One of the devs (not going to drop the name) has said on a few occasions that adding more sliders and options will eventually just make it turn into a huge pile of options and far less game.

...then give me 'a huge pile of options' to tinker with. The 'game' will have been finished and available for anyone and everyone who wants to pay and play (including me). I will be able to play the finished and balanced vision of the creators anytime I want. However, it would be nice to be able to muck around with the balance and vision and all that rot if I want to.

Did I mention the updates are gonna stop? Did I mention the game will become static from an official standpoint? Did I mention I'm just asking *nicely* for a few things, IF they can be done within reasonable means and wouldn't drive the devs crazy?

For the love of all that is digital, I am just begging them to make as many options available and easily accessible as possible so that the game might provide just that much more enjoyment to those of us who love this game. If they don't want to...or if it isn't practical...I'll just be out of luck.

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One of the devs (not going to drop the name) has said on a few occasions that adding more sliders and options will eventually just make it turn into a huge pile of options and far less game.

That's not a user-modification or player friendly attitude at all. Actually saying that is just completely stupid, and a slap in the face of other games that provide as many options as possible. Can't say I'm not surprised though. How is that "less game"? lol There's nothing wrong with letting players decide how the game is played.

Even if the "options" to tinker with (I agree with RevTKS) are just a ton more xml files rather than sliders and settings ingame, that'll make most people happy. And for crying out loud, let modders create or modify the AI behavior somehow... basic scripting, xml settings, whatever's possible.

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