Hello all,



I created some times ago a mod for CIV4. The idea was to have only one civ, that would be shaped by the techs you would research (so instead of choosing the "french", or "germans", or whatever, you would have a civilisation that would be a forest civ, with agriculture, wheel, and no iron knowledge, for example...). All research were available from start, but researching a tech would randomly remove another tech, not yet discovered. So in the end, no two civs were alike.



I would like to do this, but before I sink my nose into all this, I would like to know:

Is it possible to have a cost increase within the same era ? Like the first tech I research cost 100, the second 110, and so on ?

Is it possible to randomly remove available techs once one is researched ?

Would it be possible to remove almost everythings, and start with one "naked" civ ? (no predetermined traits, techs, units, and so on...)

I read rapidly the modding manual, XML seems a little small as far as scripting possibilities goes.

I am looking for "educated" answers, a "possibly" won't really help I guess :-).



Thanks in advance people.

I'll answer the one I know...

cromcrom wrote:
Is it possible to have a cost increase within the same era ? Like the first tech I research cost 100, the second 110, and so on ?

Yes, tech costs are entirely formulaic and is currently based on the number of research techs and an Era modifier.

Great, thanks a lot :-)

Is it possible to randomly remove available techs once one is researched ?

Actualy working on tech, I see no way to do this.

I use a "discard prerequisite" and remove cityimprovements after one other improvement was build, it work well. Should be possible to do with tech, but not randomly.



Would it be possible to remove almost everythings, and start with one "naked" civ ? (no predetermined traits, techs, units, and so on...)

Maybe can be done if build a new faction from scratch, and give it near nothing. But i don't know how to make new factions and how much work and time it take.

Ok, thanks a lot for the fast answers. I don't think I will give it a try then.

I wish there was a LUA built moddable strategy game somewhere... Awww, well.

However, this game is great, and Amplitude rocks.

On les aura !

Hello, I propose you to mod some stuff on EL, starting with something.

You can use the tool I made (i will release soon a new version with more improvement)



-- french --

salut, vu que tu as l'air français.

Je te conseille de commencer par quelque chose pour mettre le pied à l'étrier.

En ce moment je fais un mod sur les technologies, donc j'ai une vision là dessus. Le faire seul n'est pas évident.

J'ai découpé ça en plusieurs partie :

- pour le moment je fais tout ce qui concerne les techs de ressources, tout est planifié, y'a plus qu'à. Je peux difficillement partager le travail la dessus car il faut une certaine méthode, que j'ai avec EL splitter.

- j'ai commencé à imaginer un peu les techs concernant le militaire, rien de très avancé avec un système de "voies". Par exemple "la voie du chasseur" ou "la voie du guerrier" donnant des bonus spécifiques. Peut être les restreindre à des factions ou faire que lorsqu'une voie est choisie elle en invalide d'autres. mais rien de plus que des bonus traditionnel. J'utiliserais aussi une méthode approprié avec ELS, permettant de modder très rapidement (à base de copier coller et d'ajustements).

- Je n'ai rien concernant l'ajout éventuel d'unité, d'items, de capacités. Ce serait sympa par exemple de débloquer des armes nouvelles avec les capacités du mod WM fait par un des modders ici , dont les capacités d'armes sont vraiment cool.

Vite fait, je te montre à quoi ressemble un de mes fichiers de travail (cette tech fonctionne, testée).

[CODE]







?EEE?=1

?NNN?=EnchanteurHays

?DDD?=Era 1 Hays : CityFood + 4, CityFood x 1.1 during Summer, Science cost halfed



@path=AI\AIParameters[CityImprovement].xml













@path=AI\AIParameters[Technology_Era?EEE?].xml















@path=Gui\GuiElements[CityImprovement].xml







%CityImprovement?NNN?Description













@path=Gui\GuiElements[Technology].xml







%TechnologyDefinition?NNN?Description













@path=Localization\english\EF_Localization_Assets_Locales.xml



Hays

Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut, dried, and stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for grazing animals such as cattle, horses, goats, rabbits, and sheep. Hay can be use at Winter but not produce during it.



Herbaceous Drying

Herbaceous Drying allow some archaic traditional agriculture uses, like Hays and Windmill.



@path=Localization\french\EF_Localization_Assets_Locales.xml



Meules de foin

Les meules de foin sont de l'herbe, des légumes ou autres plantes coupées, séchées et roulées, stockées pour nourrir des animaux comme les chevaux, les moutons, les chèvres ou les lapins. Elles peuvent être utilisées en Hiver mais pas produites pendant.



Séchage d'herbes

Le séchage végétal permet quelques utilisations agricoles traditionnelles et archaiques, comme les meules de foin et les moulins.



@path=Simulation\DepartmentOfIndustry+Constructibles[CityImprovement].xml







40

.../ClassEmpire,AffinityBrokenLords

../ClassCity/CityImprovement?NNN?

Technology?NNN?





@path=Simulation\DepartmentOfScience+Constructibles[Era?EEE?Technology].xml









$Property(EmpireTypeMajor/ClassResearch:TechnologyCost) * 0.5 * $Property(EmpireTypeMajor/ClassResearch:Era?EEE?CostMultiplier)

EmpireTypeMajor/ClassResearch,TechnologyEra?EEE?

EmpireTypeMajor,AffinityBrokenLords





@path=Simulation\SimulationDescriptors[CityImprovement].xml

















@path=Simulation\SimulationDescriptors[Technology].xml











?UUU?=EnchanteurGoldenWindmill

?DDD?=Era 1 Golden Windmill : CityFood + 10 during winter, Exploitation District food x 0.25, Unique, Need Hays Tech



@path=AI\AIParameters[CityImprovement].xml















@path=Gui\GuiElements[CityImprovement].xml







%CityImprovement?UUU?Description













@path=Localization\english\EF_Localization_Assets_Locales.xml



Golden Windmill

This famous windmill have been created in order to exploit strong winter winds. Unfortunately, the inventor perished, decapitated by a blade of the mill much powerfull than expected. The invention never could be reproducted.



@path=Localization\french\EF_Localization_Assets_Locales.xml



Moulin doré

Ce moulin célèbre a été créé pour profiter des forts vents d'hiver. Hélas son inventeur a péri décapité par une des pales du moulin qui tournait plus vite que prévu, et son invention n'a pu être reproduite.



@path=Simulation\DepartmentOfIndustry+Constructibles[CityImprovement].xml









80

.../ClassEmpire,AffinityBrokenLords

.../ClassEmpire/Uniques,CityImprovement?UUU?

.../ClassEmpire/ClassCity/CityImprovement?UUU?

Technology?NNN?

$Count(../ClassEmpire/ClassCity) le 1

CityImprovement?UUU?





@path=Simulation\SimulationDescriptors[CityImprovement].xml



















[/CODE]

Merci beaucoup Enchanteur, pour ces infos, mais comme je le disais, le mod que j'aimerai créer repose sur au moins trois systèmes:

Une civilisation de base, qui se differenciera dans le jeu au fur et a mesure, en fonction des technologies découvertes par le joueur.

Pour simuler ça et assurer une rejouabilité a priori extreme, le principal systeme est celui de technologies qui disparaissent aléatoirement.

Ces deux éléments seraient a priori très difficiles a faire, sinon impossible.

enfin, pour assurer la tenue du systeme sur le long terme, le cout en recherche des technologies qui augmente au fur et a mesure, ce qui serait, en revanche, facile à faire. Donc bon, 1/3 c'est pas assez pour moi pour me lancer dans l'aventure (car le modding est une sacré aventure, j'en ai plusieurs "gros" a mon actif...)



Je ne vais donc pas me lancer dans l'aventure :-)

Bonne chance a toi pour ton mod en tout cas, et merci pour les outils que tu mets a disposition, super état d'esprit :-)

Enchanteur, could you explain quickly for our English-speaking players what the bit of code you shared does exactly, and how it is to be used? Thanks!

Frogsquadron wrote:
Enchanteur, could you explain quickly for our English-speaking players what the bit of code you shared does exactly, and how it is to be used? Thanks!

Hello,



It's a pre-splitted file.

The file is automaticly splitted and dispatched in a mod files structures with tool EL splitter

/#/endless-legend/forum/15-modding/thread/5709-tool-endless-legend-splitter-xml



You can see in the file the use of variables (?NNN?) and paths.

So all tech + improvement is made in a single file when working on it, and automaticly copied in a EL mod files and folders with the tool.

I will update a new version with another major (and easy to do) improvement : custom path of exported files.

Actualy, i use it like this :

- i have a working folder where i do pre-split files

- I click on "split and dispatch"

- then the mod is generated in User General Content directly.



So the testing process is far easy, I can always work on pre-splited files, quickly dispatch it (one click on one button) and reload the mod in game (game stay open in no windowed).



You see in example code one of new technology I am working on.

I have done one, and after, copied it in others files and just change effect (simulatordescriptor), variable name ?NNN? definition, and made new pictures. Near nothing.

So I spendt time on first tech+improvement (but less time than doing the mod in EL files structures), and very quickly made the variant of the first tech. ANd no so much time, because I made this first working file by using the "collect and modelize" function on a existing tech of the game. I collected all infos on "food0" tech, and auto-generate a ready to work file, with ELS structure "all-in-one file". Without an all-in-one working file with auto text-remplacement (variables), it's near impossible to work quick and without errors.



For now I've made 11 new tech + 35 new improvements. Major part of time was spendt at pre-working phase : testing news possibility, use of $property, tutorial, understanding of existing. Working on picture take time too, it need to find pictures (deviantart or the like), and resize and crop it.

I used it before with Tinytrait mod, testing the tool.

I don't use the tool with HellFrost and WorldGenerator, because theses mods don't really need it. I've working on these when learning to mod EL. I'm still very noob at modding, many things I don't understand yet about functionnement of xml EL.

Thanks for the explanation.