V0.01e – Bugfixes

Download link: http://www.filefactory.com/file/5l5hd5mee94h/n/WizardsAndWarlords001e_zip (.NET 4.0 requires as usual)

Some bug fixes, and more cheat options. You can now give yourself gold, mana, regiments and autocomplete research. Also, ranged weapons are used correctly in battles now.

V0.01d – World Creation Progress Bar and Minor Bugfixes

Download Link: http://www.filefactory.com/file/1llsyeoxscp5/n/WizardsAndWarlords001d_zip.
.NET 4.0 (required if you do not already have it): http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=17851

Working on an UI overhaul to make controlling armies and heroes more intuitive. Here is a small release in the meantime with some minor fixes and a sorely needed progress bar for world creation.

V0.01c Ready

Download Link: http://www.filefactory.com/file/2py55cm0ku0b/n/WizardsAndWarlords001c_zip (Once again, I apologize for using filefactory – but I won’t have my own server until late next week).

You need .NET 4.0 or higher to run this: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=17851

Turns out Microsoft has this nice package for using await/async in 4.0 targeted assembles: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29576. Yay! XP and Vista compatibility should be achieved now.

V0.01b Download Link

Here is the first version for public download. The usual disclaimer about it being early in development, etc. applies, so expect things to be unfinished and broken.

Using FileFactory for the download until I get my server up and running some time late next week. I know FileFactory sucks a bit, but bear with me until I get my infrastructure up
and running.

You need .NET Framework 4.5 installed for the game to run. Download link: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=30653

Note that Windows XP and Vista does not support .NET 4.5. So I am working on getting it to run with .NET 4.0 instead. This is a shame, 4.5 has some nice stuff, fx. async/await which I was using, but not being compatible with WinXP/Vista is a bit of an issue. I will post a new version as soon as this is fixed.

Game is here : FileFactory download link

Changes from last version
* More robust game start
* Cultures can no longer share names. (ie if there are 2 orc cultures, one or both will have an expanded name).
* Fixed a bunch of crashes
* New army graphics on the map (the shields)
* Cheat menu for revealing fog of war, basic culture info, pantheon and secret society info
* Slightly improved information about sites

Blog is Born

Ok, so this is my blog about the game I am developing. A snazzy website with forums and all would be cooler, but I really want to spend my time coding the game, and not making a website. I was a web developer many years ago, and I am glad to have that in the past.

I have posted about the game on a couple of sites, asking for testers to give me some feedback and a lot of people remarked they weren’t really comfortable running some random executable when I had no website or screenshots or anything to prove that it wasn’t just some trojan.

So here’s a website. I will post a couple of screenshots from the current build, and give the rundown of the feature set I am aiming for to call the game “done” for public release (I will release a beta before that):

• Turn-based 4x fantasy strategy game.
• Randomly generated worlds, with randomly generated races, cultures, pantheons and organizations.
• Different games modes. You can play as a warlord bent on conquest and empire building, a wizard with enigmatic goals or as a demigod trying to ascend to godhood.
• Research spells and rituals in wizard mode.
• As a warlord you research cultural and military advances, guiding the progress of your people so your armies grow mighty enough to conquer the world.
• As a demigod as you gain followers you can transform the world and its inhabitants.
• When playing as a wizard, you research spells and rituals of increasing power. Seek out ancient artifacts, forbidden tomes and forge pacts with otherplanar creatures.
• Defend against planar invasions, or take the fight to the alternate planes in search of arcane power, riches or military allies.
• Random events to spice up gameplay and help weave interesting stories.
• Hidden cults plot and scheme. Uncover their hidden agendas, fight their intrigues or even try to manipulate them into becoming your pawns.
• Hire mercenary sellswords, summon magical allies or raise regiments from your towns and castles. Enhance regiments with attachments and upgrades.
• Recruit mighty heroes and send them to explore dungeons, ancient ruins and forgotten temples – or place them in charge of your armies and conquer the realms.
• Ancient evils slumber. Beware waking them or taking too long to complete your goals. Defend your holdings against all consuming gigantic oozes, the mad ghoul king, eldritch horrors, or other ancient evils of great power.
• Customizable settings: size of the world, cultural and racial variety, planar invasions frequency, allowed modes (wizard, warlord, demigod), how dangerous the world is, and many other things.
• Synchronous and asynchronous multiplayer.
• 
  (click these for a bigger version)
  

  Here’s a dump of the cultures generated for this game (doesn’t contain race-specific data and data about the military units available to these cultures):

  Name: Viking Men
  TechLevel: Barbarian
  Government: Simple Feudal
  Philosophical Orientation: War
  Alignment: Neutral
  Traits: Berserkers, Piracy, MasterSeafarers

  Name: Hobgoblin
  TechLevel: Semi-Cultured
  Government: Tribal
  Philosophical Orientation: Conquest
  Alignment: Evil
  Traits: Shamanistic, Slavery, Demonology, AnimalAffinity:Dogs, WeaponPreference:Crossbow, WeaponPreference:Whip

  Name: Halflings
  TechLevel: Semi-Cultured
  Government: Aristocracy
  Philosophical Orientation: Peace
  Alignment: Good
  Traits: MasterFarmers, Wanderlust, Lucky, Epicurean, Music

  Name: Plantmen
  TechLevel: Semi-Cultured
  Government: Theocracy
  Philosophical Orientation: Conquest
  Alignment: Neutral
  Traits: WeaponPreference:Sword

  Name: Gnolls
  TechLevel: Barbarian
  Government: Tribal
  Philosophical Orientation: Conquest
  Alignment: Evil
  Traits: Demonology, Chaotic, HardyForagers, AnimalAffinity:Hyenodons, Slavery, ExoticWeapon:HookFlail, Shamanistic

  Name: Turtlemen
  TechLevel: Semi-Cultured
  Government: Theocracy
  Philosophical Orientation: Equilibrium
  Alignment: Evil
  Traits: MartialHonor, WeaponPreference:Polearm, WeaponPreference:Sword

  Name: Centaurs
  TechLevel: Barbarian
  Government: Tribal
  Philosophical Orientation: Equilibrium
  Alignment: Neutral
  Traits: Druidic, MartialHonor, Drunkards, WeaponPreference:Bow, WeaponPreference:Javelin, WeaponPreference:Sword, WeaponMastery:Bow

  Name: Gnolls
  TechLevel: Barbarian
  Government: Autocracy
  Philosophical Orientation: War
  Alignment: Evil
  Traits: Demonology, Chaotic, AnimalAffinity:Hyenodons, ExoticWeapon:HookFlail, HardyForagers, WeaponPreference:Bludgeoning, Shamanistic

  Name: Gnolls
  TechLevel: Barbarian
  Government: Tribal
  Philosophical Orientation: War
  Alignment: Evil
  Traits: Demonology, Chaotic

  Name: Ogres
  TechLevel: Primitive
  Government: Autocracy
  Philosophical Orientation: Conquest
  Alignment: Evil
  Traits: Stupid, Shamanistic, WeaponPreference:GreatWeapons, AnimalAffinity:Smilodon, Chaotic, MartialHonor

  As you can see this world has a lot of Gnolls and a lot of evil races that consort with demons. The Halflings are the single force of good in this world. Even the Turtlemen are evil.

  But yeah, more info to follow. If you wanna try and test the current build, send me a mail at ludorumrex@gmail.com. Please beware that this is still early in development, so there is lots of stuff which is ugly, uintuitive, broken and/or not fully implemented yet. But there is a lot happening behind the hood already which doesn’t show.

  One of the things I really want to get into the next build is save games, and a better battle simulation view. It is very bare bones and the simulation is a bit buggy with regiments moving a bit erraticly and usually forgetting to fire any missile weapons, as you will find if you stumble into a battle. Also some better descriptions and naming for the cultures, villages, cities and such. I will keep you posted.