Re: design just ONE province
 

Thanks for all of the province suggestions. Now I would like to request that somebody (with the time and the want) build the province files for SemiRandom using some of these great ideas. I tried to design it so that anybody that can edit a map file, can build a gan file. I don't mind scripting some myself, but I have no intention of doing them all. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/image...ies/tongue.gif

A simple gan sample:
A more complex gan sample:
There are "how to's" in the readme here:
http://www.dom3minions.com/~semirand...ges/ReadMe.txt

and there is an email account dedicated to receiving uploads:
semirand -AT- dom3minions.com

and a place online for others to download your creations here:
http://www.dom3minions.com/~semirand/

Re: Ok, here\'s one that\'s ready to go.
 

My SemiRandom program currently recognizes the PATTERN volcano as any province with the "firesite" flag set, or if it finds a single mountain province with no mountain neighbors.

SR already recognizes island, lake, peninsula, lost, valley, coast & cave patterns. Feel free to have a look if it will be any help to you.

I have never seen the random map generator set cave terrain for a province. Maybe I am just really unlucky, so somebody correct me if I am wrong. That's why my SR project looks for this pattern and changes it to cave. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Re: Ok, here\'s one that\'s ready to go.
 

Ok, I've gone back and edited the provinces, so that they're a little more reasonable-or atleast, function a little bit better.

I'm still learning, and getting some of the meaner provinces "out of my system" as it were.

I'd like to suggest a rule for province design though, if I may?

If an artifact or unique unit/summons is present in the province then 1: there will be only 1 artifact and/or unique summons in that province, and 2: the province will be built thematically around that unique artifact/summons.

I think this is a good idea, because it imposes a limitation which will keep all the "eggs" from being in one "basket" and should improve province design (since if you add something unique, you have to build the province around that uniqueness, rather than adding a bunch of stuff purely for purposes best defined as "Monty Haul").

Gan files readme
 

Ballbarian, I really appreciate all your efforts, so thank you.

I promise I'll make a bunch of low-powered provinces eventually.

As per your Gan files readme (above) it's really difficult for me to read.

And this is coming from the master of writing really difficult things to read.

I'd be happy to edit it for you (I really can edit semi-grammatically when I put my mind to it) and send it to you in an email.

In the meantime, I've got the day off (and I earned it too, dammit) so I'm going to add as many provinces as I can come up with.

I'm willing to continue tweaking what (above provinces) I already have done too, if you don't think it would become too confusing and/or irritating.

A tough bit of pork
 

Name: Ferran Forest
Province type: forest
Poptype: hoburgs EA
Commander: Crystal Sorceress x 7
Bodyguards: 5 hog knights
Unit type: 93 Iron Pigs

Iron Woods
Forest of Truffles

Re: Gan files readme
 

I really like that as a rule of thumb.

That would be appreciated. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif
I would especially like to have had an html version with topic links within the document, but I have so many irons in the fire that I dare not add any more items to the list, or none of them will get finished.

(Sorry for going off-topic!)

Re: Gan files readme
 

The GAN files started out simple. Just a short text file of the map commands that should go into the .map. The only thing it did originally was find a location, and paste that file in on that number.

Im afraid that I made it go nuts. The random name files. And using the @ sign for a random. So instead of having the province always show up as "#landname Dragons Den" I could set a random of 3 names for "Dragons Den" "Draco Lair" "Here There Be" by saying
@3 landname
"Dragons Den"
"Draco Lair"
"Here There Be"

Once that worked it was obvious that any command could be done the same. You can create a small variety in the number of units, the type, the equipment, etc instead of creating a dozen copies of the file.
Surprise! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

You can even have a special prize show up only once in 5 times by something like
@5 additem
"Enchanted Shield"
"Enchanted Shield"
"Enchanted Shield"
"Enchanted Shield"
"Sun Shield"

Gnome sweet gnome
 

Name: Hills of the Watchers
Province type: hills
Commander: Firbolg armed with longbow of accuracy, black steel plate, black steel helm, boots of long stridesx12.
Bodyguards: 4 crushers
Unit type: 165 earth gnomes

Gem deposits

Re: Gan files readme
 

I guess some people are again going to tear their hair out now that I chime in, but for monsters 399 & 400, these are really the same one. 399 is the werewolf form of the skinshifter (400), so the first time those babies go to battle, the surviving ones will come out if it as skinshifters.

Edi

Another firbolg one
 

Name: Ancient Downs
Province type: forest
Commander: Firbolg with sword of sharpness, lightning bow, fire plate, horned helmet, boots of long strides x1
Commander: Firbolg with hammer of the mountains, black steel armour, black steel helm, boots of long strides, amulet of reinvigoration, ring of the warrior x1
Commander: Firbolg with gate-cleaver, jade armour, dragon helmet, boots of long strides, amulet of reinvigoration, bear claw talisman x1
Commander: Firbolg with Faithful, weightless tower shield, weightless scale mail, lightning bow, boots of long strides, amulet of magic-resistance x1
Commander: Firbolg with flambeau, hydra-skin armour, horror helmet, boots of long strides x1
Commander: Firbolg with sword of sharpness, black steel plate, black steel tower shield, boots of long strides, ring of fire, ring of frost x6
Commander: Firbolg with longbow of accuracy, black steel plate, black steel helm x16
Commander: Firbolg x25
Bodyguard: Watcher x5


The Cedar Forest
Firbolg fortress