Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Well there seems to be again, a massive spread of Posts regarding what people would like to see implemented in the next patch.

Please place your wishlist of ideas here so that the Developers can review and ascertain whether or not they can or will listen to our points and counterpoints.

I won't kick it off with the list of things missing that I wanted changed (well maybe one) but with a few things I would like.

This is in no way saying that we do not love Dominions 2, we only wish that it could be better. Please take this as our showing of affection by clearly thinking about and honestly providing feedback to things we feel as being issues or things that may or may not be able to be changed.

Forgive our ignorance of what you can and cannot accomplish in a reasonable amount of time and we will do our best to present our ideas in a courteous fashion.


Zen's List

Adjustable Replay Speed (for Alex!) [Yes I know you are looking into things to do with the cross-platform replay bug, but it must be said and I hope you understand that]
Dimming a Commander who has been given a command this turn (Akin to the "Hide Researchers" tab)
Fixing Caelum Cold Preference
Adding Spell Description to Sanguine Heritage
Update on Patching information or Work in Progress thread/webpage
Full Mod Tools (Yeah forgot about that one, but I'm sure someone would mention it if I didn't)

(I'm sure there will be more)

[ January 22, 2004, 06:42: Message edited by: Zen ]

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Top of my head request would be a way to disable available spells for combat. So that if you dont want your mage to cast the panic spell, you disable that one http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Well, I'll start off big, so maybe not for the next patch, but for some time in the future:

- "fire and attack" and "fire and hold" orders (or something along those lines) to make combo units more effective and lessen friendly fire

- better control over spellcasting (such as dividing spells into offensive, defensive, etc., or even individual ones, and being able to exclude ones you don't want to be cast; or a longer script list, e.g.)to lessen friendly fire and unnecessary protective spell casting

- more icons (such as very welcome and underannounced additions of recuperation, siege bonus and pillage bonus ones from this patch)

- fixing the "heroic quickness = abandon script" bug

- other single player improvements, which have already been covered many times

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

1. Ability to use a hostname in place of an IP address for hosting network games. Bingo! People with dynamic IP's can host games without having to contact players somehow with the new IP everytime it changes.

2. Lock or password protect pretenders once they have been uploaded to a network game. Had an issue recently where someone uploaded their pretender over top of the one belonging to the person playing that nation. Along comes turn 1 and 'uh-oh!' Atlantis can't play....

3. Make Mictlan a little more competitive?

4. Yet more pretender templates to choose from! Not a big deal, but you've done a great job with them so far, and variety is one of the strongest elements of this game. Why not add more? In a similar vein, am I the only one who might actually use the phoenix from time to time if it was just a little more magically powerful?

edit:
Almost forgot - Fix hosting so that scheduled hosting doesn't crash the server (apologies if this has been discussed in a thread that I missed)

[ January 22, 2004, 07:51: Message edited by: Xavier ]

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

- Fire and retreat (without scattering) command

- Balancing paralyse

- Fix 'nethack' bug

- Add some of the pretenders suggested in the 'Divine Serpent man only?' thread (preferably mine http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/tongue.gif )

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Hotkey (or sth) to see commander's troops (ONLY his troops) while commander is selected.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Balancewise:
-Caelum scales bug fix
-Paralyze & related bug fix

Interfacewise (might be quite harder, some stuff lost from Dom I):
-Speed replay & renaming Dom I style.
-Selecting a commander on main map & hitting the 'army' button should take you directly to said commander (which should be highlighted) & his troops, without needing to scroll the list to find him ...this would speed scripting a lot.


-Buttons to lock research in schools.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Interface:
Show Nation Name.
Combat spells Banned-list.
Unit Order:
Fire and Hold.
Repeat Last Cast.
Others:
Full MOD Tools.

---------------------------------

about "Adding Spell Description to Sanguine Heritage"...Djinn lamp no decription too ^^

Paralyze? Yes,its overrun a bit,but not a serious problem..

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

If possible, fix the bug where the game has to be windowed for the mouse to appear in Win98.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

First the radeon framerate bug wich is a pain in the armpit

Well maybe a new theme or something if you can fit it in the game

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Trying not to repeat what the others said:

AI: better usage of spells (e.g. not casting Iron Warrios on *yourself* after casting Invulnerability; not casting Barkskin four times in a row; not casting precision-boosting spells on melee friends, etc. etc.)
AI: have AI-opponents build strategic fortresses and choose which provinces to attack when better
AI: choice of targets improved (reduced casualities from friendly fire)

Interface: Research Screen: Let us click on a school and be able to increase / decrease research spent with the arrow keys and/or by typing in a number
Interface: A hotkey which enables you to see which units a selected commander has under its command as well as their battle orders. Best would be a hotkey which simply links to the “set battle orders” section of the “troop command /t/” screen.
Interface: A hotkey enabling you to see which spells the selected commander can cast. Best would be a shortcut key linking directly to "set battle orders / cast a specific spell". (Or anything other than select province, hit "t", set battle orders, cast specific spell.) Give us some way of seeing which spells a commander can cast SIMULTANEOUSLY with which gems s/he currently has, preferably without having to enter the battle orders screen and actually change the battle orders (by pressing “cast specific spell”).
Interface: a hotkey enabling you to see which items a commander can forge – even if not in an area with a lab. Best would be getting this information PLUS spellcasting information directly from the commander’s screen upon having him/her selected.
Interface: let us see the personal gems (if any) a commander has when setting battle orders. Nice here too would be not only letting us see them, but clicking in that field lets us exchange them too (direct link to f7/exchange).
Interface: Allow commanders to “forbid” casting particular spells, or at least limit their use
Interface: Enlarge the Exchange Gems screen to accommodate more commanders. Let us be able to click on the commanders and change the gem number per arrow key (or better: typing in numbers) rather than clicking.
Interface: Alchemy screen: Let us be able to click on the gems to change and change the gem number per arrow key (or better: typing in numbers) rather than clicking.
Interface: the f1-f# screens pop up no matter what screen is currently active (thus allowing me to change items from my treasury, for example, while inspecting my army).
Interface: Giving an item to a commander automatically switches items should a slot be filled (e.g. I do not need to put his helm in the lab first before giving him a new one).
Interface: Either make default or allow a setting which lets you switch between default "returned actions upon invalid command", i.e. when you have a mage forging a helm selected and make some other (invalid) command, she goes back to "defend" instead of forge that helm and you have to reset.

for me, NO new modding tools / new themes / new races would be required in my opinion until some of the above can be addressed.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

At least one theme for all the nations that don't have one yet. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon10.gif Ok, perhaps a tad unrealistic for the next patch, but eventually...

Complete mod tools, obviously. I'm particularly waiting for Magic Site modding and the ability to add more (preferably all) abilities to a unit, like spying, assassination, etc. These two are the main things the way when trying to create a new nation.

[ January 22, 2004, 14:13: Message edited by: Teraswaerto ]

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">This does not happen to everybody's system. Mine for example shows up at all times.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Nice list.

Fixing the AI is difficult since there is really only one. Do you feel its better for the AI if it never casts a spell which has already been cast? That would seem bad for spells like shards or fireball.

The problem with fortresses seems to be in the AI's budgeting. Alot of what people feel the AI should do (dispel globals, build castles, get more elite troops) would require shifting from a "best use of what I have" to a "save up for this" strategy. Plus the logic of castles is hard to figure. "A province I own which is surrounded by provinces I own and none of these provinces already have a castle". Does that feel workable?

Choice of targets? Do you mean that the AI should stop firing at anemy troops that are engaged with their own troops? Im not sure how that would be done to best improve overall combat scores. If the archers all shifted to rear enemies at that point then many of the shooter types would end up running forward thru the melee combat. The AI did switch to putting most of its archers on the flanks which helped alot.

The interface things look pretty good from what I see.

The themes and mods dont really apply. I get the impression that alot of the theme and mod stuff gets done because its fun. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif
Besides the person who would do most of the work on them is not the person who would do most of the work on the other stuff.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">R'lyeh doesn't really need one. About the only thing that comes to mind, perhaps, is a theme that is less sea-based. The trick is in not taking this already-fine nation and either weakening it, or making it even more powerful than it already is.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">A possible theme for R'Lyeh would be that they have enslaved some other race than the Atlantaens. Jotuns perhaps? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif and have left the impact crater for the land.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">R'lyeh doesn't really need one. About the only thing that comes to mind, perhaps, is a theme that is less sea-based. The trick is in not taking this already-fine nation and either weakening it, or making it even more powerful than it already is. </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">No nation "needs" a theme, but it's still nice that we have them. There's no reason for Marignon to have 3 themes while R'lyeh, Atlantis, Mictlan, Machaka, etc. have none.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">This does not happen to everybody's system. Mine for example shows up at all times. </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Does that disqualify it as a bug then?

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Didn't see it here, so I'll mention it: ability to name commanders! I've read the threads on why it wasn't implimented and I don't quite understand how unbalancing it is. Famous people (like Rock stars, Politicians, pro athletes, etc) "change their names" when they check into hotels and things like that. People even did this in war (reference Saddam Hussein and his 6 duplicates).

And besides all that I think it would be fun to have my pretender "Odin" with his prophet "Thor", commander "Heimdall", etc as opposed to what I have now: my pretender "Odin" with his mighty prophet....."Funde" and 5 commanders named "Duresdant". Is naming really so bad that it shouldn't be included at all?

Darryl

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

For SP only, the ability to save at any point. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

Leadman

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">If this is not difficult for them to implement I would love it not for the aesthetic value but because it would REALLY help keep track of who is leading whom. In midgame to lategame, I have 4-10 commanders with the same name, often in the same province, and that makes keeping track of things difficult.

If however this means them slaving away for 100 hours to implement, I would not put it high on the priority list.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

I'll give you a R'lyeh theme. I want to see the Illithid enslaved by the Abboleth! The Abboleth hero is one of the coolest things in the game.

Or an even more void-oriented Version. Like Soul Gate, say, where you have no normal units at all, but can summon or generate Void Monsters.

After all, the whole reason anybody wants a special dominion is for style. Lots and lots of style.

Also, I have to say I really want to be able to rename my commanders too, but I didn't think it was practical so I was reluctant to ask.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

A possible R'lyeh theme would be 'dreamtime' -- prior to the awakening and their very public emergence. Make it into a stealthy, less direct nation more reliant on often-stealthy cultists. ConVersion might be yielded through commander order, spell, or perhaps even dominion or global. A Feeblemind-causing aspect for the remaining Things would not go amiss.
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Bug: In XP, when something interrupts my session and forces me out (an IM or something), when I tab back in all the graphics are bizarre and I have to restart. Not a huge issue.

Gameplay: I, for one, would like to see precision values increased (or the effect of precision) because as it stands, my mages are generally useless. Even with multiple blade winds against super-packed, numerous troops I'm lucky to kill 3-4 enemy combatants. Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but it seems mages can't hit the broadside of a barn (even with Eagle Eyes, etc). Archers are also bad, but they are cheap enough to field a lot of (plus they should have a harder time of it I think, otherwise it would be exploitable).

Interface: I want a little icon on the map akin to forts and temples for labs. Would help me remember where I can drop off blood slaves, pick up items/gems, recruit mages, etc.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">I run XP and I've not had such a problem. It may be an issue with your video drivers ...

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

You know, Gibson's got a real point. Unless the enemy is really packed up in a big clump, it's a big area-effect spell, or it's one of those precision-100s, any attack spell is pretty much gauranteed to miss. It's made mages weak in combat and gravely weakened evocation. Who would ever bother casting Fireball when they could cast Raise Dead? At least you know your skeletons will have some effect, even if it's small.

On the other hand, raising the effect of precision in general will make archers really deadly. Why not just quietly upgrade all the mage units with a very high base precision rating? Then if they use, say, that eye of aiming thing they'll be gauranteed to get at least very close to where they're aiming - which only makes sense, right? Or you could make precision more effective for spells than weapons, but that seems like a much harder way to obtain the same effect to me.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Sounds like the same as when people drop the game t the bar using something like Alt-Tab. Try this... instead of left-clik to get it back try right-clik the box for the game, then choose "restore". It seems to work much better.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">THIS WOULD BE GREAT !
I hate watching my mages cast etheral shield or fire shield when all enemy units are retreating off the field.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

My wishes for next patch:

#1: Improve ranged-attack AI so it avoids risking own units in friendly fire!!!

#2: Modding enhancements. Especially, enable #clear, and enable adding and removing pretenders and heroes. Add commands #Leadership and #NewPathCost.

#3: Improve accuracy of low-accuracy units. Perhaps change mechanic so ranged attacks can land in the intended area, but not necessarily hit the unit in the square they appear to land in, so balance is ok but fire is not completely random, missing entire formations and hitting the wrong ones.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">THIS WOULD BE GREAT !
I hate watching my mages cast etheral shield or fire shield when all enemy units are retreating off the field. </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Yes, this would be great!

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Bugfixes:

1. Apparently (I haven't tried it) Call of the Wild can be successfully cast in non-forest provinces.

2. Servers sometimes become unconnectable after hosting, until there's some trivial intervention by a person. This makes unattended servers impractical.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

1) Fix effects of Paralyze
2) Fix penetration of Paralyze, etc.
3) Fix Caelum Cold->Heat bug
4) VCR controls for battle replay
5) improve modding, especially "clearing" units.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Oh yeah, these are quite important.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Just FYI, the Caelum bug has already been fixed up and will be in the next patch. There's been some tinkering with server stuff that I don't know the details of but it might fix the problems. Dunno 'bout the other stuff yet.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">I'd just like to add a further suggestion to the request above. Perhaps you could have two toggles on the list of spells that a mage can cast: one to prevent the mage from casting it, and another to prevent gems from being used on the spell.

If possible, the command script should override the first toggle so that you can force the mage to cast the spell a couple times anyways.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

[quote]Originally posted by Fire Wraith:

Quote:

I'd just like to add a further suggestion to the request above. Perhaps you could have two toggles on the list of spells that a mage can cast: one to prevent the mage from casting it, and another to prevent gems from being used on the spell. If possible, the command script should override the first toggle so that you can force the mage to cast the spell a couple times anyways.

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Wy not be able to compile an own lost of spells by using them avavible and the mage would only cast them

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">I run XP and I've not had such a problem. It may be an issue with your video drivers ... </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">I run in XP too, and I've seen it. To avoid it, instead of Alt-tabbing out, go to Windowed mode (Alt-Enter), then you'll be fine.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

Weeell, I'm sure the massive two-person development team have enough on their plates without strident demands from the audience, but I have occasionally wished we could seperate out the Messages at the start of a turn into categories, such as by having tabbed windows for each Category.

This really sprung to mind while playing Mictlan and having to wade through pages of bloodhunting reports to get to trivial little pieces of information such as the fact that my army had been crushed and the survivors were starving.

So if this were easily doable, suggested categories might be:
Bloodhunting reports
Battle reports
Spellcasting/sitesearching/item forging reports
All other reports (random events, starvation, etc..)

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

I think this was a pre-2.08 thread? Is there some consensus that we stick to this one now?

Well ok, then here goes:

More than anything, I wish for
BUGFIXES:
- "Goto Commander" and "Goto Province" brings you to the correct commander/province in the message
- Flying carpet/ship makes you fly
- Call of the Wild only works in Forest terrain, not everywhere
Well I think there is a long list somewhere else...

Secondly, I would hope for spellcasting improvement (communion master and slave cast on same person, targeting routing armies)

Thirdly, I would gladly greet some of the interface improvements mentioned here, but mostly the one which would let you give / redefine battle orders from the "view commander" window (without having to enter the "t" screen).

Thanks for the great game so far!

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

I would like to see alternate nation/neutral flag graphics. Maybe a blue glow added. Then, I want to see these flags displayed on the overland map for every province in which I have a commander (hidden or not).


(Edited to change 'unit' to 'commander', I can see units well enough)

[ February 19, 2004, 17:39: Message edited by: Tiltowait ]

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Seconded. RT-clicking a province to find out if I have a stealthed unit there is not annoying, but RT-clicking six or seven in a row, is.

Also Seconded, the request for a 'Lab' map icon.

Here, make them both classy: Take your existing flagpoles, and lean a sword against the left side if I have a stealthed unit in the province, and lean a staff against the right side if I know there's a lab in the province.

(losing control here...)

And give me a clipboard (or scroll and quill) at the base if I'm recruiting units there. Fill it with 'text' if I've used all the local resources.

And I want a SEx-y 'minister' to adjust tax rates down from 100% by one step for every y points of unrest. Here's class: Make me designate who's doing the Minister job, like a Prophet gets designated, and let him do better or worse or whatever, based on his... research ability?

"Your Prime Minister has been seduced by a Succubus, and (set all rates to 0 Last year/absconded with a % of your taxes/given a % of your taxes to the succubus...)"

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

On the messed up grahpics when using alt-tab...
Dont left-click to get back. Do a right-click and choose "restore" from the menu that pops up. I havent had any problems since I got used to doing that.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

I'm sure I am breaking like 20 internet laws by bumping an old thread but here goes...

One suggestion.

1) When setting the Spell Script for a commander, have a window or box at the top of the screen listing what you have in the script so far....short term memory loss is danm hard to cope with in a strategy game.

But otherwise absolutely loving this game and clicking "Host" in my dreams...

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

For spell casters, under the 'cast specific spell' combat script choice, place a box next to each spell that you can check/uncheck to assign the repetoire (sp) of spells your mage may cast.

Replace the 'hold and attack' command with 'hold and attack in X rounds'. Place an up and down arrow above/below the number so that you can adjust it.

in the preferences menu allow the abilty to have a tone(s) played when every person in a network game has played their turn.

Definately a map mod utility...that would be special http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif

Make 'blood hunt' a one turn only action.

that's all i can think of atm

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">In order to be better than using a paint program and the included map editor the map utility would have to have nearly as much work as a full featured paint editor. That's not really feasible.

<font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">Why on earth would you want this? You certainly don't want to have to go through 20-40 scouts every turn and reassign blood hunt orders to them.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

perhaps its because i haven't played a deep game, but i sometimes forget about it and have had the unrest get out of hand.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

I would like to have the option to set the Magic Sites to AUtodetect or let ANY mage find all Sites.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

AI--

It would be nice to have a modular combat AI. In the program, different modules are called depengin on whether the player has chosen the commander's general Stance to be offensive, defensive, or support.

Offensive Stance: mages throw fireballs, shards, and other damage spells; non-mages go into personal combat, rampaging among the enemy.

Defensive Stance: mages cast armor, entangle, sleep, etc.; generals lead from way way behind, use bows, or just yell commands from afar--keeping safe, but not very effective.

Support Stance: mages cast bless, heal, morale boosters, berserk spells, etc.; generals actively lend support by boosting morale, leading from just behind their tropps, exhorting them not to rout, turning routs into retreats, adding small bonuses to their troops' abilities (e.g. att, def) depending upon their own leadership skills.

It seems to me that this would be relatively easy to do, and it would solve a lot of the current combat AI proglems. It would also make the enemy AI even more effective.

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

A modular combat AI would be even better if it were open to player modding as Paradox has done with theirs (EU2/HOI/Vic).

Re: Wishlish! (For the next patch)
 

A Humanitarian Stance!!!

...as Caelum, I loose most of my feeble troops after the enemy has already routed, since my flyers are following them just to throw themselves into the routing units way, only to be slaughtered! So a switch that would prevent my troops from pursuing, pseudo-helpless, fleeing units would be a big improvement!

I know, most people rather want their enemy dead than retreating to some random province (I support the common request for an ordered retreat if the units are not routing!), but with those mobile but weak Caelum-Troops its usually better to cut the enemy off...

[ March 09, 2004, 14:35: Message edited by: Chazar ]