Dominions Ice Age Contest

[Saber Cherry]

Ok - I think a Dominions Ice Age mod would be fun! But we need an ice age theme for each race, as well as new ice age equipment and ice age indies.

I could, theoretically, do this on my own, but I think it would be more fun, more interesting, and a lot faster if everyone who wants to can participate!

Details:

What is the Ice Age mod theme?

The setting is during an ice age, way before the Ascension Wars timeline, before the invention of ironworking and steel. Some races may have access to Bronze or Copper. Otherwise, only natural non-metals are to be used.

The populations can be more primitive, with different base stats. For example, more HP and strength might make up for the inferior weapons and armors. Blood magic, nature magic, and powerful priests might be more common, while earth, astral and fire might be less so.

If possible, all races should get an inherent forge penalty, but this may or may not be possible.

What is the contest?

The contest is simple:
Propose a complete new theme for a nation! New armors, new weapons, new creatures, and new spells are welcome. One or two people will be in charge of the mod (possibly me, though I'd be more thean willing to hand it over to somebody else...) and decide which stuff is included.

Once the mod is roughly complete, the best new weapon set, best new armor set, best new indy type, best new nation theme, best new spell, best new graphics, and best new descriptions will all be voted on.

Ideally... there could even be a prize for the top new nation (or other categories as well!) That's a fingers-crossed thing, though, not a breath-holding thing.

Current Theme Ideas:

1) "Caelian Ice Age:" Forced Cold+3
Polar bears, sabertooth cats, and killer whales (underwater only - summoning spell). Possibly Snow Golems (special Caelum spell). Caelum's affinity would change from air to water, and the archers would be given ice arrows.

New Capitol special site, The Evergrowing Glacier: Water Mage may Enter to Summon Ice Elementals (size 3).
New Capitol special site, Ice Cave: Ice Drake may be recuited here.

2) Ice Age Man (Man theme)
Iron has yet to be invented. Man uses armors of wood, leather, and fur, and weapons of wood and stone. Large arctic wolves are in the early stages of domestication. Forced Cold+1

3) Ice Age Neanderthals (Ulm theme)
The strong and durable Ulmish ancestors went to battle wearing incredibly heavy stone-platemail armors. Forced Cold+1

4) Ice Age Saurians (Ctis theme)
Large lizards - VERY large. Forced Heat 0 or less (but still coldblooded).

5) Ice Age Abysia:
Similar to modern Abysia, but before the invention of humanbreds. Ceramic chainmails, baked in the depths of the Smouldercone, are worn by the Abyssian Infantry.

Current equipment stat ideas:

//**** Ice Age Equipment ****

//*** Shields ***
name=Oak_Shield aprot=2 def=2 enc=1 hands=1 shield=1 res=2 new=1
//A heavy shield of solid oak.
name=Laminated_Wood_Shield aprot=2 def=2 hands=1 shield=1 res=4 new=1
//A lightweight shield made of many layers of thind wood sheets.
name=Pumice_Shield aprot=0 def=1 hands=1 shield=1 res=1 fireproof=25 new=1
//Pumice is highly fire resistant, but very weak and brittle.
//Shields carved from pumice can protect against arrows, slings, and firey breath, but not heavy melee weapons.
name=Mica_Shield aprot=2 def=2 hands=1 shield=1 res=3 new=1
//When available in large enough sheets, the pliability and laminar nature of mica makes it ideal for shields.
name=Bone_Shield aprot=2 def=3 enc=1 hands=1 shield=1 res=3 new=1
//Needs Description. Made of a solid hipbone?

//*** Armors ***

//Wood
name=Maple_Breastplate aprot=4 def=-1 res=2 new=1
name=Ash_Slat_Cuirass aprot=3 def=-1 res=1 new=1
name=Ash_Slat_Hauberk aprot=5 def=-2 enc=1 res=3 new=1
name=Full_Ash_Slat_Armor aprot=7 def=-3 enc=2 res=5 new=1
//The Ash Slat armors are made of slats cut from ash trees.
//The slats are smoothed, dried, and sewn together like a plank suspension bridge.
//Ash Slat armor is very easy to make but greatly limits flexibility. It is not very strong.

//Laminated Wood Plate
name=Laminated_Wood_Platemail_Cuirass aprot=4 res=4 new=1
name=Laminated_Wood_Platemail_Hauberk aprot=6 def=-1 res=7 new=1
name=Laminated_Wood_Platemail_Armor aprot=8 def=-2 enc=1 res=10 new=1
//The latter 3 are platemails made of laminated wooden plates, sewn together with silk or twine.
//These armors are very lightweight, but their bulk impedes mobility.
//Their laminar construction makes them stronger and less flammable than ordinary wood.
//Creating the many-layered laminar plates is quite time-consuming.

//Grass
name=Woven_Reed_Cuirass aprot=2 res=0 fireproof=-10 new=1
name=Woven_Reed_Hauberk aprot=3 res=1 fireproof=-20 new=1
name=Full_Reed_Armor aprot=5 enc=-1 res=2 fireproof=-30 new=1
//Grass armors are thick woven from tough, fibrous swamp reeds.
//While easy to make, grass is quite vulnerable to flame and piercing weapons.

//Bone
name=Bone_Cuirass aprot=4 enc=1 res=2 new=1
name=Bone_Hauberk aprot=6 def=-1 enc=2 res=4 new=1
name=Full_Bone_Armor aprot=8 def=-2 enc=3 res=6 new=1
//Bone armors are similar in strength to laminar wooden armor, but easier to make.
//They are slightly heavier and much less flexible.

//Flint Plate
name=Flint_Platemail_Cuirass aprot=7 def=-1 enc=2 res=10 new=1
name=Flint_Platemail_Hauberk aprot=9 def=-2 enc=3 res=12 new=1
name=Flint_Platemail_Armor aprot=11 def=-4 enc=5 res=15 new=1
//Flint armors are carved and chipped into crude plates, pierced, and sewn together with twine.
//Stone lacks tensile strength and is more brittle than other materials, so despite its low density,
//the requisite thickness of the plates makes stone armors exceedingly heavy.
//Assembling the armor from plates is fairly simple...
//but mining, chipping, carving, and smoothing make the creation of such armors very tedious.

//Ceramic Chain
name=Ceramic_Mail_Cuirass aprot=6 def=-1 enc=1 res=7 new=1
name=Ceramic_Mail_Hauberk aprot=8 def=-2 enc=2 res=10 new=1
name=Full_Ceramic_Mail aprot=10 def=-3 enc=3 res=13 new=1
//Ceramic Chainmail is formed into links as clay, then fired carefully to keep the links separate.
//Though made of the strongest known ceramic, and fired at the highest possible temperature,
//It is still much weaker metal chainmail. However, it is much easier to make.

//*** Helms ***
name=Wood_Helmet aprot=1 res=1 new=1
//Wooden helmets are carved from a single block, and usually made of softwood.
name=Bone_Helmet aprot=1 res=2 new=1
//Bone helmets are carved from a single large bone, usually near the joint. Whalebone is often used.
name=Ceramic_Cap aprot=1 enc=1 res=2 new=1
//Ceramic helmets must be thick and heavy to withstand weapon blows.
name=Dragonbone_Helmet aprot=2 def=-1 mrst=1 res=5 new=1
//Carved from bones of rarely-found dead dragons, dragonbone armors are exceedingly strong and somewhat magic resistant.
name=Jade_Helmet aprot=1 enc=1 res=3 new=1
//Jade is used for helmets, as it carves more readily than flint, though it is not as strong.

//**** Ice Age Weapons ****

//Clubs
name=Bronze_Mace dam=4 att=0 def=0 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=3 new=1
name=Copper_Mace dam=4 att=0 def=0 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=4 new=1
name=Stone_Club dam=5 att=0 def=-1 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=4 new=1
//Only very strong units can use the stone club
name=Bone_Club dam=3 att=0 def=-1 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=1 new=1
name=Wood_Club dam=2 att=0 def=-1 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=0 new=1

name=Bronze_Axe dam=7 att=-1 def=-1 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=3 new=1
name=Copper_Axe dam=7 att=-1 def=-1 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=5 new=1
name=Obsidian_Axe dam=5 att=-1 def=0 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=4 new=1
name=Flint_Axe dam=4 att=-1 def=0 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=3 new=1
name=Bone_Axe dam=4 att=-1 def=0 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=2 new=1
//made from a jawbone
//Lighter than modern weapons, non-metallic axes did not impose a defense penalty.

//Shortswords
name=Bronze_Sword dam=5 att=0 def=1 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=4 new=1
name=Copper_Sword dam=5 att=0 def=1 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=6 new=1
name=Bone_Sword dam=3 att=-1 def=0 length=1 hands=1 hits=1 res=2 new=1

//Knives
name=Bronze_Knife dam=2 att=1 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=1 new=1
name=Copper_Knife dam=2 att=1 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=3 new=1
name=Obsidian_Knife dam=1 att=1 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=2 new=1
name=Flint_Knife dam=1 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=1 new=1
name=Bone_Knife dam=0 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=0 new=1

//Spears
name=Bronze_Spear dam=3 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=3 new=1
name=Copper_Spear dam=3 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=4 new=1
name=Obsidian_Spear dam=2 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=2 new=1
name=Flint_Spear dam=2 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=2 new=1
name=Bone_Spear dam=1 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=1 new=1
name=Wood_Spear dam=0 att=0 def=0 length=0 hands=1 hits=1 res=1 new=1


//Ranged

//Ice Age archers shot in straight trajectories, and thus did not have the range of later archers.
//By firing line-of-sight, the damage dealt was based more directly on the archer's strength.
name=War_Bow dam=1 prec=0 hits=1 ammo=10 rng=30 res=3
name=Hunting_Bow dam=-1 prec=1 hits=1 ammo=10 rng=25 res=2
name=Poisoned_Bow dam=-3 prec=1 hits=1 ammo=5 rng=25 res=3 poisondam=5
//head designed to carry a weak poison for killing animals
name=Ice_Bow colddam=7 prec=1 hits=1 ammo=5 rng=30 res=3 pierce=50 magic=1 doesPhysicalDam=-1 doesColdDam=1 strNotAddedCold=1
//Caelians only. Additional freeze effect is possible.

Comments?

-Cherry

[ January 20, 2004, 03:37: Message edited by: Saber Cherry ]