Zophim

I think it's a nice emblem But I do need to go back to my first post and add the placeholder information for the units and structures.

Post info, sources, suggestions, etc. here. Be sure to credit your source if you post images or written info. Below is a basic design document. FACTION: Archaic Hellenes TIMESPAN: 776-480 B.C. CIV EMBLEM: Gorgon's Head [thanks to Mythos_Ruler for the emblem!] UNITS Note: With these placeholders, citizen soldiers should retain the same appearance regardless of promotion. The exact corresponding scenario editor actor files are listed beside the unit names below, followed by the structure(s) from which they can be trained. CITIZEN CAVALRY Greek Horseman – spart_cavalry_spearman_e (Civ Centre, Barracks) Thessalian Scout – athen_cavalry_javelinist_b (Barracks) CITIZEN INFANTRY Thracian Peltast – athen_infantry_javelinist_b (Civ Centre, Barracks) Greek Hoplite – spart_infantry_spearman_a (Civ Centre, Barracks) Cretan Mercenary Archer - athen_marine_infantry_archer_b (Barracks) CHAMPIONS Spartan Royal Bodyguard – spart_champion_infantry_spear (Gymnasium) Greek Officer – theb_champion_swordsman – all variations (Fortress) – gives LOS citizen infantry +10 attack – build limit 5 – auras do not overlap SIEGE Battering Ram – spart_mechanical_siege_ram (Fortress) HEROES Lycurgus hero – spart_hero_brasidas (Council Chamber) Solon hero – athen_hero_themistocles (Council Chamber) Cleisthenes hero – athen_hero_pericles (Council Chamber) SUPPORT Greek Slave – athen_support_slave (Civ Centre – only building this unit can be trained from) – can harvest domestic animals, wood, food (berries and farming), metal, and stone; cannot hunt; cannot build; cannot fight; fairly easy for enemy to capture; 1 Greek Slave should be included in the starting units group Greek Woman – athen_support_female_citizen (Civ Centre, House) Greek Merchant – athen_support_trader (Market) Priest of Artemis – athen_support_healer_b (Temple) NAVAL Fishing Boat – athen_ship_fishing (Dock) Merchant Ship – athen_ship_merchant (Dock) War Ship – athen_ship_bireme (Dock) STRUCTURES The exact corresponding scenario editor actor files are listed beside the structure names below, followed by their trainable units. VILLAGE Barracks – athen_barracks (Greek Horseman, Thessalian Scout, Thracian Peltast, Greek Hoplite, Cretan Mercenary Archer) Corral – athen_corral (Goat) Outpost - athen_outpost Dock – athen_dock (Fishing Boat, Merchant Ship, War Ship) Farmstead – athen_farmstead Farm Field - athen_field House – athen_house (Greek Woman) Storehouse - athen_storehouse TOWN Civ Centre – athen_civil_centre (Greek Horseman, Thracian Peltast, Greek Hoplite, Greek Woman, Greek Slave) – 1 Greek Slave should be included in the starting units group Blacksmith - athen_blacksmith Defense Tower - athen_defense_tower Market – athen_market (Greek Merchant) Temple – athen_temple (Priest of Artemis) City Wall – athen_wall... etc. CITY Fortress – athen_fortress (Greek Officer, Battering Ram) Gymnasium – athen_gymnasion (Spartan Royal Bodyguard) Council Chamber – athen_prytaneion (Heroes) Temple of Artemis at Ephesus wonder - athen_wonder

@Sundiata I am quite impressed with your passion and research. I thought you should know that I am responsible for a 0 A.D. mod, Aristeia Bronziron, that for now spans from 1000-500 BC. The four main civs we are working on are the Saite Egyptians, the Archaic Hellenes, the Divided Kingdom Judahites, and the New Empire Assyrians. However, it is possible we will add more civs in future (no promises, though :D). If so, the Kushite 25th Dynasty would definitely be a viable candidate for representation! I support what others have suggested as far as combining the Han Chinese, Zapotecs, and Meroitic Kushites into an Empires Ascendant-concurrent mod.

Post info, sources, suggestions, etc. here. Be sure to credit your source if you post images or written info. Below is a basic design document. FACTION: Saite Period Egyptians TIMESPAN: 664-525 B.C. CIV EMBLEM: Ankh [thanks to niektb for the emblem!] UNITS Note: With these placeholders, citizen soldiers should retain the same appearance regardless of promotion. The exact corresponding scenario editor actor files are listed beside the unit names below, followed by the structures from which they can be trained. CITIZEN CAVALRY Horseman – egyptian_cavalry_javelinist_b (Civ Centre, Stables) CITIZEN INFANTRY Egyptian Archer – egyptian_champion_archer (Civ Centre, Barracks) Khopesh Warrior – egyptian_champion_swordsman_theban (Civ Centre, Barracks) Chariot Runner – egyptian_infantry_javelinist_b (Stables) Nubian Archer – egyptian_infantry_archer_b (Mercenary Camp) Nubian Spearman – nubian_infantry_spearman_b (Mercenary Camp) Libyan Swordsman – egyptian_infantry_swordsman_b (Mercenary Camp) CHAMPIONS Carian Heavy Swordsman – theban_champion_swordsman sword actor variations (Mercenary Camp) Ionian Heavy Spearman – theban_champion_swordsman spear actor variations (Mercenary Camp) Egyptian Marine – egyptian_infantry_spearman_e (Dock) Egyptian Officer – egyptian_infantry_axeman_e (Fortress) – gives LOS citizen infantry +10 attack – build limit 5 – auras do not overlap Egyptian Chariot – egyptian_champion_chariot (Stables) Sherden Guard – seapeople_infantry_swordsman_b (Palace) SIEGE Battering Ram – egyptian_mechanical_siege_ram (Fortress) HEROES Psamtik I hero – egyptian_hero_seti (Palace) Necho II hero – egyptian_hero_seti (Palace) Apries hero – egyptian_hero_seti (Palace) SUPPORT Egyptian Woman – egyptian_support_female_citizen (Civ Centre, House) Egyptian Merchant – egyptian_support_trader (Market) Priest of Amun-re – ptol_support_healer_b (Temple) NAVAL Fishing Boat – ptol_ship_fishing (Dock) Merchant Ship – ptol_ship_merchant (Dock) War Ship – cart_ship_bireme (Dock) STRUCTURES The exact corresponding scenario editor actor files are listed beside the structure names below, followed by their trainable units. VILLAGE Barracks – egyptian_barracks (Egyptian Archer, Khopesh Warrior) Corral – egyptian_corral (Goat) Dock – egyptian_dock (Fishing Boat, Merchant Ship, War Ship) Farmstead – egyptian_farmstead Farm Field - egyptian_field House – egyptian_house (Egyptian Woman) Storehouse - egyptian_storehouse Small Wall – egyptian_small_wall... etc. TOWN Civ Centre – egyptian_civil_centre (Egyptian Archer, Khopesh Warrior, Horseman, Egyptian Woman) Threshingfloor – egyptian_sb_threshingfloor – enables more farming techs Blacksmith - egyptian_blacksmith Defense Tower - egyptian_defense_tower Market – egyptian_market (Egyptian Merchant) Stables – egyptian_stables (Horseman, Egyptian Chariot) Temple – egyptian_temple (Priest of Amun-re) City Wall – egyptian_wall... etc. Mercenary Camp – merc_camp_egyptian (Nubian Archer, Nubian Spearman, Libyan Swordsman, Carian Heavy Swordsman, Ionian Heavy Spearman) CITY Fortress – egyptian_fortress (Egyptian Officer, Battering Ram) Ramesside Palace – egyptian_palace_ramesside (Heroes, Sherden Guard) Great Monument to the Pharaoh – egyptian_sb_monument - +10% territory radius – build limit 1 Obelisk – egyptian_sb_obelisk – units in vicinity fight harder +5 – similar function to Iberian bull structure – build limit 5 – auras do not overlap Temple of Karnak wonder - egyptian_wonder_temple_karnak

Worth the wait!

For thematic and continuity reasons, we are focusing on a series of four dominant civilizations (Egypt, Israel, Assyria/Babylon, Greece) within their respective geographic regions (the Nile, the Levant, Mesopotamia, the Aegean), but Hittites will most likely be represented in some form in Part II as individual units within a parent Mesopotamian civ.' The idea at this point is a succession of civs like this, represented in sequence for Parts I, II, and III: EGYPT: Old/Middle Kingdom -> New Kingdom -> Late Period ISRAEL: Pre-monarchy Hebrews -> United Monarchy -> Judahite Kingdom MESOPOTAMIA: Sumer/Akkad -> Kassite Babylon/Syria? -> Neo-Assyrian Empire GREECE: Minoans -> Mycenaeans -> Archaic Greeks See above. Neo-Babylon was basically a successor of Assyria (although co-existing in a subordinate position prior to the sack of Nineveh in 612 BC and defeat of Assyria's last major resistance in 609 BC), and inherited pretty much their whole former empire. One of the titles of Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon was "king of Assyria", indicating some form of imperial continuity. Since both the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires took place in the 1000-500 BC timeframe, I chose the Assyrians to represent the Mesopotamian region, since they seem to have had the greater impact and influence, as well as much greater longevity. The Neo-Babylonian and Achaemenid Persian empires at least partly used the Assyrian models of administration and governance. All that being said, I'm not ruling out a future Neo-Babylon civ for Part III, but that would have to wait until the main four civs are up and running.

Well, I had planned to include the Mycenaeans with the other Greek spheres of influence. As far as splitting things up: same as the vanilla game and Millenium AD are doing (500-year divisions, when you could make the argument that we should combine the Republican and Imperial Romans into simply The Romans). It's partly _because_ I want to do this long and complex 1500-year period justice that I've broken it up into 3 parts. And I think there are enough empire/kingdom heights in 1000-500 BC to satisfy the requirements of a good duke-out. You've got Ashurbanipal of Assyria, Necho II of Egypt, Gyges of Lydia, and Jehoshaphat of Judah. What I did was try to group the Mycenaeans, Archaic Greeks, and Lydians under a broad category. Strictly speaking, you are correct. I should use a different term. All: In order to eliminate some misunderstanding, I'm going to rename the Part III Greeks a more generic term: "Aegean Greeks," since I seem to have misapplied the term "Archaic" in a general sense to cover both the Mycenaean and Archaic periods of Part III. How about we move the Mycenaeans back to Part II, leaving the Archaic Greeks and Lydian kingdom in Part III? As it is, the Mycenaean period is sort of straddling the Part II/Part III divide anyway (and it's unclear just when the Trojan War(s) occurred, it could have been anywhere from 1100-800 BC, depending on how long the Greek "Dark Age" lasted and how widespread it was; my personal conclusion is that what we know as Archaic Greece picked up not too long after the Mycenaean period.)

Hello, I am Zophim, the leader and chief researcher of Aristeia, a mod project of 0 AD that centers in the ancient Near East and Aegean region during the 1500 years prior to 500 BC (so roughly 2000-500 BC). The project has been rethought and redesigned, but will retain the standard features of the main game. I wish to extend my sincerest thanks to all those, past and present, who contributed to the development of this mod. The following features may be subject to change. The new expanded name for the mod will be “Aristeia Bronziron” (in order to more accurately reflect the often simultaneous use of bronze and iron during the periods traditionally separated into the Bronze Age and Iron Age), and it will be divided into three parts. Each of these three parts will, in the spirit of the original game, cover timeframes of around 500 years each: 2000-1500 BC, 1500-1000 BC, and 1000-500 BC. The periods will be released in reverse order (Part III, Part II, Part I) in order to maintain a sense of continuity with the main game, moving back through history, even as Millenium AD moves forward through history. Any design documents I publish will supersede any previous ones. More detailed civ information will be made available in brand new topics in the Council of Modders: Aristeia forum, using the following format example: [Part III] Faction: The Late Period Egyptians. Inside these topics, users can post relevant links, suggestions, images, text, etc. Four main civilizations/groupings/factions will be featured through all three periods in various forms, in an attempt to demonstrate the continuity and relationships among the nations and cultural groups of the time. The four basic groups are the Egyptians, the Hebrews, the Assyrians, and the Greeks. Part I: Fathers of Nations will span from 2000 BC – 1445 BC (the approximate date of the Hebrew exodus from Egypt). During this period, the Egyptian, Sumerian, and Minoan civilizations begin their ascent, and the Hebrew patriarchs multiply to become a mighty people. Featured Civs: Old Kingdom Egyptians, Hebrews, Sumerians, Minoans. Part II: Rise of Nations will span from 1445 BC – 930 BC (the approximate date of the division of the Israelite kingdom into Ephraim and Judah). During this period, Egypt and Israel together end the domination of the Hyksos rulers, and usher in a golden age of prosperity for the entire region. Featured Civs: New Kingdom Egyptians, United Monarchy Israelites, Syrians, Mycenaeans. Part III: Peril of Nations will span from 930 BC – 539 BC (the date of Babylon’s fall to Cyrus the Great of Persia). During this period, the ancient Near East, with help from Greece, defends itself from the encroachments of the Assyrian Empire, which is itself absorbed by the Babylonians. Featured Civs: Late Period Egyptians, Divided Kingdom Judahites, New Empire Assyrians, Archaic Greeks. The official process pipeline is as follows: Civ Research → Design Documentation → 2D art/3D art/programming. The main drawback of this mod’s timeframe is that there aren’t a great deal of readily accessible online illustrations of structures and units for some of these civs, even though I have many resources at home, both written and visual, that I could convert into working structure/unit concepts. Ideally, if I had mountains of free time, I would painstakingly give you guys personally-created concept art scans of every single unit and structure that is required in Aristeia (including basic/advanced/elite citizen soldier variations), because, through all my research, I have pretty definite mental images of what these guys should look like. I might do some of this in the future, but for now, I might have to use the main game’s units/buildings as a point of reference for the artists/programmers. With that being said, my immediate goal for a future release is to get at least one placeholding faction up and running, even if we have to use entities from the main game’s scenario editor atlas. Therefore, until new, historically-accurate models and art are made available, I plan for now to make heavy use of placeholder units and structures from the main game as well as from the available units in the latest downloadable version of Aristeia. Some of the main game’s entities can actually be used as is (for example, the Nubian archer for Egypt, the Persian siege ram for Assyria, etc.). We are focusing on Part III first (other parts will follow at a later stage). AristeiaPartIIICivs.pdf

1. How did you come across 0 A.D.? Some friends of mine came across it first, many alpha releases ago (around 2012, I think), and then I got started playing it, quickly becoming one of 0 A.D.'s most enthusiastic fans. I got interested in modding for the game over the summer of 2013. 2. What motivates you to play 0 A.D.? I am motivated by the game's historical emphasis, ease of gameplay, moddability, resilience/freshness/realism, and overall coolness factor (and of course, because it's FREE!) No joke: I actually learned _far_ more about history, geography, and the Bible through this game (and the research it inspired me to do) than I think I would have otherwise. I don't have a huge amount of time outside of work and life, but when I _am_ involved in 0 A.D., I usually spend more time researching for my Aristeia mod than I do actually playing the game. I'll typically play a bit more just after an alpha release. 3. Is there anything you want from any part of the 0 A.D. community and feel you're not getting? If so, why? I would like for there to be more civs, more units, more special buildings, more gaia animals, more special techs, more victory conditions, more diplomacy/trade settings, a more reasonable/negotiable Petra Bot... I sometimes wish there was a bit more coordination of everyone's modding efforts into one unified chronological depiction of historical gameplay, but I realize that not everyone has the same vision for how the game should be presented. I have a dream that one day I could go into 0 A.D. and select from a giant drop-down menu any time period, and then select from another drop-down menu with any major civ from that period, and start a scenario! Also, I would love for there to one day be a strategic campaign gameplay mode, based on history. That would be incredible. Oh, and one more thing. Make the "how do you turn this on?" cheat unleash a winged fire-breathing dragon instead of a P-51 Mustang. 4. Is there any more information you'd like to add? I love the fact that 0 A.D. is open source. 5. What is your age, gender, and location? 26, male, United States

How about this?

Hi, Aghilas! I've been involved with the Aristeia mod for some time now, mostly in the background, off and on, as document designer and civ researcher. I'm very happy to meet a fellow Bronze Age enthusiast! But let me just say this... I have strong feelings about the accurate depiction of the Hebrew peoples (and other ancient peoples in general, but _especially_ the descendants of Abraham). I have no doubt that you and others who use the Star of David as an ancient Israelite symbol are well-meaning; however, I am compelled to point out that this is probably not a correct symbol to use to represent people of Hebrew descent prior to a couple of centuries ago. See this article: http://www.menorah.org/starofdavid.html Based on my research, I have come to the following tentative conclusions regarding Hebrew civ emblems: For a Maccabean timeframe, the menorah would work fine. For a Divided Kingdom Judah timeframe, the Lion of Judah would apply. For Divided Kingdom Israel, you could use the Bronze Bull of Samaria. Or, you could use a representation of Baal (which would also work well with Phoenicia). For the Judges and/or United Monarchy, the pomegranate would be a good choice. For the Patriarch period, I haven't decided yet. (Torah? Circumcision knife? Shofar? Pomegranate again? Palm frond? More research required.) Funny story: I had already decided on the Carthaginians as the basic placeholder civ to use for anything Judah/Israel/Phoenicia-related for Aristeia, at least as far as architecture goes.

@ s0600204 If it is true, as I suspect, that you are very interested in the Aristeia mod, then this entire post of mine should interest you greatly. Be advised, however, that the information contained in my design docs thus far is provisional, and not the final word, as the information further down should make more clear. @ rolandixor Believe you me, I and others would be thrilled to include a Kushite African civ. As a matter of fact, you probably won't find many people more in love with the idea of depicting a Nubian civilization than I am. As has been stated above, I have indeed put out a preliminary Kushite Nubian design document, as part of Aristeia's Bronze Age mod; my design doc focuses on the black Pharaohs who ruled in Egypt during the time of the Assyrians and the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah. If you're looking for civ compatibility with the 0 A.D. main game's Empires Ascendant timeframe (500 BC to 1 BC), then I would say that researching the Nubians of Meroë would likely be your best starting point. That being said... Most of the following I have stated elsewhere, but I will repeat it here in the interests of convenience and transparency. The Aristeia mod needs both an overhaul and a refocused vision (and that will involve my redoing major elements of my already-completed design docs as well as altering the Aristeia civilization lists). 2000-500 BC is a long timespan, and, rather than having a 1500-year-spanning civilization free-for-all, it might be better to group Bronze civs by era/period (every 2-300 years or so, and this could be reflected in specific scenario maps), so as not to completely lose the sense of time and chronology. If I'm not making much sense, that's okay, I'm still in the brainstorming process myself, but hopefully a clearer picture will emerge as time goes on. One of my medium-to-long-term goals is to create a comprehensive world political history timeline in order to, among other things, better ascertain the relationships, zeniths, and timespans of various cultures and civilizations. I am beginning to have a fairly definite vision for how I think the Aristeia project should look and feel (as far as timeframes, civs, art, themes, focus, etc.). That being said, much (and I cannot stress this enough), much, much research on the part of Theodotus and me (and others who are research-inclined) remains to be done before I would feel comfortable with the mod moving forward. The chronologies and dynasties of the historical eras before c. 500 BC are much less set-in-stone and agreed-upon than later periods are, and so many, many sources must be evaluated, cross-checked, examined, weighed, etc. before even semi-definite conclusions can be drawn. Not only is it still somewhat unclear in my mind which civs to give emphasis to, but even with what would appear to be obvious choices (Egypt and Assyria, for instance), the question then arises which dynasties/rulers/eras to feature. Again, Aristeia's timeframe spans at least 1500 years! Our work is cut out for us... The above is a major part of the reason that I have not yet opened an official topic for the Bronze Age mod even on the Council of Modders, nor have I been actively posting updates on the main forum, besides the fact that, what between student teaching and working, I have little, if any, time to devote to 0 A.D. until mid-May at the earliest. So, long story short, I would prefer that the Bronze Age mod remain mostly in limbo for now, until I have a significant increase in available time. That way, we can ensure that, once we get rolling, we have made Aristeia's design as correct as we reasonably could in the first place. But in the meantime, anyone interested could definitely be gathering resources and info for the cultures and civs in this and any other mods that are either already in existence or yet to be created.

Well, let's see... chickens and other domestic animals are a different story. IIRC domestic animals in 0AD have never attempted to flee being slaughtered. I was referring to the skittishness of wild animals in my earlier post. If you have enough ranged units (say, 3 or 4 skirmish cav) systematically hunting together, they can take down an animal fairly quickly. Enabling trade for neutrals would be great for those players who wish to play their cards close to their faces while they decide what the political situation looks like (and posture/align themselves accordingly), and could really make for some interesting chat messages and gameplay styles. But that's just me. Others' mileage may vary.

My comments are in italics.

That is correct, although they will probably end up being split up among several eras (United Monarchy, Divided Ephraim/Judah, etc).

I have some positive feedback after playing a little Alpha 17, as well as suggestions for the game in general. Thanks in advance for reading! I haven't tried out every civ yet, but based on what I've seen so far, here's what I liked (in no particular order: 1. Progressively higher tech costs. 2. More techs to select (including, I was happy to see, civ-specific ones, such as Rome's Sibylline Books, which had already been in the Republican Roman design doc for quite some time). 3. Unpairing of many techs (although I don't know if this is simply a placeholder, pending a different system). 4. Smoother process in moving groups of units across the land without formation hang-ups (although I noticed that very large groups tend to leave some of their members behind). 5. Rams can actually damage units now. 6. The Mod Selector. 7. Units on walls. Now for the suggestions: 1. Enable each hero to be trained only once - simply retraining a particular hero once he dies is rather unbelievable (and unrealistic) and removes some of the player's responsibility to make wise decisions. Players would be compelled to use their hero judiciously if they knew he wasn't expendable. 2. Enable trade with neutral as well as allied players. I don't believe a player should have to be outright allies with another player in order to enjoy economic benefits; even if a player is operating as an "isolationist", I think he should have the freedom to engage in trade with other civs without the obligation of military aid that an alliance would entail. Perhaps being allies with a player could grant someone a trade bonus, but I'd prefer that we not bar non-allies from trading altogether. 3. Re-implement the skittishness of huntable animals (known as an "escape distance"). Currently, an in-game animal waits until it has been stabbed/shot to decide to flee, which is not true to life. For those who might object that implementing escape distances would make hunting too difficult, that's where ranged units come in useful. 4. (this might not be practicable right now, but I think it could be classified as one of those "Nice to Have" features) Implement "fertile farmland" terrain textures, much like what was discussed in this topic. A red square when placing a farmfield would mean "unplantable", a yellow square would mean "possible but low yield", and a green square would mean "fertile, high yield."

Rada, I have seen frustration, miscommunication, and hurt feelings many times on projects and endeavours during my life, and I can assure you that much of the time the situation, once all parties concerned reach a mutual understanding, is not nearly so bad as a brief assessment might lead one to suppose. You have been one of the most unflagging supporters of 0AD and its mods, and your dedication has inspired others, myself included. If you need to take a break from 0AD, then by all means do so, but I must ask you to reconsider what seems to me and others to be your somewhat drastic decision to depart our Council. At the very least, could you not at least postpone your resignation in order to reassess the situation and engage in constructive dialogue with any individuals whom it may be helpful to mend fences with?

Welcome, yuval1996! Español es mi segunda mejores lengua, pero no hablo muy bien. You can get started by looking at the civilization design documents I have completed (such as Israel and Assyria) in the "[Collection] Design Docs" topic in the Game Modification: Council of Modders: Projects: Aristeia subforum. For now, you can keep posting to this topic if/when you have further comments or questions. Unfortunately, I don't think you will be able to send private messages or participate in the Council of Modders discussions (if you would like to join us) until you have made at least five posts in the forums.

Per my Egyptian design document, chariots are to be trained from the Chariot Stables, but for now (if the stables are not implemented yet), they can use the Fortress.

Good find, Lion! I was already planning to have Uzziah (also known as Azariah) son of Amaziah as one of the Divided Kingdom Judah hero units. Perhaps his improved fortifications and defensive devices could be represented by a special tech that enables the player's city wall towers to shoot ballista stones as well as arrows.

If I remember correctly, isn't the above phrase advertised on one of 0 A.D.'s loading screens as one of the capabilities of a trireme (or at least a planned feature)?

@ Hephaestion: I apologize if I do not fully understand your first question. Are you suggesting that we re-use the basic spearman actor from the Aristeia Hittite civilization? What illustration(s) are we going to work from? I envisioned the basic unit having a bronze circular chest plate with criss-cross straps, a round shield, and a crested helmet (as I laid forth in the design doc). As far as your second question: Assyrian spearmen (at least later on in the empire) were also equipped with short swords (which would ideally be cosmetically depicted on the game's spearmen). However, in the Assyrian design doc, the swordsman class is represented in the siege units section by an Assyrian Raider, who has a torch in hand, and a sword in another.

Here is a list of creatures that I would like to see eventually represented in the game's North African, Mediterranean, and Near Eastern biomes. MAMMALS Bactrian Camel Auroch (the ancestor of modern domestic cattle) Onager (wild donkey) Ibex (wild goat) Arabian Oryx Addax Fallow Deer Roe Deer Baboon Rock Hyrax (coney) Hippopotamus Indian Rhinoceros (featured on the Deir el-Bahri reliefs of Hatshepsut, as well as on the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III). Egyptian Mongoose Striped Hyena Golden Jackal Fennec Fox Syrian Brown Bear Caracal Leopard Cheetah Egyptian Cat (domestic) Dugong BIRDS Grey Heron Common Crane Sacred Ibis Hoopoe Black-headed Gull Egyptian Goose Mallard Duck Common Raven Barn Owl Golden Eagle Egyptian Vulture Lappet-faced Vulture Griffon Vulture Ostrich REPTILES Green Sea Turtle Loggerhead Leatherback Sea Turtle Mediterranean Tortoise Egyptian Tortoise Egyptian Mastigure (a type of large lizard) Cobra Horned Viper Rhamphorhynchus (probably the "fiery flying serpent" of the Israelite wilderness wanderings; can possibly be bioluminescent) Behemoth (a large sauropod dinosaur; see Job 40:15-24) Leviathan (a giant fire-breathing crocodile, like the extinct Sarcosuchus; see Job 41)

@ Usac: My understanding from Strong's concordance is that the word "rakkab" mainly refers to chariot personnel, whereas the term I used, "rekeb", refers primarily to the chariot vehicles themselves, which is what I intended. I could be incorrect, though, so further details in favour of the term "rakkab" would be appreciated.

That emblem looks incredible, Lion! I'm very impressed!