CheckTester

https://gitea.wildfiregames.com/0ad/0ad/issues/8849

There is another idea for using infarty units on ships - Naval Boarding (capturing the ships). l

My suggestion is to separate the beginner-friendly strategy advice from the technical reference. What if clicking on the "Manual" button opened two distinct sections: "Beginner Tips" – A concise guide focused on what to do in the first few minutes, basic economy, simple unit counters, and overall strategy. "Game Controls" – The detailed reference for hotkeys, camera movement, and interface explanations that we already have. This way, a completely new player can quickly get the essential tips without being overwhelmed by a wall of text, while veterans can still easily find the specific control they're looking for.

The in-game manual is very detailed about hotkeys and manual control, which is great, but maybe it could be complemented with a very short 'quick-start' section for absolute beginners? Something like: 'First steps: gather food, build houses, train workers. Unit roles: Spearmen vs Cavalry, etc.' I think it would make the game much more approachable. Thoughts? Something like that ----------------- A Beginner's Guide to 0 A.D. Welcome to 0 A.D.! This open-source historical Real-Time Strategy (RTS) game can seem deep at first, but by understanding its core principles, you'll quickly learn to build thriving empires and crush your enemies. The key is to not be afraid to experiment and learn from each match. 0. Optimal Settings for the Best Experience Before jumping in, it's worth checking the game options to ensure a smooth and comfortable experience. Graphics: If the game feels sluggish, navigate to Options > Graphics and disable "High-quality water effects" and "Shadows". This will provide the most noticeable performance boost on older or less powerful hardware . Camera Controls: By default, you can pan the camera with the WASD keys or arrow keys. Rotate the view with Ctrl + Arrow Keys or Shift + Mouse Wheel . All of these can be customized to your liking in the settings menu. Essential Hotkeys: I highly recommend familiarizing yourself with these key shortcuts right away. You can also view and customize them in Options > Hotkeys . H — Stop the currently selected units. . (period) — Select the next idle worker. , (comma) — Select the next idle soldier. Shift + Left Click on a unit's icon in a production building — Train a batch of 5 units . This is a huge time-saver! Please note, that batch size can be adjusted in settings. 1. Starting a Match and Choosing the Difficulty From the main menu, click Single-player to begin. Map Type: Skirmish map : The best choice for beginners. These maps are pre-designed and balanced, but you are free to choose your own civilization. Random map : The map layout and resources are procedurally generated. This is great for variety but can sometimes lead to unbalanced starting positions. Adding Opponents: Add one or more computer players (AI). For your first game, it's best to start with just one opponent. AI Difficulty Level: The AI in 0 A.D. is named Petra . For a new player, the choice is simple: Sandbox : This difficulty level is designed for learning. The AI opponent will not attack or expand its territory . Very Easy : Once you're ready for a bit of a challenge, this is the next logical step. Be aware that on higher difficulties, the Petra AI receives economic bonuses to its resource gathering and trade efficiency . 2. Choosing a Civilization, Match Settings, and Matchups Your choice of civilization largely dictates your strategic options. There are several unique ancient cultures from Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia to choose from. Recommended Civilizations for Beginners: Athenians: A well-rounded civilization with a strong navy and an economic bonus to metal mining. They also have a unique ability to build long walls in neutral territory . Romans: Focused on a powerful and disciplined infantry. They can construct army camps in enemy territory and have access to some of the best siege weapons in the game . Some civilizations have special mobile units that can act as rally points or resource dropsites to increasing the speed of resource collection without building storehouse in the neighborhood end fast economic development. The Mauryas have the Worker Elephant, which can collect all of off resources anywhere on the map and act as builder. The Germanic Tribes have the Supply Wagon, which acts as a mobile dropsite and increase population cap (as a house) and on the further stages can even be upgraded to train workers . The Persians excel at long-term economic gain. Their unique Ice House and the upgraded Winter Palace function as passive income generators, periodically granting you a free trickle of resources without any additional effort. Try out different factions and find the one whose playstyle interests you most! Match Settings: Population Cap: The default limit is usually 300. You can leave it as is or lower it for faster, more intense matches. Victory Condition: The most common and straightforward is Conquest . To win, you must eliminate all enemy units and buildings. Other options include building and holding a Wonder for a set amount of time . Civilization Matchups: There's no strict "rock-paper-scissors" rule for entire civilizations. Instead, the counter system is based on unit types. For example, cavalry archers are strong against slow-moving infantry, while heavily armored spearmen (like those of Sparta) excel against enemy cavalry . 3. Controlling Your Units The entire game is built on a simple principle: "Select – Command" . Left Mouse Button (LMB) — Select a unit or building. Right Mouse Button (RMB) — Issue a command (move, attack, gather resources) . Advanced Control Tips: Double-click LMB on a unit to select all units of the same type currently visible on your screen. Ctrl + Double-click to select all units of the same type on the entire map . Hold Shift while issuing commands (e.g., Shift+RMB on a tree, then Shift+RMB on a guard post) creates an action queue. Your units will perform the tasks in sequence. 4. Developing Your Economy A strong economy is the foundation of a powerful army. Here's a simple 5-minute plan to get started: Scout the Map: Send your starting cavalry scout in a spiral pattern around your base to locate resources (berry bushes, animals, forests, mines) and your enemy. Start Gathering: Send all your Civilians to the nearest berry bushes (RMB). They are the fastest gatherers of fruit . Send all your Infantry Citizen-Soldiers to chop down the nearest trees (RMB). They are the best lumberjacks . Send your Cavalry Citizen-Soldier to hunt nearby animals (RMB). They are the only unit type that can effectively hunt for meat . Set a Rally Point: Select your Civic Center and then right-click on a tree. All newly trained units will automatically begin gathering wood. Train More Workers: Hold Shift and left-click on the Civilian icon in the Civic Center's production panel. Train a batch of 5. Build a House: Once you have 100 wood, select a couple of free workers, click the House icon in the bottom panel, and place it near your Civic Center. Houses increase your population limit . Build a Storehouse: When you have several workers on wood, select them and build a Storehouse right next to the forest. This drastically reduces their travel time and speeds up gathering. Key Economic Principles: Build Storehouses near resources. This is the single most important rule for efficient gathering. Don't forget food. When berry bushes run out, build a Farmstead and then place Fields on the open land nearby . Keep an eye on your population limit. The counter in the top panel (e.g., 15/30) shows how many more units you can train. If you can't train more, you need more Houses. 5. Developing Your Military Once your economy is stable, it's time to think about defense and conquest. Build a Military Structure: Your first military building is usually the Barracks. It allows you to train basic infantry. Learn Unit Counters: Spearmen are strong against cavalry. Swordsmen are strong against other infantry. Slingers and Archers are strong against slow, heavily armored units but are vulnerable in melee combat . Don't Neglect Defenses: Walls and Towers are crucial for holding off early enemy raids. Garrisoning soldiers inside towers will significantly increase the number of arrows they fire . 6. Essential Technologies to Research Researching technologies is a long-term investment. Early game technologies in the Farmstead and Storehouse that improve gathering rates should be researched as soon as you have the spare resources. Top Priority Technologies for Beginners: Conscription in the Barracks. This reduces the batch training time for infantry . Wheelbarrow and Horse-drawn Carts in the Storehouse. These increase the amount of resources a worker can carry, which is a massive boost to gathering efficiency. Advancing to the next phase ( Town Phase , City Phase ) in the Civic Center. This unlocks more powerful units, buildings, and technologies. 7. Basic Tactics and Strategies Scouting: Always know what your enemy is doing. Use fast units to probe their base and keep an eye on their army's movement. Use the Terrain: Forests can block or slow down enemy movement. Hills and high ground can provide range bonuses for your archers. Don't Forget Your Heroes: In the later phases of the game, you can recruit unique Heroes—legendary figures like Alexander the Great or Julius Caesar, Ashoka, Boiorix or King Darius (unique for selected civilization). They possess powerful auras that significantly boost the stats of nearby allied units . Hit-and-Run: Gather a small, fast force (like cavalry archers) and use them to raid enemy workers and undefended resource-gathering operations, disrupting their economy. 8. Strategic Playstyles: Rush, Boom, and More RTS games have a few classic strategic archetypes that work perfectly in 0 A.D. Rush: An aggressive, early-game strategy. You prioritize military production over economic development to launch a swift attack, hoping to cripple or defeat your enemy before they can build up their defenses. Best on small maps. Boom: An economic-focused strategy. You aim to grow your economy as fast as possible, securing multiple resources and building a strong economic base before switching to full-scale military production to overwhelm your opponent with sheer numbers. Turtle: A defensive strategy. You focus on building strong defenses like walls and towers, protecting your economy while you advance through the phases and build up a powerful, unstoppable army for a single, decisive strike. The Romans, with their army camps, are particularly good at this . Remember, 0 A.D. is a game where mastery comes with practice. Don't be afraid to lose, experiment with different civilizations and strategies, and discover your own unique playstyle. Good luck on the battlefield!

Thank you for the information. How to download the strings text file the transifex site ? I couldn't find ant corresponded button or link in the interface... @Stan`Could you please help ? Do you mean "Edit source" button ? As I understand this feature is available as only payable option in transifex account. I didn't found anything else.

I periodically encounter grammatical errors (sometimes even serious ones) or translation inaccuracies in the interface, unit and building names, and hints, and I'd like to quickly spot them and all similar places in strings. For example, I recently discovered that the term "Nabatean camel archer" (which should be translated as "camel-riding archer") was translated in one language as "Nabatean archer of camel" (belonging to a camel or descended from a camel). Or another example: First, in one sentence, a unit is mentioned in the singular, then in the next, in the plural. And so on...

Hello everyone. Is there any detailed instruction how to get full text strings with English and someone another language ? It will be good to get the table or CSV file or something like that with english string and the translated string by specific another language. The purpose - to see all of this directly on the PC, to better search and overview. Using local text editor and so on... It's better to get it from localization portal, but I haven't found how to download it from transifex... May be it is possible direct from installed packages / folders on my PC (Windows) ? And of course I understand that the edition should be done only on transifex durring the specific period (before string freeze). Thank you in advance for any advice.

@Stan`, thank you! But it looks too complicated... Is there something more user-friendly ? Something like in civilization description in the game GUI?

Is there a comparison table of unit and building stats for all civilizations? A single line displaying hit points, cost, attack types and levels, defense against various attacks, production locations, available levels, and spawn conditions... For example, a comparison of all foot pikemen from different factions, all swordsmen from different factions, all cavalry spearmen, all heroes, all castles and towers from all civilizations, and so on. Such a comparison table would be very useful for choosing a game civilization before a match and for determining counters to various units from different factions and tactics selection. It seems like I've seen something similar somewhere, but maybe I dreamed it? Overall, it would be best to have such a table directly in the game, as unit and building stats periodically change from version to version.

Guys, am I the only one who thinks that suggestions for improvements and refinements to such a diverse game should have been posted in separate threads a long time ago, rather than in one kilometer-long one with... 173 pages! In my opinion, this is completely counterproductive!

I have created a ticket to develop this feature: https://gitea.wildfiregames.com/0ad/0ad/issues/8696

@Perzival12 > ...Maybe AresBot... Basaltum (the hardest rock) ? > ...but I need to know what should be changed? Is it still too strong? Or maybe it is too weak? Let me know any changes you think about it... To check the Pebble AI bot strength, could you please let us know how to install and use it and which version of 0 A.D. is compatible for this ?

Why not. But this fail may be possible and without garrisoned champions on ram ship. Three ram ships also will beat one arrow ship, as I understand. The enemy may disembark units from the ship and give you a hard time. What does it mean ? This is war reality. When enemy have more units and use it with mind he will beat you any time. Try to find the solution! For example - sink his ramming ship with javelinners or archers. Small amount of distant units will sink one ram ship with ALL the champions for short period. Fastly! "The enemy will have more units and I will be defeated" — it is not the real reason to decline the feature. In case you lost the unique ship. And lost your shipyard. There are a lot of ways how to build new doc and new ship, even you have not gold and gold mines around. Just make a market and trade the food (or other goods) for the gold. By the way. The dock is also a market. But.. In other way. You may garrison some units to the trade ship as a garrison and capture any war ship without units. Only imagine... And this is also war reality. Defend your units. Be carefull! Use the tactics! Guard everything. This is real strategy!

@Perzival12 Very interesting project! Let's give new bot the name - "Puer AI" (puer means Boy or child in Latin) - "Calculus" (latin. "pebble", small round piece of stone) - Pebble AI (pebble is small stone... and also opensource community brand for smart watch) I like mostly "Puer AI" and "Pebble AI" variants. Both starts from P (as Petra) and means small variant of something bigger.

In this case, AI behavior during the game and replay viewing should NOT be linked in any way. I don't know the technical details, but for the user, replay viewing isn't a real game; they can't change anything; they simply follow the actions and analyze what was done during the match (and when exactly), for which the replay is saved. However, AI behavior in the match must be fair. That's all. When Shroud of Darkness and Fog of War aren't used by bots, but are used by real players, it's a completely unfair situation.