Upcoming factions?

[hhyloc]

This question has probably been asked many time before, sorry for the inconvenience but I really need to confirm this:

Can someone tell me what factions will be available after the 0 A.D. is released? After the expansion pack(s)?

From the Factions section in the 0 A.D. homepage:

In future Expansion Packs, we hope to expand the number of available cultures by incorporating additional civilisations from 1 A.D. to 500 A.D. So expect this section to grow after 0 A.D. is released! The list will not be finalised until the first edition has gone gold, but possible civilisations include the Germanics, Vandals, Sarmatians, Late Rome, Imperial Rome or Eastern Rome, Saxons, Parthians, Huns, Dacians, Goths.

Does this mean all of the above civilizations will be included in the future expansion(s)? And can someone explain to me why do we need Late Rome, Imperial Rome or Eastern Rome when we already have Rome? Also, does Asian empires like China, Japan, India or Mongol will be included in the future too? What about ancient Africa or America?

Sorry for asking so many questions.

Edited October 7, 2011 by hhyloc

[Mythos_Ruler]

If we make a Part 2, then we'll include 6 more factions from AD1 to roughly AD500. These factions will have interacted with Rome in this time period. It is possible we'll include other factions in subsequent patches.

As far as having multiple "Roman" factions: Rome changed considerably between 150 B.C. and A.D. 500. They're pretty much the only faction that stays intact through the whole era both parts of the game could potentially encompass, so it would be good to depict the Romans at various points. Republican Rome in Part 1; and possibly Imperial Rome (era of the "5 Good Emperors") and Eastern Rome/Early Byzantines in a hypothetical Part 2.

[Jeru]

1. That info is somewhat deprecated. Current policy is "let's get 0 A.D. part 1 finished ASAP and then we'll think about expansion packs." This should not be interpreted as a hard and fast commitment.

2. I agree 0 A.D. Part 1 has a Eurocentric, essentially Rome-centric, bias. Some of this might be rectified by official expansion packs, the rest will have to be left for mods, which may or may not get official WFG stamps of approval.

[hhyloc]

Thanks for your replies!

If we make a Part 2, then we'll include 6 more factions from AD1 to roughly AD500. These factions will have interacted with Rome in this time period. It is possible we'll include other factions in subsequent patches.

Sounds good to me.

As far as having multiple "Roman" factions: Rome changed considerably between 150 B.C. and A.D. 500. They're pretty much the only faction that stays intact through the whole era both parts of the game could potentially encompass, so it would be good to depict the Romans at various points. Republican Rome in Part 1; and possibly Imperial Rome (era of the "5 Good Emperors") and Eastern Rome/Early Byzantines in a hypothetical Part 2.

That's a good idea but in my opinion it's unnecessary, every civilizations in game are depicted at their highest peak, the same applies to the Roman faction, they're are probably at their highest peak in around 100 AD, so it's best to focus on that time period and the player won't be confused by three Roman factions, I could be wrong though. Of course the final decision is for the WFG team to make.

1. That info is somewhat deprecated. Current policy is "let's get 0 A.D. part 1 finished ASAP and then we'll think about expansion packs." This should not be interpreted as a hard and fast commitment.

I agree with you on this, sir!

2. I agree 0 A.D. Part 1 has a Eurocentric, essentially Rome-centric, bias. Some of this might be rectified by official expansion packs, the rest will have to be left for mods, which may or may not get official WFG stamps of approval.

Like I said above, the final decision is for the WFG team to make, I just want to rephrase that other factions in form of expansion packs would be very nice.

Edited October 7, 2011 by hhyloc

[oshron]

personally, i think the best thing to do would be to ultimately have 3 (or possibly 4) officially releases: the first pack, which focuses on the Roman world from 500-1bc; the second pack would focus on the Roman world from 1-500ad; and the third pack would be civilizations which did NOT encounter the romans from 500bc-500ad. the last pack could potentially be split into two packs, each focusing on "non-roman" cultures from 500-1bc and 1-500ad, respectively. it could possibly be arranged with civilizations like this:

1. 500BC Roman
   Carthaginians
   Celts
   Hellenes
   Iberians
   Persians
   Pre-Imperial Romans
   
2. 500AD Roman
   Arabs
   East Romans
   Huns
   Sassanids
   Saxons
   West Romans
   
3. 500BC Non-Roman
   Gojoseon
   Han Chinese
   Maurya India
   ??
   ??
   ??
   
4. 500AD Non-Roman
   Mayans
   Yamato Japan
   ??
   ??
   ??
   ??
   

these are just suggestions. i dont know too much about many of the "Roman" civilizations here, but personally think that including some civilizations from outside the original scope of the game would be good for variety and scenario design. i dont know about you guys, but i would LOVE to play a scenario with historically accurate romans sailing across the sea to fight historically accurate mayans

[SMST]

I would add both a Non-Western pack for both timespans (500 BC - 500 AD) and a Middle Eastern Pack roughly covering the time BEFORE Part I. (meaning 1000 BC - 500 BC) My list would look like this:

1. Part I
   Carthaginians
   Celts (Gaul/Britain)
   Hellenes (Poleis/Macedon)
   Iberians
   Persians
   Pre-Imperial Romans
   
2. Part II
   West Romans
   East Romans
   Huns
   Parthians/Sassanids
   Germanics (Goths, Saxons, Vandals, Franks)
   Dacians
   
3. Part III - pre 0 A.D.
   Egyptians
   Hittites
   Assyrians
   Babylonians
   Scythians
   Israelites
   
4. Part IV - non-Roman
   Mayans
   Yamato Japan
   Han China
   Maurya India
   Axumites
   ?? (Koreans? maybe a second Chinese faction, corresponding to the "Spring and Autumn" and "Warring States" period?)
   

these are just suggestions. i dont know too much about many of the "Roman" civilizations here, but personally think that including some civilizations from outside the original scope of the game would be good for variety and scenario design. i dont know about you guys, but i would LOVE to play a scenario with historically accurate romans sailing across the sea to fight historically accurate mayans

I agree.

[oshron]

personally, i think that the original scope of just from 500bc to 500ad is enough, and teh focus on 12 "roman" civs and 12 "non-roman" civs is good enough

incidentally, if other persians are included, i would personally recommend changing the names of all those persian civs so that they have more descriptive names. for example, the 500-1bc persians would be the Achaemenids while the 1-500ad persians are the Sassanids (i know Parthians have been tossed out there, too, but i just dont know any names that would encompass both of them; having a split in post-AD persians sounds like it would be a GREAT idea, though)

yknow, it would probably be a good idea to whip up a general map to show what parts of the world are represented. this is just an RTS philosophy of mine, but IMO as many parts of the world as possible should be represented in history-themed RTSs

also--though it may be a bit of a stretch, since their official rise was actually in the 700s--ive always had a soft spot for vikings and think they would make a good addition to the roster

[L'ethu]

Sounds great, i can't wait to see 0 A.D. release with expansion pack, but first i will wait for 0 A.D. part 1.

Edited October 28, 2011 by L'ethu

[hhyloc]

Sounds great, i can't wait to see 0 A.D. release with expansion pack, but first i will wait for 0 A.D. part 1.

Agree! We're all waiting in eagerness