Important matters regarding the overall gameplay...

[rmhibbs]

Based on reading this topic I see the following:

• The game has a slow start/economy setup followed by a quick military action (followed by a tedious search for the last survivor);
  
• We need to support different players styles and objectives (professional/competitive players down to recreational/slow/methodical/defensive/new players;
  
• We need to work on various ways of balancing and adjusting game play;
  

In addition, I feel that although the game is designed and built to authentic cultural standards, those standards don't translate into battles. I don't know if I'm fighting range or melee troops; rookies, elite, champions, and/or heroes. Even if I knew I don't easily know how to best oppose them. Even if I knew the type of troops I could not distinguish them as they approach. So I gather as many troops as I have and generate as many other troops based on what I can afford and throw them at the enemy. If I lose I retreat with any remaining troops to hide behind defense towers, fortresses, walls, civ centers or any other buildings that can garrison troops.

To generally speed up the economy phase you can adjust gather rates, gather times, gather amounts (may be part of the gather rates), walk speeds, citizen train times, citizen health, build times and building health.

To slow down war time increase walk speeds, troop train times, troop build times, and decrease troop health, troop hit points, and troop building health, troop building hit points. After n troop kills further adjust troop values and after m troop building destroyed further adjust troop building values. These reflect it is more difficult to replace war items and to provide appropriate training. These adjustments will slow down the battles and slow down troop and building replacements. It will also make the player less likely to engage in risky battles.

As a further constrain on battles require feeding each troop 1 unit of food every x minutes. This will reduce the troop counts according to the number of citizens required to continue generating food.

My wars are battles of attrition that have nothing to do with faction formations. And even if I knew all the troop types and capabilities I could not properly control my troops during battle. I can not even control my troops during movement to get positioned or even control the priority of targets. Most of the time they prefer to kill women vs. combatants - especially the defense towers. So I cannot simulate anything like historical faction battles. Counters or Countered by are worthless.

As an interim solution until we get walk, run. and/or charge values that we change the walk values of mounted troops to exceed those of walking units. Mounted troops should always be able to eventually catch and engage unmounted units. They may not win but they can force a fight.