Forum

by **chipv** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 11:03 am

BaldAdonis wrote:Right. On most of the maps it's well known which places are neutral (ie. the whole desert in Oasis, everything but castles in Age of Realms) but the actual number of armies varies from 1-75.

Ok, great idea, I don't see why not!

PS can you respond to the Assault Odds post for your suggestion, I'd like to proceed with it, thanks.

by **BaldAdonis** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 11:21 am

Sure thing. I don't monitor threads, so if you need an answer in the future, PM me and I'll get back to it.

by **chipv** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 11:21 am

BaldAdonis wrote:Sure thing. I don't monitor threads, so if you need an answer in the future, PM me and I'll get back to it.

Ok, fair enough.

by **oaktown** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 11:31 am

It's a good idea. I suspect that the browse maps image links directly to the playable map, so this would require that mapmakers create a neutral mock-up (using a format that we standardize) as well as a change to the links in the browse maps page.

A better idea would be to provide a link from the game page itself. Usually you want to know the neutral value because you're in the middle of a game, in the fog, so it'd be nice to bring up a clean map from your game. If we're going to require mapmakers to create a neutral mock-up and make some site changes, may as well provide the link from the place where it is most needed.

by **scottp** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 3:15 pm

yes, that would be awesome!

(and chipv, I'm sorry I was unclear in the beginning. as you have deduced, it is indeed the SIZE of the neutral armies on each of the various neutral territories that I'm wondering about.)

by **sully800** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 5:54 pm

It would be nice if the mapmaker didn't need to create these images. I mean, the XML already exists and puts the neutral armies in the correct place in the game. Why can't a map be generated from the XML with no players armies on it? Then all images could be switched and updated automatically based on their XML. If the XML is ever updated the image would be updated as well.

I don't expect it to happen, but this is information I have always been wanting to see when playing new maps.

by **neanderpaul14** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 7:15 pm

This is a great idea, I have played enough Oasis to know the neutral numbers on that one by heart, however on some maps that I haven't played 300+ games on this would be extremely helpful, I'm thinking of all the AoRs in particular.

Awesome Suggestion =D>

by **chipv** on Mon Apr 20, 2009 7:22 pm

sully800 wrote:It would be nice if the mapmaker didn't need to create these images. I mean, the XML already exists and puts the neutral armies in the correct place in the game. Why can't a map be generated from the XML with no players armies on it? Then all images could be switched and updated automatically based on their XML. If the XML is ever updated the image would be updated as well.

I don't expect it to happen, but this is information I have always been wanting to see when playing new maps.

How about modifying the Map Info Pages as suggested earlier?
All that needs to be done is convert the 88 on Starting Neutral Examples to the real number of assigned armies.

I do see your point, though, and this change boils down to the same thing, - read XML, show image, only plot neutrals.

by **sully800** on Tue Apr 21, 2009 9:41 am

chipv wrote:
sully800 wrote:It would be nice if the mapmaker didn't need to create these images. I mean, the XML already exists and puts the neutral armies in the correct place in the game. Why can't a map be generated from the XML with no players armies on it? Then all images could be switched and updated automatically based on their XML. If the XML is ever updated the image would be updated as well.

I don't expect it to happen, but this is information I have always been wanting to see when playing new maps.

How about modifying the Map Info Pages as suggested earlier?
All that needs to be done is convert the 88 on Starting Neutral Examples to the real number of assigned armies.

I do see your point, though, and this change boils down to the same thing, - read XML, show image, only plot neutrals.

heck, there wouldn't even be a problem with showing all the other armies! It might be helpful on maps that don't have army shadows because it would clearly show the possible starting positions for players.

I guess the problem would be maps that aren't evenly divisible by the # of players, because then you would get neutrals and you might think they were starting neutrals. :-s

by **scottp** on Wed May 06, 2009 12:05 pm

this is an example of what I'm looking for:

Click image to enlarge.

I put the army values in manually, so they're not in the normal font or exact location as the "army bubbles" on the real map, but it does the job. Players on Oasis, Treasures of Galapagos, Ages of Realms, etc could really use this info.

Thanks!

by **scottp** on Wed May 06, 2009 12:07 pm

lol, sorry that's so big! :oops:

by **sully800** on Wed May 06, 2009 12:13 pm

Edit the post and use [bigimg] instead of just [img]. It will make the picture smaller until someone clicks on it.

by **Mr_Adams** on Fri May 08, 2009 11:47 pm

And Barbarian 6 is a 10, not a 2

by **scottp** on Wed May 13, 2009 8:57 pm

Mr_Adams wrote:And Barbarian 6 is a 10, not a 2

lol, good catch! that's why we need this from "official" sources.

by **wolfpack0530** on Sun May 24, 2009 6:24 pm

i remember the first time i tried to get the sanctuary on AoR in round 3, and saw 75!!!!!!!! I quickly realized at that moment that my strategy was flawed. :mrgreen: