In my opinion TE Gold is an amazing mod (personally my favourite RTW mod of all time), but I always felt like there could be a little bit more added onto it. As a result, I began modding it and eventually this was the result!
My overhaul contains several new major changes; so much so that you wont be able to recognise the original Terrae Expugnandae mod! Some of the changes are as follows:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
- massive graphic and terrain improvements to the battle map; this WILL cause lag on some lower end computers =/
- new terrain textures for the campaign map (which can change when you upgrade farmsteads in that province)
- new water animations and textures for the campaign map (new in version 1.4)
- new campaign strat models for cities and ports
- 6 new cities; Argos in Greece, Himera and Akragas in Sicily, Ilipa in Malta, Taras in Ireland and Babylon in Babylonia (funnily enough)
- massive faction overhauls and a new faction (Sabaea; implemented in v2)
- many new units and retextures of pre-existing units (some examples below)
- a small AOR system, yet still not sufficient enough to significantly detract from the original unit recruitment roster
- lots of EDU tweaks; if you dont like incredibly tough units then dont download this!
- new wall textures for the Romans and Greeks
- huge amount of fixes to the text files; now the barbarian factions have a properly named and updated unit roster!
- the popular Force Diplomacy Mod has been included (to handle the dumb AI at times; try not to abuse it!)
- new advisor UI cards
- too many other small changes to mention........
This mod isn't entirely historically accurate; some leeway has been given for aesthetic looks and balance as well, so dont come flaming when you notice that "X unit didnt wear Corinthian helmets!" or "Faction Y has THIS city? etc"
As of v2, this mod has been modified to run on Alexander; therefore it unfortunately cannot be played without the Alexander expansion.
- extract the mod contents to your Creative Assembly/Rome - Total War folder (If you are currently using any of the Terrae Expugnandae mods, this will basically overwrite your entire terrae_expugnandae folder so I would recommend renaming the pre-existing folder "backup" or something).
- for those of you that use Steam, extract the downloaded files to your RTW Alexander folder (normally this would be C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\RTW Alexander). Furthermore, Steam users should then do the following:
- right click on Rome Total War - Alexander in your Steam library, and select 'Properties' from the menu.
- under Properties, go to the first tab, 'General'. At the bottom is a box that you can select to set launch options for the game.
- copy this and paste it there; "-mod:terrae_expugnandae -nm -show_err -movie_cam -enable_editor -noalexander". Make sure there is a space before the dash (-)!!
- the game should load with the mod from Steam. No need to click the bat file anymore.
The majority of the mod is modfoldered, however the in-game graphical improvements are not. I have tested the vanilla game extensively, and apart from the increase in terrain graphics and the campaign map there are no problems
To play:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
- run the included batch file (called "TE"); after installation this should be located in your RTW folder (alongside your exe files). I'd advise you to create a shortcut for the batch file to your desktop, and rename it Rome Total War or something. I have also heard that some of you may experience problems running the mod. If that is the case then try right clicking TE.bat and selecting "Run as Administrator
- For Steam users, just launch Rome Total War - Alexander" =)
Update History:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
- v1.1 (Hotfix; fixed a few text errors and added a British army to Ireland, in an attempt to encourage overseas AI expansion)
- v1.2 (New version with many improvements; eg. fixed stone wall crash, added barbarian cavalry to Britons and corrected Egypt not displaying proper UI interface)
- v1.3 (Fully revamped factions - Parthia, Pontus, Armenia, Numidia and Thrace; Seleucids now at war with Parthia and Baktria; intended to make things a harder challenge for the player and prevent the Seleucid AI from dominating the campaign map)
- v1.4 (Massive overhaul to existing mod - Roman and Carthaginian armies revamped and retextured with additional units, new Roman/Carthaginian general battle/strat models, animated water textures finally implemented for campaign map, new barbarian Naked Fanatics model, new mercenaries, many bugfixes; notably the climates in Egypt and other hot regions, the annoying descr_daytypes crash, new territories added to Britons and finally; mod transition to Alexander.exe in order to utilise its better AI!
- v1.5 (Revamped Greek City States; retextured units and now some cities have specific hoplites like Athens, Syracuse and Argos etc. Aforementioned hoplites + Spartans also added to mercenary pool (although theyre VERY rare and expensive!!). New Greek officers and few new reskins like Libyan Hoplites. Finally added new loading screens and a background to the game!)
- v1.6 (Added 2 mercenary units; Campanian Cavalry and Massilian Hoplites. Final bugfixes also included, like the Baktrian elaphra pikemen and the Carthaginian quinquereme EDB bug!)
- v1.7 (Few more bugfixes. Also more significantly I have decided to revert back to the RTW.exe instead of Alexander; I thought that it was best, due to installation complications with Steam users and to ensure that more people can play the mod. I should add that all the original units with 1.6 are STILL in v1.7; luckily I managed to find and delete a few more dummy units in the DMB file =D)
- v1.8 (Think I finally fixed the incessant CTD on startup crash I unwittingly introduced into the game. Also added Medieval 2 trees and vegetation to the stratmap: you should enjoy your campaign more now! Finally, I added 2 new units; the Hoplites of Corinth and Pergamum - both of which are available to mercenaries AND the Greek Cities).
- v1.9 (Fixed the Campaign loading CTD regarding the birch_001.tga file. You should have no problems now!)
- v2 (A severely LONG list of changes have been made):
* It now runs on Alexander.exe; this was necessary in order to incorporate the new additions. Furthermore, the AI performs much better now (including naval invasions).
* A small AOR system has been included: nothing fancy, just a few mercenary units that are now recruitable in various regions dotted throughout the map.
* A new fully fleshed out faction: The Arabian Kingdom of Sabaea
* Many new units (about 50-60 in all I think)
* The popular "Force Diplomacy" script has been added; now in diplomatic discussions, press the ? mark at the top of the screen to force the enemy faction to accept your terms (try not to abuse it; it is intended to counter the daft AI)
* Many new re-skins of pre-existing units.
* New AI Advisors
* New Battlemaps
* And many more wee additions!
Bugs:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
- keep me updated; as of v2 there are none which I am aware of!
Credits:
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
- Lusted (for creating the great original which STILL has me enthralled after several years of gameplay!)
- Iain (my primary mod tester - cheers for reporting the various glitches and bugs I had missed)
- DVK, Tone and the Roma Surrectum II team (thanks lads for the terrain, graphics overhaul and new settlement/port strat models)
- DimeBagHo and the XGM team (many of the elite greek/egyptian units)
- Tony83 and the RTR Platinum team (many new unit reskins)
- Ferres (for the new Roman skins)
- Davide.Cool (for the Roman ships, watchtowers, and new greek and roman walls)
- Lt1956 and the SPQR team (for some skins, notably the Parthian spearmen!)
- Archaon (for the Campaign AI Ally mod)
- Kylan271 (for advice and feedback regarding bugfixes!)
- Julius Caesar Salad (for the invaluable fix for Steam users)
- The Europa Barbarorum Team (for their amazing unit skins and many Sabaean units)
- Alin (for his help with permissions)
- Julius Caesar Salad (for the invaluable fix for Steam users)
Feedback is greatly appreciated; with your feedback I can release better updates that fix any bugs or problems. PM me if you have any questions or problems with the mod!
Last edited by Zipzopdippidybopbop; April 20, 2013 at 01:23 PM.