Posts from Heroes V - Remake "File restructuring, 'junk' cleanup, and game optimization"

The Dragon Lich's abilities do not have names listed; the descriptions are present, but the names are missing: Acid Breath and Prismatic Breath.

Thank you – I have corrected this, and the change will be available with the next update in approximately 10 days.

Update available (17.10.17-Beta):

!!!It is recommended to create a new game profile when playing the new version of the mod!!!

— Academy: the “Artifact Shop” building now costs 1000 gold, 5 units of ore, and 5 units of wood (previously 5 units of wood and 5000 gold);
— Academy: the description of the “Thunderers” creature has been changed;
— Dungeon: the cost of the “Shipyard” building has been increased to 20 units of wood;
— Fortress: added the missing city sound effect from the original game in the city overview and building mode;
— Fortress: the cost of the “Magistrate” building has been increased to 5000 gold (previously 4000);
— Fortress: the cost of the “Capitol” building has been increased to 10000 gold (previously 8000);
— Fortress: the cost of the “Fort” building has been increased to 5000 gold (previously 3500);
— Fortress: the cost of the “Stronghold” building has been increased to 5000 gold (previously 3500);
— Fortress: the cost of the “Castle” building has been increased to 5000 gold (previously 3500);
— Fortress: the “Shipyard” building requirement has been reduced to city level 12 (previously level 15);
— Haven: the “Unrelenting Force” super ability has been enhanced and now provides a permanent “Divine Power” spell effect;
— Inferno: the “Castle” building now requires the “Stronghold” to be built (previously the “Sacrifice Pit”);
— Inferno: the “Sacrifice Pit” building now requires city level 9 to be built (previously the “Castle” and level 12);
— Necropolis: the hero Nicholas has new textures and now looks like the icon;
— Stronghold: the level 1 “Goblins” creatures are no longer ranged attackers;
— Stronghold: the “Pure Rage” super ability provides a permanent “War Cry” effect and 200 rage points;
— Stronghold: the “Capitol” building now requires the “Magistrate” to be built (previously the “Slave Market”);
— Stronghold: the “Fort” building now requires city level 6 to be built (previously level 3);
— Stronghold: the “Stronghold” building now requires city level 9 to be built (previously level 6);
— Stronghold: the “Castle” building now requires the “Stronghold” to be built (previously the “Skull Pile”);
— Stronghold: the “Hall of Trials” building now requires city level 6 to be built (previously level 3);
— Stronghold: the “Traveler’s Hut” building now requires city level 3 to be built (previously level 6);
— Stronghold: the “Spirit Shelter” building now requires the “Hall of Trials” to be built (previously the “Warrior Yurts”);
— Stronghold: the “Shrine of Wrath” building now requires the “Warrior Yurts” to be built (previously the “Spirit Shelter”);
— Stronghold: the “Slave Market” building now requires the “Market” and city level 9 to be built (previously the “Magistrate” and level 12);
— Stronghold: the “Skull Pile” building now requires the “Spirit Shelter” and city level 12 to be built (previously the “Stronghold” and level 9);
— Stronghold: the “Dark Lair” building no longer requires the “Traveler’s Hut” to be built;
— Stronghold: the “Shipyard” building requirement has been increased to city level 12 (previously level 9);
— Stronghold: the standard hero Azar now has the “Arsonist” specialization;
— Neutrals: the “Battle Academy” building has been renamed to “Military Academy”;
— Added the missing music from the original game to some landscapes on the adventure map;
— Added the missing highlight effect from the original game for some artifacts;
— The starting skills of some heroes have been rebalanced;
— The avatars and descriptions of many heroes have been changed;
— Bug fixes, cleanup, and other improvements.

The number of changes is impressive!

Do the files at the links still not work without the original game?
Considering the changes, the mod now has a completely different meaning.

Do the files in the links still not work without the original game?
Considering the changes, the mod now has a completely different meaning.

Yes, the mod will not run without the original game; there is no piracy involved. :smile19:

I started working on balancing the mod around the summer, so in addition to cleaning up the resources, the mod also adjusts the balance. But the main idea remains the same: to make the game as easy as possible.

We have a list of modifications; it includes different types of mods. I've added that the mod also changes the balance due to the updates. If you need to change the topic title, let me know.

Update available (17.11.04-Beta):
- AI aggression reduced;
- The effect of the "Stun" ability has been changed;
- Minor adjustments have been made to the bonuses received from all levels of Blood Fury;
- Bug fixes, cleanup, optimization and other improvements.

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We have a list of modifications; it lists mod types. I've added that the mod also changes the balance due to the changes. If you need to change the topic title, let me know.

Thank you for the information; I will keep it in mind

Has the AI's aggressiveness been reduced? Did it actually help?

Was the AI's aggressiveness reduced? Did it somehow help?

In previous versions of the mod, the AI's aggressiveness was increased, resulting in it searching for player heroes and enemy castles instead of gathering resources and capturing mines. It looked a bit strange, as if the AI was rabid.

Well, that's actually the primary goal, and resources are just a means to an end. Reducing aggression would only make sense if the AI doesn't capture mines or develop its city, but simply attacks until its forces are exhausted (it runs out of starting resources, armies, and heroes). In that case, the game would be reduced to capturing almost empty cities and hunting down weak heroes on which the AI has scraped together something. But I think that no matter how aggressive the AI is, it should still develop its cities in some way, and therefore ignore mines only in the early stages, while it still has starting resources/an army. I noticed this in the original ToE as well – apparently, the amount of resources allocated to the AI for its "hero" is sufficient for it to prioritize aggressive development/rush rather than capturing mines. Sometimes, after capturing a city around the third week, the AI would surprisingly not capture even the nearest wood and ore mines – meaning it develops the city with what it has at the beginning and goes on the attack. As you can see, this "problem" is inherent in the original game, not just the modified one

Actually, that is precisely the primary goal, and resources are just a means to an end. Reducing aggression would only make sense if the AI doesn't capture mines or develop its city, but simply attacks until its forces are exhausted (it runs out of starting resources, armies, and heroes). In that case, the game would be reduced to capturing almost empty cities and hunting down weak heroes on whom the AI has scraped together something. But I think that no matter how aggressive the AI is, it should still develop its cities in some way, and therefore ignore mines only in the early stages, while it still has starting resources/an army. I've noticed this in the original ToE as well – it seems that the amount of resources allocated to the AI for its "hero" is sufficient for it to prioritize aggressive development/rush rather than capturing mines. Sometimes, after capturing a city around the third week, the AI surprisingly doesn't capture even the nearest wood and ore mines to its capital – it develops the city with what it has at the beginning and goes on the attack. As you can see, this "problem" is inherent in the original game, not just the modified one.

Your authority on this forum in the area of balance has made me reconsider the idea of reducing AI aggression. Thank you for pointing this out; I need to seriously consider this and weigh all the "pros and cons" in the AI's behavior priorities. In almost every release of the mod, the AI has undergone minor adjustments.

The AI shouldn't go bankrupt because it sends all its heroes to attack an enemy castle. Could it possibly have heroes that are only used for gathering resources?

Wouldn't it be possible to make the aggression level random? So that the blue faction attacks in the second week, while the green faction builds up its army and attacks in the fourth week?

The AI shouldn't go bankrupt because it loses all its heroes in a battle against an enemy castle. Can it even have heroes that are purely for resource gathering?

In the previous version of the mod, enemy heroes moved in pairs on large maps. One with an army, and the other following closely behind. The second one collected resources, but not all of them, and also headed towards the nearest enemy castle.

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Wouldn't it be possible to make the aggression level random? So that the blue faction attacks in the second week, while the green faction gathers an army and attacks in the fourth week?

Unfortunately, as far as I know, it's not possible to do that yet.

Wouldn't it be possible to make the AI's aggressiveness random? So that the blue faction attacks in the second week, while the green faction builds up its army and attacks in the fourth week?

In EE, I think you can choose in the bonuses before starting the map what kind of AI it will be (defensive or aggressive).