Grand Strategy Imperator: Rome - the new grand strategy from Paradox

[Fedora Master]

 

[Theodora]

Did they make the game less shit yet? Gave it some flavour, depth, and fixed the AI?

Honestly, it's felt very playable since 1.3 and the Punic Wars FLC. I've only given Rome a real shot, but it felt like a dynamic recreation of the building tension between the expanding republic and a Carthage keen on dominating Sicily and the western Mediterranean.

The new lead is doing a superb job compared to Johan, who seemed only concerned with arcade-y multiplayer. I think Arheo started off as a content creator, and was responsible for the most flavourful details of the previous updates. (I remember he used to post all the best previews on Twitter.) Now he's leading the project, and it looks dope; I just hope Paradox keeps funding development, because he seems genuinely passionate about the ancient world and giving it a representation that feels alive.

You can see the real change in thinking with the dev diaries fpr Archimedes' (1.4) religion overhaul: 20th Jan, 10th Feb, 24th Feb (there are others, but not on religion). Going off how little of the original design he's kept sacred so far, it looks like the game will be alien to paltry production they first shipped in a couple of years.

The Bronze Age mod really intruiges me. I've been studying the Minoans and Mycenaeans the past month, so I'm really curious what they used as their source materials. The names are like... plausible? But I don't know what year it's meant to be and if there was ever really that substantial a degree of political fragmentation at the same time as civilisation being as developed as in the game. Still, even if they're using a lot of creative license, it's a great effort.

 

[Hace El Oso]

I've been waiting for an overhaul that would make the game worth playing, still haven't bought it. If anyone who's played the game checks out the mod or can make an educated guess from the video, let me know if it would get Imperator to the point of being worthwhile in a 2 player game of adult non-memers.

Damn paradox for making such a pretty game set in antiquity and then producing the same techno-diarrhea. Even worse if this mod still can't bandage it while being set in the time of Gilgamesh.

 

[XenomorphII]

I've really been enjoying playing as various Greek minors trying to claw out a place between the Diadochi. Tends to always mean you are a smaller fry fighting above your weight.

 

[Miner Arobar]

The game doesn't deserve half the criticism it has received. It's a perfectly fine successor to (modded) EU:Rome, which is what I expected and wanted it to be. Sure, it doesn't have faction-specific flavour for the kingdom of Sinope or the city-state of Cyzicus or the Himyarite tribes - but come on, it's the only game that presents the ancient world in this kind of detail. Other games might have 20 playable factions or so. Currently, I'm starting to like character interactions a lot - I'm seeing some nice feuds between leading families with tit-for-tat killings - while I'm annoyed with some of the rough edges of the game (like some missions not realistically doable within game's timeframe). And in general, annoyed with Paradox' tendency to completely overhaul published games (Stellaris and this) instead of incrementally improving on what they originally intended.

 

[Theodora]

Good to see Athens and Sparta and their rivalry get some love.

edit: XenomorphII maybe this is sth for you?

 

[Theodora]

Archimedes update and Magna Graecia content pack set to release 31st March. Kinda feel like it should be free still, but I remain somewhat optimistic given Arheo is in charge, and Johan is squarely not.



Priced at $7.99 / £5.79 / €7.99.

steam news:

ARCHIMEDES

Harness divine favor

• State Deities: The Omens system has been replaced by a national Pantheon. Gods from across your empire are welcome into this divine collection, providing passive bonuses most of the time, though you can invoke their power for greater benefits.
  
• Holy Sites: The classical world was full of sacred groves and mysterious locales. Holy Sites increase the strength of the relevant deity in your Pantheon, or may be sacked of their wealth by less faithful rulers.
  
• Sacred Treasures: Revered historical and divine relics can be stored in your National Treasury, earning small bonuses. If you sack an enemy’s Holy Sites or capital, there is a chance you might capture these special artifacts.
  
• Loyalty Rework: Instead of a ticking scale to track, Character Loyalty will be a sum of various factors, making it easier to understand and control.
  
• Various QoL improvements such as MP AI Settings, Continue button, Trade Request filtering, and more.

MAGNA GRAECIA

Restore The Might of Hellas

• Apotheosis: A popular ruler from a prestigious family may be declared a god and welcomed into the State Pantheon. Elevate enough rulers and you may institute an Imperial Cult religion.
  
• New Greek Missions: New missions available for Athens, Sparta, Syracusae.
  
• New Deities: 12 new Greek deities tied to historical Holy Sites across the Greek world.
  
• Hellenistic Themed Treasures: Collect special artifacts based on the history and legends of the Hellenistic world.
  
• New Music, Art, and 3D Models

 

[Agesilaus]

It's out


https://store.steampowered.com/app/1252870/Imperator_Rome__Magna_Graecia_Content_Pack/

Base game is 50% off.

No idea if it's any good, but it sounds like the expansion pack is specifically focused on Sparta, Athens, and Syracuse. So... definite 100% guaranteed purchase from me even if it is total dogshit. I bought it a minute or two ago, don't care if it's shit, if you are focusing on Hellenic City States then you are getting my money.

 

[Theodora]

Can we all just take a moment to appreciate Illyrian culture finally being separated out?

 

[thesecret1]

Oh my god, they still have that hebrew province on the northern coast of Black Sea.

 

[fantadomat]

Oh my god, they still have that hebrew province on the northern coast of Black Sea.

You don't know shit mate,jews were explorers and shiet.

 

[IDtenT]

They've actually got 5000 people to play this every day.

https://steamdb.info/app/859580/graphs/

 

[Beowulf]

No wonder. It's free so some strategy fans wanted to finally try this masterpiece out.
Even I installed it.

But I've heard that Paradox not only goes with their tradition of tutorials being quickly outdated to the point of not really functioning, but they went even further ahead and provided no manual.

 

[Agesilaus]

I'm enjoying what they did with Sparta. They clearly put a little bit of effort into it.

Not enough to have a dual monarchy or otherwise model the other institutions of Spartan government, but you know, they give you expected missions and events like recovering Messenia and recruiting the Skiritai.

I've been playing iron man mode, which I find more fun. It requires you to pay closer attention. I have an alliance of convenience with Argos and part of Crete, which secures my position as big dog of the peloponnesos. Recovering Messenia is quite easy, it's just a question of treading carefully afterwards.

 

[Theodora]

But I've heard that Paradox not only goes with their tradition of tutorials being quickly outdated to the point of not really functioning, but they went even further ahead and provided no manual.

Now there's a painful truth. They've shown with Stellaris they can do interactive tutorials that don't suck, but gods knows if they'll ever catch up with themselves.

 

[fantadomat]

LoL tutorials are for retards.

 

[Destroid]

No wonder. It's free so some strategy fans wanted to finally try this masterpiece out.
Even I installed it.

But I've heard that Paradox not only goes with their tradition of tutorials being quickly outdated to the point of not really functioning, but they went even further ahead and provided no manual.

Paradox haven't provided a useful manual in a long time.

 

[Theodora]

LoL tutorials are for retards.

I think my time is more valuable than trial and error for basic gameplay concepts.

 

[fantadomat]

LoL tutorials are for retards.

I think my time is more valuable than trial and error for basic gameplay concepts.

I never needed a tutorial in my life,it is a waste of time for basic concepts lol.

 

[IDtenT]

LoL tutorials are for retards.

I think my time is more valuable than trial and error for basic gameplay concepts.

If you've played one PDS game you can get into any of them.

 

[Average Manatee]

Figuring out how to play a game like imperator isn't really a thing that a tutorial is great for. What you'd actually need is some kind of list of tips and warnings. e.g. "WARNING: You are attacking some dude who has an alliance with someone with 5x your army size, this is bad". Or "WARNING: your AE is getting high decrease it by doing x/y/z before conquering more".

 

[Comte]

How the fuck do you run trade in this? I think I am getting too old for this shit.

 

[XenomorphII]

Trade is modifier acquisition for your capital. Look at the bonuses provided get to +1 in capital for the ones you want, then export from other areas to get an additional modifier. After that ignore except food. Sometimes you need to import it to keep a province growing.

 

[Beowulf]

LoL tutorials are for retards.

For complex strategy games or simulations a good manual is a must. If you can't provide a manual, you should create an exhaustive tutorial (and I don't mean a tutorial showing how to click on the GUI buttons, but one that explains what does different number on hexes mean, or why and how you set propeller pitch). In games like Gary Grigsby's series knowledge of how much rail track you can repair in two weeks, or how to move your planes to forward bases and not cripple their effectiveness with lack of fuel matters a lot, especially in MP games. Or multiplayer Dominion games.
No tutorial will teach you that, and trying to infer how it works from gameplay alone is a waste of time in most cases. Sure, you'll learn how to play the game, but you'll be missing some crucial information that can make you more effective.

And I never imagined I'll praise the monster that is Slitherine/Matrix known for so long for dubious business practices, but take a look at the FoG and FoG:E. They have easily readable, properly edited manuals, that are updated with every major patch/DLC.
I remember that even for CKII Paradox published pdf docs with major changes to the systems, but didn't update the core.

Ehh, I'm just getting tired of what they are doing.

 

[IDtenT]

They've all got wikis.