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<H2><center><img src="ktuvok.gif" align=middle> Almea8: A Civilization II scenario <font color="#FF0000"></font> <img src="beton.gif" align=middle></center></H2>
<hr><p>
<img src="civ8.gif" alt="Peace" align=left>
<font size=+2>I</font>'ve spent way, way too much time lately on <b>Civilization II</b>. If you're unfamiliar with it,
it's something like SimCity, except that instead of developing a city you run a civilization,
all the way from the Neolithic to the Space Age. You compete with rival civilizations,
get to know and appreciate them, and then destroy them.
<p>One of the neatest things about it is, you can create <b>scenarios</b>-- new versions of the game,
with new units, new city advances, new technology trees, and new rules. (Ironically, over time I find that the only scenario I really, really like is Dinosaur.)
<p>Naturally, I had to write an Almea scenario. I worked one out in the first few weeks I had the game; but I hadn't mastered the game yet, and the scenario wasn't all it could be, either.
<p>Well, in the last year I <a href="winciv2.htm">achieved sufficient Civ2 studliness</a>, and I've finally got around to updating
the scenario.
<p>The picture above shows a tense moment between the Xurnese (white) and
the Skourenes (orange). The red-shirted guys are flaids; the blocky tablet is
a Home God, representing the <a href="pagan.htm#Popular">clay idols</a> the Cadhinorians created to protect their homes.
<ul>
<li><img src="new.gif"> Here's <a href="ALMEA8.zip">a Zip file with the PC version</a>.
<li>And here's <a href="ALMEA8.sit">a Stuffit file with the Mac version</a>.
</ul>
A good browser will fetch these files for you; if it doesn't work, use the option to save
the link to disk. When run, they'll create an <tt>Almea8</tt> directory,
which you should put in your Scenarios folder.
</ul>
<img src="civ1.gif" alt="Units" align=right>
<p>The scenario includes a map of <a href="drill2.htm">eastern Ereláe</a>, and allows you to play any
of seven civs: the <a href="visitor.htm">Verdurians</a>, the <a href="kebreni.htm">Kebreni</a>,
the <a href="almea.htm#Xurno">Xurnese</a>, the <a href="almea.htm#Dhekhnam">Dhekhnami</a>,
the Luduyni, the Fei, and the <a href="almea.htm#Tzhuro">Skourenes</a>.
(Actually there's
more civs in the <tt>rules.txt</tt> file (complete with city names in <tt>cities.txt</tt>),
but those are the ones activated in the scenario file.)
<p>The <b>technology</b> tree has been pruned to make room for two subtrees--
<b>Good</b> and <b>Evil</b>. The Dhekhnami are the only ones to have Evil; all but one of the
others have Good. Most of the good military units derive from these-- a different
set for each. Some of them can be seen in the picture at the right.
<p>There are nine techs in each of the subtrees. Each has a "normal" prerequisite tech, plus Good or Evil. Here they are, with the units they allow:
<blockquote><table>
<tr bgcolor="#B0E0B0">
<td> <td colspan=2> <center><b>Good</b></center>
<td colspan=2> <center><b>Evil</b></center>
<td rowspan=2> Role
<tr bgcolor="#B0E0B0">
<td>Prerequisite <td><i>Tech</i> <td><i>Unit</i> <td><i>Tech</i> <td><i>Unit</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">---
<td>Good <td><b>Flaid</b>
<td>Evil <td><b>Murtany</b>
<td><i>Exploration</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Mysticism
<td>Nature Worship <td><b>Home Gods</b>
<td>Spirit Mastery <td><b>Clay Spirit</b>
<td><i>Defense (2d)</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Monarchy
<td>Wisdom <td><b>Centaur</b>
<td>Profanation <td><b>Troll</b>
<td><i>Artillery</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Monotheism
<td>Asceticism <td><b>Giant</b>
<td>Sycophancy <td><b>Rock Spirit</b>
<td><i>Strong defense (4d)</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Metalllurgy
<td>War Disciplines <td><b>Xaleza</b>
<td>Necromancy <td><b>Wood Spirit</b>
<td><i>Attack</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Palaeology
<td>Iliu Friendship <td><b>Iliu </b>
<td>Ktuvok Worship <td><b>Ktuvok </b>
<td><i>Mobile Warfare</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Ancient Tongues
<td>Secret Art <td><b>Wizard</b>
<td>Top 40 Radio <td><b>Metal Spirit</b>
<td><i>Heavy Artillery</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Dynamics
<td>Air Dressage <td><b>Airmount</b>
<td>Spirit Bondage <td><b>Air Spirit</b>
<td><i>Basic air unit</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Genetics
<td>Bird Breeding <td><b>Betonneuse</b>
<td>Child Sacrifice <td><b>Fire Spirit</b>
<td><i>Advanced air unit</i>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#B0E0B0">Quantum Mechanics
<td>Spell of Strength <td><b>Giant Bees <br>Fortress Ship <br> </b>
<td>Telemarketing <td><b>Curse <br>Water Spirit <br>Plague </b>
<td><i>Missile <br>Naval attacker <br>Mondo missile</i>
</table>
</blockquote>
<p>The Dhekhnami won't negotiate with anyone else; you don't gain techs through conquest, and you don't get even a Diplomat till late in the game (Espionage-- you get Spies with Computers). This ensures that there's <b>no mixing of Good and Evil</b> till quite late. (Researching both isn't really worth it; but I didn't want the AI to waste its time doing so.)
<img src="civ7.gif" alt="Good vs. Evil" align=left>
<p>In general, the more <b>modern technology</b> has been removed from the game,
replaced with Almean creatures and magic. To the left you can see
a little confrontation between Good and Evil;
note the Centaurs and Airmounts on the Kebreni (green) side,
and the Murtany and (improbably) the Water Spirit on the Dhekhnami (purple) side.
There's a ktuvok hiding under the city name "Kondro".
<p>The <b>Luduyni</b> start the game with <b>neither Good nor Evil</b>. It's an interesting and not impossible challenge to play them... there are just enough good non-magic units for defense, and by not researching the subtrees you may even get ahead in science. They also start with two Settlers instead of one, to make up for their technological disadvantage (and to keep the Verdurians from expanding too luxuriantly westward).
<p>Some highlights:
<ul>
<li><a href="verbio.htm#flaid"><b>Flaids</b></a> (the nonhuman inhabitants of Flora) are explorers; Good
players start out with these instead of warriors. They can be used as cheap defense till you get something better.
<li>The basic defender is the <b>Home Gods</b> (these were Cadhinorian clay idols, Cadhinor <i>gesit</i>);
the better one is the <a href="verbio.htm#giants"><b>Giant</b></a>.
<li>The <b>King's Men</b> were the professional armies of <a href="cuzeian.htm">Cuzei</a>; the
<b>Falahta</b> those of the Cadhinorian Empire; the <b>Xaleza</b> the
elite warriors of Xurno.
<li>You can get an <a href="verbio.htm#Lutinids"><b>iliu</b></a> as a fairly advanced unit. They're excellent both on offense and defense, and (as befits their biology) they can mount amphibious attacks.
<li>The basic flying unit is the <b>Airmount</b>, a giant flying bird; the
more powerful one is the <b>Betonneuse</b>.
I didn't really take these from Almea; they most
resemble the giant birds drawn by the French cartoonist Moebius.<p>
<li>Evil civs start out with the <a href="verbio.htm#elcari"><b>murtany</b></a> as the basic wimpy warrior,
and move on to such creatures as the <b>troll</b>, and <a href="verbio.htm#Tritonids"><b>ktuvok</b></a> (comparable to the iliu). (The Dhekhnami are given a troll to begin with; otherwise they start out at too much of a disadvantage.)
<li>They also have access to an <b>elemental</b> for each of the
<a href="thematic.htm#16">elements</a> in Cadhinorian thought: clay, rock, wood, air, fire, water, and metal.
These serve various functions-- e.g. clay spirits are good defenders; air spirits are your basic flying unit.
<li>A <b>curse</b> is the equivalent of a missile; it's a powerful weapon, destroyed after use.
<li>Instead of nuclear missiles, you have <b>plague</b>.
</ul>
In general, the good and evil units are comparable, but often the Evil ones are a bit higher caliber, while the Good units are better on defense. (E.g. a troll has one more point on attack than a centaur; the Home Gods but not the Clay Spirit has a defense against cavalry; and a ktuvok has extra firepower where the iliu has extra hit points.)
<p>To reflect the differing history of technological progress on Almea, <b>gunpowder</b>
is not available as an advance. You can develop <b>Black Powder</b> and then <b>The Gun</b>, which gives you
<b>Fusileers</b>. These make excellent defenders.
<img src="civ2.gif" alt="Wonders" align=right>
<p><b>Governments</b>: Fundamentalism has been renamed <b>Slave State</b>, and restricted to Evil; Communism has been renamed <b>Illumination</b> and restricted to Good (they represent ideologies like Revaudo, in Xurno, and Jippirasti, the Lenani religion). You can get around these restrictions with the Friendship of the Ilii wonder (which, ironically, the Dhekhnami can try for).
<p>The <b>Wonders</b> have all been renamed (but their functions are the same; the scenario editor doesn't allow much variation here).
You can see some of them in the screencap to the right.
A few of the city improvements have been renamed or their icons redrawn to fit
the scenario better, too.
<p>You're given <b>400 turns</b>, of 10 years each. Interpret "A.D." as "Z.E."...
<p>You can still build a <b>spaceship</b>. However, it colonizes <a>Azháritar</b>, a star system near Ënomai, not Alpha Centauri!
<HR>
<font color="#404040" size=-1>
If anyone played the <b>previous version</b> of this scenario (Almea3), here are the major changes:
<ul>
<li>The subtrees were simplified a bit. I was also less brutal in my pruning, so as to allow spaceships.
<li>I rearranged the units so that the Demoshimor Spy College and upgrade orders properly upgrade them.
Also, the stats on most units are different.
<li>Mixing of Good and Evil is now properly prevented.
<li>Government types are restricted, as described above.
<li>The Civilopedia and the game dialogs are now consistent with the various renamings. (E.g. improvement and wonder names are consistent, and the various historians are all Almean.)
<li>The Xurnese and the Dhekhnami, as well as the Verdurians,
now have their own city styles.
<li>It's been play-tested more. However, it may still need some
tweaking-- the Dhekhnami are still a bit wimpy.
<li>City names are corrected (this mostly affects the Xurnese,
Axunashin, and Wede:i).
<li>The map was redrawn. It's smaller (the old one could be interminable), and by distorting Téllinor to a comic degree, the whole continent was fit in (allowing more significant naval action).
</ul>
</font>
<hr>
<i>I'd be very interested in <a href="contact.html">feedback</a> from anyone who actually plays this...
<br>--Mark Rosenfelder
<br>
</i>
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