DiSp: Dividing the Spoils - Discussion Thread

[kronenblatt]

Reviewing the coalition rules, wouldn't an ally need to have a province adjacent to the targeted one? Otherwise, you open the door to ridiculous situations where you can attack people on the other side of the map as an ally.

With ally you mean coalition partner, right? And not the traditional FoG2-type ally?

Thanks for thoughts Karvon. However, requiring neighbouring satrapies would make coalitions too limited in my view.

And you can't in any event really attack people on the other side of the map, whether as attacker or aiding coalition partner, only aid in the attack of one of your coalition partners. So you can't gain control over a faraway satrapy. (Apologies for the semantics. )

[Karvon]

I simply can't see the logic of allowing aid to attacks on the other side of the map. At the minimum, there should be a range limit of two or three provinces from your own borders. Even that is really a stretch in my opinion.

[rbodleyscott]

I simply can't see the logic of allowing aid to attacks on the other side of the map. At the minimum, there should be a range limit of two or three provinces from your own borders. Even that is really a stretch in my opinion.

+1

[TomoeGozen]

I simply can't see the logic of allowing aid to attacks on the other side of the map. At the minimum, there should be a range limit of two or three provinces from your own borders. Even that is really a stretch in my opinion.

+1

Sorry , but I'm going to +2 this

I think coalition partners need to be adjacent or at the very least have a route through friendly territory to the battle.

[kronenblatt]

I simply can't see the logic of allowing aid to attacks on the other side of the map. At the minimum, there should be a range limit of two or three provinces from your own borders. Even that is really a stretch in my opinion.

+1

Sorry , but I'm going to +2 this

I think coalition partners need to be adjacent or at the very least have a route through friendly territory to the battle.

No probs, guys: I asked for feedback on the rules. Fair enough: will add the requirement for coalition partners to have an uninterrupted route through friendly satrapies (own or coalition partners') from own satrapies to attacked satrapy. So thanks for input, guys. Anything else that you reacted upon?

[TomoeGozen]

Loving everything else

[kronenblatt]

+1

Sorry , but I'm going to +2 this

I think coalition partners need to be adjacent or at the very least have a route through friendly territory to the battle.

No probs, guys: I asked for feedback on the rules. Fair enough: will add the requirement for coalition partners to have an uninterrupted route through friendly satrapies (own or coalition partners') from own satrapies to attacked satrapy. So thanks for input, guys. Anything else that you reacted upon?

Please also note that I've amended attacker's freedom of choice of satrapy armies and allies (as well as defender's use of allies) in line with this (added part is highlighted in bold green):

• If defending a satrapy, only the army of that satrapy can be selected for the battle.
  • He/she can still select any allies available to him/her through controlling certain satrapies (the attacked satrapy or any other satrapy he/she controls), provided always that there is an uninterrupted route through friendly satrapies (his/her own or any of his/her coalition partners') between the satrapy of the selected ally and the satrapy being attacked.
  • An attacking player and an aiding coalition partner can for their respective battles select any army (and available allies) from his/her own controlled satrapies (but not from a satrapy controlled by the coalition partner), again provided always that there is an uninterrupted route through friendly satrapies (his/her own or any of his/her coalition partners') between the satrapy of the selected army or ally, as applicable, and the satrapy being attacked.
    • Example: a player controlling Phrygia and Kappadokia can in his/her attack of any satrapy decide to select the army of Phrygia with Georgian 331 BC - 252 AD allies, if there is an uninterrupted route between both of Phrygia and Kappadokia and the attacked satrapy.
  The Rules post has been updated accordingly.

[rbodleyscott]

The Diving the Spoils mod build has been updated to v2. You need to download this in game as previously.

Both players should use the latest version. If any games have been started using the previous version, the players will need to keep that version on their system as well as the new version, because the existing game will use the old version.

(The only difference is the availability of allies, which, as per the rules, won't have any effect in this round).

[kronenblatt]

(The only difference is the availability of allies, which, as per the rules, won't have any effect in this round).

Thanks! Actually it could: for example, Blagrot could decide to attack with the army of Phrygia, bringing Illyrian or Thracian allies instead of Greek. I may want to bring Indian allies when defending Sogdiane, along with my army of Sogdiane (always have to defend a satrapy with its own army though, but can bring allies from elsewhere, under certain circumstances (see two posts above this)). Aetius39 may want to defend Mesopotamia with Georgian allies, together with the army of Mesopotamia. And deeter has the option to bring Georgian allies (thanks to controlling Atropatene) even if deciding to attack out of Babylonia or Media.

Just wanted to clarify.

[batesmotel]

It appears that V2 of Dividing the Spoils shows up without a version number in the list of modules so be careful to get the correct version if you still have the older one loaded.

Chris

[kronenblatt]

It appears that V2 of Dividing the Spoils shows up without a version number in the list of modules so be careful to get the correct version if you still have the older one loaded.

Chris

Good point: delete the old version in your folder (the one without v2).

[kronenblatt]

Overview

• The Dividing the Spoils tournament takes off immediately after the partition of satrapies at Triparadeisus in 321 BC, only a few years after the death of Alexander the Great and Perdiccas' original partition at Babylon, and immediately following the fall and murder of Perdiccas in Egypt while warring unsuccessfully against Ptolemy. Alexander, lying on his deathbed, left his empire to "the strongest", which was interpreted very differently among his generals.

• Each player represents one of these generals personally knowing and fighting with and for Alexander, having as 'successors' (Diadochi) been assigned satrapies at the partition at Triparadeisus.

Ending and winning the tournament

• The winner of the tournament is the player who controls the most satrapies upon the end of the tournament.

• A player who doesn’t control any satrapies has lost and is eliminated from the tournament.

• The tournament ends as soon as one of the following conditions is fulfilled (whichever is the earlier):
  1. the player with the most satrapies controls at least twice as many satrapies as the player with the second most satrapies, or
  2. the C-in-C of all players have fallen (at least once) in battle, at which time the age of the Diadochi (the generals personally knowing and fighting with and for Alexander) is deemed to be over.

• Notwithstanding the above, the tournament will always continue until one of the players control more satrapies than all the others and there thus is only one winner.

Map

• The map depicts the overall administrative structure with 24 satrapies of the Alexandrian empire, as inherited from the Achaemenids and in turn inherited by the Diadochi.

• Satrapies are connected to each other by land and some in addition by sea.
  • A satrapy with a land border to another satrapy is considered to neighbour the other satrapy.
  • In addition, the following satrapies are considered neighbours due to sea connections:
    • Aigyptos and Makedonia.
    • Phrygia and Thrake.
    • Phrygia and Makedonia.

• A player is considered neighbouring another player if any of his controlled satrapies neighbour any satrapies controlled by the other player.

• The neighbouring concept has important implications regarding which attacks can be made and which players can gain control over which satrapies, once attacks and corresponding battles are concluded.

Technical specifications and preparations

• Download the Dividing the Spoils mod with all army lists (to be selected under Select another module button when setting up challenge for battle).

• To download, apply the following steps:
  1. Click on the Download community scenarios button at the top of the main screen of the game.
  2. Select Dividing the Spoils MP Custom Battles v3. (note: should be version 3: v3) (currently near the bottom of the list)
  3. Click on Download the Selected Campaign.
  4. The mod will then be automatically saved into the the My Games\FieldOfGlory2\MULTIPLAYER\ folder, within the MP_DIVIDING_SPOILS_V3 folder..

• Please note that a player must own the Immortal Fire DLC in order to take part in the tournament.

Army lists

• All players use the army lists of the Dividing the Spoils mod, with one army list for each satrapy and with a number of vanilla army lists representing allies. (For more details, please see Armies and allies in battles below.)

Units

• All units within an army list are freely available to deploy (other than the standard in-game limitations on numbers, etc.).

Allies

• Allies may only be selected by players controlling certain satrapies:
  • Only the controller of Makedonia (1) may choose Illyrian 680 BC - 25 AD as allies.
  • Only the controllers of Makedonia (1) or Phrygia (3) may choose Greek 460-281 BC as allies.
  • Only the controller of Thrake (2) may choose Thracian (Triballi) 350 BC-46 AD as allies.
  • Only the controllers of Kappadokia (4), Armenia (8), or Atropatene (11) may choose Georgian 331 BC - 252 AD as allies.
  • Only the controller of Aigyptos (6) may choose Libyan 549-301 BC or Kyrenean Greek 321-276 BC as allies.
  • Only the controllers of Aigyptos (6), Syria (7), or Mesopotamia (9) may choose Arab 312 BC - 299 AD as allies.
  • Only the controllers of Hyrkania (13), Baktriane (17), or Sogdiane (22) may choose Skythian or Saka 550-301 BC as allies.
  • Only the controllers of Paropamisadai (23) or Indike (24) may choose Indian 500 BC - 319 AD as allies.

• In these cases, it is always up to the player whether allies are in fact selected or not, and the player makes this decision for each individual battle.

Rounds

• A round is represents one year, with the first year being 320 BC (the year following the partition at Triparadeisus in 321 BC).

• Each round consists of the following three phases:
  1. Attack declarations: All players announce, one by one in the order as specified below, which atttack that they will make.
  • The decreasing order in which in which attacks are announced in a round are determined by each player's (maximum, if the player's having fought more than one battle) incurred casualties (as represented by routing percentage in upper-left corner at end of battle) from battles in the previous round (i.e., the player with the lowest incurred casualties announcing first, and so on).
  • In the first round, attacks are announced in the same order that the players signed up for the tournament.
  2. Battle resolutions: All battles will be simultaneously played and completed in FoG2 during a period of three weeks.
  3. Satrapy control changes: The victors (if any) of the battles take control over the losers' satrapies-at-stake.

Attacks

• Each round requires a player (the "attacker") to announce an attack, in the form of either:
  A. attacking another neighbouring player (the "defender"),
  B. supporting the attacker in an already announced attack ("original attack") by another player (with the defender of the original attack constituting the "defender" in this attack as well, and the "defender province" being the same as in the original attack), or
  C. supporting the defender in an already announced attack ("original attack") of another player (with the attacker of the original attack constituting the "defender" in this particular attack, and the "defender province" being the same as in the original attack).

• The attack announcement is made in a post in the tournament's thread on the forum, as follows:
  If A: The attacker specifies from which one of his satrapies that the attack takes place ("attacker satrapy") and which neighbouring satrapy that is attacked ("defender satrapy", together with the attacker satrapy, the "satrapies-at-stake" for that particular attack).
  If B: The attacker specifies from which one of his satrapies, neighbouring at least one of the satrapies-at-stake in the original attack, that the support of the attack is made ("supporting satrapy").
  If C: The attacker specifies from which one of his satrapies, neighbouring the defender satrapy in the original attack, that the support of the defence is made ("supporting satrapy").

• None of the satrapies referred to above (for A, B, and C) must be already included as a satrapy-at-stake or supporting satrapy in another player's attack this round.

• Example on how to express an attack announcement
  If A: rbodleyscott attacks kronenblatt, using the army of Gedrosia and Indian 500 BC - 319 AD allies. Attacker satrapy: Babylonia. Defender satrapy: Mesopotamia.
  If B: Aetius39 supports the attack of rbodleyscott upon Mesopotamia, using the army of Armenia and Georgian 331 BC - 252 AD allies. Supporting satrapy: Kappadokia.
  If C: Karvon supports the defence of kronenblatt in Mesopotamia, using the army of Aigyptos and Kyrenean Greek 321-276 BC allies. Supporting satrapy: Syria.

Battles

• Each of the attacks (whether A, B, or C) are fought out as an individual battle in Field of Glory II - Ancients as follows:
  • The battle takes place in the defender satrapy between the attacker and the defender for the attack in question.
  • Armies and allies: in accordance with Armies and allies in battles below.
  • Scenario: Custom Battle - Open Battle.
  • Force size: Large (1600 FP).
  • Map size: Wide (40x32).
  • Map type: selected by the defender from among the available terrains of the defender satrapy in accordance with Map terrain in battles below.
  • No map re-rolls are allowed.

• The defender of the attack creates the challenge in the FoG2 Multiplayer Lobby (always password: DiSp) and always with defender as Side B (in order for the other player to immediately be able to deploy when accepting the challenge).
  • Please note that the Dividing the Spoils v3 module (MP_DIVIDING_SPOILS_V3) needs to be selected and launched under Select another module when creating the challenge.
  • When the challenge has been created, the defender, for information, sends a PM to the attacker and makes a post in the tournament thread.

• Battle outcome, once resolved, is posted by the defender (along with combatants' casualties incurred and whether any C-in-C has been killed) through posting in the tournament thread.

Armies and allies in battles

• The attacker can select any army (and available allies) from his own controlled satrapies, again provided always that there is an uninterrupted route through his satrapies between the satrapy of the selected army or ally, as applicable, and the attacker satrapy (or if, supporting an attack or defence, the supporting satrapy).
  • Example: a player controlling Phrygia and Kappadokia can in his attack of any satrapy decide to select the army of Phrygia with Georgian 331 BC - 252 AD allies, if there is an uninterrupted route between both of Phrygia and Kappadokia and the satrapy from where the attack is made.

• The defender in attack type A can only select the army of the defender satrapy.
  • He can still select any allies available to him through controlling certain satrapies (the defender satrapy or any other satrapy he controls), provided always that there is an uninterrupted route through his satrapies between the satrapy of the selected ally and the defender satrapy.
  • Example: a player controlling Phrygia and Kappadokia must in his/her defence of Phrygia select the army of Phrygia but can decide to use allies available from either Phrygia or Kappadokia, i.e., Greek 460-281 or Georgian 331 BC - 252 AD allies (or no allies at all of course).

• The defender in attack types B or C can only use the same army as he does in the original attack, but is free to decide whether or not to select any allies available to him (as per above).

Map terrain in battles

• The defender in each battle selects which map type terrain to use, from among the available terrains of the satrapy in which the battle takes place (the defender satrapy).
  1. Makedonia: mediterranean hilly, mediterranean agricultural
  2. Thrake: mediterranean wooded, mediterranean agricultural
  3. Phrygia: mediterranean hilly, mediterranean agricultural
  4. Kappadokia: mediterranean hilly, mediterranean mountain, mediterranean agricultural
  5. Kilikia: mediterranean hilly, mediterranean agricultural
  6. Aigyptos: mediterranean agricultural, desert
  7. Syria: mediterranean agricultural, desert
  8. Armenia: middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern mountain, middle-eastern agricultural
  9. Mesopotamia: middle-eastern agricultural, desert
  10. Babylonia: middle-eastern marshy, middle-eastern agricultural
  11. Atropatene: middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern mountain, middle-eastern agricultural
  12. Media: middle-eastern mountain, middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern agricultural
  13. Hyrkania: middle-eastern hilly, steppe
  14. Parthyaia: middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern agricultural
  15. Persis: middle-eastern mountain, middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern agricultural
  16. Karmania: middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern agricultural
  17. Baktriane: middle-eastern mountain, middle-eastern hilly, steppe
  18. Areia: middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern agricultural
  19. Drangiane: middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern agricultural
  20. Gedrosia: middle-eastern hilly, desert
  21. Arakhosia: middle-eastern mountain, middle-eastern hilly, middle-eastern agricultural
  22. Sogdiane: middle-eastern mountain, steppe
  23. Paropamisadai: middle-eastern mountain, middle-eastern hilly
  24. Indike: tropical

Effects of battle outcome

• The player routing the enemy is considered the victor of that battle, and the routed player considered the loser of that battle.

• If neither player routs the enemy, neither player is considered victor or loser for that battle.

• Players can agree to a draw before the battle commences or at any time during the battle, in which case neither player is considered victor or loser for that battle.

• The victor of the battle takes control over the loser's satrapy-at-stake, unless one or more players have supported either the attack or the defence.

• If instead one or more players have supported either the attack or the defence, the following applies:
  • For the attacker or the defender in the original attack to gain the other player's satrapy-at-stake, the number of victors among him and the players supporting him must be higher than the number of victors among the other player and the players supporting the other player.
    • A player can never count as victor more than once in all his battles connected with an original attack and its satrapies-at-stake, despite how many battles he actually won.
    • Example: a defender fighting four battles against an attacker and the three other players supporting the attack, winning two battles but losing two battles, will only count as one victor on the defending side whereas there will be two victors on the attacking side, due to two different players on the attacking side winning their battles. Thus, the defender will lose his satrapy-at-stake to the attacker with 1-2.
    • The reason for this rule is to reward players who are successful in mustering support for their attacks or defences.
  • The attacker or defender in an original attack that (in accordance with the above) gains the other player's satrapy-at-stake will decide who among himself and the players that supported him and already control a satrapy neighbouring that satrapy-at-stake will gain that satrapy-at-stake (independent of who actually won, drew, or lost his battle over that satrapy-at-stake).

• A supporting satrapy is not "at stake" and will therefore not be gained or lost by any players, independent of battle results.