Sorry for the double post, but I just have a generall question, and it has been a while since I asked that directly:
Do you, the community, like where the mod is going ? Do you like the latest changes, from 1.7 to 1.9 ? What is good, what is bad, what would you have done differently ? Anything you like to see added, changed ?
Some thoughts based on lots of play of MW up to 34.07, all just IMHO:
- mithril is a little too easy to accumulate. I can usually get a squad outfitted in welded mithril helmet/breastplate/weapon by end of 2nd year, usually by scouring the caravans and demanding mithril anvils and the like.
- for that matter, steel is so easy that I don't bother with leather armor, which is a shame as the new leather options are kinda cool. Bronze is completely pointless I believe. Ditto for gem weapons and everything else, it just gets skipped because steel is so easy.
- speaking of, not a fan of the 1 pig iron + lotsa flux => many steel bars reaction. Just feels like cheat mode. Flux is everywhere.
- dislike the Harder Smelting. Guys running around coughing blood everywhere is irritating. I'd turn it back on if it were something like dwarves randomly passing out or something, but the blood everywhere is just visually distracting. Blood on the floor in the game should mean 'Oh Shit Something's Wrong', not something that I can't do anything about and have to use dfhack every season to mop up.
- love the Tears of Armok. Fun, adds new element to mining and fort design.
- love Fear the Night so far. Had a megabeast werewolf show up, and only a couple dozen silver bolts. It made the mistake of running through my mastiff training zone, where it instantly knocked the head off the first mastiff it saw, then proceeded to be overwhelmed with mastiffs latching on to every body part the ww owned - it couldn't make any attacks, all it could do was 'break the grip' endlessly until, 20 pages later, it was exhausted. 16 pages later, my melee dwarves finally penetrated its noggin and lopped off the head with a steel axe. Which was interesting, because up to that point the silver bolts were the only thing doing any real damage to it. But is Fear the Night responsible for stuff like Gingerbread Man? That's a little silly, although I don't mind, its kinda amusing.
- I have secrets turned off. Matter of taste, but once there's a 100+ dwarves its already distracting enough keeping track of the announcements.
- Crucible name always confuses me - every reaction there has 'hammering', yet a crucible is a melting pot! Maybe 'Hammerworks'? I keep going to the Crucible to access the new smelting options (which I then remember are at the Metallurgist...).
- Hematite produces 1 coarse iron, but tetrahedrite is worth 1 coarse iron and 1 copper... kind of odd that tetrahedrite is the 'best' common ore over all.
- I like the bifrost addition. Harder metal being tied to a hard race is a good idea.
- I'm really doubtful about the volcanic metal addition. It sounds too good, and too easy to make. Steel is already easier than classic DF in this mod, blocks are easy, about the only limiting factor for volcanic is the dig-to-the-magma-sea part. The mats couldn't get easier...
- love the brewing reactions for specific drinks
- platinum essences I think are a tad overpowered and a little messy - I love the concept, but making legendary dodgers out of my dwarves makes combat too EZ mode early on - possible to reduce the XP gain to something a little less super? Also, I have to isolate the research lab behind a door and lock it when my test subject goes in, in order to prevent haulers from hauling residue out to the stone stockpiles, which apparently then ruins the "get rid of residue" reaction. Some tuning required here!
- Speaking of monsters in combat - starting attributes for legionnaires/berzerkers are really high, can they be made a little less super?
- turret prices seem good. I like the metagame it now involves - do I produce the goods early to purchase them, which ramps up fort value quickly, triggering sieges? Or do I lay low, keep fort value down, and pass on those lovely web turrets...
- I like scarecrows and stone decoys. They add nice tactical options, yet aren't so tough. Good balance.
- love the crematorium for getting rid of vermin and body parts, its a reaction I've personally added into every DF game I play.
- iridium is cool. My first iridium breastplate artifact was a real moment of joy. Of course, your first iridium artifact has a tendency to quadruple the fort value, but that's still fun.
My overall feeling about balance is that it is too easy to outpace the "easy" invaders with regards to weaponry and armor, as MW is easier than DF when it comes to arming up early on. Tetrahedrite is everywhere, and there always seems to be a flux stone layer, so really I feel like my only limiting factor at times is supplying the charcoal. I can understand it is necessary however for the later invaders, but I have to wonder if it is possible to push the "arms race" out further, time-wise, so I'm not facing my first goblin siege with welded-mithril/steel-clad dwarves. Not sure what to suggest, aside from removing mithril from traders (or making it hyper-expensive?). Volcanic I fear will further worsen the problem - perhaps if its production was tied to items that fell from medium-difficulty races?
Criticism aside, love all the options and the mod in general, as it gives me so many new corners of the game to explore and try. Fortress Defense was already my favorite way of adding difficulty to this game, and this mod adds more detail on top of that.
As for future of the mod, I'd personally love to see workshops condensed as much as possible, and play-balancing.
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Topic: ☼MASTERWORK-DF☼ V.3 - New release and old post. This will be locked later. (Read 1838420 times)