Peppic Epic

Actually, Paladins did exist, and they were called Palatine Cavalry but, as the name suggests ("palatine" being an adjective form of "palace" and all that), they were palace guards that wouldn't typically see actual battle. They may well have been the best cavalry in the Frankish Empire, but they certainly weren't the cavalry core of Frankish armies... Then again, there is some precedent in taking historical palace guards and making them trainable units in a game or mod, so I suppose that's not a huge problem. What is, however, is that they were Frankish and not French, so if they were to appear in K&B, they would most likely be a second unit for the Frankish subciv and not a French UU.


peugeot407

Are these paladins the same as Charlemagne's 12 paladins? Also, do you have any information or references about the Palatine Cavalry?

This is probably the first time I heard about Palatine Cavalry, if there is no part of my brain lost.

I don't know how numberous they were, and they probably no longer existed by the time of Charlemagne. All I know is that the Franks held a unit of cavalry modelled after the Roman Scholae Palatinae, which is typically called Palatine Cavalry.


peugeot407

Pepp wrote:This isn't peppic epic again, but rather an opened questionnaire.

1. If you can add one medieval civ to the mod, what would you add (outside the 14 which are surely going to be added)? Why?
2. If you can add a "wonder" (like in AOE II), what would that be?
3. Have you ever cheated to spawn nuns?

1. Empire of Mali, because I like seeing african civs ingame and the Empire with so much gold it devaluated it for years would make for an amusing civilization.
2. Depends on the civilization, given that it'd be like AOEII.
3. Nope, no idea which one is the code.

Pepp wrote:Another questionnaires:
4. If I give you all a chance to ask a historical hero in game (similar to Nanib, 'Melia, W'shington, dll but historical), who would he/she be? Why?
5. Do you want to see a real medieval caste in the HC, instead of AOE III's military academy?

4. Ibn Batuta, he'd make for an interesting campaign just due to how many places he visited.
5. I'm not sure if it'd fit all civilizations.

Pepp wrote:

More, even more questions:
6. Most of cathedrals in HC are Renaissance/Baroque. Most of them aren't matching medieval texture and Gothic style well (except German's for sure). Do you want to see a real Gothic or Romanesque Cathedral?
7. Regarding question 5, what castle do you want to see (post a link to picture and to explanation)?
8. Do you think there should be more woman in the game?
9. If you can add one female Politician for Europe, what would she be (profession, not name)?


*Questions there are independent, not linked to K&B Team, and probably won't be featured in short time.

6. The real question here is that if you can get the medieval cathedrals in HC, given that it is the HC indeed it shouldn't be much of a problem to use imported models, but then the problem would be to model such cathedrals, the real question here would be, are you willing to model such things? Texture work may only go so far, and even then you run the risk of the textures reverting and getting some hilariously misplaced buildings on the HC instead.
7. Medieval Caste, well, I already answered that it'd be somewhat difficult to pinpoint specifics, so I stand by my decision, it may not be a good idea to put medieval castes there.
8. As long as they are not shoehorned in there, sure, they never come bad. It's simply a matter of making sure they don't seem forced into the setting. I'm pretty sure there's enough medieval heroins to pull it off if you simply look enough.
9. That's an interesting question. The Herbalist? The Witch?    I'd have to research the matter more thoroughly to give a proper answer.

Pepp wrote:Please elaborate in this questionnaire. I don't want to see any one or three words answer. Answer like Super7700 is necessary.

More questionnaires:
10. Have you even thought to join K&B? If yes, what do you want to be?
11. If I am going to put one of these women as policitian, which one is probably the best choice?
a. The Princess
b. The Magistra
c. The Lady
12. Do you want to see Friday Updates again?

10. At some point maybe. Coder I guess, I could do research, but medieval Europe bores like you wouldn't imagine, so I'd rather not work on that. Anyways, I'm busy with my own mod so... heh.
11. The Lady is the most important of those, many of them had actually important roles on the court and such.
12. Sure, but I can live without 'em.

Pepp wrote:Questions below are regarding France, just France:
1. France was a unique WE country, as its architecture divided between what we call as Mediterranean and European architecture. So, which buildingset do you prefer for France: South Europe (Italy, Byzantine, Spain) or West Europe (currently for England, France, Filianders)?

2. France was famed for their heavily armored knight. Because of that, we have an UU named Chevalier for them. In the older history, there were also a "legend" about Charlemagne's Paladin. Do you want to see Paladin somehow in the mod? As what?

3. France in K&B was set around the Hundred Years' War. At that time, many regions in France were occupied by Anglophiles. This was including Paris. So, which city should be their HC: Paris, Orleans, Reims?

4. France had some elite guards such as Scott Guard. As they can't be portrayed as UU nor RG, how would you like to present them in the mod?

5. France focus is in Militia, as they fought mostly as militias in the time of their personality. If you can add one bonus/uniqueness for the civ, please explain it.

In case you don't know what is uniqueness, read this passage named Creating a Decent Idea.

France.

1. France always stood closer to Central Europe than to the Mediterranean, culturally speaking, they should be Western Europe, much more so than mediterranean.
2. The Paladin would be nice to see as a throwback to AoK, but it's not necessary really, you already have the Chevalier, so, what would you want it for?
3. If completly necessary to change the HC, I'd go for Orleans, but to be honest, I believe Paris is simply the best option, occupation or not...
4. Mercenaries probably, maybe some kind of Elite Militia since it seems to be France's thing in the mod?
5. Militia related bonuses? Could be capacity to call Militia repeatedly, them not losing hit points, having the posibility to train them, calling them from somewhere else than the Town Center, getting them with every HC shipment, getting them with every tech researched, multiple types of Militia, Militia more powerful than normal. Those are the first ideas that come to my mind, but given that I don't exactly know what other things the civ has going for it, I'd have a difficult time knowing which one is the best option.

More questionnaires, now about Moors:
1. When you hear Moors, what comes to your mind? Morocco, Islamic Andalusia, Berbers, Tuareg, or Saracen?
2. If I let you to decide their HC, which one would it be: Cordoba, Marrakech, or Granada?
3. If I let you to decide their leader, who will he/she be?
4. What flag will be convenient for them?
5. There are several languages in Maghreb that time, those are Arabians, Berber, and of course, Spanish. Which one is the best for Moors?
5. What do you think about the now in-game but "unplayable" mokhazni and muladi?
6. Two other Muslim civs each has an UB (Observatory and House Wagon). Do Moors deserve one?
7. Moors connected to desert. If you can make a bonus regarding desert, without needing any new unit or building, what bonus would you make?
8. How would you interpret fatamorgana in game?
9. I am a tolerant person, as well as Robert and Matti. K&B is pluralist and we tried to be neutral (ghehe). Do you want to see more African in game? Currently, we have a slave, a merchant, a politician, a native (IIRC), and two mercenary.


Sincerely yours,
Mrs Nun nee Pepp de Susan

I suppose I might as well join in with the answering (on my own behalf, that is, these aren't necessarily the opinions of the K&B team)...

1. Andalusia and Morocco mostly.
2. Cordoba.
3. Without refering to the civ outline, I wouldn't have a clue.
4. Anything except that ugly checkerboard flag...
5 (a). Arab.
5 (b). Lovely textures...
6. Well, the Turks and Saracens both having a UB is coincidence anyway, so I guess not.
7. They can target an area with a heat wave that damages all enemy units but not theirs? Something like that, I suppose. Then again, I'm not very good at thinking up original ideas...
8. I wouldn't.
9. You don't recall correctly, we've actually got two African subcivs; the Sudanese and the Berbers. I'm not sure if I'd like to see more African things in K&B though, they'd probably have to come from sub-Saharan Africa anyway, and that's quite far removed from the geographic focus of K&B. Then again, we do have a Savannah map, so everything's possible...


peugeot407

1.Non-christian spanish people. That's basically how they teach us about them here, they are simply mentioned as "them" or "the enemy" or "those guys who brought science to the Peninsula", but other than that, they aren't very much delved into.
2. I'd go for Granada which is the one that is normally the most linked to Moorish Spain, Cordoba probably was a huge center too, but it feels more spanish to me for some reason, maybe due to the Cordoba cities in the Americas, Marrakesh is also a strong case for the civ, could indeed work, but still, I relate the Moors more to Spain than Africa.
3. No idea either, as I said before, we're barely even taught about the Moors, even though they were a very important part of Spain's history, Yusuf I guess is a good option, if only because people will remember from AoC.
4. I truly have no idea, did they actually have a flag?
5. Arab would be the most correct, spanish if you are feeling lazy and Berber if you really feel like giving them an unique voiceset.
I never actually realized those units were there in the first place.
6. I'd give them one just so the pattern is not broken, people are really dependant on patterns and are expective of them, if you don't give them an UB, they will complain. That said, I have no idea what it could be.
7. Giving some Camel related bonus would be the first thing that comes to my mind, be them faster moving, cheaper stronger, have unique upgrades for them or something like that.
8. That's will'O'The'Wisp, right? I'd go for some lightning effects in some random maps, but nothing more fancy than that.
9. Yes, I always like to see more Africa in game, as I said before there's a case to be made for Mali, who did impact the medieval world, if only the Muslim part of it, by the sheer amount of Gold they brought to their Pilgrimage, so they could make sense ingame in some form.

1. Islamic Andalusia. However it would be best if both the African and Spanish aspects of the Moors were represented.
2. It depends which Moorish caliphate you want to represent. If you want to focus on the Almoravid or Almohad Caliphate, then their HC should be Marrakech. If you want to focus on the Caliphate of Cordoba, then it should be Cordoba, and if you want the Emirate of Grenada it should be Grenada. I personally think you should focus on the Almohads, since they controlled both North Africa and Spain.
3. I don't know
4. Again, depends on which caliphate you are focusing on. As much as Peugeot dislikes the checkered flag, you should definitely go for the caliphate's historical flag.
5i. Arabian? Seems to be the most accurate.
5ii. I can't remember what they looked like, but given the quality of this mod's graphics I'm sure they were great.
6. Depends if you can find any building to fit that role.
7. Perhaps you could have an attrition damage type system like in RoN. I don't know if this is possible at all, but perhaps if enemies come within a certain distance of your Town Centre they slowly lose health.
8. I doubt you could get a decent-looking fata morgana in game, and also I can't think of any reason why such a thing should be included.
9. I agree with Hoop that the Mali should have an appearance. Other than that I'm not really fussed.

I suppose I

Why do you suppose anything since yesterday?

Look, I'm not the best of friends with Tahattus anymore since he started his smear campaign of the Modding Council, but I've got no interest in letting it unearth into a personal vendetta either, that's why I said "Congratulations, I suppose" rather than keeping silent. Nothing more. Nothing that would be ontopic in this thread either...


peugeot407

More questionnaires:
1. What do you want to see from K&B in the Christmas Eve?
2. Which one do you prefer: Saracen having a city HC or Saracen having a council HC?

1. Surprise Me!
2. I think a Saracen City would be more accurate.

One single, long question: What color comes to your mind when you hear:
1. England.
2. France.
3. Germany.
4. Flanders.
5. Continue the list of K&B's nation yourself, lazy dude.

English: Red
French: Blue
Flemish: Don't know
Vikings: Don't know
Germans: Yellow
Slavs: Red
Mongols: Don't know
Moors: Don't know
Spanish: Red and yellow
Byzantines: Purple or red and gold
Crusaders: Red and white
Saracens: Don't know
Turks: Green

Oh, and I agree with ACN45trooper with regards to your previous two questions.

Okay, thanks. This is such a rare event, but I am answering my own question. Haha.

England: Red
France: Blue
Flanders: Sometimes yellow
Viking: N/A
Germany: Yellow
Italy: Pink
Byzantine: Purple
Slavs: Grey
Moors: Brown
Saracens: Black
Spain: Orange
Crusader: N/A
Mongol: N/A
Turk: Green

Damn, I forgot the Italians. Anyway, they make me think of red and yellow, due to the Venetian flag.

Pepp wrote:One single, long question: What color comes to your mind when you hear:
1. England.
2. France.
3. Germany.
4. Flanders.
5. Continue the list of K&B's nation yourself, lazy dude.

1. Red
2.Blue
3. Black and Yellow
4. Dunno, Purple???
5. Spanish: Yellow
6. Vikings: Black, grey, red
7. Mongols: Gold, red
8. Slavs: Grey
9. Moors: Orange?
10. Italians: Red , green
11. Byzantines: Red & Gold
12. Crusaders: Gold, Black, Red
13. Turks: Red, green
14. Saracens: Black, Yellow?

English: Red
French: Blue
Flemish:
Vikings:
Germans: Yellow
Slavs: Red
Mongols: brown
Moors:
Spanish: Red and yellow
Byzantines: Purple and gold
Crusaders: black and white
Saracens: white and orange
Turks: Green and red

English: Red
Franks: Blue
Flemish: Teal, perhaps?
Vikings: White. maybe red.
Germans: Yellow and/or Black
Italy: Yellow, maybe green.
Slavs: Brown
Mongols: Orange
Moors: Khaki
Spanish: Yellow, maybe blue
Byzantines: Purple
Crusaders: Grey
Sarracens: Green
Turks: Orange

January Report

The team has achieved many things, if not much, in this month. Castle, portraits, patch, many other things have been done. Precisely, these are the highest achievement of several members of our mod, only them who are seen in this month:

Robert: The new attachments for castle, which makes it looks like a castle rather than a fortress.
Matti: The patch, albeit I myself haven't downloaded it yet, it is important.
Arsalan: All the portraits plus icons. They are far better than original's portrait. One word for them: magnificent.
Huang: Returned with some great artwork, concept art I mean. As usual, our texturer will follow them.

The good news of this month is that our beloved historian has returned! Synecdoche returns and surely he will help us much in the field of archaeology and excavation.

Pepp

This is going to be fast, I am sure.


Hello everyone, it has been a long time since the last Peppic Epic, eh? Well, there is something I have to tell to you, some of our agendas and our achievement throughout the days, weeks, months. Let's start from above.

---

I don't think there is something I have to tell you about Robert anymore. He had spoken everything about himself to you all. Yes, for K&B, he has done several new weapons (who will surely replace some old ones), several new helmets (one which I want for, say, D), and of course, the first cloak in K&B.

Different country, different thing. Matteo Matti from Finland has done, surprisingly, artworks - something which we yawned and grumbled long time ago. They are several techs and some HC cards.

Next, Aslan. Our brave Persian Cat done some beautiful portrait, for a civ which you will see in the Quintessence. One of them, however, is criticized for not having a horse. Pity for him.

His Majesty Pink Alpaca, Huang, doesn't act as a concept artist these weeks. Instead, he turns into a diplomat, ambassador, and a translator. We have some business with another mod, and we are reaching some disagreement and many agreement. Hope it will be revealed to you by the kings.

And, eh, me... well. The Nun can't texture these weeks. I have just get a school examination, for my graduation. But, today, I managed to work on Gael's unit. Keyword: swordsman, no woad.

---

Also... if you want to know more, I have just contacted Iliander. We swear each other and ended in, not like usually, more swearing than l-olling. He was banned from another forum too lately.

And ah, I want to ask your choice. Which of these ideas will be the best cheat unit for Wuintessence?
a. Pink Alpaca
b. Little Red Riding Hood
c. Robin Hood
d. Elmo

Another epic from Herr Royal Peppness, Mrs. Nun. Best of luck for your examinations. About having a cheat why is "Mrs. Nun" absent from the choice set? I want that badly.

Because they are f***ing already in the mod, Sir. There are three nuns units there and for further information, those are my first textures.