MARS' Art Showcase Options

[MARS]

Here's a little showcase of the signatures I found on my hard drive. Comments and constructive criticism are welcome!





















This post has been edited by Rayburn: 2 Jun 2009, 20:56

[Stinger]

You have your own inimitible style, Rayburn. My favourite would have to be the fourth one - it is simple, clean and effective.

If I have one critique to make it would be the smaller text on the SLOWBRO signature: it appears to have just a shade of blur.

[MARS]

Thanks Stinger. It took me a while to get the Slowbro sig half-right. I agree with you about the text but I couldn't find any other way to blend it in without making it too dominant over the simplistic rest of the sig. Could have been worse, though. 'Clean and effective' was exactly what I tried to do in the fourth sig. It perfectly catches the essence of HAL9000's 'character'.

[Comr4de]

I think it goes without saying that you work has always been fantastic looking and while it may be true that I prefer larger images your style is great in the sense that you can put so much work and make it look great in a consistent size =)

Great work man, can't wait to see more of it!

[MARS]

Here's something I finished earlier today after I successfully got through Metal Gear Solid 3 without
a single alert. First time I did this kind of run and I even get a portable stealth device as a reward.



For those who can't tell, these are some of the bosses from MGS3.
The Pain, The Fear, The End, The Fury, The Sorrow, and The Boss.
I went for a different style with this one since I wanted to try my luck at bigger sigs for once.

Also, I managed to get my old scanner back to work, so I might post some
of my drawings later on as I'm pretty sure I haven't even shown some of them yet.

[MARS]

These are some of the drawings I mentioned earlier.


This is a Martian. The interesting this about it is that it was actually the first image I had in mind
when I heard the Jeff Wayne's musical version of War Of The Worlds. In retrospect, I'd say this version looks
too friendly and worst of all, too clumsy. Even though the Martians are described as sluggish (due to their
lack of proper muscles and Earth's greater gravity) this one just looks laughably unviable. Might draw a new one.


This one's just a random alien. Totally generic if it weren't for the gimmicky transparent brain-
pan and weird shoulders. It's certainly not my best sketch ever but it's not the worst one either.

So yeah, that's all for now although I might post some of my old ones later on. The veteran members may remember some of them from ES.
Comments?

[IPS]

not bad
at the last one:
if the eyes would be smaller and somekind of head exists it would lokks better

This post has been edited by IPS: 20 Jun 2009, 0:48

[MARS]

Thanks for the comment.

``if the eyes would be smaller and somekind of head exists it would lokks better´´

Weeell, that's the whole point of it. The Martians in WOTW basically ARE nothing more than huge heads with a whole bunch of tentacles. The idea
behind that is that their brains are pretty much the only thing they need which is why they compensate their physical short-comings with machines.

[IPS]

hmm I see, but still those big eyes make them look so friendly

and maybe longer and stonger tentacles to counter the clumsiness?

[MARS]

Indeed. I was thinking of replacing the arm- and leg-like appendages with longer tentacles all together.
Makes the whole creature look more evolved rather than just a big brain with degenerated legs sticking out.
Also, maybe an almond-like shape could make the eyes more menacing.

[MARS]

Three new sigs; nothing too spectacular but I thought I'd try something different with these.

[MARS]

Two older drawings of mine. These are variants of the Hunter from Resident Evil.

Alpha-Hunter

Beta-Hunter

[Comr4de]

Two older drawings of mine. These are variants of the Hunter from Resident Evil.

Alpha-Hunter

Beta-Hunter

I always liked the Alpha Hunter drawing you made:

Looks fantastic really, the attention to detail in the bumps and scales look great and the crosshatching adds that style that I like the most. Great sketch

[MARS]

Cheers, mate. Although personally, I prefer my Beta-Hunter in some aspects. It just looks extremely nasty and while it may not have many of these cool scales,
you can trust me that drawing these...bits covering its upper body was a real pain as well. I like how the 'pattern' of those ended up looking sort of random, though.

Those Alpha-Hunters can be real bastards, though. Like the very first time they show up in the original Resident Evil: You enter a room you've been in before, but this time, you hear those creepy, stomping steps and that ominous growling...and suddenly, there's this huge green monster at the other side of the hallway, it charges at you and knocks your sorry loaf off. Almost as terrible as the scene where the zombie dogs jump through the windows all of a sudden.

[Comr4de]

Agreed

Isn't that first encounter at one of the Umbrella corp labs at that point? Because I think I may be thinking that exact same scene that scared the shit out of me and had to pause the game into the menu.

[Cobretti]

Agreed

Isn't that first encounter at one of the Umbrella corp labs at that point? Because I think I may be thinking that exact same scene that scared the shit out of me and had to pause the game into the menu.

Nah, it's in the mansion right before a certain save room IIRC. BTW, that's a pretty cool drawing of a Hunter.

[MARS]

Nothing too complicated from the technical viewpoint but I stumbled across this cool
concept piece and tried to make a small sig that captures the mood of the scene.

[MARS]

New sig based off a loading screen from Company of Heroes:

[MARS]

Anyone remember this silly old thread? Yeah, it's been a while.

Anyway, it's been ages since the last time I drew something that wasn't a map concept, but here's a rather liberal attempt at General Aleksandr.
I definitely need to get the hang of this again. As you may see, I generally avoid doing humanoid figures. Might have a more serious attempt at this later.

Attached File(s)

 rotraleksandr.png ( 362.79K ) Number of downloads: 76

 

[Claine]

New sig based off a loading screen from Company of Heroes:

Ohh yeah i like this ^^

[Jester]

Not seen your artwork in a while good to see you back on the ball again

[GeneralCamo]

Heh, I had forgotten you were originally known as Rayburn. These are nice.

[MARS]

Heh, I had forgotten you were originally known as Rayburn. These are nice.

Yeah, I finished that guy with an axe to the back since he had become too much of a pretentious git to me at that point. Can't say I miss him much.

[Evan]

AND you can draw? I become less and less interesting every day aroundI'm you people!

[MARS]

Feeling inadequate? Perhaps it comforts you when I tell you that I may be able to write and sketch, but I can neither ride a bike nor chat up people with two X chromosomes. Hence why I haven't tried either of these since kindergarten.

[Warpath]

Nothing too complicated from the technical viewpoint but I stumbled across this cool
concept piece and tried to make a small sig that captures the mood of the scene.

This one's nice.

[MARS]

Got bored, made a drawing real quick.

Attached File(s)

 raptor1.jpg ( 79.65K ) Number of downloads: 119

 

[Comr4de]

Got bored, made a drawing real quick.

[MARS]

Got bored again, did this in about 40mins...

Attached File(s)

 couragewolf1.jpg ( 64.26K ) Number of downloads: 88

 

[MARS]

Another Aleksandr sketch

Attached File(s)

 251112.jpg ( 88.78K ) Number of downloads: 96

 

[MARS]

Still waiting for that proper internet connection on Friday, so I made another drawing. This is the first boss from Secret Of Evermore on the SNES.

Attached File(s)

 bugthing.jpg ( 86.58K ) Number of downloads: 50

 

[Claine]

cool stuff marc

[MARS]

Another day, another drawing. This time, I created an alternate version of a Martian from H.G. Wells' The War Of The Worlds. Unlike my first attempt several months ago, this one looks a lot more evolved and less fragile, with a more upright posture (in the story, the Martians only appear sluggish and heavy due to the higher gravity/atmospheric pressure on Earth) and a more mollusc-like appearance to suggest the absence of a solid skeleton whereas my first interpretation had sharper skull features, angled joints and a beak-like mouth.

Attached File(s)

 martian2.jpg ( 92.43K ) Number of downloads: 59

 

[TheCeLL]

Whoa! What is that thing?! Whatever it is... it looks pretty cool, good job!

[__CrUsHeR]

Ugly as any alien should be. Good work!

[MARS]

Thanks for the positive reactions everyone. The bug creature from yesterday was still based on an existing design - albeit a 16-bit sprite and a 90s era drawing from a strategy guide - while the Martian is entirely the product of my imagination as inspired by Wells' original story. For comparison, here's the link to my first Martian, although my internet is currently too slow to determine whether the image is still up.

[__CrUsHeR]

Hmm, this looks like a hybrid of Martian with an owl.

[MARS]

Right, with the 'beak' and all. In the original novel, the Martians were described as having a lipless, V-shaped mouth. A beak could be interpreted as such, but since I tried to create a more 'boneless' appearance with my second attempt, I went for this stubby snout-like thing.

[__CrUsHeR]

It reminded me of the movie The Fourth Kind in which people associate aliens with owls - very bizarre.

[MARS]

Got some random new stuff. One that I based of a NES-era pixel sprite and one that's dedicated to an old friend of mine.

Attached File(s)

 IMG_3523.JPG ( 116.17K ) Number of downloads: 34
 IMG_3524.JPG ( 91.64K ) Number of downloads: 39

 

[MARS]

Not a detailed drawing today, but something that I made as a little visual gag for someone. You know who you are

Attached File(s)

 dragon_tank.JPG ( 99.13K ) Number of downloads: 90

 

[Svea Rike]

Heh, nice! Fear the allmighty Chinese dragon!

[__CrUsHeR]

The perspective of the tower was a bit imperfect, but anyway a beautiful drawing.

[HMS Warspite]

Not a detailed drawing today, but something that I made as a little visual gag for someone. You know who you are

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

If only General "Hammer" Xing Chen could replace his ZTZ-58s with many units of this baby, but General Chen is more likely to stick with his trusty and spammable ZTZ-58s, given he was, indeed, a Red Guard.

This post has been edited by Bergzak: 7 Jun 2014, 13:43

[MARS]

Some beast from a Dynasty Warriors game:

Attached File(s)

 IMG_4630.jpg ( 236.39K ) Number of downloads: 30

 

[Die Hindenburg]

Anyone remember this silly old thread? Yeah, it's been a while.

Anyway, it's been ages since the last time I drew something that wasn't a map concept, but here's a rather liberal attempt at General Aleksandr.
I definitely need to get the hang of this again. As you may see, I generally avoid doing humanoid figures. Might have a more serious attempt at this later.

Very well made art here!!!

[MARS]

Not 'art' per se, but I suppose I could also use this thread of mine for writings and random concepts...

Concept for a two-faction, asymmetrical RTS based on H.G. Wells' 'The War of the Worlds'

Setting premise:

The year is 1898. The 19th century is nearing its end and the world bears witness to amazing technological progress and the surging nationalism of the European empires. For the time being, the British Empire still stands as the de facto superpower of the world. But it's scientific and technological prowess are dwarfed by the achievements of the Martians, humanities yet undiscovered neighbours in the solar system. However, their civilisation is in peril: With the resources of Mars depleted, it's magnetic field weakening year by year and its population decimated after a period of turmoil, the new elders of Mars have come to the conclusion that the conquest and colonisation of Earth would be the only chance of survival for their once prosperous civilisation. While the humans of Earth go about their daily business in a state of blissful ignorance, thinking of themselves as the definitive masters of their world thanks to their growing industry and scientific understanding, Mars is gearing up for war.

Gameplay premise:

TWOTW is a tactical real time strategy game, involving base building, resource gathering, tech progression and combat operations between two asymmetrical factions: Martians and Humans. The goal of the game is to defeat the opponent and/or complete the objectives of the campaign missions, which would depict the war effort from both perspectives. Technologies, playstyles and mechanics would differ vastly between the two factions and are detailed as follows.

Humans:
The humans are a relatively conventional RTS faction with a technological level based around the late 19th/early 20th century: Rifles, cannons and early means of mechanisation are present. When playing as the humans, players would have to collect two types of resources in order to sustain and expand their operations: Supplies, which are automatically generated at a set rate which can be increased, either in exponential or linear steps via certain technologies, abilities and buildings, which is used to purchase all structures, units, as well as certain abilities. The second resource is referred to as Xeno-Materials. Xeno-Materials can be salvaged from the remains of destroyed Martian technology and can be used to advance human technological developments, first by developing then-theoretical human weapons (such as machine guns, armoured vehicles, aeroplanes, chemical/nuclear weapons) early, then by outright replicating Martian weaponry.

At the start of the game, Human players would have a headquarters type building, which allows them to recruit construction pioneers and basic combat units such as riflemen, sappers and cavalry scouts. Later buildings would grant access to different types of artillery and motor vehicles, as well as upgrades and, on special maps, naval units. In a 1:1 confrontation, any Martian unit with combat capabilities would defeat most human units, unless they have armour-piercing weaponry or a means of temporary protection from the infamous Martian Heat-Ray. The idea is that human players would find themselves in an uphill struggle against a vastly superior foe. Their advantage would be a.) numbers and b.) local production, which would allow them to defeat the enemy through attrition as well as guerilla tactics: Later upgrades would allow human units to conceal themselves as well as move underground through the use of tunnels. In a nutshell, humans would spend much of the early game responding to Martian attacks, yielding territory when required and trying to salvage as many Xeno-Materials from destroyed Martian units as possible until they can field more advanced units and strike back on a larger scale.

Martians:
The Martians would be extremely unconventional compared to the humans, in that they would always find themselves outnumbered by virtue of their design, which rewards micro management, unit preservation, small unit tactics and efficient management of scarce resources. The Martian game would begin with a cylinder, the means by which the Martians travel to Earth. A cylinder comes with a set number of Martian Workers, as well as construction materials for additional buildings and machines. On its own, a Martian is a frail and vulnerable creature due to Earth's greater gravity and dense atmosphere. In order to survive, they have to construct specialist machine bodies which have to be assembled and then crewed by a Martian. The Martian inside the machine gains experience for the actions he performs, and should be evacuated in the event that the machine's destruction is imminent.

The Martian game revolves around two types of resources: Bio-Matter and Minerals. Bio-Matter is required for any biological unit and depletes over time, based on the number of biological units present. If the stockpile remains at zero for a certain amount of time, all biological units will suffer attrition damage and eventually die until a new source of Bio-Matter is secured. Minerals serve as construction material for artificial assets such as buildings and machines. It can be aquired through automated mining, as well as the 'deconstruction' of human buildings and machinery. Overall, Martian units would be less varied in numbers, but exceed human units in terms of quality. A brief summary:

Martian Worker: The basic Martian unit. These are best used to operate Handling-, Construction-, and Scouting Machines. Their sub-par combat capabilities make them vulnerable without a machine body and their performance when operating a combat machine is reduced.
Martian Warrior: A stronger breed of Martian who is more resilient to human weaponry and armed with the equivalent of a Martian 'infantry' weapon. These can be used as actual infantry if necessary, but their main purpose is to crew and operate Martian Combat Machines, which would be available as an allround Fighting Machine, the artillery-centric Bombarding Machine and the Disabling Machine, which employs electric weaponry against mechanical targets in addition to stunning humans for capture and processing by a Handling Machine.
Martian Leader: Essentially an 'officer' type Martian who increases the combat and work efficiency of lesser Martians. In addition, it is the only type of Martian that can operate the Flying Machine, which is easily the most lethal and mobile weapon at their disposal.
Martian Telepath: A Martian with superior telepathic abilities that can control and manipulate human units and structures. His ability can be amplified by operating a Mind Machine.

When playing as the Martians, every single unit is precious and must be used to the fullest of its potential. While some tasks can be filled by fully-automated units, players would still want to operate an army of Martians manning a variety of Machines. It is also imperative to determine the right approach: On the one hand, Martians have to destroy as much of their human enemy as possible to win the battle. On the other hand, Martians need to employ special machines and tactics to capture life humans, which make for a more profitable source of Bio-Matter, which is required to sustain additional Martians as well as unlock genetic advancements. These advancements improve the abilities of Martian units. But more importantly, they allow you to build up a resistance to Earth's microscopic biosphere which, until neutralised, reduces your Bio-Matter at a constant rate, effectively forcing you to farm and process more Earth creatures instead of destroying them. Unlike the humans, Martian units also offer little potential for improvement aside from combat experience.

Another special mechanic of the game is the Red Weed, which automatically grows around Martian-controlled areas like the Zerg Creeper from Starcraft. The Red Weed will automatically heal Martians and disallow humans from building on top of it. In order to counter-act the effects of Red Weed, Human players have to use flamethrowers to undo its expansion or employ chemical weapons to poison it, thus locally reverting the healing effect into a damage penalty for Martian biological units in the area.

Stylistically, the game would go for an authentic, but colourful depiction of the battlespace and weaponry. Since the British Empire was the world's leading superpower at the time, most units would have a distinctly British appearance to them, with infantry starting out as late-period redcoats and later evolving into camouflaged WW1-era 'Tommies', fighting alongside pseudo-historical tanks and airplanes that take on a more advanced, alien appearance as they improve in the later part of the game. The Martians would appear very Lovecraftian and mollusc-like, in a way similar to Wells' original depiction, while their machines would reflect some of their physiological features, the idea being that these machines are both practical devices, but also literal embodiments of Martian cultural ideals and icons, since their biological bodies are little more than highly developed brains with delicate tentacles and a digestive system while every Martian, based on its 'role' would treat his machine as an extension of its own body. Finally, the map selection would include locations across the British isles, as well as areas that were controlled by the British Empire at the time, including snowy Canadian forests, African deserts, the subcontinent of India and various oriental trading ports.

[Cobretti]

Interesting...I recall back in the late 1990s there actually was a War Of The Worlds RTS game but I never played it.

[Planardweller]

Though "Nihili novi sub Sole" I like your idea very much Mars, it's a game i would like to see.

I would add a small amount of local fauna and flora so that martians would have some resources available and non-opened landing capsules so that humans could gather up some xeno-materials too.
Interestingly you have chosen to make a salvage mechanic for both sides, which compels players to engage in combat almost constantly. That should limit turtling a lot i think.

This post has been edited by Planardweller: 20 Jul 2014, 16:22

[MARS]

That's an interesting idea. Suppose the Red Weed could also spawn some stuff that could be harvested as well. I also had this idea that the Martians would have to build a sort of 'farm' as a drop-off point for captured humans, where they would be able to either process the humans for Bio-Matter immediately or use them as cattle to generate Bio-Matter at a steady rate. As an emergency option, they could also invest a bit of Bio-Matter to breed Martian creatures to have a generating rate. But yeah, the notion of a a resource system based heavily around salvaging and processing seemed very fitting and can be built around the highly asymmetrical gameplay of the two factions. In a way, it could be a whole different RTS experience depending on what faction you play as.

[Planardweller]

That's an interesting idea. Suppose the Red Weed would spawn some stuff that could be harvested as well. I also had this idea that the Martians would have to build a sort of 'farm' as a drop-off point for captured humans, where they would be able to either process the humans for Bio-Matter immediately or use them as cattle to generate Bio-Matter at a steady rate. As an emergency option, they could also invest a bit of Bio-Matter to breed Martian creatures to have a generating rate. But yeah, the notion of a a resource system based heavily around salvaging and processing seemed very fitting.

Unless the martians can clone humans with less resources than it takes to grow Red Weed, it seems like a logical fallacy to allow constant generation from just a bunch of captured humans. It could be like in Cossack by the way. I.e. every martian unit and building will drain Bio-matter as you say, but red weed will be the farms for them. Propagating red weed takes a lot of time, while use of humans would boost the growth rate or yield of red weed.

Hm, this will create a symmetrical duality in resources. Minerals and Xeno-materials can be gained with salvage or mining for respective sides. Bio-material and supplies are basic resources more or less constantly available, although at different rates and boostable under certain conditions. Aggressive for martians and time-based or limit-based for humans This seems to break the assymetrical part though and as such not directly relative to the idea.

Have you played Dragonshard - aka the first RTS based on D&D? There the eponymous dragonshards fell from the skies in pre-determined places, but sometimes could be found in forgotten treasuries. All units could harvest those, but certain units had the ability to harvest much faster. This idea could be used here too

This post has been edited by Planardweller: 20 Jul 2014, 18:36

[MARS]

My original idea for the Red Weed was that it was more of a side-effect of the Martian presence or the first sign of their 'xenoforming' process. But thinking of its propagation as the or a means of obtaining Bio-Matter would be quite interesting as well, as it would encourage Martians to spread Red Weed - possibly throguh the use of seeding abilities - while humans would be encouraged to fight against the Red Weed in order to deprive the Martians of their income generator. With that in mind, I suppose captured humans could be used to increase the growth rate of the Weed, which in turn increases your Bio-Matter in come. But after a while, humans stuck in a farm would be used up, so you'll have to capture new humans on a regular basis to maintain a growth rate that exceeds the Bio-Matter upkeep of your growing army.

[GeneralCamo]

Couple other ideas:

The single player campaign (or even DLC included into the main game) could include a variety of other factions, including Imperial Germany, the Triple Alliance (Pre-Britain, as this took place before 1904), and the United States. Each of these factions would be characterized by certain distinct differences, such as:

The United States: Diverging in history thanks to the Martian Invasion, the United States follows more of a pre-Great War mindset. They are however willing to support their European peers, as the United States is in a large amount of danger.

Mechanics: Unlike Britain, the United States must rely on infantry. These infantry are generally a bit heavier armed and trained than British Soldiers (due to experience in the Civil War and necessity) but are countered by a lack of mobilization; all of their armoured vehicles are available late-game, and they are expensive. Only their Navy grows to a power rivaling Britain over time.

Here are other assorted mechanics that I do not have time to think of creative ways to implement:
Human:
Infantry are produced cheaply, but trained to never deviate from original training (no combat training)

Martian:
Has combat capable infantry, but their powered machines are more expensive.
Relies entirely on Chemical and Biological warfare (destructive Red Weed compared to obstructive)

This post has been edited by Generalcamo: 21 Jul 2014, 1:38

[MARS]

I would consider such things less in the sense of other factions and more in the sense of having three 'doctrines' within the two main factions. This is mainly because I feel that, despite having the ability to develop new weapons, the humans should always be weaker than the Martians in such a way that the differences between, say, a British soldier and an American soldier would be largely meaningless when fighting against them, so to say. What I could imagine would be a sort of 'International Effort' doctrine for the humans where their British tech tree would be supplemented by units and abilities that suggest a worldwide effort, such as extra resource income from allied powers, reinforcement call-ins and the like.

[MARS]

The following is a little thought experiment that I came up with while I was out on my morning round today: What if ROTR were meant to be more realistic in both its technology and setting whilst still playing like a C&C game with the same recognisable factions as it currently has? The idea is that the gameplay is largely the same, but with less emphasis on crazy theme weapons. Utilising the same design philosophies as we do, the factions could look like the following, in a more grounded 2020-2030 era setting.

United States of America:
-All infantry units can remain functionally identical, although Rangers should be renamed as GIs (as a catch-all for American grunts in general) or Marines, given their greater emphasis on infantry culture.
-The Humvee family is replaced by different variants of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, which could be referred to as the Tacvee in-game. The Avenger version could utilise missiles or a scaled-down CIWS turret or keep its laser weaponry under the assumption that the tech can be sufficiently miniaturised in the setting. A more armour-focused general, like this game's Bradley equivalent, could also replace the Tacvee family with Stryker variants (if Army) or a combination of LAV-25s, Marine Personnel Carriers and Amphibious Assault Vehicles (if USMC).
- Both the Crusader and the Bradley could be replaced with a revival of the Future Combat Systems programme, producing a frontline vehicle with the mobility of an IFV and the weaponry of a main battle tank. The Bradley analogue would utilise the same chassis but be armed with a Bushmaster cannon and TOW launchers. Alternatively, the IFV itself could be beefed up sufficiently to enable it to outright replace the standard tank role.
- Paladin would be represented by the M1A3 Abrams tank which would likely include all the upgrades that were applied to the A2 model over the years in a lighter package and probably equipped with some kind of reactive and active protection system in the form of Trophy or, for variety's sake, a laser.
- The Tomahawk could either be replaced by an M270 that can alternate between standard rockets and the ATACMS or be given a Topol-style role as a special artillery, where a fictional vehicle platform would be used to transport and launch a cruise missile.
- The drones would largely be the same, with the exclusion of both the Termite and the AT Drone and the reconfiguration of the Hunter-Killer as a Global Hawk or Avenger UCAV.
- The Raptor would become exclusive to a more air force oriented subfaction or be repurposed for a combat air patrol general power. In its stead, the F-35 would be used as the faction's multirole jet. In order to preserve the role variety of the in-game air force, the Nighthawk's function as a stealthy SEAD/anti-structure plane would not be given to the F-35. Instead, you would have a bunker-buster carrying version of the Pegasus UCAV. The Aurora would be represented by the SR-72 as either a buildable plane similar to what it will be in 2.0 or as part of a call-in special power. The B52, B1 and B2 would either remain the same or be complemented by the Next Generation Bomber while the A-10, due to its iconic nature, would either remain or be repurposed as a UCAV. Hercules and Globemaster transports would also remain in use and likely be refitted in order to replicate the Spectre and the Guardian Angel as well.
- As for helicopters, the Comanche would be functionally replaced by the Apache Guardian or a revived RAH-66 Comanche for a certain general. The AH-1Z Viper, the Black Hawk, the Osprey and a real life analogue to the Starlifter would remain useable as well with possible modifications.
- The particle cannon would be replaced by some kind of orbital kinetic strike thing.

People's Republic of China:
- The biggest change here would be a full-scale modernisation of their infantry, with proper uniforms and current generation weaponry. The Volunteer Squad could still be depicted as a bit more dated, as it could evolve into a representation of the PLA's vast reserve or militia forces. Overall, theme weapons like nukes, napalm, gatling guns, EMP, ECM could still be present to some extent, but de-emphasised like all over theme weapons.
- Most in-game vehicles do have a relatively natural analogue in real life, so the following can be presented in a more compact form:
Battlemaster -> Type 96 -or- Type 88/Type 59D, both of which would be more suited to invoke the appearance of a reserve tank with an iconic design.
- Troop Crawler -> Some variant of the WZ551 APC would be suited to represent this and could possibly be armed or equipped with support equipment as well.
- For the Hopper, we could either use the 105mm cannon variant of the ZBD2000 IFV or come up with a fictionalised 'drone tank' which would represent one of the very few unmanned units available to the PLA faction
- For the Gattling Tank, we could use this vehicle which would also be interesting thanks to its lighter, less tanky appearance. A greater number of wheeled vehicles could also draw a nice visual distinction between China and the more track-oriented Russian faction. The PGZ-95 could serve as its heavier cousin and replace the Twinfang whilst retaining that fancy flak effect for its attack.
- Inferno Cannon -> PLZ-07, I would deliberately choose a smaller, more compact self-propelled howitzer since the Inferno Cannon does its damage via a napalm shell rather than raw high-explosive punch. Again, this is to de-emphasise the 'heavy Russian' look which would otherwise make the factions very alike.
- The Nuke Cannon is, as expected, a very difficult choice. We could use the heavier PLZ-05 howitzer and let it fire exclusively nuclear shells or create a fictional design that invokes the look of a giant self-propelled siege cannon like the one in-game.
- Aircraft are, for the most part, fairly straightforward: The MiG would be best replaced by the similar looking J-10 and the J-20 can make its appearance in one of the more tech-heavy sub-factions as it will in the actual ROTR. For the Hellfire MiG, we could keep using the old but ubiquitous J-7 that it is based on, the idea being that a carrier plane for napalm bombs is only brought into the fight after the air space has been secured by friendly forces. Alternatively, this could also be an opportunity to include a Chinese UCAV, such as the Dark Sword or Soar Dragon. For support powers, the Y-20 would present itself as a strategic transport whilst the Napalm Inferno power could be delivered by a group of Q-5 strike planes. For the EMP bomb and similar high-power payloads, we could follow the likely route and chose the H-6 bomber or the speculative future-tech route and include the elusive H-X bomber.
- PLA helicopters work surprisingly well too, with the French-made Z-8/Super Frelon presenting itself as a close enough equivalent to the in-game Helix whilst the Han Gunship could be replaced by a heavily reinforced and armed version of the WZ-10. The Propaganda Airship could be preserved, as its very existence in the actual ROTR-verse is largely seen the result of a 'we build it because we can' mindset. The only major loss, however, would be the Shenlong and, to a lesser extent, the Overlord tank, neither of which could be suitably replaced by a ZTZ-99, artistic licence for future upgrades and special combat variants notwithstanding.

That'll be all for now. Feel free to comment and stay tuned for a similar attempt at a realistic/idealised future Russia and Europe later on.

[Svea Rike]

I.e. any future/realism mod for Zero Hour ever?

[MARS]

Pretty much. Like I said, it's just a random thought exercise, but it serves to highlight how bland and generic many things would become^^

[MARS]

Part 2:

Russian Federation:

-Russia can be replicated more easily, as many of its units are based directly on real life designs, albeit ones that would be dated and anachronistic in the ROTR setting. Unfortunately, some of their most iconic units like Tesla tech, Shocktroopers, Golems and Sentinels would not make the cut in this scenario. Their infantry would be mostly unchanged, except for the omission of Shocktroopers. The closest possible equivalent to hard-hitting special troops with a reputation of elitism and brutality would be the GRU Spetsnaz. A story could be constructed about the GRU apparatus being akin to a 'state within the state', where the Spetsnaz would be the most brutal enforcers. Perhaps their weaponry could consist of an advanced, heavy-calibre assault rifle and a flamethrower but as it stands, Shocktroopers as we know them would not fit a 'realistic' setting.
- Both the BMP-3 and the Tunguska (with its new Pantsir turret) can be expected to stay, although there would be a possibility for one general to replace them with the Kurganets-25 IFV and a new anti-air platform based on the Armata family of armoured vehicles.
- The Kodiak is ambiguously established as an upgraded T-80 or T-90. Both of these could be used as Russia's main battle tank, perhaps also differentiated between different generals. Their iconic heavies, the Sentinel and the Golem, would not be kept in any recogniseable form. One of them could be replaced by the Armata-derived T-14 while the other could be a revival of the massively armed T-95.
- For support units, both the Buratino and the Msta can remain unchanged for the most part, except they too would probably be upgraded as part of the Armata platform, which includes both a TOS-2 and a Koalitsiya-SV gun system. The MTP could also be restored as the more tank-like BREM-T T-16 if desired.
- The Tesla Tank, sadly, would be lost completely, unless we would invoke a future revival of the Szhatie laser tank which, quite frankly, looks so boring and ugly that we might as well abandon the whole directed energy weapon theme for Russia entirely. Functionally, another Armata-derived iteration of the BMPT with powerful autocannons and thermobaric missile launchers could serve as the go-to infantry eradicator for a Russian subfaction.
- The S-300 SAM system would be replaced by either the S-400 or S-500. Whilst this would not mark a functional change, it would leave us with two choices that both look much less visually interesting than the S-300, but it would allow for some creative handwaving to explain that the truck looks like that of an S-300 while containing the more modern missiles.
- The Mi-28 could be kept as Russia's primary attack helicopter. The Hind, meanwhile, would have to be updated to its real life specifications or, god forbid, be modified into that dorky South African Super Hind. The Hellion would be reverted back to the existing Ka-50. The Hunchback would not be so lucky and be replaced by either the ubiquitous Mi-17 or its possible replacement, the more advanced but hopelessly uninteresting looking Mi-38.
- The air force department would be shaken up a fair bit, with the Su-50 replacing the Berkut as the most advanced choice for a multirole fighter. Alternatively, the Su-35 could be brought in, the Frogfoot could be brought back but either way, the setup would either regress to a previous state or become less diverse, because the Berkut is simply too cool to be replaced by anything. On the plus side, the Il-76, the Tu-22M, the Mi-26 and the Tu-160 can be kept, with the latter possibly replaced by whatever might come out of the PAK-DA project if you wish to cater to the 'Russia stronk' crowd.
- As for their superweapon...Well, I guess they -could- weld several Pion-sized cannons together to replicate the Tremor, I would prefer that over a generic missile strike any day.

European Continental Alliance European Union:

- Finally, the European faction would be especially tricky: Not only would it lose its signature 'Tier 3' prototype weapons (because no real life military would rely on Wunderwaffen these days) but the faction would also lose all neutron warheads, cluster bombs, anti-personnel mines and chemical weapons, all the way up to tear gas. All of these are either illegal or politically undesired and it would be difficult to construct a scenario in which a -plausibly- extrapolated EU faction would be pushed so far as to consider these weapons an option.
- Starting off with their infantry, the Felin could remain, albeit armed with a FAMAS rifle and a shoulder-mounted Mistral SAM launcher. The political difficulties would make the creation of a unified European military unfeasible, no matter what Jean-Claude Juncker has to say, so the best we can get in a setting like this would be a faction that still consists of national armies operating together, with a few multi-national units or battlegroups similar to those that already exist. The Panzerfaust could remain as it is, as could be the Grenadier, the Combat Pioneer, the Medic and, I guess, the Engineer, albeit with a different selection of appropriate firearms from real life.
- For support vehicles, we could keep the Warhound AVRE as it is essentially a Terrier Armoured Digger with a demolition cannon added on top. The Mobile Sensor Array could be replaced by the Swedish/Norwegian ARTHUR or a carrier vehicle that houses the Czech VERA sensor system. The Mole Minelayer would not be so lucky. It would lose its anti-personnel mines in exchange for anti-vehicle mines and would likely combine visual traits of the German Skorpion minelayer and Keiler minesweeper.
- For their combat vehicles, things would only get increasingly messy as we continue. The main battle tank could literally be anything from a Leopard 2 (A7, if lucky), Leclerc or Challenger 2 to all sorts of obscure choices ranging from an Italian Ariete to the Polish PL-01 tech demonstrator tank. The Lynx could remain as it is based on the Bandvagn series of vehicles while the Pandur would either be modelled closer to its existing counterparts or be outright removed due to Austria actually being a neutral non-NATO country, and therefore replaced with anything from a German Puma, a French VBCI or an Austro-Spanish ASCOD, all of which look terrible in how generic they are. The Gepard would be phased out and replaced by a Boxer with a gun/missile anti-air system, if we decide to keep it German for the sake of preserving sanity.
- Wotan, Manticore, Anvil, Pandora, Fenris, Venom and Jumpjet Infantry would be -gone- entirely, with only the first being replaced by some generic SAM carrying track or wheel chassis. The closest thing to that late game edge presented by the ECA would be a revision of the reinforcement battlegroups that you call in via the Deployment Zone, which would give you fully ranked out elite units which still don't make up for the fact that your Mammoth tanks, atomic railguns and Samus Aran re-enacters would no longer be available.
- For air units, we could be generous and combine the UHT and HAP/HAD variants of the Tiger into a helicopter that actually does a variety of things. Harriers, as operated by the navies of Spain and Italy, could remain or be replaced, ironically, with the F-35, while the Bloodhound is essentually an updated Lynx helicopter. Finally, in the area of general powers, you would still have your Eurofighters but little else, because no one needs Victor and Vulcan bombers anymore nowadays.
- Their superweapon would be......I have no idea, maybe a condemning statement which can be upgraded into sanctions via a some protocol.

Conclusion: ROTR is good the way it is and everyone who would like it 'more realistic' should turn to any of the other run-of-the-mill modern warfare mods of their personal preference

[Graion Dilach]

The Panhard VCR left me a message that it wants to be considered as Pandur. Otherwise I agree with all.

[Imperium]

Part 2:

Russian Federation:

-Russia can be replicated more easily, as many of its units are based directly on real life designs, albeit ones that would be dated and anachronistic in the ROTR setting. Unfortunately, some of their most iconic units like Tesla tech, Shocktroopers, Golems and Sentinels would not make the cut in this scenario. Their infantry would be mostly unchanged, except for the omission of Shocktroopers. The closest possible equivalent to hard-hitting special troops with a reputation of elitism and brutality would be the GRU Spetsnaz. A story could be constructed about the GRU apparatus being akin to a 'state within the state', where the Spetsnaz would be the most brutal enforcers. Perhaps their weaponry could consist of an advanced, heavy-calibre assault rifle and a flamethrower but as it stands, Shocktroopers as we know them would not fit a 'realistic' setting.
- Both the BMP-3 and the Tunguska (with its new Pantsir turret) can be expected to stay, although there would be a possibility for one general to replace them with the Kurganets-25 IFV and a new anti-air platform based on the Armata family of armoured vehicles.
- The Kodiak is ambiguously established as an upgraded T-80 or T-90. Both of these could be used as Russia's main battle tank, perhaps also differentiated between different generals. Their iconic heavies, the Sentinel and the Golem, would not be kept in any recogniseable form. One of them could be replaced by the Armata-derived T-14 while the other could be a revival of the massively armed T-95.
- For support units, both the Buratino and the Msta can remain unchanged for the most part, except they too would probably be upgraded as part of the Armata platform, which includes both a TOS-2 and a Koalitsiya-SV gun system. The MTP could also be restored as the more tank-like BREM-T T-16 if desired.
- The Tesla Tank, sadly, would be lost completely, unless we would invoke a future revival of the Szhatie laser tank which, quite frankly, looks so boring and ugly that we might as well abandon the whole directed energy weapon theme for Russia entirely. Functionally, another Armata-derived iteration of the BMPT with powerful autocannons and thermobaric missile launchers could serve as the go-to infantry eradicator for a Russian subfaction.
- The S-300 SAM system would be replaced by either the S-400 or S-500. Whilst this would not mark a functional change, it would leave us with two choices that both look much less visually interesting than the S-300, but it would allow for some creative handwaving to explain that the truck looks like that of an S-300 while containing the more modern missiles.
- The Mi-28 could be kept as Russia's primary attack helicopter. The Hind, meanwhile, would have to be updated to its real life specifications or, god forbid, be modified into that dorky South African Super Hind. The Hellion would be reverted back to the existing Ka-50. The Hunchback would not be so lucky and be replaced by either the ubiquitous Mi-17 or its possible replacement, the more advanced but hopelessly uninteresting looking Mi-38.
- The air force department would be shaken up a fair bit, with the Su-50 replacing the Berkut as the most advanced choice for a multirole fighter. Alternatively, the Su-35 could be brought in, the Frogfoot could be brought back but either way, the setup would either regress to a previous state or become less diverse, because the Berkut is simply too cool to be replaced by anything. On the plus side, the Il-76, the Tu-22M, the Mi-26 and the Tu-160 can be kept, with the latter possibly replaced by whatever might come out of the PAK-DA project if you wish to cater to the 'Russia stronk' crowd.
- As for their superweapon...Well, I guess they -could- weld several Pion-sized cannons together to replicate the Tremor, I would prefer that over a generic missile strike any day.

European Continental Alliance European Union:

- Finally, the European faction would be especially tricky: Not only would it lose its signature 'Tier 3' prototype weapons (because no real life military would rely on Wunderwaffen these days) but the faction would also lose all neutron warheads, cluster bombs, anti-personnel mines and chemical weapons, all the way up to tear gas. All of these are either illegal or politically undesired and it would be difficult to construct a scenario in which a -plausibly- extrapolated EU faction would be pushed so far as to consider these weapons an option.
- Starting off with their infantry, the Felin could remain, albeit armed with a FAMAS rifle and a shoulder-mounted Mistral SAM launcher. The political difficulties would make the creation of a unified European military unfeasible, no matter what Jean-Claude Juncker has to say, so the best we can get in a setting like this would be a faction that still consists of national armies operating together, with a few multi-national units or battlegroups similar to those that already exist. The Panzerfaust could remain as it is, as could be the Grenadier, the Combat Pioneer, the Medic and, I guess, the Engineer, albeit with a different selection of appropriate firearms from real life.
- For support vehicles, we could keep the Warhound AVRE as it is essentially a Terrier Armoured Digger with a demolition cannon added on top. The Mobile Sensor Array could be replaced by the Swedish/Norwegian ARTHUR or a carrier vehicle that houses the Czech VERA sensor system. The Mole Minelayer would not be so lucky. It would lose its anti-personnel mines in exchange for anti-vehicle mines and would likely combine visual traits of the German Skorpion minelayer and Keiler minesweeper.
- For their combat vehicles, things would only get increasingly messy as we continue. The main battle tank could literally be anything from a Leopard 2 (A7, if lucky), Leclerc or Challenger 2 to all sorts of obscure choices ranging from an Italian Ariete to the Polish PL-01 tech demonstrator tank. The Lynx could remain as it is based on the Bandvagn series of vehicles while the Pandur would either be modelled closer to its existing counterparts or be outright removed due to Austria actually being a neutral non-NATO country, and therefore replaced with anything from a German Puma, a French VBCI or an Austro-Spanish ASCOD, all of which look terrible in how generic they are. The Gepard would be phased out and replaced by a Boxer with a gun/missile anti-air system, if we decide to keep it German for the sake of preserving sanity.
- Wotan, Manticore, Anvil, Pandora, Fenris, Venom and Jumpjet Infantry would be -gone- entirely, with only the first being replaced by some generic SAM carrying track or wheel chassis. The closest thing to that late game edge presented by the ECA would be a revision of the reinforcement battlegroups that you call in via the Deployment Zone, which would give you fully ranked out elite units which still don't make up for the fact that your Mammoth tanks, atomic railguns and Samus Aran re-enacters would no longer be available.
- For air units, we could be generous and combine the UHT and HAP/HAD variants of the Tiger into a helicopter that actually does a variety of things. Harriers, as operated by the navies of Spain and Italy, could remain or be replaced, ironically, with the F-35, while the Bloodhound is essentually an updated Lynx helicopter. Finally, in the area of general powers, you would still have your Eurofighters but little else, because no one needs Victor and Vulcan bombers anymore nowadays.
- Their superweapon would be......I have no idea, maybe a condemning statement which can be upgraded into sanctions via a some protocol.

Conclusion: ROTR is good the way it is and everyone who would like it 'more realistic' should turn to any of the other run-of-the-mill modern warfare mods of their personal preference

Oh jeez, after reading this I feel a bit bad. Is it okay if we shoot for a pseudo-realistic (believable) aesthetic?

[Adoge]

Mars your Martian idea is certainly good.
Indeed its similar to a new tabletop game All Quiet on the Martian Front which suggests the idea of a second martian invasion targeting the U.S., Africa and South America.
There are many factions including:
The US (released)
The Martians (released)
the BEF (released)
Imperial Germany (not released)
France (nr)
Underdwellers (Molemen and Lava-men)
Venus (nr)
the Selenites on the Moon (nr)
There is the possibility of a Japanese force too.

[MARS]

Attached, some random Paintshop experiments of mine

- An alternate GLA flag inspired by that of ISIS. The Arabic text is supposed to say Global Liberation Army but I don't know whether it is correct as I simply copied it from the C&C Wikia entry.
- An alternate ECA flag, with a bit of a Euro chauvinistic vibe to it. Europe, as represented by the former EU stars and blue, sees itself as a triumphant civilisation that stands out from a world of darkness.
- An alternate Russian logo where I tried to 'desovietise' things by using a variant of the new Russian forces star. Orange was used as an alternative house colour in reference to the Saint George ribbon colours.

Attached File(s)

 AlternateRFlogo.png ( 140.97K ) Number of downloads: 25
 AlternateECAflag.png ( 49.17K ) Number of downloads: 41
 AlternateGLAflag.png ( 21.05K ) Number of downloads: 35

 

[TimeBurner]

Russian Airforce,I like it

[NikCaputnic]

Interesting design within those alternative emblems. GLA one is the best for me. ECA is ok, but the current one is better IMHO (I like that lion ). Russian one is ok, but I like red star more than that one in flag colours.

[{Lads}RikerZZZ]

The gla one is actually really cool. I like it

[__CrUsHeR]

The Russian symbol does not seem to me something cool, perhaps the contrast of the colors.

The ECA symbol is ok.

The GLA symbol is the most convincing for me, it would be natural for ultra-radical groups within the faction.

[TimeBurner]

it does look cool,except for the orange.Reminds me of spruce and his democracy.

[MARS]

Three new ones:
- Tried to modify Zhukov's cameo to change his uniform to look more like a contemporary Russian instead of Soviet one
- Made an alternate cameo for Wolfgang
- Introducing the new Serbian Kebab Removal General

Attached File(s)

 SerbianGeneralCameo.png ( 135.95K ) Number of downloads: 43
 AlternateWolfgangCameo.png ( 134.91K ) Number of downloads: 42
 AlternateZhukovCameo.png ( 126.75K ) Number of downloads: 61

 

[Graion Dilach]

Damn, that new Russian logo looks great. It indeed dropped the Soviet style perfectly.

[3rdShockArmy]

Damn, Mars, we look badass!

[Cobretti]

Looks awesome. I personally am rather fond of the idea of a Serbian "Kebab Removal" general!

[(USA)Bruce]

Remove kebab general confiirmed for 2.0! :kappa:

[{Lads}RikerZZZ]

Remove Kebab general op pls nurk k thx biee

[MARS]

Three more alternate general portraits:

- General Willem, using a picture of him in full dress uniform whilst rendering a salute which overall adds to the Royal Guard theme. The background is some WW2 coastal gun bunker.
- General Charles, again using a different picture showing an alternate uniform. The background is supposed to show a howitzer to his right, through not much of that remained visible after I added the flag overlay and logo.
- A radical reinterpretation of General Aleksandr, using a Killzone character concept. Instead of having his uniform look like that of a post-apocalyptic LARPer, I went for an outfit that actually looks custom and more 2040s.
The background meanwhile consists of lightning bolts and a Helghast troop rally, which in turn is very visually inspired by the nazi rallies at Nuremberg, which is appropriate given what we know about his Shock Divisions.

By the way, for those wondering, there are many pictures on the web that could be used to represent the ECA generals since their looks are all based on real people
Wolfgang: Based on German General Wolfgang Schneiderhan
Willem: Based on Dutch General Peter van Uhm
Charles: Based on British General Mike Jackson

Attached File(s)

 AlternateWillemCameo.png ( 133.34K ) Number of downloads: 38
 AlternateCharlesCameo.png ( 150.73K ) Number of downloads: 32
 AlternateAleksandrCameo.png ( 131.8K ) Number of downloads: 44

 

[TimeBurner]

Willem looks better here,imo But,wat ded u do wit meee!?

[MARS]

I am now going to leak some internal material from our work on ROTR version 3.0, which among other brand new features will finally include the North Korean faction that so many of you have asked for. Attached to this post, you can take a look at their generals.

From left to right:
Red Guard General Park - Specialises in massed infantry forces, guerilla tactics and improvised weapons
People's Army General Kim - Specialises in massed vehicles and indiscriminate precision artillery strikes
Supreme Command General Moon - Specialises in elite infantry and armour forces backed by WMDs

This post has been edited by MARS: 27 Apr 2016, 16:44

Attached File(s)

 NKGeneral1Cameo.png ( 118.58K ) Number of downloads: 53
 NKGeneral2Cameo.png ( 142.48K ) Number of downloads: 56
 NKGeneral3Cameo.png ( 130.47K ) Number of downloads: 52

 

[__CrUsHeR]

^ Although it is only a joke is awesome!

[(USA)Bruce]

Comon Mars your teasing us with the general portraits of everyone but the US!
Spill the good stuff!

Oh and can we have some SAP ones too? x)

[Skitt]

love the willem one

[__CrUsHeR]

Oh and can we have some SAP ones too? x)

I also have a very special interest in seeing a work of MARS about this.

[Shiro]

I want to see Australia and Japan. No, this is totally unrelated to my personal biases

[MARS]

Here you go. These are more on the humourous side though.

Attached File(s)

 GeneralSniperCameo.png ( 130.91K ) Number of downloads: 41
 GeneralJapanCameo.png ( 147.32K ) Number of downloads: 42

 

[MARS]

Made some more. This time, I present you alternate versions of the US generals.

From left to right:
Bradley - Based on a picture of Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, with Desert MARPAT added to make him look a bit more like the Marine Bradley is supposed to be. The background with the M1 tank was part of the original photo
Thorn - Based on a picture of Gen. Stanley McChrystal, with a Multicam pattern thrown over his uniform to make it look more special forcesy than generic ACUPAT. The background is a bunch of tacticool operators
Griffon - I just googled for US Air Force generals and noticed this guy looking really menacing with his gesture. Had to add some extra stars and chose a shot of a drone cam and some F15s for the background

This post has been edited by MARS: 28 Apr 2016, 17:33

Attached File(s)

 AlternateBradleyCameo.png ( 147.44K ) Number of downloads: 54
 AlternateThornCameo.png ( 137.88K ) Number of downloads: 52
 AlternateGriffonCameo.png ( 134.7K ) Number of downloads: 58

 

[Oliver]

I like the last USA one... Is actually cool

This post has been edited by Oliver: 28 Apr 2016, 22:41

[(USA)Bruce]

Bradley looks the most underwhelming among the three...

Now before anyone grabs theese as their new avatar Images, I call Dibs on thorn!
Great work Mars

[Shiro]

Thorn and Griffon are cool. Bradley, not so much.

[Cobretti]

Now those are a massive improvement over the ones we already have. Great job!

[Svea Rike]

Question: Are you gonna use these? They look way better than the ones we've already got (no offense intended).

[MARS]

I'm only making them for fun, hence why they're in this thread instead of a dedicated ROTR one. I don't think the old general cameos will be replaced though.

[M.P]

- An alternate GLA flag inspired by that of ISIS. The Arabic text is supposed to say Global Liberation Army but I don't know whether it is correct as I simply copied it from the C&C Wikia entry.

I'm not sure about the meaning of it but the text is broken. The letters are not connected to each other. It should be:
جیش التحریر العالمی
Rather than:
ج ی ش ا ل ت ح ر ی ر ا ع ا ل م ی

(It might be broken for you again, I don't know your device/computer supports arabic/persian fonts or not)

This post has been edited by M.P: 13 Aug 2016, 21:14

[Damfoos]

I like the new USA general portraits, perhaps I'll even replace the default ones with these once 2.0 is out. But do you by any chance know whos photo was used for Orlov?

[MARS]

Good evening, everyone.

Tonight, I want to present the fruits of a little product that I've been working on since the last weeks of December. I often write down notes on imaginary game concepts and one of them has to do, tangentially at least, with Rise of the Reds. Inspired by the various '4th general' ideas people have been posting, I tried my own take at the idea, but with a twist: Instead of imagining an additional general who would have to exist alongside the official three - whose future content is fully known to me, thus limiting possibilities - I imagined three alternative generals for the Chinese faction. These are still rooted in the ROTR setting and follow ROTR design rules, but they are to be seen in the context of each other only, as if Jin, Mau and Chen were not available. To define their unique themes instead of merely modifying those of the aforementioned, I have taken some inspiration from the original Zero Hour, with its Infantry General Fai, Tank General Kwai and Nuclear General Tao. What I have tried to do in my concept, is imagine new generals based on themes similar to the original ones, without falling into the same trap of bland overspecialisation. The product of this attempt are three alternative generals who could, in both gameplay and story, be considered successors to the old classics. Attached to this post, you can download a document presenting the three alternative China generals in detail:

Naval Assault General Zhang, spiritiual successor to Fai as an infantry specialist with an additional element of amphibious and counter-guerilla warfare
Iron Dragon General Li, spiritual successor to Kwai as an expert on tank warfare with an added focus on air support and advanced military hardware
Scorched Earth General Gao, spiritual successor to everyone's favourite maniac Tao, who enacts a defensive, area denial oriented nuclear doctrine

Each of these hypothetical generals is presented with a unique portrait (modified from Generals 2 art assets), profiles, detailed backstories and a comprehensive description of their unique units, upgrades, powers and bonuses.
Feel free to read and comment on my little thought exercise here in this thread. Finally, my special thanks go out to the dear BritishTeapot for proof-reading and helpful feedback and The_Hunter who verified the technical feasibility of these ideas in SAGE.

This post has been edited by MARS: 27 Feb 2017, 21:12

Attached File(s)

 MARS__alternate_China_Generals_concept.zip ( 1.61MB ) Number of downloads: 34