This mod probably isn't for everyone. However, it is a mod I created for myself and I thought I would offer to share it if people are interested. Please note that I am not posting it as of yet since I need to play test it for the purpose of balancing. If you want to help, then let me know…
Description:
This mod makes a bit of an overhaul to the way traits work (though the original functionality is still largely intact). I always disliked the lack of realism in making classes solely a cosmetic thing. Especially when it came to the plantoid races because plants are autotrophic... meaning that they don't require what we think of as food to create energy. The different biological kingdoms and families exist for a reason. They are all distinctly different from each other and fulfill a different evolutionary niche.
Continuing with the autotrophic plantoid concept: Lowering the food requirements for plant species to almost nothing is a significant advantage. A "power" trait as it were. So I have created a set of sixteen "power" traits that are endemic to the basic nature of each of the 8 classes in the game. Think of them as primary traits which are typically characteristic to each class. I will probably come up with more for some of the popular added classes (eventually). I realize that a few of these traits could be considered less "distinct" than they are made to be in this mod, but for balance's sake, I oversimplified some of them. Your feedback is welcome. In fact, that is why I put this post up before I actually make the mod available (any suggestions on balancing would be appreciated).
Vanilla Traits are now "Secondary":
While this mod does not change anything about vanilla traits, it lowers the number of traits you can have in the race creation screen by 1 in order to "make room" for the primary trait (which does not cost a trait point). I also did this because "primary" traits are pretty powerful. Make sure you think ahead and pick your secondary traits with your primary trait in mind.
The New "Primary" Traits:
Primary traits are limited based on the class you pick for the game. Only one primary trait may be picked. Each class has at least three primary trait options. Five of the classes have a trait that is unique to the class and isn't available for any other class (such as Autotrophic for plantoids). Humans, mammals, and reptiles don't have any unique traits. However, to compensate, they have four choices available for primary traits. All of the non-unique traits are only available to two classes.
Because the starting screens are hard coded for the most part, you select your primary trait AFTER the game begins (right after dismissing the first popup that always appears). Another pop up displays the primary traits available to your race and you can pick the one you want. You may also pick none for the challenge of it. Primary traits are not available for picking after this first pop up as they are all “opposites” of all other primary traits. Computer controlled races are randomly assigned one of the 3-4 primary traits based on their class. Currently, there is a 4% chance that they will not have a primary trait.
Class Trait Choices (Primary Traits):
Unique traits are bolded orange. All others are shared between two classes.
Trait Descriptions
Please note that these are subject to change since I am sure they probably aren't balanced as is. I am play testing, and of course, your feedback is welcome.
Alluring: A life-form that is uniquely attractive in some way. Everyone wants to be near them. While this may seem innocuous at first, in the long run, they attract sentient species of all types and abilities into their empire (provided they build migration treaties). Xeno Migration Attraction +33%, Other Species Happiness +25%, Governing Ethics Attraction +25%
Autotrophic: A life-form that uses light energy for most of its food requirements. While they still must ingest nutrients, autotrophs do not need to eat food for energy so they require very little in the way of sustenance. -90% food consumption.
Crafting Wizards: Multiple appendages for arms and legs can make races of this class agile and “handy” (if you will pardon the pun); making them very adept at building and manufacturing. +50% building speed. +40% ship building speed.
Creative Adaption: A life form that is quite adept and channels its creative genius towards survival and adapting to its environment. +20% Habitability, +20% Tile Society Research, +5% Happiness
Creative Leaders: A life-form that has both charisma and genius when it comes to leadership. They make excellent leaders in every area of your empire. Max Leader Level +2, Max Ruler Level +2, Tile Engineering Research +20%, Tile Physics Research +20%
Decomposers: A life-form whose ancestors' biology aided in the breaking down of both organic and inorganic materials. Though they may hide it from others, they are capable of consuming both organic and inorganic remains which decreases both their food needs, and what they spend on goods. -40% food consumption, -50% consumer goods cost
Exquisite Traders: A life-form who is biologically predisposed to manufacturing and crafting luxurious goods as a result of various genetic dispositions, either towards unique physical resources, or a keenly financial mind. +50% energy, +50% trade attractiveness
Natural Defenses: A life-form whose physical characteristics makes them very hearty. This increases their natural protection against their environment and makes them hard to kill in battle. Army Health +75%, Army Upkeep -30%, Habitability +10%
Natural Filtration: A life-form whose biology makes them able to physically and chemically adept at extracting what they need from natural resources. This cuts down on their food needs, resistant to toxins, increases their mineral production, and lowers goods costs. (Technical Note: I realize that this trait is closer to Sponges and Echinoderms, but I wanted something unique and related.... this was the best I have come up with so far). -30% Food consumption, +15% Tile mineral production, +10% Habitability, -10% Consumer goods cost
Natural Hunters: A life-form whose experience with flight or natural color camouflage ability has been channeled into their hunting prowess. This makes them quite capable of harvesting food and in pursuing prey on the battlefield. +35% Tile food production, +40% Army attack damage, +25% Morale, +20% Ship accuracy
Nurturing: A species that instinctively and purposefully pays particular attention to nurturing its young and adolescents. This gives many small bonuses across the board, from army morale and happiness, to tile bonuses. +20% Army Morale, +10% Tile food multiplier, +10% Growth Speed, +5% Tile Mineral production, +5% Tile energy production, +5% Tile research production (all), +5% Happiness
Poisonous Chemistry: A life-form whose chemistry involves compounds that are acutely toxic to others. They have developed the ability to control whether those toxins are released. The result is that they are formidable in battle and are also quite capable in clearing tile blockers. +40% Army Attack damage, +50% Attack Morale Damage, -25% Clear Blocker Time
Prolific: A life-form that can channel energy and food, into rapid growth and/or breeding. +150% Growth speed.
Self-Medicating: A life-form whose chemistry involves compounds that make them very hearty; capable of regulating their health; mental health in particular. This makes them live longer, and they are hard to bring down. They are generally happy and have a high morale. +30% Happiness, +30% Army morale, +20 years
Spatially Minded: A life form whose experience at flight has made them acutely capable of thinking in terms of spatial relations. This makes them masters of three dimensional travel. +100% Population migration speed, +33% Ship speed, +33% Interstellar speed
Supreme Artists: A life-form that is particularly predisposed to both musical and visual intelligence and creativity. As a result, they are renowned for creating exquisite works of art, giving them happiness, engineering research, financial, and attractive bonuses. +20% Energy, +20% Trade attractiveness, +15% Tile engineering research, +5% Xeno migration attraction.
Plans
Personally, I do not really play with AI races so I have not currently added AI "primary" traits. I do not have the DLC that adds these. I am considering purchasing it solely for the purpose of adding primary traits for those who do use this DLC, but I would prefer not to play with it. If anyone knows whether or not this feature can be disabled, I would be appreciative and perhaps be able to expand this mod to include AI traits.
Description:
This mod makes a bit of an overhaul to the way traits work (though the original functionality is still largely intact). I always disliked the lack of realism in making classes solely a cosmetic thing. Especially when it came to the plantoid races because plants are autotrophic... meaning that they don't require what we think of as food to create energy. The different biological kingdoms and families exist for a reason. They are all distinctly different from each other and fulfill a different evolutionary niche.
Continuing with the autotrophic plantoid concept: Lowering the food requirements for plant species to almost nothing is a significant advantage. A "power" trait as it were. So I have created a set of sixteen "power" traits that are endemic to the basic nature of each of the 8 classes in the game. Think of them as primary traits which are typically characteristic to each class. I will probably come up with more for some of the popular added classes (eventually). I realize that a few of these traits could be considered less "distinct" than they are made to be in this mod, but for balance's sake, I oversimplified some of them. Your feedback is welcome. In fact, that is why I put this post up before I actually make the mod available (any suggestions on balancing would be appreciated).
Vanilla Traits are now "Secondary":
While this mod does not change anything about vanilla traits, it lowers the number of traits you can have in the race creation screen by 1 in order to "make room" for the primary trait (which does not cost a trait point). I also did this because "primary" traits are pretty powerful. Make sure you think ahead and pick your secondary traits with your primary trait in mind.
The New "Primary" Traits:
Primary traits are limited based on the class you pick for the game. Only one primary trait may be picked. Each class has at least three primary trait options. Five of the classes have a trait that is unique to the class and isn't available for any other class (such as Autotrophic for plantoids). Humans, mammals, and reptiles don't have any unique traits. However, to compensate, they have four choices available for primary traits. All of the non-unique traits are only available to two classes.
Because the starting screens are hard coded for the most part, you select your primary trait AFTER the game begins (right after dismissing the first popup that always appears). Another pop up displays the primary traits available to your race and you can pick the one you want. You may also pick none for the challenge of it. Primary traits are not available for picking after this first pop up as they are all “opposites” of all other primary traits. Computer controlled races are randomly assigned one of the 3-4 primary traits based on their class. Currently, there is a 4% chance that they will not have a primary trait.
Class Trait Choices (Primary Traits):
Unique traits are bolded orange. All others are shared between two classes.
Trait Descriptions
Please note that these are subject to change since I am sure they probably aren't balanced as is. I am play testing, and of course, your feedback is welcome.
Alluring: A life-form that is uniquely attractive in some way. Everyone wants to be near them. While this may seem innocuous at first, in the long run, they attract sentient species of all types and abilities into their empire (provided they build migration treaties). Xeno Migration Attraction +33%, Other Species Happiness +25%, Governing Ethics Attraction +25%
Autotrophic: A life-form that uses light energy for most of its food requirements. While they still must ingest nutrients, autotrophs do not need to eat food for energy so they require very little in the way of sustenance. -90% food consumption.
Crafting Wizards: Multiple appendages for arms and legs can make races of this class agile and “handy” (if you will pardon the pun); making them very adept at building and manufacturing. +50% building speed. +40% ship building speed.
Creative Adaption: A life form that is quite adept and channels its creative genius towards survival and adapting to its environment. +20% Habitability, +20% Tile Society Research, +5% Happiness
Creative Leaders: A life-form that has both charisma and genius when it comes to leadership. They make excellent leaders in every area of your empire. Max Leader Level +2, Max Ruler Level +2, Tile Engineering Research +20%, Tile Physics Research +20%
Decomposers: A life-form whose ancestors' biology aided in the breaking down of both organic and inorganic materials. Though they may hide it from others, they are capable of consuming both organic and inorganic remains which decreases both their food needs, and what they spend on goods. -40% food consumption, -50% consumer goods cost
Exquisite Traders: A life-form who is biologically predisposed to manufacturing and crafting luxurious goods as a result of various genetic dispositions, either towards unique physical resources, or a keenly financial mind. +50% energy, +50% trade attractiveness
Natural Defenses: A life-form whose physical characteristics makes them very hearty. This increases their natural protection against their environment and makes them hard to kill in battle. Army Health +75%, Army Upkeep -30%, Habitability +10%
Natural Filtration: A life-form whose biology makes them able to physically and chemically adept at extracting what they need from natural resources. This cuts down on their food needs, resistant to toxins, increases their mineral production, and lowers goods costs. (Technical Note: I realize that this trait is closer to Sponges and Echinoderms, but I wanted something unique and related.... this was the best I have come up with so far). -30% Food consumption, +15% Tile mineral production, +10% Habitability, -10% Consumer goods cost
Natural Hunters: A life-form whose experience with flight or natural color camouflage ability has been channeled into their hunting prowess. This makes them quite capable of harvesting food and in pursuing prey on the battlefield. +35% Tile food production, +40% Army attack damage, +25% Morale, +20% Ship accuracy
Nurturing: A species that instinctively and purposefully pays particular attention to nurturing its young and adolescents. This gives many small bonuses across the board, from army morale and happiness, to tile bonuses. +20% Army Morale, +10% Tile food multiplier, +10% Growth Speed, +5% Tile Mineral production, +5% Tile energy production, +5% Tile research production (all), +5% Happiness
Poisonous Chemistry: A life-form whose chemistry involves compounds that are acutely toxic to others. They have developed the ability to control whether those toxins are released. The result is that they are formidable in battle and are also quite capable in clearing tile blockers. +40% Army Attack damage, +50% Attack Morale Damage, -25% Clear Blocker Time
Prolific: A life-form that can channel energy and food, into rapid growth and/or breeding. +150% Growth speed.
Self-Medicating: A life-form whose chemistry involves compounds that make them very hearty; capable of regulating their health; mental health in particular. This makes them live longer, and they are hard to bring down. They are generally happy and have a high morale. +30% Happiness, +30% Army morale, +20 years
Spatially Minded: A life form whose experience at flight has made them acutely capable of thinking in terms of spatial relations. This makes them masters of three dimensional travel. +100% Population migration speed, +33% Ship speed, +33% Interstellar speed
Supreme Artists: A life-form that is particularly predisposed to both musical and visual intelligence and creativity. As a result, they are renowned for creating exquisite works of art, giving them happiness, engineering research, financial, and attractive bonuses. +20% Energy, +20% Trade attractiveness, +15% Tile engineering research, +5% Xeno migration attraction.
Plans
Personally, I do not really play with AI races so I have not currently added AI "primary" traits. I do not have the DLC that adds these. I am considering purchasing it solely for the purpose of adding primary traits for those who do use this DLC, but I would prefer not to play with it. If anyone knows whether or not this feature can be disabled, I would be appreciative and perhaps be able to expand this mod to include AI traits.
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