Jadame faction anyone? (MM8 Dark Elves) Need Feedback and Suggestions

[Ensrick]

I like the continent of Jadame and it’s a pity no Heroes of Might and Magic game features it in any way. I plan to create a new town featuring a unique lineup of creatures (many of them just a different take on existing ones). I would like to eventually create some custom maps and a mini-campaign for VCMI featuring locations in Jadame or Vori that also incorporate these five factions: HotA’s Cove, Pavillion, Highlands, Cathedral, Courtyard, and the Haven, as factions that have some presence in Jadame. Perhaps some new Jadame-themed adventure objects too and neutral creatures, and a custom mini-campaign.

I have basic ideas to get started, but where I’ll need help is in the form of willing artists. If I have to, I’ll work on creating animations from scratch, but even suggestions, and linking my tutorials would be a great help if you know something but can’t directly pitch in because I am very new to creating creature animation defs, I mostly just modify existing ones by toying with the colors.

Lore: The basic idea is that not long after MM8 Day of the Destroyer, the Dark Elves form a Kingdom uniting most of Jadame and its inhabitants. However, this peace is disturbed when the sage Xanthor sends Falagar to reveal that the Plane Between Planes has been inexplicably invaded and Escaton killed! Three immortal troublemakers are to blame who are old associates of Falager and enemies of old Morglin Ironfist. Alamar, Vesper, and Wrathmont. A disagreement started a conflict that involves all three continents. Wrathmont seems to have allied with the mysterious kingdom that spans the southern Mumerwoods and Garrote Gorge (Courtyard Faction). Alamar has allied with Regnan castoffs and a strange kingdom out at sea (Haven) and the Vesper it seems is back in Enroth leading a band of fanatical knights whose popularity is spreading (Cathedral). Each one seems to have an important artifact that can be used to recreate Escaton’s Mantle, the Mantle of the Destroyer. Whoever holds this artifact will have the power to lock away the elemental lords and use them to rule the world. As prince of the Jadame and the Dark Elven kingdom, it falls on you Dunraith to find this artifact before one of these three maniacal villains tries to take over or destroy the world. You won’t be alone, Falager has offered his help and it’s said a dark elven seer and sorceress may know more about where the others fled.

Description: Might and Magic blended neutral faction with units that almost all have magical abilities or abilities related to magic.

Hero ideas for faction:

• Might: Warder
  • War mages who defend Jadame against invaders.
• Magic: Elder
  • Patriarchs and Matriarchs that act as leaders and powerful spell casters.

Here’s what I imagine the creature lineup would be so far but it might change if someone has better ideas:
Tier 1 (Green Lizardman) Serpantian → Serpantian Vanguard

• Green variant of the Lizardmen with spear and shield.
• Lore Description: The Green Lizardman of Daggerwound Island henceforth known as Serpantians who follow the Temple of the Snake and work as low-wage footmen and caravan guards for the Dark Elves.

Tier 2 (Large Flying Creature) Mistraven → Stormraven

• Large mythical raven creature.
• Lore Description: From the mountains of Alvar these intelligent birds became common servants as scouts and on the battlefield for their magical aerial strikes which occasionally release a bolt of magic (Magic Arrow).

Tier 3 (Dark Dwarf) Rifleman → Gunner

• Dark dwarves using a fairly large flintlock rifle.
• Lore Description: Useful basic engineers and slightly more inventive than their more common cousins, the Dark Dwarves live underground and on deep within the Plane of Earth. Their increased presence on Jadame has made them useful mercenaries and soldiers for Jadame.

Tier 4 (Troll) Sand Troll → Iron Troll

• Trolls that come in a desert tan color to grey-skinned trolls.
• Lore Description: The Ironsand trolls are strong renowned warriors of the deserts of Jadame. They have a high tolerance for fire. Their Ironskinned variants may be quite resistant to both physical and magical damage.

Tier 5 (Dark Elf) Dark Archer → Arcane Archer

• Dark Elf archer with silver hair, a longbow, and a black cloak.
• Lore Description: Dark elven archers are highly skilled magic users for archers and may cast precision and attack twice for every shot from a typical human archer. The arrows of the Arcane Archers are known to occasionally strike with a Bolt of Lightning or Ice.

Tier 5 Alternate (Human) (Like how ToW has alternates) Solar Priest → Lunar Priest.

• Orange and Gold robed sun priest which upgrades to the Black and Purple robed moon priest.
• Lore Description: The temples of the Sun and Moon are both equally respected in Jadame under the rule of the Dark Elves uniting the Necromancer’s Guild in the absence of Sandro and Thant alongside the Temple of the Light into one Celestial Temple. The Solar and Lunar Priests both are formidable in battle as sun priests at random may bless an ally, but the Lunar priests seem to have an advantage with their ability to grant blessings and occasionally curse enemies they strike.

Tier 6 (Minotaur) Eldritch Minotaur → Whitemane Minotaur

• Battlemage style minotaurs which upgrade to a white variant in a blue cloak, both wielding large hammers.
• Lore Description: The Minotaurs who have conquered Ravage Roaming have become more inclined to magic relying on their intellect to defeat the Ogre and Barabaric enemies across the region. They wield large mauls, vicious in combat but also highly skilled mages who can, at random call curses on enemies. The Whitemane variant is older ones who find as they deepen their skill in magic and extend their lives, their fur turns white. This distinguishes them from their less experienced younger counterparts.

Tier 7 (Dragon and Dark Elf) Dragon Rider → Dragon Knight

• A dark elf knight riding a green dragon with a lance in hand and a kite shield in the other. Upgrading to a more armored variant riding a black dragon.
• Lore Description: After clearing out the nuisance of the Dragon Slayers in Garrote Gorge, the Dragons became close allies of the Dark Elves, and the fearsome Dragon Riders were born.

If this works out, I have a few more ideas I’ll save for the future:
A Nordic and Slavic faction (The Borg or The Bulwark) settling in east Jadame.
After that, an Enroth-themed faction (The Bastion), a neutral Ironfist kingdom Knight faction. Think Tyro, Maximumus, Ector, and humans alongside other races.
If I get through all that, then I’d make a Japan-themed faction (The Sanctum) on a new smaller continent.

[Ensrick]

Here is a proof of concept for the first tier 5 creature: Dark Archer → Arcane Archer.
The theme I settled on for the colors of the regulars and upgrades goes from Dark Brown and Red outfits to Deep Blue and Black outfits with Silver Trim.

Of course for the alternate tier 5 creature Solar Priest to Lunar Priest, it’ll be Brown Red and Gold to Blue Black and Silver.

For now, I think I’ll create creature defs with only a few frames and I’ll fill in the rest after I’ve worked out the overarching concept. I would love help to animate these.

Also, just incase you can’t tell, these are female dark elves for the Archers. I decided to do the inverse of what we have for the Rampart elven units: Archers, Male, Pegasus Riders, Female. So for the dark elves, it’ll be archers, Females, Dragon Riders, Male.

There are only 2 elf units in the Rampart despite AvLee being ruled by elves so I similarly tried to create many non-elf units for this faction.

[Ensrick]

I’ve drafted a town screen, I’d like to share a quick walkthrough of all the buildings so far. I’ll have to figure out how to make the buildings blend in with one-another better. There’s a bit of inconsistency.

The town’s native terrain is Rough like the barbarians. Most of Jadame in MM8 is rough terrain and badlands.

First, The empty townscreen, not even a village hall, but there are a few houses.

Next is the Fort, Village Hall, Market, Mage’s Guild, and Blacksmith (The blacksmith is a little tent added above the village area; like an apothecary or healer because the town war engine will be a first aid tent).

This screen includes all dwellings 1-7 not upgraded including both tier 5 dwellings as well as the Citadel, City Hall, and the Mage’s Guild Level 2. Quick walkthrough of the dwellings:

1. Snake Idol (The golden snake with nearby Huts)
   → Serpantian Spearmen
2. Aerie (The little cliff above the village on the west side)
   → Duskravens
3. Underforge (The two underground entrances on the hill in the middle)
   → Dark Dwarf Rifleman
4. Adobe Hamlet
   → Sand Trolls
5. Arcane Keep (The large tower on the foothills)
   → Dark Archers
6. Celestial Temple (On top of the hill in the center)
   → Solar Priest
7. Eldritch Enclave (Middle left side of the image with small towers)
   → Minotaur Warmage
   7 Black Tower (On a mountaintop with a trail leading down; spire on top)
   → Dragon Riders
   
   
   
   All Dwellings upgraded, Mages Guild Tier 3, Resource Sile (The cart and chest), City Hall, and Castle
   
   
   
   The Creature Hordes 1 and 2. specifically for both Tier 5 dwellings, the Celestial Temple and the Arcane Keep. I decided to allow both together for now as a unique feature for this faction if both special buildings have been built. For the Temple, the Orrey, and for the Arcane Keep, the Practice Range.
   Also, Mage’s Guild Tier 4 and the Capitol.
   
   
   
   Last Screen, not much more to show here. There are Special Buildings 1 and 2. First near the Market and Mage’s Guild is a Scryer’s Orb which boosts the spell power of defending heroes by 6. Next is the building on the foothills between the Arcane Keep and the Celestial Temple, The Merchant’s Guildhall which I’m on the fence about whether it should offer better market resource trade rates or 1500 more gold a day.

[misiokles]

Can you make buildings bigger? In vanilla townscreens fully built town is rather crowdy with luck of free space…

[Ensrick]

I don’t know. I was kinda worried about the opposite, and I’m extremely new to this. I’m no great artist, so I may not know best, but I was looking at the Rampart town screen for inspiration and I actually think my town screen looks about as full as the Rampart town screen.

If I overlapped some structures more, I might be able to make them bigger, but since Jadame is kind of a wild region, I wanted the town to reflect that.

If you’d like to try your hand at it, I can give you the GIMP file with all the layers. One thing I wanted to do was add another set of houses but I’m too cautious because at every turn I felt I risked too many overlapping.

For now, I’m moving on to the next thing and I’ll come back and smooth over the town screen and try to improve it in the future. I’d like to finish the faction as soon as I can, and it’ll still take a good while.

[Macron1]

You can share GIMP file with me:-) in case your town gets abandoned or town screen is changed.

[Majster]

The town screen, and overal idea for the city looks like promising now.
I will keep fingers crossed for your project!

[kromz]

i beg of you, please to make it more jadamish, you must use some def files of MM8
you have quite alot to use…