[Beren IV]

In most RTS games, the builder/gatherer unit is almost useless in combat for a number of reasons: first, its combat stats are weaker for its cost than for normal military units, and second, they tend to ignore enemy military units that aren't attacking them, and then simply run away when they are attacked.

While this works from a gameplay prospective (i.e. each civilization has a weak underbelly that must be protected), it isn't necessarily all that historical, or all that Tolkienian. There are numerous cases historically where "civilian" populations took up arms against invaders and defeated them, even in societies that had armies but whose armies were merely away elsewhere at war or that had been defeated. Likewise it is for Tolkien: every last person is expected to fight at the "last need" of Lórien, should it come; Eowyn arms the civilians of Rohan in Dunharrow to defend themselves as well as they are able while her uncle's army rides to Isengard; Merry and Pippin lead an armed insurrection of Hobbit militia; Bëor's household takes to the hills when their land is conquered and become outlaws, and so on. Of course, this only makes sense - if the enemy is going to massacre you anyway, there is no point in not resisting to the last, with hope or without, and this is a common motif in Tolkien's writing.

I have discovered in many RTS games that civilian units can actually be quite effective against attackers, especially if there are a lot of them (which there frequently are), if they are directed to attack. The trouble is that there is usually no aggressive stance that civilian units can be ordered to; if attacked, they will try to run away. At best, they will pile into nearby fortifications and fire projectiles out the windows, and this is usually quite useless against siege artillery as they don't have the range (another historical error, but this is usually so in RTSes).

How are villagers going to be at defending themselves in TLA? Will they fight back (or have an option that allows them to do so), or will they only run away (which usually is ineffective)?

[Caedus]

I cannot answer this question, but I can point to the feature that Warcraft III has: you can turn human peasants into an armed militia for a certain period of time.

[Beren IV]

Rise of Nations has a very similar feature, although in their case the transformation can be for as long as you like, although these militia die very quickly from attrition damage (a special kind of damage you recieve in enemy territory) if you try to use them offensively. The only problem there is that the AI never uses this feature!

I haven't played Cossacks, but I understand there that you can militarize citizens and send them along with your troops as conscripts, but they can be captured by enemy troops and used against you if your own troops leading them are wiped out.

I might suggest something similar to Cossacks.

[Enarwaen]

thank you for your thoughts - although your ideas and suggestions are more or less off the mark.

what i currently can unveil: you *will* have the opportunity to draw some sort of milita from your population - which is assembled rather quickly - but hopelessly inadequate against regular troops.

but i fear you won't really see much villager-interactivity in TLA at all ... (blame it on our globalized approach if you will)

[Beren IV]

Next question: will the AI use this feature?

[dathui]

If it does as it should do, yes The AI should use all availiable alternatives.

[Historicity]

Rise of Nations if I'm not mistaken has "militia" or "minutemen" technologies available at the Tower. I've never personally used it, because I always find my villagers doing something uself [IE: resource collecting, or scouting]. From what I've read in the manual, as well as the Official guide, ALL of your villagers pick up weapons and become "cheap-sources" for troops.

^^ RoN fan-boy

[Beren IV]

@HistoryGuy: Only those citizens you select in RoN will militarize.

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Good; I am glad the AI will take advantage of it!