TMC Modder's Interview - Nicrlaitheking news

Welcome to the first interview of the TMC Modder's Interviews. Nicrlaitheking sacrificed a bit of his freetime at the weekend, to answer quickly to my questions which is really appreciated by me, even if he did it more for being the first one of the interviewseries. So today you will read a bit about

Hello, Nicrlairtheking aka Macbeth. You are one of the few people who are active at modding-projects not only for one but multiple games. At least I know of ‘Lord of Universalis’ for the game ‘Europa Universalis IV’ and ‘Kingdoms of Arda’ for the upcoming ‘Mount & Blade Bannerlord’ but I wouldn’t be surprised if there would be more. So feel free to present yourself at the beginning for those who don’t know you and also for me so I can ask more detailed questions :P
Answer: Hey! Most people call me Nic, as I have used the name (Nicrlaitheking), since I began modding back in 2008. My first major mod-project was created by myself and a guy called Scribblemaniac, and was a LOTR mod for Minecraft called Awaken Dreams. We ran a server at the same time and I worked on it for around 4-5 years before I quit, though I visited the server from time to time. The mod and server was recently shot down (January 14^th 2019), as Scribblemaniac didn’t want to continue on it. After that I began working mostly on mods for Mount & Blade, which also have led to my current work on Kingdoms of Arda (KoA) for the upcoming Mount & Blade Bannerlord. I mostly work on level-design, UI (user-interface), planning and lore-stuff, when it comes to LOTR titles.

First one of the most important questions for some people here: What do you prefer, the books or the films?
Answer: I came to know the world through the films, so that one is pretty easy to answer. I think the movies have their very own feeling with the music, colouring, acting and the beautiful landscape of New Zealand, which I assume is why ‘Return of the King’ is still at the top (with Titanic) of winning most Oscars. However as much as I love the films, it was the detailed lore about the universe that have kept my interest over the years, along with various games and LOTR mods. So the books have definitely meant more in the long run. I have always wanted a good open-world sandbox game set in Middle-earth, with all it’s factions, characters and inspiring locations. So that is what I have always tried to achieve and work on. And that is also the reasoning for my current work on the two LOTR mods you have mentioned at the beginning.

When and how did you come into touch with modding? Did you have any past experiences which helped at the start?
Answer: No at first I started with Minecraft as it was easy to create stuff in. I very quickly began making 16x16 and 32x32 textures for blocks and then that simply grew until I realized that Minecraft couldn’t deliver the LOTR-feeling which I wanted to give people. I began learning a little about coding back then but never learned it very well. However I can read some codes and change them which is what I do for EU4 as well as creating an entire new province map and height map.

I have gotten to know you through some lore-discussions occurring in the KoA discord. Lore-Master seems also to be your position in the development team there. Is it the same at ‘Lord of Universalis’ or do you have a more ‘active’ role there?
Answer: Well I do far more than just being a lore-master which probably is why I got my own weird rank on the discord.
For KoA, I did most of the planning for the map and settlements, as the geography of Middle-earth interests me a lot. Especially how you can sort of invent and expand on rather unknown locations, as their elven-names have meanings in most cases. I also came up with a ton of ideas, including story-mode, a new gameplay compared to what the normal Bannerlord will provide. So most of my time have been spent on planning so that we got a plan and know what to do, when the game eventually comes out. Other than that I have done a ton of scenes and maps for Mount & Blade Warband, so I’m very eager to start making scenes for KoA, which is what I will use most of my time on when the actual development begins.
For EU4 I helped out DKStranger three years ago or some, with some lore-questions and alike. Later when I introduced a friend to EU4 we played Lord of Universalis and I was not very happy with the map and the lore concerning geography, so I offered to help out with it and have been working on it on and off for 1,5 year now I think. Basically rewriting the entire code for the 3000+ provinces, re-colouring the bmp map for it, and now also the height map. Besides that I have also done huge work on the UI for it, many new events, icons, flags and loading screens. However since it’s such a massive overhaul of the old version of the mod (currently out), pretty much none of my work for it can be seen yet.

You might have already noticed, I called out other roles for being ‘active’. Some regard Lore-Masters as essential part of the team, they are helping to develop the storyline and give the whole mod a setting into which the player-base can try to comfort itself. On the other hand, everyone has watched the LotR-movies. Is there really the need for a Lore-Master in a LotR mod or isn’t it more a position for people who talk a lot but aren’t able to be productive otherwise?
Answer: As mentioned I do far more than that. But no, the universe of Tolkien is far more than just LOTR. LOTR is simply the WW2 of their world, and as you know there are far more aspects of our own history than just that. And if you want to fully understand WW2 you must also understand what led to it, and that is exactly what lore-masters of Middle-earth do. Uncovering mysteries that most players and watchers of LOTR never knew about. I have also noticed that many lore-masters tend to be very fond of history, myself included. So sometimes historical references can in some cases be very useful to fill out empty holes that Tolkien left behind. I have been reading a lot about the universe over the years basically since 2001, when the first film came out. I have read all the books related to the universe, watched all the films (extended and normal version) and all the fan-films made (Like ‘Hunt for Gollum’ & ‘Born of hope’). I have always been interested in the world and geography means a lot to me, so I have also read many of the MERP-books (old role-playing game about Middle-earth, like Dungeons & Dragons) that expand on the universe and especially it’s geography.

You mentioned once that you also have given advice to the LotR-mod for Crusader Kings II, Middle Earth Project (MEP). Are you looking for interesting teams by yourself or are the development teams contacting you since they saw your work at other projects?
Answers: Yeah, my advice were mostly new ideas for traits and some lore-related stuff. No in most cases I hear about an interesting mod, or I find it by playing a game I like. I have been contacted a few times over the years, but I rarely accept as I think the most productive work comes from self-interest.

Sooner or later you will for sure have had discussions about the directions which these mods are taking, haven’t you? If I remember correctly, one time, at MEP, it was the reason not to join the team. How do you define the ‘correct’ direction? And where do you draw the line for leaving or not joining a team?
Answer: Yeah, I gave advice for the old team and saw that it had changed staff when I recently wanted to help with their map. I played the mod with a friend and was just really annoyed with the wrong province names and so on and offered to help out with it. Apparently they were already working on that. They wanted to make it as lore-friendly as possible (which is impossible for a detailed mod like that). I prefer using old maps from other games and mods rather than beginning to add new made-up locations, so we disagreed on that. What made me leave was their rude messages and lack of understanding however. As they were already using MERP locations their arguments were as false as they were dumb. So I didn’t feel such a team would be able to create the map, that I think it deserved.

You also came up with some User Interface concepts for KoA. Towards which aspects are you paying attention there? How is your development process there? And are you taking some kind of cross-game inspiration from the other projects in which you are involved?
Answer: The whole idea of the story-mode was to make players able to play their favourite heroes in the famous scenes from the films. Like walking through Moria as Gandalf. That would normally not be possible in the campaign. My idea was to take the unit and objective aspect from Lord of the Rings Conquest and mix it with the missions from the old Lord of the Rings games for ps2 with a touch of the lego LOTR titles (when it comes to outfit customization and the huge cast of heroes to play as). The idea quickly grew and I began to make ‘Story-mode campaigns’ telling different stories from the lore of Tolkien. The idea expanded further, when the team agreed that multiplayer should be part of the mod. I think very many people would appreciate to walk through Moria with their friends, each playing the other members of the Fellowship. Currently we got 24 planned campaigns for the game-mode, but right now our main focus for it is the ‘Last Alliance’ campaign we hope to include in the first release. It will focus on the downfall of Sauron and him losing The One Ring, as seen at the beginning of the first film. Other stories like The Hobbit, Sauron wins, Eorl the young, Balin’s recolonization of Moria and The Fall of Arnor are also planned (along many others). The UI I made is nothing more than a concept of how it could look, just so that it would be easier for the team and other people to understand the idea fully.

One out of your projects, ‘Kingdoms of Arda’, is for the upcoming Bannerlord. What kind of an experience is it for you to be part of a development team which works on a mod for an unreleased game?
Answer: Unlike other mods I have worked on, I have been so lucky to be here since the beginning (pretty much). So I have had a lot of my ideas for the mod approved and been lucky enough to plan a lot of stuff, like the settlements that will be on the map.

How does the working process and discussions differ between KoA and ‘Lord of Universalis’? Has there been sometimes a moment in which you saw the possibility, to transfer a game mechanic or simply an idea from one mod to the other?
Answer: My work on Lord of Universalis is simply messages between me and DKStranger the creator of the mod. My expanded geography work and research for this mod have helped be slightly with the Kingdoms of Arda map, but besides that there haven’t.

Which problems occurred for you while working at the projects? How did you solve them?
Answer: I think my only problems while working on the two mods have been real-life events and the lack of interest at some points. Normally those kinda things will pass, and then the work can continue. Sometimes you just need a break to work on something else. When you return to it, you will hopefully feel excited, if not you should do something else.

Modellers, musicians and artist can gather feedback easily, they show off their work. While it is the same for you at UI design, how is it with being a lore-Master? Is there even a way to give feedback to them in other ways than being astonished by such knowledge? Or how do you get the feeling that at some days, you have been a good lore-master?
Answer: Most of the other guys know a lot about the universe too, so I guess the best thing you can do (as a lore-master) is to expand something in a relevant discussion. Except for that, perhaps convincing the team to do something new/different due to the lore. Like naming Théoden. Due to the Anglo-Saxon roots of the Rohirric language they wouldn’t call him ‘King Théoden’, but ‘Théoden king’, like Gandalf does in the movies. A minor thing that most people would have missed.

How does in general a good feedback for your work look like?
Answer: “Great idea, we will include it”

Do you think your modding experience influenced you in any way? Maybe, your professional career or your studies? Was it purely a hobby for you?
Answer: Since I was 4 I have made board-games, so I have always come up with ideas and turned them into real stuff. This is simply how I am as a human, so I have also have two companies by now and I’m planning to start a third one within this year. My modding experience have improved by CV and I have learned a lot by doing it. It has also improved my English, which have opened up for a lot of new ways to learn things. I am also currently working on making my own game with DKStranger, a thing that never would have been possible if I hadn’t started modding.

Working on a mod is hard work and time consuming. Isn’t there sometimes a moment at which you think: ‘Nah, it’s not worth all the trouble, I rather play mods than help developing them.’?
Answer: I spend far more time working on mods than actually playing games. I like to bring a certain feeling out to people. If my work, maybe spending 7 hours every week, can bring hundreds maybe even thousands of hours of gameplay to people, I think it’s worth the time.

Once upon a time, a LotR-mod has received a C&D order and had to stop development. I think it has been discussed a numerous times, you might remember the discussion about it in the KoA-Discord. Do you think your work comes into conflict with intellectual property rights? And do you fear sometimes that ‘Lord of Universalis’ or KoA might share the same fate?
Answer: No. I think back then it was simply empty threats. This is not an official organisation, so they can’t sue the team. So they would have to sue every individual of the team, which means that they have to figure out who we are first, and next prove that we in fact did work on the mod. And that said work violated the copyright law. Most of the team come from different countries, so that makes it even more complicated. Almost impossible if you ask me, not to mention the amount of time and money they would have to waste on trying to stop us, and they wouldn’t really gain anything from it. Time is money, so I doubt and hope they will shut their mouths and let us make the mod that they have failed to make into a game so many times.

What is your favourite LotR mod? Why do you like it? Also, is there any project that caught your attention lately?
Answer: Third Age Total War with the submod Divide & Conquer (Though their map really needs a lore-hotfix). I am currently keeping an eye on the Mount & Blade LOTR mod called ‘Middle-earth at War’ () as I think his work on the different scenes look very impressive compared to other M&B LOTR mods I have seen through the years.

What is your overall impression of the LotR modding community, of the ones for M&B EU4, and in general?
Answer: I think there have been made way too many LOTR mods for Mount & Blade Warband, especially when you realize that most of them simply use the same TLD assets. I hope for Bannerlord that modders would rather join our team instead of making small mods that won’t survive in the long run.

And – to turn a bit around the table – What do you think about the player base of the released mod ‘Lords of Universalis’? Are they sometimes demanding too much from the mod-team or are they mostly giving productive feedback?
Answer: All my work is behind the scenes right now. I don’t know how many play it. I mostly read the bug reports that are being posted on our discord from time to time, and then the feedback from ‘fans’, when DKStranger writes about the new big update that I’m helping with. I have only read positive feedback and not any actual demands or wishes.

Finally: Would you like to say anything to creative people who are reading this interview at the moment and might think about bringing LotR into a game?
Answer: Yeah if you want to bring LOTR into a game, make sure it’s a mod, or that you are licensed, otherwise you will get sued eventually. Also even though you might think you can’t help with anything you can always learn to do small things that overtime develop to something more helpful. As far as I know, the editor for Bannerlord will be much more user-friendly and easy to learn for new people. So I’m sure you would be able to learn how to scene-build/ level-design.

Thanks a lot for the interview!