Weather effects to help balance

[JW]

Okay, so this is perhaps the third time I am bringing up the discussion of weather effects, but I wish to do so with a different focus than before: MP map balancing.

Currently fliers have very few terrains that can slow them down. Generally this is done with cave/mushrooms, but with Drakes deep water may also be used. The problem with having so few terrains slow flying units is that:
1) maps generally must utilize these terrains or allow a flyer advantage
2) the same terrain patterns occur over and over*
*(CotB utilizes a row of cave terrain, old FLake and Wedlyn utilizes masses of deep water, Sablestone, Den, and Freelands use caves on shortcuts/sides, Silverhead crossing uses both)

If there were a way to add a weather overlay, or add a new set of terrains which have the effect of slowing flyers moreso than land units (or even swimmers) then I imagine balancing maps could be easier and done in a less repetitive way.

Now, there are two ways this could be done; one more complex, one more simply. I have discussed the more complex idea of weather overlays somewhere else and the idea was shot down, so I will not discuss it again here, but if anyone is interested they could search for it, or I may find it myself and add a link later.

The simpler idea would be something that I could even do myself, in theory. Custom terrains with slightly modified art. The only thing that would need to be done is the defining of the terrain in all the movetypes so that (for example) "stormy forest" does not (or slightly affects) land unit movetypes, but drastically affects flyers movetypes. This would involve much less initial investment than the overlay idea, but would require more grunt work as each new terrain would need to be individually defined.

Still, I think that such an addition could help with map balancing and would allow more options for how the terrains can be interlaced.

[F8 Binds...]

I think it is up to the cartographer himself whether it is necessary for this feature to be implemented- to me, I never thought it was an issue. Impassable terrain has always been the best way to deal with fliers as far as I've known.

From a realism point of view, there is one problem with this feature- clouds and storms usually don't sit and rotate on a point for an infinite amount of time. Turns in Wesnoth time correlate into days and weeks, likely. Such storms should probably have the ability to move. When you add movement in, it gets really complex and not very friendly to the cartographer who is designing the map. Also, because the said storms are moving, their intended location wouldn't be permanent.

Perhaps I am getting off topic by trying to explain it from a realism point of view- but these are just my thoughts / concerns if such a feature was implemented. Such a feature regardless seems very complex to me.

[Velensk]

F8, I don't think it's any more complicated than any other mixed terrain. If you create a 'storm' terrain. You can the add it on to any other terrain and units move through it with best defence and worst movement.

It may be useful, even if it dosn't make sense.

[F8 Binds...]

Perhaps I'm overstating in the above post, then... ...

However, I will expand on a new thought- I think such a feature would add a new element to cartography that isn't intended... I've always thought that terrain often reflects the weather in the region, and that it is awkward to incorporate the weather into the map itself.

Perhaps complex wasn't the right wording.

[JW]

I've always thought that terrain often reflects the weather in the region, and that it is awkward to incorporate the weather into the map itself.

Isn't it odd then that there are never storms in Wesnoth according to this thinking?

[roadkill]

If the turn scale is days to weeks storms are there but don't need to be represented because on average the area wont be stormy. However I wouldn't mind seeing a weather effect on a terrain in a campaign (like a mountain with storms all the time on top of it).

Then this terrain could be used as terrain for a MP map if the map creator decides to use it.

Can't see it being terribly unfitting.