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Well, I figured I'm going to write the story, just to get the damned thing done with. Then Tool with it when I work on the manuscript.
Yeah, I'm discovering the same thing, except this is just a difference of a few months. I think it's just that I've gotten used to the world and some of the rules in it. The first few chapters were only a few pages long and only really scratched the surface. Now my chapters are at least in the 20's and go into alot more depth
I write because things in my head go FTL and I have a symbiotic relationship with the keyboard.Plus my (creative) writing is good. (About my essays...well...)
I think I wasn't clear earlier. MTW is good for getting an idea of what each area had for an army. And it's good for getting an idea of tactics and things not to do (Calvery vs well supported Pikeman, not a good idea.....) It can't replace plotting, but it's good for getting an idea of the types and effectness of the different units.
Craig
Well....I'd actaully argue with a few of those.
First thing to do is decide what each army has. You need to take in account the type of land the battle is going to be on. Open plains, rolling hills, and other wide open spaces plays into the hands of Calvery and archers. On the other hand, mountain passes and other confined spaces are more for massed infantry.
Now, there are different types of Infantry and Calvery. Basiclly, you have Light, medium and Heavy units. Light units are scouts, harassing the enemy and slowing him up. They cannot stand up to an all out attack by heavier units. They can move fast and can bed all overt the battlefield. Your scouts are light infantry.
Medium units are a combination of speed and firepower. Slower the light units, they have hevier armor and weapons then light units. Heavy units are usually the elite, the career soldiers or nobility. They are slower then the other units, but they can ground up the others.
There is a series of PC games called Total War. Right now, there is TW: Shogun, TW Midive, and TW: Rome. The key part of the game is the battles, as you army goes up against other armies. You have to chose what type of units to put in your army (Depending on your location and tech level).
Go to this web site: http://www.totalwar.org/strategy/twug/index.html And it has a description of all the different military units in the different games. It'll give you an idea of the different units you can incorprate into your story.
Craig
You can have heavy infantry, which are more like your roman legions.
And light cavalry make excellent scouts.
I would argue very strongly against using a game like total war for your setting and units, because they gloss over a lot of important minutae.
Yes, but the game does give you an idea of the type of units you can have. I mean, disciplined Pikemen will stand up to a calvary charge while peasents will break and run if pressed by the same calvary. Archers can cut armored knights apart under the right circumstances (Angencourt comes to mind), but if the knights get in amoung the archers, well, the bowmen are toast.
The type of country affect the type of army it has. A nomad nation will not have pikemen, for example, because they are not liable to have the inferstructure or the need for them. Deciding what sort of an army a nation has is part of the world building every author needs to work out. History, the landscape, the type of goverenment, all have an influence on the military.
I suggested the game to get a quick and dirty overview of what sort of units an army could have. If you really weant to go deep, Osprey Publications is based on military history and military of all the ages. But unless you're deep into that sort of stuff, it's too much info......
Craig
On half animal demons, I think a previous poster nailed it...most religons have demons/devils and they have animalistic features. One reason for this is an imagination limitation, we expect a body, a head, a locomotion system and arms. It is easy to describe and visualize and getter the audience scared of a mismash of animal parts than a wholly new subject. A black amorphous cloud is scary but not a bad as a goat headed bat winged human with talons, goat hooves and a barbed tail.
On the subject of really big swords, you have two other major factors involved:
Armor One reason for a big ass sword is to penetrate heavy armor. European weapons got bigger and heavier as armor did, and the Europeans had the heaviest steel armor made. Rapiers did not develop until after gunpowder made armor obsolete. England had a series of laws restricting the maximum length of a sword (starting at 4' and moving down).
Combat style: Roman style infantry with stabbing short swords defeated Celts with long swords because they work better in formation style fighting. Individual combat went to the Celts, with the bigger sword. This goes back to the cavalry/infantry comments from before.