Theater-specific unit attribute modifiers

I think a better solution would be to include an additional rules file depending on the theater...

You can achieve this via map ini editing.. some would say that they also want day/night or weather influence on units etc. as well and all of this can be achieved by editing map files.

Speeder's method might be valid and achieve the desired effect, but it causes considerable bloat and would be absolute hell for anybody who's still developing and improving their mod's balance.

But to be honest, I don't see any utility for this feature. The example given in the request highlights the issue- why should certain vehicles perform less or more admirably on certain maps than others?
All it does is muck up balance and give game hosts an unfair advantage.

So host picks a desert map, which means my mainline tank or whatever is slower or less effective. Why should I even bother playing [x faction] when [y faction]/[z faction]/etc don't have that disadvantage? Do I bitch to the host to switch to a different map?

Of course, it's all mod dependent, but I don't see any way for this feature to be useful to anybody who seriously wants a fun and balanced mod.

Actually, EVA, editing the map works better than making theater-specific edits. There are several reasons why i say this:

Firstly, editing the speed of certain units (which would be the primary use for this feature, correct me if I'm wrong) is extremely simple. There is a rulesmd.ini section that dictates the speed of units over certain terrains, in percentage forms, and these can be edited easily and won't mess up balance.

Secondly, editing the map allows the player to account for other factors than just the theater-- most importantly, weather. If a modder wants to make his map rain or snow, then theater-specific modifiers won't help him much. What if the battle was staged in the middle of a desert sandstorm?

Lastly, balance is up to the modder. If weather/theater modifier effects hinder one faction's main tanks but doesn't hinder the others' then that is his problem.

There's really only one disadvantage I can think of and it's that custom maps won't have this effect.

The proposed feature also makes it harder for a mapper to decide the balance on their map since they have to take into effect the global modifier or specify an override to it in the map itself anyhow. I think it best to just leave it for the mapper to decide any overrides to default.

Since this feature request failed to gather community- and developer support, I am hereby formally rejecting it.