This is how I am thinking about city defenses:

(All weapons and armor are based on available tech.)

Fortifications

All Levels:
Spell Tower>Elemental Choice (Sorcery) [Casts Spell at beginning of combat]
Advenuterers Guild [Provides Adventurer Defenders]

Level 1:
1 frontline weakling unit.

Level 2:
3 weak frontlines and an archer

Conclave:
Acolyte Tower [Provides Mage Defenders]

Town:
Militias Pub [Provides extra militia]

Fortress:
Wood Fort/Hedge Wall [Similar to Vanilla]
Forge  [Increases Defense of all defenders]
Command Post [Increases Level of all defenders]
Hideout (Tarth) [Provides Extra Archers]

Level 3:
5 medium frontlines and 2 medium archers

Conclave:
Mages Tower [Provides Mage Defenders]
Emblazened Tower (Magnar) [Special Spell Tower]

Town:
Hall of Honor [Provides extra troops]

Fortress:
Fort/Castle [Similar to 1.952.005]
Blacksmith [Increases Defense of all defenders]
War College/Warrior Temple [Increases Level of all defenders]

Level 4:
4 Elite Frontlines and 3 Elite Archers

Conclave:
Heroic Mages [Provides Elite  Mage Defenders]
Archmage Tower [Upgrades Elite Mage Defenders to Heroic]

Town:
Heroic Tank [Provides Elite Tank Unit]
Heroic Hall [Provides extra troops]

Fortress:
Heroic Elites [Increases Level of all defenders]
Archer Strike [All enemies are struck with a strong bow attack on their approach to the battle]
Armorer/Weaponsmith  [Increases Defense and Attack of all defenders]
Knights Hall [Provides Elite Knight Units]

Level 5:
4 Company Elites, 3 Elite Archers and 2 Knights

All:
Sovereign Towers [Casts Spell at beginning of combat]

Conclave:
Dragon [Provides Dragon Defender]

Town:
Grange Hall [+15Hp per soldier]

Fortress:
Double Archer Strike [All enemies are struck with 2 strong bow attacks on their approach to the battle]
+10 to Defense
Paladin Hall [Provides Elite Paladin Units]

Poisons stack like this:

Poison: 1 damage per turn

Poison1: 2-6 damage per turn

Poison2: 4-8 damage per turn

Poison3: 6-12 damage per turn

That stacks to 13-26 damage, not factoring crit chance. Then you haste them...

When I get to my Path Mod, Assassins will have poison damage bonuses and less crit and crit multiplier bonuses.

Maybe my new update will convince you to find them alternate housing? 

Not everything is the same as I originally thought, but it never is.

Changes:

Level 1:
1 frontline weakling unit.

Level 2:
3 weak frontlines and an archer

Conclave:
Acolyte Tower [Provides Mage Defenders]

Town:
All Buildings that give Food to the whole empire, now also give Hp to defending units.

Fortress:
Wood Fort/Hedge Wall [Similar to Vanilla]
Forge [Increases Defense of all defenders]
Command Post [Increases Level of all defenders]
Hideout (Tarth) [Provides Extra Archers]

Level 3:
5 medium frontlines and 2 medium archers

Conclave:
Mages Tower [Provides Mage Defenders]
Emblazened Tower (Magnar) [Special Spell Tower]

Town:

All Buildings that give Food to the whole empire, now also give Hp to defending units.

Fortress:
Fort/Castle [Similar to 1.952.005]
Blacksmith [Increases Defense of all defenders]
War College/Warrior Temple [Increases Level of all defenders]

Level 4:
4 Elite Frontlines and 3 Elite Archers

Conclave:
Archmage Tower [Upgrades Elite Mage Defenders to Heroic]

Town:
All Buildings that give Food to the whole empire, now also give Hp to defending units.

Fortress:
Archer Strike [All enemies are struck with a strong bow attack on their approach to the battle]
Armorer/Weaponsmith [Increases Defense and Attack of all defenders]
Knights Hall [Provides Elite Knight Units]

Level 5:
4 Company Elites, 3 Elite Archers and 2 Knights

Conclave:
2 Paladins for city defense

Town:

+15Hp per soldier

Fortress:
Double Archer Strike [All enemies are struck with 2 strong bow attacks on their approach to the battle]

New Faction Buildings:

Hideout:

Add 2 extra archers and +4 initiative to city archers for any faction with the "Archers" trait. Is unlocked with Banditry.

Emblazoned Tower:

Casts a fire spell at the beginning of city defense for 6 fire damage, +3 per Fireshard. Is unlocked with Sorcery. 

New version up: 1.952.010

Information:

This one add the above changes.

There are several things that have been balanced as well, don't remember exactly what is new and what is old.

The next mod will add spell towers to conclaves and Towns will get more growth. Then I will implement the Staves Mod. Then I plan to do a full balance of all monsters. Then I will do the Path balancing and content additions. Then I will look at spell balance and add in some major game changing spells, ala MoM.

Requests:

1. Keep playing. Never stop playing my mod. It is how I gain strength.

2. Keep complaining. It's too difficult for me to mod while things are imbalanced. Adding content screws up balance and needs feedback. I can mod faster if I know what to change and why.

3. Don't tell the devs we are playing mods. They probably hate me enough already. 

4. Anything you want added to the game, I can probably do. Doesn't hurt to ask.

I, to this day, have zero programming knowledge. XML is really really easy to do. My advice is to start small and make a sword or some building. Much of it can be copied and pasted. Of course, I will make some modding tutorials once modding is officially opened.

When I give beta feedback it's always based on the unmodded game or aspects which wouldn't be effected anyway (such as graphic bugs). Usually I try to play at least one unmodded game with each new version.

On a side note, I got the random event in real life today where your motherboard craps out and you can't afford to get a new one. This is exactly the kind of "fuck you" event I love. I might not be able to mod as much anymore. Probably gonna take a tour soon anyhow. Cheers!

I wish I had paid attention to this earlier. My next game will definitely be with this mod in pace, seanw3.

This.

Also, just found the Scroll of Fortune vanilla item, unable to be used (normally permanently increases your income by +1 when used).  Intentional change?  Or a bug?

Yeah... I've been trying to mod something similar myself and it's impossible to remove unit design from the race type because it's defined in the race itself. Kinda frustrating since Golems/Slaves/Henchmen would better fit in Faction Abilities rather than racials.

I just want to provide some feedback and impressions.  First off I removed my own changes to weapons and installed the latest version overtop of it.  The old phrase be careful what you ask for, you might just get it (more aggressive monsters).  Applies. 

Game settings: I changed monsters from dense down to moderate, play challenging, and moderate.  4-5 AI on medium map.

* Darkling armies need to be tweaked down.  Warg riders - wtfpwning you with their armies on turn 1-2?  Not only can they charge and close the distance they can completely take out a wussy, newly hired level 1 champion with only a dagger.   Suggestion - mounted units shouldn't appear before turn 30-40.  I might add that since there's like 4 to 5 armies of these things, hiring and avoiding is near impossible. 

* I kept my fortress town continually pumping out defenders and was just able to stave off losses of units from darkling armies.  Once ogres and troll armies started on the warpath,  I was like F this.  Rage quit.

* Levelling.  I can see an imperative to tone it down, but it seems really really sloow.

I just wanted to tell you so maybe can feed the monsters a little less steroids.

PS> Sorry to hear about your computer.  That sucks dude. 

Yep.  Downright evil.  Better use those turns wisely or else then.     Should be enough time to tech and build some basic units. 

Can't wait to see it.  It doesn't make sense to me that monsters wander around so hap hazardly.  Even if you get some crappy message from them.