I want to say, that the current game is balanced in a bad way. By bad I mean not numbers, but more impotant thing — integrity towards player. While the whole perk and stats system limits players to 10 perks, the enemy can have any amount of them and even more including those unavailable for players such as “battle flow”, “devastating strikes” or 20 fatigue regeneration. It means they don’t have any weaknesses and are pure examples of how certain builds truly must be, but impossible for players to achieve. The unfairness causes abusing of mechanics and cheesing instead of tactical playing.
Speaking of players’ perception — it’s a demotivating challange breaking the expirience of balanced competition created by the common rules of the game. I understand, that the game mostly balanced in this way because of a large number of unique weapons and armors available for players, which make them overpowered too, but that is not the answer for a good game expirience. The hardcore ironman game first of all must be fair and clear.
When you create your swordmaster, assassin or knight and then meet the enemy one on the battlefield, you feel disappointed because you always lack something as footwork, adaptation, underdog, backstabber, pathfinder, executioner, weapon mastery or else. Players mostly patching the weak spots of their mercs in a very restricted way.
I noticed, that most of even expansive recruits have in their descriptions mentionins of some maims, marginal status or broadly speaking their best days long gone, so the antagonistic analogs look more viable and dangerous. But the weak spots of low fatigue, hp or bad traits are the penalty for some amount of perks and the enemy has even more without any penalties or excuses.
20 fat regeneration is some sort of mocking of players, because most of enemies get this bonus along with others after some day and players never. It means that enemies freely to use their skills and often have no need in “recover”, while player feels like a cripple huntind uniques to solve this problem. So enemies excel us in stats, perks and bonuses, and the answer we have is cheesing, potions and and unique items.
The fair system would be way more interesting even if enemy could use potions and unique weapons too and more often.
Suggestions:
Setting the common perk limit for human fraction at least, whatever it should be. Giving more perks to a player not necessarily breaks the balance, just some of them may be nerfed, considering how much harder the game has become after dlcs.
It’s not unfair for orcs or beasts to have damage bonuses or better fatigue recovery though.
Adding more numbers and situations for encounters with challenging enemies like merceneries, assassins, swordmasters, officers, cultitsts etc instead of making them rare and overpowerful. Making their builds similar to players’ with near equal abilities.
Veteran levels are unnecessary if it breaks the balance.
Nerf for unique items.
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