le_souriceau

[le_souriceau]

After some terrible experience I always build my archers with dodge + anticipation (initiative/ranged/ranged def ups per lvl). It realy helps to solve enemy shooters problem for good (they almost never hit late game). Dodge also helps a lot against melee problems (when orc warrior breaks formation, per expamle).

Yep outnumbering is pretty hard – better just kill enemy faster. My personal favorite is 2h hammers, especialy if I can find rare one.

[le_souriceau]

May be I orc-hater biased or something, but my last encounters with orc warlords was pretty disturbing.

Big orc (who can’t engage melee properly in several rounds — too many of his comrades) just spam-spam-spam his cry behind lines (out of my reach at all), and mercs run shiteless (while I cleary winning in real combat, not even seriously wounded). No sergeant or banner can provide reliable help against such annoying thing.

Something changed in AI? Or may be this overall morale rework play this way. Brothers already in fragile balace since they almost always outnumbered – that morale shattering spam just unbearable for them any long time.

Anyway, something is rather unhealthy in balance this way.

[le_souriceau]

There is better option than just buy another useless copy.

Anyone who wants to support game can get BB as present for a friend via Steam. I done this once. Friend still playing and loved the game. Everyone happy.

[le_souriceau]

Weapon balance still rather weak too.

May be I don’t understand something, but warhammers is way above any other 1-handed weapons late game — most problematic enemies (orcs, ancient undead, elite human units) heavly armored. Warhammer become even more powerful after last undate — now you can effectivly exploit destroyed enemy armor by archers directly behind hammer-guy.

Throwing weapons, even with perk still poor choice over other ranged options. It needs damage buff, may be some new variants or attacks. Speaking of variants — armor-piercing sword (estoc) or spear (ahlspiess) will be very nice addition.

[le_souriceau]

Yep, same feelings. Standart is cool, but too weak as a weapon (especialy late game), mostly is just dusting in pocket of one of my archers (or even in global inventory). Its too costly to dedicate whole man for just chilling with this banner when morale situation not so critical. And even when it critical banner dont help so much.

[le_souriceau]

Yep, stressful. Ironicly with current balance more fame (as you may think good for mercs) =/= better. Nothing so profitable comes from it, only troubles. Avoiding rising it (or slowing process down) is viable tactic for more safer difficulty curve.

Anyway, no matter what you doing (if playing on vet) one day game slams you with mostly impossible fights (30 +, even 40 + elite tier enemies), witch can only be “scummed” with save-loads or cheap “kill 5 guys – retreat – repeat”.

Currently there is achievment about black monolith — no matter difficulty, it has 47 ancient undeads (7 necrosavants, 3 priests, rest hounour guard/legioniers). Anyone won it with one battle? How?

[le_souriceau]

Another consideration with all this: wounds and morale oriented feats, feat/maneuvering combos (even “lighter weapons”) somewhat inflated by new pseudoroman ancient undead (hardest enemy in late game IMHO). As for me, with them only heavy protection and brutal damaging power really works. You need to kill em fast. They very armored, have good melee protection (shielded guys) and deadly accurate with heavy weapons (pikemen). No morale or fatigue. And mages, who can destroy any tricky formation by gas spell or compromise plans with fear spell.

After several runs (when my arse was totaly smashed), I prefer to have ultra-heavy shieldwall with stupid brick-like guys who grind everything with hammers/axes. With feats only working for this. 4 archers to cover this clumsy brutes from anything fast and ranged (ocasianaly help in spliting shields from behind).

No fantasy or finesse at all. Fancy combos work fine (may be) until you stomped hard by this udead romans.

[le_souriceau]

I think its more about general AI desisions for battle then for shamans (ranged advantage/or not).

While I stormed big goblin city (with 47 tiny bastards inside), 4 shamans was very agressive – they moved forward to constanty cast on my guys even chase them to have them in spell range.

[le_souriceau]

But another “exploit” exists – reloading aftersave before combat gives you chance to move some time before event triggers again. Its possible, by constant reloading to “crawl” to quest destination without fight (process can be tedious).

Cheap way, but works. May be interesting for someone.

[le_souriceau]

I use Adrenalin rather extensive on heavy armored brothers to compensate their low initiative in critical situations. It saved me a lot of times. Very useful with right fatigue managment.

Fast apaptation is good for achers in duels with enemy snipers (with is pretty tense moment in late game, when you face 5-6 even 7 good shooters agaist you, somethimes with heavy crossbows, this things can pierce good hole even in heaviest of your guys).

Others are more o less useless/weak. Agree.

[le_souriceau]

Or may be just simple option during start of game:

When 1st crisis starts?

90 day (i think this is current situation)
180 day (long time)
360 day (this is enough time for even most slowpaced player to be “ready”)
Never (if someone really wants this never)

[le_souriceau]

Well, I indeed can retreat again and again… and possibly even “win” at the end (after weeks of sieging this locaton). But this is DEFINETLY not how game meant to be played. Not a bit of joy in such “victories”.

This is game about tactical combat, not “kill x enemies, teleport from combat, return later”.

[le_souriceau]

But I must say in current balance of game (on vet at least and higher)… if you play too long in “stasis” on nobles war (feeding up you mercs), orc and especialy undead crisis can achieve devastating levels of scaling, when you will be faced with hordes of elite enemies. This extreamly troublesome during event-related quests, when you, for example, can be forced to fight 2-3-4 times in almost row to achieve success in mission.

So, this safer way of prolonging nobles war can be a bit tricky on perspective.

[le_souriceau]

Sometimes this mercs groups will have 2 swordmasters at once (+1 hedge knight and several snipers with overall size 20+). Balancing is completly unfair nowdays. But I hope this is some kind of beta problems and will be redone in final game (as promised).

[le_souriceau]

I suffered a lot same way from ranged enemies in current build.

After uncounted hours of suffering and re-starting of warband I have this strategy (may be stupid but more or less works for me):

I train 4 archers (its hard, but possible). Talking about recruits, ranged is needed, but is secondary. Look for ranged def stars and initiative.

Every level up put all possible to ranged combat, ranged def and initiative. Perks — bullsye, browny, dodge, anticipation, fast adaptiion, bow mastery, berserk, quick hands, kiling frenzy, nine lives. Ranged builds whiout maxed ranged defence likely doomed. May be some ultra-armored crossbowmen have chances but I don’t tried.

Archers like that can more o less pull out duel with enemy ranged units (and save the day).

As for bad terrain… yep, another extremly annoying thing. I usually just run as fast as I can. Very high initiative in this archer build provides good chances to leave zone of enemy fire (they most vunerable). Heavy line guys mabe get arrow or two in arse during “tactical reatreat”, but this is mostly survivable.

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