Mike

[Mike]

+1

I’m generally against artificial variety basedf on color and stat swaps, but it could actually work nicely for some rare and unique encounters.

I also like the idea of pelts and other trophies, even if they were purely aesthetic in nature… For balance reasons I’d add a special “Vanity” slot which makes items visible on a bro but gives no stat bonuses. I really like my goblin ear necklace but always have something more useful to put in a slot…

[Mike]

+1 for the idea. Maybe something for an expansion/mod?

[Mike]

I agree that end-game human teams can be a major pain. That being said I may be able to help a bit by sharing a build & tactic that I’ve found works really well against mercs & noble forces.

(TLDR concerning swordmasters: slow them down with dogs, nets & spearwall, eliminate other enemies, surround SM with shieldwalled tanks and hack them to pieces with 2-handers from 2nd line. Swords don’t fare well against dedicated defensive bros if you play smart)

Three basic parts of the method: defensive play, ranged combat superiority & patience. “Zeroth rule” is a well-equipped and leveled team (reasonably high fatigue number obligatory), but you know that already.

The team: 6 front line “tanks” (heavy armor, shields, defensive perks), 3 rangers (War Bows & Longaxes, Bow Mastery, Crippling Strikes & Fearsome obligatory) 1 sergeant (Crossbow & Longaxe, Rally to keep everyone at Confident), 2 flankers (clad in heaviest armor, using Crossbows & 2-handers).

The tactic is quite simple: as soon as the battle starts you fall back to an advantageous position (preferably high ground, if you are heavily outnumbered go as far as the edge of the map to prevent encirclement) and stay there (shieldwall up to prevent losses from enemy fire), letting the enemy come to you and keeping them at distance (spearwall) while eliminating targets of priority with heavy volume of bolts & arrows. You only engage in melee when you’ve got numbers and morale (the sergeant keeps Confident up at all times) at your side.

First order of business: enemy rangers. With Bow Mastery (and hopefully high ground) you are guaranteed to outrange them. Thanks to your tactical retreat they most likely broke formation and are no longer hidden behind a tight wall of shields. As soon as those are dead your second line is safe and you can drop shieldwall on your tanks.

Next are 2-handers who are easy pickings without shields while posing considerable threat. Enemy standard bearer is a priority to start breaking morale. Crossbows come extra handy here, especially goblin Impalers (to further disrupt enemy formation). If you have some expendable dogs they are a great distraction, I’ve had one mutt dodge 6 blows in a row and taking 2 more before dying, which bought me enough time to nail 2 enemies.

Now you’re down to toughest nuts, enemy “tanks”. I like to keep my spearwall up and bash away those that get through while peppering them with missiles (remember to give your archers extra quivers). Keep some nets & javelins in your bags to add that extra “ye mother is a wench” to the mix. If they’re not escaping yet they’re bound to break soon (remember you have Fearsome on your rangers) at which point you can literally just let the dogs loose at them and break out the popco… I mean meat jerky.

There it is. Not foolproof of course (bolts to the head happen), but if you have enough armor to weather a rare blow and fatigue to keep the defenses up you’re going to be OK, mostly by virtue of enemy not being able to overwhelm you with numbers. Hope it helps!

[Mike]

I agree that arbitrarily forcing crises on player is bad for the overall enjoyment of game, the appeal of sanbox has always been choosing you own way to play.

I think that the best way to handle the crises would be to make each one triggered by a short quest chain chosen by players at their leisure – say, recovering 3 powerful artifacts from tombs awakens the undead, raiding settlements for a noble house triggers war between factions, etc.

This way you can have them or not and exactly when you want to, making everyone happy… I think?

[Mike]

+1 for switching weapons, I have Quick Hands on most of my bros and doing it manually is truly annoying.

[Mike]

I agree that battles in swamp are a pain. I also think that’s exactly how they should be! Game is not supposed to always give you perfect conditions, just as you wouldn’t get them in RL. You don’t get convenient paths through every bog, sometimes you have no choice but to go waist-deep in the muck.

You can either manouver around it (lure enemy to different terrain before engaging as your band moves faster than others, utilise Pathfinder to lessen the impact), use it to your advantage (use a lot of ranged weaponry and make enemies into pincushions as they trudge towards you at a snail’s pace) or just avoid swamps altogether if you’d rather not get through the trouble.

It’s said plainly – not every contract is worth the risk. You can abandon contracts. You are not obliged to raid every swamp-based location. Make your choice.

As for a bit of advice I tend not to move around swamps too much – equip front bros with kite shields so they can weather enemy bombardment while giving all the others bows and crossbows to out-shoot opposition. By the time enemies are in melee range half of them are dead and others are tired, injured and heavily demoralised (I recommend both Fearsome and Crippling Strikes on your rangers)

Good luck! :)

[Mike]

The problem I have with patrol missions is not the payoff but their length and inability to gauge it as access to map is disabled until I actually make the decision.
Having a rough estimate, something like employer saying “If you don’t linger or die on the road I expect you to come back here in around X days” would really help with that issue. One can hope.

[Mike]

I’m OK with how it is right now – easily but not immediately accessible.

The “rotation” would be a very difficult manoeuvre on the battlefield – just holding formation requires considerable training and cooperation – so I don’t mind waiting for my bros to gather some experience under their belts before they can utilise it.

As for bandits using it I think it’s a good idea as they become pushovers in a hurry, so the more tricks they have the less boring battling them becomes. I just wish AI exercised more common sense because right not it often does them more harm than good.

I must say I find the idea of some characters having access to pre-selected perks from the start intriguing, though I’d much rather see that as having a background-specific special.

[Mike]

gepardowaty wrote:

add some kind of option to evalute “talents” of some brothers. Maybe as tips from the Innkeeper?

I really like that idea.

Also, some things should be always displayed even before checking gossip – it’s rather hard to miss the fact that a prospect is a dwarf…

[Mike]

pfhilt wrote:

So what is the rational behind all the fatigue rules?

The heavier your gear gets, the more tiring is to do anything – not only attacking but also defending yourself or even walking. As a person can only do so much strenous actions before needing a rest more fatigue per action means less actions available before you get exhausted and need to catch your breath.

pfhilt wrote:

Putting on a helmet and armor does make you tired.

I guess you meant “doesn’t”? Depending on the armor it actually may, but more importantly any actual armor – and not a decorative cosplay piece – needs to have some padding underneath the actual protective layer, if only to prevent abrasions of the skin from the armor itself. Padding = insulation, add to that the increased strain on your body from having to move around with bonus weight and you have a recipe for heat exhaustion even without actual combat going on.

And I do speak from personal experience, used to participate in a reconstruction group using historically-accurate gear. Just walking around in a chainmail during events was a b**** anytime but early spring.

pfhilt wrote:

It should increase the fatigue when you do things.

True, but keeping the same fatigue cost and decreasing fatigue total instead is easier to track for the players – as you get familiar with the game you memorize how much fatigue each action costs and can plan ahead accordingly. If the cost was increased by % depending on the gear you’d have to check it every time. Simpler is better in this case.

pfhilt wrote:

Also, swinging weapons does not tire you that fast.

Ever gave it a try? And I don’t mean splitting some wood? Depending on the weapon just holding proper guard can be quite tiresome, as the length of it essentially works as a lever – and not a one in your favour. Proper attack needs both speed and force behind it and is thus using strength of entire body – often clad in heavy & hot armor – not just the arm. Again the difference between the real thing and a scripted show is tremendous.

OK this whole reply is getting too long already but making the main point without proper explanation would border on trolling.

The point being: please refrain from making exaggerated judgements and statements if you have nothing more that your gut feeling and videogame experience to support them.

[Mike]

First, as long as you have more than one attribute to your character, one of them is going to be less important than others. It’s not a design flaw to be corrected, it’s a simple fact.

Secondly, there are always different playstyles just as there are always minmaxers who accept only the optimal solutions – trying to cater to them is a fool’s errand as it damages the experience for others who do not share their approach and those people are never fully satisfied anyway.

I’m perfectly happy with specializing my characters and using bad “rolls” on my preferred attributes to pump secondary ones – got a +1 to fatigue this level? Fine, I’ll put +3 to initiative or +2 to ranged defense. My archer can’t take an orc axe to the face but that’s why I have others who can do it in his stead.

I dare say there are other players who do not have a cookie-cutter build focusing on 3 most “valuable” attributes but prefer to experiment and work around limitations instead of throwing more points at them. Finding ways to efficiently use the seemingly underpowered stats is part of the fun.

P.S.

blackteapie wrote:

it would need a large figure of initiative to reach at the first one of every turn. Or you need hire a high initiative merc at the first place

when you want a guy who can efficiently wear heavy armor, you look for a prospect with high starting stamina. Seems only logical it’s the same when you want a quick character, I see no problem here. Also, you don’t really need that high of a point investment, what matter more is not overburdening your character with heavy gear. I understand that some would find it appealing to have plate armor-clad fighters who are at the same nimble, but it isn’t how the game;s supposed to work. At all.

[Mike]

It almost makes you want to lose at least once ;]

Ruined cities? B-but where will we sell our hard-plundered loot, then? ;(

[Mike]

There’s already a couple of threads dedicated to wardogs, such as this one: http://battlebrothersgame.com/forums/topic/wardogs-suggestions/
As happy as we would all be to see more complexity added to every gamefeature, the devs have clearly stated what are their priorities before the full release – dog overhaul is sadly not on the list. Still, one can hope for future expansions :)

[Mike]

+1 to every suggestion above

[Mike]

You can already pack your brothers tightly with designated “tanks” protecting softer targets, maybe the geometry isn’t as pleasing as a circle but it serves the same function.

Doubling the amount of soldiers on the field would send the game’s balance haywire. It also goes against the basic premise of running a company where each brother’s survival is meaningful and every move in battle matters. Plus, as the units in battle move one at a time, it would only hasten the arrival of the common mid-late game problem of bigger battles dragging out unbearably.

[Author]

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