The old discussion thread (now locked)

[Spanky]

The 1257 Edition - Authentic Factions and Equipment
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v1.4 for Mount & Blade 1.011

The 1257 Edition of Mount&Blade is a realism mod that grounds the game's original setting more firmly in the history behind its starting date, 1257 A.D. The factions have been thoroughly remodelled and new graphics added, with an emphasis on quality rather than quantity.

---> MAJOR UPDATE: Thoroughly revised and expanded for the commercial version of Mount & Blade (1.011). Now with covered warhorses and hi-res map textures.

Check out the screenshots here!



Features:

    * Equipment of all troops, civilians and NPCs adjusted to reflect the High Medieval period
    * More authentic-looking and more interesting factions
    * Authentic knightly tournaments
    * Emphasis on individual heraldry
    * Specific items to mark your status as a faction lord
    * Period-accurate helm models
    * New textures added, and hidden models activated to expand the range of shields, helmets, surcoats and other armor
    * New banners for the Swadian, Northern and Vaegir factions, based on heraldic principles
    * Three new knight companions to recruit
    * Extensive editing of in-game text to fit the setting (and correct mistakes)

The Mod is currently hosted at the MBX Forum. Click here or on the banner below to download, and for more details.

[Llew2]

Not to be a dork, but, some of those items look suspiciously like modified Hundred Year War armors.

[Njiekovic]

Very nice Spanky! Seems like a thoroughly done job. It's good to see the time better reflected.
It would be cool if you could in some way keep the nobles and knights apart in battle, i.e. using formation script. You would then get infantry, archers, cavalry and nobles.

[Spanky]

Thanks, Njiekovic! I'm glad you like it. I've had a brief glance at your own mod which looks very impressive (the hill forts, for example).

Interestingly, nobles do currently keep apart somewhat from the others, which must be scripted somehow. The battlefield commander tends to walk his horse a few paces behind his own line and any other nobles present tend to group together on one end.

[Spanky]

Not to be a dork, but, some of those items look suspiciously like modified Hundred Year War armors.

Uh... which ones would those be, exactly? I hope you at least downloaded the mod before you made that statement, Llew. I put a lot of hours into the new material and credit is clearly given in the few cases where I drew on other people's work.

Please have another look and/or be more specific. Just because there are two surcoats in there that have lions on them doesn't make them English (I am guessing what you might have meant).

[Njiekovic]

Thanks, Njiekovic! I'm glad you like it. I've had a brief glance at your own mod which looks very impressive (the hill forts, for example).

I think you're mixing me up with Markus II here. He did the 867 A.D. Lords of War mod. I just made one helmet for that mod, which is in my avatar. His avatar is quite similar to mine though. That must have caused the confusion.

Interestingly, nobles do currently keep apart somewhat from the others, which must be scripted somehow. The battlefield commander tends to walk his horse a few paces behind his own line and any other nobles present tend to group together on one end.

Cool. Now that you mention it, I've seen it in Native as well, with the lord of the enemy army, when they do not wait at their starting position. Is it possible to change the default setting of 'charging' at the beginning of a battle to one where all troops are standing still, so you can move them around a bit before attacking?

[Spanky]

Thanks, Njiekovic! I'm glad you like it. I've had a brief glance at your own mod which looks very impressive (the hill forts, for example).

I think you're mixing me up with Markus II here. He did the 867 A.D. Lords of War mod. I just made one helmet for that mod, which is in my avatar. His avatar is quite similar to mine though. That must have caused the confusion.

Interestingly, nobles do currently keep apart somewhat from the others, which must be scripted somehow. The battlefield commander tends to walk his horse a few paces behind his own line and any other nobles present tend to group together on one end.

Cool. Now that you mention it, I've seen it in Native as well, with the lord of the enemy army, when they do not wait at their starting position. Is it possible to change the default setting of 'charging' at the beginning of a battle to one where all troops are standing still, so you can move them around a bit before attacking?

Oh, sorry. I was actually jumping to conclusions, since you've got the banner in your signature. I did notice the snazzy helmets, though.

I'm afraid I haven't messed with formations at all, so far - I guess there must be some way of not having your own troops charge away automatically - order them to stay where I am is the first thing that I do when battle begins. The enemy troops are usually more controlled, I think what the AI does is issue an "advance ten paces" order every now and then. Makes the infantry much more realistic than before (and harder to beat).

[Semper_Fi]

I'm really liking this so far, I like the new banners you made.

[Boeing]

Looks very interesting, downloading now.

[Justiciar]

Good work!

I feel somewhat obliged to raise the topic of Chaos at the Gates, a mod not unlike to your own. Tostig and yourself both seem to have much the same aims and a similar style. Might I suggest you try and get in contact? Methinks your mods would compliment each other nicely.

[Spanky]

Good work!

I feel somewhat obliged to raise the topic of Chaos at the Gates, a mod not unlike to your own. Tostig and yourself both seem to have much the same aims and a similar style. Might I suggest you try and get in contact? Methinks your mods would compliment each other nicely.

Wow. Thanks, Justiciar, I had no idea. You're right, there are some similarities: The basic one being the desire to have Mount & Blade more rooted in history. It looks like my approach moves the setting and the factions further away from the original and closer to history, while Tostig seems to be doing a terrific job in adding to the lore. He also seems to look to the Maciejowski Bible for inspiration where the equipment is concerned - it is, after all, the reference for the mid-thirteenth century. I love his helmets - the great helm he made especially is bang-on for what a helm in the 1257 Baltic would most likely look like.

[ragni]

I'd suggest expanding this module a bit..real world map(europe?), more factions, more specific roles pertaining to each faction(norway huscarls would eat up shields with axes, english with bowmen, spain with throwing javelins, etc). It would be a really awesome mod!

[Spanky]

I'd suggest expanding this module a bit..real world map(europe?), more factions, more specific roles pertaining to each faction(norway huscarls would eat up shields with axes, english with bowmen, spain with throwing javelins, etc). It would be a really awesome mod!

Yes, and you'd be playing it in, say... 2012. I agree, that would be super cool. But you need to set priorities, and mine was to actually have something out that works, and looks and feels right. I didn't want to sacrifice on the period setting (which by the way, can still be perfected), so I limited the scope.

The upside is that what we have here can be further built on. I'd be happy to contribute to any ongoing projects in historical settings.

To tell you the truth, as a gamer, what I'd like to see added first in a mod like this is gameplay content rather than expansion of the setting. Things like hunting for boars and deer, and more realistic tournaments with jousts and ladies in the stand rooting for contestants sporting individual heraldry. Hell, even falconry. Marrying and raising a family, with heirs that carry on the struggle after you're gone (like in Sid Meier's Sword of the Samurai). There's a lot more to the medieval experience that we haven't touched on.  I'm not saying I know how to do that - the jousting has been done and hunting is an ongoing project, as far as I know. What I'm saying is that limiting your scope can help make the experience deeper.

[Shik]

Huh, I always interpreted the Rhodoks to be reflecting the Italians - Pavises, Crossbows, Spears...

[Spanky]

Huh, I always interpreted the Rhodoks to be reflecting the Italians - Pavises, Crossbows, Spears...

I'm not sure what armagan had in mind - the Lithuanians actually did have shields similar to pavises, but other than that, the Rhodoks as implemented in native look very "Western"... The original Nord, Khergit and Vaegir factions, and the fact they are all supposed to share one region, do suggest the Baltic, as does the mid-thirteenth century starting date. It just made sense converting the Rhodoks to a Baltic culture.

That's just my personal interpretation.