Yeah my impression of the game at the start was this is awesome. Then I got ambushed by 5 groups of 20+ outlaws with my 35 man army which went incredibly bad. Lance targeting got harder, damage output is almost gone, everyone's rocking 12ft polearms and chain armor. It's almost impossible. I managed the first 3 groups...Losing all my regular sdiers, and only having my 4 companions for the last fight went terribly. I also noticed most of the "new" gear and mounts are all mid-end game requirements to use, unless you spec for just combat. I love the looks and the siege improvements make me interested, but idk how to get to that level without cheating or importing(cheating imo). I'll have to try 1257, I was originally looking for a medieval Europe mod when I found lords and realms.