Do AI get a shield force-field?

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Arkyll

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I have personally noticed that it is near impossible to hit an AI opponent around their shield no matter how hard I try.

The worst example is hitting a mounted AI enemy from behind while on horseback. They are able to block an attack to their rear while only rotated by about 90o.
I will repatedly aim and hit very much exposed areas of them on purpose just to test this and get that door-knock block sound every single time.

The only instances where hitting around shield is possible seems to be when the AI accidentally unblocks just before an attack lands. Never when actually blocking.

This happening over and over and over while I am getting hit around and often through my shield blocks leads me to believe that the AI has a warband-esque forcefield around their shields whereas I have an actual shield hitbox.
I have to be so perfect with my blocks, but so god damn often the enemy will hit my literal foot or edge of my arm and score a full hit because my shield isnt big enough I guess. - It's incredibly annoying because if I didnt have a shield, and just blocked with my weapon I would actually have a forcefield where every attack infront of me would be blockable.

Has anyone else noticed this or have any reasonable explanation? Because this has honestly annoyed the hell out of me ever since the game released.
 
this is driving me nuts
its not just the enemies, my own guys behind me are blocking my hits
anyone 1m away from your target puts up the force field. backing away from 3 guys, if any of them blocks i cant hit

the shield speed is also frustrating, 100 speed swing 300 skill and they can block juuuust before the weapon connects
 
this is driving me nuts
its not just the enemies, my own guys behind me are blocking my hits
anyone 1m away from your target puts up the force field. backing away from 3 guys, if any of them blocks i cant hit

the shield speed is also frustrating, 100 speed swing 300 skill and they can block juuuust before the weapon connects
Yes it's why using a 2 handing weapon in battles with a lot of people around you is almost impossible even spears can hit the guys behind you which will cancel your thrust. It's just f*&king stupid. ?
 
RBM is a mixed bag though, the AI is basically "take turns attacking", and the weapons/armour balance goes from useless to OP (still better than native)

the shield's are causing more problems for friendlies than enemies
this guy's video shows it clearly:
 
RBM is a mixed bag though, the AI is basically "take turns attacking", and the weapons/armour balance goes from useless to OP (still better than native)

I wouldn't say OP - more like what they realistically were.

Armor works, which is why people wore it and spent so much money on it.
 
RBM feels way more balanced to me. Armor feels more effective. Fights give you time to engage in some strategy before everything dies in a big scrum in the middle. It's not perfect, but it's way better than vanilla for many things.
 
yeah it's a lot better than native, but it's still annoying having a obvious advantage or disadvantage in inf numbers and still have a 1:1 kill ratio
the engagement length is also artificially inflated by only 1/5 troops attacking (usually getting hit in 3 directions)

i really love the increased space between units though
its the skiddishness of units that turn me off RBM


anyways, i think i fixed the utlra-twitch defend speed by tweaking combat_parameters in in the native module
no more light speed shields or blocks

just need to remove the 2m force field and friendly blocks now
 
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but it's still annoying having a obvious advantage or disadvantage in inf numbers and still have a 1:1 kill ratio
the engagement length is also artificially inflated by only 1/5 troops attacking (usually getting hit in 3 directions)
That is because in RBM units try to keep formations, so the battle would't turn into a blobbing cluster****.
 
yup, side effect is skiddish troop running into 3 skiddish enemies and dieing, then it's the enemy's turn to sacrifice someone

kudos to RBM, but it's still has its own flaws


it's also wayyyy too much to fix the simple "3 meter invisible box" shields
 
both pronunciations mean the same thing...
but yeah the skittishness, it's more realistic in the sense that there's space between troops, but instead of disciplined engagements they take turns mustering the courage to die

although native can easily be made realistic by setting line as shieldwall and loose (1.5m) as line
were currently playing with phalanx or testudo's, nobody has room to swing and the guys up front either elbow or shave the guys behind them
 
but yeah the skittishness, it's more realistic in the sense that there's space between troops, but instead of disciplined engagements they take turns mustering the courage to die
I see that only when a melee formation is ordered to advance (not charge). And mostly on the flanks. Possibly made to avoid clustering and blobbing. Line formation seems to be less affected by this issue.
Also, in such a way melee looks a little bit more believable - troops do not just throw themselves on shields and spears, they try to find an opening, exploit a weakness, show a more cautious and disciplined approach. Yup, it looks strange, but its not modders' fault.

Lot's of AI functions are hardcoded. Modders have to work with little what is left unblocked. So AI mods now are more of a patchwork, not overhauls. And don't forget about constant updates that tend to break mods.
Besides, something tells me that pathfinding and unit collision is ****ed on an engine core level. Even 100% modding access won't solve that.

BUT I am never gonna play vanilla again. RBM is a life saver.
 
at least players can do the same. you can essentially rotate 360 degrees almost instantly and block all attacks from all directions as long as there's a tiny bit of time between each. what's annoying is the arrow magnet that sucks all arrows into the shield even though they hit a few inches around
 
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