Jean Plassy
Sergeant at Arms

One of the things the player will notice once he ups the difficulty, is the tremendous gap between what was to be a warrior with 1\4 and 1\2 Damage, and what is to be a warrior at Normal Damage.
Normal Damage is by far the greatest shock I've ever had in my M&B experience. After spending a formidable amount of time whacking off people at 1\4, I gradually moved on to 1\2, which I still found quite easy, and then to Normal Difficulty. It is a scary experience because at "Normal" there is absolutely no room for mistakes, and a single strike of bad luck (such as that flying axe or javelin hitting your face) can get you dehorsed and\or dead quickly, whereas before the damage could be great, but still tolerable.
A couple of tips that I found useful, learned on the field (it is notorious that Mount & Blade lacks a comprehensive wiki or guide with all the intricacies of being a warrior! Information is scarce at best):
1 - On Armour:
Armor, especially heavy armor, is said to "forgive mistakes". Armor in reality is quite capable of warding off blows depending on how heavy it is, but in M&B, as in grim reality, the facts are a bit different. Armor does not "forgive mistakes"; unless you are fully clad in a suit of Milanese or Gothic plate or with some sort of "super" suit, armor is in fact only your last line of defense. Instead of "forgiving" mistakes, it makes them a bit more bearable for you, but they are still mistakes.
And don't forget that anything below mail in this game is in fact not "armor", but a partial damage absorber. This means that if that flying axe from your sea raider pals meets your leather jerkin, then you're still going to feel the brunt of the enemy attack right on your delicate skin.
As I reinstate, armor is but your last line of defense. In case everything else fails, you can count on your suit to partially absorb your blows, but if you rely too much on your body armour to soak your damage for you, then you're not really going further in "Normal" with the majority of all viable options (short of buying Lordly Plate Armour and praying that bolt doesn't hit your head).
2 - On Weapons:
Once more the importance of the adequate weapon style is evident. With 1\4 damage, you could freely just jump into the bulk of the fight with your Great Axe, and still chop quite some heads before the outnumbering men on the enemy side put you to your beauty rest. On "Normal", things are a bit different than expected.
First, if you try to jump into a horde of even decent warriors in the same manner, be sure that you'll ward of a couple of blows before they start hitting you, and hitting you, and hitting you without rest. There could be also a guy with a Great Axe as big as yours amidst them, especially if you're fighting Nords, so he could just land a blow on your head that means INSTA DEATH.
The lesson? Don't play Rambo. Don't try to be a one man army and take them on only with a Byrnie and a Great Axe, unless you and your character are reasonably skilled (more on this later). If your character is low level, or if you simply don't feel confident on your own skill in handling too many for you, then change your tactics accordingly. Don't fight them while vastly outnumbered, try going on horseback, or much better use the adequate weapon selection. A Great Axe is also a great way of sapping your defensiveness, because you'll lack a shield; switch to a one-handed weapon, get a big shield depending on your skill, and stay together with your pals in a decent shield wall. The more concentrated infantry beats the others, as a rule, and even mediocre warriors in a good tight shield wall can repel much stronger forces. Just remember to keep them together, and to stay together yourself and not try doing Rambo just because your confidence goes a bit over the top; this is called Discipline.
However, if you have been playing this long enough and\or feel confident enough to get a two handed weapon, then feel free to do so. Remember, this is best suited for higher level characters with enough skill and agility!
3 - On Skill:
Skill in handling weapons, defending yourself and attacking at the right time for the right results. That's your best armour, and also your best weapon.
Skill can be divided in two distinct areas: character skill and player skill. Both are essential for success: the player could be an expert bowman, with lots of shots for little a game, and still fail because his character has only 34 Bow Skill and no Power Draw. The opposite could be true: no matter how high level your character is, you're not going anywhere if you don't have the agility and reflexes needed to shoot a bow at the right time, to avoid enemy missiles while you do it or to lure the AI into lowering its guard for you. At best, you'll hit their shields all the time, and while that makes for a spendid sight, the effects are too insignificant to warrant the specialization that a bowman needs.
The same could be said of a two handed weapon: two handed weapons require more readiness and skill than the rest. You have no defense beyond your armour, which as we discussed is not enough, and you need to block enemy attacks and hit them before they hit you, all that with weapons that are often cumbersome and slow for their damage. But the rewards can be enourmous.
Similarly, this applies to one handed weapons: a player capable of attacking the enemy at the right time by guessing his moves and raising his shield also when he needs it the most, combined with a character who knows how to handle weapons and shields, can be another devastating combination. More so because their defenses may seem invincible.
On Normal, the skill in defending your character and simply staying alive is by far your most precious gift. Armour can make mistakes less unbereable, but they will still pile up, and you'll be effectively fried if you don't know how to dodge enemy missiles, block enemy attacks and in general avoid damage at a satisfactory degree. Practice well, and remember to boost your character skills before you feel confident enough to enter battle. And never, never try to play Rambo because you feel overconfident on taking that 200 men army all by yourself! This is simply impossible.
Any additions, comments and corrections are welcome.
Normal Damage is by far the greatest shock I've ever had in my M&B experience. After spending a formidable amount of time whacking off people at 1\4, I gradually moved on to 1\2, which I still found quite easy, and then to Normal Difficulty. It is a scary experience because at "Normal" there is absolutely no room for mistakes, and a single strike of bad luck (such as that flying axe or javelin hitting your face) can get you dehorsed and\or dead quickly, whereas before the damage could be great, but still tolerable.
A couple of tips that I found useful, learned on the field (it is notorious that Mount & Blade lacks a comprehensive wiki or guide with all the intricacies of being a warrior! Information is scarce at best):
1 - On Armour:
Armor, especially heavy armor, is said to "forgive mistakes". Armor in reality is quite capable of warding off blows depending on how heavy it is, but in M&B, as in grim reality, the facts are a bit different. Armor does not "forgive mistakes"; unless you are fully clad in a suit of Milanese or Gothic plate or with some sort of "super" suit, armor is in fact only your last line of defense. Instead of "forgiving" mistakes, it makes them a bit more bearable for you, but they are still mistakes.
And don't forget that anything below mail in this game is in fact not "armor", but a partial damage absorber. This means that if that flying axe from your sea raider pals meets your leather jerkin, then you're still going to feel the brunt of the enemy attack right on your delicate skin.
As I reinstate, armor is but your last line of defense. In case everything else fails, you can count on your suit to partially absorb your blows, but if you rely too much on your body armour to soak your damage for you, then you're not really going further in "Normal" with the majority of all viable options (short of buying Lordly Plate Armour and praying that bolt doesn't hit your head).
2 - On Weapons:
Once more the importance of the adequate weapon style is evident. With 1\4 damage, you could freely just jump into the bulk of the fight with your Great Axe, and still chop quite some heads before the outnumbering men on the enemy side put you to your beauty rest. On "Normal", things are a bit different than expected.
First, if you try to jump into a horde of even decent warriors in the same manner, be sure that you'll ward of a couple of blows before they start hitting you, and hitting you, and hitting you without rest. There could be also a guy with a Great Axe as big as yours amidst them, especially if you're fighting Nords, so he could just land a blow on your head that means INSTA DEATH.
The lesson? Don't play Rambo. Don't try to be a one man army and take them on only with a Byrnie and a Great Axe, unless you and your character are reasonably skilled (more on this later). If your character is low level, or if you simply don't feel confident on your own skill in handling too many for you, then change your tactics accordingly. Don't fight them while vastly outnumbered, try going on horseback, or much better use the adequate weapon selection. A Great Axe is also a great way of sapping your defensiveness, because you'll lack a shield; switch to a one-handed weapon, get a big shield depending on your skill, and stay together with your pals in a decent shield wall. The more concentrated infantry beats the others, as a rule, and even mediocre warriors in a good tight shield wall can repel much stronger forces. Just remember to keep them together, and to stay together yourself and not try doing Rambo just because your confidence goes a bit over the top; this is called Discipline.
However, if you have been playing this long enough and\or feel confident enough to get a two handed weapon, then feel free to do so. Remember, this is best suited for higher level characters with enough skill and agility!
3 - On Skill:
Skill in handling weapons, defending yourself and attacking at the right time for the right results. That's your best armour, and also your best weapon.
Skill can be divided in two distinct areas: character skill and player skill. Both are essential for success: the player could be an expert bowman, with lots of shots for little a game, and still fail because his character has only 34 Bow Skill and no Power Draw. The opposite could be true: no matter how high level your character is, you're not going anywhere if you don't have the agility and reflexes needed to shoot a bow at the right time, to avoid enemy missiles while you do it or to lure the AI into lowering its guard for you. At best, you'll hit their shields all the time, and while that makes for a spendid sight, the effects are too insignificant to warrant the specialization that a bowman needs.
The same could be said of a two handed weapon: two handed weapons require more readiness and skill than the rest. You have no defense beyond your armour, which as we discussed is not enough, and you need to block enemy attacks and hit them before they hit you, all that with weapons that are often cumbersome and slow for their damage. But the rewards can be enourmous.
Similarly, this applies to one handed weapons: a player capable of attacking the enemy at the right time by guessing his moves and raising his shield also when he needs it the most, combined with a character who knows how to handle weapons and shields, can be another devastating combination. More so because their defenses may seem invincible.
On Normal, the skill in defending your character and simply staying alive is by far your most precious gift. Armour can make mistakes less unbereable, but they will still pile up, and you'll be effectively fried if you don't know how to dodge enemy missiles, block enemy attacks and in general avoid damage at a satisfactory degree. Practice well, and remember to boost your character skills before you feel confident enough to enter battle. And never, never try to play Rambo because you feel overconfident on taking that 200 men army all by yourself! This is simply impossible.
Any additions, comments and corrections are welcome.