Equalize damage

[GreenKnight]

Here's a thought I had just now, and I'd like some feedback on it. It seems that currently, this game just doesn't really make too many allowances for personal taste. In some areas, I accept that this has to be the case. I've gone and decided I had to have the reinforced chain mail instead of plate, and as a horseback fighter, I will suffer a bit for that. However, the same need not be true of weapons. Take the longsword versus the Nordic sword. I've checked, and these are both of similar weight, and presumably of similar metal. Therefore, why should there be any difference in the damage they inflict? Sure, the Nordic sword is slightly shorter, and that's fine. But I propose that all swords should do the same amount of damage, provided they're of the same type. By this, I mean that clearly, a two-handed sword, being heavier, should inflict greater damage. But as long as you're talking about swords of the same one-handed type, I suggest that the only thing affecting the damage they inflict be the condition they're in. That way, I can give my character the sort of Viking on a horse look I want without being unduly penalized for it. And as far as I can tell, it's totally realistic.

 

[[P]aradox]

Not all swords are created equal. One sword may be crafted better than the other. The steel may be finer, the blade may be sharper, the balance may be better. It's not just about weight. My saber does more damage than a longsword even though it's lighter. That make sense?

 

[GreenKnight]

Oh, it makes perfect sense. But, see, one can assume that your sword would be properly sharpened before going into battle (We can assume your character owns a whet stone, though it's not in his inventory...though buying one to keep your weapon sharp would be a nice idea.), and stuff like balance? That's what I meant by the condition of the sword. You have balanced weapons and so forth...yeah, a finely made longsword would be superior to a sub-par Nordic sword. But if we assume decent craftsmanship, and decent maintenence, I think the two blades should have more or less equal killing power.

 

[corksacker69]

there should be more variables on stats for weapons to make them more distinct from each other. like, right now all we have is weapon reach, speed, damage, and whatever special abilitys it might have, like bonus vs sheilds. there could be at least minimum and maximun damage, so a weapon type with a low maximum damage might have higher minimum damage then a sword of the same type that has higher maximum damage. other variables could be swing recovery speed, and parry speed. yeah more variables makes things more complex, but complexity promotes variety, and variety is kinda lacking in the game right now, both in armor/weapons selection, and stat/skill selection.

 

[GreenKnight]

Well, I guess we're technically in disagreement, since what I'm proposing would basically mean less variety. But my contention is that if it's well made and well cared for, a sword is a sword. I just find it kind of unsatisfying that a specific type of sword is the only real choice in terms of effectiveness.

 

[Muefigilo]

GreenKnight perhaps what you mean is that you think the differences in many of these swords is largely aesthetic rather than utilitarian. On those grounds I'd be fine with there being multiple models for what is effectively the same sword. On the other hand, swords really are different from one another and that difference should be reflected somehow. I believe the current state of affairs is as it is because the Nords probably did not have weaponsmiths as good as whoever's making the longswords, and so a well-crafted Nordic sword, being as it is well-crafted only in comparison to other nordic swords, might be effectively be simialr to a lower-quality weapon made by a different culture.

 

[GreenKnight]

That is a possibility, and I admit I don't know too much about the general quality of Viking blacksmithing, but let's remember, the Sea Raiders aren't TECHNICALLY Vikings. The nations and whatnot are fictional. Yours is a good explanation of the status quo, but my recommendation is that they all do similar damage. Just pick whichever one you like the best.

 

[Lhorkan]

That way, everyone would take a dagger that deals as much damage as a good longsword, and attacks double as fast. The only penalty is the range, but your opponent won't be able to do much anyway, since your dagger deals a lot of damage very fast.

 

[GreenKnight]

Well, see, I'm just talking about swords here. A dagger, while still a one-handed weapon is clearly a different sort of weapon. And there would be some major disadvantages, even if it wasn't. The short range of a dagger would make it next to useless as, say, a cavalry weapon.

 

[armagan]

GreenKnight: We are slowly heading towards what you propose. When we first started with weapon specifications we had thought of distinguishing them by quality. Now we are trying to distinguish them by trade-offs among their stats, and let wapon modifier determine quality. Of course that's quite a difficult thing to do and it will take some time to balance the system.

 

[GreenKnight]

Oh, naturally. I'm just glad to know it's in the works. Thank you very much.

 

[vanedor]

Interesting to read.

One thing, however is that I would like to see the same thing for armor. Ie, all armor should be useful for a certain type of players. Right now, it seems there is very little reason why anyone would use the lighter types of armor, people do archery in full plate...