skyfaller
Recruit
Windyplains said:
Your mod is the best I've seen. Kudos!
I. Top 3 things I don't like about the mod:
1- The fantasy/magic RPG elements added via the abilities system. Specifically the ones that heal or add damage output in any way or form triggered when you inflict damage on the enemy. This completely ruins immersion/realism of the game.
Note: The abilities that increase accuracy to others for ranged is realistic. In medieval times archer regiments had an 'NCO' experienced archer who would stand a couple of steps in front of the archer group and he would aim first...showing the less experienced archers what angle to set the bow to. Not perfect but it made a mediocre, half trained archer in the formation able to range his shot a lot better than on his own.
also, the sprint/run ability is a bit ridiculous... I've seen NPC lords outrun my horse at full gallop. Perhaps it would be better to trade the speed bonus for a 'charge' bonus? You know, make the running NPC knock down others during the charge rather than turn him into a medieval FLASH?
2. This annoys the hell out of me in any mod: I face an enemy force of Sea Raiders. They all wear chainmail, use swords and shields and thrown spears and axes. I slay them all at great cost in casualties. My loot even with 14 loot skill: tattered leather helmets (which none wore), clubs (never saw them with one) and cloth armor (none wore any).
I mean...c'mon now!
. I understand that looting what the enemy wears can make the player wealthy rather easily but in your mod that could be easily counteracted by lowering the cost of hiring troops AND adding the requirement of the player needing to have 1 unit of each of : chest armor of certain type+primary weapon+horse (if mounted) to hire the troop.So, if an archer unit you can hire has a longbow, leather chest armor and a 1H sword then to hire it you pay a lot less to recruit him but you must have a longbow, a leather chest armor of any type and a 1H sword of any type in your inventory to recruit that one soldier. Want to recruit more than 1? Then you must have those items in inventory. The troop you hire wont use those things exactly since the hired troop has its own default gear but its just to make it fair for you to hire them.
This makes the inventory management skill very valuable (for you and companions) and you can add a 'Recruiter' role for companions just like storekeeper is.. inv. management and training skill would be their bonus skills... inv. management to carry the gear to hire the troops and training to lower their cost even more. This role would have a 'shopping list' of troops which they will hire to keep your forces at full strength.
3. Another thing that is present in all mods and annoys me greatly: Melee combat AI is really messed up. Troops with spears/pikes (150+ weapons) will charge to within arm's reach of the enemy and then try to stick the spear into them... once in melee the AI only swings the weapon nonstop as they either rush/chestbump you or they run backwards. AI troops also gang up in a very confined space and swing weapons which, if in real life, would be chopping the arms and heads of friendly troops around them. Finally, the speed in which the AI swings the weapons is VERY fast. Ungodly fast.
I think melee combat would be greatly enhanced and made more realistic if:
a) Athletics skill was changed to simply counter encumbrance and diminish loss of speed going uphill. This would make troops not be so unrealistically fast on their feet.
b) If possible, code in that the AI keeps at least 1 meter distance in all directions between itself and others. This would solve the gang-up problem as well as the chest-bump range problem. If possible, a separate script for distance to enemy could be used when the AI has a target... distance to keep between the AI and his target would be the AI's own weapon length minus 25% ...so that if the unit uses a longer weapon he will try to keep his reach advantage. Formation orders override these of course.. this problem only appears when troops break formation and fight on their own anyway.
c) All melee and ranged weapon speeds are 90+ ... I think this is why the melee is a rabid swingfest. Lowering these numbers should solve the problem. Perhaps a ratio of weapon length to speed could be used so that the longest reach weapons have the slowest swing times? Ranged weapons would also take a speed cut to balance them vs. point a. (troops walking slower).
II. Things I like about the mod:
1- Amazing variety of things to do. Its just unbelievable.
2- Very stable. Most other mods will crash on me within an hour of play. This mod has only crashed on me after I quit/load nonstop for a long time.
3- It combines features of the most immersion-enchancing mods into one.
III. Things I'd change:
I listed a few above as solutions to what I didn't like. However, overall, the one thing that I would like improved is the economy system. As it is, its chaotic in nature and you still make a lot more money and faster selling prisoners and loot than you do completing a full-map trade run.
I do not know how the game handles the production/demand system of villages/towns but ideally I'd love to see it work like this:
Villages: Produce only raw materials. A village will send 50% of its production to its linked castle/town every time the farmer walks out of the village. The remaining 50% remains in town as items they sell (or that can be looted). Village prices are based on your standing with the village.
Each village should have a specific set of items they produce...which should be ideally based on their geographic location. Aka if near river/ocean then fish would be an item. If in open land they'd make grain/beef/wool/fruits. If near mountains they'd make wool/hides/iron..if near forests then fur pelts/hides/etc. At random you can add them raw silk, cheese, etc etc (the missing raw items /foodstuffs).
Villages would need certain items depending on the stuff they produce. Tools needed in all villages, grain if they make bread, wool cloth (they gotta clothe themselves!), boar spears and hunting bows for hide-producing villages (to hunt with), you get the idea.
Castles: Castles should have their own small markets as well. These are military garrisons so they should buy military hardware from you at better price than anywhere else. Particularly horses. Aside from that, castles should always buy prisoners from the factions they are at war with as well as bandit prisoners. Castles require iron (for their forges/smiths) and produce tools and faction-specific armors and weapons. Castles also require foodstuffs.
(side note: since castles would replace the slave traders...why not make the slave traders SELL you slaves? Like, you can take these slaves to your fiefs and increase its production that way...or once in your fief, free them (+honor) and your village gains a few prosperity points (more workers, free, happy!)... or camp->take an action-> Free them (+honor)/ Conscript them (as free merc militia) / Enlist them (you give them freedom in exchange of serving you as lev 12 troops) . )
Towns: Towns require raw materials so they can produce processed & luxury goods. Certain towns would make certain goods and require goods from other towns which are 2+days travel time at least.
Your standing with villages/towns/castles and your knowledge level of them reduces the price penalty..making up for the 50% that Trade 10 does not.
When the 'merchant stocks are reset map-wide' happens I would hope the game looks at each village/castle/town and sees how many 'need' materials were brought in before the reset and have that translate into 'with what we received before the reset this location was able to produce...' items which would then be available the next reset as 'for sale' items. Aka if you don't feed the town that makes velvet with dyes and raw silk then the town produces no velvet. If you fed it a LOT then it will make a lot of velvet. Bread would need salt and grain... tools need iron and leather (for the handles/strappings!), castles need iron/leather/damaged-state-weapons/armor to make weapons/armor ,etc,etc.
Overall this would allow a player to play the merchant prince in a more immersive and realistic environment.
(oh and...why is the iron and salt in the iron/salt mines more expensive than everywhere else? shouldnt it be cheaper?
)Finally, a wishlist item:
Why not make wounded troops (not companions or self or NPC lords) take a long time to recover? Like, if wounded, with no medic bonuses applied to them, they should heal only 10% health per day. They cannot come back into service until they at 100% . This would make the player and the AI finally have wars of attrition rather than wars of who has more money to keep recruiting cannon fodder (which the AI, with unlimited cash, always wins anyway). I mean, you could have 50 healthy troops under your command and stumble upon a 300 army lord but only 20 of those 300 are fit to fight... now THAT's a different game than what we have now.
