Infantry vs. Mounted Combat

[Bismarkpwns]

Whenever I attempt to strike at the rider of a standing horse with a pike/spear with a thrusting attack it always seems to either be blocked by some invisible shield or it does 0-2 damage, am I doing something wrong?  Of course I can still strike at a rider who is galloping with decent damage, and I can always attack the horse, but when the horseman is moving slowly it seems he is invulnurable to spear attacks.

Anybody else have this problem?

 

[Swadius 2.0]

Whenever I attempt to strike at the rider of a standing horse with a pike/spear with a thrusting attack it always seems to either be blocked by some invisible shield or it does 0-2 damage, am I doing something wrong?  Of course I can still strike at a rider who is galloping with decent damage, and I can always attack the horse, but when the horseman is moving slowly it seems he is invulnurable to spear attacks.

Anybody else have this problem?

It only happens if you're slower than the other cavalryman thus your attacks are at a slower speed- receiving a speed penalty.
You're much better at couching your lance for a joust.
I've noticed in modding the spears that weapons can't enter the target if they're moving too fast, the thrust of a polearm goes through different speeds through out the entire thrust action, from very fast at the beginning to a more slower end.
However, I've noticed that when troops are given a slower thrusting polearm, they've been more successful at avoiding the "bouncing" off of the polearm when they're thrusting their pikes.
In conclusion, either you're moving slower than the other horseman, or you're thrusting too fast. Don't try to chase after the other cavalryman and try to maneuver into a T-section meeting, a side meeting, or even a pass at each other head on to avoid getting the speed penalty.

 

[Ludial]

what I personally do against horsemen is wait till they start charging me and put an arrow in their face(has almost the same effect as a full power polearm in their face, only at a safe distance from you ) or when they charge past me, I give them a good side hack through with a twohander - I often kill both horse and horseman If you`re fighting a slowly moving knight, I suggest using a long twohander(balanced great sword in my case) to hack the knight down. This has two purposes - it decreases the time the knight is fighting you(very important when you use archers) and leaving the horse alive creates an obstacle for other knights, which is very good for you. Even knights don`t survive when being tightly surrounded by a bunch of archers with two-handed axes

 

[Bismarkpwns]

Thanks Swadius, but I am referring to being an infantry pikemen, the strikes seem to always bounce off the opponents armor or go right through him  , neither doing damage to the horse, shorter weapons work and so do the blunt attacks with the spear/pike

I should have been more specific, this is infantry (me) vs. rider (AI)

 

[Aethelred]

The problem with spears in M&B is that they're useless at close range. The spear doesn't get pulled back much at all, so it always hits a close enemy before it's had a chance to get a good speed bonus, and it usually does about 0 damage. You have to attack them from further away, it helps to have a shorter spear and to get a good run up. Take a step back as you prepare the strike and run forward. It's a lot of work and the gain is questionable; I tend to find spears are only useful for stopping charging cavalry, and it's best to draw a different weapon when fighting up close.

 

[Ludial]

instead of going for a spear, you can use a really long sword. A sword of war has a reach comparable to a spear, while having also(I think) better piercing damage, and is a marvelous hacking weapon.

 

[Swadius 2.0]

The problem with spears in M&B is that they're useless at close range. The spear doesn't get pulled back much at all, so it always hits a close enemy before it's had a chance to get a good speed bonus, and it usually does about 0 damage.

That a problem with spears in M&B, in real life you don't really need as much momentum as a mace or an axe to do damage with a spear. Most instances have you pushing the spear to drive it in or to push the person back if he isn't pinned.
You should really set all spear to a slower speed and up the attack of it to the thirties and forties.

 

[iBlank99]

ok, how do you couch your spear?

 

[The Red Baron]

Maybe your just clicking too late, the thrust animtion is slow and if you time it wrong, even if you hit them, you'll do 0 damage

 

[Kalnia]

Take you're spear, snap it and buy a great axe. Now take said axe, wait for horseman to ride along, dodge to the left and slice the horse from nose to tail. The rider, if MnB had dismemberment, would be seperated at the waist quite neatly!

 

[Ludial]

Take you're spear, snap it and buy a great axe. Now take said axe, wait for horseman to ride along, dodge to the left and slice the horse from nose to tail. The rider, if MnB had dismemberment, would be seperated at the waist quite neatly!

like mentioned, I do same thing with big swords. I prefer them personally because they`re faster and longer than axes

 

[amondrubee]

Take you're spear, snap it and buy a great axe. Now take said axe, wait for horseman to ride along, dodge to the left and slice the horse from nose to tail. The rider, if MnB had dismemberment, would be seperated at the waist quite neatly!

An axe is too powerful. The spears feel more intense. You only get one chance to get the timing right, or you're dead. Spears feel more like real life because they have flaws.

 

[Ludial]

a big axe also has a flaw - it`s slow and heavy as hell. great sword - not as powerful as a great axe. the list can go on. All the weapons in the game are realistic.

 

[Kalnia]

Whilst I agree with the spear being a one-chance-or-die weapon, the axe is basically the same. Whereas the spear is a weapon requiring timing and a good aim, once I lift a bloody great axe over my head and slam it down on some poor bastards head, said bastard might have hit me 2 or so times with a lighter weapons such as a sword... not to mention I'm open and easy for archers to take a pockshot at. But the results of an overhead-downwards great axe slam onto some irritating Swadian's face... well, it speaks for itself! 

 

[Ludial]

there`s actually something very irritating about big axes, which was the reason I stopped using them - they`re slow By the time I swing it, some frekkin` sod already has his shield or weapon up and blocks it. And since recovering from a blocked swing and making a new one takes quite some time(especially with big axes) I often got raped when using the great axe. Something very, very annoying about long swords is that after a swing by that sword is blocked, the character holds it tip upwards for a couple of seconds. I mean WTF?! That`s stupid. Anyways, that pause isn`t too long, and balanced great and bastard swords are fast enough, so this is much better for me. And I never make overhead swings and stabs(and even left side swings), except very, very rarely on sieges, cuz they`re too awkward to pull off accurately.

 

[amondrubee]

there`s actually something very irritating about big axes, which was the reason I stopped using them - they`re slow By the time I swing it, some frekkin` sod already has his shield or weapon up and blocks it. And since recovering from a blocked swing and making a new one takes quite some time(especially with big axes) I often got raped when using the great axe. Something very, very annoying about long swords is that after a swing by that sword is blocked, the character holds it tip upwards for a couple of seconds. I mean WTF?! That`s stupid. Anyways, that pause isn`t too long, and balanced great and bastard swords are fast enough, so this is much better for me. And I never make overhead swings and stabs(and even left side swings), except very, very rarely on sieges, cuz they`re too awkward to pull off accurately.

An axe is not designed for a skilled soldier. It's for someone who plans to use brute force to win a fight. You're NOT suppose to strike fast. You're suppose to keep bashing the enemy's shield, until there's nothing left to bash. In front of a huge Nord wielding a huge axe, no shield can last more than a minute.

Why do you even think axes have bonus vs shields? It's because the weapon is meant to bash through shields.

Don't use technique, just break the shield like a true Nord.

 

[Ludial]

1. I`m not a Nord.
2. I rape Nords with technique.
3. The axe breaks the shield after usually the third strike. by the time I manage to make a third strike, someone has already driven a spear in my back.

 

[amondrubee]

1. I`m not a Nord.
2. I rape Nords with technique.
3. The axe breaks the shield after usually the third strike. by the time I manage to make a third strike, someone has already driven a spear in my back.

Why do ye think da dumb Nords always die by the sword? I see a Nord as a muscular guy towering over a puny Swadian, laughing at the Swadians armory and light weighted weapons, thinking his muscles is better armor than plate armor and will withstand any puny sword blow. He lifts his huge axe with great pride and doesn't bother thinking about tactics on how to get around the Swadian guy's shield. Nord charges forward and starts bashing like a savaged beast.

 

[Ludial]

1. I`m not a Nord.
2. I rape Nords with technique.
3. The axe breaks the shield after usually the third strike. by the time I manage to make a third strike, someone has already driven a spear in my back.

Why do ye think da dumb Nords always die by the sword? I see a Nord as a muscular guy towering over a puny Swadian, laughing at the Swadians armory and light weighted weapons, thinking his muscles is better armor than plate armor and will withstand any puny sword blow. He lifts his huge axe with great pride and doesn't bother thinking about tactics on how to get around the Swadian guy's shield. Nord charges forward and starts bashing like a savaged beast.

most Nords that face me die with arrows in their legs, nuts or backs; or with huge gaping cut wounds in their backs. Nords are stupid apes.
while Swadians are stupid pigs(but they`re still smarter than the Nords)

 

[Swadius 2.0]

An axe is not designed for a skilled soldier. It's for someone who plans to use brute force to win a fight. You're NOT suppose to strike fast. You're suppose to keep bashing the enemy's shield, until there's nothing left to bash. In front of a huge Nord wielding a huge axe, no shield can last more than a minute.

Since most melee engagements last less than a minute, I'd say that bashing an enemy's shield is not a good way to beat him. It would be much easier to lure yourt opponent to open himself up and then hit him.

Why do you even think axes have bonus vs shields? It's because the weapon is meant to bash through shields.

The only weapon that seems to break shields effectively in this game are projectile weapons.