Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord Developer Blog 14 - Destructible Merlons

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As is traditional, this blog covers our previous major event, goes talks a bit about our experience and what we showed. This time it's E3, possibly the biggest gaming event of the year and the first time we've ever attended with our own booth. Our reveal was Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord's siege gameplay, which came in the form of this trailer and the extended gameplay video below.



Read more at: http://www.taleworlds.com/en/Games/Bannerlord/Blog/16
 
I don't know if this is relevant, but could it be possible to change the "jars of oil" into "jars of pitch"? As a History student, I think it is my duty :') to silence this die-hard belief that oil was used in siege defences. Oil was extremely expensive, the flamable material used was actually pitch.
Boring and useless knowledge out. Keep up the good work otherwise, Bannerlord is litteraly the only game I've been hyped for in my life, good job!
 
In Bannerlord, Lords now have their own companions, much like the player, augmenting their own abilities by employing the services of others. And naturally, these may include individuals from distant lands...

So what do you think this means? Nord lands? Distant lands like what? are we getting some other lands besides Calradia...even if only in the lore?
 
FizCap said:
Is it confirmed that rulers will die and their sons will take their place?

Killing of lords (and taking their swords) is confirmed, sons taking their place is not confirmed.  Killing of kings is not confirmed.

Wild Card said:
In Bannerlord, Lords now have their own companions, much like the player, augmenting their own abilities by employing the services of others. And naturally, these may include individuals from distant lands...

So what do you think this means? Nord lands? Distant lands like what? are we getting some other lands besides Calradia...even if only in the lore?

From the context it seems to mean that lords can have companions from the other in-game factions . You might be right about companions from further afield, don't see why that isn't an option.
 
This is all good and its logical improvements over warband for sieges,but people were expecting this kind of improvements. So this is all singleplayer and not a word about multiplayer. Whats your other good and logical improvements for combat and online fights then, TW ?
 
Good to have some things from the video cleared up. Great to hear that you're working hard to iron out all of those problems and that a heap of the problems that people saw were actually pretty neat features.

It sounds as though fire damage is super-effective against everything but stone. Personally, this seems a little odd. Yes, if you get get immersed in a substance which is on fire and can't be put out, you're probably toast, but a smaller delivery system, like a fire arrow, would pose very little threat to a person or a horse; much less than a specialised anti-personnel arrow. Likewise, catching on fire, but not being covered in a flammable substance is a pretty easy situation to deal with unless you're inside a burning building and can't escape.

Fire is a great addition to the game and very important in sieges, both for the attackers and defenders, but I'm not sold on it being super-effective against any living thing. As someone who works with high temperature furnaces, I can tell you that surprisingly little protective equipment is needed. A woollen jumper or a thick leather coat can completely protect me from brief exposure to temperatures that do melt rock. A woollen gambeson would offer significantly more protection. Even being doused in burning oil, I think you would survive for quite a long time before any deleterious heat penetrated.

Other types of armour, like metal scale, lamellar or plate armour, are completely unabsorbent and boiling oil might well run off them without imparting much heat at all to the underlying garments, which could conceivably be flammable, though certainly often weren't.

Realistically, it's a very different type of damage to blunt/cutting/piercing and depends on many more factors. I hope it's going to be a great and tactical feature, but not a catch-all super-weapon damage type in Bannerlord.
 
The danger of boiling liquids isn't transfer of heat through your armor or catching on fire, but rather their tendency to get into gaps and other little exposed areas that are necessary for a full range of motion or awareness (like your face). You would probably remain conscious for quite some time, but the weapon is intended to spread panic by inflicting intense pain. Whether or not it's physically incapacitating is irrelevant if the victim is focused solely on escape. I would expect fire damage to rout or knock out soldiers to convey the concept of panic, but it may just kill them outright which isn't realistic in the scope of a single battle. It makes at least a bit of sense in the long-term as infections are relatively common in burn victims, I suppose, but in the middle of a fight a soldier's adrenaline should keep him going after the initial shock has worn off.
 
^^ I'm not saying that nobody would get burned by having a pot of boiling oil dropped on them, but a lot of armour types are very resistant to that kind of attack, probably not by accident. While no armour offers the same type of coverage all over, the areas most likely to receive a flaming or boiling attack are often very well protected. A kettle hat is one helmet that has a completely open face, but if boiling oil falls on it from above, it's unlikely that it will harm the face. If it comes from another angle, the soldier might be able to position the helmet accordingly. It's a somewhat extreme example with a very broad brim, but most helmets have some kind of lip. If they didn't, weapons would reach the edge of the helmet and slide into the face, instead of away from it.

Though their legs are better protected than most medieval troops and of course they wear ventilation masks, a modern firefighters would consider a medieval woollen gambeson serious overkill for the area that it protects.

In all, using heat weapons as anti-personnel weapons is an extremely variable affair, where all sorts of preparations and random chance on both sides can make it very efficient or completely useless.

It's also worth noting that a great deal of effort went into protecting siege engines from fiery attacks. Defensive structures and buildings within the walls would also be prepared against fire and constant effort would be made to keep them from catching ablaze.

Captain Lust said:
Read more at: http://www.taleworlds.com/en/Games/Bannerlord/Blog/16

Thanks for satisfying people who care about gates and merlons but will crenels be destructible or is it a sham?
 
If offensive siege equipment is all destroyed but you have defenders still fighting does the attack automatically fail or does the player have to f5 retreat? I hope its not too easy destroying that stuff when you're on the defense, I like a good challenge. Also Hope the ai are intelligent enough to realize they're all dying on the siege tower and change breach method during fight, like focus more on battering ram.

I would love to see some footage of the 2nd keep though. Keep it up I hope to see the game in some shape or form this year even as a beta :smile:
 
Gal2 said:
I don't know if this is relevant, but could it be possible to change the "jars of oil" into "jars of pitch"? As a History student, I think it is my duty :') to silence this die-hard belief that oil was used in siege defences. Oil was extremely expensive, the flamable material used was actually pitch.
Boring and useless knowledge out. Keep up the good work otherwise, Bannerlord is litteraly the only game I've been hyped for in my life, good job!
I agree with you .. They may make it for money
So only Rich Lords use it In Siege Battels?
 
BaneOfMuhammed said:
If offensive siege equipment is all destroyed but you have defenders still fighting does the attack automatically fail or does the player have to f5 retreat? I hope its not too easy destroying that stuff when you're on the defense, I like a good challenge. Also Hope the ai are intelligent enough to realize they're all dying on the siege tower and change breach method during fight, like focus more on battering ram.

I would love to see some footage of the 2nd keep though. Keep it up I hope to see the game in some shape or form this year even as a beta :smile:
I don't Think so  There are many equipment
I din't Think defenders can destroy Them all
 
So .. Can we Marry in The game .. and Then have sons
So My son Become alord With The Others Or Not !?
You've Said The The ages will be increased by time
Will lords and Kings die!?
 
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