I really love the game, but It's frustrating to see so much potential not being used & I also understand that most of these suggestions are impossible to implement this late in development but I still hope that we can atleast get more playstyles
I completely agree with you ! But it is true that is crippled with bad realization, stupidities (reinforcements, blocking is an issue also, Ai should miss sometimes its blocks, that autmatic blocking is just borring).
And also I would add something about the
huge battles (here, 2500 vs 1800) : the current system is biasing results and causes undue casualties due to how it works.
I'm a Vlandian Barron, and we are fighting Aserai, who have brought 3 armies : 1800 / 1200 / 800
Before the incompetence of Vlandian lords who :
1) are not disturbed to be at war with both Kuzhaits and Aserai : they must think they can be omnipresent
or they just look at the numbers representing strength in the Diplomacy pannel - they really have short thoughts, if any thought they have, btw... game is advanced enough so the main remaining Empires' strenght are around this :
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Vlandia 20000
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Aserai 13000
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Western Empire 11300 (excepetional performance from the WE who felt dow to zero town, 2000 strenght, but thanks to the stupidity of IA just looking at the strength number, feeling super-strong, and staying really too much time at war with 2-3 or more ennemies, they have managed to rebuild something strong enough, it's even Penton who is the leader)
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Khuzait 9000
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Sturgia 7000
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Battania 500 (belongeg to the empires that had well done but remained too long at war with several ennemies and lost all. Also I play with a mod allowing NPCs to execute one another, and they have had several clans destroyed like that
)
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Northen Empire : near the end, like 2000
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Southern Empire : destroyed (same as Battania, remaining too often, too long at war whith too many ennemies, in opposite direction).
So,
GEOGRAPHIC FACTOR is also IMPORTANT, not only the strenght number of the factions. Even if theoraticaly, the numbers are always true, they are not enough to achieve a strategic decision : what's the use of an army who cannot be (or who isn't) at the right place at the right time?
2) So since the IA does not take rational nor logical decisions, I create a true army (2500 or almost) to destroy one or more of those Aserai armies who are quietly retaking Ortysia, castles on the way, erasing the poor armies sent by Vlandia, who furthermore make serious strategy mistakes, like attacking peasants while pursued by a tougher army, that is to say that with Disorganized penalty, they get eaten in the following seconds...
So the battle : I manage to catch the 1200+800 with my 2500.
The two armies are in front of the other, not very far, and for once, the AI doesn't leave cowardly hide in some hills or forest (there are none lol), this mean that there won't be reinforcements that are coming from very far or poping in my archers, since the fireline is very closeform the two armies at the start.
So there are many reinforcements, I mostly command troops to check for the reinforcements, to avoid bad surprises, rather than killing ennemies, but, once more, at a moment, I don't know what happened, there are tons of cavalry in my archers, so well another deception with that kind of battle, which is annoying, not fun at all, what a pity for a game for which one of the main goals are these battles.
I check the casualties : unacceptable provided the ratio attacker/attacked. So I will hurry to disband that army once I have given the Aserai their correction, cause I cannot bear that reinforcement thing, that doesn't work properly, everyone has said/claimed/shouted/cried it for months.
So again :
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NO REINFORCEMENTS AT ALL, FIND ANOTHER WAY (I don't know, for example create at some definied points in the battle a kind of pause where both ennemies can rearrange their troops or whatever, there is something to think and do about that cause it's just game/enthousiam killing)
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Cavalry requires an order like PROTECT ARCHERS for exemple, they would spare in tow groups as the AI do, and protect to the left and the right, without charging as morons. Cause at the moment, we can easily make two groups or whatever to our suitability, but once it's done, the only remaining orders are "Charge" or F6 (AI takes command, but they mostly often charge when outnumbering the ennemy, charge as idiots, causing useless casualties).
The game is also called MOUNT & Blade, and dumbest units are the riders...
I do not count either the fact that I put my infantry in Shield Wall, and that after several charges / shield wall and reinforcements, they are in a weird uggly formation, and that I'm forced to double F6 (the only mean I have found to be able to make again a correct shieldwall after they put themselves like ****...)
So the system is so much ****ty, that after several tries, I finished using the cheat code.
Thank you for making a combat game where combat doesn't work properly. Thanks for promising fun and giving none lol.