Devblog #1 - You, Units, Classes, Types... (Pt. 1 - Beginning)
In Rise of the Foederati, the main "resource", so to speak, is your Units. Players at the beginning of the game are given an unit to represent themselves. All soldiers which can be drafted and put into battle are called "Units". Every group of units, when deployed, requires that the player first deploys an "Authority" unit, which is trained and/or has experience with the position of leadership in the group. The other units that are not as trained and/or experienced are "Ordinary", as in, though they can fill in the position in a pinch, are not trained nor capable of taking the lead as efficiently. When you deploy the first Authority unit, it will use its resource, Authority Points, to deploy Ordinary units. Stronger units usually mean more expensive units, so that means that as a leader, the Authority unit can deploy more less skilled troops, or less of more professional ones, generally speaking. In the future, Authority Points will be used to use leader-only abilities, and can be recovered or diminished as battle goes on. Leaders with no Authority Points can suffer loss of morale, as the Ordinary units in the battle will see the leader as "losing the grip" on everyone.
Each unit has a class and each tribe has a selection of units of the most varied combinations. Let's analyze, for instance, the Basques. For all purposes, the tribe's roster is not finished yet, but just like the Visigoths, there are five units already available. Their Authority unit, the Guru Buruzagi, or Field Leader, is of the Medium Infantry class, which means it has some armor and is equipped and trained for sustained combat better than the most other units. Unit classes are not entirely fixed; the training, equipment and levelling of a unit may have different outcomes on their role in battle, and sometimes even their tribe's roster may affect it somewhat. However, it is a given that, with few exceptions, a Medium Infantry unit will have better armor and equipment than a Light Infantry unit, and will outperform them in combat in most of ways. Some of the classes are:
Light Infantry - The most common melee class you'll find, Light Infantry soldiers serve as meatshields, fillers or cost-effective alternatives. These types of units are very versatile, sometimes equipped with throwing weapons filling in as skirmishers, or having some defensive training to hold the lines together with more experienced/equipped units. Out of every type of unit you'll deploy, Light Infantrymen will most of times be the first to route, die or be defeated. However, they are cheap, and with minimal training, can be quite useful in the hands of a good leader; losing a light infantry unit in lieu of other units can be a good trade-off.
An example of Light Infantry unit is the Visigoth Haramanne, or Spearman. The Haramanne is quite sturdy for a Light Infantry unit, and performs quite well as a cost-efficient roadblock, with a spear and shield to prevent and disrupt the enemy offenses. This unit can be equipped with a Medium helmet, a Spear-class weapon, a Medium Shield and Light armor. Any other types of equipment cannot be used on him, since he is not trained on anything else than his native equipment.
Medium Infantry - With some training (and sometimes a piece of armor), melee infantry can be classified as of a "Medium" type. Compared to Light Infantry, Medium-class ones are more resilient, professional and generally more well-equipped. The classes can get muddied in the tribes' rosters, so for example, Visigoth infantry is usually pretty sturdy, and can be compared to Pictish Medium Infantry, since the Picts have a poor selection in the class.
An example of Medium Infantry unit is the Basque Gestikapoinnan, or Basque Spearman. It is equipped with a medium Helmet, a Spear-class weapon, a Medium Shield and Medium armor. One might think that both the Basque and Visigoth variant have nearly the same function and role in the battlefield. However, the Gestikapoinnan are more well-trained and equipped, when compared to an average Light Infantry unit. Both the leaders from the Basques and the Visigoths belong in the Medium Infantry class, as well.
Heavy Infantry - Through the progression, one could imagine that Heavy Infantryman are more armored; but that is not usually the case. Heavy infantrymen differ more from their Medium variants because of training than equipment. In Rise of the Foederati, the difference from medium to heavy armor is much smaller than from light to medium armor. So heavy infantrymen are usually those with a lot of training to withstand pressure and, obviously, be more aggressive or more steadfast against attacks. In the demo, there are no heavy infantry units, but the Gestikapoinnan could be considered to be defensively close to heavy variants.
I will talk a little more about the other types of units in the next Devblogs; cavalry, ranged and support units.
). Incongruous artwork isn't just aesthetically displeasing, it confuses the audience and shatters immersion because nothing on the screen fits with the sum total. Personally I absolutely love this time period and just the word "foederati" was enough to make me go to the steam page immediately, but the mishmash of artwork at various scales and colour grades turned me off. Even the ultra-basic ascii visuals of Dwarf Fortress are better than having dissimilar artwork in a game.
