Things to Actually Do in Your Castle

[orgrinrt]

Things suggested within the thread are one time things with no repeat value and close to zero connection to the rest of the game. At best they have atmospheric value. If there was nothing to add or improve to the main mechanic of the game, I would have nothing against it. But there is plenty that can be added or improved in the game that would add way more playability value using the same resources.

Then I have a feeling you aren't really reading all of it. For example:

Spoiler

Yeah, I'd quite like to see that rebalanced a bit. Once you've made it to the stage being a landed noble with your own castle(s), I kind of feel like there should be less emphasis on constantly buzzing around the map like a blue-ass fly.

I'd like to be able to delegate the more mundane tasks like collecting food and recruiting soldiers to some minion, while I deal with higher political matters from inside my keep.

If you want to be continue constantly traveling around visiting villages and keeping the roads clear of bandits, then you absolutely should be able to. But you also should be able to tell Nizar (or whoever) to do that for you because you've spent the whole early game doing it and now you've earned yourself a break. Notables and Lords should come to you if they want something.

A change of focus and a change of pace when you become a landed Lord would also compliment the family/heir mechanics. Now you're in the ruling class, you're less focused on the day-to-day, but on higher matters of state and on the generation-to-generation progression of your family. Time speeds up as you take the longer term view. You take to the road now only for more important matters that require your personal attention - which by their nature are less frequent than when you were an independent adventurer. Visiting your king or other kings and lords. Leading your men to war.

So yeah, I'd like to see more focus on staying in your castle once you get to that stage. Not just for role playing or for creating 'immersive' distractions: for gameplay progression.

It feels out of place to do the same little tasks that you did when you were just a poor traveler when you've gained a fiefdom, even a kingdom. It should be possible to do them if someone really wants to, but it'd make the game progression not only more immersive but also more interesting if you had the option to delegate and use your castles or towns as places to actually do things now that you don't necessarily have to run around collecting food and whatnot. This concept of "doing things" doesn't necessarily have to be just simple cutscenes or minigames, could just as easily be things like telling your court to do things for you. Like ordering some of your companions to pick up a patrol and go deal with bandits that harrass the roads in your domain. Or ordering some peasant to go buy food and supplies when you are preparing to ride off to war. Or sending messengers to contact other lords so that you don't have to run around the map over and over again just to speak with someone.

There are plenty of things that could be interesting in terms of gameplay and immersion that aren't necessarily just one-time things.

All that being said, I still think they should prioritize the development and polishing of core features instead of adding anything new and potentially complex like this.

 

[stevepine]

Then I have a feeling you aren't really reading all of it. For example:


It feels out of place to do the same little tasks that you did when you were just a poor traveler when you've gained a fiefdom, even a kingdom. It should be possible to do them if someone really wants to, but it'd make the game progression not only more immersive but also more interesting if you had the option to delegate and use your castles or towns as places to actually do things now that you don't necessarily have to run around collecting food and whatnot. This concept of "doing things" doesn't necessarily have to be just simple cutscenes or minigames, could just as easily be things like telling your court to do things for you. Like ordering some of your companions to pick up a patrol and go deal with bandits that harrass the roads in your domain. Or ordering some peasant to go buy food and supplies when you are preparing to ride off to war. Or sending messengers to contact other lords so that you don't have to run around the map over and over again just to speak with someone.

There are plenty of things that could be interesting in terms of gameplay and immersion that aren't necessarily just one-time things.

All that being said, I still think they should prioritize the development and polishing of core features instead of adding anything new and potentially complex like this.

Well, exactly.

He's clearly in a microscopic minority with his views. There's always one.

 

[hruza]

Then I have a feeling you aren't really reading all of it. For example:


It feels out of place to do the same little tasks that you did when you were just a poor traveler when you've gained a fiefdom, even a kingdom. It should be possible to do them if someone really wants to, but it'd make the game progression not only more immersive but also more interesting if you had the option to delegate and use your castles or towns as places to actually do things now that you don't necessarily have to run around collecting food and whatnot. This concept of "doing things" doesn't necessarily have to be just simple cutscenes or minigames, could just as easily be things like telling your court to do things for you. Like ordering some of your companions to pick up a patrol and go deal with bandits that harrass the roads in your domain. Or ordering some peasant to go buy food and supplies when you are preparing to ride off to war. Or sending messengers to contact other lords so that you don't have to run around the map over and over again just to speak with someone.

There are plenty of things that could be interesting in terms of gameplay and immersion that aren't necessarily just one-time things.

All that being said, I still think they should prioritize the development and polishing of core features instead of adding anything new and potentially complex like this.

On country, I have a feeling that you aren't really reading all of it.

What ever "little tasks" you could do from your castle that have been proposed here, you can do them much better simply from the interface. Adding features to the castle for the sake of adding features makes little sense. NB is not a simcastle. Castles and cities have a significant purpose in the game already that is valuable without inventing irrelevant features, that would make much more sense been implemented in to the interface even if somebody would bother to add them to the game.

Castles serve as a defensive infrastructure, place to store soldiers and equipment, organize feasts, recruit lords and other things. I am all for improving or extending those functions.

If you don't feel significant progress in the game after obtaining your first castle, then I am afraid you are playing the wrong game and should look in to Sim series of the games. Just the suggestion.

 

[Mad Vader]

If adding management functionality to castle scenes does very little and should be entirely skipped by a user interface, then you should add castle functionality that can't be put in menus. That's ass-backwards logic, but it makes sense if you really like castles.
For example, hunting rats in the castle granary, a traditional RPG pastime, or playing hide and seek with the maids in the keep.

 

[JayWalker]

In Prophecy of Pendor they had "heartbeat quests" from your fiefs, basically various fiefs would have problems and you would provide solutions which could result in various changes at the fief or even small groups spawning on the map or changes in relations to knightly orders etc. I think it would be an interesting mechanic for various troubles to build up over time, and you could go sit on your throne while representatives such as your steward, or a local village representative under your comand came before you and requested aid or instruction.

Quest givers could also come up, or a lord visiting your castle might talk to you. Perhaps you could even give him a quest and leave a monetary reward with your steward if he completes it. For instance you could tell him bandits have been plaguing your merchants and ask that he remove them.

Essentially being presented with the decisions a ruler must make before going back to patrol your lands. The effects of your decisions could affect prosperity, relationship with the fief in question, relationship with another lord, relationship with your faction leader, or even other factions. Villagers from a village not under your control might come requesting aid against bandit and offering money because their lord refused to help.

 

[orgrinrt]

If adding management functionality to castle scenes does very little and should be entirely skipped by a user interface, then you should add castle functionality that can't be put in menus. That's ass-backwards logic, but it makes sense if you really like castles.
For example, hunting rats in the castle granary, a traditional RPG pastime, or playing hide and seek with the maids in the keep.

Honestly, I wouldn't mind playing hide and seek with the maids in the keep.

But yeah, if UI is the solution most people want then UI it should be. However, I don't see the harm in dreaming about an option to do things in a more immersive way, other than it potentially eating up a lot of dev time. Which is obviously a major thing, probably the very reason why those aren't a thing as far as we know. But a man can dream.

 

[The Luminary]

Adding in a throne room minigame would be simple to implement yet add depth. Once every few weeks returning to your castle's throne to find a queue of decisions to be made can be immersive and rewarding.

Some decisions may ask you to spend money from the treasury to buy medicine for a plague. Others may ask you to settle a dispute between a noble and a peasant. All with consequences and rewards in unique items, fief growth, increase morale or productivity, unique and rewarding units/companions available to recruit, relationship gain/loss between certain clans/factions, or bloodlines, or simply a monetary reward.

 

[great_khan]

i am wonder can we buy a hose in the citys and land in the villages?

 

[NachoDawg]

Adding in a throne room minigame would be simple to implement yet add depth. Once every few weeks returning to your castle's throne to find a queue of decisions to be made can be immersive and rewarding.

Some decisions may ask you to spend money from the treasury to buy medicine for a plague. Others may ask you to settle a dispute between a noble and a peasant. All with consequences and rewards in unique items, fief growth, increase morale or productivity, unique and rewarding units/companions available to recruit, relationship gain/loss between certain clans/factions, or bloodlines, or simply a monetary reward.

Yeah, this is the stuff that immerses the player to feel like a lord. Gotta be careful with the implementation though so it doesn't feel like a chore to visit all your settlements to deal with the "dailies" because you feel that you have to in order to maximize your progression. It should feel like an optional side-quest the player can get a little bonus from doing.

i am wonder can we buy a hose in the citys and land in the villages?

You can buy horses in the cities. Villages will breed horses, so you can probably buy horses in some villages as well. You can't buy land in a village as far as we know, but if you own a village then you can select what is to be built there. We get 6 slots for village upgrades, meaning a single village can't make everything, so the player has to make smart choices regarding trade. For example, there's little point in growing wheat if all the neighboring villages also make wheat. Your village will buy wheat for cheap prices through trade, so you build production buildings that make things that are rare in the area instead. That's more profitable.

You can buy buildings in cities to make shops. For example you can buy a building and set up a smithy that makes you money from turning iron into tools and weapons.

 

[The Luminary]

Yeah, this is the stuff that immerses the player to feel like a lord. Gotta be careful with the implementation though so it doesn't feel like a chore to visit all your settlements to deal with the "dailies" because you feel that you have to in order to maximize your progression. It should feel like an optional side-quest the player can get a little bonus from doing.

Instead of dailies it'd be more like weekly/monthlies. It'd get annoying real quick if you had to travel to each fief individually to make decisions for each one. I would choose one main fief for the throne room where you also host feasts, hold tournaments, weddings, ect. Since you may also be making decisions regarding clans, other factions, lords/companions/NPCs not in your faction, it makes more sense to make decisions in one main fief.

Either that or just implement it into the world UI.

 

[Rabies]

One new feature in Bannerlord that really might demand you spend time in your castle is the family. You need to spend some quality time with your other half if you're ever going to get any heirs, after all. Maybe your husband or wife will accompany you in your party if they are a warrior themself. But maybe they aren't a warrior, and they live in your primary fief. When you do have children, you might well want to spend time educating them: teaching them how to use a sword or a bow; teaching them strategy or leadership; city administration; mercantile skills. Bringing up your children is apparently going to be a thing. And you may well need to do that by staying at 'home' for a bit.

 

[stevepine]

One new feature in Bannerlord that really might demand you spend time in your castle is the family. You need to spend some quality time with your other half if you're ever going to get any heirs, after all. Maybe your husband or wife will accompany you in your party if they are a warrior themself. But maybe they aren't a warrior, and they live in your primary fief. When you do have children, you might well want to spend time educating them: teaching them how to use a sword or a bow; teaching them strategy or leadership; city administration; mercantile skills. Bringing up your children is apparently going to be a thing. And you may well need to do that by staying at 'home' for a bit.

Ah interesting. I hadnt thought of this. Yeah, better than the quests for your fiance in viking conquest (" go get me a piece of amber now!")

 

[Mad Vader]

In Prophecy of Pendor they had "heartbeat quests" from your fiefs, basically various fiefs would have problems and you would provide solutions which could result in various changes at the fief or even small groups spawning on the map or changes in relations to knightly orders etc.

Better described as fief events. You got a message to come quickly and pick a menu option that resolves the event semi-randomly, usually giving insignificant fief stats changes. It wasn't much fun, unless it tied in with other game mechanics, like relationship with the Orders.
If you are doing events, you need to do them thoroughly, turning them into a quest format, and preferably following up with other events later, based on your actions (see also King of Dragon Pass).

When the player is campaigning and an event happens, it shouldn't be an insignificant annoyance compared to the campaign. It should be so important that the player would drop his war plans and run off to handle the issue. This means a lot should be at stake, not just some stats, but things like fief destruction or loss to another. You can steer the player to handle events by giving him big challenges and big rewards.

 

[Redleg]

Whenever I get a castle, I am plenty busy fighting off attacks for the first month or so. I wouldn't have time to enjoy the peaceful pursuit of board games or hanging out with a geisha. It would be a cool feature to able to buy castle upgrades that actually show in the castle, things like a palisade and ditch outside the walls or another archer platform.

 

[World's Coolest Old Guy]

If we are king/queen/lord, i would rather servants to walk to us when we sit on the throne, and then we could take decision via dialogue screen after diplomat/general/minister/treasury dude comes to us. That kind of kingdom&fief management would add some immersion into the game.

Player to walk to the other dudes to make decision seems silly to me, when sitting on the throne feature exists.

Maybe a "hold court" option that allows you to sit on your throne and call all courtiers and supplicants with something to say to you one at a time?

 

[Flavius Belisarius]

Maybe a "hold court" option that allows you to sit on your throne and call all courtiers and supplicants with something to say to you one at a time?

This is a great idea! I support this!

 

[Lord Engineer (Castor)]

I’m all for expanding upon the features of castles in Mount & Blade as the mid-to-late game is a bit tedious in my opinion.

Maybe a handful of quests related to ruling over your realm could make things more interesting? Or perhaps something else, something that makes you actually want to return to your castle. For reasons other than troop and prisoner storage (at least that’s what I use them for).

I would rather the decision to return be out of desire than obligation or desperation. Much like how I feel about Pendor’s fief events, I think I might get annoyed when I have to return from my campaign to deal with another rat infestation.

Oh and adding details like a map room are fine but they are more akin to the finishing touches and not a core feature. I would like to have these type of details, especially the dynamic ones, but I’d rather they focus on the main gameplay experience.

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i am wonder can we buy a hose in the citys and land in the villages?

On the chance that you meant house instead of horse, I’m afraid that I can’t remember any mention of players being able to buy houses in cities or at all.
I also don’t think players can buy land in villages but they might be able to build a manor as an improvement if they own the village.

 

[World's Coolest Old Guy]

On the chance that you meant house instead of horse, I’m afraid that I can’t remember any mention of players being able to buy houses in cities or at all.
I also don’t think players can buy land in villages but they might be able to build a manor as an improvement if they own the village.

Yeah, I'm fairly sure we can buy buildings, but those will be for money-making enterprises. I don't think we've heard anything about estates and the like. Would be a nice touch, though, for the player who doesn't necessarily want to be a lord living in a castle.

 

[JayWalker]

Better described as fief events. You got a message to come quickly and pick a menu option that resolves the event semi-randomly, usually giving insignificant fief stats changes. It wasn't much fun, unless it tied in with other game mechanics, like relationship with the Orders.
If you are doing events, you need to do them thoroughly, turning them into a quest format, and preferably following up with other events later, based on your actions (see also King of Dragon Pass).

When the player is campaigning and an event happens, it shouldn't be an insignificant annoyance compared to the campaign. It should be so important that the player would drop his war plans and run off to handle the issue. This means a lot should be at stake, not just some stats, but things like fief destruction or loss to another. You can steer the player to handle events by giving him big challenges and big rewards.

I don't think it should be formatted the same way as heartbeat quests in PoP that was just an example. In PoP the problem was the quests were decentralized, and they did not build up over time. I was proposing a centralized system at your primary fief that built up problems to deal with over time. Therefore if you go on a long campaign and return to your castle you could sit on your throne and each event would be presented. I think the results of independent decisions should be small (but not insignificant), but if you make say 5 or 6 of these decisions at once after a long campaign it could have a moderate to large effect on your situation overall. Resulting in prosperity changes to your fiefs, altered relationships with factions or lords, increases or decreases in honor and renown etc. Perhaps someone who doesn't like you will visit your fief and challenge you to a duel, so that it has some action in the gameplay as well.

Perhaps say it would average one event every 2 weeks, and if it was ignored for 3 months it would go away (or have some effect having been ignored). This shouldn't interrupt gameplay as you should generally visit your primary fief at least once every 3 months, and if you go on a long campaign (of say multiple sieges) and you do not return to your fief in such a long time then you deserve some minor negative events for neglecting your home and family.

 

[World's Coolest Old Guy]

I don't think it should be formatted the same way as heartbeat quests in PoP that was just an example. In PoP the problem was the quests were decentralized, and they did not build up over time. I was proposing a centralized system at your primary fief that built up problems to deal with over time. Therefore if you go on a long campaign and return to your castle you could sit on your throne and each event would be presented. I think the results of independent decisions should be small (but not insignificant), but if you make say 5 or 6 of these decisions at once after a long campaign it could have a moderate to large effect on your situation overall. Resulting in prosperity changes to your fiefs, altered relationships with factions or lords, increases or decreases in honor and renown etc. Perhaps someone who doesn't like you will visit your fief and challenge you to a duel, so that it has some action in the gameplay as well.

Perhaps say it would average one event every 2 weeks, and if it was ignored for 3 months it would go away (or have some effect having been ignored). This shouldn't interrupt gameplay as you should generally visit your primary fief at least once every 3 months, and if you go on a long campaign (of say multiple sieges) and you do not return to your fief in such a long time then you deserve some minor negative events for neglecting your home and family.

I do like this general idea. It'd make sense, too, that substantial problems would end up at your main castle one way or another, if that's where you're known to center your government. It feels like it could be similar to the audience mechanic in Dragon Age Inquisition, only better because it would make use of the engine's procedural(ish) quest generation rather than a set number of branching possibilities that happen after event triggers are flipped.