Wow. Mount and Blade is awesome.

[Stark]

You finished the base game? Mighty tolerance for bland and boring you've got there.

Most of the campaigns have cool features like town conquest of army management or a proper, actual story (not the skeletal bullshit the basically zero-content base game has). How on earth are you comparing them?

[GuppyShark]

You finished the base game? Mighty tolerance for bland and boring you've got there.

Hardly. You won't find any level 70s on my World of Warcraft account.

I said 'won' in scare quotes. I got a full retinue of upgraded knights & crossbowmen, all the castles in the map, and dark armour. At that point I realised I no longer had an objective.

Most of the campaigns have cool features like town conquest of army management or a proper, actual story (not the skeletal bullshit the basically zero-content base game has). How on earth are you comparing them?

I never got into them far enough to see these features. I really wanted to play Holy War but it was bugged.

[Stark]

Oh yeah, I didn't actually know if there was a 'won'. I've 'played till I've got bored' a few times, but I thought maybe there'd be something else.

And that's a good point - the LotR mod in particular starts RETARDEDLY slow and boring. The War of the Ring doesn't start till you get to level 10 - but before the war starts squads of guys to kill are few and far between (and WAY too powerful anyway). I only recently actually got the proper war started, and it's awesome with the crushing of Gondor and stuff. Recruiting giant trolls = awesome.

I'm not sure Holy War is very stable yet: I played version some time ago and it was fun but I didn't seem to make any 'progress' - it just seemed like a Crusades themed regular game.

[Vympel]

My objective to "win" the game is largely similar- the best armor and weapons money can buy (or can be picked off corpses), the best horse, a fully functioning fully upgraded squad of men, lots of cash.

It's a damn beta, after all.

Incidentally, I spent a point on Inventory Management- nothing seemed to happen?

I saw a mod on youtube while searching for 300 eye-candy- it looks like they made a Sparta mod for Mount and Blade- maybe the spear combat is better in that?

Coolest moment I've had in Mount and Blade, charging a bunch of Swadian deserters (ie crossbowmen), bowling over a bunch of them with my shield raised, taking three bolts on the shield, then accidentally throwing my shield over my back just in time to catch an arrow there.

Achilles in Troy FTW.

[Stark]

Inv management increases the inv slots, so you can store more items.

And if you can play the game until you have the best items, you have the Diablo gene.

[Ritterin Sophia]

Vympel, you're better than I, I fucking hate those Crossbowmen...

[Vympel]

Inv management increases the inv slots, so you can store more items.

That's just it- no extra slots appeared.

Why is it, also, that the Manrid guy you recruit in Zendar- you can't give him items- you have to sell them to him? Does he even use them?

And if you can play the game until you have the best items, you have the Diablo gene.

Hah- I hate Diablo.

As to the crossbowmen- oh don't get me wrong, I barely got out of that fight alive- normally I do very badly against those fuckers without lots of men to soak up their fire. It's pretty damn foolhardy to charge crossbowmen alone.

[GuppyShark]

I must have been playing on too low a difficulty - I found that blockking with a shield made me largely immune to crossbowmen.

[Stark]

That's just it- no extra slots appeared.

Really? I don't remember any inventory management problem... unless it's just broken at the low end (ie, start with 6, 3 per level, so level 2 doesn't help or something).

Why is it, also, that the Manrid guy you recruit in Zendar- you can't give him items- you have to sell them to him? Does he even use them?

You're not missing out on much. The NPCs are pretty retarded. You have to sell them stuff, and you have to buy the old stuff to force them to use the stuff you gave them. After all that they'll run off and get killed regardless.

Hah- I hate Diablo.

A likely story!

As to the crossbowmen- oh don't get me wrong, I barely got out of that fight alive- normally I do very badly against those fuckers without lots of men to soak up their fire. It's pretty damn foolhardy to charge crossbowmen alone.

Since 80x and the change to 'aim for head', ranged combat became both harder and more rewarding. Those Swadian deserters can be tricky... but try sending your infantry in, and while they cross the distance ride behind the Swadians, and evade their fire (jinking ftw) until the infantry force them to change to melee, then go back to lancing.

[Vympel]

I must have been playing on too low a difficulty - I found that blockking with a shield made me largely immune to crossbowmen.

With a sufficiently large shield (say, a Kite Shield) you can be, but I'm very bloodthirsty and don't like doing a pass with my Lance that doesn't end with one of them getting skewered, so I can be a bit reckless with when I decide to bring my shield up (ie will he get a shot off before he dies?).

I actually switched to a smaller, metal shield I picked up from some Dark Knight stragglers because it has a higher "Resistance" rating- what's that anyway?

This is one game where I also don't mind dying- usually if someone manages to cleave me out of my saddle with an axe, I marvel at their competence.

Speaking of which- can you ever die, or is it always being knocked unconcious for main characters?

Another fun part I find is fighting on horseback with a blade- I feel like a Maestro of Death when I time the swing just right to kill someone as I ride past (anyone ever watch the last scene in Ladyhawke?)

[Stark]

As far as I know, many of the stats for shields don't actually do anything. Durability is important, but I'm not even sure speed is important (shields always seem to be the same speed for me). The shield skill says it 'extends coverage' of a shield, but that seems silly.

I'm pretty reckless with archers too - there's nothing funnier than getting a giant axe in the forehead the moment before impact.

[GuppyShark]

Ahh, there's your problem.

You want to use a one-hander against archers & crossbowmen, so that you can help the shield ready until the last possible moment, hack one or two down, then ride past with your shield blocking any retaliation shots.

You have to keep yourself exposed for far too long if you want to get a couched lance shot against a missile trooper.

[Stark]

Are you playing on low AI or something? I've seen people headshot over their shields moongazing at hundreds of meters. Blocking shots like that, your shield should break after a few passes. Do you bring a spare?

[Vympel]

Ahh, there's your problem.

You want to use a one-hander against archers & crossbowmen, so that you can help the shield ready until the last possible moment, hack one or two down, then ride past with your shield blocking any retaliation shots.

You have to keep yourself exposed for far too long if you want to get a couched lance shot against a missile trooper.

After all, the lance is still "couched" when you let go of the RMB just before impact- it's just I like putting the shield down a bit too early.

I play on Good AI, myself. I get some crazy shots against me sometimes.

[Stark]

It's worth turning it up as high as you can AI and damage wise - the 'turn off UI' things are more a player-difficulty thing, and no auto-block makes the fighting much more tactile... but without full AI and full damage it's even easier than usual.

I think in the later 80x's the archers actually started shooting your feet when you had your shield covering your face. Archers are really, really dangerous.

[Vympel]

Wanna hear something completely retarded? I held off recruiting god knows how many quality men after I liberated them from bandit/raider/etc captivity because the game uses the "Capture" button for both.

[Stark]

'Capture' is M&B for 'move to the left list'?

[Vympel]

'Capture' is M&B for 'move to the left list'?

Brilliant, isn't it?

I have several Vaegir and Swadian Knights now, as well as one prized Swadian Sharpshooter whoose wicked with a Crossbow ...

(I liberated two of the Knights, but the single Sharpshooter came up the ranks as a peasant, IIRC).

I'm considering building up an entirely "neutral" force recruited from Zendar, refugees/ farmes etc ...

[GuppyShark]

Warrior Women are amusing.

[Stark]

The farmer-based guys pretty much suck until the very end - and you'd need to hire like 100 guys to get 5 to the end of the tree. Which sucks compared to the highend Swadian knights.

[Vympel]

The farmer-based guys pretty much suck until the very end - and you'd need to hire like 100 guys to get 5 to the end of the tree. Which sucks compared to the highend Swadian knights.

What are the distinct "groups" you can hire? The ones I've seen so far:

- Vaegir (Eastern, IMO- Byzantine style lamellar armor and what not)
- Swadian (Western)
- Peasant: what's the progression here?
- Manhunter: slavers
- Caravan Guard/ Mercenary (part of peasant tree?)
- Refugee?

Nearly all my men are a mixture of Vaegir and Swadian, but I'd prefer a company of pure mercenaries, for the RPing, dontchaknow.

Oh, and I was wrong about Inventory Management, I hadn't ticked it after all

[Stark]

Um, there are little pictures I found once... basically, the S/V are separate, and most of the others are 'civilians'. Manhunters are in the same tree as farmers for instance. Refugees aren't anything, I don't think you can recruit them?

Swads are medieval knights, Vaegir are Steppe horsemen, basically. I prefer mobility to mass so I'm usually Vaegir, but the Swad crossbowmen are awesome stuff.

[Vympel]

I got the distinct impression that the Khergit are Mongols (I only seem to encounter four of them at a time, so they always run from me), and the Sea Raiders are Vikings (I got my Mail Hauberk from them, thanks).

I quite like my character, he's in full mail and he's got a Warhorse, so everything matches really well. Finally got a Bastard Sword too, which rocks.

Where the fuck are all the Dark Hunters? They've disappeared. It's like they're afraid of me. I want their armor.

[white_rabbit]

Where the hell has this game been all my life ?

Its awesome, I was accidentally up till two in the morning playing this game.

I can't believe I hung around the first town so long, I wandered off to a nearby castle and idly entered the arena.

MASS MELEE!

I have to say though, is it too much to ask that as an archer you get a dagger or something for when those swordsmen are trying to violate you ?

[GuppyShark]

Not in ... THE ARENA! I don't think you even get to use your fists in Arena fights, from memory.