dclare4
09-07-2002, 19:33
Hi all! I'm new to MTW but I loved STW a lot and even got to model one of my favorite battle scenes from the movie RAN there. Anyways, I got to playing MTW and I've been having great fun. However, I did notice some, err, descrepancies that didn't really make for a historically accurate experience for me.
The game uses much pre-Norman Conquest nomenclature for names and places in England. The use of Northumbria, Mercia and Wessex are certainly convenient but hardly keeping in the spirit of the period represented by the game (1087-1456). Same thing with the generals names w/c include many Saxon names like Aelfgar, Uhtred, Wulfstan and Tostig. Since the names are randomized you end up with weird 'interbreeds' of names like Tostig Neville or Aelfgar Fitzalan. NO self-respecting Norman noble who wanted his sons to reach maturity would ever give his son a barbaric name like Tostig.
Another problem is the English nobles represented in the game are taken mostly from what seems to be the 'War of the Roses' period w/c came AFTER the game period. Families like Neville, Percy, etc really only came into their own after the French wars during the turbulent civil war we now call the Wars of the Roses. The names of the great noble families from the Conquest to the 'Band of Brothers' (thats HARRY V's band not Tom Hanks' band) period are barely if ever represented. Narry a De Clare, De Lacy, De Valence, De Bohun, De Ufford, De Montacute, De Beauchamp, Bigod or Marshal represented. The only English hero is Robin's old foe Guy of Gisbourne while the French only get Joans companion Gilles de Rais.
So I set about changing all that. Now I fight in Northumberland and Yorkshire (ex Northumbria and Mercia - Wessex stayed as I felt that area could never be accurately represented by one county name while at the very least Northumberland and Yorkshire do dominate the areas they represent.) The nobles now include many of the 'old families' plus some minor families like the Cliffords, Hungerfords, Pastons, Whittingtons (thrice Lord Mayor), Dalynrigges and the like. Unfortunately the game seems to have hardcoded several names and notices if they're not present so I had to keep the Saxon names - if you get Morcar Paston or Tostig Hungerford just shrug it off as a ba$tard of one of these great nobles who made good. The heroes now include Jean, Captal de Buch and Enguerrand de Coucy for the French and William Marshal and John Neville among others for the English.
If anyone cares to try this out just drop me a line.
richpics516@yahoo.com
Gilbert de Clare
The game uses much pre-Norman Conquest nomenclature for names and places in England. The use of Northumbria, Mercia and Wessex are certainly convenient but hardly keeping in the spirit of the period represented by the game (1087-1456). Same thing with the generals names w/c include many Saxon names like Aelfgar, Uhtred, Wulfstan and Tostig. Since the names are randomized you end up with weird 'interbreeds' of names like Tostig Neville or Aelfgar Fitzalan. NO self-respecting Norman noble who wanted his sons to reach maturity would ever give his son a barbaric name like Tostig.
Another problem is the English nobles represented in the game are taken mostly from what seems to be the 'War of the Roses' period w/c came AFTER the game period. Families like Neville, Percy, etc really only came into their own after the French wars during the turbulent civil war we now call the Wars of the Roses. The names of the great noble families from the Conquest to the 'Band of Brothers' (thats HARRY V's band not Tom Hanks' band) period are barely if ever represented. Narry a De Clare, De Lacy, De Valence, De Bohun, De Ufford, De Montacute, De Beauchamp, Bigod or Marshal represented. The only English hero is Robin's old foe Guy of Gisbourne while the French only get Joans companion Gilles de Rais.
So I set about changing all that. Now I fight in Northumberland and Yorkshire (ex Northumbria and Mercia - Wessex stayed as I felt that area could never be accurately represented by one county name while at the very least Northumberland and Yorkshire do dominate the areas they represent.) The nobles now include many of the 'old families' plus some minor families like the Cliffords, Hungerfords, Pastons, Whittingtons (thrice Lord Mayor), Dalynrigges and the like. Unfortunately the game seems to have hardcoded several names and notices if they're not present so I had to keep the Saxon names - if you get Morcar Paston or Tostig Hungerford just shrug it off as a ba$tard of one of these great nobles who made good. The heroes now include Jean, Captal de Buch and Enguerrand de Coucy for the French and William Marshal and John Neville among others for the English.
If anyone cares to try this out just drop me a line.
richpics516@yahoo.com
Gilbert de Clare