Sweet Realistic Medieval Combat (Mount and Blade)

Ever wish you could actually get in on the sword-swingin' action on Medieval and crack some skulls? Well now you can!

The game is Mount and Blade, at www.taleworlds.com, and its a realistic combat/rpg game with loads of different weapons and armor. You can even ride down peasantry as a lance couchin' knight!

The demo of the beta is only 35 mbs and the full game only costs $12 (though its in beta currently.)

While content is limited, and the battles are very small by total war standards, the fighting is still fun.

EDIT: Check out page 9 for a small mod I made, HRE and French surcoats for the tournament grouds!

EDIT2: A screenshot, just to spice things up;
https://img442.imageshack.us/img442/1259/292if.jpg

Crazed Rabbit

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Originally Posted by Crazed Rabbit

Ever wish you could actually get in on the sword-swingin' action on Medieval and crack some skulls? Well now you can!

The game is Mount and Blade, at www.taleworlds.com, and its a realistic combat/rpg game with loads of different weapons and armor. You can even ride down peasantry as a lance couchin' knight!

The demo of the beta is only 35 mbs and the full game only costs $12 (though its in beta currently.)

While content is limited, and the battles are very small by total war standards, the fighting is still fun.

Crazed Rabbit

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Thank you for the link mate...

This is freakin awesome. I may well get the full game.

Downloading it now , looks great.

Downloaded it, played it, bought it.

Now before anyone else does this... It is far from done! Only one city is anywhere near finished. And it has a feeling of unfinishedness about it all the time.

But the good stuff is this.

You absolutely want to use a shield! Without it you become a pincushion for archers, javelineers and even rockthrowers. At the same time you want to have a ranged weapon yourself. I chose a crossbow, and man, it can really dish out damage. If you are good you can snipe people for a good range, and headshots do significant damage. But reloading is fairly long (compared to a bow), but then again you can aim for as long as you want without decreasing accuracy (with the bow you get tired). You can even shoot it from horseback, though not reload it then (but you can with a bow).
Arrows, bolts and javelins all stick to their target, when I was hit by two javelins it looked rather silly with me running around with two large sticks in me, but it looks great when a shield has been filled with arrows or bolts or you findt one of your headshot targets with a bolt sticking out of his eye.

I used to hate the monted combat, but now that I have gotten hold of a good spear it it great fun. If you get the horse up to speed you can run down infantry with a couched lance attack. If you are good it is instant impalement and one less enemy to worry about. But in any case he is dropped to the ground. In this position you have to use the horse for aiming, but beware that slopes will slow you down and it is hard to maneuver the horse when it is running fast. Also horses come in various types, some certainly better than others.
Also if you switch your lance for sword and shield on horseback, you are still a very dangerous foe, running at enemies and swinging at them will knock them down unless they block your swing. So cavalry is very strong against infantry, but as soon as teh infantry manages to halt the cavalry they are cut to pieces. GREAT!!!! You can't even run down two men right after each other with the couched lance, you need a few seconds to reposition the lance.
If you kill a mounted enemy but not his horse you can take the horse and thus become monted. Very effective if his horse is better than yours or you have lost yours in battle.
Beware that men on horses can swist in the saddle quite far and reach almost everyone who is attacking him, but from the rear he is helpless, but sadly when you kill a mounted enemy from the ground you often kill the horse too.

I learned the hard way that you most certainly don't want to fight a melee against superior numbers. Being a hero I thought I could take on large groups of lousy enemies. WRONG! When they gang up on you they will hit you all the time, and each hit interrupts your attacks, so you can't hit back enough. Protecting yourself with the shield is about the only possible action while retreating. But eventually they will break the shield and then you are in deep trouble.
So you need to hire local soldiers, they are for the most part lousy fighters and will get ripped to pieces by anything better than pirates. But if they manage to do some damage and survive (there is chance that they will just get knocked out if they get 'killed') they will advance to new levels. If you even maange to get just a few Men-at-arms or knights your have a most powerful mounted force on your side.

I remember a massive battle I had against some 30 steppe bandits. My mission was to protect a caravan. It had only a few mounted warriors and a big group of rabble protecting it. My group on the other hand was a small strong force of professional warriors. As you can guess steppe bandits have lots of cavalry, and plenty of horse archers. The battle was long and very hard, bodies were strewn everywhere. I had been sitting on a hill sniping the enemy infantry (cavalry is too fast for proper sniping), but when I ran out of bolts (only have 21) I ran to my inventory and grabbed my spear, mounted my horse and began to charge every enemy I could find. That couched lance really helped a lot. I finally ran down the last horse archer by gaining on him on his blind side (horse archers only have a free attack to their left, the right is obstructed by the bow).
The result was that of the 24 caravan people only 9 survived, of my 9 warriors only 5 survived (of which three of us always get knocked out if we get 'killed'), but we managed to capture 4 bandits.
Capturing enemies is done by using blunt weapons, but they are not as good in reach or power as swords for instance. Captured enemies can then be sold into slavery at a few places. Lovely!

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Originally Posted by Efrem

Thank you for the link mate...

This is freakin awesome. I may well get the full game.

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My thoughts exactly. Great find! Thanks Crazed Rabbit :bow:

Wow, Kraxis, that's a pretty enticing recommendation. Downloading now... What's the "campaign" or "quest" system like, that glues together the combats?

Hmmm. I've played a couple hours so far. The combat is excellant, though I am unskilled. I need more money to get better weapons. That seems to be the hard part.

The towns and things feel unfinished, but that (hopefully) will be corrected when it's finished. And for $11, I might just try it.

Here is a review I found online.

Another review with some screens.

The official page.

Multiplayer combat would be amazing, I suspect. Though I doubt it will happen.

~:cheers:

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Originally Posted by Alexander the Pretty Good

Multiplayer combat would be amazing, I suspect. Though I doubt it will happen.

~:cheers:

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No kidding. I could see a zillion clans and tournaments popping up if MP was added. A fully realized jousting arena with this combat would be pure gold!
Full battles of 16-32-48 people would be a sight to behold and 1 on 1 combat would be very intense! :duel:

I must admit I found it on the ME:TW forums.

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Wow, Kraxis, that's a pretty enticing recommendation. Downloading now... What's the "campaign" or "quest" system like, that glues together the combats?

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There is, as of yet, no main quest or story. YOu can choose between two warring sides, however.

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Hmmm. I've played a couple hours so far. The combat is excellant, though I am unskilled. I need more money to get better weapons. That seems to be the hard part.

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There's a salt mine you can buy salt from for 78 gold and sell for 160 gold in Zendar, though don't load yourself down so much that you get caught by bandits. The best weapons come from the battles, though.

My favorite thing is joining a huge Vaegir-Swadian battle.

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No kidding. I could see a zillion clans and tournaments popping up if MP was added. A fully realized jousting arena with this combat would be pure gold!
Full battles of 16-32-48 people would be a sight to behold and 1 on 1 combat would be very intense!

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Amen to that! Actually, I believe the next release will incorporate modding tools, so if anyone is skilled enough...

I'm gonna buy this soon, and I can't wait for the mods sure to be made!

Crazed Rabbit

Indeed, there is no main quest or even a storyline. But there is a little indicator that there might be in the full release. It seems to me that there might be more to the war than meets the eye and there are also 'dark' forces out there (and they are strong)... Maybe they will work on that.

I don't mind much that the towns are so unfinished, only that the tavernkeeper is so far away in his building.

I agree with rabbit that the best equipment comes from battles. You just need to beat up big groups of enemies. So look around for caravans under attack. They are normally rather well protected and withyou and your buddies you should be able to win against even rather large groups of enemies.
Make sure you do missions for the merchants, they give you 700+ for just escorting a caravan to a nearby town, a lot more if it farther away. Some times you will even be charged with missions to deliver goods somewhere, again at a good price (I accidentally sold the goods the first time and ended up owing the merchants 18600 gold, no trade until that was paid with interest).
Beware of the Sea Raiders though... They are not as weak as their name suggests. When engaging them, be sure to have at the very least 2/3rds of their numbers, and if you feel you haven't got enough, just hire peasants in large numbers. They are bad fighters on their own, but I saw how they dealt with a number of Swadian deserter knights. The knights stormed in, but they were soon halted by the mass of men (and women) and before long they were either dead or their horses were dead. One poor knight actually survived and was ganged up on by 5-6 peasants, his HP and armour obviously helped him a long way as he took hits all the time, his shield splintered and he simply couldn't defend himself, he couldn't even retreat away. Eventually I had to step in and put an end to his misery. But the visage of pitchforks, sickles and clubs striking the defenseless man was impressive. And very good by the way. The knights charged headlessly in and suffered from it. The infantry that followed proceeded to make mincemeat of the peasants until I and my men rescued them.

MP? I can't see why this can't be made, it is perfect for it. The Tournament in Zendar is a perfect setting for it and almost looks like a test for future MP.

MP will not be coming out for M&B 1 but Amargan (One of the only two developers) has hinted that it might be included in M&B 2.

I've had the game for a week or so, and it is amazing. I'm currently lv 27 and with my band of Swadian Infantry. Having 20 crossbowmen in one place blunts any cavalry charge. ~:)

I constantly run into trouble as soon as I have a nice army.
I had 3 knights, 5 sharpshooters, 4 crossbowmen, 7 men at arms and finally 7 Footmen.

A nice army that should be able to take on anything, especially bandits (you know those quest bandits). I ended up in a battle against 34 of those bandits. And yup, they managedto take out my entire army eventhough I dropped them like flies. Finally my crossbow ran out of ammo and my horse got knocked out from under me and I still faced some 6-7 enemies, of which 2 were mounted.
I got beat so bad.

Then it was simply goodbye army, one I had used so much time in building to a proper state (I had just handed over 5 knights and 6 men at arms for quests so this was the beginning of a new round of troops). RATS!

I travel with 53 men, I can quite easily take down Vaegir War Parties of 90 or more men. Quite Fun really being on my Spirited Charger, ordering my guys to hold a hill and then chraging into the melee as the hail of bolts flies from my men.

Crazed Rabbit you bastard! Last night I was ready to hit the sack around 11:30 so I could catch some quality REM sleep that I missed the night before. However, just before shutting my computer down for the night I caught this thread here in the Arena and simply had to see what all the ranting and raving was about...

I didn't get to sleep until 2am! :furious3:

This game is great! Talk about an impressive debut! At first you think it's some obscure 'ho hum' rpg but then you actually get to fight! I found myself yelling at the screen quite a number of times; I yelled at myself, yelled at the enemy and also found myself yelling at my comrades in and out of the arena to warn them or danger or come to my aid!

About the only thing I don't like is that the horse doesn't seem to impart any mass when it hits an enemy soldier. Sure, you can knock the bugger on his buttocks but at the same time your horse will stop and rear up on his hind legs. In the very least swiping a soldier with your horse should provide some kind of hit and run effect. Now I totally understand the realism/balance issue at work here. However it doesn't make sense that a very expensive, high quality warhorse couldn't knock over an enemy soldier (at least those without spears or polearms) while at a full gallop and keep going. In the very least each knocked over soldier could slow the horse down so as to not make mounted troops nigh invincible. The mounted AI also needs some work, horsemen in the arena or in constricted spaces will sometimes run their horses into a wall or obstacle, leaving them extremely vulnerable until they can turn around and ride in another direction. But these are amazing small quibbles considering the game is still a work in progress.

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Originally Posted by zelda12

I travel with 53 men, I can quite easily take down Vaegir War Parties of 90 or more men. Quite Fun really being on my Spirited Charger, ordering my guys to hold a hill and then chraging into the melee as the hail of bolts flies from my men.

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53 vs. 90! ~:eek: I didn't know the battles could get that large! That's fantastic! I wonder if the developers programmed a maximum number of men per side in any given battle. How was your framerate during that battle and what CPU & 3D card are you using?

For the next version I'd like to see them add group formations to the orders menu. I see no reason why seasoned, higher tier soldiers cannot set themselves into a rudimentary formation.

The core of this game, the combat, is so brilliantly done that it would be an absolute crime if the developers changed gears and made it into a more 'traditional' rpg or worse, dropped the project altogether! ~:eek:

I seriously hope this husband and wife developer team is able to take this game/idea/engine to the next level. Hopefully they can get some additional artists and programmers on board and flesh out the existing game. Once the word gets out on this little gem I seriously doubt there will be a lack of modding type volunteers who are willing to help out!

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Originally Posted by Spino

53 vs. 90! I didn't know the battles could get that large! That's fantastic! I wonder if the developers programmed a maximum number of men per side in any given battle. How was your framerate during that battle and what CPU & 3D card are you using?

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When I say that much they do it in segments with around 15-20 men o each side. I imagine that you could probaly squeeze more men in but Amargan hasn't commented on it yet.

On the other subjects Amargan has been saying that he is going to get some more people on board to help him out. Here's hoping we are seeing the birth of one of the futures greatest game developers.

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About the only thing I don't like is that the horse doesn't seem to impart any mass when it hits an enemy soldier. Sure, you can knock the bugger on his buttocks but at the same time your horse will stop and rear up on his hind legs. In the very least swiping a soldier with your horse should provide some kind of hit and run effect. Now I totally understand the realism/balance issue at work here. However it doesn't make sense that a very expensive, high quality warhorse couldn't knock over an enemy soldier (at least those without spears or polearms) while at a full gallop and keep going. In the very least each knocked over soldier could slow the horse down so as to not make mounted troops nigh invincible. The mounted AI also needs some work, horsemen in the arena or in constricted spaces will sometimes run their horses into a wall or obstacle, leaving them extremely vulnerable until they can turn around and ride in another direction. But these are amazing small quibbles considering the game is still a work in progress.

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If you're going fast enough, you will [sometimes] run right over the guy. Strangely, it doesn't do that much damage - less than I would expect. And I have to agree, it would be nice if some of the AI was better. But still...

How do you equip soldiers in your party? Do you have to have the equipment avaliable? Do newly hired people come with any weapons?

I think the engine is mostly done, and they just need to flesh out details (like a plot...). All in all very, very cool.

All soldiers come with their own equipment, except for the two named characters Borcha and Marnid, who you can equip.

You can even change your character's face! Try and guess who this is:

http://img227.echo.cx/img227/3702/johnkerrys1ed.png

Crazed Rabbit

~:eek:

I wonder if he's a good fighter.... :book:

:laugh: :laugh2: :laugh3: :laugh4:

And thanks, I'll try getting some peasants to join my quest against the river pirates!

I really like this game. I have to say there's satisfaction in putting an arrow in the eye of a river pirate at 50 yards ~;) ~D

Glad to be of service. And watch out for Sea Raiders: they are basically Vikings. And like vikings, they are very tough. Great ranged attacks and deadly close combat. They lack only in mobility.

Crazed Rabbit

I bought the beta today. Very happy to support such a fine product. I can't wait to see what they manage to get in the full release version. It's positively oozing with potential. ~:cheers:

I think I just hit lvl 10 and the Sea Raiders are kicking my backside at every corner but that's the way I like it. :charge: Crazed Rabbit is right, they are basically Vikings and they fight like it! Very deadly in the open field with their thrown axes and javelins and very aggresive in melee combat. Now I will take a moment to reflect on the 100s of poorly trained peasants and militia that have died under my command... ~;)

I really wish I could join the steppe bandits faction and do some Mongol style raids on the populace. Maybe in the next patch ~D

supposedly that is something you'll be able to do later. Hence the Bandit Stronghold.

hmm...guys, I just dl the demo thinghy yesterday, but it doesnt run. As in I click the executable file and it just ignores me.... do I have to do something different? lower the screen resolution or something?

I didn't.

Wonderful game. I bought it. Thanks, Crazed Rabbit and Kraxis.

Anyone got any combat tips? I am not sure I am getting the whole "feinting/direction of attack" type thing, nor am I much use on a horse. Anyone care to spell things out to a newbie, I'd be grateful. I got through the training and am about level 9, but usually lose the tournament and win battles more by picking which ones are winnable than by in-battle heroism. I'm pretty decent with a bow though.

First off get yourself a nice large party, lot of extra swords help, alot. Then when you deploy its best to press '1' to order your troops to hold this position. When the enemy arrives they'll come in dribs and drabs and your boys can easily overpower them. Also when in combat look for when your enemies are going to attack and use your shielf to block their attacks and then counterattack. If you are getting swamped try running backwards as they'll usualy follow you and you can deal blows out whilst they very rarely can all hit you together.

Oh and get your riding skill up, save up and buy a charger and a balanced great axe. Then let the good times roll! ~:cool:

Also to all of you who are saying the horse doesn't knock the enemies over you need to get a faster horse with a much better chrage rating. I guarantee you that if you get a spirited charger you will be able to knock groups of 3 or 4 enemies flying with as much as 20 damage depending on your speed. ~D

The game is fun, but it also randomly crashes my computer. A major source of irritation, that.

Damn, I had another 'up til 2am' session last night! Glad the boss isn't in the office today because I'm a walking zombie... ~;)

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Originally Posted by zelda12

Also to all of you who are saying the horse doesn't knock the enemies over you need to get a faster horse with a much better chrage rating. I guarantee you that if you get a spirited charger you will be able to knock groups of 3 or 4 enemies flying with as much as 20 damage depending on your speed. ~D

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You know, I was secretly hoping this would be the case and now I'm positively giddy that it's true. I haven't gotten my hands on a high quality warhorse yet but I'm certainly looking forward to it! I love the fact that the developers have taken the 'little things' like this into account.

I can't wait for the next update!

Yeah it is lovely to watch 6-7 knights totally flatten a group of enemy infantry with their great horses.

Right now I only have a Heavy Hunter as my horse (riding skill too low for chargers or war horses) but damn it is good. Fast, maneuverable, durable and a nice charge. But I truly expect the Spirited Charger to be the best... Have you noticed if there was any Heavy Charger? But for a true eastern style horse archer it would have to be the Spirited Steppe Horse or the Spirited Hunter, they are very fast and very maneuverable.

Personally I prefer to use my heavy crossbow with extra ammo in the inventory. But as a safeguard I have a thick steel shield and a balanced longsword for when enemy cavalry and infantry get too close. In my inventory I also carry a Great Lance, perfect for riding down the enemy.

So when out of ammo I change into a knight and go about killing the enemy in melee. Often by then the enemy has been depleted and dispersed making it easy to rip them apart with couched lance attacks.

SA... Be sure that you get to know the shield before you fight too many enemies. Keep it up when the enemy has ranged capabilities. When an enemy is within striking range, let him attack you first, then quickly drop the shieldstance and strike at him. He might parry but keep up the attack and he will not be able to strike back at you. If he keeps parrying, then halt and use the shield again.
It is wise use variety in the attack. Attack with swing from either side, then a stab and so on. Notice the arrows, they indicate to which side you will pull the weapon. This is very helpful on horseback where you need to see where the enemy is heading and thus choose the right side to swing the weapon.
But often relentless attacks often prevails.
Many enemies at once can be a problem, if that is the case, up with the shield and backpedal then use the same tactics as there will often only be one enemy within range of both your weapons.

Don't be afraid of horses. In the arena they are hard to control, but they aer lousy horses and you have no room. Better horses in the open are great and will grant you a good deal of ability. Bring a fair horse (a saddle horse is often good enough, but it must be at least 8 in speed) next time you go into battle against a weak enemy. Then you can practice attacks on enemies. But never rush into a fight and never charge into the center of a group. That is a perfect way to end up dead.

Thanks for the tips, folks. The pressing "1" at the start of the battle is a life-saver - stops my horsemen charging off to their deaths. I am still relying on my bow, but have now bought a charger and am building up my polearm skill.

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Originally Posted by Crazed Rabbit

All soldiers come with their own equipment, except for the two named characters Borcha and Marnid, who you can equip.

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How can you equip Marnid? He needed a padded cloth to join up but since then seems to be stuck with his padded cloth and club despite going up a few levels.

Also, where is Borcha?

This game is so addictive, it's given me a migraine. :dizzy2: