Graham Clifford // Tuesday, July 29th, 2008
// Printable version 
Mount & Blade hands-on preview (PC)
Saddle up for an interesting new twist on the role-playing genre.
In the open ended world of Mount and Blade your character can chose to act whatever way he/she likes whether it be a path of a bully and thug or rising the ranks of nobility to become a lord. The world, despite being inactive, is alive with factions who wage war with their neighbours and become trading partners and allies with others. Every faction also has an economy which can fluctuate depending on events. The factions have many lords each with their own personalities and traits.
For one particular faction I was given the task of attacking and ransacking my allies's caravans by an ambitious lord who wanted to instigate a war. The choice here is up to you. If you lust for war then you can go ahead and become the instigator but if your a man of peace then you can tell him where to stick it. Since the game contains no story you are left to your own imagination. According to the game's developer a story is being put together which should give you some purpose for your character's existence.
I Shot JRR
Hobbits, dwarfs, wookies and wizards are all exempt from Mount and Blade. If it's fictitious, under four feet, ridiculously hairy or just plain weird then it didn't make the cut. Nothing magical here. Quite refreshing though. In the seemingly far fetched, beast clad worlds that plague clichéd RPGs, a realistic setting is just what the genre needed. So Frodo and Chewy can take a back seat here and let humanity be the hero for a change.
Men in Tights ... hmmm.
There is a army of 250 strong over yonder hill. I decide take my band of merry men, and women (Graham's rugged band of mercenariness is an equal opportunity employer), up towards the horizon to encounter our foe. My fellow mounted knights assume the first strike force that shall meet the enemy head on. Armed with my sword and shield I decide to target a isolated group of infantry.
I line up and charge head on only for my horse to be stabbed with a spear and die, leaving me to fall to the ground in a big heap where I am engulfed by enemies and subsequently taken prisoner. I knew the odds going into the battle were against me but my men had no food and I had no money to buy some so I turned to a life of crime robbing caravans that were heading to the major cities. However my exploits had made me infamous and I was being hunted down by numerous lords. Times were tough in those days and Robin Hood was on holiday so I had to pick up the slack.
It's Party Time
Usually in a RPG your party's size is small. In Mount & Blade your party can go up to and over 500, that if you're a good leader. It may seem hard to manage but in reality it can all be done at one screen. The soldiers demand food and wages if they are to follow you around and will throw hissy fits and sulk if you neglect either one.
Each member can gain experience through battle or through training. It's quite nice to see local farm boys you have recruited become dashing knights after they have continuously followed you into battle. (*Sniff* they level up so fast). Numerous heroes also litter the many taverns and can be recruited offering more options to you as the leader. Overall the system works well and managing a large group is quite easy and straightforward.
Hand to Hand Job's and Quests
Combat is where Mount & Blade shines brighter then a star going supernova. No other game can rival the riveting battles that you experience here. It's brutal, unforgiving and more revolutionary then Che Guevara on steroids. You can fight on horseback or on foot but mounted combat is a true gem. Realism is a major factor so your horse wont be able to make magical sharp turns or be able to gallop at full speed from the moment you saddle up.
One has to make arcs around a target and line up to attack. The speed at which you hit your target also determines the amount of damage you do and just in case your as skilled at combat as Steven Seagal then when you miss your horse can knock them to the ground for some damage as well. You can always test your abilities in many tournaments that litter the capital cities. Make a name for yourself as well as a quick quid.
On Your Back.
In mounted combat it is all about how you tilt your body and ready your weapon. Where you hit your target is also critical. There is nothing more satisfying then slicing an unsuspecting soldier in the back of the neck for a coup de grâce. When not saddled up combat on foot is just as entertaining. How you fight all depends on the weapon you use. Fighting with a shield is a simple affair of swinging your one handed weapon and blocking in a timely manor.
Without a shield is a different story. You have to wait for your opponent to raise their weapon at which point you press the block button the deflect the incoming strike from whatever direction it was aimed. Its a bit hard to get to grips with, when you first try the combat you'll make many mistakes. However you can get better quickly and become thoroughly enthralled in the battles.
In Your Face
Having got up close and personal with my enemy I decided to try my hand with a bow. Again the realistic mechanics makes archery difficult but not impossible. Archers are just as dangerous as infantry and you can even take or bow/crossbow onto your trusty horse. However this is the only flaw in the combat system as on horse back archery is impossible and if you do manage to hit something you are rewarded with the smallest amount of damage making the whole system fruitless. If horse archers were as useless in real life as they are in Mount & Blade the Mongolians wouldn't have got out of their own back yard. Hopefully this feature will be improved in the final version as it would prove quite enjoyable.
Needs a Round with Mr. Muscles.
As much as I enjoyed Mount & Blade the lack of polish in the game needs to be addressed. Hopefully it will be improved by the time the game is released. As it stands now no voice acting exists. My army of mute deaf shabby peasants are lacking the ramboesque rage thats needed for a testosterone fueled battle. The sound is lacking in other aspects too. Cities aren't bustling and taverns feel like they are hosting a wake 24/7.
The graphics are impressive for a indie game but the character models definitely need to be improved. In the battles the lack of tactical options is a letdown. As of now both armies just charge each other and maybe the option of formations would be a nice addition as well as hold/advance etc. Mount & Blade is a thoroughly enjoyable experience and I eagerly await the finished product ... but that's still some way off.
Yet the signs are that Mount and Blade shows an in interesting new approach to the RPG and I'm certainly looking forward to playing the finished article.
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Mount & Blade review (PC)
1) Archery proficiency. You need it. Lots of it. 200+.
2) Skill points invested in Power Draw and Horse Archery. The higher your power draw, the longer you can hold a fully drawn bow. Higher horse archery means the accuracy penalty incurred while moving on horseback is lower.
3) The right bow. A higher damage bow or a bow with a power draw requirement too close to your current power draw level can make a difference with your accuracy. Try to get a bow that has a requirement of 1 or 2 points lower than your current power draw level.
I've been playing Mount & Blade since it was in the beta stages, specifically at version .632. Nearly 3 years!
Also, you forgot to mention the great community at www.taleworlds.com. There's a plethora of mods available, and new ones are being developed all the time, while old ones are being ported to the newest version of Mount & Blade.
As an added note, I'd like anyone who reads this to know that if you go to www.taleworlds.com before version 1.0 is released in September, you can buy the full version of the game for $25, instead of the $39 full price. The price is subject to change, as they increase it with every version that is released, so get it quick!
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If you actually played the game, and uhm, pressed the ESC button and went into a thing called OPTIONS, you would find that there are infact hotkey commands for hold, advance, spread out, etc etc.
And archery combat on horse isn't very hard if you know how to calculate a target.
The rest of the review was pretty good, but just because you aren't good at horse archery, doesn't mean its a flaw in the game. It just means you suck at it.
----Edited by user 30/07-2008 09:13
@CrezyDude: I know the option exists but hold, advance, spread out and dismount hardly qualifies as a formation. I would like to see a setup where the infantry lines up in front with the missile units behind and cavalry on a flank of your choosing. I used those option and found them pretty useless. There seems to be no tactical advantage gained from using any of them and in the end whether they are spread out or bunched together they still end up in the middle fighting and the hold/ advance option seemed buggy to me. Also what I meant was the hold and advance option incorporated into formations ( if they were introduced ) and the etc applies that I want more then just hold and advance. Just seems like there is no battlefield command at all.
----Edited by user 30/07-2008 09:41
----Edited by user 30/07-2008 09:58
Boomtown Staff Writer
About the battle tactic, it needs a overhaul for sure. But its use full now, it just take a lot of time to use it properly. And most of the time its a wast of time. You can give individual orders. Take your archers to high ground a tell them to stand, tell infantry to advance and mounted to follow you. That way your archers can kill the from distance, infantry will keep the enemy busy and riders kill the rest. They don't always listen the first time, but keep hitting the button they will get it. Battle tactic is there, but fare from great I will agree with you.
But great work with the review. Its impossible to please everyone :)
p.s. Sorry for my bad English
a) remarking the awesome community of the game at http://www.taleworlds.com
b) mentioning the high possibilities at modifying the game with the tools the developers or the community have made available for free. A lot of AWESOME mod's are in development currently.
c) remarking that the game has a tactical screen where you can give orders at your infantry, archers and cavalry with point and click commands. It's a MUST to use it at start of every battle to be really effective in battles. Placing your archers in high ground, your infantry in first line and your cavalry in a flank or following you and then issue the Charge! commands timely is essential.
d) the game aims for reasistic approach to combat, so horse archery is portrayed as real as possible and you can't shoot in a 360º arc and also you have a great penalty to accuracy. That doesn't mean a flaw, and with proper character skill development (and proper player skill) horse archery is deadly. Just circle your only melee armed enemy shooting arrows at them while they can't reach you with their weapons... have you faced khergit hordes in game? They are excellent at this tactic. Pretty deadly. And by the way... I've practiced archery in real life, so I know what I'm talking about...
And regarding your response to SgtShwat I quote you: "Compared to all other aspects of the combat isn't investing in horse combat a lot of effort?". In medieval times, being able to fight mounted was a GREAT difference between ending the combat alive or dead. This game also portray this with accuracy.
----Edited by user 30/07-2008 10:42
The character I created was great at melee combat and archery (not mounted).
Also, this could just be me, but the AI seems just to charge at you head on so once you develop your party to a high level you can usually meet them head on and win with comfort meaning tactics take a back seat.
And Kega your English is extremely impressive.
Boomtown Staff Writer
@Escorpion:
1) I agree the community is fantastic but I was previewing Mount & Blade the "vanilla" version.
2) You talk about mods. Again I was not previewing the mods thats something different altogether.
3)I wanted to see formations. Tactics in the game are flawed in my opinion. A simple interface for tactics would be welcome but I'm not going to criticise heavily because I know this is not the final version
4) Yeah horse archery was very difficult in real life. I myself has also handled and used a bow as well as had some experience in horse riding but horse archers in real life didn't ride up close and fire while galloping fast they usually fired on large numbers of men from a great distance like a foot archers the only difference with them is that they could maneuver better. I don't believe that they would use the tactics they use in M&B. I'm not a military historian but I do have some knowledge on the issue.
5) As for your final point. It is a lot of effort in the game and real life. You say it made a great difference but horse archers became very obsolete in medieval warfare pretty quickly but thats beside the point. Also that quote. I was talking about it from a gamers point of view. It's not worth the hassle to become great at horse archery in my opinion. Also the enemy horse archers do little or none damage. Whenever I was hit I only took 3 damage. Therefore they are portrayed poorly in the game for me.
----Edited by user 30/07-2008 11:19
----Edited by user 30/07-2008 11:19
Boomtown Staff Writer
And as for your point on horse archery, practice it a lot more and focus on a purely archer oriented character, investing in power draw and horse archery. You are not meant to be a universal behemoth that can kick arse no matter what equipment you use. Thats not the way the game was designed.
Boomtown Staff Writer
Horse archery does require a lot of point investment to be truly effective. However, it is not portrayed poorly by the Khergits, as you have stated. 3 damage? Unless your damage settings are at 1/4th or half, you were just really lucky or you were wearing a tin can (plate armor). On the taleworlds forums, I've noticed that the Khergits are almost unanimously thought to be the most dangerous, if not the most annoying faction in the game and for good reason: mounted archers are deadly.
When the Mongols invaded Europe, their large force of horse archers was quite effective, and other armies adopted this style of combat quickly, even those as far west as France. Also, the tactics you described for horse archers only truly applies to horse archery in western europe, as the Mongols were quite adept at firing on the move, and in fact are well known for their 'Parthian' tactics, where they would fire almost straight behind them while feigning a retreat.
@ point two: Agreement!...Sort of. Yeah I was getting 3 damage against me but I was wearing heavy amour but that shouldn't matter really. The Khergits horse archers are only mediocre in my opinion. They were poor against my character because I used a fast horse to chase them down and up close they are very vulnerable. The AI could do a better job tactically with them. I often found them riding into rocks and tress and as you know the horse jerked up causing a massive delay in movement and they were then easily killed. Another point is that it's very difficult for the average gamer to become good at horse archery. It would require hours upon hours of practice and for the average gamer thats not enough to hold their attention. Also even with all your stats for horse archery bumped up full getting a good shot off is still difficult while on the move.
@ point three: I agree they were the amazing horse archers and I did mention that in the preview. Also got to realise that not every shot being fired off was aimed at the enemy directly. What I mean by that is if they were being chased by a enemy then firing into the bunch of them (hoping to get a kill) was really what they were doing. But some probably would have aimed for direct kills but, for a direct assault they wouldn't have charged into the enemy like they do in the game. Thats the point I'm making.
But I do think this game was great potential. Being a big fan of Mount & Blade, like you are, means you a very good at horse archery. If someone new was to pick up and play M&B then Horse archery would be extremely difficult and take a major amount of time to become good at. Yeah it would be the same in real life but this game isn't real life so why make it as difficult?
Thanks.
Boomtown Staff Writer
The screenshots you have used have been linked in the Taleworlds forum to the manically-anticipated version 1.0, but myself I am not so sure.
Boomtown Staff Writer
Cannot wait for 1.0! Rumors are that there will be new motion-captured animations, which should be a definite improvement.
Formations won't be in there, since Armagan has said that he wants battle to seem like a somewhat chaotic, unruly affair. Possibly the "move closer" thing might work better, but even the limited orders you have can actually be used to very great effect, especially in combination with terrain and troop type. Over at the forums there are masses of posts about this, with some really good tips.
And besides, the modders have already done formations and will do so again very rapidly once 1.0 is out.
The mods, simply put, are freaking awesome.
A major overhaul of the campaign map need to be done. I got bored after quite a short time. I got tired doing the same old stuff.
Boomtown Staff Writer
It is not. It is merely a hands-on PREVIEW.
Of course we will REVIEW the game at a later date when supplied with complete code from the publisher.
But some of you need to stop getting your knickers in a twist about something that is a look at an incomplete version of the game.
UK Editor
Coming Soon - a whole new Boomtown!
However, you also mentioned that units do little damage and behave poorly.
There are options to control both the damage and the AI level of behaviour.
I keep these on the hardest difficulties, and archers are my greatest threat on the battlefield. (as well as priority targets)
Besides missing a few key points, and already implemented features, the review (of the beta) was quite good.
----Edited by user 30/08-2008 07:49
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