New player here! Just conquered Calradia for the first time

New player here (I picked up Warband about a month ago, on a whim) and all I can say is, WOW! What an experience! This game had me obsessed for the past few weeks... I couldn’t play other games, and I found myself babbling about fiefs and right to rule to anyone unfortunate enough to be within earshot. I’d love to go on and on about the specifics, so... I will! Enjoy.

First off: the combat is incredibly addictive. It is shocking how so many AAA games have mounted combat, and how that mounted combat is always horrendous. Somehow the devs here struck a perfect balance. The jumping physics of the horse is kinda crazy, but it sure makes things a lot easier and faster (I don’t mind sacrifices in realism to make gameplay flow more smoothly). It took me a while to figure out, but I love how your melee weapon swings in such controlled, specific directions. There is nothing more satisfying than swinging a two handed axe over and over again on a sea of Rhodok backs (turn around, ya dum dums!).

Second: the game world. Massive and diverse. Even as I took my final castle I was surprised by how unique the siege map was. It actually felt like I never conquered the same place twice. And then there are all the vassals. My jaw dropped when I first browsed the encyclopedia and saw that massive list of names. I felt like a mastermind parsing through that list for an ideal assortment of allies, and then slowly gaining their recognition, trust, and finally, unwavering loyalty. I also found each claimant’s and companion’s history fascinating and surprisingly well written for something that I assume is translated.

Third: voice acting. I love it when a farmer says, “It’s almost harvesting season!” Nuff said.

Fourth: strategy. I could go on and on about this one. You need a rather large amount of it to conquer the whole nation, because being a one man combat god capable of killing hundreds is simply not enough. Deciding which factions to war with, which to make peace with, which geographical routes your compaign should take, which soldiers comprise your army, who, where and how many to garrison... all these things and more are an integral part of Warband. I still couldn’t believe how awesome it felt when within a few days of starting my own faction, I managed to convince Grainwad and Plais to defect. Seeing about a third (2 towns, 8 castles, lots of villages) of Swadia turn from orange to red instantaneously felt reaaal good. Especially since it was all part of my master plan. Mwahaha!

Random, fond memories. Encountering my first companion, and thinking, ‘300 Denars to add him to my party? What a rip-off— i could enlist a recruit for 1/30th of that price!’ Fast forward to level 20something Rolfs, Basheturs, et al., my front line, absolutely ripping through armies. My secret? Just treat them like spoiled little girls— give them expensive clothes and horses, and dote on their abilities. Then they’ll shine. Another memory: getting annhilated by my first couched lance hit. Another: learning my first poem, then telling it to a lady, who thought it was utter rubbish. Yet another: the first time Grainwad suggested i visit his daughter, Lady Sonadel. In those very words I heard wedding bells faintly ringing, and the rest is history. Tender, poem-reciting and tournament-dedicating history. A final memory: the look on Harlaus’ face when I asked to by released from his vassalage. Oh, he was heartbroken. Yet he wished me the best of luck. He’s a big man, that Harlaus.

I played this game on the XBone, and actually found it a pretty great port (not that I have any comparison). I’m dying to play some of the mods, though, so will DEFINITELY be repurchasing this next month when I get a new computer. Anyway, if any of y’all made it through to this, the end, thanks for reading! It was a pleasure sharing my wonderful experience. Feel free to ask me whatever you please.

Submitted August 15, 2018 at 11:56AM by peaceahki https://ift.tt/2nCxree