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Turn-Based Tactics Warbanners - turn-based tactics from the developers of Drums of War

Princess Rage

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One last question. Feel free to ignore this one if you like as it really is a trifling matter and I would hate to waste the time and energy of a developer who makes games that are actually good.

Do boosts to stats from items count towards those checks?
 

Vlad_Konung

Crasleen Games
Developer
Joined
Feb 2, 2017
Messages
129
One last question. Feel free to ignore this one if you like as it really is a trifling matter and I would hate to waste the time and energy of a developer who makes games that are actually good.

Do boosts to stats from items count towards those checks?

Bonuses from artifacts are not taken into account. Only "pure" values of characteristics.
 

Princess Rage

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Continuing to use bro's account (maybe I should just commandeer it indefinitely. He hasn't used it in ages and I doubt he cares.)

Browsing a bit on the steam discussions page made it seem that you were looking for ways to change the dancer and the knight.

My suggestions for the dancer:

The easiest thing would be to give her the "loner" malus but have her have a very high evasion stat. The idea is that she is dancing about the empty tiles around her making her harder to hit. An advantage here is that this is a very easy adjustment to make. It also fits the dancer theme well. It does have problems in that it does not account for how many empty tiles are around her (it seems like more space should mean more evasion) or even the possibility of being completely surrounded by the enemy (the "loner" malus only considers allies with adjacent enemies being irrelevant to the malus). Depending on how much work you want to do on it you could make something more detailed that takes into account such things.

Alternatively, you could give her a free attack for every 2 tiles she moves (or perhaps, alternatively, let her move 2 tiles for free for every attack she makes). This allows her to be used in defensive play (which seems to be the best option most of the time as the large number of enemy melee units means that it's usually best to run for some terrain that will minimize the maximum number of enemy melee units that can actually attack per a turn) like so: Place her where there is a gap in the enemy line. Going through the gap, circle around to an enemy unit's flank, back-stab and return to starting position. This will be possible with 5 AP if she has the free attack/move mechanic. Something advantageous about this is how well it fits the dancer theme; she is moving and attacking at the same time, employing a "combat dance", which allows her to perform both of these actions at an overall lower AP cost.

Another idea would be to increase her evasion by one, until the start of your next turn, for each tile she moves. The idea is that she is dancing about making her harder to hit, once again fitting well with the dancer theme.

Yet another idea would be to simply give her an ass load of damage on back-stabs and perhaps one more AP. It might be difficult to get into the enemy's rear and pound pound pound strike and have her live to tell the tale but the rewards might be worth it if she's one-shotting enemy back liners. A potential problem here though is that in these cases the dancer\s might simply be shot to pieces by said back liners.

You can ignore the next paragraph if you like. It is long and less directly relevant.

In general an issue in many games with many units that are meant to bypass the front line and attack the back line is that no advantage is gained in getting them to the back line (on the contrary, often times it is disadvantageous). Take HoMaM for instance. You get a flyer or fast unit stack to the back, hitting one of their shooter stacks. Great. The stack then proceeds to get gang-banged by enemy stacks until it is destroyed (rarely will the stack even survive to see another turn, assuming evenly matched forces) and you probably would have been better off just using the stack as a regular melee stack. Back line assaulting units need to be given the appropriate abilities such that assaulting the enemy back line with them is actually a good move. For example, in HoMaM's case a suicide bomb stack might work well for this. The suicide bomb stack is wasted on a front line unit stack (like treants) or a "chaff" stack (a stack made up of a single peasant or some such) but using it on a squishy glass cannon back liner "yields you a handsome profit", especially if other units are caught in the blast. You could have a unit that can teleport away once it has dealt sufficient damage. It's mana pool would fill as it deals damage. Against tanks it would fill slowly so if the unit is caught it would be ineffective. Against the intended squishes, however, the pool would fill quickly allowing the unit to actually effectively deal damage to the back line and then live to tell the tale by teleporting away.

What was the point of the bla-bla-bla of the above paragraph? The point is that back line assaulting units generally need to be designed so that they are effective when used in their target role and ineffective when used in certain other roles (like slug fest participant). For this some creativity may be required.

I don't have much to say about knights. Perhaps they could be effective if you could somehow get them to the enemy back line after their melee units have engaged your wall. I suspect the AI is too stupid to send any melee units that are already in melee range of a target back to deal with such things. The problem is that in general if the player is playing properly then the enemy will have plenty of melee units that are unable to engage your wall due to limited space. I'm pretty sure the AI will send them to the only target/s available to them: The player's knight\s in the back line. He\they will then be gang-banged.

At least they have assault which can allow you to gain back ground lost to enemy units using assault. Rune smiths have impact though and seem like better units in general.

I might give the matter of knights more thought in the unlikely event you are interested.


One last final thing:

Perhaps Vial of Souls and Souldrinker should require negative karma to be used? I mean, consuming\imprisoning souls is pretty damn nasty. It seems like most games overlook this actually. Ever played Pillars of Eternity (I haven't , actually, but I've heard a bit about it)?

[edit]

OK, I guess that wasn't the final thing. :D

I'm curious about the "token" system. You give the example of a 60% token pool. 12 whites, 8 blacks. As hits and misses occur whites and blacks respectively are removed from the token pool and when the pool is empty it is replenished with another 20 tokens. But what happens if the TO HIT % changes before that happens, as I imagine it would in nearly all cases? Is their a separate pool for each TO HIT % for each side? So if I have a bunch of footmen at 60% chance to hit and a bunch of archers at 60% chance to hit then if the footmen all miss the chance to hit for the archers goes up? Meanwhile if the footmen are at 60% but the archers are at 65% then the hits and misses from the footmen have no effect on the archers' chances to hit?

If their are separate pools for each 5% increment chance to hit for each side I have to say it would take a hell of a lot of patience to count the tokens and "exploit" this information. It would be kind of like "counting cards" in games like Poker.

Personally, I am one of those "random haters" that seem to be so reviled around here but I will still probably just stick to the original RNG system since that was what the game was designed in mind with. Not to say that I have any issue with those who enjoy randomness. Whatever floats your boat and all that.

(Edit: Grammar corrections)
 
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Whisper

Arcane
Vatnik
Joined
Feb 29, 2012
Messages
4,357
Guys, who knows exactly how karma affects dialogues and story line?


Also difference between nightmare and hard is that you cant ressurect your soldiers?
 

Vlad_Konung

Crasleen Games
Developer
Joined
Feb 2, 2017
Messages
129
Guys, who knows exactly how karma affects dialogues and story line?


Also difference between nightmare and hard is that you cant ressurect your soldiers?

It is not worth worrying about karma. In several dialogues there will be no choice, but you will not miss anything interesting. Karma does not play an important role. I will advise one thing - when they propose to go to the lake, it is better to go.

Yes, the difference is only in the possibility of resurrection.
 

Vlad_Konung

Crasleen Games
Developer
Joined
Feb 2, 2017
Messages
129
Princess Rage
Thank you! Sorry, I was busy with the release of DLС.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/818700/Warbanners_Death_Speaker/

You underestimate AI a little. Sometimes he can do unexpected things))).
Ideas about the dancer are very interesting, but difficult to implement. They require changes in many places. Now, after the release, I do not want to process the code so deeply. There will be new errors, new tests ... Too difficult. But I'll take into account the future. I repeat, the ideas are interesting. Thank you!
 

Galdred

Studio Draconis
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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
I have played the game a bit (5 skirmishes and 5 campaign missions), and the RNG is definitely not a problem.
I think the problem players have is that most units have a low chance to hit and low damage when they do, but that has nothing to do with the RNG:
It is because of the starting units, 3 are swordsmen and another one is a swordsman commander. So more than half of the starting units have abysmal to hit chance and paltry damage.
I think if there were more "DPS" and less tanks in the starting roster, things would not be so bad.
The trick is that it would be hard to hold the line with less, and holding the line in a corner of the map is of critical importance here, given that you are almost always badly outnumbered.

Another perceived RNG issue might be because it is a real pain to level up replacements(it was already in Drums of War). It takes forever for newbies to get in line with your other troops. It would be much easier if they got a huge XP bonus for fighting harder enemies (aka, have a "threat level" value for each map, and give extra XP if an unit level is below, and reduced if it is above).

Now, when it comes to the knight, I have not used him here, but in Drums of War, loner was a huge problem already, and it was very hard to make the knight work:
loner means he will be surrounded a lot, so he'll have a defense malus, and won't benefit from formation, obviously.
His stats are good, but not good enough to make up for this, compared to your bread and butter swordsman.

The game is really nice apart from these small issues, so don't mess with the underlying system too much IMO.
 

Galdred

Studio Draconis
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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
btw, when it comes to replayability, I think the game would benefit greatly from a custom company creation for later playthroughs.

Edit: update:
I am almost done with the base game. I really think the magic abilities and the terrain manipulation (through digging ditches, constructing barricades) add a lot to the combat. I had more fun with it than Battle Brothers (and I liked BB) because of it.

update 2:
Completed both human and orc DLC campaign.
I had great fun with both. The orc campaign is much shorter, but that also has some benefits (less focus on unit conservation, less "campaign fatigue", and skirmishes feel more useful than in the human campaign).

I really liked the orc roster, where each unit had a niche (except for the net throwers!).
It also felt much less "defensive" than the human campaign.
 
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Taka-Haradin puolipeikko

Filthy Kalinite
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Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire Make the Codex Great Again! Grab the Codex by the pussy Bubbles In Memoria
https://steamcommunity.com/games/650440/announcements/detail/1667898210974828909

Warbanners version 1.2.4.
26 April - crasleen_games
Changes

- Changed the algorithm for equipping enemies with potions. Enemies now have less potions thrown, but more potions drunk. This will reduce the number of debuffs that are imposed on the player's units (due to the fact that the number of thrown potions is less).

- Barrels of gunpowder now explode with one blow. Enemies are now more likely to approach barrels, as well as break them when it’s advantageous to do so.

- Arrows, potions and stones loosed from catapults now move along more natural (parabolic) trajectories.

- In Russian and English versions, the names of the difficulty levels have been changed. "Easy" is now called "Casual", and "Normal" is called "Classic". By default, the game offers to start playing at a "Casual" level of difficulty.

- The amount of gold obtained at the "Casual" level of difficulty has been slightly increased.

- The cost of Brondrin's assistant, who allows you to hire dwarfs, has been reduced from 70 to 50.

- The number of Necromancers in the "Where the dead things are" mission have been reduced at the casual and classic level of difficulty.

Gameplay Tips

- In the second mission, many players don’t seem to understand the importance of using "Liquid Fire". Illumination is one of the key mechanics of the combat system: Please, throw at least one potion at the enemies – you’ll see how your chances of success dramatically increase!

- Another hint with the Necromancers in the "Where the dead things are" mission – we’ve noted many players do not try to address the necromancers first. Necromancers are much more dangerous than zombies or skeletons, destroy them immediately for better results!

If you have suggestions for how we can better illustrate these or any other key mechanics/features, please let us know here on the Steam discussion boards, or on our Discord: https://discord.gg/EQ3VbRd -- and of course if you enjoy Warbanners, please consider telling others that might be interested, posting a review, etc. to help us continue to get the word out. Thanks for your support!

https://steamcommunity.com/app/650440/discussions/0/1634111706738233537/

Warbanners-2
I'm thinking about Warbanners-2. Of course, the Warbanners game is not ideal (I'm not talking about the visual part). But I want to make ideal Warbanners-2))).

The concept of Warbanners-2.
"Half-open world." It consists of nodes (points on the world map), between which the player's army moves freely. You can go to any of the points, go back, visit the city... Plot. Walkground is nonlinear. When you move around the world map, you spend time and money (food and payment to soldiers).

Army recruiting. Differences from Warbanners:
- Presence of army reserve.
- When performing special conditions, you can hire orcs, monsters and even some of the undead. But, for example, paladins will not fight in the same army with vampires!
- You can hire units of any level.
- Improved units free. Improving each characteristic or learning a skill costs a certain amount of experience. That is, an improvement over experience, and not for achieving a level.

Changes in the combat system:
Increasing the role of Morale (units will flee more often from the battlefield). New active and passive skills, spells. Units will be able to learn more than 3 active skills and spells (probably).

Other changes:
Permadeath. Injuries (temporary or permanent) - similar to Battle Brothers, but they will be less. A massive debuffs debuffing spell. The ability to create your own maps in the editor and change the units (probably).

Cooldown will, since the use of certain skills (for example, calling a toad, throwing a dagger) can limit only Cooldown.

Dear players! Please help make Warbanners-2 an ideal game! What else to add or change? Suggestions for the combat system, units, objects of the terrain, spells, skills, etc. Thank you!
 

Citizen

Guest
https://steamcommunity.com/games/650440/announcements/detail/1667898210974828909

Warbanners version 1.2.4.
26 April - crasleen_games
Changes

- Changed the algorithm for equipping enemies with potions. Enemies now have less potions thrown, but more potions drunk. This will reduce the number of debuffs that are imposed on the player's units (due to the fact that the number of thrown potions is less).

- Barrels of gunpowder now explode with one blow. Enemies are now more likely to approach barrels, as well as break them when it’s advantageous to do so.

- Arrows, potions and stones loosed from catapults now move along more natural (parabolic) trajectories.

- In Russian and English versions, the names of the difficulty levels have been changed. "Easy" is now called "Casual", and "Normal" is called "Classic". By default, the game offers to start playing at a "Casual" level of difficulty.

- The amount of gold obtained at the "Casual" level of difficulty has been slightly increased.

- The cost of Brondrin's assistant, who allows you to hire dwarfs, has been reduced from 70 to 50.

- The number of Necromancers in the "Where the dead things are" mission have been reduced at the casual and classic level of difficulty.

Gameplay Tips

- In the second mission, many players don’t seem to understand the importance of using "Liquid Fire". Illumination is one of the key mechanics of the combat system: Please, throw at least one potion at the enemies – you’ll see how your chances of success dramatically increase!

- Another hint with the Necromancers in the "Where the dead things are" mission – we’ve noted many players do not try to address the necromancers first. Necromancers are much more dangerous than zombies or skeletons, destroy them immediately for better results!

If you have suggestions for how we can better illustrate these or any other key mechanics/features, please let us know here on the Steam discussion boards, or on our Discord: https://discord.gg/EQ3VbRd -- and of course if you enjoy Warbanners, please consider telling others that might be interested, posting a review, etc. to help us continue to get the word out. Thanks for your support!

https://steamcommunity.com/app/650440/discussions/0/1634111706738233537/

Warbanners-2
I'm thinking about Warbanners-2. Of course, the Warbanners game is not ideal (I'm not talking about the visual part). But I want to make ideal Warbanners-2))).

The concept of Warbanners-2.
"Half-open world." It consists of nodes (points on the world map), between which the player's army moves freely. You can go to any of the points, go back, visit the city... Plot. Walkground is nonlinear. When you move around the world map, you spend time and money (food and payment to soldiers).

Army recruiting. Differences from Warbanners:
- Presence of army reserve.
- When performing special conditions, you can hire orcs, monsters and even some of the undead. But, for example, paladins will not fight in the same army with vampires!
- You can hire units of any level.
- Improved units free. Improving each characteristic or learning a skill costs a certain amount of experience. That is, an improvement over experience, and not for achieving a level.

Changes in the combat system:
Increasing the role of Morale (units will flee more often from the battlefield). New active and passive skills, spells. Units will be able to learn more than 3 active skills and spells (probably).

Other changes:
Permadeath. Injuries (temporary or permanent) - similar to Battle Brothers, but they will be less. A massive debuffs debuffing spell. The ability to create your own maps in the editor and change the units (probably).

Cooldown will, since the use of certain skills (for example, calling a toad, throwing a dagger) can limit only Cooldown.

Dear players! Please help make Warbanners-2 an ideal game! What else to add or change? Suggestions for the combat system, units, objects of the terrain, spells, skills, etc. Thank you!

This and Zodiac Legion should share the GOTY crown for me.
 

Galdred

Studio Draconis
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Developer
Joined
May 6, 2011
Messages
4,346
Location
Middle Empire
Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
By Zodiac Legion you mean Galdred 's game that has not been released in any form so far?
Hehe, Release is still far away with all the geoscape things to implement, but I have good hopes for GOTY 2020 (unless Early Access can also be GOTY)! But let's not derail Vlad's thread any further :)
Btw, Warbanner would also be my GOTY, and it is definitely the 2018 game I played the most according to Steam.
 
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Mustawd

Guest
Vlad_Konung , can you talk about how well this game has sold? If you can't provide figures, maybe if it's gone above, below or met expectations?
 

Citizen

Guest
By Zodiac Legion you mean Galdred 's game that has not been released in any form so far?

Yes, of course I mean GOTY 20XX. But it's not like I have any real interest with other upcoming games, so i'll wait. (there's also this TFTD remake, but seems like it's turning meh)
 

Vlad_Konung

Crasleen Games
Developer
Joined
Feb 2, 2017
Messages
129
Vlad_Konung , can you talk about how well this game has sold? If you can't provide figures, maybe if it's gone above, below or met expectations?

Sold about 9000 copies. The refund is 11%. I am satisfied with the result. Not super, but good.

Thanks to the forum participants for their support!
 

Princess Rage

Novice
Joined
Feb 5, 2012
Messages
32
Location
Castle Rage
Account borrowing to post my pedantics again... but first:

"Gunpowder barrel was best block item.... :(((( why?"

Most likely they programmed the AI to only attack the barrels if the explosion will hit more enemy targets than friendly targets. What will probably work well will be to keep the barrel at the end of your line with the spaces behind it empty. Once the AI takes up the spaces in front of it so that it has a few adjacent to it you will probably be safe from them exploding it as long as you don't put a number of units adjacent to it greater than what the AI has.

Now, onto my pedantics :D :


I got stuck into some let's plays for Les's game "Age of Fear 3". I don't know of any way to get his attention as I haven't bought the game (yet :). It's on my backlog) noticed the following contradictions in the story:

In the "Nature of the Beast" campaign Galad is killed in the first battle.

When the protagonists of that campaign are escaping through the sewers it mentions Gilrock's group's business in the sewers.

After Gilrock's group leaves the city they encounter Galad in the forest.

So the order of events is thusly:

1: Galad is killed acting as a distraction for the beastmaster
2: Gilrock kills the necromancer in the sewers
3: Gilrock leaves the city and encounters Galad in the forest.

This seems to clearly be contradictory.

Any explanation?


Another thing is that it seemed like the city was supposed to be dwarven (The dwarf narrating mentioned his forefathers starting to carve the city out of the mountain) and yet in Gilrock's campaign the people encountered in it are nearly all humans (The guards guarding the gunpowder warehouse and the merchant's house along with most of the people in the merchant's basement where the demonic ritual was taking place.). Not necessarily a contradiction but it does seem a tad odd.
 
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Galdred

Studio Draconis
Patron
Developer
Joined
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Messages
4,346
Location
Middle Empire
Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Actually, the opponents might attack the barrel if it opens a path.
Sometimes, they even destroy it when it does not change much.

Why are you posting about Age of Fear 3 in this thread, Princess Rage ?
 

Princess Rage

Novice
Joined
Feb 5, 2012
Messages
32
Location
Castle Rage
Whoops, forgot to explain that. It's because Crasleen Games is a friend (or something like that) of Les, the developer of Age of Fear 3. I thought it'd be bad to post in the Age of Fear 3 thread since it hasn't been posted in for months and Les hasn't been active for months (and therefore would be unlikely to respond).
 

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