Let's Play King Arthur: Amulet of Sir Marrick

anus_pounder said:

Well, the Old Faith game had London (lolcodexchoice), so will you be taking the supposedly old faith stronghold this time?

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Without a doubt, London is the easier of the two, they only have one province to conquer. I'll see what I can do, the King Idres fight is brutal.



2 Red pips indicate Rank 7 units.

- They have super mobile cavalry at rank 7. We'll have to race them to a VP and take them out. Because the AI just loves fighting when they have number advantage.

-The rest of the army consists of the standard brigand archers and footmen. All of them with souped up ranks.

-But the real problem lies with the two heroes. They're going to rape us hard if we take them on head to head. They got more HP and mana than our heroes. So we'll have to rely on archers.

After that, we'll see what happens. Now I'm off to work. As for the Bible quotes, I'll try to trim them down. [/img]

Rant from work:

Attribute changes that should be done in the sequel:

1. Leadership - A great leader inspires his soldiers to last longer
Current effect:
Lower upkeep cost, allows diplomatic options in text adventures.

Proposed Change:
Increases army unit speed & HP in combat & lower recruitment costs. It's probably the only saving grace for Warlords.

2. Reign
Current effect:
Increased income from provinces under the Knight's rule.

Proposed Change:
Drop it completely. It's a war-game, it has no noticeable effect in game.

3. Fight / Combat - A great warrior inspires his unit to do the same
Current effect:
HP & Damage increase to both hero and unit. Combat option for text adventures.

Proposed change:
Drop the HP bonus for unit and keep everything else. This is the hero's combat effectiveness, not his prowess in leading his soldiers. It should inspire them to fight harder, but not enable them to sustain more damage.

4. Adventure
Current effect:
Increased army movement and bonus EXP from text adventures and stealth options.

Proposed change:
Remove it. There really is not much payoff in having a high adventure. Except for questing purpose, sure you might have mobile army to deal with multiple threats rapidly, but otherwise, there's no gain during battles. There might be a lack of stealth attribute for quests, but hell, who keeps multiple high Adventure stat anyway? Merge it with Combat. Assassin combat if you will to allow stealthy take downs or honorable duels.

5. Magic - In depth knowledge of magic, makes his spells more effective
Current Effect:
A flat 5% mana capacity increase.

Proposed change:
Instead of a mana capacity bonus, it should be used in damage calculation when casting spells. I'm sure it'll lead to interesting situations where a higher magic leads to longer duration, more damage, cheaper cost, etcetera. Not just more spell-spamming.

Final cut:
1.Might (Fighter)
2.Magic (Caster)
3.Leadership (General)

This also throws away all the useless artifacts that clutters the game with +1 Reign and Adventure rings.

And passive bonus for classes per level up:
Warlords : 10% + 2.5% Army Movement per level
Champion : 10% + 2.5% HP per level
Sage : 10% + 2.5% Mana per level

Now, for lunch time.

Well, we only have 3 characters, so I suppose I notice the bible quotes a lot more. Once the circle is complete, I doubt I'll notice if one guy quotes the bible in a grou of 5-6 guys talking.
Plz continue the of LPs.

Pre-battle, attackers are usually given a choice of battleground to take place in.



Unless you sport all-archers, do not even attempt to take on the River maps. It's horribly imbalanced with terrible choke point archer massacres and VP domination for the defenders.

I chose Green Woods Edge instead for a mix of Plains, Forests and Hill. Even though I've played this game extensively, I still cannot remember the maps layout by heart until the map loads.



Looks like we start in a harder spot. We're going to have to send a fast unit to capture the lone village to the west. While the rest of the army march to secure two VP to the south.



The opening move is usually the most exciting because the battlefield is so open and full of possibilities. And in clear weather, you can spot the enemy troops from quite a distance. Sir Mark and the cavalry unit will rush towards the Village. The rest secures the other two points.



The enemy also deploys their fastest units to capture the village and sends the rest to meet the bulk of our forces.



With their greater numbers, they can afford to sprinkle more soldiers around to secure VP.



King Idres' cavalry reaches the village first! We need to dislodge them!



Instead of securing the point, the lone cavalry retreated to the forests upon spotting our superior forces! How fortunate!



We secured the village quickly, knowing that the enemy would come soon.



Our main forces is sending a lone footmen unit ahead to capture the VP on top of the hill. No sense in risking our whole forces being bombarded by archers.



Finally, the enemy returns to attack the village. It's time for battle!



Both Sir Mark and the light cavalry unit combines to take on the enemy.



Good time to bust out Dragonstrike!



Our lone footmen successfully captured the VP and retreats under fire by the enemy archers, sustaining several casualties.



For with fire and with his sword the LORD will execute judgment upon all men, and many will be those slain by the LORD. (Isaiah 66:16)

Both men and their horses burned.



Suddenly, night fell. And I decided to re-position my army to a better position. The Sentinels will march to give relief to Sir Mark while Heavy Footmen will stand guard with the archers. Strangely, the enemy did nothing throughout the spell effect.



By the fourth cast, Sir Mark is out of mana and had to rely on his steel. The saving grace is that his close vicinity to the village continues to replenish stamina.



Sensing that VP domination is not possible, the enemy pushes his main army southwards. Sir Gareth replied with a Curse of Shadow to weaken their archer columns.



It's best to start exchanging fire when the Curse of Shadow is in effect to score free hits while they scatter.



I also instructed my heavy footmen to break from cover and march forward in wedge formation to take any advancing columns in the open.



And guess what? The enemy sent a light infantry column to attack Sir Mark. I broke off Sir Mark and our wounded cavalry from engagement to get some range and then....



An easy trample and they lost almost half of their men. Then we start chewing them up while our Sentinels arrive.



To deal with their exhausted cavalry.



On the other side of the map, three of our heavy infantry unit tie up their heroes, while our archers continue to barrage the oncoming enemy columns, with Sir Kay's Cloud of Arrows, of course.



Our heavy footmen is getting cleaved to pieces, but I can take heart that the archers remain untouched. We can still perform hit and run.



I focus fire on the spear men to the left, while our last light infantry held the oncoming column from the right.



Ignoring the closest infantry stack, I decided to disengage one of my heavy footmen and start an archer barrage on the enemy hero stack.



While Sir Mark mops up. I'm surprised at his resilience, but then I remembered his artifact. The Helm of Phoenix that grants 2 HP per second.



The two surviving heavy footmen watch as an anemy hero falls to a barrage of arrows. That's one down.



Uh oh. The other two heavy footmen unit is not doing so well. I give the orders to break off as the archers take aim. But both units did not survive the escape, they got cleaved when they turned their backs wiping out both units.



A heavy price to pay.



Notice units that suffer heavy casualties got almost no XP? Yeah, they only reward kills. But the artifact reward is a sizeable 50% magic resistance armor. Let's hope we can recover our strength after this one.



Or perhaps not.

for doind this on very hard..

You should really hoard those R artifacts like gold, or make a bee-line for a hero with the Soul Mirror ability, for when you reach the point where you start fighting the old faith heroes with Curse of Shadows on skill-level 4, your archers will die faster than mayflies if you can't counter the magic..

Damn. Hardcore, bro

Good update RK. What happened with Knights of Xentar?

King Idres' reign ended and Dorset falls into King Arthur's realm. Sir Kay's army returns to Dumnonia, exhausted, but triumphant.



I've heard the news, King Bertram sends you his thanks, and seals our kingdoms' alliance.

I live to serve.

I would rather allow you some form of rest after such intense battle, but I'm afraid the news remain dire.

That I have no doubt. There is so much work to be done.



The populace whisper news of an impending battle between two brothers, Sir Balan and Sir Balin.

I've heard of him. Rumors spoke of Sir Balin's quest for a magical sword, which instead possessed him with an insatiable bloodlust.

Brothers against one another. What needs to be done?

If we do nothing, Sir Balan will surely fall, and I do not know how Sir Balin will react afterwards. The curse might consume his last vestiges of sanity.

Or, we could help Sir Balin...

Out of the question.

Very well, then. The evil one shall fall.

Then you will need more forces. Our treasury is nearly empty, but there might be another alternative. An exiled noble from Logres has sent an invitation to his wedding. Perhaps you may be able to seek help.

I'll go there immediately.

I'll do what I can here to replenish our forces.

Godspeed, Sir Mark. May the Lord guide your way.





I've never heard of a prisoner given the privilege to wed.



Tell me more of Sir John, the lord of this castle.



A devout Christian? Then he might a worthwhile ally. Come, let us enter the castle.



Hail, Sir John. I am Sir Mark of Dumnonia.



It's time to meet the groom.



Very well, I shall let your messenger take me to your quarters.



Tell me of your plans in Wessex, Prince Cedric.



Why would you plot against your future father in law? Is this how you repay his kindness? By deposing him? You are not worthy of my aid!



I shall accept your offer of those men, many thanks, Sir John.





This cavalry is basically an upgrade of the basic horsemen with slightly higher HP and same speed. With these two, I should have enough force to attack Sir Balin. Sir Mark rejoins Sir Kay's army.

Winter arrives and trainings bear fruit.


Rank 3 Cloud of Arrow for 60 second of triple damage.



Rank 2 Dragonstrike to smite our foes.



And finally, the Hold spell!



Looks fine to me. We're ready to stop Sir Balin!

Recap of Text Adventure:
The Seeds of War is related to conquest of London. These are the possible outcome that I know of:
-Logres plot will involve the garrison being reduced, due to scripted war with Saxons.
-Wessex plot will cause the whole province to revolt, allowing you to take it by battling the rebel forces yourself or bypass it to strike at London.

These two plots will give Tyrant points. Also, Sir John will react negatively. You can quell his anger by promising a Christian province, or sack his palace for extra stuff, or leave.

Pretty nice C&C overall.

The Brother's conflict is classic Biowarian quest.
Do you help the good bro or the evil bro. It's black and white, both reward a different hero, but leads to another same quest. However, if you ignore and let it expire, Sir Balin will kill his brother and go on a rampage in your province. It's best to tackle this one early. The extra hero helps you a lot.

lightbane said:

Good update RK. What happened with Knights of Xentar?

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You know what? I actually forgot about it! I'll see what I can do on my spare time since King Arthur really drained a lot of my time.

Sir Balin's forces is smaller than I thought, but we shouldn't discount a level 5 Champion ability to cleave our forces to bits. Engaging Sir Balin in melee should be done as a last resort.



I split my forces up. The infantry will stay behind the archers while the cavalry will prepare to charge from the right. This map has no VP and is a straightforward encounter.



Sir Balan arrives with his Golden Gryphons unit, but I consider this a non-factor. He is too slow to participate.



The enemy is approaching our archer's firing radius. It's time to spring the trap.



Sir Kay invokes the Fog of Avalon, while Sir Gareth blesses our army with Dragon's Eye to pierce the thick fog. Our cavalry will begin their charge as our archers open fire on their brigands.



Sir Balin's unit is within view. I can't risk him getting too close...and so Sir Gareth's Hold spell will come into play.



There we go! Sir Balin is now helpless as our Cavalry makes its charge and inflict free damage!



We bypass Sir Balin's frozen units and focused on their light infantry columns. Our sentinels march forward to cover our archers as they take aim at Sir Balin instead.



He didn't live long.





Sweet. Aside from joining us, Sir Balan also brings additional troops.



Sir Balan thanks Sir Kay for his aid and offers his services.

I welcome you to our ranks with open arms.

I am honored to serve such a righteous cause.

What of your brother?

That man is no longer my brother. A spirit has taken over, and it resides within this sword. I would like to request your aid in removing its curse.

Before that, I would like to report to our King.

As you wish, commander.

Later..

Welcome back, my knights! I see Sir Balan is safe.

He has joined our cause and request our aid in removing a curse.

Yes, while you were away I've assigned scribes to discover more about this cursed sword. They say a far away monastery might possess the ritual to do so.

I think we have very little time, with the matter of stronghold unresolved.

You are correct, Sir Gareth. That is why I have another alternative.

Do tell.

A group of druids in the province of Sugales may be able to remove the curse as well. Once the curse if lifted, gather your forces and assault Viroconium in the province of Powys.

That is the stronghold of the Old Faith, why do we start there?

I agree with Sir Kay, setting up a Christian Kingdom in that area is dangerous, the populace do not worship that faith. They may rebel.

Not to mention the neighboring Welsh Kingdom will not stand idly if we declare our intention as a Christian Kingdom.

Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter–in–law against her mother–in–law–a man's enemies will be the members of his own household. (Matthew 10:34-36)

You speak the truth! Let the word of God spread amongst the disbelievers. These heathens cannot deny the existence of our God when we defeat the armies of the Old Faith in their own turf!

Count me in as well, brother.

Very well. Assemble the army and march towards Powys!



Sir Balan is a Champion and starts with Rank 3 Cleave and two other skills. His unique skills are very ordinary pick and nothing stands out unlike Sir Balin's. However, his ruler traits is VERY useful. Glorious Leader & Just.

Glorious Leader reduces recruitment cost for the province he controls by 20%. There's a trick to exploit this trait to the fullest. Assign him to the province where you are about to start the recruitment, enjoy the 20% discount and return ownership to a more productive Knight once you've spent the gold.

In short, having Sir Balin permanently reduces all recruiting expenses by 20%! Awesome.

Just leaders grants +3 loyalty to all provinces he controls, offering lesser chance of revolt to occur and increases taxes. So my verdict: he's not as amazing as Sir Balin in combat, but he is effective in other ways than just combat.



The above quest can be ignored safely with no penalty. It gives a decent reward, a wife for one of your knights, after a tough battle. But it's entirely optional and I decide to just skip it.



Our morality is Righteous enough to unlock Yeomen, a spearmen unit with armor piercing and excellent resistance against trampling. But I have no free slot in my army.



The Golden Gryphons is an elite Righteous Heavy Infantry with high stamina, attack power and defense. But I just hate having to crawl around with them. They end up being too late to get into the action and had to settle for a passive role.

Siding with King Bertram will also unlock another quest. One that is VERY rewarding and offers a non violent solution.



This is an opportunity we cannot miss.

I agree. I'll see to it at once.

God bless, Sir Mark.





Such terrible destruction. There must be some survivors!





Then there is no time to waste! I must find that Ranger.



Quickly, surround them. I want this resolved with as little bloodshed as possible!



You are my war club, my weapon for battle—with you I shatter nations, with you I destroy kingdoms, (Jeremiah 51:20)







Lead me there, King Bertram's heir must be with them.



I have an obligation to rescue the prince, yet I cannot risk my own army for the Viroconium Crusade. Perhaps I can negotiate.



Our current treasury is 10,000 gold and 16,000 food.

Is there any other way we can pay for the release?



I refuse to be used for your evil deeds, take your gold and set all of them free.



As far as I know, this is the best outcome you can get from the quest without a single loss of men and gaining a giant unit.

Other possible outcomes:
-Accepting the price first time will make the leader raise the price.



Giants. Huge lumbering giants. Innate magical resistance, 2500 damage per strike. 10,000 hit points each. They come in trios per unit and is very effective at causing mayhem. They're not as fast as Cavalry but can outrun most light infantry due to their large strides. I attach them to Sir Balan for impressive damage and hit-point boost. This has a reverse effect of making the hero more vulnerable. He has less units protecting him, yet the bonus to raw giant damage per strike is amazing.



King Bertram cedes control of all his provinces and our realm grows as Sir Kay's army march northwards towards Sugales, and eventually, Viroconium.

Hoo boy. I hope you haven't bit off more than you can chew, this is an excellent LP.

Actually, I think attaching a hero to giants is not the best idea. Attaching a hero to the squad removes one unit from it, which means the hero has 2 bodyguards, not 3, and while the 2 giants get a hueg boost to everything, you lose one of them. Attaching a hero to a squad with more cannon fodder is more efficient, I think.

Think about it, your giants can be equaled to a hero one each, so...

Darth Roxor said:

Actually, I think attaching a hero to giants is not the best idea. Attaching a hero to the squad removes one unit from it, which means the hero has 2 bodyguards, not 3, and while the 2 giants get a hueg boost to everything, you lose one of them. Attaching a hero to a squad with more cannon fodder is more efficient, I think.

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You are quite correct. My observation on Sir Balan's performance is that he sustained more wounds than ever.

Before:


After attached with Sir Balan:


I'm a little torn. That's like 5k free HP and steep damage increase due to Sir Balan's stats. I'm not sure. There are times when my hero couldn't attack during engagements because he was physically blocked by friendly units, sure no one was hitting him, but his cleave duration goes to waste because he couldn't get into position to attack.

The unsuspecting province of Sugales welcomes King Arthur's army, unaware of its hostile intent. The Circle of Druids is near, and the cleansing of the sword must be accomplished first.

Looks like this is the place. Shall we begin?

Fear not. This is for my brother.

This province is thick with Old Faith followers, be careful.

I shall.



Please guide me further.



Is there anything else?



Very well. I will see what I can do of the abbey.





It seems unlikely such a small band of believers would risk building an abbey in the middle of an Old Faith territory. There must be a reason behind it.



Hmm, perhaps the townsfolk would know more about these refugees.



They have abandoned Him completely.

"Their land is full of idols;
they bow down to the work of their hands,
to what their fingers have made." - Isaiah 2:8

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Is there anyone here who knows where are they now?



I swear upon my name and one True God that I shall protect you and your kin shall want for nothing. *hands some gold*



I am here to help.

“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety–nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?

And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety–nine that did not wander off." - Matthew 18:12-13

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Take heart, one day you shall return and our King shall bring out His True Glory upon the lands.



Now, it's time to meet the weaponsmith.



I fear nothing.



God is on my side!





All that is left is to find that Pagan Enchantress. Assuming that this whole pagan ritual will succeed.



Very well then. *draws sword*









It really worked. Balin, rest in peace, brother.

And that wraps up the Cursed Sword - Old Faith solution. In my previous playthrough I did the Christian path. It's a minor morality shift that can easily be neutralized later.

The Old Faith Cursed Sword quest has several different options to take, but the most major one is if you tell the Sidhe Enchantress that these men are not slaves, she will offer you another choice: Stay with her for whole 2 years. The hero on the quest will do so. After 2 years have passed, he will gain a sizable EXP and learn the Lightning Bolt spell.

It might be worthwhile for a high Adventure hero to do so and take advantage of the free level up and Lightning Bolt. But I decided not to do so cause I'd like to grab Viroconium soon.

Next update: Viroconium!

I'm out of generic praises.

The reward is a good magic weapon with a locked potential.

Sword of Pendragon
+2 Fight
+2 Leadership
+2 Cleave Skill (Locked)

Certain weapons have an additional effect with conditions to unlock. I wouldn't give this sword to Sir Kay, because it requires 300 melee kills. And +2 Cleave will boost Sir Balan's offensive bonus greatly. A rank 6 Cleave will allow him to hit 7 soldiers at once!

The path to Viroconium has an optional diplomacy quest to accomplish to lower the number of defenders. It's recommended to do it. Just like the Seeds of War is meant to make conquering London easier, the Heirs of Viroconium is there for the player to exploit.



The follower of the Old Faith wants gold, while the Christian side places high value on Artifacts, making him very easy to convince.



I gave him a Cooldown -15% artifact and some gold to convince him to stand down. You could also throw in a few more artifact to have his sizable army join you. He will also join your roster. I tried this in another run and couldn't maintain the upkeep. It's not recommended. The horses combined with a second army will eat into our treasury.

Also, Viroconium is VERY easy once I figured out how the AI works in Stronghold. They are VERY dismal. And since they have open borders treaty (Friendly) with me, I decided to just rush straight to the Stronghold.



With the Christian Prince army out of the way, Sir Kay's army declares war at the gates of Viroconium. They have Welsh Archers, Welsh unit with innate magic resistance, but lower HP.



Here's the biggest issue with stronghold maps. The town is a deathtrap. Narrow passages, forcing tight, slow columns of army moving through the streets. And the AI never fails to take path I charted from their starting point. The solution is simple: bring archers to point X and commerce the slaughter.



There are three VPs in this map. Grab the outermost VP with a fast cavalry and sit back. Just keep the cavalry behind archers to destroy anything that survives the archer massacre.



The AI tried to be clever by splitting into two. But left three archer units clumped together.



Perfect for Curse of Shadows.



Then it's archer barrage time as they run the gauntlet.



As usual, Fog of Avalon, followed with Dragon's Eye to wipe out their archers.



If they get too close, execute shoot and move as I pull back the archers.



While they are occupied, I sneak in cavalry through a couple of back alleys to capture a VP. It's a hardly used road, to be honest. But if we can get majority VP, the faster we can drop their morale.



Continue the archer parade all the way till outside the city. Shoot and move + Cloud of Arrows.



Ninja Cavalry is almost there!



By now all enemy units chasing our archers, the archers themselves are almost out of stamina. Low stamina = low damage and movement speed.



Perfect time for the rest of our fresh troops to spring their ambush outside town as we establish 2 VP sneaky captures.



Mission Accomplished.



The role of Excalibur is then revealed - both London and Viroconium were once a great Stronghold, which now lies in ruins. It can be brought back to its former glory if an artifact of great power is used as its foundation. And for that, Excalibur served its purpose.



Camelot is born.



And we won an artifact too! Sweet.

Mournblade
+2 Fight
-30% Unit Attack Rate

This is an extremely powerful artifact. 30% off attack rate quickens archer reload time by 2 seconds! It's the perfect weapon for Sir Kay's killer archers.



We've dealt a huge blow to their power and established our Stronghold. It's not over yet, there's still another hostile army left in Gloucester and another province to conquer.

Capturing Viroconium rewards us with 2 DLC heroes. They won't be playing much of a role, however there are some redeeming features in them, especially in Very Hard game.



Sir Lucan is a Warlord, he starts with a bad mix of skills that doesn't really make him fit as a pure battle Warlord. Sure, he got Dragonstrike as an unique skill, but points in Liege (+10% province income) and Seneschal (-5% recruitment) makes him a prime candidate to stick to governing rich provinces.

Solution: Throw him to a monastery landmark that gives 10% Hero EXP per season and have him rot there and rule over productive provinces.



Sir Alymere is a VERY GOOD Champion, not as good as Sir Balin, but definitely better than King Mark. Why?

Unique skill: Hold and Dragonstrike. I may swap King Mark with him in the future because that will allow him two roles: A melee Cleaver or a key unit shutdown with Hold.



The remnants of the Old Faith army wants their Stronghold back and attacks us during their turn.



Let me say it up-front: The AI is both incapable of mounting a Stronghold Assault and Defense.



First. Leave the slowest unit behind to capture the starting VP. Then send two fast cavalry to each of the other two VP to start the morale pressure. Of course, prioritize archer positioning up front during the setup phase. They need to get there quickly and setup the massacre.



Setup archers at X, while the fast cavalry capture the other VP ASAP. The enemy will approach through ONE path only.



Their lone cavalry charge ahead of the rest under protection of Invisible Shield. Our arrows can't penetrate that magic shield. We're doomed.



Yeah, right.



We'll just shoot something else while the heavies take down anything that survives our bombardment. Their morale plummets.



Their hero got too close and had to be neutralized with a Hold. Target practice.



They know they can't win.



Goddamn, look at all that wasted troops. I guess we stripped them of their weapons and send them all home.



Everything looks rosy. With two major forces decimated, they have nothing left to protect their last province. Expect a mop up job next year.

0 Casualties.

6674 hp, 225 mana o_O

I shudder to think at the guys that will come later.

This LP is very helpful since I am playing through this game right now. There is a game called The King's Crusade that is on sale for $9 on steam right now and it looks a lot like this game. Has anyone here played it and is it any good?

I tried the demo of King's Crusade and did not like it. But at that price, it might be worth a look. The main problem is that King's Crusade battle maps reminds me of classic RTS scripted encounters where you have to do multiple stages and less open like King Arthur's.

In the first province I assaulted for demo play, I was told to land my first batch of troops and wait for reinforcements. After that, I must proceed to destroy northern or southern defence before the siege can commence. Etc. Very scripted. But the hero and magic system is still there, but less Lightning Bolts and Fireballs.

Upon conquering your first Stronghold, these two quests will trigger:





Finding Merlin will push you towards an alliance with the Welsh Kingdom and Old Faith.

Dealing with Sir Caradoc will seal an alliance with the Saxons and opens the path towards Christianity.

Both of these choices will not permanently lock you towards Christian/Old Faith path, but will affect the future bride of King Arthur. Also, these two quests have no time limit, feel free to settle other issues and gather strength before taking them on. Because doing it too early while unprepared will screw you over.

Winter Hero progress report:


Sir Kay unlocks Rank 4 Cloud of Arrows and will plan towards Protection against Magic. This is to prevent Archers from being destroyed by spells.



Rank 5 archers gains a perk. I can choose between:

-Masterwork Weaponry: 15% increase to damage
-Masterwork Armor: 15% increase to armor
-Aimed Shot: +50% shot damage but +50% shot delay, can be turned on and off.

I picked Masterwork Weapons.



Sir Mark maxes out his Dragonstrike.



Sir Gareth improves his Curse of Shadows.

The main reason to capture a Stronghold, is to gain access to research and laws.



Only 4 laws are available at the start at the Chancellery. You must research additional laws if you wish to implement them. They provide bonus and drawbacks.

Lordly privileges is useless. It increases your knight's loyalty but lowers your province income.

Monopoly is great. It reduces mining income by 30% but increases trade by 30%. Since we have very little mining income, there's more gain to implement it. I activate it.

Forced labour can be very useful if you need extra income. You gain more annual taxes, at the cost of more expensive recruitment and longer recruitment time. If you can keep casualties to a minimum, the bonuses will pay off handsomely. Since we're on VERY HARD mode, I'm not going to activate this.

Reserve unit is the opposite, you recruit cheaper and faster, but province annual income suffers and loyalty drops. Not worth the trade in my opinion.

They also give a projected balance of Income and Expenses for both gold and food. It's quite apparent that we're not in good shape at all on the food department but there's not much we can do. Horses consume more food and I like horse units.

This is the research screen, it's divided into three: Military, Law and Kingdom



This is where you plan upgrades for your units.

Archers > Longbowmen > Master Longbowmen should be prioritized.

Ignore the light footmen upgrades, since most of your playthrough, you should be using Sidhe / Christian Light infantries.

If you have need of heavy infantry, it might pay off to proceed towards Breakshields path. But like I said, I dislike their price and slow speed compared to Cavalry.

Pikemen is a mystery to me. On one hand they are good defense against heavy units and cavalry with trampling resistance and armor piercing traits, but heavy units usually die to arrows. Since I have plenty of Cavalry, and intend to use them as a makeshift anti-cavalry and mobile attack force, I decided not to use pikemen at all. Why do I use horseback units as anti-cavalry? Simple, they're immune to trampling. Buy a little time for the archers to reposition and then retreat quickly as the arrows fly again.

I pick the Longbowmen upgrade first. You can queue multiple upgrades, but since gold is in short supply, I can only do one at a time.

I choose to totally ignore the Law research for the time-being. After Longbow research is complete, I might go for Kingdom upgrades.



King Cadeyrn, the deposed monarch of Viroconium wishes to purchase the freedom of his hero.

It's a good offer, I take it. The wife is a good pair with Sir Kay.



+Honest means more mining income.
iraculous reduces recovery time, should the hero falls in battle, to zero.
+Just increases loyalty of all ruled provinces by 3.
-Flirtatious is a minor negative trait that lowers all knights loyalty.



We wipe out the remnants of King Cadeyn's forces the next year and gains another province.



The Vision is a DLC added quest. Some chatters in the official forums claim if you finish Visions, it will delay the arrival of Samhayne. It's a long quest chain with good rewards and massive battle at the end of it. Definitely worth putting off Wrath of Sir Caradoc to settle it.



Another aspect to Stronghold development is building structures. Just like research, building queues can only be set during winter. So pick your upgrades wisely. I always prioritize Towers of Knightly Deeds. It gives 1 free skill point to all heroes and will considerably increase their effectiveness.



As Darth Roxor has recommended, I should prioritize disaster-preventions Kingdom upgrades almost immediately. These random disasters have negative effects to the provinces, and may sometime require a battle or lots of resources to quell. For 3000 gold and food research fee, I can remove these headaches, permanently. Well worth the price.



While all this is going on, the King of Murcia enters Bedegraine Forest, this event will trigger regardless of whether or not you did Into the Deepwoods.

And as planned, I will bring Sir Alymere, the Divine Legendary Champion (DLC) hero to our main force. But first, let's give him a quest to bring him up to speed.



The King would like me to investigate this 'vision' a hermit saw. I place not much belief in superstition, but orders are orders.





Blast it. Perhaps Ambrose would know more.



Very suspicious.



I've got you. Now, tell me the truth and you will not come into harm, boy.



An ambush? It's not much of an ambush now once I know about it. I better keep my eyes open.



Time to go see this Seer, then.



I've been expecting you! Taste steel!



For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. (Psalms 1:6)





Very well, I'll see what I can do.



This crystal ball holds great importance. A life is involved and the kingdom itself is at risk. Would you not lend me the artifact?



I'm glad you are a man of reasons.



Here are your coins. Now give me the answers I need.



Interesting. This artifact really does work. I suppose I shall return it to the church.



I must report this news to the King at once!

You've returned, what news?

Troubling. The hermit is in the clutches of the Sidhe, his knowledge may be the key to darker designs.

I see. Are you prepared, Sir Alymere?

Always.

Take command of these Champions and join Sir Kay's army. Deliver instruction to him to settle this matter at once.

At once, Sire!



I see. Most troubling news. If what you say is true, then we must proceed to West Mercia and begin our search there.

That will prove difficult.

Why is that?

King Aethelred disappears in the depths of Bedegraine forest, and our open borders treaty was dissolved, Mercia is now divided into two.



Then we have no other options but war.

I offer my place in the army. I would like to pay my respects to my brother's grave.

Very well, brother. Welcome to the army, Sir Alymere.

I am honored, Sir Kay.

The construction of Knightly Tower completes that winter, and our heroes can spend an additional skill point.



Sir Kay is given Masterful Strategies to lower casualty rates by 5%. A good skill, in my opinion.



Sir Gareth perfects his Curse of Shadows.



Sir Mark bolster his Armor of Faith. It's a nice passive skill, providing 20% melee damage reflection and 20% magic resistance at rank 2.



Sir Alymere mastered his cleave and gains Rank 2 spell of Daylight from an artifact.



As recommended, I will not attach any hero to the Giants and instead give command of the Champions to Sir Alymere. Champions are one step above Tourney Knights. Join me in my next update as we take on the Vision.

All is not right within the kingdom, an envoy sent to the King reported villagers voicing their concerns of their missing children. Sir Kay is ordered to postpone the West Mercia invasion and investigate.

Kidnapping children? Who would do such a thing?

We must get to the bottom of this at once!

And we will bring those responsible to justice.



Captain, report the results of your investigation.











Very few leads, but the little girl may know something.



Hail, has she said anything since her return?



Red. Hawk. Lily. What could it mean? I must investigate the town further.



Let's ask the old lady for any clues.



I see. No need for subtlety, then.



Disappointing.



Most interesting.



Finally, it's time to unravel this evil plot.





Zounds! What could the combination be? Wait. The little girl mentioned 'Red. Hawk. Lily'. It must be...

The three combination is Ruby - Bird - Flower.



A secret entrance for the kidnappers!



Best to wait till they succumb to the spirits.



Where is the children? Talk and I'll spare your life!



Druids?!



You will be tried in court and justice will be meted.



The Druids are behind it.

Pagans kidnapping children?!

I can scarcely believe this! Is this part of their ritual?

They'll pay for this...

If these directions are correct, they are camped very far up north, away from West Mercia.

Let's settle this West Mercia business quickly, then.

Onwards.



We've received a sizable Rightful morality shift so far and accumulated enough points to unlock three perks. The first perk is pretty useless, it allows us to cut army upkeep to zero, but it cannot move and the province it is in will have its income cut.

The second perk boosts food productions in all provinces.

The third reduces army upkeep by 10%.

We've delayed the attack long enough, West Mercia must fall!





Two archers, three light infantry? Too easy.



With two Hold casters, we can shut down all their ranged archers. Plant a Cloud of Shadow for a guaranteed kill while the other one gets shot to death.

What about their light infantry?



What light infantry?



I love horses!



Good loot! Horn of Courage grants +2 to Sound of Courage skill. It restores 30% stamina to troops within large radius. It can be quite useful for prolonged battles.



Sir Kay will get it. The amulet of magic goes to Sir Gareth. Another quest in West Mercia is Sir Dagonet.









This is an interesting mini game.



Ever played a text-adventure maze game? I've mapped the solution using pen and paper. However, it starts to show wear and tear, so I decided to make a JPEG version that is clearer.



You start from red square. Should you deviate from the black square paths, you will fall and return back to the starting point.





The answer will determine whether or not Sir Dagonet joins you. Naturally, we picked the Christian one.



Sir Dagonet will not join Christians. If you want him to join, pick the Holy Grail option. The Fomorian Helmet armor piece is a 3,000 Hit-point bonus artifact. Very useful!

The Vision is a DLC added quest.

Click to expand...

It isn't

Darth Roxor said:

The Vision is a DLC added quest.

Click to expand...

It isn't

Click to expand...

Yeah I was double checking the facts and couldn't confirm it. I think the reason why nobody understood how it disappeared is because there is no quest marker indicating where to go after the first step. Then it's auto-fail after certain time.