Help, I Am Terrible At Combat

[[σβ] nageler]

Played for several hours and just cannot figure out the combat system (other than archery). Have most settings on very easy/easy and I personally get wrecked in fights and tournaments (being carried by my troops right now).

Tried a bunch of practice fights in the arena and am lucky to get a single kill before I die.

I'm not normally this bad at video games, but I feel like I fundamentally do not get how to control my character in combat, how to time swings, etc. Not even sure the best way to control attack/defense combat direction-mouse direction, or keyboard direction? Does switching it to keyboard direction screw with how it interprets your movement?

HALP.

[pfroddam]

One thing worth considering is that initially the arena is a place to train your abilities, you wont be winning much at all...the tourneys are all about collecting bruises and experience...the practice matches are going to pay a bit...and you can do them one after another after another...but you will get taken out a lot...but again, you get some xp, and if you win one you will get 250gp, enough for a basic armour upgrade perhaps...do that a few times and you will get enough expreience, both in terms of character skills, and player skill, and a bit of gear to make taunament easier. :)

[-=Prepper_Jack=-]

Escrito originalmente por xKrown:

Shield and sword is pretty good for beginners (like me). Just hit the block button and turn the camera towards were the AI is going to attack and you will block 95% of the times they strike.

I have a big struggle with two handed weapons, they are very very hard to use when blocking enemy attacks

For two-handers, you need good athletics, light armor (but preferably strong), the ability to strafe, and the guts to get behind enemy lines to whack your enemy in the back. Enemies don't turn around often when they're engaged with an enemy in front. Axes are good - you can kill 2, 3, sometimes 4 people at once.

In one on one scenarios, you want to strafe clockwise, away from their shield, and strike when nearly perpendicular. Can even get a bit of a speed bonus this way. This is kind of the key to virtually all weapons, however, and winning tournaments/arena fights.

[Badger BrownCoat]

Escrito originalmente por σβ nageler:

Played for several hours and just cannot figure out the combat system (other than archery). Have most settings on very easy/easy and I personally get wrecked in fights and tournaments (being carried by my troops right now).

Tried a bunch of practice fights in the arena and am lucky to get a single kill before I die.

I'm not normally this bad at video games, but I feel like I fundamentally do not get how to control my character in combat, how to time swings, etc. Not even sure the best way to control attack/defense combat direction-mouse direction, or keyboard direction? Does switching it to keyboard direction screw with how it interprets your movement?

HALP.

lol- you got some funny responses; so i'll skip that part-
i was too, I barely played M&B - and not recently.

Someone already said this, but - when you can easily beat the 'tough' trainer at the field, you're ready to actually fight.
Me, I just did that until i was bored- you only learn so much at a time-
and - m practice since has been tournaments
i fight in every tournament I can, it's like a practice-refresher course-
i find i get alot more out of those fights than all the nitwits jumping in front of every swing stab or slam i attempt in the actual battles.

but mostly, jsut have fun- with a little practice it'll seem more or less natural, right?
- and find the control scheme that works for you.

Don't sweat <O

[Sturmhorst]

Skills and armor have a high influence on the arena, the skills give faster attacks, making it easier to attack the opponent in between blocking his hits.
The armor will reduce your damage taken drastically.

You have to take care about weapon length, a lot, a lot. Also handling.
Handling value shows how big the hit area of your swing is, reach how far it reaches.
These two things are a must know for good 1on1.
How far do you have to go until he cant hit you, how close do you have to step up till you can hit him. How long does it take to make a swing?

Then you block and swing very fast at him directly afterwards
OR
you stay out of reach and enter it only while he can't hit again only for a short time till you hit him.
(like you run circles around him while facing him and staying out of reach, when he swings and misses, you swing into his head and get distance again)

ideally do both ;p

[Prester]

first playthrough i went trader, made millions, had gigantic army and couldnt fight for ♥♥♥♥

then i started a new game and installed one mod: village icons (it creates icons on top of settlements for information, for example there is a sign if there is a tournament)

then i just went from tournament to tournament, nothing else. on the way i and my 10 men slaughtered some bandits for money since i usually lost the tournaments.

but as time went by i learned how to fight, i was forced to learn all the different weapons, fight without shields, and after 10 hours i got noticably better at combat.

when i got slaughtered in a tournament and couldnt think of what i did wrong i sometimes started some youtube video on fighting tips every now and then

,.
.
.

[Cool Breeze]

Part of your problem is going to be your characters skill level. As your character gains skill the weapons become more fluid and you are able to chain attacks more quickly and easily.

For learning it is best to start with a shield as several others have mentioned because that will offer you a little relief from any mistakes in blocking, although if you block entirely incorrectly you may still get whacked.
My personal advice is to try fighting people that also have shields because typically they are the most annoying (in my experience at least) to fight since they are able to quickly bring the shield up to block your blows.
For your control scheme it honestly depends on your playstyle and how you maneuver in combat. If you are the type that just sits and smashes then using the keyboard blocking system might be the better option for you. For me it tends to get me killed more often than not because I have a tendency to move in the opposite direction of the incoming attack so I would be blocking the wrong way every time if I used keyboard blocking.
The biggest thing you can practice to stop dying is blocking. If you block the right way at the right time the enemy has a small recovery window that you can exploit to land another blow, its basically like a timed block almost but instead of staggering the enemy it basically just makes them stop to take a quick breath.

Alternatively if you are not really a fan of the stand and do battle style of warfare then I suggest using a two-handed weapon and trying to rely on your mobility to keep you alive while dealing mass deeps to the enemy to make them dead. In that case you want to try to back out of range or sidestep each attack as it comes in. Circling a single direction is very useful here because if they catch on to that direction and throw a swing at you then you can quickly reverse and the swing will just float through the air. Make sure at all times to try to aim for the head or chest, the arms and legs don't seem to take as much damage and they tend to be heavily armored whereas the head is the weakest armored usually and takes the most damage from a blow.

A lot of my practice for this game has come from pitched battles, I'm talking 100v100 at a minimum, where it's just pure chaos in the infantry lines. The fights there tend to be incredibly rapid and often your target may die or switch to one of your men after only a quick exchange of blows so it can be a good way to get some solid practice on someone that isn't relentlessly pursuing your death.

The arena practice fights are also a good method, you can earn weapon skill there and everyone is unarmored so you stand on even ground when it comes to damage dealt.

Once your character skill level gets higher it will be a ton easier, just hang in there and keep up the good work with commanding your men and they will carry you to hero status!

[Miggy]

If you suck at melee combat, do what I did. Just buy a swinging polearm (Fine Steel Menavlion, Long Glaive, etc.) and a horse and go nuts. Careful that you don't lose your horse though or you're a sitting duck :D

[DabaDOO]

In battles,

If enemy is looking at you, then it is not a right battling way. Always attack on distracted enemies. Move with the bulk of your troops, let them take heat of the enemy force, then with horse, run around and look for vulnurable targets that doesn't look directly into you, especially spears. That should keep you out of most heated scenes. For example, don't charge into looters on your own because they will all throw the stones at you, let your soldiers take it and then you move a lot and pick up the loners. That is a nice practice.



On foot, just be in the bulk of the army and try to kill 3-4 people with dignity.

In arena, with one handed weapons i always just try to keep going to shielded side of the enemy and wait for him to attack. They will have a hard time turning around all the time and when opportunity arises, i just hit them as much as i can. Spears also work with this way. Keep enemy close to the center of the screen and you should be able to hit them.

With two handeds, well that needs at least some blocking skills against other two handed enemies.

Other notes;

-if you don't wear armor, you should be dying a lot. That is completely normal.
-Killing one man and then dying horribly is actually not rare. You are just another soldier.
-Use double forward and double back to quick acceleration and deceleration on horse, and keep changing direction. Otherwise Javelins will hit you and you will die.
-Actually, Keep away from javelins altogether.
-Also keep your cavalry away from javelins until infantry comes close and distract the javelin throwers.
-The easiest way to survive on horse is to use a long "couchable" lance. When you have a couchable lance, while you are going over a certain speed with horse, you can press "X" and your char. will be using a couching spear stance, if the tip of your spear touches something, RIP.
-As just another soldier on battles, the best possible way to make a difference is to flank enemy infantry line with your cavalry friends and focus on bowman behind main line. But be fast or they will pay attention to you and you will be a target practice.

Keep in mind you are not a legendary godsend hero that takes armies all by on your own. You are just another enlisted men. If you dive into the heat of the battle, your wife will be a widow. (or your husband looking for new opportunities)

[Miggy]

Escrito originalmente por DabaDOO:

-Killing one man and then dying horribly is actually not rare. You are just another soldier.

I dunno where I read this from, but I remember a quote that goes:
When a general fights at the front lines, he give up his commander's baton and becomes a common soldier.

[Watergun]

Don't worry OP, you are not alone.