Earning Money As A Good Guy?

[Twan]

Hey everyone

I just bought this and am completely amazed!

Having said that, I can't seem to make much money in the campaign. At first it's not so bad with the first few starting missions you get, but after that I roam the countryside looking for bandits and forest raiders to kill, and then it kind of dries up. I have to keep my party size up or we won't be able to defeat the tougher ones. My strategy is basically use a crossbow on horseback and harass weaker looters/bandits. I try to make my entire band into archers when possible. It's not the fighting that's the problem though, it's only the money.

I try to find Lords to give me a job, but it's always "Take this message to this guy across the map and I'll pay you 30 denars".

I want to play as a good guy though and not go ransacking and pillaging villages or robbing caravans and stuff. Any suggestions?

Oh, and what's the best way to earn experience? Someone mentioned fighting "sea raiders" but the last time I tried that they messed me up, so I've only gotten my xp from fighting bandits and looters, and some from a training field but that's not enough to matter (but I only tried the close targets, maybe it becomes worth it if you are really good and use the hardest target).

Also, I'm still stuck with the starting crossbow, what is the best bow to use from horseback? I think all bows can be used from horseback, but not all crossbows. I'm upgrading my power draw level as much as I can.

Thanks!

[Sumarlithi]

Not all bows can be used from horseback. Well first of it seems your party is made of low level troops this is killed easily by higher level bandits. A good way is trading there are good trade routs in the game(Tulga to other side of map)(find a guide for trading). Get some good troops. For a new army if you can get a decent number of mercenary cav then you will beat most foes but they are expensive so make sure you have a good supply of money. A good lord task is to collect tax but this can be a problem sometimes.

[Khorps]

trading also makes money

[State]

Could always try tournaments. Just go to the arena in towns and find out where they are being held. You can bet on yourself every round and make about 3000 if you win. Then invest in enterprises like dyeworks and you should be set.

[Twan]

Oh, I always wondered what you did with things like dyes and flax and stuff, thanks

[linutika]

Even though you're not into it, consider sacking/looting enemy caravans. On low levels that's how I got a good new armor and 3000 ducats from selling stuff from it.

Shortly - crime actually does pay

[White Knight]

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=835752135

[Gamer Supreme]

Quests are just there for the novelty of it, they do not offer enough money to be worth the time to do them.

Best to hunt bandits while ransoming them and selling their stuff. It also helps to be a mercenary because that covers some of your upkeep and you can loot enemy villages and/or partake in battles to acquire loot.

Also stop by in every town you find because they might be hosting a tourney, which is always something you want to win.

[Twan]

Ok thanks everyone, I'll try these tips, and will read that guide!

But about the bows, what's the best bow I should shoot for (punny) to use on horseback? I also bought some "khergit" arrows, which seem pretty good at least and can last me the entire game. I read that even though crossbows seem more powerful, as you level up power draw bows are much better. I'm not really concerned with rate of fire too much.

[Delle(DK)]

Most easy way to earn allot of money as good guy..

1). win turnaments and bet 100 on your self all the time.! you can earnl ike 3800 pr victory.
2). Give your player a wood "club" and then hunt bandits.. Every bandit you can make uncontious with your club you can sell for example 50 in the tavern... If you can have example 15 prisoners and they pay example 50 or more then you can rather fast earn allot of money that way.
If you are at war and can knock out soldiers uncontious during battle, then you can easy earn 200 pr. soldier and in a huge battle you can maybe hit 20 or more and sell them = $$$$
This also make it more easy to solve the missions for the jarls/lords that want you to find example 5 infantry in a prison exchange.. You can just gather people and put them in your huge jail in the castle and pick them up when you need to solve such missions.
Remember you can also give your companions clubs in the hand, so they help capture prisoners ;-) imagine you and 5-6 companions all capturing enemys that is allot of money pr. battle.!

3). to make money, advance in the game, once you get 1 castle and 2 citys then this can more or less pay for your army and garison all by it self.

4). caputuring enemy jarls/lords pay about 1600 when their family after a while will pay you to release them.

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Earn money the bad way... burn and loot citys and sell the stuff you get there, you can rather easy make 3000 or more pr. city.

[White Knight]

Originally posted by Twan:

But about the bows, what's the best bow I should shoot for (punny) to use on horseback?

Crossbows are great because they don't require any skillpoints to be invested.

Bows are the superior option but it will cost you. It also takes a longer time to master - another strength of the crossbow is that, like with firearms, anyone can be effective with them in a very short amount of time.

If you are interested in ranged combat, bows are the way to go for sure. You won't see the benefits for many levels though. When you do, crossbows will seem pathetic by comparison. More damage, more range, greater rate of fire, etc.

I usually go for bows for my character and give all of my companions Masterwork Light Crossbows, so they can focus on other useful skills.

Use the crossbow in the early game but put your points into Power Draw and Archery so you can upgrade to the bow as quickly as possible. The sooner you start working at it, the sooner you will be one-shotting dudes at extreme range.

(In Native it is possible to have a grand ol' time with your trusty crossbow. For Viking Conquest, crossbows are basically children's toys that are best avoided).

Also, wrt Training Fields, I also like using them in my games. You get better results by choosing more challenging targets. For me, there is a sweet spot between so easy it isn't worth my time and way too hard to benefit from. I like the 40 to 50 yard range, personally. You want to shoot as far away as possible while still being able to reliably hit all of the targets - that way you get the benefits without wasting too much of your own time.

For the best results, make sure you have a large stack of units who will profit from your practicing. Rhodoks and Swadians prefer crossbows, the rest tend to favour archery.

[JtDarth]

Originally posted by Lowly Noob:

Quests are just there for the novelty of it, they do not offer enough money to be worth the time to do them.

Best to hunt bandits while ransoming them and selling their stuff. It also helps to be a mercenary because that covers some of your upkeep and you can loot enemy villages and/or partake in battles to acquire loot.

Also stop by in every town you find because they might be hosting a tourney, which is always something you want to win.

Well, the tax collection quests are pretty good money. Even if you are against running off with the money, you still get a pretty good amount of money, at least, for those that aren't capable of fighting sea raiders.
Enterprises are also good.
Another thing to keep in mind, is that in the early game especially, A small, elite band of troops, is more manageable than going for quantity. A group of ten top tier troops (aside from sarranid and vaegir guards, they are pretty bad) can take on most bandit parties, without too much issue, especially if they are cavalry, or you, as a mounted unit, manage aggro properly.

[Twan]

Yes I love the tax collection quests, I've done maybe 3 so far and they are the easiest thing ever and pay very well, I guess because nobody resisted me yet.

Also about the bows, I just tried them in combat for the first time and they are pretty fun, but I still am not doing as good as with my crossbow. I'm trying to level power draw asap because I know bows are the more powerful option once you level that skill up.

Right now all I could get my hands on is a "Bent long bow" and some standard arrows. It has 19 damage +1 from the arrows. My last crossbow had 47 damage +1 from the bolts. I assume the power draw damage increase isn't listed in the stats.

[Sultan of Swing]

Just stick with about 35 troops of infantry/archer mix and you will be able to sustain the cost off of bandit loot until you can be hired as a mercenary, and then you start getting payed and participating in wars for better money

[JtDarth]

Originally posted by Twan:

Yes I love the tax collection quests, I've done maybe 3 so far and they are the easiest thing ever and pay very well, I guess because nobody resisted me yet.

Also about the bows, I just tried them in combat for the first time and they are pretty fun, but I still am not doing as good as with my crossbow. I'm trying to level power draw asap because I know bows are the more powerful option once you level that skill up.

Right now all I could get my hands on is a "Bent long bow" and some standard arrows. It has 19 damage +1 from the arrows. My last crossbow had 47 damage +1 from the bolts. I assume the power draw damage increase isn't listed in the stats.

Bows are harder to use than the crossbow and take longer to get going, yes.
Crossbows are also less effected by having a low proficiency, as well as starting with better proficiency, unless you explicitly build your character for archery at character creation.
Quoting from the wiki:
More powerful bows have a minimum Power Draw requirement to use. Power Draw also adds 14% to each hit with the bow, until four levels beyond the bow’s minimum Power Draw requirement; for example, if the bow’s Power Draw requirement is 2, then a skill level of 2 will add 28%, while a skill level of 6 will add 84%, while any level beyond 6 will still add 84%. Finally, higher Power Draw makes powerful bows easier to use by improving your accuracy and the time you can keep your aim steady while the bow is drawn, though this cannot overcome having a low proficiency with bows. Maximum of 140% more damage.

You will probably need a regular long bow and six power draw before you start to outpace the crossbow, raw damage wise. On the other hand, bows fire faster, have better arc, and ultimately, even with a shortbow and only 1 powerdraw, an arrow to the face will still one-shot the majority of targets.

Bows end up far, far better in the long run, the advantage to the crossbow is that it takes no skill point investment. Of course, in AI hands, the lower ROF is, in sieges, a massive advantage.

[Twan]

Ok thanks, I guess I need to recruit more, I never even got to 20 men. I've just been picking easy battles. Are Vaegirs the best bowmen if I want archers? So far I have some sharpshooters, crossbowmen, huntsmen, etc., all Swadians and Nords.

Yes I noticed bows have a much higher trajectory, which takes some getting used to.