The Great Recruit Guide
Yar har har har...
You started the game and now you have a sword, shield, darts, and basic armor. What now?
The first thing you should be thinking about, is what class you want to be. Keep in mind of the mod's unique hybrid class system. Can't decide whether or not to be an archer or infantry? Choose both! Wanna shoot your bow from a horse? Choose archer and cavalry.
Now lets talk about the different kinds of XP. All XP (except assist XP) count towards your level.
There are three main types of XP: Melee, Ranged, and mounted.
Melee is for the infantry class tree. It is gained through killing enemies with a melee weapon such as a sword or spear.
Ranged is for the archer class tree. It is gained through killing enemies with a bow, crossbow, or a throwing weapon.
Mounted is for the cavalry class tree. It is gained through killing enemies with any weapon while mounted on a horse
Now I will explain assist XP.
Assist XP is gained from standing near a teammate while they kill an enemy. Assist XP is spent in exchange for melee xp, ranged xp, mounted xp, and gold.
When you first start the game, keep in mind that initially the only way to gain mounted xp is from assist xp. You can also take a horse from a killed Nord scout.
Most of the maps will also have a cooking pot, ammo box, and a shrine. Activate all of these by holding the F (use) button.
The cooking pot refills your health (but not your horse's).
The ammo box refills all of your ammunition; such as arrows and used throwing weapons (but not your shield).
The shrine refills EVERYTHING (health, horse health, ammo, and shield hp) but costs 250g for every use.
Also, remember that upgrading to a class costs class points. You gain one class point for every level.
Basic guide
Stay close to allies. When someone is in trouble, try to help them out. The AI tend to ignore everyone but one person and chase them in a line. Use this opportunity to slice/shoot some of them. When being overwhelmed, try to pull out a shield and keep defending. Friendly fire is off so an enemy can stab through another and hit you while you fight the guy in front. If all goes well, no one will die. If shit hits the fan, and everyone but you is dead, remember that AI cannot jump so take advantage of this and camp to a hard to reach spot for bots so you can kill them one by one. Also, sometimes the game bugs up (It's still in Alpha!) and waves do not spawn. You can tell by pressing tab and looking to see if the enemy is dead (red). Then you should vote to change the map (to either the same one, or something else).
Alright, now I will color code specific guides. Red for Infantry. Blue for Archery. Green for Mounted. Hybrids in Brown.
As a melee man, you will get the most out of exchanging assist xp for melee, than all the other choices. Always remember to use your shield when the enemies are shooting arrows or throwing rocks; your shield will save your life. Along with your shield should be a one handed weapon. This gives the shield the most freedom. Another important weapon is the pole arm. If you stab a horse charging at you in the chest at the right moment, the horse will be stunned, and thus leaves the rider a sitting duck. Try not to kill the horse, as many players like to use them to gain mounted xp. Most infantry like to carry a throwing weapon. This is mostly for weakening bosses, but can be used for any other enemy, as they are refillable. For the most damage, an alternative to a polearm is a two-handed weapon (battle axe).
As ranged, your main weapon will be your darts at the start (Sword, shield/dart, and 2 darts). Save up your money for a light crossbow (bows are not available until you become an actual archer) and bolts. Your loadout should now be a crossbow, bolts, sword, and something else (polearm, more bolts, or a shield). Now that you have a crossbow, just keep shooting and remember to reload on bolts from the ammo box.
In the beginning, starting the cavalry class is the hardest out of all three. The class costs the most XP and there are only three ways to gain mounted XP. Assist xp (costs 45k assist xp if you are going pure assist xp), stealing an enemy's horse, using an alchemist's spell thing, or by doing a quest that rewards mounted xp (when implemented).
When trying to make a hybrid class, you must use a combination of these strategies (assist xp is your best friend!) and try not to spend any assist xp on gold unless you don't want a horse. As an example I'll use horse-archer as an example. I would use ONLY a crossbow, while staying close to my allies for assist xp. Always ask your teammates to save a horse, and take the chance of riding it. I would badly need mounted xp so I wouldn't spend my assist xp on anything other than mounted xp (not even ranged xp). You would probably get enough for archery first, so upgrade to that and buy a bow and arrows.
Damage Types
All weapons do a certain type of damage. The damage type is only revealed on the loadout screen (c/p/b appears at the end of the damage, I.E. 20c = 20 cut)
Cut ©, blunt (b), and pierce (p) damage are the three damage types.
Cut is the simplest form of damage and does the least versus armor (which is why I keep Jez to give enemies cutting weapons instead of the others)
Blunt and pierce damage takes the least damage reduction from armor (which is why farmers are OP)
Attack Types
There are four attack types. Overhead (most weapons can do this), side swing, and stab. All melee weapons can do all four of these attack types, but lances can only overhead, and stab, and battle axes can't stab.
Overheads aim for the head, side swings have the most chance of hitting (wide area of attacking), and stabs have the most length/range. For example, do an overhead for extra damage, a side swing for a bunch of enemies, and stab when you're being chased.
Attack types are very important to learn because many weapons have different damage types for different attack types (I.E. pitch forks have a piercing stab, but blunt swing/overhead. Swords have a cutting swing/overhead, but a piercing stab).
Headshots
You might think that only projectiles do extra damage to the head. This is not the case. When you hit anyone in the head with any weapon, you will do extra damage. The drawback to this, is that while you can hit the head with any type of attack (swing, stab, overhead) but it is harder to aim at than just the chest. Melee weapons also have less of an extra damage output than ranged.
Weapon Types
One Handed - Usually faster than other weapons. Can be used with a shield and on a horse without losing an attack type.
Two Handed - Usually stronger than other weapons. Cannot be used with a shield, but can be used on a horse (while limited to side swings).
Polearm - Can stop horses. Can be used with a shield but is limited to stabs (with the exception of "(no shield)" polearms that cannot use shields). Can be used on a horse but is then limited to stabs.
Bow - Can be used on a horse but not with a shield. Must be used in conjunction with a quiver of arrows (with ammo in it) or an arrow you find on the ground. Does not need to reload before firing again. Aiming reticule will go to its smallest size, then enlarge again (to simulate the muscle strain and aiming of using a bow).
Crossbow - Can be shot on a horse, but most cannot be reloaded on a horse. Cannot be used with a shield. Must be used with a bolts. Must be reloaded before firing again. Aiming reticule will not enlarge over time.
Throwing - Can be used with a shield. Can be used on a horse. Only takes up one slot. Aiming reticule will not enlarge over time.
Changelist
11/11/2011 - Added changelist
11/14/2011 - Added Weapon Types and To-do list
To-Do list
- Add Weapon Proficiencies
- Add Stats
- Add detailed guides for different weapons
- Add detailed guides for dealing with different enemies
I was the first Horse-Archer you know?