Some suggested that FSE interpretation of the historical sources of the era were wrong.
In any case, melee played a bigger role than FSE gives it credit for.
Although we are not creating NW:2 , let's not forget what b0nded our community. The unique era, the moddability, and the way some game mechanics needed devotion to master.
Therefore, FSE would be stupid to spit in our faces by making this a game focusing solely on ranged combat.
The melee system, and the necessity to actually learn it, would be undermined by a game where the trueshot/ proscope/ headshot is valued more than a chamber, a kick, or a spinstab. In fact, new BCOF players might even come to ignore melee entirely, always trying to shoot at the enemy, and avoiding melee at all costs.
Therefore, through careful balancing and map design, FSE shoudl, imho, make both ranged and melee necessary for different situations. Even though ranged will be preferred, it would be great to
HAVE to engage in melee in some scenarios. For example, charging a fort's breach/ arty position, or, of course, having separate duel/ gf servers where one can simply enjoy this incredible system.
Map design will also play a role, as I belief the existence of strong cover, to mask an attackers movement as he approaches an enemy, (like rambo
) would be great.
FInally, let's hesitate beore welcoming so confidently the advent of the ranged system.
After all, shooting leads to:
1) A slower rhythm of battle, requiring more patience on behalf of the player. Not everyone will prefer this indefinitely (say, after hundreds of hours of gameplay). After all, would any of you play NW for so many hours if it focused on shooting more, with minimal melee fighting? (Rhetorical)
2) More ragequits. As we saw in B4 months ago, people, to counter campers, are more likely to, in turn, take the most accurate, marksman - like class, and return that favour, hence less CQC. It is more annoying to get scoped from a mile away, than die in an intenser melee battle. Try it.
3) Weaker atmosphere. Quite simply, the occassional melee fight/ encounter would break the monotony of ranged combat, injecting us with a strong dose of adrenaline
A BALANCE IS NEEDED, WITH BOTH MELEE AND RANGED BEING EMPHASISED UPON IN DIFFERENT SITUATIONS. The one situation no-one wants to be found in is a Sniper Elite V2 game... or to feel that, in order to play melee, he/she has to play Bannerlord. Don't throw us melee nerds out FSE !
EDIT:
Balance would be ongoing. I think they already mentioned that if their first attempt doesn't work in regards to rifle accuracy then they will balance things further.
Its great to hear this. Being actively siezed on this delicate matter of balancing shows the community that the team won't tolerate OP weapons - very relieving to be honest
EDIT#2: I hate to be making so many edits to my original post, but I would like to simply add another opinion to the debate
In order for shooting to be so prevalent in BCoF , there must be a number of mechanics in place to ensure that one LEARNS how to shoot well, and not just be able to pwn at long distance with minimal experience/training. So here are some extra ideas of mine...
1)
The necessity to adjust the iron sights is a wonderful idea. This means that, not only will the game be more realistic, but also players will have to judge the distance between them and the enemy solely by eye, which requires one to familarise himself/herself with the map first. It may even be used for balancing, as this adjustment will undoubtedly take time and slow down the reload + aiming process, if the target has shifted.
2)
Wind affecting the bullet. Another great case of a realistic environment being used wisely as a mechanic. Players could be able, imo, to judge the direction and intensity by looking at the fauna, and how/which direction it is blowing in. Therefore, to "snipe" at long range, one needs to be proficent in compensating for the effect of the wind.
3)
Particle FX. Even though the actual rifled weapons were accurate, the debris, smoke and volume of the battlefield made aiming significantly harder. Therefore, to further balnce the powerful rifles, it would be nice to have smoke/dit/debris blwoing around, where appropriate, making it harder to aim properly. Further weather effects, such as rain, or fog, can also reduce visibility, adding tension to the game, and offering opportunities for, say, ambushes, or shock attacks.
4)
Rifle Sway (when aiming). Seeing that most volunteers recieved minimal marksman training, it would be reasonable to add some sway when aiming, so as to make the shooting more realistic. After all, especially when standing up, it is very hard to keep the rifle steady over long periods of time. A hold breath option (for a few seconds, like in Arma) would be an interesting proposition. Crouching, additionally, should increase the accuracy/stability of the barrel slightly, as it does in real life.
5)
Aiming down the scope/sights. As someone who has gone hunting with family members, I can tell you that perfectly aligning the two crosshairs in a scope, or even the iron sights on a pistol/revolver, is something that takes at least a couple of seconds. Should this be reflected, like it is in NW at the moment, (with the opening and partial closing of the reticle), I think that it would make the shooting more realistic, and would help reduce pointblanking. Having tunnel vision as well, or even an FOV reduction while staring down the sights (as someone previoulsy mentioned in this thread), would be another proposition.
6)
Reducing pointblanking. Imho, pointblanking, in NW, is a risky strategy, employed only by useless fools who can't melee. Simple. However, should fighting ever develop into CQC (say in a building, for example, or a trench), then melee should be the emphasis, not a desperate attempt to shoot the enemy who is two inches away
. Requiring some time to aim, and increasing the time needed to swap between shooting and melee mode on one's rifle, could discourage pointblanking.
7)
Destructible cover. To deter skirmishers from camping, and pissing everyone else off, most, if not ALL cover, as mentioned by FSE, should be destroyable.This would make the players fear the opposing artillery more, and require them to remain mobile, as to not get skrekt by a meandering 12pdr cannon ball. Having played a sh*tload of NW, I hope that the maps will emphasise upon proper, dynamic movement and clashes (as FSE suggested with their goals/objectives systems), and will deter endless
static camping and shooting.
I love NW's balance, so I would hate BCoF to devolve into a camping-fest, with shooting being the only viable option. Therefore, I hope that at least some of the above propositions are implemented, so as to make the ranged combat, the focus of this new game, more meaningful, and deep.
I really hope that many situations will require one to be proficient in melee, not only because I learnt it in the first place
, but also because it is a shame to let go of this unmatched melee system, unique to Warband (and some of its mods), go to waste. Regardless of how deep the shooting its however, I would like it to be balanced out with nice dose of melee fighting sometimes.
BCoF_Groupfighting_Server, anyone? _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TL;DR : Melee should not be exterminated entirely. There are a number of sytems, most already proposed by FSE, which can balance the shooting and make it more realsitic at the same time.
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