Background – A Mythic Britannia
すべての始まりは伝説の時代、ブリタニアの地は、新しい王の出現を待ちわびていた…。
偉大なる王、ウーゼル・ペンドラゴン亡き後、強力な城を持つ領主たちは王となる野心に燃え、王国は苦しみに耐えていた。そこで魔術師マーリンは、この有力な貴族たちを皆ロンドンに呼び集め、王国を治めるにふさわしい王を明らかにするという奇跡を起こそうと言うのだった。大聖堂の重厚な祭壇を前に、集められた強者たちが興味津々で見つめる先には、巨大な大理石があった。大理石の中央には30センチほどの鉄床が埋め込まれており、そこに見事な剣が突き刺さっていた。剣には、金色の文字でこう刻まれていた―この石より剣を引き抜きし者こそ、全イングランドを統べる真の王である。
彼らはこぞって剣を引き抜こうとしたが抜くことができず、ただ一人、エクトール卿の養子である若きアーサーだけが、この魔法の武器を見事に石から引き抜いた。アーサー自身は知らなかったのだが、彼こそがウーゼル・ペンドラゴン王の実の子にして真の後継者であり、ブリタニアの統治者となる運命を負う者だったのだ。
その瞬間、すべてが一変した。
世界を織りなすすべての糸を断ち切る一太刀のように、世界をまとめていた魔法を打ち消す呪いのように、若きアーサーのその何気ない行為が、ブリタニアの姿を永遠に変えてしまったのだ。大いなる幻影など不要だった。不思議な時代の到来を誰もが確信した。
荒野の怪物どもが眠りから覚め、古代のストーンサークルの周りでは大気が音を立てて揺れた。異教のシャーマンたちは、はるか昔に死に絶えたはずの神々に再び祈り始めた。北方ではあらゆる蛮族どもが新しい旗のもとに集結し、南方では奇妙な生き物たちが廃墟の砦にうごめいている。ウェールズでは太古の地下道奥深くで何かが目を覚まし、古きローマ流儀の信者たちは力を蓄えつつある…。
翌日、アーサーの宮廷に向かう者たちがいた。まるで巨人のような姿の彼らは、黒い鋼を身につけ奇妙な武器を携えている。強大な力を持つ無敵の戦士である彼らを、人々は騎士と呼んだ。彼らが何者なのか、どこから来たのか知る者はいない。彼らは、押し寄せる争乱と畏怖の渦に立ち向かえる、アーサー唯一の希望なのかもしれない。
Campaign Map
What is the Campaign Map?
The Campaign Map of King Arthur is the fabulous island of the mystical Britannia, a fully three dimensional map with rivers, forests, marshlands, towns and legendary places. You can also see the borders of the different provinces, but the locations of the opposing armies are hidden until you get close. The Campaign Map is where you lead the knights of the Round Table with their armies to explore and recruit, to visit locations where they embark on adventures. This is where they will meet other armies, and when they clash, the battles will take place on the battlemaps unique to the province where they currently are.
The beginning of the game
Background
You are King Arthur, the Once and Future King.
His legend is as ancient as the realm of Britannia itself. It tells of the arrival of a great king who will unite the warring kingdoms of the land and bring peace and prosperity to all. The Once and Future King will use a mighty sword that’s called Excalibur; and although he will not recognize Excalibur at first, the sword itself will be his very first challenge to prove that he really is the Once and Future King. One day he will be led to a great slab of stone with a sword stuck fast in it, that is, unknown to him, Excalibur – and if he can pull the sword out of the stone, he is the Once and Future King.
It’s an old tale though, and most people had ceased to believe in the Once and Future King – at least until the miraculous changes of the present. And all the kings of the small kingdoms scattered around Britannia also claim to be the legitimate rulers of the land.
Important note: you, the player are King Arthur. As an omnipotent, all-seeing, all hearing leader you rule over Britannia, your vassals and knights. You don’t participate in actual battles and you send your heroes to represent you everywhere. King Arthur doesn’t appear in the game as a controllable character.
His legend is as ancient as the realm of Britannia itself. It tells of the arrival of a great king who will unite the warring kingdoms of the land and bring peace and prosperity to all. The Once and Future King will use a mighty sword that’s called Excalibur; and although he will not recognize Excalibur at first, the sword itself will be his very first challenge to prove that he really is the Once and Future King. One day he will be led to a great slab of stone with a sword stuck fast in it, that is, unknown to him, Excalibur – and if he can pull the sword out of the stone, he is the Once and Future King.
It’s an old tale though, and most people had ceased to believe in the Once and Future King – at least until the miraculous changes of the present. And all the kings of the small kingdoms scattered around Britannia also claim to be the legitimate rulers of the land.
Important note: you, the player are King Arthur. As an omnipotent, all-seeing, all hearing leader you rule over Britannia, your vassals and knights. You don’t participate in actual battles and you send your heroes to represent you everywhere. King Arthur doesn’t appear in the game as a controllable character.
The first steps on the road
When King Arthur pulled the sword out of the stone – the mighty Excalibur that lost its powers afterwards – he proved that the magic sword had created him the Once of Future King. However, there are many who don’t believe it.
In the tumultuous aftermath of the Miracle, powerful kings gather their forces to battle for Britannia. They say that the Excalibur has no power, and so Arthur can’t be the promised king. King Ryons in Wales and the king of the Saxon provinces are both preparing to go to war, while deep in the mysterious Bedegraine Forest, in the middle of Britannia, something primeval stirs…
In the tumultuous aftermath of the Miracle, powerful kings gather their forces to battle for Britannia. They say that the Excalibur has no power, and so Arthur can’t be the promised king. King Ryons in Wales and the king of the Saxon provinces are both preparing to go to war, while deep in the mysterious Bedegraine Forest, in the middle of Britannia, something primeval stirs…
Arthur’s task is to gather an army and find the champions who could lead these soldiers into battle. The champions will be his knights of the Round Table – the powerful heroes of this new age.
Movement on the Campaign Map
Choosing armies: left click on the banner of the chosen army or the icon that symbolises that army.
Movement and attack: right click on the target. One right click will show the road leading to the target, the next click sets the army moving. A right double click will do both these actions in one. If you click out of a moving army, the army will stop. If you find the army movement too slow, you can reset the army speed in the Options.
Information Panel: When you move the mouse over something, you’ll see the relevant information at the bottom of the screen and you get additional information in the pop-ups if you move the cursor over the icons on the Information Panel. If you skip the tutorials, this panel and the pop-ups will be your source of information.
The Circle Menu: If no army is selected, a right click on the map brings up the Circle Menu. Depending on where you clicked, you’ll have various options on the Menu. A right-click on a province gives information, while clicking on a settlement location offers the recruitment option.The Circle Menu of an army allows several options: Disband Army, Divide
Army, Army Management or, on a settlement location, the Fill up ranks option.
Army, Army Management or, on a settlement location, the Fill up ranks option.
Notifications: you’ll frequently get messages about the important events in the game that appear on the left side of the screen while you are on the Campaign Map. Click on one of these messages to open the screens giving more detailed information. E.g. when you get a notification about someone gaining a new level in your army, you can click on the message to go to the management screen to decide how to deal with the level up.
Seasons
The game play on the Campaign Map is turn-based. One turn equals one season. All the four seasons are radically different from each other in terms of visual representation and gameplay elements. You can see the current season in the upper left hand corner. Move your pointer over it to get more detailed information. Press End turn (lower right corner) to move on to the next Season.
Spring
The beginning of the year, when new quests and new characters appear on the map. After harsh winters spring might start with an uprising of the hungry subjects of the realm. Spring is the timeliest season to go adventuring. Requests for ransom also arrive in spring.
Summer
This is the time for military campaigns, when the weather is more suitable for long marches and waging battles. During the summer season heroes and armies have more movement points (x1.5) than during autumn or spring.
Autumn
The time of harvest and preparation for the coming winter. Autumn is the last chance to go into battle (to conquer or liberate provinces) as armies cannot move in the winter.
Winter
This is the bleak season when heroes gather strength, so the results of advancing levels become available here and taxes arrive from the provinces. Taxes arriving from the provinces go into the treasury. During the winter season the heroes can be advanced. This is the only time you can give orders to build or research, or to set the taxes for the next year. Neither armies nor heroes can move in the winter.
Resources
Gold
This is the basic resource that is used for buying new units, structures and
upgrades and for the upkeep of units.
There are numerous sources from which to gain Gold:
upgrades and for the upkeep of units.
There are numerous sources from which to gain Gold:
- Taxes from the provinces (population of the province affects it) (winter)
- Income from the trade of the provinces (all seasons)
- Income from mines (all seasons)
- Accomplishing quests (spring, summer, autumn)
- Loot from the victorious battles (spring, summer, autumn)
- Ransom for captured heroes (spring)
Food
Food is used to feed the armies (their upkeep) and boost the growth of the population in the provinces (if the production balance is positive). Provinces also produce food to meet their own needs, but a bad harvest can lead to riots, when only the royal reserves can help the starving population. Sources of Food income:
- Food taxes from the provinces (population and climate of the province affects it) (winter)
- Trade of the provinces (all seasons)
- Accomplishing quests (spring, summer, autumn)
- Loot from victorious battles (spring, summer, autumn)
- Ransom for captured heroes (spring)
Armies
By our definition, an army is a group of units and heroes on the Campaign Map that moves as one. An army can contain a maximum of 16 units, counting regular units and heroes together. Armies cannot move without being led by a hero.
On the Army Management Screen you can see the knight(s) and his (their) units, the current morale and the army strength. You can attach a single unit to the Knight (you can see the link tying the unit and the hero together), these are his bodyguards. Some heroes can have traits that don’t allow specific units as bodyguards (e.g. a hero with Warg Blood is highly effective against riders, but as horses can’t stand his animal nature he can’t lead any cavalry units)
You can switch units by dragging and dropping. Double clicking on any unit opens a detailed information panel.
Filling up the ranks: you can fill up the ranks of a damaged unit with new soldiers by dragging and dropping another unit of the same type onto the depleted one. The level of the merged unit is the average level of the two original units, but you can spend Gold and Food to “quick train” the units with the lower level to the level of the experienced units. The more soldiers were in the experienced unit the less the training costs.
On the Army Management Screen you can see the knight(s) and his (their) units, the current morale and the army strength. You can attach a single unit to the Knight (you can see the link tying the unit and the hero together), these are his bodyguards. Some heroes can have traits that don’t allow specific units as bodyguards (e.g. a hero with Warg Blood is highly effective against riders, but as horses can’t stand his animal nature he can’t lead any cavalry units)
You can switch units by dragging and dropping. Double clicking on any unit opens a detailed information panel.
Filling up the ranks: you can fill up the ranks of a damaged unit with new soldiers by dragging and dropping another unit of the same type onto the depleted one. The level of the merged unit is the average level of the two original units, but you can spend Gold and Food to “quick train” the units with the lower level to the level of the experienced units. The more soldiers were in the experienced unit the less the training costs.
Movement
Armies have a certain amount of movement points every turn which is modified by:
- abilities and skills (of the Army Leader)
- artefacts (of the Army Leader)
- events
- seasons (no one moves during the winter season; in the summer heroes and armies have more movement points)
The Campaign Map is a web of numerous hexagonal sheets which are invisible to the player. Crossing a “hexa” requires a certain amount of movement points, depending on the actual terrain type (e.g. a swamp or a mountain area requires more, roads require less movement points)
Morale
This is the level of satisfaction of the soldiers in the army.
Morale has a very strong impact on the Victory Bar and fighting system of the battle (Battle / Victory Conditions).
Several factors modify the Morale of the army:
Morale has a very strong impact on the Victory Bar and fighting system of the battle (Battle / Victory Conditions).
Several factors modify the Morale of the army:
- abilities and skills (of the Army Leader)
- artefacts (of the Army Leader)
- special events
Morale decreases if the army
- loses a battle (-20)
- retreats (-10)
- lacks enough food and gold for its upkeep (-20)
- has units with opposing Morality (-10 / each unit with the Morale in minority)
Morale increases if the army
- wins a battle (+10)
- does not move for a whole year (+5)
When the Morale of an army falls to 0, the army is disbanded.
Army Leader
Several heroes can join an army but only one of them can be appointed (by the player) as the Army Leader.
Only the Army Leader’s abilities, skills, artefacts, etc. affect the traits of the whole army (e.g. the Leadership ability reduces the Upkeep Cost of the whole army).
Only the Army Leader’s abilities, skills, artefacts, etc. affect the traits of the whole army (e.g. the Leadership ability reduces the Upkeep Cost of the whole army).
Upkeep Cost
All units of an army have a given Upkeep Cost (Gold + Food but with more emphasis on the Food) which is automatically paid in every turn. Elite and upgraded units may have dramatically higher Upkeep Cost than the basic ones.
When you can’t pay the upkeep of the army for a turn, the Morale of that army drops by 20.
When you can’t pay the upkeep of the army for a turn, the Morale of that army drops by 20.
Recruitment
The recruitment of a new army and filling up the ranks of an existing army is available at occupied locations (settlements or Strongholds) that have the “Recruitment available” option. The player can form an army by selecting from the available units and paying the cost of the recruitment so the army will be available by the end of the recruiting time.
Available units: At the beginning of the game the number of the available unit types is pretty limited, but with the changes to the Morality, the unlocked upgrades make more and more unit types available. Certain units are locked to special objectives and become available after the player completes the given objective. Some quests and other events grant units which are still unavailable in the recruitment phase.
Recruitment cost: All unit types have a given recruitment cost (Gold + Food but with more emphasis on the Gold). The cost of filling up the place of lost soldiers in a unit is relative to the number of the lost soldiers. The fill-up cost of experienced units is higher but they always keep their experience level.
Recruitment time: The time required for recruitment depends on the size of the army and the “Military” factor of the given province.
The available units are at the bottom left of the screen, while your current army is displayed in the right panel. Use double click or the “Recruit” button next to the chosen new unit to recruit or you can also drag and drop. You can withdraw the selected recruitment by pressing the “Cancel Recruitment” button.
You can fill up the ranks of a damaged unit with the “Fill up ranks” button on the right side of the selected unit(s) or you can use the “Fill up all ranks” button if your Treasury allows for complete enlistment.
After you have chosen those who you would like to enlist, the actual recruitment begins. The army withdraws into a tent for the duration of the recruitment phase. You can always see how many turns are left.
Available units: At the beginning of the game the number of the available unit types is pretty limited, but with the changes to the Morality, the unlocked upgrades make more and more unit types available. Certain units are locked to special objectives and become available after the player completes the given objective. Some quests and other events grant units which are still unavailable in the recruitment phase.
Recruitment cost: All unit types have a given recruitment cost (Gold + Food but with more emphasis on the Gold). The cost of filling up the place of lost soldiers in a unit is relative to the number of the lost soldiers. The fill-up cost of experienced units is higher but they always keep their experience level.
Recruitment time: The time required for recruitment depends on the size of the army and the “Military” factor of the given province.
The available units are at the bottom left of the screen, while your current army is displayed in the right panel. Use double click or the “Recruit” button next to the chosen new unit to recruit or you can also drag and drop. You can withdraw the selected recruitment by pressing the “Cancel Recruitment” button.
You can fill up the ranks of a damaged unit with the “Fill up ranks” button on the right side of the selected unit(s) or you can use the “Fill up all ranks” button if your Treasury allows for complete enlistment.
After you have chosen those who you would like to enlist, the actual recruitment begins. The army withdraws into a tent for the duration of the recruitment phase. You can always see how many turns are left.
Army actions
Six army actions are available (apart from the attack or move orders), but only the Ambush and Extended Deploy Zone orders are available straight away - the others become available if the player reaches certain milestones on the Morality Chart.
You can activate the various army actions from the Circle Menu. Ambush will be the first action, but as your Morality changes, more new actions become available.
Activating an army action is only available if the army hasn’t moved in the season yet and it costs the army all of its movement points.
After you have chosen who you would like to enlist, the actual recruitment begins. The army withdraws into a tent for the duration of the recruitment phase. You can always see how many turns are left.
Extended Deploy Zone: Available to a defending army if it has stayed at least four turns in the same place. If such an army is attacked it is allowed to choose the battlefield and start the battle with an extended deployment zone on the battlefield which gives it a definite advantage.
Ambush: If the army is located in one of the forests of the Campaign Map it goes to ambush status. The enemy kings don’t see it on the map and can attack nearby armies with the advantage of getting a favourable deploy zone in the battle around the opposing units who lose their deploy phase.
Training: In the next season the given army can’t move and upkeep costs increase by 20%. In the season after that, it gains +20% Morale and +50% Movement points.
Furlough: This involves half of the upkeep costs over the next year but the unit can’t move and if it is attacked, only half of the units will fight. Also, the province won’t produce any Food or Gold.
Looting: Upkeep cost is zero. Own province suffers -4 Morale in every season. In enemy provinces 0-10% soldiers die due to resistance every season. In allied provinces this action is forbidden.
Forced Recruit: All damaged units will be fully filled up for free. The province’s Military Potential will reduce to 0 and there will be a significant Morale decrease and Population decrease.
You can activate the various army actions from the Circle Menu. Ambush will be the first action, but as your Morality changes, more new actions become available.
Activating an army action is only available if the army hasn’t moved in the season yet and it costs the army all of its movement points.
After you have chosen who you would like to enlist, the actual recruitment begins. The army withdraws into a tent for the duration of the recruitment phase. You can always see how many turns are left.
Extended Deploy Zone: Available to a defending army if it has stayed at least four turns in the same place. If such an army is attacked it is allowed to choose the battlefield and start the battle with an extended deployment zone on the battlefield which gives it a definite advantage.
Ambush: If the army is located in one of the forests of the Campaign Map it goes to ambush status. The enemy kings don’t see it on the map and can attack nearby armies with the advantage of getting a favourable deploy zone in the battle around the opposing units who lose their deploy phase.
Training: In the next season the given army can’t move and upkeep costs increase by 20%. In the season after that, it gains +20% Morale and +50% Movement points.
Furlough: This involves half of the upkeep costs over the next year but the unit can’t move and if it is attacked, only half of the units will fight. Also, the province won’t produce any Food or Gold.
Looting: Upkeep cost is zero. Own province suffers -4 Morale in every season. In enemy provinces 0-10% soldiers die due to resistance every season. In allied provinces this action is forbidden.
Forced Recruit: All damaged units will be fully filled up for free. The province’s Military Potential will reduce to 0 and there will be a significant Morale decrease and Population decrease.
Units
Arms
Archers: Strong ranged attack against light armoured units especially from heights but weak in melee, especially against cavalry and heavy infantry. Also weak in fog and storms, and when they are firing out of a forest. They are at a serious disadvantage against the enemy in woodland.
Ballistic shooting: the archers constantly target an area, which means that they might cause injuries both to the hostile and friendly units there.
Light infantry : As they don’t get any negative modifiers under extreme weather conditions or on difficult terrain types, they are a good choice for any battles. However, they are weak against archers (in a ranged attack), heavy infantry and cavalry.
Heavy infantry: Strong on open terrain and against archers but weak in hard terrain, especially in the woods, and weak in storms, night, fog, or against special armour piercing units.
Spearmen: Strong against heavy infantry and especially strong against cavalry but weak against ranged attack and in the woods.
Cavalry : Fast moving tactical units but weak in storms and in the woods and against heavy infantry and spearmen.
Knights : Strong on open terrain when using their momentum but weak in storms and against spearmen and crossbowmen. A very powerful, but also a very expensive unit type that also requires constant adjustments to their skills.
Crossbowmen: Special archers with almost the same strengths and weakness as the archers except for their shorter shooting range but strong armour piercing (ranged) against heavy units. Under certain circumstance they are very effective, but this unit type also requires the constant adjustments of their skills.
Linear shooting: their projectiles cause injury to everyone standing in the line of trajectory.
Ballistic shooting: the archers constantly target an area, which means that they might cause injuries both to the hostile and friendly units there.
Light infantry : As they don’t get any negative modifiers under extreme weather conditions or on difficult terrain types, they are a good choice for any battles. However, they are weak against archers (in a ranged attack), heavy infantry and cavalry.
Heavy infantry: Strong on open terrain and against archers but weak in hard terrain, especially in the woods, and weak in storms, night, fog, or against special armour piercing units.
Spearmen: Strong against heavy infantry and especially strong against cavalry but weak against ranged attack and in the woods.
Cavalry : Fast moving tactical units but weak in storms and in the woods and against heavy infantry and spearmen.
Knights : Strong on open terrain when using their momentum but weak in storms and against spearmen and crossbowmen. A very powerful, but also a very expensive unit type that also requires constant adjustments to their skills.
Crossbowmen: Special archers with almost the same strengths and weakness as the archers except for their shorter shooting range but strong armour piercing (ranged) against heavy units. Under certain circumstance they are very effective, but this unit type also requires the constant adjustments of their skills.
Linear shooting: their projectiles cause injury to everyone standing in the line of trajectory.
Battle features
These statistics describe the strength of the unit in battles although the player only see a single number all incorporate several characteristics:
Melee: Damage and Attack rate
Defence: Health points, Resistance (reduces all non-magical damages), armour against melee attacks and armour against ranged attacks
Archery: Damage, Attack rate and Accuracy in ranged fight
Stamina: Stamina is toughness and resistance to fatigue. In the battles a low Stamina level causes reduced Melee, Defence and Archery levels.
Melee: Damage and Attack rate
Defence: Health points, Resistance (reduces all non-magical damages), armour against melee attacks and armour against ranged attacks
Archery: Damage, Attack rate and Accuracy in ranged fight
Stamina: Stamina is toughness and resistance to fatigue. In the battles a low Stamina level causes reduced Melee, Defence and Archery levels.
Advancing levels
Units gain experience in the battles and advance levels (up to 10) when they gather a certain amount of experience.
By levelling up, 1 point can be allocated to the General abilities and at every 5th and 10th level a new skill can be chosen from a pool which is different for all arms.
By levelling up, 1 point can be allocated to the General abilities and at every 5th and 10th level a new skill can be chosen from a pool which is different for all arms.
General abilities
All units have all the General abilities. Every time a unit advances a level, 1 point can be allocated to one of the abilities below. All abilities can have up to 4 levels.
Melee: +10% melee damage / level
Defence: +5% HP, +10% melee and ranged armour / level
Archery: +10% ranged damage, +5 Accuracy / level
Stamina: +10% Stamina / level
Upkeep: -10% Upkeep Cost / level
Melee: +10% melee damage / level
Defence: +5% HP, +10% melee and ranged armour / level
Archery: +10% ranged damage, +5 Accuracy / level
Stamina: +10% Stamina / level
Upkeep: -10% Upkeep Cost / level
Skills
61 unique skills are available in the game.
As the basic setting all units have 0-3 starting skill which depends on the unit type.
Passive skills can boost the unit both in the battles and the Campaign Map, active (with a cool down) and other skills that can be turned On and Off are also available in the battles. These On /Off skills always have an advantage and a disadvantage, so the usage of these is always a tactical decision.
As the basic setting all units have 0-3 starting skill which depends on the unit type.
Passive skills can boost the unit both in the battles and the Campaign Map, active (with a cool down) and other skills that can be turned On and Off are also available in the battles. These On /Off skills always have an advantage and a disadvantage, so the usage of these is always a tactical decision.
英雄（Heroes）
クラス（Class）
The class defines the basic rate of the abilities and some of the available skills (there is a unique skill tree for each class). On top of this each class has a special characteristic:
Champions are very powerful in melee and give serious bonuses and boosts to the units attached to them. They gain additional 15% Experience Points in battles.
Warlords lead armies and rule their lands, their abilities usually affect the whole army or huge areas. The disadvantages of hard terrain on the Campaign Map grant -50% less penalty for the armies of the Warlords. Sages learned the long forgotten secrets of magic and they use deadly spells that usually affect the weather or strike enemies down from a distance. -20% cooldown in the battle for the spells of the Sages.
Champions are very powerful in melee and give serious bonuses and boosts to the units attached to them. They gain additional 15% Experience Points in battles.
Warlords lead armies and rule their lands, their abilities usually affect the whole army or huge areas. The disadvantages of hard terrain on the Campaign Map grant -50% less penalty for the armies of the Warlords. Sages learned the long forgotten secrets of magic and they use deadly spells that usually affect the weather or strike enemies down from a distance. -20% cooldown in the battle for the spells of the Sages.
Morality
Heroes also have a position on the Morality Charts, just like their own King Arthur, and this has a strong impact on their loyalty to the king, as well as affecting optional solutions during adventure quests. As the Morality of King Arthur can constantly change, the quest can also influence the Morality of the heroes.
Traits
Traits are collectively the virtues and flaws of a hero: they might be positive or negative. Each trait has a unique effect on the gameplay.
Loyalty
The loyalty of the hero to his king.
A Knight with low Loyalty might leave the service of his lord. Fiefdoms and the traits of the hero or the traits of his wife (if he has one) have an effect on the Loyalty, but differences between the morality of the knight and the king decreases it.
A Knight with low Loyalty might leave the service of his lord. Fiefdoms and the traits of the hero or the traits of his wife (if he has one) have an effect on the Loyalty, but differences between the morality of the knight and the king decreases it.
Fiefdoms
Liege lords are heroes entrusted with the leadership of a province. A hero can have a maximum of 3 fiefdoms. The Reign Ability and Traits of the liege lords and his wife give bonuses or negative effects to the land. Each fiefdom boosts the Loyalty of a hero to a different extent.
Wives
A hero can marry the lady of his choice. Marriage has various benefits, as a wife will bring her dowry to her husband. Spouses also have positive or negative traits that work like the traits of the various heroes. Potential wives mostly appear in the quests.
Artefacts
150 unique artefacts are available in three main groups, Weapon, Armour and Charm, respectively.
Artefacts are magic items and grant various bonuses to the Knight. You have four available slots: one weapon, one armour and two charms. The Knight may have further artefacts in his inventory and may give them to other Knights.
Some artefacts grant unique abilities but only if certain conditions are fulfilled (eg. winning 10 battles / slaying 20 heroes / etc. with the given artefact). Cursed artifacts work similarly, but in that case you have to meet the requirements to lose the negative effect.
Artefacts are magic items and grant various bonuses to the Knight. You have four available slots: one weapon, one armour and two charms. The Knight may have further artefacts in his inventory and may give them to other Knights.
Some artefacts grant unique abilities but only if certain conditions are fulfilled (eg. winning 10 battles / slaying 20 heroes / etc. with the given artefact). Cursed artifacts work similarly, but in that case you have to meet the requirements to lose the negative effect.
Fighting capability
Heroes can fight as units within the same system but at a much higher level. Furthermore, the heroes have special Mana points, used for spells in the battles.
Advancing levels
Heroes gain experience in battles and quests and advance up after they have accumulated a certain amount of experience. There is no level limit but it will be challenging to reach above the 20th-25th level by the end of the campaign. Every new level gives 1 skill and 1 ability point that can be allocated freely.
The pool of available skills is affected by the class of the hero, the upgrades and his Morality.
However, the hero can reach a new level from spring to autumn but allocating points is only available in Winter.
Every Knight has five abilities and each of these has 20 levels. You can allocate 1 point among the five abilities when the Knight advances level.
If the Knight advances a level, you can also allocate one Skill point: you can decide if you want a new skill or raise the level of a previous skill up to 4.
The pool of available skills is affected by the class of the hero, the upgrades and his Morality.
However, the hero can reach a new level from spring to autumn but allocating points is only available in Winter.
Every Knight has five abilities and each of these has 20 levels. You can allocate 1 point among the five abilities when the Knight advances level.
If the Knight advances a level, you can also allocate one Skill point: you can decide if you want a new skill or raise the level of a previous skill up to 4.
Abilities
All heroes have Abilities. One Ability point can be allocated at each new level, to a maximum of 20.
Leadership: The increasing charisma of the hero grants him a higher reputation among his soldiers. Each level lowers the Upkeep cost by 3%.
Reign: Shows the hero’s skill in governing provinces, diplomacy, negotiating or even in finance. Each level gives an additional 3% gold income and food production in the fiefdoms of the hero.
Adventuring: The daring knights of the Round Table tirelessly pursue adventures in the magical wilderness of Britannia. This skill covers the useful tricks that they will need to stay alive and gain experience during quests (+5% / level). Each level gives an additional 5% Movement points for the army of the hero.
Fight: The Fight ability reflects their capabilities in the melee, how deadly and proficient they are with their weapons. Each level gives an additional 5% Hit points and damage for the hero and his unit.
Magic: The Magic skill shows the hero’s capacity for tapping this mysterious source. Each level gives an additional 3% Mana points for the hero.
Leadership: The increasing charisma of the hero grants him a higher reputation among his soldiers. Each level lowers the Upkeep cost by 3%.
Reign: Shows the hero’s skill in governing provinces, diplomacy, negotiating or even in finance. Each level gives an additional 3% gold income and food production in the fiefdoms of the hero.
Adventuring: The daring knights of the Round Table tirelessly pursue adventures in the magical wilderness of Britannia. This skill covers the useful tricks that they will need to stay alive and gain experience during quests (+5% / level). Each level gives an additional 5% Movement points for the army of the hero.
Fight: The Fight ability reflects their capabilities in the melee, how deadly and proficient they are with their weapons. Each level gives an additional 5% Hit points and damage for the hero and his unit.
Magic: The Magic skill shows the hero’s capacity for tapping this mysterious source. Each level gives an additional 3% Mana points for the hero.
Injuries and Curses
Injured heroes:
An injured Knight cannot march to battles or start quests until he has recovered. A small icon shows his injured state and a number indicates how long he will stay that way.
Cursed heroes:
Cursed heroes have every skill lowered to 1. A small icon shows that he is cursed and a number indicates how long he will stay that way.
An injured Knight cannot march to battles or start quests until he has recovered. A small icon shows his injured state and a number indicates how long he will stay that way.
Cursed heroes:
Cursed heroes have every skill lowered to 1. A small icon shows that he is cursed and a number indicates how long he will stay that way.
Provinces
Liege Lords
Liege lords are heroes entrusted with the leadership of a province. The Reign Ability and the traits of the liege lord and his wife give bonuses to the land.
Population
The most important rating of a province is the population: the number of people living in the territory influences the amount of Gold and Food they produce. The maximum rating depends on the size of the province. Health and Food Reserves affect Population.
Loyalty
This rating shows the current degree of trust in the king. Loyalty is influenced by taxes, the previous actions of the king, the laws, the liege lord etc. When the loyalty of the province drops low, there is a chance of a rebellion. This is influenced by Public Safety, Food Reserves, the tax rate and the differences between Arthur’s religion and the local religion. Rebellions happen in stages. First a simple diplomatic quest will spawn in the given province, giving the opportunity to settle the problems easily by restoring Loyalty in the territory (it will cost Gold or Food). If the player ignores the quest, soon rebellious armies appear in the province. Depending on the Loyalty losses in the neighbouring territories the rebellion might even spread to these other provinces.
Rebellion is a rare, but a significant event.
Rebellion is a rare, but a significant event.
Military
Also known as recruitment rating: shows how willing or reluctant the locals are to join the army. A High Military rating indicates that recruitment will be fast; in the case of lower Military ratings it might take a very long time.
Health
Health is the most important trait to focus on while trying to boost Population. Low Health will lead to diseases. Health is influenced by Climate, the density of the current population and Food Reserves.
Diseases Caused mainly by the poor health of the province, some nasty disease has started to spread in one of your provinces. The local lord will stem the epidemic after a while, but without your intervention the province will suffer more substantial consequences, possibly resulting in a major loss of population. Epidemics also appear as quests, which gives you the opportunity to improve the situation.
Diseases Caused mainly by the poor health of the province, some nasty disease has started to spread in one of your provinces. The local lord will stem the epidemic after a while, but without your intervention the province will suffer more substantial consequences, possibly resulting in a major loss of population. Epidemics also appear as quests, which gives you the opportunity to improve the situation.
Public Safety
The rate of crime and corruption in the province has a strong impact on Loyalty and the Gold income from the territory. Public Safety is influenced by the Faith, Culture, population density of the province and the tax rate.
Food Reserves
The difference between Food produced and consumed in a given province. Low Food Reserves will decrease Health and Population. Food reserves are influenced by the Climate, the population density and Population itself.
Climate
The usual climate in the province. It can range from hostile to perfect. The better the climate is, the higher the Food production and the Health will be. Climate never changes during the game.
Roads
The former Roman provinces take pride in their paved roads, while in other areas only dangerous dirt paths cut through the wilderness. The more developed the road system is, the higher the trade incomes will be. The road system never changes during the game.
Faith
The ratio of Christians and believers in the Old Faith in the province. The greater the difference is between the Faith of the province and the Faith of King Arthur, the lower the Loyalty will be.
Culture
Each province has one dominant culture that will not change during the game. These cultures are: Britons, Saxons, Welsh, Romans, Cumbrians, Gaels and Picts. The Culture of a province has a very strong impact on the Military and Faith rating of the territory.
Gold income
There can be 3 types of Gold income from a province: Taxes, Trade income and Mining income.
Taxes depend on the Population, Public Safety and the level of the general taxes set on the Chancellery screen. Taxes flow in once a year, in Winter.
Trade incomes flow in every season and they are influenced by the Roads and Public Safety.
Mining incomes also flow in every season, but only from provinces that have mines. Mining incomes are influenced by Public Safety.
Taxes depend on the Population, Public Safety and the level of the general taxes set on the Chancellery screen. Taxes flow in once a year, in Winter.
Trade incomes flow in every season and they are influenced by the Roads and Public Safety.
Mining incomes also flow in every season, but only from provinces that have mines. Mining incomes are influenced by Public Safety.
Food income
There are two types of Food income: one from taxes and one from trade. They depend on the Food Reserves, Population, Public Safety and the level of the general taxes set on the Chancellery screen. The food tax also flows in once a year, in one go, in the Winter season. Trade incomes flow in each season and they are influenced by Public Safety and Roads.
Actions in the provinces
The traits of a province can be modified globally with Laws, Upgrades and some building types available in Strongholds, but there are also various ways to settle local provincial matters with Local Actions.
Sharing food: players give out free food from the royal warehouses.
Settlers: the result is an increased Population.
Festivities: the result is increased Loyalty.
Healers: increased Health; the remaining time of diseases will decrease.
Sharing food: players give out free food from the royal warehouses.
Settlers: the result is an increased Population.
Festivities: the result is increased Loyalty.
Healers: increased Health; the remaining time of diseases will decrease.
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