Note from the Dev Team: This guide is by Treebeard, fiendish inventor of Vicky, the new Virtual Intelligence, who has made it necessary for the Dev Team to invest in large quantities of Vaseline before a battle with any group of significant importance, because we knew we'd need it! She's whipped us like a red-headed stepchild on numerous occasions, and if you skip reading Treebeard's guide, you will shortly find yourselves in BIG trouble. Luckily, though the game starts with Formations turned on, you can turn off Formations in the camp menu if Vicky proves too much for you, particularly if you are not an experienced player. We also advise that, since no one but the Dev Team has played with Vicky activated, even quite experienced players reduce difficulty levels in your games initially until you get to know her better. (We did.) She's a whole new animal! Players new to M&B/Warband and inexperienced players BEWARE! Please read Treebeard's guide which follows or you will definitely come to grief when Vicky gets hold of you!
TREEBEARD'S GUIDE TO FORMATIONS:
The new VI (Battle AI) triggers when the Battle Formations setting is turned ON (in PoP options in the Camp Menu). It is combined with formations. Both the VI and the player have Formations capability. The VI will use formations in combination with maneuvering in order to give the player a greater challenge on the battlefield. The VI is also responsive to the player’s actions and will react in a sensible way. The VI is dynamic and will not act exactly the same in two repeated battles. If the player finds the VI to be too hard, it can be turned off in the PoP settings. When the VI is active the player’s commands have a chance to be spoken. Do not use the Esc key when issuing orders. That will mess up the audio commands because the Esc key cannot be listened to by the code (- TW problem). If you have un-synced audio commands they can be re-synced by selecting a battle group (numeric keys 1 through 0 on the keyboard). On some occasions, the battle order panel may become disabled (it will not trigger by pressing the Backspace key) upon knockout of the player. If this happens you’ll have to watch the battle play out without being able to issue any “post-mortem” commands, so make sure you command your troops wisely. Player battles against the VI incur a small bonus to renown.
I decided to call it VI to make it stand out against normal Native AI and other mods’ AI.
AI means Artificial Intelligence and implies something that is real and has intelligence (- an Intelligent machine for example). An artificial intelligence is creative and can evolve on its own.
In contrast, VI means Virtual Intelligence. Virtual is something that is not real and that simulates something. In this case the computer simulates Intelligence by following logical rules and tracking information on the battlefield. A VI can’t be creative and evolve on its own. It is kind of like comparing “Virtual Reality” with “Actual Reality”.
Vicky is derived from the first letters in Virtual Intelligence. It gives the VI a nice personality tied to a name. Actually Vicky is gender neutral (the name can be derived from either Victoria or Victor), but it is commonly thought to be a female.
Vicky is the player’s challenger. She/He will do her/his best to challenge the player on the battlefield and make the player pay for being sloppy.
If the player likes he can turn off Vicky by changing the Battle Formations to OFF in the Camp Menu under POP Options. Of course, once you have met Vicky you don’t want to turn her/him off, would you? That would be Rude!
Cavalry starts in Wedge and I rarely take them out of that formation prior to charging.
Upon charge any formation will be undone.
When Formations is turned ON in the Camp menu, it will add the ability for Infantry to form Ranks, Shield Wall, Square and Wedge. Archers gain the ability to form a staggered line. Cavalry gains the ability to form a Wedge.
In order for the troops to be able to form any formation, they will need to have a certain number. For cavalry the minimum number of troops is 5. For archers and Infantry the minimum number is 12 troops.
At any time in a battle when you have issued a formation form command or give the Hold order, the current formation will set up near the position that you (the player) had when you issued the command: infantry to the left, cavalry to the right, and archers up front.
Player troops start every battle in formation. The AI also uses formations and can move in formations. If the player wants to move and keep formations, then he holds down the Hold order and points the “hold flag” at the position he wants his formations to move. Alternatively, he can use the Advance 10 Steps order repeatedly to move his selected troops in formation. A third alternative is to use the mini-map control panel (accessible by pressing Backspace) and click on a position on it to move and hold that position.
The formation key bindings are:
"J" for ranks – Ranks is a three line deep formation that puts the most experienced troops in the front. It is available for Infantry. The command also applies to Archers, but in their case they will form a Staggered Line. This formation is good against other infantry and archers.
"K" for Shield Wall –The shield wall command will only affect Infantry. This makes them form three lines. They will have shield units in the front, then short weapons, then pole weapons. This formation is good to use when advancing against archers.
"L" for Wedge (NOTE: the player should reassign the "L" for "Log" mapping to another unused key) – Wedge commands can affect Cavalry and Infantry. It is a triangular formation that has its tip towards the general enemy position. The formation uses its most experienced troops in the front. This formation is good to make a dent in a different formation and split it up. It is best used with high level troops that have good armor and weapons.
";" for Square - The Square command makes a square out of the square root of the number of Infantry units. If you have 25 Infantry units the square will be five columns with five units in each column. This formation is a useful defensive formation against cavalry.
"U" for No Formation (undo formation) –This command disassembles all current formations for the selected troop type(s) and puts them back in Native Hold formation mode.
When will a Formation be undone? It will be undone when you issue a Charge command. For Cavalry it will also be undone if you issue a Dismount command.
In what direction do formations face? Formations face the general direction of the enemy.
Please note:
Treebeard's formations only work against organized armies, like those of the lords, not with disorganized groups like bandits or Vanskerry raiders.
To make Formations work:
1.You must have Battle Formations ON
2.The encountered party must belong to a disciplined faction
3.The battle type must be a regular field battle (- i.e. not a village attack or siege or such battles)
Undisciplined factions are generally troops on the map that have white color. Other undisciplined factions are: Red Brotherhood, Mystmountain, Mountain Bandits, Forest Bandits, Outlaws.
When you are in a Formations and VI battle you'll notice a message at the start of the battle about Forming troops. If there is no such message you are in a battle against undisciplined troops and Formations and VI are turned off.
Disciplined factions are all kingdom factions, heretics, snake cult, noldor, Renegade knights and Jatu. In these battles you'll face the VI and have formations (if you have the Battle Formations option turned ON).
When in a Formations and VI battle it also depends on which group/division you have currently selected. If you have archers listening and you order a square or wedge command it will have no effect. If you select everyone (0) then those who can form for example wedge will do so (if you order wedge). So if you have a selection that consists of less than required troop types for a certain formation, then they won't be able to form that formation.
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