[en] Edain Mod > [Edain] General Suggestions

Garrison Archers : a "new" unit for manning the walls

(1/3) > >>

klantai:
The ability to man the citadel's walls with archers is one of the cool things from BfME I the Edain Team resurrected for us, and as I was really fond of that option, I can't thank them enough : ).

However, it sometimes looks and gets a little messy with all those people on the walls, archers sometimes abandon their posts to run out of the citadel (despite the S command), sometimes one becomes mad and starts spinning on himself endlessly etc. so I ended up having a little idea : creating a new unit that fits in its stats and layout the need of manning the walls of the citadel, the Garrison Archer.

A Garrison Archer battalion would have the following attributes :
- a single line of units, so as to be easier to place and organize on the wall
- a formation toggle between :
    *1 : no effect, or something else, depending on whether it's a good choice to give them a second role. In that formation, the unit's stats are between average and fairly weak, again depending of whether they have to assume a second role
    * 2 :
        ~ can't move anymore
        ~ units get closer together (how close this gets would be a way to balance their usefulness since the closer they get, the easier it would be to have more of them on the same wall)
        ~ if it's Gondor Garrison Archers, they take a formation slightly curved inwards, so as to further facilitate their smooth manning of the walls. If it's Rohan Garrison Archers, they keep a straight line, since the Rohan walls are straight
        ~ units gain a high bonus to armor (so as to simulate the presence of protective parapets), range (so as to simulate the higher ground advantage of shooting from the walls), fire rate and damage (to compensate for their weakness outside this formation, and small numbers) as balance allows
        ~ maybe, though I'm not sure about this one : give them a bonus to damage against catapults, as balance allows, so that they can punish catapults that get too near (and that way keep the enemy's armies in good order ^^)
- other abilities that would seem befitting for such an unit would be :
    * the possibility to have access to flaming arrows
    * an active Volley power (allowing them the possibility to shoot a storm of arrows in a small zone once in a while). As I see it, they should only be able to use it a small distance away from them (as it would emulate the archers on the wall showering the assailants below them during a siege) but could be given an additional effect of temporarily lowering the affected enemy units' morale (as balance allows)

The abilities mentioned above should, I believe, allow this unit to be a decent defensive asset while being mostly useless at anything else, and if it isn't sufficient, I can think of a few more measures to keep them in their specific role without making regular archers useless :
- slower base moving speed, so that they have to be deployed carefully if used outside (to defend an outpost, for instance)
- low armour outside of their special formation, maybe with no access to reinforced armour. That one may not be necessary if their special formation really increases their fire power from weak to strong, so that there already would be no incentive to use them without putting them in formation
- no banner-carrier maybe ; it seems a little severe, but it may or may not increase how smoothly they can be deployed on the walls (without the extra unit in front of them)
- their volley ability locked unless they're in the right formation. I think it's logical to have it that way, but I sincerely don't know if it's actually feasible

Other than that, depending on a potential second role, their resource and command points cost as well a possible number of units restriction would have to be chosen for the best balance.
Actually, it's a role I could well see given to the Morthond archers for Gondor, as they already have their regular archers and their rangers. As for Rohan, I haven't played with them enough, but maybe regular archers, through a modified formation toggle could play both roles, so as to emphasize that Rohan is neither a nation of footmen, nor a nation of archers (nor a faction that's strong on defense for that matter ^^) and that would contribute to give mounted archers an even greater role.

SRQPO85:
Sound interesting, but I think that most people would just put them places that are not the walls and use them to set up defensive zones almost anywhere. I think it would be hard to be able to actually make them tailored to wall defense without giving them abilities that make them overpowered in the field.

Sir_Stig:
I think a better solution would be to add a slight armour and range buff to archers on walls, making an entirely new unit seems a bit extreme.

klantai:
First of all, thanks for the comments : ).

Well, concerning the making a "new" unit rather than just giving a bonus to archers on walls, I do admit it sounds a bit extreme, but there are a few reasons why I'd still suggest it :

- First and foremost, I'm not sure it's possible/easy (modding-wise) to give a bonus only to archers and only when they're on walls, otherwise I may have suggested that
- Secondly, the point of a “new” unit would be to have a lower number of ranks that make deploying said archers on walls smoother, both visually and technically
- Thirdly, I've been writing “new” all along, because I believe the Garrison Archer role can be given to already existing units. I actually thought of it when wondering about what specific use could be given to archers from Morthond, when Gondor already has regular archers and rangers, and it seemed a fair job for them, as I believe having unit diversity is good, but it's better if it goes with role diversity : ).
On that matter, I do admit my ideas for Rohan are more limited, but I'd like to remind that movie-wise (as well as book-wise, even though  Tolkien doesn't always give that much detail about who does what during a battle) archers were mostly used for defense, be it by Rohan or Gondor (outside of rangers).
- Fourthly, by returning to fixed plots and walled cities, siege battles have become more prominent, as was mean by the Edain Team, and in such a context, I believe such an unit to be quite fitting.

As far as abusing such archers by using them outside of the citadel, I believe that with good thought given to balance, this shouldn't be a problem, and maybe it could even be a good thing. After all, a few squads of hard to move somewhat long-ranged archers would make for a sort of weaker moving watch-tower.
Their usefulness in the fields could furthermore be reduced in a number of ways, including one very simple that just came to me ^^ :
- thinking of it, what they need to have to make them good Garrison Archers (and emulate the presence of parapets) is not high all-around armour as I first suggested, but high projectile armour, because they won't get attacked by anything else as long as the city's not taken. So if they have weak overall armour, and only high projectile armour when in formation, in the field they will pack a decent punch, but will be destroyed by the first horde of whatever melee/cavalry will come their way.
- their numbers can be limited to whatever amount seems the best, so as to emphasize strategic placement
- once all these balance considerations are made, I can even see them as light siege units (much like Abu guns in Age of Empires III, if anyone here is familiar with it ^^) for harassing forward enemy bases : above average range and damage, slow movement, needing protection from anything but archers etc.

ziqing:
you could just give regular archers of good faction a new command "defending the wall" to a certain section of wall, and those archers could just defend that part of wall and get extra bonus. I think it will be easy than making units just for defending the wall.
It could not be that hard,just like new formation for archers which could only be used on the wall

Navigation

[0] Themen-Index

[#] Nächste Seite