Warhammer Total War: Warhammer III

[Minecrawler]

Master engineer dropped his rifle from the trailer. Oh well, old age is no joke. (Not really dropped, it's behind his back, he just forgot it exists)
Just as nuln ironsides dropped their repeater handguns. Now they will do ""barrage of fire"(sic) with muskets.

Interesting that all these unfortunate events happened only to the empire side of the dlc.

 

[Fedora Master]

Two-handed rifles huh? What a novel idea.

 

[zapotec]

Content creators in the program got to post their videos now. Zerkovich went over all the unit stats bunch of others did some battle content.


Thunderbarge seems just a dumb unit. When it uses the active ability that makes it take miniscule amount of passive damage while tripling its speed the opponent's flying melee units bug out and don't trigger their attack animations. And since it just passively kills everything around it you don't even need to click around for target priority. They also added Ulrika to the dwarf multiplayer roster which I really hope will be just an extended roster thing. Them having an access to caster mean that you'll see her in every game.

Why RANGE 1? Looks like a programming workaround to achieve something

 

[Minecrawler]

Two-handed rifles huh? What a novel idea.

Only the technological powerhouse of Nuln could come up with that, after years of research and experimentation.

What a shitshow. "We just really want to be authentic", lol.
They just pulled a whole faction with flying cavalry, flying machines, constructs, skaven jezzails, artillery, dragons and what not out of their ass.
Is the real reason behind that China getting a Nan-Gau dlc with full-scale gatling handguns (and all-female crews, of course) somewhere down the road?

 

[zapotec]

To be more accurate the Engineering school is in Altdorf while the manufactoring and training takes place in Nuln

 

[Cyberarmy]

Patch and DLC looking good this time

 

[Lacrymas]

I played this today a bit after installing a bunch of AI and gameplay mods that should theoretically make it more bearable (like disabling the red line skills and most campaign buffs to units, bringing balance closer to the PvP one) and I didn't hate the 7 turns I played. However, it was with N'Kari, which means no ranged units, so that automatically makes it better. Slaaneshi armies are pretty good at taking out elves as it turns out, I even managed to defeat 2 full stacks on turn 6 after 1-2 reloads. Sieges are even more awful with all-melee armies, I have to rely on hiding my entire army and baiting their garrison only with N'Kari so my units can slowly climb the butt ladders at the other end of the map. Dumb design which is either made by people who don't play this game or impossible to be handled by the engine. I question whether reworks to weak factions will redeem this game, I'm leaning towards no. Hopefully, they have a better engine in the works for WH40k, otherwise it will be a complete waste of time.

 

[Average Manatee]

Yeah N'kari is fucking ass vs. high elves and its probably the worst starting matchup in the game. Problems include both the sieges and when they eventually start fielding armies entirely of their spearmen with bow who either kill you if you stop microing your whole army for 5s or kill you in melee with their bonus vs. large because you stayed there more than the 6s your charge bonus is active. If you have to fight those guys in cities it is absolute cancer.

 

[Lacrymas]

Oh, yeah, you have to micro like crazy, otherwise just a few spearmen and archers will wipe out your entire army.

 

[Bohrain]

I always play campaigns with the mods that remove sieges that's the number one issue. High elves aren't that bad in open field for slaanesh. As far as starting matchups go I think Kugath has the worst time.

 

[Average Manatee]

Kugath is pretty easy if played well. Just run around with as many lords/heroes as possible. For the undead you just tank them while spamming AoE damage, they basically can't hurt you. It's only hard if you make the mistake of thinking you're supposed to build an army to win.

 

[Hydro]

Anybody tried modding out assladders? I wonder if that would improve sieges.

 

[Baron Tahn]

Thinking about cranking this back up soon. Did they fix it? Bit of a perilous question I know.

 

[Lacrymas]

Anybody tried modding out assladders? I wonder if that would improve sieges.

It's not butt ladders that are the main issue, there are 4 other, more pressing problems.

1. The entire design of the game funnels you towards a ranged-heavy meta even in WH3. It's less of an issue than in WH2, but it's still there. Sieges almost necessitate using as many ranged units as possible, both as defender and attacker, especially because they can curve their arrows and hit targets behind walls (ridiculous). This makes sieges repetitive and easy as the attacker. Overpowered LLs and monstrous units are the cherry on top.

2. Walls are a hindrance for the defender. This is where the butt ladders contribute. Archers aren't safe on the walls because anything can climb them and stop them from shooting, but melee can't stay there because CA can't code fighting on walls to save their lives and there's too much ground to cover, which splits your forces, so it's better to camp in the middle of the city with all your forces than doing anything else if you are defending.

3. Siege maps are too big. Very rarely will you play a 40v40 siege battle and even then it's too big. This also makes it possible for stealth units to cap the objective without anyone being able to do anything about it. 80% of the map goes unused and it takes forever to traverse the other 20%, which slows down the already labored sieges to a glacial crawl.

4. There are just too many of them. Since there is a major settlement in every province, you either fight a siege battle every turn or every 2 turns, which takes the other 3 issues to the forefront.

Also, the AI is still shit and there's no way around it, even if they find a way to fix all of these. Oh, and the tower defense thing, but you should disable it if you haven't already.

Thinking about cranking this back up soon. Did they fix it? Bit of a perilous question I know.

There are just too many things to fix for this to be a legitimate question. They'd need a dedicated team and it will take years. You can see this with the new DLC, they've been working on it since at least Shadows of Change's release date, so they needed 8 months to tackle 3 factions. On top of that, they'd have to work on the fundamental gameplay as well, not only specific factions. This is without mentioning the mountain of bugs every faction and the game itself has, units *still* drop orders randomly and it happens multiple times in a battle.

 

[Baron Tahn]

Yeah, figured something like that would be the answer.

 

[Hydro]

Yeah I know, but I mean simple thing like modding them ladders out, just curious how it would change sieges. Probably you’ll have to update AI behavior as well, so it won’t initiate a battle without any siege equipment. Sounds like a valid idea anyway.

 

[Lacrymas]

Yeah I know, but I mean simple thing like modding them ladders out, just curious how it would change sieges. Probably you’ll have to update AI behavior as well, so it won’t initiate a battle without any siege equipment. Sounds like a valid idea anyway.

The AI is already crippled by the siege autoresolve results in the first place, they having to wait turns to build siege equipment will slow their growth to a glacial crawl. This also applies to the player, you don't have the luxury of waiting turns to build siege equipment. I'm sure there are already mods out there that remove butt ladders, but sieges are somehow not magically fixed. It's not the ladders.

 

[Hydro]

will slow their growth to a glacial crawl. This also applies to the player

Which is not bad thing at all. You know fortresses being actually fortresses.

you don't have the luxury of waiting turns to build siege equipment

Luxury lol? Treating your map painting seriously ain’t you bud?

 

[thesecret1]

Sieges need ranged units to actually fire when positioned on the walls (they just stare at the enemy in far too many cases) and to have melee units actually stomp enemies that climb one by one on ladders rather than let them create a foothold. Something to prevent a single legendary unit from climbing up and wiping a whole regiment. Sieging a fortified town should be difficult for the attacker

 

[Lacrymas]

will slow their growth to a glacial crawl. This also applies to the player

Which is not bad thing at all. You know fortresses being actually fortresses.

The AI is bad at everything in this game and can't provide a challenge whatsoever after the very early game, so it being extra crippled isn't a good thing.

you don't have the luxury of waiting turns to build siege equipment

Luxury lol? Treating your map painting seriously ain’t you bud?

I mean this literally. You can't afford wasting turns in the early game because *some* AI factions will balloon to an unmanageable degree and will defeat you with sheer numbers. Karl Franz is a great example, his early game is a puzzle you have to meticulously solve every time you play his campaign, otherwise you'll lose. This applies to the hardest difficulties, obviously, I have no idea how any of it works on the lower ones.

 

[Hydro]

will slow their growth to a glacial crawl. This also applies to the player

Which is not bad thing at all. You know fortresses being actually fortresses.

The AI is bad at everything in this game and can't provide a challenge whatsoever after the very early game, so it being extra crippled isn't a good thing.

you don't have the luxury of waiting turns to build siege equipment

Luxury lol? Treating your map painting seriously ain’t you bud?

I mean this literally. You can't afford wasting turns in the early game because *some* AI factions will balloon to an unmanageable degree and will defeat you with sheer numbers. Karl Franz is a great example, his early game is a puzzle you have to meticulously solve every time you play his campaign, otherwise you'll lose. This applies to the hardest difficulties, obviously, I have no idea how any of it works on the lower ones.

Your point is kinda self-defeating. On the one hand you oppose crippling AI, on the other hand you oppose crippling player. Which means that you’re not addressing the topic itself — how the game mechanics would change without ladders. If both sides will be ‘crippled’ that just means slower progression for both of them i.e. longer early game, that is the best part of TW.

 

[Fedora Master]

Patch and DLC looking good this time

It's the same mechanics that already exist elsewhere but repainted. Granted, this isn't necessarily bad but the limits of what they can do with the game have been reached.

 

[Lacrymas]

Your point is kinda self-defeating. On the one hand you oppose crippling AI, on the other hand you oppose crippling player. Which means that you’re not addressing the topic itself — how the game mechanics would change without ladders. If both sides will be ‘crippled’ that just means slower progression for both of them i.e. longer early game, that is the best part of TW.

It won't change at all because it's not ass ladders that are the problem. You only ever "need" them when playing all-melee factions and don't have access to artillery yet. The AI and the player are crippled in two different ways, both bad. The AI can't play this game and can't provide a challenge outside of the first 10 turns of a campaign in the first place, part of the problem is the siege autoresolve results that wipe out the majority of a sieging AI army, so they can't actually become a threat ever outside of those 10 turns where they just cheat and get huge garrisons and free armies. The player is crippled within these 10 turns if he has to wait to capture his first major settlement, making some campaigns borderline impossible (Karl Franz having to wait to siege a major settlement in the beginning means Festus will wipe out the other Elector Counts without you being able to do anything). Even then, it's not the ass ladders that enable sieging, it's the siege attacker trait, so ladders are a non-sequitur (but I assumed we'll get rid of that trait as well, otherwise ladders are irrelevant to the discussion).

 

[Bohrain]

In order to fix sieges they'd basically have to redesign the settlement maps. And make ladders finite. And make weapon teams and artillery placeable on walls. Even if they had good ideas for the siege design I seriously doubt they'll even attempt to fix the mechanic for WH3. The best thing Total War 40k could do is have no sieges at all.

 

[Average Manatee]

Unfortunately at this point there's so many man hours put into designing 100s of maps and racial variations that scrapping them and starting from scratch would be entirely impossible.