Sid Meier didn’t care too much for RPGs. In High Score! The Illustrated History of Electronic Games, he complained the genre promised excitement, adventure and plot yet often failed to deliver. As he put it, “… kill this monster, get five exp, kill that monster …”
(Bear in mind, these were RPGs circa 1986. Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar set a new high-water mark when it was released in 1985 but other RPGs of the era were mainly content catering to AD&D munchkins.)
He set out to remedy that with Pirates! in 1987 and in the process did away with some RPG conventions. Instead of a rigidly defined plot, the player was free to weave a personal storyline through the many choices the game offered. In lieu of XP and levelling up, players raised their reputation with the ultimate goal being to attain a respectable position in society when their pirate career ended.
Taleworlds, on the other hand, wholeheartedly embraced RPG traditions when designing Mount&Blade and its sequel, Mount&Blade: Warband. The series’ RPG elements are both overt and conventional: there’s stats-driven character development, a party to manage and even NPC allies with distinctive personalities.
Stats and skills
Mount&Blade’s RPG layer is apparent from the outset. At character creation, the player must choose a background and history to determine starting stats and equipment. Interestingly, unlike most games which favour an egalitarian approach, the choice of gender and social background does have an impact on gameplay.
Character development in Mount&Blade is mostly standard RPG fare with Attributes, Weapon Proficiencies and Skills that can be improved whenever a character levels up. While the 4 Attributes and 6 Weapon Proficiencies are straightforward, the 24 character Skills force the player to make some interesting decisions when moulding a party.
There are three types of character Skills in the game: leader, personal and party. Leader Skills only apply to the leader of the party, which in the player’s party is naturally the player character. These influence the size of the party or how persuasive the player character is in conversations with NPCs.
Personal Skills affect the character’s ability in battles. For instance, hitting an opponent with a sword will require quick reflexes and timing but the amount of damage meted out takes into consideration the personal Skill, Power Strike.
Party Skills are arguably the most important since they affect the entire party in critical ways. Trade and Looting influence trade profit and the spoils of victory, Trainer quickly turns volunteers into veterans, Path-finding has a major impact on party speed and Wound Treatment improves the recovery rate of injured troops.
The party’s overall adeptness at a Skill is determined by the party member with the highest rating at that party Skill. As each character receives a maximum of five Skill points when levelling, it’s impossible for the player character to improve every Skill. The player is thus forced to choose between improving the self or the party every time a new level is gained. Yet, ultimately, both the player character and the party must be strengthened since a strong party with a weak leader will fare just as poorly in battles as a weak party with a strong leader.
This is where the companions come in.
You must gather your party before venturing forth
Companions are Mount&Blade’s hero units. Like typical hero-wannabes in RPGs, they can be found in taverns awaiting an opportunity for action and adventure. They have little stories to tell and anecdotes to recount, providing both colour and flavour for themselves and the world around them.
They comment on player actions, opine on the party’s current state, and react positively or adversely to the presence of other companions. Anyone expecting Baldur’s Gate-level camaraderie and character interplay will be disappointed – Nizar and Matheld are nowhere near as memorable as the likes of Minsc and Viconia. Their true utility lies elsewhere.
While other troops in the party can be killed in battle, companions are merely knocked out when their health is reduced to zero and this allows the player to develop them as the campaign progresses. As companions gain experience and level up, their Attributes, Weapon Proficiencies and crucially, Skills, can be improved in the same manner as the player character.
The companions’ primary purpose is to strengthen the party with their party Skills. As noted earlier, no single character can hope to excel at every party Skill so it’s best to let the companions specialise. For instance, Deshavi could concentrate on Tracking, Path-finding and Spotting to let the party move swiftly across Calradia and better spot targets or threats. By allocating Ymira’s Skill points in Surgery, First Aid and Wound Treatment, the party sustains fewer losses during battles and injured troops recuperate quickly.
This approach is not without its drawbacks. The party could be deprived of valuable bonuses if companions decide to leave or are taken prisoner so the player must plan for this contingency when developing companions.
The fascinating thing about party Skills is the way they allow the player to develop the party the way characters are developed. It’s satisfying to watch the party grow as battle-hardened companions provide support and guidance, transforming what was previously a skittish ragtag band into a mighty army riding confidently towards its destiny. Though the game doesn’t provide a character level-type numerical rating for the party, the reactions of other armies provide an adequate gauge of strength. A strong party will intimidate enemies as it moves across Calradia, causing weaker armies to turn tail.
Unlike characters, however, the party can be effectively “de-levelled”. Losing a battle can completely disintegrate a party as troops are killed and companions disperse or are taken prisoner. The player will then have to go through the onerous process of rebuilding the party from scratch — troops must be recruited and trained, lost companions must be found or ransomed – and this provides enough of a disincentive for the player to steer clear of hopeless fights.
The long tale
Taleworlds may not have set its sights on outdoing BioWare but Mount&Blade’s RPG layer is nonetheless an integral part of the game and it may even provide the key to the series’ future success.
While the level-up ding is undeniably effective as a hook during the early stages of the game and developing the player character, companions and the party remains engrossing later, most players will need additional incentives when the game bogs down mid-campaign.
Taleworlds should be commended for injecting story and character into what would otherwise be a dry strategy game but both must be further developed if Mount&Blade is to widen its appeal. Story and personality – the essence of RPGs — will help sustain players’ attention on the long hard road to victory well after the numbers have lost their allure.
