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Killing Blow (for Radious)

A Lethality based combat overhaul submod for Radious. Don't play Radious? You should!

The goal is to take as much of the damage calculations out of the combat as possible, focusing the engine so that most of the in-battle deaths happen from a combat roll that results in a Killing Blow™. This is a mod for old school Total War players who want longer, more contemplative battles where each model on the battlefield fights hard for their lives, with battles coming down to whose exhausted troops can batter the others into submission.

The other goal is to provide more of a challenge for seasoned TW players by adjusting the balance with the AI's failings in mind. For instance, a flanked unit gets much less of a defense reduction than vanilla, since players are just better at it. Running also barely takes any stamina because the AI is completely incapable of running efficiently.

Features

>Slower movement, dynamic charges, and longer battles. Walking and Running have been greatly reduced. Foot units charge at 100m away from the enemy (except in settlements, 25m hardcoded), which "pops" visually and works as a de-facto sprint that the AI will use the same as the player.

>Fleeing men get a boost to speed, and ALL UNITS get a FIVE MINUTE immunity from routing after each rout, shattering after the 3rd rout. Whether or not you choose to chase units off the battlefield is up to you, but expect the enemy to return, emboldened and over the first shock of combat.

>Each model has 20HP + whatever bonus HP the unit table adds. Each weapon does 1 AP damage. Theoretically it should take *at least* 20 hits/arrows to kill a man if the lethality roll fails every time and the bonus HP has been worn down. But since the bonus HP is in the 100s, most of the kills you see on your screen will be due to a killing blow!

>Each weapon has the same base lethality, so it doesnt matter who scores a hit with that battle-axe, it's gonna hurt! Armor/Attk/Def stats and fatigue state matter most.

>Chariots/Cavalry use damage with their collisions, spearmen get a large (100+) damage bonus to chariots. It had to be done this way because then I could tune the Chariot/Cav lethality modifier to work better with incoming ranged weapons. Chariots dont get wiped out by ranged at long ranges nearly as much.

>Javelin ability "Spear in the Wheels" also gets a large damage boost against Chariots. Beware, the AI is actually really good at using that ability, so it doesnt give the player an undue advantage.

>Armor and Shields are the most important stats in the game, followed by Att/Def of the unit and then lethality of the weapon. If you cant land a hit you dont get a lethality roll! However, the max/min range for base hit chance has been greatly compressed. Every man is fighting his hardest to survive! Only the highest rank, highest armored units will fight through Tier II spearmen like a hot knife.

>Heavier units get a worse penalty to fatigue than vanilla, offsetting their armor in a protracted fight. If you cant crack their heavies on the ground, hit them with slingers to lower their armor.

>Each 2% of armor quality lowered in battle results in -1 armor. A unit can have 50% of its armor taken down, making a big difference in survivability. Weapons that damage armor most are 2h clubs/axes, slingers, and then javelins and 1h clubs/axes.

>Increased weapon length of 2h Spearmen, making them the deadliest infantry on the battlefield, but in this mod no shield means many more chances to take a killing blow from ranged!

>Ranged projectiles get a reduced contact radius, an increased spread at range beginning from a closer calibration point, and slow reloads across the board. Ranged units no longer melt under extreme ranged fire, especially with armor, which prolongs the range duel. Arrows are more likely to fall between models with a more realistic hitbox.

>Units are overall more hardy and will stand their ground longer. This is the Bronze Age of Heroes! Even lowly archers will fight as hard as they can to impede your progress.

>Units receive less gross Attk/Def penalties for being flanked. HOWEVER each individual man model is penalized down to 1 Def against any attacks.

>All units get a 50% bonus ammo, via the fatigue bonuses, to account for the slower battles. The game is balanced for the endgame, so if you think your early game units are too weak, or dont have enough ammo: give it time.

>Spear Cavalry is almost useless against heavy formed up troops, but it slaughters Chariots, good for fleeing troops. It's the Bronze Age, no stirrups...

>Generals cannot be killed until the unit has taken 40% casualties.

>Weather changes can happen later and happen more gradually.


Tips:
-Armor is important, build Bronzeworker buildings where you recruit
-Spear Cavalry will destroy bow chariots, run away and shoot
-Javelins are very effective vs chariots
-Two-handed spears are dangerous to chariots, even tier 1 Young Spears will cause significant casualties if you leave the chariots to fight instead of running away to charge again
-Any time melee units with secondary javelins are right behind one of your own units, they will stupidly throw javelins right into the back of your troops (hardcoded cant fix). Disable fire-at-will to prevent this.

See also my Tighter Ranks submod for Radious for the best experience!

What you should see is an immersive battle experience where you can stop and watch the combat without worrying that your archers will get obliterated if you take your eyes off them for 30 seconds. Battles last from 10-30+ minutes. It will be your choice whether or not to pursue fleeing enemies, since they get a 2x bonus to speed and pursuit is done at a charge, and charging takes 15x more fatigue as "running." But they will return to the fight, often when you dont expect them!

My suggestion is to load up a custom battle with randomized armies and see how you like the battle system when it isnt all Tier 1 trash for the first few turns in a campaign.

Please give me your feedback below!


TIGHTER RANKS: https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3388316992

FAQ:

Q: Does this work without Radious?
A: Yes, fundamentally it only affects battle mechanic and ability tables, but it uses the Radious versions of those tables. So yes it will work, but the balancing of it all is *meant* for Radious.

Q: The charge value of units has a large green bonus bar in battle.
A: Stuff like that is because I used the Fatigue States to raise bonuses like Charge or Ammo for *all* units without touching the unit tables. Thus all units get a 1.5x bonus to their Ammo at every fatigue state.

Q: I saw some guys sprinting, but sometimes running looks like walking!
A: I increased the top speed for reforming units and for routing, those together will make shieldless men run quite fast to catch up to their fleeing comrades! Otherwise, "running" is more like "double-time," which for some units,or up an incline, may look like powerwalking. This is as intended. The Charges are the true Run.

Q: What difficulty settings should I use?
A: Veteran/Veteran. I also set terrain and weather penalties to High in the battle customization, though my mod does not change those values. Generally any condition penalty will affect the AI worse because it's so dumb.

Q: Flanking morale shock and penalty seems low.
A: The mod is designed to make breaking the enemy units more difficult overall, keeping them in the fight, and causing more casualties for your army. If you want them to break easier, turn the Battle Customization option for Morale to High.

Veteran level for Battles gives the AI a 1.1 bonus to Attk/Def/Reload stats in the kv_rules table.
If you dont like the AI "cheating" then play the next level down.

You can find me on the Radious Discord server, same name.