Re: Total War: Warhammer background and factions introduction
Originally Posted by Didz
As Son of Horus has already noted above, the WFB background detracts significantly from the logic which links the WFRP universe concepts together to ensure that they make sense. We've seen how this translates in previous digital incarnations of WFB, and it's pretty shallow and uninspiring. I noticed for example on another thread that someone was pointing out that their will only be one race of vampires in the game, which makes sense as only the Carsten's were developed as an army for WFB.
Really? There are rules for Strigoi Ghoul Kings, Coven Thrones (associated with Lahmia), Blood Knights (Blood Dragons), in addition to Vargheists (Von Carsteins), leaving only Necrarch's without a closely aligned unit (but it is they who rarely fight in battles anyway so are unlikely to form dedicated units) and with options to create Vampires representative of any of the bloodlines mixing and matching in 8th, while in previous editions, they had defined subsects of the 5 Vampire Bloodlines with rules allowing you to create one around their abilities.
I don't mean to keep calling you out, and it's not personal, but what you're saying is directly opposed to what is in the tabletop and it's concurrent fluff.
Re: Total War: Warhammer background and factions introduction
Originally Posted by Son of Horus
I don't mean to keep calling you out, and it's not personal, but what you're saying is directly opposed to what is in the tabletop and it's concurrent fluff.
No you're quite right to correct me. I was only repeating what I had read elsewhere, but having checked the Vampire Counts Army Book I notice that it clearly states that Vampire Armies should be based on a blood-line and that there are five blood lines. So I was wrong to accept what I was being told without checking myself. Perhaps, the writer was just referring to the way previous games have digitised the vampire faction.
Hopefully in the game we will see a similar division of the Vampire faction into rival warring bloodlines.
Re: Total War: Warhammer background and factions introduction
Originally Posted by Son of Horus
leaving only Necrarch's without a closely aligned unit (but it is they who rarely fight in battles anyway so are unlikely to form dedicated units)
The Mortis Engine can be seen as a Necrarch unit, given their love for collecting relics and knowledge and their approach to armies, lots of spirits, wraiths, banshee's, and ''dead'' undead like skeletons and zombies.
Re: Total War: Warhammer background and factions introduction
Hey lads, sorry for taking so long with this, I recently got over a bit of a flu.
In anycase, I've finally put forth the background and the information of noble Bretonnia. Enjoy.
A brief explanation of Bretonnia.
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Bretonnia is a land of chivalry and nobility. The realm is ruled by a monarchy and is heavily a fprovide their society. Almost all of the male nobility are knights, their society weans them from birth on stories of honor and advancement in the realm can only truly be earned by bravery and competance on the field of honor. The land requires such a system to prune the unworthy from the branches of hiearchy as the knights of Bretonnia are the backbone of it's military and ruling elite. It's up to these valiant warriors to keep the realm safe from the many dangers, both mundane and eldritch, that constantly beset it and to make sure that laws of both king and duchy is upheld.
Bretonnia's history began some centuries after the elves and dwarves departed the surface of the old world, mankind began colonizing the dangerous lands left behind by the elder races. Many tribes settled the lands near the world's edge mountains but other tribes had made a arduous journey over the western grey mountains and began settling the lands that would become fair Bretonnia.
In time the first emperor of the Empire, Sigmar Heldenhammer, would arise and unite the lands east of the grey mountains against a orc waagh of unheard size. This battle would be known as the battle of Black Fire Pass and would forge the unity of the Empire and the friendship between dwarf and man.
The tribes of the Bretonni refused to aid Sigmar in this battle, at most they sent to him a beautiful elven bow of great power. Sigmar broke this weapon upon his knee and proclaimed that the Bretonni would have no part of his glorious Empire. It would take Bretonnia one-thousand years to unify after the Empire had, it is this rift of national unity that leads the imperial nobility to believe themselves older and greater than the kingdom of Bretonnia. This is where most of the roots of rivalry between the two nations stems from.
As the Bretonnians settled the land, numerous warlords and chieftains would come across a verdant forest that would be called Athel Loren. This was a eldritch and fey forest where time moved in rivers and cackling spirits lurked behind every branch. The bold chieftains who saw fit to conquer this place marched forth their forces into the wood. Only few would come back out, those few that escaped were driven mad by the fey place. After all attempts at ownership failed, the Bretonni tribes left the forest alone completely and branded it a place of great danger.
The early lands of the Bretonni would be ruled by sixteen major tribes that would establish the duckies of modern Bretonnia. They were: Cuileux, Glanborielle, Couronne, L'Anguille, Aquitaine, Artois, Bastonne, Bordeleaux, Brionne, Carcassonne, Gisoreux, Lyonesse, Montfort, Mousillon, Parravon and Quenelles.
After some time, the strong tribes overtook the weaker and proper geography of power was laid out among the land of Bretonnia. The sixteen tribes had settled the land and began fortifying their claims. Though a time of peace was made amongst the tribes it was not to last, the land became embroiled in battle against increasing threats. Orcs and goblins began swelling in number and chaos tainted tribesmen of the north began raiding the lands of Bretonnia. Amongst these evils were also those who dabbled in necromancy that roamed the land and brought forth ruin.
Despite this the tribes remained divided, their pride not allowing them to call for aid and arrogance not wanting to give aid. These growing dangers that went unheeded would be the downfall of two major tribes Cuileux and Glanborielle. The overwhelming orc threat would first undo Cuileux, though their knights fought valiantly and cut the orcs down like wheat, the tribe fell to the orcs. The nearby lands of Quenelles and Brionne rode forth and routed the weakened orcs and after a duel to the death by the dukes of those lands Quenelles claimed the lands of Cuileux as its own.
This was but a herald of evils to come as soon orcs and goblins swarmed down from the grey mountains, beastmen herds erupted from the forests of the lands and northern raiders struck the northern lands of Bretonnia with a as yet unheard of ferocity. The lands of Glanborielle were completely swarmed by the orc horde and the other tribes could offer no aid as they were all beset and surrounded, cut off from one another and held up in their strongholds, unable to stop the evils running rampart upon their lands.
These dark times would see the lord of Bastonne fall in battle and the mantle of leadership fall to his son, Gilles. Gilles of Bastonne was a renowned knight and warrior at a young age. His first legendary victory would be against the fearsome red warm Smearghus. Though sorely wounded, Gilles slew the terrible dragon deep within the woods of Champions and managed to drag it's severed head back to castle Bastonne. From this point would Gilles wear the dragon's skin as his cloak and adopted the dragon onto his personal heraldry.
Gilles knew of the overwhelming danger that the evil forces posed to humanity, he knew if their hideous forces were allowed to unite they would drive all the people Wes of the grey mountains into the sea. It was by his leadership that Gilles would begin uniting the remaining dukedoms of the Bretonni and giving battle to the hordes of darkness that suffocated the land. He began his campaign with a small army of knights and soldiers but was joined by two renowned warriors, Thierulf of Lyonesse and Landuin of Mousillon. With this force Gilles rode out to Bordeleaux to stop the orcs from joining into one unassailable force, though even with this plan Lord Gilles knew they could not prevail.
It was while they camped out under the eaves of the Forest of Chalons, whilst the orc army was before them and outnumbered the stars in the sky, that divine intervention would see hope restored. At a nearby lake, where the lords planned their strategy, the Lady of the lake made her presence known. Bathing the area in a blinding white light, the Lady of the lake met Gilles and his companions and blessed them with a drink from her holy grail and bestowing Gilles's banner with her likeness.
So it was, the first three Grail knights rode out of the forest to rally their army and meet the tide before them. The army of the Bretonni struck the greenskins like a lightning bolt, Gilles and his divinely empowered companions doing as much damage as the rest of their army combined. The horde was broken and driven into the sea.
Think would be the first of the twelve great battles that would see the realm united. For with each battle another duke would join the Grail companions and find himself visited by the Lady of the lake, gifted with the power to drive the unending evils from their realm. With the realm cleansed the Bretonni set forth to rebuild their homeland. In the presence of the entire united army of Bretonnia, the Bretonni witnessed the Lady of the Lake crown Gilles the first King of Bretonnia, the acclamation of the gathered people shook the very mountains.
In the times to come, Bretonnia would uphold itself as a nation of honor and bravery. With boundless pride and courage Bretonnia's history is filled with crusades to exotic lands to aid it's allies or to purge the very forces of evil from the world. The land of Bretonnia belongs to the sacred divinity of the Lady and Bretonnians will put their lives and honor on the line to see it kept clean of all evil. Though Bretonnia has a darkness at it's core, though the rest of the world sees darkness as a inevitability, though evil has no limit to what it may do.
Bretonnia stands resolute and will never hesitate to charge into the very gates of chaos itself. Chivalry is all, honour is all.
Bretonnian tactics
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
The Glorious Bretonnians ride forth into battle as unto a avalanche of steel and fury. The noble charge of gallant knights is the tactic that Bretonnian generals stake entire battles on as they believe that no matter the outcome it is up to the knights as to whether the battle is won or lost.
The main tactic of Bretonnia is to pepper enemy lines with bow-fire and trebuchet shots, though some knights may refuse to wait while such cowardly acts befitting only peasants is used. The Bretonnians will usual make great haste to meet the enemy in a splendid charge that shakes the earth with thundering hooves and blot out the horizon with a numerous array of resplendent pennants and banners.
The Bretonnians are masters of cavalry warfare and know when to spur their horses for the optimum effect of the charge and when to hold back the charge until the right moment, though this is a test of willpower on most knights. The knights most likely to falter under such a test are the knights errant. These young hot-headed nobles are knights yet to earn the title of knight of the realm and are on the bottom of the chivalrous hierarchy.
As opposed to the Empire, who's young nobility take up the positions of squires and pistoliers, the errants are trained at a young age to be experts at melee combat with a wide range of weapons and are weaned from birth on endless tales of heroism and chivalry. Indeed, in stalwart Carcassonne a noble infant newly born will touch a sword-hilt before his mother and will have that sword hang above his cot until the day he can use it. Such is this ingrained sense of heroism that knight errants will perform new suicidal stunts upon the battlefield to prove themselves worthy of the mantle of knights of the realm.
The senior knights see this initiation process as a excellent way to weed out the knights too hot-headed to make good defenders of the king's lands and of weeding out the weak and cowardly as well. Upon earning his spurs as a knight of the realm the knight will be given new lands and titles. These usual amount to a piece of land with a castle that overlooks a village.
It is up to the knight to protect his fief and to serve his liege-lord when called upon for war. When defending his land a knight must do so by his own power, deadly beasts and bandit bands must be dealt with personally with only little aid from his household knights or men-at-arms. He may use these assistants in larger numbers to fight back a raiding party or large warband. In the case of facing a invasion or massive army, the knight is to have his peasantry take shelter within his castle and use all forces available to him while sending messengers for aid from other knights of the realm.
Forces available to a noble knight of the realm are his household knights, men-at-arms, yeomen and peasantry bowmen. The men-at-arms are raised from the strongest peasantry of a knight's domain and are employed as guards and soldiers to protect the knight's fief if the knight and his retinue cannot. The men-at-arms are poorly trained soldiers as they are given only minimal supplies and equipment(their uniforms usually come from the last men-at-arms who died in battle and the current soldier has to wash the blood out himself). Though provided with pole-arms, shield and helmet the men-at-arms are given sparse else in their lord's employ. Despite this they are steadfastly loyal to their lord as he handpicked them from the peasant masses and spared them the life as a mud farming low-born, this, mixed with their knowledge that their lord would give life and limit to protect his lands himself means most men-at-arms would rather be slaughtered in battle rather than shame their lord and his knights by running away.
The bowmen of a Bretonnian army are of even lower quality as they are usually regular peasants who know which way a arrow shoots and brought into battle with little given by their lord except perhaps a single coin, which is a princely sum to the impoverished peasantry. Bowmen are expert shots however, the large tax on their food supplies has made many commoners into seasoned hunters (sometimes poachers as well if desperate enough). Some lords enforce practices to increase the use of the longbow within peasant communities as well, helping to ensure a good force of archers can be gathered when needed. These bowmen also have a strong tradition of archery in their families as the longbow used is a heirloom passed down from father to son.
The yeoman are the near top of the peasant totem-pole and hold positions of power far above what most peasants could achieve. Some are made into squires and aid their lord in battle by scouting the battlefield with competent use of horse, bow, spear and sword, some yeoman with a knack for knowledge may become wall wardens and become a lord's trusted engineer who maintains a castle's maintenance and defenses. Yeoman can also serve as drill instructors and commanders for a lord's infantry forces and can become a lord's right-hand man when dealing with the peasantry, such as declaring a lord's new laws to them or passing a lord's judgment on them.
These peasantry forces are used on the battlefield as support for the knights of Bretonnia's devastating charge.
As a final note, one can tell a Bretonnian lord's stance on strategy depending on his position in the battlefield. A lord on foot, a very rare sight for the chivalrous knights except at siege, will rely on men-at-arms to hold their lines while bowmen and warmachine pound the foe and gallant knights make sallies at the foe's weak points.
A lord on dashing destrier, a very common sight, will put himself at the forefront of any charge and rely on the power of horse and steel to smash the foe's lines. His men-at-arms will follow swiftly behind to add their large numbers to the fight if the enemy stand his ground.
A lord on a regal pegasus, a rare sight indeed, is a very strategic champion of the king and will use his forces in a combined-arms method that he will lead as he surveys the battlefield from the air and uses his knights, horse and pegasus mounted, as a slashing blade to cut and parry rather than a sledgehammer.
The lord on hippogryph is a rare and dangerous sight as he combines strategy with skill-at-arms and ferocity. He will direct his force in a most efficient manner but will descend into battle himself to strike a crippling blow to the enemy's forces.
Blessing of the Lady.(WIP)
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Once again, sorry for the wait. I'll edit in the last two parts later.
Last edited by Baron of Hyrule; July 16, 2015 at 03:44 AM.
Re: Total War: Warhammer background and factions introduction
Originally Posted by geala
I really appreciate your thread, Rogal. Never got interested in Warhammer and hearing it is going to be the next TW, I thought first, death of the game, at least for me as a fan of history. The more I read about the Warhammer setting the more I get interested in the future TW version. I tried to get a compact info about the Warhammer world and your article is very satisfying.
It's a pity that the elves do not seem to be playable at release. Aren't they so important in Warhammer? Is there a human or elvish faction or are there units of "naked barbarians" or are all civilized and armoured more or less?
Thank you, too, I was going to say exactly the same thing.
Re: Total War: Warhammer background and factions introduction
Originally Posted by Didz
Reply With Quote
