Ah, the glory of battle.
There is nothing quite like trumpets sounding the advance, the rumble of a cavalry charge, the clash of steel on steel, the thunderous boom of siege engines striking home!
Warfare in Kingdom Maker was already packed with clashing troops and whistling arrows, but the Kingdom Maker team has been hard at work to improve combat to make each battle more thrilling than ever.
Very soon you’ll find a remodeled combat interface that makes it easier to track the action as it unfolds, reject unwanted meddling, and issue commands where they’re needed. Champion active abilities have been enhanced, so they are more powerful and impactful, not to mention more flashy than ever before.
Let’s cut to the chase and see what’s in store, shall we?
User Interface Improvements
A major goal is enhanced clarity and control, so new icons and UI elements have been introduced to provide clearer information in the heat of battle. Some icons have been moved. Advance and hold all are now buttons on the bottom left, and a new reinforcements is on the bottom right. The flag for surrender has been moved to the very bottom right.
Battalions and Armies that are joined in battle (or waiting to reinforce) now show in portraits on each side of the battle screen. Each Army can be tapped to reveal the Battalions it contains. Previously, owned Battalions were listed at the bottom of the screen. Now those Battalions are revealed with a tap your own Army icon, then individual Battalions in the drop down can be tapped to quickly snap to that Battalion and issue commands.
Reinforcing Armies can also be examined with a tap. Each original participant in the battle now has the option to reject reinforcements from their allies–important for duels of honor and grudge matches both. Rejected reinforcements remain occupied until the battle ends and they return home.
On the battlefield itself, Battalion icons can no longer overlap or be hidden by other icons, so they’re easier to tap and make it more clear what each of your Battalions is up to. A new ‘Select All’ button has been added during the deployment phase to move an entire Army as a group. To reposition individual Battalions before the start of battle, one can tap on their icon instead of trying to pinpoint their battalion flag.
Add to that enhanced, more readable text, and battlefield-visible Battalion equipment effects–such as the elemental resistance provided by specific pieces of equipment–and every Noble commander has a better perspective on where their troops are, what they’re capable of, and how they’re doing.
Champion Ability Updates
Previously, Champions played a useful role in battle, but they did not feel quite as powerful or dynamic as the team had originally hoped for. In an effort to give them more punch and impact, Champion active abilities have been reworked.
Rather than strictly operating on a cooldown timer, now all active Champion abilities will charge in one of several ways: by attacking, taking damage, or on a cooldown. Once an ability has been charged, each will be unleashed on a specific trigger: on the Champion’s next attack, upon taking damage, on reaching maximum charge, or on movement. Overall, Champions will use their active Abilities more ‘intelligently’. In addition, visual effects have been added, so you can see when your Champion’s abilities are firing in combat. Learn how each Champion’s abilities charges and activates by tapping an Ability icon, and reading the updated descriptions.
Overall, these new trigger and charge mechanics represent a significant boost in effectiveness. To help them keep up a bit, certain NPC armies, notably Marauders, Ravagers, Separatist, Royal, and Nightbringer Armies, have increased in power slightly to remain balanced against this field of now-stronger Noble armies.
The update is just on the horizon, and soon you’ll be able to experience all the new combat enhancements for yourself. Thanks for reading, and we’ll see you on the battlefield!
