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September 30

Update 0.7.0.11

A new contract variant, overhauled Necromancers and Fallen Heroes, balancing changes and bugfixes - all this and more in this week's update!

Please note that this is likely going to be the last update to the game for a while. As explained in last week's roadmap, we'll now start working on the last big update to the game. Because most of the upcoming changes are interconnected, we'll have to do this as one big package to be released when everything is done. Of course, we'll always keep you up-to-date with what we're working on in our dev blog posts right here!

Changelog

Added 'Defend Settlement' contract against greenskins.
Added overhauled Necromancer with new visuals and additional skill.
Added new Fallen Hero Wiedergänger and potential bodyguard for necromancers together with a few new lootable armors and helmets. The classic skeleton variant will eventually be replaced as part of the upcoming undead overhaul, but remains in the game for now.
Added hint to injury tooltip reminding the player that injuries will only heal if the company has medicinal supplies on stock.
Changed introductory contract to no longer show the 'Hire at least 3 more men' objective once the player has done so but not yet completed the other objectives.
Changed introductory contract to have one less opponent in the final battle on lower difficulty levels.
Changed bonus effect of 'Spear Mastery' perk to having the 'Spearwall' skill no longer be disabled once an opponent manages to enter the Zone of Control, and continue to work on any further opponents attempting to close in.
Changed attribute gain per levelup to be slightly higher for initiative.
Changed position of fatigue and morale bars in panel for selected character of tactical UI.
Fixed amount of provisions/ammo/medicine not being properly displayed in red when at zero on the worldmap.
Fixed raiders stopping their attack on a settlement when the player cancels an ongoing 'Defend Settlement' contract.
Fixed issue with 'Defend Settlement' contract getting confused about kidnappings that didn't happen because the player already killed all attackers before they could act.
Fixed player being able to fast travel by ship to hostile settlements and get contracts there.
Fixed morale flags not getting removed in after-combat-report for suvivors with permanent injuries.
Fixed inventory filters resetting on actions such as equipping an item.
Fixed 'Bruised Leg' injury not reducing initiative like it should.
Fixed 'Footwork' skill being usable when rooted.
Fixed various minor issues.

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September 23

Dev Blog #82: Roadmap to the Finish Line

Battle Brothers has come a long way since it entered Early Access over a year ago, in April of 2015. Every update has brought it a step closer towards being a finished game – and there’s still a few more steps to take. Read on to learn what changes and additions are yet to come!

What’s still to come?

With the perk & injury update live and stable, we’ll now start working on the last big update to the game before it leaves Early Access. This is going to be the second-biggest update after the big worldmap update earlier this year and will take us several months to complete.

Here’s the list of major points we’ll be working on:

Three different ‘Greater Evil’ end game crises for you to get involved in – a war between noble houses, a greenskin invasion and an undead invasion. Each will come with its own set of contracts, events and changes to the world.
An overarching goal to work towards throughout your campaign, and the ability to retire at any point to receive an illustrated ending screen telling of your accomplishments.
A more lively and dynamic world, with more opportunities for you to shape it, and more relation between what is going on in the world and contracts on offer.
A memorial wall screen where your fallen Battle Brothers are listed with their deeds.
An overhaul of the mood and desertion mechanics on the worldmap.
An overhaul of the undead faction with new visuals and lore, unique lootable weapons and armor, and the introduction of new enemy types with their own fighting style.
An overhaul of ghouls as independent beasts that are more interesting and challenging to fight.
More contracts and events to change things up.
Various improvements to usability in both combat and on the worldmap.
Steam achievements.

Not included in that list are the countless smaller additions and improvements we'll be doing along the way. As usual, all the major points and most of the minor ones will be explained in detail in future dev blogs as we go along, so you’ll always know what we’re working on and why.

This big update, once published, will then be followed by a couple of smaller updates for balancing, bug fixing and further improvements based on your feedback until the game is ready to be released.

So does that mean…?

It means that Battle Brothers will not be released in 2016. We’re looking at a release in early 2017 and you’ll be the first to know once we have a set date – most likely to happen when the last big update is live. It’s important to us that the finished game feels complete, polished and well worth its price, so we’ll take the time necessary to ensure just that and won’t rush anything.

It also means that some features that were considered at one point in development or another have been cut and will not make it into the game for now. While some concepts simply won’t fit anymore with how the game has evolved, others would still be cool to have but also require a lot of time to do right. Time that we then couldn’t spend working on other things. Game development is often about hard choices and setting priorities – what feature best to spend our limited time on? What feature will benefit the game the most? Our choices on what’s most important are reflected in the list above. If ever there is an expansion to Battle Brothers, we may revisit some of the concepts that didn’t make it into the game at first.

Also, the game has been updated

That’s right. The game has just been updated to version 0.7.0.10 with a new contract, balancing changes, a multitude of AI improvements and a couple of bug fixes. Find the changelog below.

Added new 'Defend Settlement' contract type.
Added '-nosound' command line parameter to start the game without any sound or music.
Changed loot in lootscreen to be sorted by type.
Changed amount of ammunition and medicinal supplies dropped by enemies as loot to be lower.
Changed 'Spear Mastery' perk to have spearwalls inflict full thrusting damage on a hit, and no longer give a bonus to hitchance.
Changed mechanics and cost of 'Rally the Troops' skill to better synergize with everyone's resolve, as well as the 'Sergeant' perk.
Changed 'First Aid' and 'Drink Antidote' skills to be usable only when bleeding or poisoned, respectively.
Changed AI to make more intelligent use of the 'Puncture', 'Lash' and 'Decapitate' skills.
Changed AI to better handle engaging into enemy spearwalls when equipped with a shield or throwing weapons.
Changed AI of more intelligent opponents to be less prone to gift the player free attacks by charging without any action points left on arrival.
Changed AI to better handle range advantages and disadvantages when deciding whether to engage or hold a defensive position.
Changed AI to make use of the wait function in more situations as to waste less action points.
Fixed wardogs not being affected by night time.
Fixed issue with dead wardogs that could result in other things not working properly down the line.
Fixed 'Sprained Ankle' injury not lowering initiative like it is supposed to.
Fixed 'Shoot Stake' skill being able to knock back rooted targets.
Fixed issue with contract-related footprints not appearing if accepting a contract immediately after traveling by ship.
Fixed contract-related worldmap parties sometimes not being attackable by other factions even when they should.
Fixed behavior of worldmap parties not being properly saved and restored in some cases.
Fixed various minor things.

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User reviews:

Recent:

Very Positive (101 reviews) - 93% of the 101 user reviews in the last 30 days are positive.

Overall:

Very Positive (1,043 reviews) - 93% of the 1,043 user reviews for this game are positive.

Reviews

“Now we can add Battle Brothers to the list of Good Mercenary Games. Currently in Early Access, it’s a very lovely thing indeed.”
Rock, Paper, Shotgun

“Given its polish, this title is leagues ahead of most Early Access games.”
Start2Continue

“Battle Brothers has the potential to be one of Early Access’s brightest success stories.”
Attack of the Fanboy

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763 reviews match the filters above ( Very Positive)

Most Helpful Reviews In the past 30 days

CerealKil

146 products in account

1 review

Posted: September 16

I currently have 145 games on my Steam account, and this is the first review I've bothered to write. After spending over 200 hours on this excellent and relatively cheap game, I thought that it deserved a recommendation. I can only think of a couple of games that I've ever spent more time playing.

This game does not feel like early access. I've only experienced one bug. It caused a crash. I reported it and the devs fixed it the same day and released a patch the next day. I havn't seen any other bugs.

The game has a very nice atmosphere. The events and missions are well written. They sometimes present you with difficult choises, often without any clear "correct" answer. What if this guy is lying? What if he's telling the truth?

The game is challenging. Combat is exciting and dangerous. Be prepared to see several of your favourite brothers die. When they do, just hire some new brothers. You'll grow to like the recruits soon enough. Maybe they'll even live longer than their predecessors.

I used to think that the character progression was not well implemented. That has been improved in the latest patch. You can now chose 3 stats to improve on levelup, and the perk system has been completely redone. I noticed some negative reviews because of the previous system. Some of the reviewers had spent considerable time playing. How can you not recommend a game that has entertained you for 50 hours even if you don't like one small part of it?

Now my only complaint is the lack of purpose or long term goals in the late game. When you have a full warband with good gear and several levels, you could always try to improve them further but I feel that I'd like something else to motivate me at that point. This may be improved when faction wars are implemented. It'll take you a long time to get to that point, and the journey is worth the money.

I see no reason not to put your money in at this stage unless you don't like turn based strategy games or you don't want a challenge.

Was this review helpful? Yes No Funny

Wolfman

195 products in account

12 reviews

Posted: September 12

Basically if Mount & Blade and XCOM had a baby, it would be Battle Brothers.

The battles are great, the art style is great, the music is great, and it doesn't even feel like an early access title.

rasabt

213 products in account

38 reviews

Posted: September 15

I can fully recommend this game, even in it`s EA-state. If you enable beta-patches you get a very stable, very entertaining game already filled with more than enough content.

Battle Brothers is a Mercenary simulator with an open world, heavy rpg mechanics (leveling of your troops, gearing them up...tons of loot, etc.) and a turnbased tactical combat which already is top notch.
This all takes place in a beatifully crafted 2d world (great art-style), accompanied by an amazing soundtrack (classical strings, percussions, etc.), meaty feeling sound effects and troop permadeath.
While i`m not a hughe fan of permadeath in these game, it works here; yes you get attached to your level and geared up troops, but em dying a) makes sense in the game world and b) is only ur own fault c) they can be replaced without the world falling appart.

Managing your ressources (food, repairmats, healing stuff, arrows/bolta and ofcourse money), growing your band of mercs and fightint all from bandits to the undead, while exploring a world filled with lore and many little stories already makes a great game. if you like rpgs, medival-sims or turnbased tactical game buy it and thank me later.

BanthaFodder

53 products in account

7 reviews

Posted: September 30

I've played Battle Brothers a fair bit recently and felt the need to re-write my original review.

Chances are you already know from others that it's like a cross between Mount & Blade and X-COM, so I won't bore you by going in to detail about the core game or battle mechanics.

What I will say is that this is a game unlike many others I've played in that it does not hand-hold. The combat and learning curve are both brutal - but, critically, it is fair. The fundamental reason that this game can appear so difficult is because players do not properly consider the strategic element. Most people are tactically competent, because the tactical element is what games like X-COM focus on. However, BB is different. Unless you properly consider the strategic side you will quickly be surveying a battlefield strewn with your company's corpses.

To put this in to real terms I can offer a few concrete examples.

Example 1) You take a contract to clear out a bandit camp, and upon approaching the objective note that there are 'many bandit marksmen' within the ranks of the defenders. DO NOT ATTACK DURING BROAD DAYLIGHT. They will turn your brothers in to pin cushions. Wait until the night cycle and then go in.

Example 2) You take a contract to defend a village from marauding bandits. The fight is bloody, and several of your men are injured with their equipment in a sorry state of repair. Yet the mission doesn't end. You then see a second wave of bandits numbering 20 strong approaching the settlement. RUN AWAY. Abandon the contract. You are a mercenary, not a paladin and there is no profit in getting your company killed to a man in the misplaced pursuit of 'honour'.

Example 3) The starting contract suggests hiring 6 men before taking on Hoggart the Weasel. There is absolutlely nothing to stop you taking more. Recruit beggars, cripples and the like. Give the most talented indivuduals the best weapons (ideally with + to hit bonuses at this stage, so spears and swords) and armour you can afford and swarm the enemy (for the additional +to hit from surrounding).

Sun Tzu articulated the point better than I could ever hope to do when he said "Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win."

Anyway, you hopefully by now get the idea. Battle Brothers is not just about the combat (which is exceedingly well done), it is also about MANAGING a mercenary company and the strategic considerations that entails.

It's also a game which conveys amazingly well the relative cheapness of life in such a setting while at the same time creating characters so individual and memorable that you can't help get attached to them, and that is no mean feat.

I honestly cannot recommend this game enough - play it on veteran ironman difficulty once you have a good few hours under your belt and enjoy a totally absorbing, and at times nail-biting, experience.

Sir Guss Tarballs

150 products in account

4 reviews

Wow, what a great game. Rewarding and challenging combat that keeps you on your toes, making you think about how to approach each fight. I find myself reprimanding my fighters when they don't hit which gives me a laugh. Do yourself a favor and get this game, the developers just keep making it better and better.

mukk

222 products in account

Posted: September 21

- somewhat like mount & blade with turn based combat and procedurally generated everything
- as of version 0.7.xx seems to have already more content than m&b when it was released
- while still early access plays like a finished game, zero bugs so far
- very athmospheric, good sound and music
- seems quite balanced, you will get your a** handed to you when you don't pay attention without feeling unfair

so definitely a MUST BUY when you like the genre

Kimmy

263 products in account

5 reviews

Posted: September 19

The amount of love poured into this game by the hard-working devs really shows in the product, unfinished as it still might be. When this game's full developed it'll be a true gem, but I already find it a very enjoyable game with enough to do to keep you entertained for many hours!

Ignis

108 products in account

Posted: September 11

It's already a great and complete product, you'll have lots of fun with this game! Devs are very active and the game receives constant updates.

ChargingGoose

25 products in account

3 reviews

Posted: September 17

It is a dark, stormy night, the streets are deserted and the glow of candlelight can be seen coming from the many windows to your sides. Water splashes up your greaves as you stroll through the town's water-logged streets, the chainmail links of your armour chinking with each step. You turn a corner and before you lies a large building, towering over its naighbours with light appearing to radiate from every window and crevise. A wooden sign, hanging from an iron pole producing from the establishment's front wall is blowing erraticaly in the howling gale, you notice the words "Steam Store" enscribed upon it's surface, with a picture of a strange looking contraption. Confidently you push upon the door and step over the threshold, and are instantly swept up by the warmth, exotic smells and air of happiness that dominates the cozy interior.

You nod to some old aquaintances as you make your way to the counter, eyes examining the seemingly endless list of products that are being sold. You open your coin purse, and count 19 gold and 99 copper pieces. You examine the goods for sale in your price-range, discarding any with a poor reputation, as denoted by a thumbs up or down symbol inscribed next to the name. One item catches your eye "Battle Brothers" it reads, followed by a thumbs up and a plethora of glowing reviews. Suddenly, the lights in the room appear to dim, and you can no longer hear the jovial hubbub of the store. A voice booms, as if from the heavens themselve "Buy it, it is your destiny..." As quickly as it had left, the sound and atmosphere of your surroundings return. You pull "Battle Brothers" off the shelf, and hand it to the shop keeper, who goes by the name of Gabe. The benevolent figuer smiles wisely down at you, winks, takes fifteen percent of the price off for good measure and accepts your money.

You wake up. Damn it! You've fallen asleep playing Battle Brothers again. You wipe the sleep from your eye and continue playing, it realy is very good after all.

Halko

691 products in account

8 reviews

Posted: September 24

Played the game long ago and ducked out for a bit to give it time to mature. It really has come quite a long way since then and is better than ever. It has the standard issues with a lot of roguelikes where the early game is super punishing and gets easier as it goes along but that isnt a bad thing. The only gripes i have about the game are planned features on the fast track to getting added.

All in all its a very solid strategy game and has a lot of potential.

Recently Posted

Posted: October 10

Xcom in a medievil setting. That is the best way i can discribe this game, As of right now there is no story or overall goal that you are trying to achieve, so it is more like your playing in a sandbox mod. The gamplay is brokeing up into two types the randomly generated mad where you go from town to town to get a contract to do something like protecting a caravan, protacting a town from bandits or orcs then you get cash to better equipment and to hire up to 18 guys who have diffrant statrting stats and then diffrant perks that are eather positive or negitive .The other part is the combat is simaler to xcom it is a squad based/ turn baserd game where the difficulty can vary from fight to fight, you can have three fights that are easy then the next one you could end up losesing your best guys. Thery are a variity of enemies form normal humans to fast atacking direwolves and goblins, big orcs that hit really hard and stun your guys when they charge you and undead from vampires that can teleport throught your lines or zombies that you have to put down twice.

Helpful? Yes No Funny

Head lopping simulator 2016

Positives:
+ Atmosphere. It's a mostly gritty and cruel world and the dialogue is well written, with a dark sense of humour.
+ Characters. Each brother you hire has a unique combination of background, genetic traits and different bonuses to skills which they can learn more easily. You choose what they should focus on as they level up and there are plenty of interesting talent synergies.
+ Strategic choices. Besides character customization, you also pick your battles and you have the opportunity to tweak your brothers' equipment based on your experience with the given fighting conditions and type of opponent.
+ Combat. The mechanics are good, the stakes are high and it's satisfying to see your plan pay off.

Negatives: (I'll try to keep this updated as the game is being developed)
- Can't see details about a brother before you hire them. You have to pay them a sum up front, only to immediately fire most of them because they're no good (if you wish to min/max).
- Accept or reject mission. If you reject, the mission disappears. There is no "maybe later" option.
- No way to know if you're strong enough to take on a given enemy type unil you've tried and failed. Brutal for a new player.
- Some game mechanics are really unclear until you read the wiki. Like what difference do the little stars you see on skills do, or what does a person's professional background matter, besides the skill adjustments? Why not show min/max rolls for different skills on level up?
- Too slow strategic map movement. It needs a fast forward mode, with auto-pause on enemy sighted, for example.
- On my campaign map, patrol missions always take me across mountains at some point. The algorithm seems to need some tweaking.

Posted: October 9

El concepto, el combate, no tiene igual. Si le pusieran una historia a esto ahi si.. seria una joya. Igualmente es recomendable.

I have 290+ games on my steam account, and until I got this game I never saw a reason to review any. This game is as if mount and blade and X-com had a baby and that baby became a drug addict and dreamed about necromancers and cultists.

Despite being in early access I have not come across a single bug or crash. One time it hung while loading, but thats the extent of the technical issues.

The game consists of two parts, an overland exploration part where you go from town to town performing contracts for local lords and the battle phase. Battle is clearly the focus of the game and is where it really shines. Different weapons have different abilities, different armor is either heavier or lighter, and your men all have backgrounds and skills that determine thier capabilities. Seeing a plan come together and gradually routing a force that is far superior to your own is hugely satisfying.

The "fantasy" element is very under-accented and its perhaps what draws me in the most. From what I can see there is no way for you to access magic yourself and you generally only see fantastical elements in the forces you fight, Necromancers, vampires, direwolves, and the undead. But from time to time you will gain an artifact item. They are unnaturally light or strong or whatever, but being so rareis what really makes you treasure finding them.

The game is still in early access and it shows in a few ways. There is no overarching goal, and while i personally prefer it that way the late game certainly feels a bit listless at times. There are also some slight balancing issues, where for example a long axe has a reach of two and can oneshot most enemies, but an equally pricey long bow is basically useless unless wielded by a master bowman and even then it dramatically underperforms against armor. For the most part the dev has stated that all these issues will be adressed, and I believe them.

Overall this game is amazing and can only get better. For 20$ I have already recieved entertainment value exceeding a AAA title. Just get it.

Posted: October 8

brilliant game, tons of heart and great developers. Love it.

Posted: October 7

My first time supporting an EA game. and I can fully admit it was a good choice.
Im 100 hours into it. havent done everything yet. and i am well pleased with it.
The game feels great.updates are good and well thought there is still much to look forward and all in all the game is a huge hidden indie treasure

Posted: October 6

Amazing game and it is only in the Early Access stages. It is not a game for those that are not okay with losing men that they have well equipped and trained but throw them into the middle of a ton of enemies. It is realistic and difficult.

Posted: October 4

My Hedge Knight Got a triple decapitation, 10/10.

World map is like Mount and Blade: Warband.
Combat is like X-Com, except medieval.
The game is brutal like Darkest Dungeon (your men will die).

Great game. It is early access so it is missing some end game features (too come out early 2017).

I paid full price and am happy with the game.

ludytltgl,ujfutgyl,utjgyl, ujgl,nl unj,uuj, g

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September 30

Update 0.7.0.11

September 23

Dev Blog #82: Roadmap to the Finish Line

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