Darkfall Peek #23

The twenty-third installment to RPG Vault’s “peek” feature for Darkfall is now online, this time with Adventurine’s Tasos Flambouras discussing mounted combat.

Mounts can be used for transportation of players, transportation of goods, strategic and tactical mobility, as cover, and of course, for combat. Cavalry and mounted units can be used for reconnaissance and scouting, in shock force tactics, frontal assaults and charges, flanking maneuvers, pursuit of scattered and fleeing enemies, in raiding and hit and run tactics, breaking through or going over enemy lines and formations – and much more.

The mount gives the rider several obvious advantages in combat. The higher position and the movement speed make him harder to hit, and the mount will also attack the target along with the rider in static attacks. Drawbacks include lesser maneuverability for the mounted player, difficulty fighting and maneuvering on some terrain, as well as fewer attack options. At the moment, mounted combat is limited to melee weapon strikes along with the mount’s own attacks. The player needs to dismount to use ranged attacks. Also using them while mounted is under consideration for balancing issues. We are also working on balancing possible charge bonuses, and a mounted pushing advantage versus characters on foot.