Battle Brothers Ignominy Challenge

BBB is not getting the job done so I am making the thread.

The concept is, we all play Battle Brothers on Veteran/Veteran/Medium/Ironman on map seed QT3 and compare our levels of disastrous and humorous failure. By agreement, post up to 5 days of BB action at once.

As to end game crisis and permanent destruction, that’s up to the player.

To get things rolling, here is the first 5 days of Sharpe’s Blades. I will skip the screenshots of my initial start up as all of those will be the same. I am playing Veteran/Veteran/Medium/Ironman with random end game crisis and permanent destruction turned OFF.

One thing before we begin: as my old dad used to say “It is better to be lucky than to be good.” I had a fairly good start with this game, but I am sure that will not last…

We complete the starter battle and head to Treiten to hire some brothers. I didn’t like the looks of anyone in Treiten, so off to Wunderstadt where we pick up Wiedekind the Caravan Hand. Although Wunderstadt is a big city, nobody else looked that good (I am being super-choosy b/c Ironman). So off to Grafenhaven, where find one of those “OOOH look at the potential” characters, Theudobald the Apprentice (pic later). Still not satisfied with my choices, we head further south to that Keep and pick up Ferdinand the Deserter and Ivar the Millar. So far, I’m pretty happy with my brothers; nobody I hired is a dud.

Back to Treiten we head, and grab the mission to finish off Hogger (er, Hoggart). The battle goes well; by the time Hoggart reveals himself, we have killed one Brigand:

We then proceed to gang up on Hoggart and slice the (&&&!!!** out of him:

We are rewarded with a decent haul of loot and nobody died!!:

We head back to Treiten, picking up the ambition to get Friendly with a town, and then, another bit of luck: Treiten has a nice One Skull Brigand-killing mission so we grab that and head off to kill bandits. Along the way I realize my two 2-Handed guys are not wearing the best armor I have so I mess about with armor and then take on the bandits:

Uh Oh, in all that wardrobe fun, I somehow forgot to put armor back on Ivar. Ivar the Miller is going into battle shirtless. Also, this group of bandits includes a Brigand Raider.

Oh yeah, Karma is a beast:

Poor Ivar, you are the first but you will not be the last. I hope you bake many fine cakes in the afterlife.

Back to Treiten, no missions, over to Wunderstadt and another One Skull Bandit mission, excellent. Along the way I pick up another 2 brothers, and have a nice 8, with 7 in the front (5 Shield Brothers, 2 Two-Handers) and a Ranged guy in the back. Another couple of Brigand missions are completed successfully.

Some of our guys hit level 2 and the genius Theudobald (Bright and an Apprentice) dings level 3:

Just look at that young fellow: good base stats, stars in the right places, and he levels like crazy.

And that is the end of day 5. Our crew had a succesful start; we have enough money for a couple days wages, and sufficient food and repair materials for a few days. At the beginning of Day 6, we are basically ready to handle most One Skull missions, with a little caution.

Saga of The Piñatas

Random late game crisis
QT3 map seed
Veteran/Veteran/Medium/IronMan
Permanent Destruction enabled.

Our story begins with the beleaguered survivors of an ambush sprung by Hogart the Weasel and his rapacious crew. Lothar the Fat, he of the Eagle Eye, Meinholf the Knightslayer and Eugen were all that remain of a once valiant troop. Swearing revenge, the Piñatas limped away seeking the means to exact their vengeance.
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We march under the banner of the Clumsy Prince as we expect to inflict casualties from friendly fire.

In the small village of Treiten our heroes hired Alder and Humbert the apprentices and a brawler by the name of Ulfert, along with the paltry weapons and armor with the last of their horde. Alder showed a facility for ranged weaponry and was moved into the second rank and issued a bow. And Humbert told of harrowing escapes from death leading one to believe he is a survivor. With a bounty of 400 crowns to collect and the whereabouts of Hogart’s camp known, the brothers headed east.

The brothers made camp near Hogarts lair and at first light they attacked the manxsome foe, and snicker snack they slew the cowards where they stood. Poor Ulfert had his head separated from his shoulders by Hogart before he himself was cut down by the Piñatas. Humbert again cheated death, suffering a pierced check in the melee. With Hogart’s mail shirt as a trophy of war, and a barrel of ale and a pouch of amber as booty the brothers returned to Trieten to collect the bounty.

(Eugen and Humbert both leveled and I chose the Colossus perk for both as they will be front liners).

To the south they then marched and came to the large city of Wunderstadt, knowing they would receive more crowns for their loot. Wunderstadt produces dyes and wine and will serve as a lucrative base for future trade. Here the brothers contracted with Deitman the Trade Master to deliver a package to Kahlenberg for 150 crowns. They also hired Helfrich the apprentice who went by the nickname “Iron Lungs” and is quick as lightning. Meinhof, being hard of hearing, keeps calling Helfrich Aqua Lung.

On the road the brothers decide to ally with one of the major factions. Some wanted to recruit a larger company but others were concerned that too many brothers would attract the wrong sort of attention too early in their careers.

Kahlenberg was a dreary collection of huts housing workers for the nearby mining camp. It also contained an armorer, making it a choice location to purchase better armor and tools. No contracts were available and the brothers marched on to the motte and bailey of Pfutilwacht with its kennel, gathers hut and leather tanner. Here Ludolf the Burgomeister hired the brothers to deliver a package to Neils the Trade Master in Wolfhaiden far to the north.

Accepting the contract for 480 crowns the Piñatas marched overland, discovering the Greedy Hearts Hideout, a group of brigand thugs, and a few Orc Berserkers at the Cave of the Boar along the way. They mark the locations on their map and agreed to return to fulfill future contracts that pay for heads collected.

Wolfhaiden produces salt and also had a nearby mining camp and armorer. Gerhold the Elder hired the crew to escort a caravan to Wolfenfeste for 150 crowns. It was on the fifth day while on the road to Wolfenfeste…
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Days 6 - 10

…Lothar the Fat noticed that Humbert has been quiet of late. As they walked and talked Lothar learned that when Humbert was a boy he had a near scrape with death when his dog saved him from drowning. Lothar thought about the kennel they passed in Pfultiwacht.

Arriving at Wolfenfeste at dawn the lads learned that the massive stone citadel contained an armorer, weaponsmith, tavern and training hall. Contracts were handed out by the noble house Ruhmolt, known for their ruthlessness, brutality and greed, so no work for our boys, yet.

A days march to the humble village of Grunnheim brings them to Siegward who complains of brigands raiding the granary and offers a contract of 430 crowns to drive off the brigands at Red Moon Den east of Grunnheim. Lothar the Fat rubs his belly anticipating the feast those crowns will buy. Grunnheim has a trapper and he shrewdly anticipates selling furs for a profit in a large city. Adler buys a pitchfork to go with his bow and they head east for glory.


Approaching from the west, scouts determine the camp holds a handful of brigand thugs and a raider.

“Br, br, brigands?! I hate brigands,” moans Humbert as they creep up on the enemy. “Engage!” shouts Meinholf and in they go. There are seven of the foe, and the battle takes place in murky water, reducing melee and ranged defense and melee skill. Spying a patch of plashy grass to their rear, Eugen orders to men to fall back in order to force the enemy to fight at a disadvantage. The frontline forms the spearwall and the archers send their bolts and arrows harmlessly towards the advancing foe.


Helfrich scores the first kill, evening the odds and two of Alder’s bolts fly true. The battle ends quickly with no losses though Helfrich suffers a fractured hand and Eugen a ripped ear. The archers level up and each gets the Pathfinder perk. Humbert gets the Colossus perk. After collecting their pay they purchase some furs at below market rate and head south to find a willing buyer.

Arriving at the established village of Tanndorf they meet Erik the Elder who speaks of a relic and offers 340 crowns. The gathering crowd whispers of creatures that sound much like Ancient Axillaries and Eugen declines the contract as his men are as yet no match for these undead warriors.

On the way back to Treiten the men encounter a battle between brigands and the 1st Tanndorf Company. Seeking to curry favor with House Kaltenborn they join the fray but the fight is nearly over though they loot 170 crowns. 1st Tanndorf Company had two wardogs, and Humbert wistfully watches them leave…

I won’t clutter this thread with repeated comments, but I just want to say that I am loving these so far and am excited to see them all!

 W I D O W  M A K E R S

Being a journal of the Widow Makers battle company: Days 1 - 5.

War late game crisis
QT3 map seed
Veteran/Veteran/Medium/IronMan
Permanent Destruction disabled.

Hoggert’s men decimated us. With only 3 company members left, we had a decision to make, go on, or disband. To a man we voted to go on and pay holy hell back to Hoggert and his men. We vowed to start the company anew and so changed the company name to Widow Makers. It fits. We either make them of our enemies of they make them of us. This time, Hoggert made a lot of widows at our expense. Next time we meet, we will see.

Back in town we looked for replacements to our ranks. The pickings were slim in this area and we ened up only hiring Valdemar the tailor and a farmhand named Reiner. Neither one have the looks of a soldier but we need men and have little choice but to make do. We still need at least one more man and with the remaining few choices here so poor, we are marching south to Wunderstadt to see if we will have more luck there. Before we left, we sealed the contract with Treiten to bring them Hoggert’s head. Something we look forward to doing, being paid for it is just a bonus.

Alas, Wunderstadt’s recruitment pool is almost as poor as Treiten’s. At last we settled on a former thief named Torhelm who had the look of a killer about him. Unfortunately, it’s become immediately apparent that bravery in the face of danger is not his strong suit. The men are already calling him Torhelm the Craven. I dispair for our future but we go on.

With our band numbering 6, we traced Hoggert and his cutthroats to a hideout on the edge of the mountains north of Treiten. We attacked at dawn and fortunately held the high ground, negating the range of their archer and forcing them to come to us and fight uphill. We crushed them convincingly with only two light injuries. Hoggert stood alone at the end, surrounded by our men, 3 of which were not inclined to let him die easily. His head was struck from his shoulders at last by Meinolf the Knightslayer. Meinolf alone killed 3 men in the battle and has advanced his understanding of battle to where he has learned some new things.

The battle spoils were good, we picked up a falchion, shortsword, a blotched gambeson and a gambeson, as well as some supplies. We were also fortunate enough to find some amber which will sell back in town for a good price.

Flush with gold from the contract payout and sale of the amber the men are heartened and and eager for a new contract. Unfortunately there are none in Treiten so we march south to Wunderstadt again, looking for work. There we find it. A contract to stop graverobbers from desecrating a nearby grave site. The pay is quite good at 420 gold which makes me suspicious. None the less, gold is gold and we need more men and supplies.

The grave site is a good ways west of the city and we get there at sunset. We vote to attack immediately as none of us feel like camping in a graveyard. As soon as we do, it becomes clear that we are not facing moral men, but the undead.

The undead were relentless and had to be put down over and over but, in the end, they were just shambling corpses with no real battle tactics and we eventually put an end to them. Several men are wounded and Eugen who was in the very thick of the fighting took a neck wound but fought on. Their leader left us a remarkably good kettle helmet. Unfortunately, I was so eager to scribe the story of the battle and sketch some renderings of the results, that I forgot to actually pack the battle spoils and they and the Kettle helmet were lost. Something we did not discover until we returned to town. The men were shaken by my mistake and I can’t blame them. The loss of that helmet may well cost Meinolf the Knightslayer his head in a future battle. I am sick about it, but we must go on. We get Eugen’s grazed neck wound treated at the town temple. We can’t afford to have him out of action with so few men.

Four men gain valuable experience in battle and we take a while to integrate their new skills:

We are having trouble finding contracts. First we traveled south to Grafenhaven but they had nothing for us. We continued south to Esenwall and they had a contract but refused to discuss it with us. Said we had to earn the trust of their noble first. The men were dismayed but I took the opportunity to hunt for recruits and buy some food. By good fortune the town had 3 farmhands looking for mercenary work. From past experience I know that men with this background make solid soldiers so I hired the one named Steiner that was carrying a pitchfork as a weapon. Immediately it is apparent that the man has iron lungs and will be able to fight all day. A welcome addition.

Back north we go. No work anywhere. At last, in desperation, we travel all the way north to Tanndorf and there in the woodlands we find work at last. The local lord has had something stolen and he wants it back. The pay isn’t great but the thieves may carry spoils we can loot and we need gold so we accept.

We follow their tracks through the woods and into the mountains. At last we surprise them when camping and attack immediately. They are 7 as are we. An even fight.

They fortunately have no archers and must attack our defensive position due to our crossbowman Lothar’s constant fire. We keep tight formation with Steiner and his pitchfork attacking form the back rank to impale and dislodge the enemy. Soon Meinolf the Knightslayer beheads a man. Then a another dies from a spear-thrust. The tide turns, the morale of the thieves crumbles and they attempt to flee. We cut them all down.

Unfortunately, there’s not much in the way of spoils after the battle so it’s back to town to collect our 320 gold. Torhelm the Craven has managed to kill a few men and looks more experienced. He seems to have a rare aptitude for melee combat and he may pull his weight yet.

Back in town we collect our pay and the town has another contract for us. Some beast or beasts are taking the villagers one by one and they want us to hunt them down. It sounds like dire wolves to me. Not something for an ill equipped company to face. Tonight I will meet with the men to decide if we accept the contract.

Ouch! that must sting. FYI, and to save any new player this heartache, please check this box in the gameplay tab of the options menu :

As long as you have space, all the loot will be transferred to your inventory.

Hello, meet the Ringolos!

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Random late game crisis
QT3 map seed
Veteran/Veteran/Medium/IronMan
Permanent Destruction disabled

The misadventures of the Ringolos – days one to five

Day one
We are ambushed. Most of the Company is lost, only three remain : two solid front-line fighters, Eugène and Gustave, and a talented but overweight archer, Babar the Plump. Our equipment has broken down. We survive the encounter and salvage a dagger and a buckler from our fallen enemies.

We make it to the nearest village, where we resolve to hunt down Hoggart, the leader of the ambushers. While visiting two nearby cities, we buy cheap weapons and armour and hire three new soldiers : Archibald the militiaman, a disloyal drunkard, Volker, an average peasant and Wilreich, an optimistic brawler. Only Archibald has real promise, if he ever gets his head out of his cups.

Archibald

Day two
We reach Hoggart’s hideout : on to weasel hunting! A disciplined approach and favorable terrain gives us victory without any losses or serious injuries.

We manage to recover Hoggart’s armour in pristine condition, a falchion, some gold and a signet ring (an auspicious sign!)

We take a risk and spent 500 gold to hire Kettilmund, a well-equipped caravan hand. He would be the perfect candidate for the role of sergeant, if only he wasn’t a complete coward!

We make our way south to the city of Wunderstadt looking for new work. Only a cargo delivery is on offer, which we decline. Southwards again, to Grafenhaven. On the road, we agree to become friendly with a local settlement.

Once there, we take on a mission to secure the Remote Graveyard. On the way there, we intercept 8 bandits (to our 7 ringolos) who were chasing peasants. The peasants abscond before the fighting starts. So much for altruism. The enemies are only thugs, with no ranged support. Disciplined fighting should win out.

It is a desperate battle. Archibald gets surrounded by two 2-handed axe wielders and another thug wielding a hatchet! He soon loses his shield and is within an inch of losing his life. Fortunately, the bottom half of the front rank kills thug after thug and routs the whole enemy band. We will have to be more careful, that won’t happen against stronger foes. Most of the company is badly wounded and our armour is in tatters, so we rest through the night.

Day three
We have to recuperate until late past midday. We trek to the Remote Graveyard… Undead are afoot!

We are victorious. Most of the undead were unarmed and our armour was enough to protect from their bites! Spearwall and a pitchfork wielding Volker were the key.

We take on another contract in Grafenhaven: drive off brigands in the Lawless Hideout to the south. We hire Horace, a messenger well suited for front-line combat. Kettilmund, still injured, picks up a pitchfork and joins Volker and Babar in the back rank.

Day four
Night falls as we reach the bandit hideout. Some ringolos are still injured and repairs must be made. We camp out at a respectful distance from the bandit lair.

Day five
We rest until late afternoon. We send Wilreich the brawler to scout the area. He reports the presence of “some” brigand raiders.

How many we all asks? Turns out the brawler can’t count! We should have hired that historian instead. We go in unsure of what awaits us…

We are triumphant, but battered. There were only four raiders facing us, but the are much more dangerous than mere bandit thugs. Kettilmund took an arrow to the leg and Horace has a bruised leg and broken ribs; he will be out of the fighting line for at least a few days.

We collect great spoils : 2 morningstars, one flail, three strong helmets and a worn mail shirt… all way better than our current equipment! This should help us defeat fiercer foes.

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We return to Grafehaven just after nighfall. The gates are closed until dawn, so we will have to camp outside for the night.

I’m going to be busy with work/travel for a couple of days, but I got in a chunk of play last night, getting up to day 20. This went fast b/c it was a mix of caravan/delivery missions with just a few fights, mostly brigands, with 1 dire wolf fight and 1 Ancient Auxiliary fight. I find this stage of the game, after the initial high risk starting phase, when I’m scouring the map for easy travel missions and One Skull missions, to be fairly boring. I met the ambition of getting 2,000 gold and then expanded my ranks. A few days later I’m about to meet the ambition of having 12 men. We are between level 1 and 4, mostly in high leather / low chain armor, with mostly Tier 2 weapons. My set up is 7 shields brothers, 2 Two-Handers, and 3 archers. I’m ready to start taking on Two Skull missions once I get back, and my next ambition will probably make things more exciting (I hope.)

In the interim, carry on with your reporting, folks.

Woah, you wait that long to take any two-skull mission? Even caravan and cargo ones? I find that at least a third of them are doable at any point after the first 5 to 10 days. Do you manage to find enough one-skull contracts to avoid and economic death spiral?

I’ll do Two Skull caravan / delivery missions but not combat missions.

Corvus.
Hmm…how do i get screenshots to show up like your posts?

After surviving the ambush, I went into Treiten, which I note sells dyes. This is great, or potentially so, in the future.

I recruit a club footed apprentice who will surely attain everlasting glory soon. cough

I also recruit a hesitant refugee named Meinolf who has 54 starting melee skill, with 1 star. This means he could, in theory, end up being quite the melee damage dealer.

I leave Treiten to see what’s happening in Wunderstadt, a conveniently close very large city. Before that, I note that Treiten also sells mead, which means I can buy it, take it to Wunderstadt, and make a small profit, if I don’t drink it first.

Wunderstadt has a temple and a tavern, which is great, but doesn’t have an armourer or a weaponsmith, which is less great, but not of immediate concern. Having such easy access to the tavern means morale is easier to manage, and injuries will be less annoying due to the temple.

Here, I hire a fragile and hesitant militiaman with a good melee score, and who brings his own spear. That’s useful. I can see him lasting a while as a frontliner, where initiative is less useful (hesitant = less initiative) provided I put him in some nice heavy armour. Alternatively, he has a decent ranged skill, so I could get him a bow or crossbow, and start to build my 2nd line up.

My last hire is another militia man, who has no negative traits, and decent skills all around. Another contender for ranged.

I tend to boost my archers to eventually have 70 melee skill and 85+ ranged skill, the idea being to eventually outfit them with 2 tile weapons. With that melee skill they will be good damage contributors.

I resist the temptation to buy a bow right now, as money is tight. I also note that Wunderstadt produces it’s own dye as well. Annoying.

With my 7 men I go find Hoggart. The fight starts at night and I am on the high ground. This is good overall. It hurts my crossbow use, but it also means my men are unlikely to take any hits, and it means the enemy will be obliged to come to me, which they do.

The enemy are all deciding to gang up on the left flank, sotheir archer on my right flank is exposed.

Amazingly enough, I manage to land a crossbow bolt, and almost kill a Thug.

Meinolf the Knightslayer swings his axe and decapitates the Archer. That is satisfying.

I’m up for changing every name here except Meinolf the Knightslayer. He’s clearly a badass.

I kill 2 more Thugs in the same turn, causing one to panic and try to flee. That leaves Hoggart, who Dietrich (militiaman) fails to stun.

Hoggart dies, but he takes out Meinolf, the hesitant refugee.

I get some decent loot, including some arrows and a bow, so I can get myself another backliner straightaway.

I also note there’s a village nearby specialising in lumber and hunting, which usually means good ranged recruits, decent provisions that can be sold for a profit (like the mead and wine from Treiten) and wood, a useful trade good.

All in all, quite happy with the map so far.

Errrrr so my game didn’t quite go like all of yours. I was writing up and screenshotting my stuff then the first non-tutorial battle started and I was nervous. I hated my positioning on the battlefield. I should have ran. Should have ran fast and far. Opening salvo, my Crossbowman is shot in the head and killed by their poacher. From there it just descended into chaos.

Yea all those headless dudes were my party LOL.

Do I get a do-over? By the way I got an achievement for sucking so bad!

Yeah start a new company!

Agreed. That might be the unluckiest start I have ever seen! I don’t think I have experienced anything close, even when I was first learning the game.

Saga of the Piñatas - days 11 - 15
An ambition fulfilled and a tragic farewell.

The village of Treiten has a contract to return the Shroud of the Founder that had been spirited away to the north to the Guardians Keep ruins. The Piñatas cross the Wall of the Gods mountain range and traverse the Gloomy Woods. Creeping into the ruins they spy a gleaming Khopesh leaning against a wall. Deciding to play it safe, they ignore the weapon and retrieve the Shroud and to their relief encounter no resistance.

On their return to Treiten they receive a heroes welcome and learn that their renown has increased and are now looked favorably upon by House Kaltenborn.


They head south to Wunderstadt and Casper hires them to deliver a package to Hammererden. On the road Eugen suggests that what the company needs is a right proper battle standard and the men agree.

Another package delivery brings them to Stohl and they decide to take a holiday boat ride to Grafenhaven where they pickup another delivery contract to Tanndorf. Oh, how they rue the day they entered that accursed village. For here they accepted the fateful contract from Erik the Elder to drive off brigands that had robbed him and were encamped at the Ruined Dwellings east of Tanndorf.

The men camped out near the ruins and attacked at dawn. Their scouting efforts were fruitless and blindly they stormed the enemy.


Four brigand raiders in superior armor and weapons awaited them. Poor Humbert was impaled early in the fight. The Piñatas maintained their battle line and dropped three of the brigands and the fourth fled in a panic. But it was a pyrrhic victory as poor Humbert was no more.

Collecting a boar spear and a dented nasal helmet and small amounts of gold, tools and ammo, the Piñatas trudged slowly back to Tanndorf to collect their reward.

(Chose Colossus for Helfrich, Dodge for Eugen and Quick Hands for Meinolf).

Lothar, nursing a fractured hand and pierced cheek, muttered under his breath, “If only I had bought the lad a pup back in Pfutilwacht. The dog might have saved its master’s life.”

This thread intrigues me. What is the seed for the game? I may have to start this up and give it a try myself.

Map seed = QT3

Ok great. While I’ve. Played BB before, it was a while ago, so can anyone recommend a good “how do you play this game?” article which will let me avoid a lot of the more common n00b mistakes? I know we have another thread on this but I’m looking for something more succinct.

Not really succint perse but: