Parties
Every moving group on the map that is not an army in the field is a party, shown as an icon of its kind in its kingdom’s colour. Parties are hidden by the fog of war like armies. Each has a leader named for its home, such as “Caravan master Hugh Miller”.
| Party | Men | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Village cart | 2 men, a wagon | Takes up to 4 loads of the village’s spare grain and goods to market, in the morning only |
| Caravan | 6 spearmen, 2 riders, 4 mules | Trades between towns within 30 km of road; goes home after four stops |
| Tax convoy | 6 spearmen, 4 riders, 2 mules | Every 4 days, takes a quarter of a town’s coffers over 8 gold to its castle, if that comes to 4 gold or more |
| Dues convoy | Grain wagons | Takes a village’s harvest dues to its castle |
| Patrol | 10 spearmen, 5 riders, 2 mules | Calls at three places near its castle; rides down bandits and raiders |
| Retinue | 4 spearmen, 4 riders | A knight on his castle’s errands; fights any kingdom at war with it |
| Border raid | 6 spearmen, 2 archers, 8 riders | A castellan raids an enemy village within 15 km of road |
| Levy | The village’s share | Marches to the muster when the banners are called |
| Bandits | 8 to 15 spearmen, 2 mules | See Crime |
| Travellers | See Travellers |
Each town keeps up to two caravans out if it has 12 gold for the purse. Each castle sends one patrol at a time.
A party or army moves at its slowest member’s pace, beasts included:
| Member | Walk | Sprint |
|---|---|---|
| Man | 6 m/s | 10 m/s |
| Horse | 8 m/s | 20 m/s |
| Mule | 6 m/s | 8 m/s |
| Cart | 5 m/s | 7 m/s |
| Driven herd | 4 m/s | 6 m/s |
A marching day is 12 hours: 4.32 km on foot on a road at 6 m/s, and 8.64 km riding. Trees, marsh, snow, slopes and weather slow the march. Armies sprint to charge or to run for refuge until they are weary (0.6), and a beaten army sprints until spent. A sprint costs three times a march’s weariness. The Party screen shows the pace in m/s and km a marching day, and what slows it.
An army keeps to its train’s pace while the train is within 400 m. More than 1.5 km from its train, it goes hungry.
Parties travel by day, 6:00 to 18:00. In the afternoon one that will not be home by dusk makes for an inn, village or town, and at dusk one on the road camps or pushes on to a rest stop within two hours. Carts never camp. Raiders and messengers ride on through the night. Your own army camps only when you say so.
Meeting a party
Section titled “Meeting a party”A party within 800 m of your army comes off the road as an ordinary army. When your army comes within 150 m of one, the meeting screen opens if the party is raiding or hostile toward you, or you are hunting it, or you marched at it. Friendly and wary parties going about their business pass by.
| Choice | What it does |
|---|---|
| Let them pass | Closes the screen |
| Attack | Falls on them; their goods and gear are spoils if you win. While you are free, this puts you at war with their kingdom for good |
| Trade | Carts and caravans: buy and sell at the prices of the town they are bound for |
| Talk | Travellers: hear their news |
| Rob them | Travellers: take their coin and goods, at a cost to your renown |
Stances
Section titled “Stances”A party’s stance toward your realm:
| Stance | Who |
|---|---|
| Friendly | A kingdom at peace with you |
| Wary | Carts, caravans and convoys of a kingdom at war; keeps clear |
| Raiding | Bandits, outlaws and border raiders of a kingdom at war |
| Hostile | Other armed bands of a kingdom at war, and anyone hunting you |
Your own stance, set on the Party screen, decides whom you stop for:
| Your stance | You stop for |
|---|---|
| Friendly | Nothing more |
| Wary | Every party of a kingdom at war with you |
| Raiding | The carts, caravans and convoys of every kingdom but your own; enemy patrols hunt you |
| Hostile | You fall on every party of a kingdom at war with you within 150 m, without a screen |
Couriers
Section titled “Couriers”Left click one of your banners to select it, then right click the ground to send a “march there” order, or another of your banners to join that army. X splits the selected army in two. The courier rides across the map, and the army acts only when the order arrives. A courier riding through an enemy band can be caught.
What you can see
Section titled “What you can see”You see what your armies and towns can see: about 1.5 km over open ground, less in forest, at night or in bad weather. Your captain’s warfare widens it and an enemy’s stealth narrows it. When something important comes into view, time drops back to 1x for a moment.