Hey Everyone, We’re thrilled to announce our biggest update ever for Renaissance Kingdom Wars! This major update is packed with game-changing features, visual overhauls, and countless improvements to gameplay mechanics, AI, and balance. It’s a milestone moment for the game, and we can’t wait for you to dive in. ***This might be a good time to start a new campaign, to explore all the new changes. [h1]Whats New?[/h1] World Map and RTS visuals have been overhauled for more gritty and realistic look, while cavalry units and their formations have been completely redesigned for more immersive battles. Additionally, we’ve reworked core systems like looting, RTS unit buttons, and even Peasant AI, making every aspect of the game smoother and more engaging. Also of note – Mercenary Captains join the battlefield as versatile new dual-weapon heroes, offering a fresh layer of tactical depth in the early game. This update also introduces Muslim building set, improved AI across both RTS and world maps, and an array of balancing adjustments to reward strategic gameplay. Whether you’re leading epic cavalry charges, fine-tuning army compositions, or exploring the newly polished world map, there’s something here for everyone. Here`s a comparison screenshot showing updated hamlet design (all stone walls now), with visual and other unit design improvements. (This is the same scene - compared to last week, but in the new build the camera is higher, so it`s a little bit mismatched) [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/44774655/3282e367e416feee47bf5d59aa60f778649b0877.jpg[/img] [h1]Your Feedback[/h1] As always, we couldn’t have done this without your feedback and support. This update is a testament to the incredible Renaissance Kingdom Wars community, and we’re so grateful to have you on this journey with us. If you encounter a bug, want us to change something - please let me know on our Steam forums. I reply to every post, and usually work in player suggestions into the game within a week. Thanks again to everyone who have already posted their feedback and ideas. [h1]Comparing MKW to RKW...[/h1] In the spirit of New Years - a bit of a lightheaded humor. I finally mustered the courage to address comments that RKW is a re-branded Medieval Kingdom Wars, with a new name and a logo. Time to come clean - read all about it here: https://steamcommunity.com/app/2533020/discussions/0/598514446184304026/ Now, onto happier things - let’s dive into the full patch notes and explore everything version 1.09 has to offer: [b]MERCENARY CAPTAIN & MONK HEROES[/b] [list] [*] New unit – Mercenary Captain – dual weapon hero with unique ability [*] Mercenary Captain and Monk added to starting army in Campaign game mode [*] Polished and balanced out Monk's abilities of field medicine and praying [*] Monk no longer fights units [*] Lots of polish to controlling Monk units in battles [*] New Rallying Horn ability for Mercenary Captain [*] Improved Pray ability icon and description [*] Pray ability now gives defensive bonuses [/list] [b]LOOTING CORPSES REWORKED[/b] [list] [*] Looting corpses is now much faster and generates a lot more silver and some wood (from looting siege weapons) [*] Peasant can loot corpses [*] In early game, manual looting can add 500-700 silver per battle [*] Late-game large battles can net 1200-1400 silver per battle [/list] [b]REDESIGN OF UNIT BUTTONS[/b] [list] [*] Larger unit buttons in RTS mode [*] Only keeping the most common actions like Formations and Stances for most units [*] Prioritizing easy access to unit special ability buttons [*] Removed Destroy Unit and Stop buttons [*] Units with firearms now have a Hold Fire button - allows timing their firing volley [/list] [b]MAJOR VISUAL IMPROVEMENTS[/b] [list] [*] GREATLY improved visual fidelity on the world map [*] Redesigned the look of hamlets on the world map to be cleaner, realistic, and not random [*] GREATLY improved visual fidelity in RTS [*] Changed RTS lower camera to have a bigger angle [*] World map higher minimum zoom in [*] Redo distance fog - starts sooner in RTS and world map [*] RTS scrolling is a bit faster, like 20% [*] World map birds much higher [*] Don’t zoom in this close in world map cinematics [*] Normal camera for Camera mode, no insane ground view level [*] Fixed issue with river and sea water looking very bad in hamlets [/list] [b]MAJOR IMPROVEMENT TO RTS CONTROLS[/b] [list] [*] Fixed major issue with units seemingly randomly tasked or selected and tasked [*] When rotating camera, no units will be tasked or selected [*] When rotating camera, any mass selection or tasking arrow UI will close [/list] [b]MAJOR IMPROVEMENT TO UNITS IN COMBAT[/b] [list] [*] Much better combat in RTS for melee [*] Major cavalry always runs to trample units it’s tasked on [*] Fixed issue with melee units on the ground destroying siege weapons on walls [*] Fixed being unable to pull units out of combat sometimes [*] ClickOnUnit now works [*] Units can now run to attack the enemy [/list] [b]FULL UNIT REDESIGN[/b] [list] [*] All units in RTS now look significantly better [*] New realistic approach to unit art design in RTS mode [*] New units don’t have strong player color elements anymore [*] Updated the last of the units to match their portraits [/list] [b]REWORKED CINEMATICS[/b] [list] [*] New epic-looking cinematic for start of hamlets/victory cinematics [*] New intro cinematic for attacking hamlets - shows both the target hamlet and the army [/list] [b]REWORKED CAVALRY[/b] [list] [*] Changed the look of mounted Dragoon unit [*] Changed the look of the mounted Knight unit [*] All mounted units get more variety in horses they are riding [*] Reworked all mounted unit battalions and formations [*] Mounted units now have fewer members, better-looking formations [*] Mounted units balanced out to make up for having fewer units in a battalion [*] Cavalry moves faster [*] Various improvements to the way trample works [*] Fixed issue with cavalry completely slowing down while trampling [*] Fixed very strong blood effect during trample [/list] [b]MUSLIM BUILDING AND WALL SET[/b] [list] [*] Muslim building set now works [*] New buildings appear in the Muslim set [*] Building construction in the Muslim set now [*] Wall construction in the Muslim set now loads the correct texture [*] Fixed rare issue where the desert set of buildings or walls will appear in Western towns [*] Fixed rare issue where the summer version of buildings and walls will appear in wintertime towns [/list] [b]MAJOR AI IMPROVEMENTS[/b] [list] [*] RTS AI is no longer passive during sieges [*] RTS AI will ride out of the town multiple times, pulling back as needed [*] RTS AI when defending towns will ride out to harass player’s attempts to siege the city [*] RTS AI sometimes attempts to sally forth with the entire army to crash the player before the siege starts [/list] [b]WORLD MAP AI IMPROVEMENTS[/b] [list] [*] When AI sends multiple armies, they will now travel closer together so the player can’t pick them off one by one [*] AI will rush to upgrade hamlet outer walls as soon as the campaign starts [*] When tasking multiple armies on the world map, they will nicely line up at their destination [*] Fixed issue where AI armies would attack player army from a bit too far away [/list] [b]ART IMPROVEMENTS[/b] [list] [*] New design for the stone tower [*] Fixed major art issue with terrain around hamlets appearing with fake-looking lines [*] Improved the look of Muslim set mustering hall building [*] Fixed issue with very odd-looking deformed palms in Muslim hamlets [*] Fireplace prop looks better [*] Created a unique set of fog/dust particle effects for desert sets/world map [*] Improved variety of tools citizens carry around towns [*] Fixed ultra-bright stone wall edges during winter [/list] [b]BALANCING[/b] [list] [*] Winning defensive battles, field combat, or naval battles now gives significantly higher rewards [*] Rewards for winning various battles increased up to 3x to encourage players to seek battles other than sieges [*] Swordsman is now a light support troop instead of heavy infantry [*] Increased the amount of resources livestock passively generates in RTS [*] Ram and Belfry now take more damage from ranged units and are not completely immune [*] There are now two cannons in a battalion instead of three - stats adjusted accordingly [*] There are now three trebuchets and catapults in a battalion instead of four - stats adjusted accordingly [*] Fixed stone mine, masonry, and sawmill giving too big of an income in RTS mode [/list] [b]PEASANT AI REWORKED[/b] [list] [*] Complete rework of Peasant AI - it now works very smartly [*] Fixed issue with peasants getting stuck while gathering resources [*] Reworked peasant gathering rates to be more consistent [/list] [b]LOW FOOD NOTIFICATIONS[/b] [list] [*] Added new notifications for battles to warn the player of food stores getting low [*] Multiple voice-acted audio, visual, and text notifications to warn the player [/list] [b]UI IMPROVEMENTS[/b] [list] [*] Much better look for the UI window that informs the player that they are out of personal time or food [*] Removed unused stance button on Peasant and Monk [*] Fixed issue where some battalions would get glowing white battalion flags during combat [*] Rearranged unit order in the starting army [/list] [b]MAJOR BUG FIXES[/b] [list] [*] Fixed major issue where the player could be declared defeated at the very start of the battle [*] Naval combat will no longer show ice and snow in naval battles during winter in southern climates [*] Fixed issue with ranged units not auto-targeting cavalry and horse carts [*] Greatly reduced visual lag in RTS mode during rain or winter [*] Fixed the issue where during the summer season the western hamlets and towns will have elements of the Muslim towns [/list] [b]OTHER FIXES[/b] [list] [*] Removed weird-looking ship visible during naval combat cinematic [*] Fixed various issues with siege weapons clipping each other or the ground [*] On world map and RTS, the player will no longer see the edge of the map [*] Stone walls are a lot slower to build in RTS mode [/list]