‘Chivalry 2’ captures chaos of Hollywood medieval battle
Hollywood loves the spectacle of epic medieval warfare. William Wallace’s victorious battles against the English in “Braveheart” are as iconic as they are unforgettable. The legacy of that vision continued through other films and genres such as “The Lord of the Rings” with the Battle of Helm’s Deep, and “Game of Thrones” with its grim and bloody wars.
The visceral hand-to-hand combat, the destruction caused by catapults and trebuchets and the arrows whizzing by the front lines capture the imagination. Filmmakers have shown what these romanticized battles look like, but what would it be like to take part in them? Gaming answers that question by letting players be the boots on the ground, and perhaps, no game conveys that experience better than Torn Banner Studios’ “Chivalry 2.”
This first-person multiplayer hack-and-slash game lets players take on the role as a soldier in two competing factions: the Agatha Knights and the Mason Order. In this fantasy world, the Masons routed the Agathans and installed Gen. Malric Terrowin as the king of Old Agatha. “Chivalry 2” follows the events 20 years later as the Agatha Knights led by Argon II ignite an uprising against the ruling Mason Order.
Large-scale battles
The conflict is told through multiplayer battles that feature 64 or 40 players. Competitive gamers can also jump in a free-for-all on three maps — the Fighting Pit, Tournament Grounds and The Battle of Wardenglade — but most of the fun comes in the team modes that throw players in a skirmish between the Agathans and Masons. From there, they can choose among four classes, each of which has a distinct fighting style and stat pool.
Archers focus on ranged attacks. The Vanguard are more offensive and speedy while the Footman class focuses on versatility with its average stats. The Knights are the tankiest of the classes but also among the slowest. Players shouldn’t concentrate on one role in the beginning. Instead, it’s best to gain experience points and raise your levels, which unlock the subclasses and their distinct gear and special abilities. Afterward, players can figure out which of the 12 subclasses fits them best.
Play enough and you’ll find that roles are fluid in “Chivalry 2,” and over the course of a battle, the best players wear different hats and adapt to the situation at hand. If players are taking over a bridge, they may need the Crossbowman or Guardians’ banner ability, which heals nearby allies. If they’re defending a choke point and protecting the Heir, the Crusader or Devastator’s oil pot that ignites fire in an area is an essential tool to stave off attackers.
The combat system
Jumping into the fray is chaotic at first. Blades are swinging left and right. Archers’ arrows narrowly miss front-line fighters. Meanwhile, allies from behind charge forward to support players. Despite all this seemingly random tumult, “Chivalry 2” requires a degree of skill. Torn Banner Studios uses fighting game mechanics in its melee combat, and the game rewards those who can parry attacks and create an opportunity for a riposte.
Players can also dodge with a dash or even counter by timing the right attack. If an opponent is blocking, players can interrupt it and create an opening with a kick for attack. All the moves are limited by a stamina meter and cooldowns so players can’t button-mash them. “Chivalry 2” rewards those who know the finer points of fighting, but no matter how skilled warriors are, if enemies swarm them, they will fall.
With its combat system, “Chivalry 2” has a good foundation and Torn Banner builds some entertaining levels around it, but joining a campaign is a time commitment as the Team Objective maps take more than a half-hour in some cases. Levels such as The Battle of Dark Forest, Escape from Falmire, The Siege of Rudhelm, The Slaughter of Coxwell and The Fall of Lionspire feature one team being the defender and the other the attacker as they take objectives through a linear map. Defenders win by holding an objective beyond a time limit.
In the Siege of Rudhelm, players must protect siege towers that let the Agathan army clear the walls in order to kill Malric’s heir, Valen Tray. In The Battle of Dark Forest, the Mason order pushes an unrelenting convoy toward Fogbern Keep to kill its duke. The stage features catapults and ballistas that can change the momentum of the conflict. The most challenging and complex map is Escape from Falmire, in which the Agathan forces try to rescue the champion Barek Thorne from Mason captivity.
Player-driven storytelling
All these levels are frameworks that add to a general plot, but it’s the players who are the ones that fill in the details. The way “Chivalry 2” is crafted, players come up with their own emergent narrative. They share stories of how they single-handedly defended the gatehouse against an oncoming horde. They can talk about how they threw a barrel, rock or even manure at rushing foes, killing them.
That fun amid the chaos is what will keep players sated, but to keep them coming back, Torn Banner will need to add more content. The eight maps are fun but players will need more levels to battle through and more cosmetic gear to collect using the in-game currencies. Torn Banner also needs to add quality-oflife improvements because customizing characters in and out of battle is clunky. Those issues are scheduled to be addressed as the developer views the game as project built for the long haul. In the meantime, players can continue getting lost in the screams and fun of medieval battle.