Update # 5 - First Milestone Update

[p]Hey Everyone,[/p][p][/p][p]Welcome back to our fifth weekly update – and this one is absolutely packed. Version 0.28 brings a massive new layer of depth with unique army rosters for Western and Muslim nations, several new unit types, improved campaign content, sweeping balance changes and a number of gameplay changing features.[/p][p][/p][p]A total of eight new units have been added – including Siege Towers, Mounted Archers, and Heavy Macemen – while several others were fully reworked. This now means that different cultures plays very differently with several unique units per culture, with new tactical choices and technologies to unlock them. For example - Muslim nations now dominate in the open field with mostly mounted armies packed with horse archers, while Western nations work great in sieges.[/p][p][/p][p]We’ve also rolled out a major performance boost on the world map – many players will see up to 20 FPS improvements. AI aggression has been dialed up significantly – larger nations now feel genuinely threatening, and border skirmishes are frequent.[/p][p][/p][p]Campaign players will be happy to see 16 new quests, major scripting fixes, and smoother First Crusade progression. We also rebalanced RTS training, battle retreat logic, and siege pacing to improve flow and realism.[/p][p][/p][p]Thanks as always for all your feedback – your support helps us keep moving fast. Check out the full update details below! - Game Version: 0.28[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Engine and Performance[/h2]

[p] Major visual performance boost on the world map - up to +20 FPS on most systems[/p]
[p] Fixed rare campaign load bug that prevented proper start[/p]
[p] Fixed rare level load failure affecting some scenarios[/p]

[p][/p][h2]New Culture-Based Unit Rosters[/h2]

[p] Western and Muslim culture groups now use distinct unit rosters[/p]
[p] Each faction now has 8 different units depending on cultural group[/p]
[p] AI builds and fields different units based on nation culture[/p]
[p] RTS and World Map now reflect culture-specific unit availability[/p]
[p] Technologies now unlock different units for different cultures[/p]

[p][/p][h2]New Units and Visuals[/h2]

[p] New unit: Arbaletist and Veteran Crossbowman (Western factions)[/p]
[p] New unit: Heavy Maceman (Western)[/p]
[p] New unit: Mounted Archer and Veteran Mounted Archer (Muslim factions)[/p]
[p] New unit: Siege Ram (Muslim factions)[/p]
[p] New unit: Siege Tower (Western factions)[/p]
[p] Battering Ram - completely new art and stats[/p]
[p] Belfry - completely new art and stats[/p]
[p] Reworked Maceman portrait, visuals and stats[/p]

[p][/p][h2]World Map Features[/h2]

[p] Armies only heal near own/ally towns and if they have food[/p]
[p] Armies now cost Renown to field: 0 / 20 / 40 / 60 e.t.c increasing for each new army[/p]
[p] Player can now sell resources at ally and neutral cities (Recruit Menu)[/p]
[p] Armies now show healing indicator on the Army UI[/p]
[p] Edge of the world map added to the eastern side[/p]
[p] Fixed excessive silver rewards when defending towns[/p]
[p] Updated news feed to avoid broken line formatting[/p]
[p] Army strength now displays correctly when using custom names[/p]
[p] Fixed cut-off background for Research titles[/p]
[p] Unlocked techs now show tooltip popups when hovering icons[/p]

[p][/p][h2]World Map AI Improvements[/h2]

[p] AI now targets closer cities instead of crossing the map[/p]
[p] Major boost to world map AI aggression and activity[/p]
[p] Larger kingdoms (e.g., France, Byzantium) now field massive armies[/p]
[p] Fixed inactive AI armies not moving to targets[/p]
[p] Overall strategic AI behavior drastically improved[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Campaign Overhaul[/h2]

[p] 10 new quests added to the Seljuk campaign[/p]
[p] 6 new quests added to the Templar campaign[/p]
[p] Improved pacing and onboarding in both campaigns[/p]
[p] Seljuk campaign diplomacy now behaves properly[/p]
[p] Fixed critical bug in First Crusade progression logic[/p]
[p] Defense of Antioch mission time reduced from 20 to 12 minutes[/p]
[p] Crusader armies no longer capture player objectives by accident[/p]
[p] Tutorial “Scout the World Map” quest is now easier to complete[/p]

[p]Can no longer invite Godfrey to help siege Ma`arat al-Numan.[/p]

[p]Fixed "Capture Hamlet" objective not completing in the campaign.[/p]
[p]Fixed player not receiving a reward for acquiring 600 Faith in the Crusader and Templar campaigns.[/p]
[p]Fixed incorrect cinematic playing after acquiring Faith in the Crusader and Templar campaigns.[/p]
[p]AI Crusader armies now set off much later — around May 1096 — giving the player a better chance to travel with them.[/p]
[p]Fixed AI Crusader armies very rarely arriving in Constantinople on time.[/p]
[p]Combat tutorial now lasts longer before victory is declared.[/p]

[p][/p][h2]RTS Training Logic & UI[/h2]

[p] Units in RTS now train logically with space and population checks[/p]
[p] Retreated units are removed from population count[/p]
[p] Strong/high-level units will now fight to the death instead of retreating[/p]
[p] Retreated units no longer re-enter battle automatically[/p]
[p] Improved visibility of building names in towns[/p]
[p] Palisade gatehouse now aligns properly with adjacent wall sections[/p]
[p] Fixed unit unlock issues in RTS mode[/p]
[p] Disabled double-click selection on unit overlay portraits[/p]
[p] Bird flight speed corrected for RTS camera[/p]

[p][/p][h2]Art Updates[/h2]

[p]Reworked all building icons.[/p]
[p]Building icons now show symbols to easily identify their function[/p]
[p]Improved playable player characters with several new ones[/p]
[p]Professional soldier battalions now carry a flag banner into combat[/p]
[p]Player's floating unit portraits are now much more visible[/p]
[p]Allied group portraits are no longer as prominent[/p]
[p]Player army flag is now easier to spot in the Your Own Order and Templar campaigns[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][h2]Combat & Balance Changes[/h2]

[p] Major rebalance of Muslim armies - Horse Archers are now core units[/p]
[p] Unit speed now varies by armor weight - light units move faster[/p]
[p] Light units can effectively skirmish heavier units at range[/p]
[p]Personal Time accumulates more slowly.[/p]
[p]Increased price of all basic hamlet buildings: Storehouse, Silver Mine, Barn, Stone Mine, Lumber Camp, and Hunter Lodge.[/p]
[p] Fixed bug causing cavalry to move too fast in Loose formation[/p]
[p] Reduced RTS defense time: Hamlet 12 → 8 min, Large City 20 → 16 min[/p][p][/p]

[h2]Other Fixes[/h2]

[p]Fixed a bug allowing some mounted units to run while in naval combat onboard ships[/p]
[p]Fixed archers not being able to attack Knight Commander and Chevalier units[/p]
[p]Fixed armies not playing the correct walking animation on the world map during cinematics[/p]
[p]Night-time city and unit elimination effects (fires, torches, etc.) now occur simultaneously[/p]
[p]Units created from buildings now form up better if there is no default rally point[/p]
[p]Units coming out of the Town Hall now form up especially well[/p]
[p]Changed Bristol to Cardiff[/p]
[p]World map winter lighting is now brighter[/p]