Hello Lords and Ladies,
First, I'm thrilled to announce that Before Arthur has been accepted into the Steam Medieval Fest starting Monday! These fests are a great chance to show off the game to new players (and gather those precious wishlists 🤞).
Today, I want to dive into the crime & justice system I've been building, plus a few other new features.
⚖️Modes of Proof (Recap)
As previously discussed, You set laws for High Crimes (murder, treason etc) and Low Crimes (theft, assault etc). Each has its own mode of proof—how guilt is determined. Trial by water for example? Nobles hate it (sinking = innocent... and drowned), but Serfs love it (since no guilty can escape God's justice). Each mode of proof is unique and you'll need to balance justice with the makeup of your kingdom.
Of course at the start, players will only have access to some basic modes of proof, with better options unlocked with new technology.
🕵️Crime System
Crime isn't random. The system first checks motivation (greed, desperation, feuds) and opportunity, then looks at individual personalities. Every family member now has unique traits, wealth, and moods. A starving family with a greedy patriarch? Theft becomes likely. A long-standing blood feud? Someone might end up dead.
Once a crime is committed, a detection system gathers evidence and witnesses based on proximity to guards and citizens, time of day and the criminals skill. If the threshold is met, a suspect is arrested (though not always the right one). A trial is then scheduled according to your kingdom's laws.
This did mean a need to expand on the current kin family system and create individual family members for every kingroup in every settlement at game start, each with their own identity and personal relationships.
(Work In Progress)
You (and AI-controlled kingdoms) can now hear cases while holding court, or hire a judge to do it for you when the crown isn't available. Judges have their own biases, competency, and backstories though, and better judges cost more to boost loyalty with their fair verdicts.
(Player watching a trial by combat - Work In Progress)
(Judge Selection)
🔨Punishment
So you've caught a criminal, and found them guilty? Well, severe punishments do lower crime rates but only while a public execution is still fresh in their memories. That's why you can now build an execution block in each settlement. Justice must be seen!
(Beheading - Work In Progress)
(Burn Alive - Work In Progress)
Besides the in-depth crime system, you may also have noticed our settlements are much more active lately, which brings us to some of the other stuff I've been working on lately....
👪Family Spawning
Now, when you assign a family to one of your production buildings a number of that family will spawn into the world and get to work on whatever is needed for that building. They will also gather supplies, or shop at the local market.
🔥Fire Memory
I've also added building fire memory... meaning if you enter a building on fire, expect to get burnt! This also keeps track of which families / NPC lords & ladies are in each building, meaning if a building burns down with them inside they will not survive!
(Work In Progress)
🎺Other Stuff
Added music and sound effects
Added an options / settings menu
Added some survival / mood effects to starving and lack of sleep
Added more buildable buildings
refactored how NPC inventory is stored and managed
Added more game "feel" (button clicks, effects)
Added / expanded the weather system
A detailed loyalty feedback UI
Added a camera zoom in/out so players can see more of their surroundings
📅What's Next...
Improved pathfinding, family events (marriage, feuds, sickness), random events, siege battles, and a playtest/demo after a few more updates. No release date yet, but the game is feeling more polished every week.
See you at the Medieval Fest!