Elvyra's Experience

[DeathKnyte]

It's easy to lose focus, in the vast world of Kenshi, even for simple missions sessions.

One such occurrence, happened when I was trying to find how to get to a ruin (revealed from a purchased map), South of the river in Wend, in the zone of Rebirth. Since it was relatively close to Sin City, I figured it would be quick enough - not so - as the only way in is through a winding mountain path, through Holy Nation territory.

Needless to say, it took a lot longer than I had anticipated, and I still did not know what was (if anything) guarding it. Eventually we got within sight of it, all the while avoiding all patrols and wandering groups. But when we were almost at the niche, within the mountain cut, one last wandering patrol came along, a group of skeletons. We quickly got off the path and slid into the brush, on a downward slope.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/Uo4IDZv


Now, I'm here with the Command and Jonin squads, while the rest of the faction is working at the main outpost. These guys can handle themselves in a fight with this group (the wandering skeletons always accused us of reporting them to the paladins of the Holy Nation, thus always tried to "kill us off"), but what would it serve?

I don't need any of their gear, nor their weapons (which I know is at least skeleton smith grade), and I don't need the combat experience with these members of the faction,. All it would serve, should I fight, is to possibly draw more unwanted attention from whatever else might be lurking in the vicinity - and I'll likely take some wounds reducing my future combat capabilities.

So this is a good example of: Stay on mission.

I'm with capable members of the faction performing a "recon in force" mission. Meaning find the objective, and if feasible, engage any hostiles guarding it, and then loot the place. Anything else - such as needlessly engaging these skeletons - can only impede the successful outcome of the objective.

Turns out, that there were things at the objective I never figured on - so staying on mission, served me well here.

[DeathKnyte]

I don't remember where we were coming from, could have been a recon mission, like it could have been a supply run to the Flotsam Village or something. But we got back just after a cannibal raid had arrived at the main gate of Sin City.

I considered whether I should enter through the side gate and defend from within, or engage from the outside. Just to experiment (I was confident that we would win in either case), I opted for the later.

What ensued was a akin to "shooting fish in a barrel".



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/JXcNVv4


Command and Jonin squads, engaging cannibal raid, from outside of Sin City's main gate.

Elvyra (Hold, Ranged, and Taunt commands) is constantly switching targets to whoever is "knocking at the gate". Then that cannibal would cease and swim back towards her.

Beep, Adi, Digna, Pia, Reva, and Knife (all on Ranged and Hold commands), are firing at will.

Hard to see in the picture, but the "moat" is full of floating bodies.

Of note: Notice the rising sun reflection on the water - beautiful!

[DeathKnyte]

This seems to me to be The intended Kenshi kind of experience this game wanted to be.
A stage setting to discover our own stories unfolding within.

Way nice post there, I'd recommend copy/paste sharing it to Steam if you have an account there. As that kenshi thread area seems far busier, and this is a great example of what this game seemed to be aiming to be.

Thanks, but I have seen the forums at Steam. I'm not the type that enjoys what I see happening over there (bad advice, insults, ways to cheat the system and get anything you want, etc.).

This here is the official forums of the developer. It should be only natural that, for anyone who truly enjoys Kenshi and is searching additional information, will make the effort to come here.

Oh i'd not say to participate over there really. Personally i prefer a forum at a game's offical site, though we can see the web has not panned out to be that as the norm, for what winds up being a game's most used forum.

I was really just trying to encourage you to share this in a place that it has potential to reach more people. As it is a nicely crafted posted that i think exemplifies what it is this game was trying to be for players.
Like just post it and then ignore it. just put it somewhere it has higher probability to be seen. Regardless of the yahoos that may pointlessly want to be jerks on whatever they can for their own lols. Because i think it is that worthy, it should be shared with more that it could help properly introduce to the game.

I have noted your thoughts. You present a good argument, both for Kenshi, and the purpose of this thread.

Now, I have reconsidered my own, and will arrange to link it on Steam - when i have completed it.

Thank you for your considerations.

[DeathKnyte]

People are asking me; "Where exactly is this enchanted location of your outpost?".

Give me a little time, the game has ended but making this thread here, takes a lot of my free time. I put some effort into each post, and every picture has a purpose.

So, with that said, here is the exact location of Sin City, the main outpost of the Dark Sinners faction:




If you are not familiar with this area of the map, just zoom in your game map all the way, then adjust the scroll sliders in the same position as I have in the picture, and you'll see it in game.

The adjoining areas are roughly as follows; to the West are the Floodlands, to the North and East is Hidden Forest, and to to the South-East is Wend. The outpost was nearly all within the borders of the Hidden Forest, just a little encompassed the Floodlands, and I was within toothpick range of Wend.


Here are all the things that would show up, hang around, wander by, or actually assault the outpost. This is all from memory, so I might have missed some.

Road Traveler groups:

Visiting Merchants:

Hive Farm Supplies - Originated from the hive village in North-West Dreg.
Hive Materials Trader - Originated from the hive village in North-West Dreg.
Traders Guild Caravan - Originated from Traders Edge in Heng.
Nomad Goat Herder - Originated from somewhere due East of the Flotsam Village in Hidden Forest.
Nomad Animal Trader - Originated from somewhere North-East of the Northern most Flotsam Ninja scout post, on the border of the Cannibal Plains.


Visitors (that just wanted to hang-out at the outpost):

- Cannibal Hunter squad - Option to hire.
- Nomads - Varying group sizes and composition.
- Tech Hunter - Very rare.


Traveling Groups:

- From one to five skeletons, originating beyond the South end of the road running parallel to the outpost (I suspect from Wend), then would continue North along road, into the Hidden Forest.
- Tech Hunter (single), same behavior as the above skeleton groups.


Roaming / Rampaging Groups:

- Iron Spiders - Old Machines
- Broken Skeleton - Old Machines
- Goat Herd - Herbivores
- Bonedogs - Wolves
- Cannibal (regular) - Cannibals


Announced / Staged Outpost Assaults:

- Scrawny Cannibal
- Cannibal
- Combined Cannibal (scrawny + regular)
- Great CanHead

[DeathKnyte]

So I was looking for a new area, to acquire combat experience in a relatively controlled way, and in a (hopefully) safe manner.

After conducting a few tests, and observing the wildlife activity in nearby zones, I decided to try out the edge of The Shrieking Forest.

Below is the founding of this outpost, the "Sanctum of Sanity".



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/EhTx0eK


Again (like in the Fog Islands), I wanted something simple, so just one building would be erected. This time, I chose a station house, instead of a watchtower. The watchtower (at Beep's Keep outpost) was fun in its own way, but after a while I found it was difficult to control the combat sequencing, when half my girls were running, up and down, along the circular stairwells.

You see the placement of the station house shell, as well as the wind turbines. I was trying to be cute, by placing them on top of the stone outcrops, but actually trying to construct them proved impossible, because we couldn't reach them. I was not aware of this, at the time of the picture, so that's why it will look different later on. Also, those very same outcrops, would disappear in later sessions, so just as well, cause it would have looked weird if the wind turbines were suspended in the air.

There were no plans to making this outpost self-sufficient. It was intended to be a rest and recuperation local, as well as a possible staging area for exploring the far reaches of this sector of the map. Therefore, all materials, supplies, and food was imported from Sin City.

Access to the Sanctum of Sanity is only via the ramp, going down into the valley, on the top left side of the station house shell. No walls were necessary (nor desired), as everywhere else is covered by sheer cliff face.

[DeathKnyte]

We took off into the wilderness pretty quick, after founding the Sanctum of Sanity. I was quite curious to see what all the new areas (I had never been this far before) in this sector of the map were like.

There's a lot of sea (meaning water) out here, and one such sea (I believe it was North-West-North of the Purple Sands zone) had a constant dust storm blowing. Yes - dust storm out at sea (!). So I had to explore this phenomena, because surely it must be masking something, no?



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/0he6d4B


I'm not sure if it does have something hidden, but I did discover that there is either a submerged shelf, or some archipelago type of submerged islands. In the picture above, the entire faction is squatting (all members in stealth mode) on one.

We are quite the distance from the mainland, I rotated the camera to show the closest to our location. You can just make out the mountains, in the background, through the swirling dust storm clouds.

The whole sea is colored pinkish-red. No ill physical effects observed (as compared to the water in Vain), so maybe it is to depict the presence of ferrum in the water, or something (?). Nearby is a zone called the Iron Trail.

Look at the dust swirl clouds in the background - combined with the sound on - you are both blinded and deafened out here - yes way out at sea! Only if you zoom in like I have, can you make out your characters. Quite interesting, the experience through two senses plus not knowing what might be lurking in the water. Well done.

[DeathKnyte]

At first I didn't know what it was. Looked like slow moving boulders in the distance, until we approached close enough for me to make out their shape correctly.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/2YYu6ED


First time I ever saw a leviathan. I read about them from the tech hunter notes you can purchase at their shops.

Good thing they didn't see us!

That's the closest I ever got to them.

Look at their stats - crazy!

I was somewhat comforted by their running speed. If they had the mobility of say a beak thing, that would be unimaginable (!).

[DeathKnyte]

Exploring the Iron Trail zone.

I kind of like it, the trees, the color of the ground, the clear blue sky, the ambient sounds - it all comes together in a pleasing way, to me.

There's a lot of iron spiders though, don't know what else might spawn here. I'll have to dedicate some time in the future to discover it all.

Right now, at the time of the picture actually, we were just taking a tour of the different zones, North and West of the new outpost.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/O1a09gr


Yes, I do have confidence in our stealth abilities, but if you look closely, we are actually behind the iron spiders. Their "eyes" are on the other side, so it makes it easier to sneak by something when you know this. Just nobody sneeze, okay?

[DeathKnyte]

There's a lot of sea in this area of the map, and it's all mostly reddish / pinkish / rust colored.

We're pretty good at swimming, we get a lot of practice at Sin City.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/2AABvNy


I took this picture, because as the sun broke the horizon, I felt a sensation of warmth washing over me, as I sat at the computer.

[DeathKnyte]

A picture of fear.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/sINuCN6


Look at how they designed the iron spider to instill dread upon viewing them.

The eyes are actually some kind of reservoir shaped like a doughnut circling the upper body, and where the entry points are on the main body, gives the appearance of eyes.

The forward arms, look like they were designed to manipulate things, but also gives the appearance of claws.

In the picture above, halfway submerged in the water, with the eyes above and the manipulative arms waving - they look scary.

In the background, is an island on the Western end of the Iron Trail zone. I was trying to traverse the water to it, but did not locate all the submerged iron spiders on the way. We quickly had to double back and try another way.

[DeathKnyte]

Foiled again.

I split the faction to "test the waters" in different spots, detaching the Jonin squad as an interception and control unit.

But we got caught in the open, from several directions - all iron spiders again.

Below is a small part of the action, where I was trying to get the main body of the faction, out of the water, and back onto land so I could be mobile and capable of reaction to threats. Being in the water makes you at the mercy of things which aren't restricted like you are.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/28WFhwq


The Jonin squad quickly deployed in a line and by selecting a character to place on Taunt, I was able to maneuver the spiders towards them, and their crossbow fire. In the picture, we have just neutralized the one in the water on the left, and have switched to the one which was closing in on the main body (trying to get back on land in stealth mode).

Although the main body is closer, the iron spider will switch to whatever is currently damaging it, and towards a taunt. This works well, when trying to manipulate the way they are programmed in threat assessment.

I remember taking a hit, likely Knife took it, as she would have been the one on taunt command, and I forgot to switch it off her and place it on someone more appropriate (likely Pia would have been the choice).

Like I said, it is just a part of the engagement, because off the picture there were six more iron spiders either neutralized, or further away but closing in to attack.

Look at the iron spider that the Jonin are currently aiming at; it appears to have a maw and perhaps fangs. Again, designed to instill fear in a human. Good job.

[DeathKnyte]

Sometimes you just have to stop what you're doing and just stare at the screen, in wonder.

We were returning from our quick exploration of the zones North and West of the new outpost, when I came upon the scene in the picture below.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/a0zny21


I don't know how to describe this (?).

There's; contrast, obscurity, definition, haze, irregularity, and serendipity - all within the viewing area.

Mind blowing, but in an untroubled manner.

Look at the faction members in the picture, the look on their faces, their positions, and the directions of their gazing. It's like they feel the same way, and are also at a loss for words.

[DeathKnyte]

So doing this has prompted some ideas for my next playthrough and I said; "let me see what it could be like trying this sort of theme" - and next thing you know - two weeks slipped by.

Excuse me, but playing Kenshi can have this effect.

I'll be continuing the thread shortly...

[DeathKnyte]

So now that we have an idea of the surrounding areas, we're going to begin testing how effective we are at fighting with the locals.

I've discovered that in order to avoid angering the screamers, you need to answer them in the same tone as they initiate dialogue. You are presented with four choices, and near always, choices one and four are hostile reactions, while choices two and three, are the ones to avoid hostilities. Since the purpose of establishing this outpost is to have combat, I deliberately answered incorrectly and we had a big fight.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/inlErKE

In the picture above, Elvyra and Beep (with blades drawn) are observing and assessing how well the faction handles itself in the engagement.

The members are all using the worst grade of ninja blades I could source (0.31 cutting), this makes the combat episodes last longer, which in turn accumulates more experience for us. The downside to using these blades, is that they have a modifier of -5 to defense, so we do take some hits, and this in turn gives us defensive experience. So straight up melee combat somewhat hampers my initial goal of trying to emulate the stats of the Flotsam Ninja faction.

There's a light rain coming down, and you can see the water seeping into the cracks of the structure, most notably on the floor of the frontal balcony to the station house. Again, a nice touch to detail.

[DeathKnyte]

In an effort to increase dexterity, while maintaining a low defensive stat, I set up a few mounted crossbows, up the cliff face and parallel to the sole approach ramp of the outpost. The idea was to fire down at the invading groups, while the rest of the faction was set in a blocking position at the upper end of the path.

The tactic worked somewhat okay, however if there happened to be a breach at the blocking force perpendicular to the "intended" line of fire... The mounted crossbowmen would swivel and fire in line - through one another.

One such occasion, I caught at the instance of a mishap.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/QkUrzft


So I was monitoring the fight from above the field, keeping all my mounted crossbowmen in view, when all of a sudden, Knife's picture turned white (meaning she was rendered unconscious). My thumb was hovering above the space bar, over the keyboard, and I managed to get the "pause" before she hit the ground.

Her mounted crossbow is pointing to the left of the screen, where is the location of a breach in my defensive line. Ideally, it should be pointing straight at the viewer of the picture, but ideals seldom are agreeable with proximity to an enemy force. Therefore, if she's aiming that way, so are the rest of my crossbowmen, and since they're all in a line, we have the result seen above.

If you haven't noticed it, the bolt has entered in her lower back and the exit point is at her right breast. That's quite the shot and I'm certain it is a painful one. I was fortunate that it did not outright kill her (!).

So that experience altered my way of devising an effective mounted crossbow placement strategy for future engagements, at this here outpost.

[DeathKnyte]

So while experimenting, I noticed that there was one point in my defenses that was pretty consistent, where the enemy groups would swarm the line, and a likely breach would occur.

While I was exploring the cause of why this was an attractive spot for the enemy, I placed the recon squad at the location to try and hold them off. And, just by happenstance, I fell on a type of formation that would prove highly effective at plugging a gap - as long as it was a local one.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/mT69vPG


Here we have six members, all are scorchlanders, which have a small boost to dexterity, thereby they have slightly better stats with their allotted weapon choices (toothpick crossbows and ninja blades), compared to the rest of the members with about the same experience. All that to say that; I trust them to shoot in tight formation where they'll usually not hit another member.

One in lead, with two rows of three behind (wasn't planned, I just threw them there and that's how they ended their movement).

The lead member, would often draw her blade and engage, if someone got too close, while the remaining would continue firing into the crowd. Often, the lead member would not even get a blow in with the blade, as is the case in the picture above.

After containing a few enemy local swarms, I snapped a picture to study and think about it in my off time.

The more I gazed at this picture, the more I realized how strong this was in a controlled combat environment. And since I do not micro manage battles, nor break animation sequences, this might well be the most effective setup I've yet hit upon. So much so, that I based an entire subsequent playthrough based on it.

Sometimes a seemingly trivial point in time, like that pictured above, can be the spark leading to discovery.

[DeathKnyte]

After studying and figuring how the screamers are programed to choose targets, I decided to simply blunt their assaults by a solid firing line.

So I started setting up such positions, but the enemy decided this was the time to send successive waves.

I held them off with Elvyra and the Jonin squad (Taunt command), while Beep led another squad of engineers to construct the mounted crossbow line (Sneak command).



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/r0wQ3xe


It worked out. In the picture above you see pretty well exactly what I described above. Knife is missing from the action, as she's likely still recovering from the friendly bolt shot, she took earlier.

I believe this is the first picture which shows the approach to the outpost from the roadway ramp.

It was quite satisfying to be able to construct emplacements unmolested, with the enemy in close proximity. The command choices is what allowed it.

[DeathKnyte]

I manned the mounted crossbow line with my best gunners, at first. Best to try something new with the strongest potential to the desired outcome first, and then you can adjust downwards, to the point of balance you are comfortable with. Once I reached that, by rotating in lesser skilled members, I just let the waves come in.

I took a few pictures at this time, and I wanted to publish the best one, but I couldn't decide between two of them as the final selection. So I'll publish both, and you can decided which one - yourself.



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/Ad8e8FV

From enemy point of view.




Direct Link: https://imgur.com/4JcCznK

Side shot of the action.


To ensure the enemy approaches along the center of the road ramp, I placed the four central gunners on Taunt command, and the remaining gunners without any commands.

Seen from the game - especially during night engagements - it was quite dramatic. With the combat audio turned up, you couldn't but help feeling bad for the screamers.

[DeathKnyte]

Guess what? The Western Hive discovered the location of the Sanctum of Sanity, and sent caravans at regular intervals!

I was delighted, I enjoy these guys immensely. Especially here, as I was not undertaking the project of a fully self-supporting outpost. So both the farm trader, and the supplies trader were very welcome.

There's always amusing instances, when one such caravan is around, and I snapped a picture of one which gave me quit the chuckle (!).



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/gLFNmKi

[DeathKnyte]

This is the aftermath of an elongated engagement, in the following picture.

Looks like a group of screamers showed up just before, or at the same time, as a scrawny cannibal raid on the outpost.

For some reason which I now forget, I chose to engage in melee instead of raking them with crossbow fire, and the battle rolled down the slope of the road ramp.

I smiled, when I saw the ensuing dialogue appear, and decided to snap a screenshot



Direct Link: https://imgur.com/v5CtVAf


That is from the character Miu. I recruited her in the swamp somewhere, likely from the city of Shark.

Anyways, she does not enjoy fighting, but is quite the excellent farmer. Also likes to drink and eat gristle flaps.

What she really adds to the faction though, in a concrete way, is that she can warn of the proximity of blood spiders - even when I can't see them myself. So if you plan on spending time in the areas where they can potentially spawn, she would be a valuable addition to your team.

Note the shadows displayed on the terrain, both of the propeller and the stem structure, of the wind generators located higher up and to the right (off picture). Very nice.