Loading Screen Tips

As of version 1.5.0.12.

Main game

1. As brothers we fight, as brothers we die!
2. Shields can be destroyed using axes and some two-handed weapons.
3. Different types of shields are better suited against melee or ranged attacks.
4. Shields take minor damage each time they are used to deflect an attack.
5. Shrubbery can hide characters from being detected from afar.
6. A character with a height level advantage over their opponent is harder to hit.
7. Characters can see farther, the higher they are positioned.
8. Having men of different backgrounds in your company may enable you to perform different actions in events.
9. Surrounding an opponent from multiple sides makes it easier to score a hit.
10. Consider putting injured characters in reserve until their wounds have healed.
11. Consider building up a reserve roster and rotating your men, so you can more easily deal with losses down the road.
12. Ranged weapon accuracy drops with distance.
13. You don't have to be a hero, you're running a business.
14. Different backgrounds may unlock additional options at handling events and contracts.
15. Drag and drop your men in the inventory screen to where you want them to be in your formation.
16. A missed ranged attack can hit nearby characters, especially if they are in the direct line of fire.
17. Bows can not be fired and crossbows not be reloaded while engaged in melee.
18. Bows perform better against unarmored targets.
19. Daggers can be used to attack weak spots in armor and deal damage directly to hitpoints.
20. Ranged weapons work best when firing into groups of enemies - they are bound to hit someone.
21. Consider forming a shieldwall when surrounded.
22. Conserve your stamina when in prolonged engagements.
23. Success in Battle Brothers is also about picking the right fights.
24. Undead are unaffected by fatigue and morale.
25. Crossbows require less skill to fire accurately than bows, but are slower to use.
26. Each type of weapon has advantages and disadvantages.
27. Some difficult terrain, like swamp, gives combat penalties.
28. You can change camera height levels using the + and - keys.
29. Clubs and maces can stun or incapacitate targets.
30. Try to save some crowns for when things turn sour.
31. Longswords and Greatswords can hit multiple targets with one strike.
32. You can zoom in and out using the mouse wheel or Page Up and Page Down keys.
33. Spears are good defensive weapons due to their Spearwall ability.
34. Expect to lose some men.
35. Losing is fun.
36. Use terrain and chokepoints to your advantage.
37. The higher their level, the more your men will demand in wages.
38. Selling in rich and big cities will net you the most crowns for your goods.
39. Use throwing nets to restrict the movement of particularly dangerous enemies.
40. Use trading to supplement your income.
41. Learn the 'Rotation' or 'Footwork' perks for additional mobility in battle.
42. View range is decreased at night, both in combat and on the worldmap.
43. Skeletons are highly resistant to ranged attacks and fire.
44. Heavy armor offers great protection, but also slows down the wearer and makes him tire more quickly.
45. Heavy helmets can be hard to breathe in and limit the field of vision.
46. Warhammers and Military Picks can make short work of heavy armor.
47. The Billhook, Pike and Longaxe can attack over 2 tiles, unlike most other melee weapons.
48. Flails ignore the defense bonus of shields.
49. Different types of enemies require different tactics to beat reliably.
50. Every enemy in the game can be beat reliably with the right approach.
51. A human is no match for an adult orc physically.
52. Orcs rely on raw power and physical prowess.
53. A goblin is no match for an adult human physically, so they rely on wit and dirty tricks.
54. Orc Berserkers gain rage and get tougher to take down, the more blood they have drawn.
55. Geists are lost between the physical world and the world beyond, constantly shifting between the two.
56. Geists test the resolve of your men - the lower, the more likely they are to panic and flee.
57. Two-handed axes can hit both head and body with a single hit.
58. Two-handed axes can hit up to 6 targets with a single round swing.
59. Roads are the fastest way to travel over land, but not always the safest.
60. Forests can hide many dangers within.
61. Always keep a good stock of provisions - lest your men starve and desert you!
62. Wiedergangers are the dead walking again.
63. Difficult terrain, such as mountains and swamp, has your men use more supplies on the worldmap.
64. If you can not win, retreat to fight another day.
65. Retreat. Flee. Don't fight every battle to the death.
66. Use the spacebar key to pause on the worldmap.
67. Elevated terrain like hills and mountains allow you to see farther on the worldmap.
68. Not every contract is worth the risk.
69. Try to negotiate better payment for your contracts.
70. Try to negotiate payment modalities that guarantee you the most money for contracts.
71. Not every battle can be won.
72. A life can be worth little in this world.
73. Betraying your employer can have repercussions in the long run.
74. Some parts of the world are more dangerous than others.
75. Use ports to fast travel around the world.
76. Some people will use you and throw you away.
77. Throwing weapons can be deadly on short distances, but their accuracy drops sharply the farther away the target.
78. Highly talented characters can come from all backgrounds.
79. Try the Ironman mode to experience Battle Brothers the way it's meant to be played.
80. Ranged weapons are less accurate at night - those of your enemies included.
81. Make camp to have your men heal and repair their equipment faster.
82. Use ALT + Right Click to mark items for repair in your stash. Items equipped by your men are repaired automatically.
83. You can have your items repaired at the smith for a fee by using ALT + Right Click.
84. Breaking a contract will anger your employer - especially if you've received advance payment.
85. Fortifications will only offer you contracts from the noble house that owns them.
86. Nobles give contracts only to mercenary companies with professional renown.
87. If contract negotiations turn sour, it will damage your relations with your potential employer.
88. You can find contract offers in the top left of settlement screens.
89. You may find powerful named items far away from civilization by exploring or following tavern rumors.
90. Dying is part of a mercenary's job description.
91. Keep an eye on the mood of your men. If they are angry for too long, they may desert!
92. If you keep losing to an enemy, change your tactics!
93. The larger a party on the worldmap, the slower it moves. Yours included.
94. Use wardogs to hunt down elusive or fleeing enemies.
95. Use a trained falcon to discover hidden enemies on difficult terrain.
96. Cleavers can inflict bleeding wounds.
97. Fulfilling ambitions will raise everyone's mood and grant you renown, as well as some unique rewards.
98. Use CTRL + Left Click to attack allied parties on the worldmap. This only works if you are currently unemployed.
99. Your men will interact with each other differently depending on their backgrounds and traits.
100. Stunned characters get no attack of opportunity when someone moves inside their zone of control.
101. Try playing a campaign in veteran mode once you've gained some experience - it's the recommended difficulty.
102. The minimum hit chance for any attack is 5%, and the maximum hit chance for any attack is 95%.
103. Characters may sometimes be struck down during combat, but not outright killed, and will survive with a permanent injury.
104. Learn from your mistakes. Don't just repeat them and hope you'll get lucky this time.
105. The natural habitat of direwolves is the forest.
106. You can enable faster AI turns in the options menu.
107. Trees can be hidden in combat using the 'T' key.
108. Objects blocking tiles can be highlighted using the 'B' key.
109. Higher renown will unlock more difficult contracts and better pay.
110. If your plan can fail with bad luck, maybe it isn't good enough of a plan.
111. Do the job. Survive. Get paid.
112. If a character waits their turn, their position in the turn order of the next round is determined with a penalty of 25% to Initiative.
113. A 95% chance to hit is also a 5% chance to miss.
114. The 'Lone Wolf' perk is not affected by nearby dogs or allies that are not part of your company.
115. The 'Fast Adaptation' perk reduces variance of randomness.
116. Consider that enemy encampments on hills are harder to assault, especially if they are fortified.

Beasts & Exploration

1. The frozen wasteland of the north is home to a giant beast not seen anywhere else.
2. A Lindwurm is a wingless bipedal dragon resembling a large snake.
3. There are different regional variants of the Unhold.
4. Unholds can heal wounds quickly, even in combat.
5. Trees move slowly.
6. Alps feed on the fear and agony of people having nightmares.
7. Explore the world to find legendary locations with legendary treasure.
8. Two-handed maces excel in disabling single opponents.
9. Axes are particularly effective against trees.
10. A Schrat is a living tree, a being of bark and wood, with a mind truly alien.
11. Use armor attachments to further improve and specialize the equipment of your men.
12. A Hexe appears as a youthful lady with radiant beauty to those she enthralls.
13. Hexen are known to strike ill-omened deals that people come to regret.
14. A Hexe can curse one of your men to suffer the same wounds as she does.
15. Webknechts inflict additional damage to targets trapped in their webs.
16. Webknechts are more confident, the larger the group they are in.
17. The Webknecht is a large arachnid that lives in sizable colonies in the dark areas of forests throughout the world.
18. Collect trophies from slain beasts and have the taxidermist craft useful items from them.
19. Selling trophies from slain beasts can be lucrative. You can always get new ones.
20. Fencing swords are most powerful in the hands of characters with high initiative.
21. Use throwing spears to destroy the shields of your most dangerous opponents from afar.
22. Nachzehrers are found more often in the southern parts of the world.
23. Alps are almost exclusively encountered at night.
24. The further away from civilization, the more dangerous the beasts that roam the land.
25. Potions, despite their colorful descriptions, are essentially drugs, and characters can get addicted to them.
26. Overdosing on potions can lead to characters vomiting and getting sick.
27. With the 'Beast Slayers' origin you'll have an easier time tracking beasts and get more trophies from any of those you slay.

Warriors of the North

1. The north is inhabited by fierce barbarian tribes.
2. Barbarians often overwhelm their opponents at the start of battle, but quickly become fatigued.
3. Northern warhounds are sturdier than southern wardogs, but not as quick and agile.
4. The rhythmic tribal beats of drummers reduce the fatigue of all barbarians on the field by a small amount each round.
5. Beastmasters can not crack the whip to direct their beastly warmachines when adjacent to an enemy.
6. Barbarians look forward to meeting their ancestors in the afterlife.
7. Try different origins to tailor your campaign to your play style.
8. With the 'Lone Wolf' origin you'll have a player character in the world. If you die, the campaign ends.
9. With the 'Peasant Militia' origin you can take up to 16 men into battle at once.
10. With the 'Cultists' origin your god will demand sacrifices from you, but also bestow boons upon those loyal to him.
11. With the 'Band of Poachers' origin you'll move faster on the worldmap.
12. With the 'Trading Caravan' origin you'll get better prices for both buying and selling.
13. Slings inflict the 'Daze' status effect on a hit to the head.
14. With stones abundant everywhere, Slings will never run out of ammunition.
15. Battle Whips can temporarily disarm opponents, preventing them from using weapon skills.
16. Battle Whips can inflict bleeding wounds, but perform dismally against armor.
17. Scimitars and Shamshirs are more likely to inflict debilitating injuries when hitting a target.

Blazing Deserts

1. The southern city states have made unparalleled advancements in medicine, astrology and alchemy.
2. The southerners call themselves 'Gilded' after their god, in whose shine they bask day in and out.
3. The 'indebted' are a social caste of de-facto slaves in the city states, made up of criminals, prisoners of war and violators of religous dogma.
4. The southern city states are built on the ruins of the Ancient Empire.
5. Nomads are a southern people that are not subject to the rule of a city state.
6. Nomads are experts in desert warfare and using the environment to their advantage - including throwing it in your face.
7. An Ifrit is a demonic entity possessing rocks, stone and shifting sands.
8. A Qatal Dagger is best used in combination with other weapons that can stun or daze opponents.
9. The Handgonne takes a whole turn to reload - unless your character has the 'Crossbows & Firearms Mastery' perk.
10. The Handgonne is a ranged weapon that can hit up to 6 targets with a single attack, but has less range than either bows or crossbows.
11. The Fire Lance is reloaded after every battle just like throwing weapons are.
12. Arena matches offer a quick way to earn coin - but you can't retreat during matches or loot afterwards.
13. Arena tournaments are special events with different rules. Fight with five men over three consecutive rounds and win a famed item!
14. Every fifth arena match offers the chance to win a piece of gladiator equipment that can't be bought otherwise.
15. Fire Pots can be used not just to inflict damage on your opponents, but also to deny them access to tiles and delay them.
16. Smoke Pots can be used for a safe retreat even if your men are already locked in melee.
17. Mortars of the city states can only fire if an engineer is next to them to operate them.
18. With the 'Manhunters' origin you can make prisoners after every battle against humans and force them to fight for you.
19. With the 'Gladiators' origin you start with three powerful characters, but losing all three will end your campaign.
20. Hire non-combat followers for your retinue to customize your campaign to your playstyle.
21. Losing named shields to orcs? Hire a blacksmith for your retinue and repair any item, even if its durability reaches zero.
22. Training your new recruits takes too long? Hire a drill sergeant to have them gain experience faster.
23. Facing too few enemy champions? Hire a bounty hunter to find more and even earn a bounty for every one you kill.
24. Paying too much in wages? Hire a paymaster to reduce the wages you have to pay.
25. Wondering who went there? Hire a Lookout and get more information on any footprints on the world map.
26. Always out of ammo and tools? Hire a scavenger to reclaim ammo you spent and gather tools from armor you destroyed.
27. Inventory full? Buy carts and wagons for your company in the Retinue screen.
28. You unlock slots for your retinue of non-combat followers by gaining Renown.
29. Ferocious hyenas roam the southern deserts, with strong jaws that can crush even metal armor and inflict bleeding wounds.
30. Try out different retinue followers to find those that complement your playstyle and chosen company origin.

Of Flesh and Faith

1. With the 'Anatomists' origin, defeating new enemies grants potions that mutate your men and grant them special abilities.
2. With the 'Oathtakers' origin, instead of ambitions you'll pick oaths that grant special boons and burdens.