Environment
Time
BattleMaster works in both real-time and through the use of turns. Minor actions are performed in real-time (immediately) and major actions happen at the end of a turn. In order to perform actions you must use the smallest unit of time in the game: hours. Hours can be thought of as the unit of "energy" for your character. All characters but priests and adventurers will gain hours at the beginning of each turn. There are two turns in a single day with each turn lasting a total of 12 real-time hours. A day in BattleMaster is equal to a day in reality. Aside from the use of hours and days, time is not well established in BattleMaster. However, that has not stopped some from working out a calendar for the game. The phenomenon of seasons do exist in BattleMaster but only has an effect on certain islands. The four seasons (summer, autumn, winter, and spring) in BattleMaster normally last 21 days.
Turns
Major actions, such as travel or combat, happen only at the end of a turn. There are two turns in a single day with each turn lasting a total of 12 real-time hours. Turn changes happen based off of the server time which is UTC+1:00. The first turn of every day, occurring at 6:00 (6 A.M.), is called sunrise. Sometimes this turn is referred to as a "full turn" because it includes all turn events. The second turn of every day, occurring at 18:00 (6 P.M.), is called sunset. Sometimes this turn is referred to as a "half turn" because less events are resolved at sunset (for example, tax collections or elections only ever happen at sunrise.)
The current server time is displayed on the top of the in-game information page.
Hours
Most actions require time, hours, to complete. At the beginning of each turn your character will gain 8 hours. You can never have more than 12 hours unless you are a priest or an adventurer. Priests and adventurers can have up to 16 hours. Unlike most types of characters, priests and adventurers gain an hour every real-time hour.
Seasons
BattleMaster has the same seasons that exist in real life: summer, autumn, winter, and spring. The length of each season in game however is much shorter, lasting just 21 days. The main effect of seasons is on food production, the specifics are outlined on the table below. Aside from food harvest, the seasons also affect food rot, travel, and the rate which monsters and undead spawn. The specifics of these effects are not currently known. It is, however, known that during winter it takes longer to travel. At the moment, only Dwilight and the East Continent are affected by the seasons. In the past, the Far East island was also affected.
| Season | Food Production | Other Effects |
|---|---|---|
| Summer | 100% | Unknown |
| Autumn | 200% | Unknown |
| Winter | 25% | Reduced travel speed |
| Spring | 75% | Unknown |
Island
In BattleMaster there are numerous islands that can be thought of as different play areas. Characters on one island can not interact with characters on a different island. However, characters can move from one island to a different island through emigration or deportation. Each island has it's own unique landscape, cultures, and style of play. There are three main types of islands: Standard, which has no special features; Themed, which have unique themes ranging from constant war to periodic invasions by different creatures of fantasy; and Sunk, these are islands that once existed but are no longer available. There are also two testing islands, Beluaterra and Dwilight, that will get first access to new features but are liable to suffer various bugs at times.
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| East Continent | Standard | Sometimes referred to as East Island, is notoriously known for its persistent, ferocious, merciless warfare between the many realms of long standing foes and allies. Lengthy and slim, it is framed by large realms to the north and west, while some smaller realms can be found in the central mountains or other niches all over the continent. |
| Beluaterra | Themed | An island where civilization has only a tenuous foothold. Monsters, the undead, and daimons threaten to push the human settlers into the sea. Massive invasions tend to happen at infrequent intervals, but so far the human realms have successfully defended themselves from the invading hordes. This time, they may not be so lucky... |
| Colonies | Themed | A slower paced island that completes one turn every 24 hours, as opposed to one turn every 12 hours. This allows for a different style of play as it moves at half-paced game time, but still manages to be full-paced interaction. Along with only having a single turn per day, adventurers and priests only gain an hour every 2 hours instead of every hour. If you're looking for a truly "lightweight" version of the BattleMaster game and can only commit to logging into BattleMaster once a day, the Colonies might be the place for you. |
| Dwilight | Themed | Based around a Serious Medieval Atmosphere which means that characters are expected to have more medieval names and behave like medieval nobles. Acting like a fool, behaving ignobly, or otherwise not conforming to a standard European Medieval atmosphere will see you banned from your realm. Dwilight is also considered to the be fringe of civilization, so much of the continent is still held by monsters and other fell beasts. There are a collection of realms that have eked out an existence on the fringe of Dwilight, but the majority of the continent is a wilderness. Dwilight is currently the only island that experiences seasons. |
| South Island | Themed | Also called the War Island, consists of three realms and three realms only: Ikalak, Taselak and Sandalak. There can be no communication between realms and the last one to survive is proclaimed as victor of the War Island. All nobles of the winning realm will be rewarded and statues will be built across all continents in honour of the leaders of the winning realm. Once there is a winner, the Island will be reset and a new round will be played. |
| Atamara | Sunk | Was a standard island with a long and rich history. |
| Far East | Sunk | Was created with a focus on roleplaying. |
| South-East | Sunk | Was once a war island. |
| South-West | Sunk | Was once a war island. |
Region
Main article: Region.
A region is the smallest division of land on any continent. The vast majority of regions are controlled by realms, but they may also be rogue; that is, under control of no realm and in a state of anarchy. Each region has a type that describes it's most prominent feature, (e.g. Woodlands, Mountains, or a City.) Regions also have a number of stats that represent the number of peasants and their feelings, the food and gold the region can produce, and the region's type of economy. Buildings can be constructed in regions to allow characters access to soldiers, paraphernalia, an academy to train your skills, harbour to aid sea travel, a smithy to repair equipment, a marketplace, and a place where tournaments can be held.
Region Types
Further information: Region Types.
Region Types are a description of the areas most prominent feature. The region type affects travel times, food and gold production, and the types of buildings that can be built in the region.
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Badlands | This is a general type for inhospitable and hostile regions, such as the centre of deserts or icy wastes. Badlands are usually almost uninhabited, but some of them offer valuable resources such as gold or furs, while others are locations of strategic importance. |
| City | The region has a major city which dominates it. Cities can be heavily fortified and usually offer the most advanced recruitment options due to the availability of craftsmen. |
| Mountains | Extensive mountain ranges, usually with a low population but critical resources such as ore or precious stones. Movement through the mountains is often very slow and it is sometimes faster to travel around, even if it is the longer way. |
| Stronghold | Some regions are dominated by extensive fortified strongholds. These offer the highest defensive options, but are otherwise usually equal to rural or even badland regions, depending on where they have been built. |
| Townsland | More densely populated areas, especially close to rivers, are classified as townsland. Aside from numerous villages, there are a number of smaller and larger towns. These towns can be fortified, making the townsland easier to defend. |
| Rural | The most common region type is rural regions. Fields and villages lie within forests and plains, but there are no large settlements. Rural regions usually supply the bulk of food and other resources to a realm. |
| Woodland | Dense forests that usually combine forestry, hunting and farming. While they yield less food than a rural region, they have a stronger economy and produce more gold. |
Region Stats
Further information: Region Stats.
Regions have various stats that represent a certain aspect of the region.
| Stat | Description |
|---|---|
| Food | Amount of food the region could produce in a week if it was at 100% production. |
| Gold | Amount of gold the region could produce in a day if it was at 100% production. |
| Economy | The main feature of the region's economy (e.g. fishing, farming, manufacturing.) It should be noted, this currently has no effect. |
| Population | The number of peasants in the region and the maximum number of peasants that could habit the region. |
| Production | The productivity of the peasants. |
| Morale | How happy the peasants are. |
| Loyalty | How loyal the peasants are to the realm. |
| Sympathy | How much the peasants like a realm. |
| Control | The peasants desire for independence. |
| Weather Area | The general area of the island. Weather is tied to these areas. |
Buildings
Further information: Buildings.
Buildings, which are built by a region's Lord, cost gold to construct and maintain. Every building provides a certain type of service. Some buildings can only be built in certain types of regions and each region has a limited number of buildings that can be built.
| Building Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Academy | A place to train your character's skills. |
| Banner Manufacturer | Produces banners that help improve morale of soldiers during battle. |
| Cartbuilder | Produces carts that helps transport wounded soldiers or food. |
| Demolition Workshop | Produces demolition tools which can be used to damage buildings. |
| Granary | A place for a region to store food. |
| Harbor | Decreases the time and cost it takes to embarking or disembark. |
| Houses of Healing | Provides healers who can treat wounded soldiers. |
| Marketplace | A place for traders to trade. |
| Recruitment Center | Allows the recruitment of soldiers. |
| Scouts Guild | Provides scouts who can be used to gather information on a region. |
| Shipyard | Builds and repairs warships that can be used to patrol sea zones. |
| Tournament Ground | Allows tournaments to be held in the region. |
| Weapon/Armour Smith | A place to repair your unit's equipment. |
| Workshop | Produces Siege Engines that help attackers overcome a regions fortification. |
Weather
Every island has different areas designated as a weather area. A single weather area spans multiple regions and has a uniform weather status. The weather status affects the food production in the area. How much the weather affects food production is not known and is kept hidden by the developers.
There are four different weather statuses:
- Drought, starvation feared
- Bad, reduced harvest expected
- Average
- Good, rich harvest ahead
Realm
Main article: Realm.
Although a realm is generally considered a nation ruled by a King or Queen, in BattleMaster a realm is considered any nation regardless of the government system. There are five systems of government: Monarchy, Tyranny, Republic, Democracy, and Theocracy. Every realm is unique and has its own cultural customs, religion, and legal structure. While realms can share similarities with another, there are always differences. Because of this, it is advised to try a different realm if you do not like the realm you are in. The basic hierarchy of a realm from the bottom to top goes as follows: Peasants → Knight/Noble → Region Lord → Duke/Duchess → Ruler (e.g. the King or Queen.) Each realm has a four member council made up of the ruler and a General, Judge, and Banker. The council governs the realm as a whole by taking control of a certain area of governance. Diplomatic matters are handled by the Ruler, military matters are handled by the General, legal matters by the Judge, and the economic matters by the Banker.