Wow. Bad Luck.

[theryman]

So it is early in the game, and I am playing as Spain. I decide I want to move a family member from Toledo to Zaragoza to help with the conquest of France, and to put up some watchtowers. Now, I had just adopted this guy the turn before, so he was pretty fresh, but I decided to move him alone, without an escort.

Now, after his first move turn, a rebel army spawns right next to him. At first, I think "Aw jeeze." But then I notice the rebel army is made only of one group of peasants! Hah! Easy kill. I decide to play it out for myself for giggles.

So I line them up about 100 yards away, and order a charge. The horn sounds and they lower their lances. They have impact, and it goes immediately to the 'general killed' cutscene. At first I'm thinking wow, I killed them really fast. But then I realize I didn't kill their commander, they killed my newly adopted family member! Peasants! Blah!

So, at the end of the battle, I lost one man to their thirty, but my one was worth much, much more.

They still route and I still win, but now I have an army ready to go into France but lacks a loyal general.

Have any of you ever had something this unlucky happen to you?

[roy34543]

Yep.
New world bodyguard (3 hitpoints) Goes in front of dying arrow warriors with all of his men still alive .
General dies first. I found that just sad.

[~Beren~]

They have impact, and it goes immediately to the 'general killed' cutscene. At first I'm thinking wow, I killed them really fast. But then I realize I didn't kill their commander, they killed my newly adopted family member! Peasants! Blah!

So, at the end of the battle, I lost one man to their thirty, but my one was worth much, much more.

Wow.
That's one unlucky man.

Are you playing Vanilla M2TW?

Have any of you ever had something this unlucky happen to you?

I had a cardinal who was just elected pope.
After the next turn, he dies of old age...

[hehehe]

I had a cardinal who was just elected pope.
After the next turn, he dies of old age...

One my cardinals got killed by an inquisitor once.

[miccofl]

One my cardinals got killed by an inquisitor once.

I had a cardinal that tried to denounce a high level witch (she had like 8 or 9 pips; I had never seen one that high before or since) and he did this kind of electric shock animation and vanished, I then got a dialog saying he had been burned up by some damnable fire the witch caused

[jimjimjim]

playing english once i decided early on to steam down to timbuktu to make some easy money.
made as big a stack as i could afford - sailed all the way round... disembarked ok. but as soon as i hit the desert....POOF! all gone in a sandstorm. My general, the whole lot..

[N3rull]

I was assaulting a Citadel. The enemy had crap and I had a good force, so I pushed them quickly from the outer walls and the fight was currently between 2nd and 3rd wall rings. I moved my general along the inner side of the second ring to flank the remaining enemies...
.. but..
the defenders had 1 (one) unit of catapults. That catapult unit managed to fire a single shot in the battle. A single shot that flew between trees and buildings and all other obstacles and killed 4 horsemen... my general among them.
It looked something like this, but the castle layout was different.

[malcolm mcdowell]

ive had the cardinal thing as well, only my major enemy at the time became pope after that. things sort of stopped for a while against them (although luckily he also died in about 2 turns)

[Valbruch]

I got my general smashed by rocks from catapults or thebushets on the first shot so many times that I lost count.

And just yesterday, the same thing with general against rebels happened to my. My army of 60 men (general and 1 Mailed Knights) had only one casualty from a fight with 2 peasants and 1peasant archers. You can guess who was the lucky one...

[Samir]

I started an egypt campaign

turn 3

+ Sultan dies from age
+ Heir 1 dies from arrow to the face during the siege of Jerusalem
+ Heir 2 dies from a storm in the NileDelta

Egypt has been destroyed!!!

WTF!

THATS bad luck!

[Joel92]

I started an egypt campaign

turn 3

+ Sultan dies from age
+ Heir 1 dies from arrow to the face during the siege of Jerusalem
+ Heir 2 dies from a storm in the NileDelta

Egypt has been destroyed!!!

WTF!

THATS bad luck!

in BI all my settlements revolted in turn 7 or so, so i lost the campaign

but i lost LOTS of generals in such situations, so i've learnt not to let your general get killed this way and keep him awar from melee and missile fire.

[Valbruch]

I started an egypt campaign

turn 3

+ Sultan dies from age
+ Heir 1 dies from arrow to the face during the siege of Jerusalem
+ Heir 2 dies from a storm in the NileDelta

Egypt has been destroyed!!!

WTF!

THATS bad luck!

lol, that beats everything in this thread so far

[theryman]

Is there any way to increase your general's chances of survival, other than keeping him out of the fray?

I know that there are some bonuses that make him able to take more hits before they die. What is the best way of going out and getting these? Obviously my general did not have them, since he died on the first hit from a peasant.

Bloody peasants.

[Magic Man]

If you want him to get more hitpoints, you have to risk him more.

The more he fights in Melee, the more likely he is to get the 'Scarred' traits.

With 'Heavily Scarred' (I think thats the one) giving him + 8 hitpoints.

Just remember to use the General in support, for instance i use him to charge in the centre, just after my infantry hit.
That way not all the enemies attention is directed at him, and the Bodyguard can chew through the enemies lines.

[snuggans]

If you want him to get more hitpoints, you have to risk him more.

The more he fights in Melee, the more likely he is to get the 'Scarred' traits.

With 'Heavily Scarred' (I think thats the one) giving him + 8 hitpoints.

Just remember to use the General in support, for instance i use him to charge in the centre, just after my infantry hit.
That way not all the enemies attention is directed at him, and the Bodyguard can chew through the enemies lines.

^ everything that s/he said.
+ there are some retinues that help, like ones that increase the 'valour of the generals bodyguards' etc..

I had a cardinal who was just elected pope.
After the next turn, he dies of old age...

thats what they want you to think..

[malcolm mcdowell]

thats what they want you to think..

he's clearly got bored of the whole pious lifestyle and has gone off to live in a brothel for the rest of his days, putting it about that he's 'dead from old age'

[pwijnands]

There's also the HaleAndHearty trait that gives (smaller) bonusses to hitpoints. I think the Islamic factions can get it from building the hospitals.

[Surgeon]

Once playing an unmodded MTW2 campaign, my small(ish) army attacked one of the AI's classic 10 catapults + 1 spear militia armies. Battle begins and I quickly charge with my cavalry and the general as the catapults fire at them. About 5 stones simultaneously crash unto the bodyguard, killing the general and more than half the entire unit. I think the AI cheated somehow

[~Beren~]

It would seem that Generals are catapult magnets...

[Spitfire_mks]

It would seem that Generals are catapult magnets...

It might not be that bad actually... today I finished my first campaign, and the final battle was quite a memorable one. My English troops, after a long siege attacked Paris, the last French citadel. I broke the doors with cannons, and then sent in the troops. The French were fighting like heros, and the king himself commanding some 6 units of angry french late-age über-cavalry of terror aimed at my incoming soldiers, took some maneuvers and hit hard my yeomen archers--but then, a lonely ribault from the back of the lines fires a last shot before the operators get completely anihilated (3 remaining) and yes, that proyectile goes past the fierce troops and sets the mighty french king himself in flames, the only man to die from the ribault's shot ...and he falls at the feet of my already terrified infantry... and suddenly, the whole french armeé loses morale, instantly. They rout and run away like dogs--in their own castle!!

Two ribault operators survived. If a mod allowed that, I would have awarded them medals Needless to say, It was for me instant victory, so I guess It works in both ways

Oh, by the way, this was my first post. I hope to make some good friends here.