CONTENTS

Introduction 3
Visual Development 4
Character Art Style 5
Bust Setup 6
Armor Painting Process 7
World Map Look 8
World Map Setup 9
World Map Assets 10
Combat Map Setup 14
Combat Map Assets 15
Village Screen Setup 21
Village Screen Assets 22
The Orcs 26
The Goblins 34
The Beasts 40
The Ancient Dead 42
Player Banners 48
Noble House Banners 49
Brigand Banners 50
Human Armor 51
Wiederganger Armor 53
Human Helmets 54
Human Weapons 56

2
 INTRODUCTION
This Lore & Art book comes at the end of the development cycle for Battle
Brothers, as the finished game has been released a short while ago. The game
has been a long time in the making, and it's been both a wonderful and at
times taxing experience for us.

This book documents many of the artistic choices and iterations we made
during the development, and our reasoning behind it. As such, it is as much a
documentary on the visual aspects of the game as it is an art book to flip
through.

At the same time, you'll also find additional lore on the game's factions, written
by the game’s writer, Casey Hollingshead. As you’ll see, the game’s visuals and
lore are often intertwined.

This book is dedicated to our brothers-in-arms who supported the development

of Battle Brothers above and beyond by getting the Supporter Edition. The
game wouldn’t be the same without you - thank you from all of us!

3
 VISUAL DEVELOPMENT
Battle Brothers has come a long way since its conception and has seen some significant changes in development. Game logo first iteration Game logo final version
It started as a hobby into which we invested many an after work-evening before it turned into our full time jobs. The
original art assets had to be created in short sessions late at night. As we gained the means to invest more time into
the game, we eventually redid most of the assets in order to bring them up to a higher standard of quality.

To control our cost effectiveness, we dynamically scaled our workload to better match our resources. Most systems
began with a very basic, functional version which was then improved on once everything else was in place. Some
concepts completely changed during the course of the development. For example, helmets were not planned to
be shown at all on the character busts, and instead of dead bodies only a generic pile of bones was shown.

As the game design evolved, so did the art style. It went from a light-hearted comic approach to a somewhat more
serious and gritty, albeit still exaggerated one. This development is best reflected in these vastly different iterations.

First iteration Second iteration Final version

Early screen concept

4
 CHARACTER ART STYLE
Character busts first iteration
As we prototyped the game, we started out with full body figures painted and Not having to deal with animations relieved a great strain on our
animated in Flash. Below you can see an early mockup having full body time and resources, but some things still posed problems with full
characters. Note that at this point we still had square fields instead of hexes. body representations.

Our design goal was showing all equipment on the character,

including weapons, but a character would need a different pose to
wield a two-handed weapon as compared to a one-handed one.
This issue is compounded further as we include weapons like bows,
crossbows, polearms and more exotic weaponry. Since we also
wanted to show different armor types on the characters, each pose
would then have needed to be drawn for every armor type. So, as it
turned out, just cutting animations wasn’t enough.

To take it one step further, we imagined the look and feel of a

tabletop game or board game where abstracted figurines exist
within a fairly lifelike environment of miniature terrain. We decided
to experiment with a similar look using busts placed on sockets,
where weapons would simply show as individual icons added to the
figure and without any hands showing. Character busts final version

This approach solved a lot of our problems. We could still go with a

painted, detailed look and on top of that include all the
customization we wanted. By placing one layer on top of the other,
much of the workload was streamlined almost instantly. As we’re
only showing the top half of a character and without any
animations, we wanted to show as many details as we could.
Characters received individual heads, haircuts and beards. We
Given that we were a team of just three people (and only one artist) working on
added visible injuries and damage layers for every type of armor
the game in our spare time, we soon discovered that this approach wouldn’t
and helmet that can be worn.
have worked out. Not only would we have needed each character drawn in
several directions, it was also important to us that the player would see all
Ultimately, our resource constraint led to a unique visual style that is
equipped gear on the characters, which would have multiplied the work
very distinct from other fantasy TBS games and features an unrivaled
further.
level of detail.
We were looking at an extremely high workload and limited resources with
which to tackle it. Something had to give – we had to set priorities and respect Character Design
our resources if we ever wanted the project to see the light of day. All characters in Battle Brothers feature large heads and prominent facial features, resulting in an exaggerated,
almost caricature style. The smaller a figure gets, the more iconic and readable it has to be. We support seamless
The first step was to cut character animations like walking and turning. zooming in and out on the tactical map, so faces have to be readable wherever the camera is. Not using real
Animations are a great way of having a scene feel alive, but with 2D visuals proportions for weapon icons followed similar reasoning. Real weapons tend to be thin and long, which makes them
they can require an immense amount of work. We also had to take into hard to read from afar. For example, a real sword’s hilt and handle are miniscule compared to the overall length of
account that animations tend to get repetitive quickly and players would often the sword.
speed them up or switch them off completely when playing for many hours. 5
 BUST SETUP
All character busts in Battle Brothers are composed by layering a multitude of graphic assets one
over the other. This system brings a lot of strengths in exchange for only a few weaknesses.
Combining layers multiplies the visual character variation achievable with a low amount of assets.
This is important not only to create a great variety of individual characters, but it also sets the
base for our equipment system. Did you know that there’s 342,720 different body looks in the
game, even before equipment?

Changing equipment simply swaps individual layers. If items get damaged or characters injured,
additional layers are added or removed. This system allows for dynamic changes of a character's
look and equipment to match their actual condition. As a side effect, the quick swapping of
layers also gives more visual impact to combat. As all human characters use the same
equipment layers, the various factions can share graphic assets with simple alterations when
needed. Diversity is almost exponentially created at the drop of a footman’s helmet!

One drawback of this system is that all layers have to match up perfectly, which limits the
possibilities of anatomical variation like large facial features, figure sizes, and overall shape.
Another consequence is that helmets and haircuts can not be combined, because some
haircuts would not be covered by the overlying helmet in their entirety.

6
Armor Painting Process

7
 WORLD MAP LOOK
1. Paper Map Concept
The hand drawn paper look was one of the first attempts at designing
the world map. While providing an intriguing look, it proved to be
difficult to break down into tiles. The biggest issue here was the
repetitiveness of the parchment texture. Furthermore, the low detail
paper look could become dull and boring after extensive hours of
play.

2. Basic Hex Map Concept

An early hex based version featuring two abandoned systems: a
“terror level” for settlements and different interaction icons for
locations. Just like the paper map, these hex tiles are not
perspectively deformed, so there is a visual discrepancy between the
map and the location graphics.

3. Detailed Square Map Concept

This map shows two big advancements; a detailed look for more
visual engagement and a sense of perspective. On the downside the
square tiles tend to have an artificial, constructed look.

4. Detailed Hex Map Prototype

The first version with all the basics in the right place. Neutral parties
were represented by chessboard figurines and there was only one
type of settlement graphic. The scattered icons were supposed to
represent some sort of “enemy activity”. The overall look is still very
repetitive and artificial.

5. Final Prototype
We started to use tiles with transitions to blend the borders of different
environments, which is a great way to achieve a more organic look.
In spite of these improvements the map has an overall lack of
geographical and visual diversity and the locations are not properly
embedded into the environment.

6. Final Version
The extensive use of tile transitions and additional details create a
very organic look, the underlying hex tiles are hardly recognizable.
The environment shows a lot of detail and is generally pleasant to look
at, even for longer periods of time. On top of that the map finally
features big bodies of water and a coast line as well as various
different climate zones and environments. 8
 2

2
1

WORLD MAP SETUP

1. Base Tiles
The first layer is made up of hex tiles arranged in a scale
pattern. While the tiles allow for a detailed, procedural map
generation, their irregular shapes, different for each terrain
type, help blend the different environments.
3
2. Details
The second layer is the so called ‘detail layer’. It contains
mountains, hills, forests and other geographical features.
Each base tile set has its own associated set of details. A tile
of green plains would have flowers and lakes, for example.

3. Objects
The third layer contains objects that the player can interact
with, like locations and moving parties. Locations may come
in different states to show whether they are intact or
destroyed, and use an additional layer for lighting effects at
night, which is gradually faded in at dusk.
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WORLD MAP ASSETS

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WORLD MAP ASSETS

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WORLD MAP ASSETS

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WORLD MAP ASSETS

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 COMBAT MAP SETUP
1. Base Tiles
The base layer for the combat maps is made up of individual
ground tiles, creating the visual backdrop for the following
assets. Transitions between different tile types are eased by
transition sprites for all six directions. These tiles also define the
type of environment the combat takes place in, which often
translated to gameplay effects such as restricted movement
in swamps.

2. Height Levels
Height levels play an important role as tactical vantage
points. The hexagonal look is not very organic, but as these
levels have major gameplay impact it's important that the
player has a clear visual read on them.

3. Combat Map Assets

The Assets create the final look of the environment. Some of
them serve purely visual purposes, others also have gameplay
effects like blocking line of sight and movement.

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COMBAT MAP ASSETS

15
COMBAT MAP ASSETS

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COMBAT MAP ASSETS

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COMBAT MAP ASSETS

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COMBAT MAP ASSETS

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COMBAT MAP ASSETS

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 VILLAGE SCREEN SETUP
1. A flat background canvas showing the environment, serving as a backdrop for the actual village.
2. Town hall or stronghold, featuring different looks depending on the size and purpose of the settlement.
3. Civilian houses, also depending on the size of the settlement.
4. A ramp leading up to the town hall, allowing to show all interactive buildings at the same time.
5. Interactive buildings.
6. Foreground decoration.
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VILLAGE SCREEN ASSETS

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VILLAGE SCREEN ASSETS

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VILLAGE SCREEN ASSETS

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VILLAGE SCREEN ASSETS

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 THE ORCS
Introduction
As long as humans remember there have been tensions with the wild Orc tribes that roam the surrounding lands.
Orcs live as nomads, constantly on the move to support themselves by hunting, gathering and raiding anyone
weaker than their tribe. They do not possess knowledge of agriculture or mining, relying instead on taking what
they need from others. Indeed, Orcs are quick to take up weapons, and in Orc culture, he who spends time
gathering, crafting or building when it is easier and faster to just take these things away from others is considered
simple-minded. Life for an Orc, then, is to a large part establishing dominance over others and taking things for
him or herself.

Although there are many distinct Orc tribes out there, they have a lot in common. They usually are ruled by the
most powerful Orc in the tribe, a Warlord, that ascends to leadership by brute force and has to defend his claim
also by leading the tribe to greater spoils. Therefore, different Orc tribes are constantly feuding each other and
any alliances are usually short-lived.
As human settlements began to spread out, confrontations
with the Orcs started to escalate quickly from smaller
skirmishes into a full-out Orc invasion and subsequent war. The
war ended with a costly human victory which had the Orcs
withdraw from the settled lands and back into the wild. There,
it didn’t take long for the Orc tribes to begin feuding each
other again and lose sight of the human lands.

This is where they stayed until now, except

for occasional raids on outlying farms and
villages.

Yet, many a man and woman live in fear of

the day that the Orc tribes unite again and
start an invasion, leaving nothing but
burning rubble in its wake.

26
Orc Physique
In Battle Brothers, Orcs are physically stronger than humans. An adult orc towers a human and has the
strength to use weaponry and wear armor with great effect that would quickly tire out any human. With their
strength, they also gain a percentage damage bonus to every attack – less for young Orcs, and more so for
adult ones. While Orcs are subject to fatigue and morale, just like your Battle Brothers are, they have plenty of
both, and it takes a while for an orc to run out of steam or realize that a battle has turned against him.

For many Orcs, their physicality manifests itself in brutal Charges. With this skill, Orcs can crash into a Battle
Brother over a short distance, hurling themselves against their target and stunning it for one turn. A Spearwall
can repel charging Orcs and a Shieldwall can offer some protection against being stunned from the impact –
but shields don’t have a high life expectancy against Orcs, as they utilize massive hatchets to hack shields to
pieces.

Orcs focus entirely on the offense, where they excel. They use their skills to crush the player’s battle line with
raw force and have it quickly dissolve into a chaotic frenzy where they generally have the upper hand. For
this reason, meeting an Orc warband head-on in open battle is usually a bad idea and will leave you at a
disadvantage. On the other hand, Orcs neglect defense. While some of them will carry shields, they seldom
make active use of them, preferring instead to attack. Due to their reckless fighting style and physically being
big targets, they’re also easier to hit than other opponents. In prolonged engagements, or in up-hill battles,
where defense matters more than offense, Orcs may suddenly see themselves at a disadvantage.

Orc Weaponry
Orcs have their own distinct weapons and armor, each matching their physique. While they do know how to
craft metal, they are not particularly good at honing and refining their works. This is why Orc weapons are
usually very heavy and lack balance – although the player can loot and use these weapons, they’re clearly
not made for use by humans and are unwieldy save for the strongest of Battle Brothers. Orcish armor,
however, can not be used by the player. Simply speaking, it just wouldn’t fit. Some mercenaries will playfully
wear orc armor to make fun of their defeated foes, donning the enormous helms as though they’d placed
buckets on their heads.

27
 Young Orcs
Young Orcs make up the backbone of Orc society, as Orcs usually don’t have a high life
expectancy but are quite reproductive. Their youthfulness is easily spotted by their bright
green skin. These orcs are ferocious fighters that make up for their lack of experience and
skill with pure strength and recklessness.

Because orcs tend to gear themselves by and with the loot they’ve found and fought over,
Young Orcs are not especially well armed foes. They tend to appear equipped with the
best that they’ve acquired in their still young lives: tree branches, handaxes, light shields,
and tribal armor made of animal parts or rusted metals they may have dug up. So eager to
prove themselves, especially young orcs will even go to war with no protection at all.

“Not going to lie, they reminded me of my younger self. Stupid, brash, trying to prove
everything to a world that had nothing to give. They were considerably unluckier than I,
though. What a shame.” – Mercenary after a victorious battle with young orcs.

Orc Berserkers
“The basaldi and yeshkun mushrooms offer disturbing results when digested: pupils widen
until the whole eye is black and the eater is quickly overcome with violent urges. Some
patients experienced uncomfortable sweating, leading them to disrobe and run about in
the nude. It is believed that the more wild of the orcs, if such a distinction could be made,
are frequent consumers of these mushrooms.” – Mushrooms and Man, What to Eat, What to
Avoid, and What to (Discretely) Enjoy

Berserkers put themselves in a wild rage by using mushrooms or hypnosis. And some are
simply just crazy. Physically speaking, the berserker is like any other orc: large, strong, and
fast, capable of closing distance by charging and swinging at an unexpecting foe. But
these creatures are on the fringes of an already temperamental orc society. For this reason,
berserkers are often found wandering the land looking for beasts to slay. They grind the
bones of defeated foes and use the bonemeal to paint themselves with warring rites.

Armored in sheer insanity, berserkers make up for their nonexistent defense by wielding
enormous chains or axes. With these weapons they can easily smash even the sturdiest of
knights in a single blow. Feeding off the rage of a killing blow, berserkers will grow stronger
and more dangerous, increasing their damage and gaining adrenaline to strike again. An
unchecked berserker can easily roll up a backline, killing many men right in a row!

Lacking any regard for self-preservation, berserkers often attack solo. This may leave
berserkers to fend for themselves at the flanks of a battle, just as they appear to hold a
special position in Orc society outside of battle. This solitary nature and lack of armor makes
them vulnerable and easy to deal with - so long as they’re kept at a distance. 28
Orc Warriors
If a Young Orc is strong and nasty enough to survive into adult age, he may eventually become an Orc
Warrior. As evident from their darker skin color and collection of scars, these seasoned fighters combine
the already dangerous physique of an orc with the combat skills of an experienced warrior.

Years of gathering spoils from battle have allowed them to loot all kinds of armor, break it apart, and
assemble it into one huge abomination that actually fits their massive bodies. This armor is made up of
various pieces of human equipment, like a helmet’s facemask, a piece of chainmail, or a split kettle hat.
It’s as much protection in battle as it is a collection of trophies from their past victories. For the finishing
touch, ears, fingers and sometimes whole heads are worn. Not wanting to be another upgrade to this
attire, most men will smartly run from an Orc Warrior.

A creature strong enough to don all this heavy armor is, unsurprisingly, strong enough to muscle its way
into enemy ranks. Orc Warriors love the fight, and they don’t mind being surrounded to get a taste. They
will smash their way through a shieldwall, knocking footmen back into archers like a fisherman might
crack open a clam to get to the meat.

“What the hell, man.” - Routed soldier after a fight with Orc Warriors.

Orc Warlord
“... brute strength can only win so many battles and when it fades there is nothing but a
short spurt of chaos before another warlord comes and takes over. Thank the old gods
that the orcs know not of diplomacy. It would require an abnormally powerful orc to
unite all of the greenskins so I do not believe we, and we as in all us humans, are in any
existential danger. Also, tell Goethe that my potatoes and rhubarb have not arrived and
it has been three weeks now.” – Scholar’s message to a nobleman’s inquiry on the role of
‘leadership’ in an orc tribe.

When every orc speaks the language of violence, the biggest, meanest one of the
bunch is a shoe-in to lead the group. So it goes: orcs are big, orc warlords are the
biggest. In the greenskins’ dominance hierarchy, the warlord is the patriarch. Their growls
and shouts break enemy morale while raising the spirits of their own fighters.

A bestial warlord tends to fashion armor out of its defeated foes, plating its already
leathered hide with smashed helms, pierced chest pieces, and broken shields. Some
even flaunt arrows and bolts sticking out of their sides, as though the lingering shots are a
better display of toughness than mere scars. The warlord is one of the mightiest foes to
defeat in battle.
29
 ORC VISUAL DEVELOPMENT
First Iteration Visual Rework
These very first busts show four types of orcs. A wild orc, a skirmisher, a fighter and a leader. The Since the second iteration Orc visuals were lacking in quality, they were completely redone from
look is rather cartoony and inspired by early fantasy board games like Hero Quest. At the time, this the ground up. The comparison shows how the final assets are much more detailed. In the world of
was fitting the overall tone of the game. The main issue was that these busts did not have Battle Brothers, the skin of Orcs gets darker the older they become, which is why Young Orcs have
individual layers for equipment and armor. This proved to be extremely limiting and necessitated the fairest skin. However, in order to give all the Orcs a more coherent look, we adjusted their skin
reworks further down the road. colors to be a bit closer together.

We also darkened the color palette slightly and tilted it more into an olive hue to better support
their menacing look, especially with the Young Orcs who previously could turn out quite bright. The
faces shown here are just some of several different ones made available for every type of unit. On
top of that we added several armor variations, as well as helmets and warpaint, to create a large
variety of looks for identical units. The design of weapons was similarly redone to create a coherent
look across the whole Orc faction.

Second Iteration
With the second iteration we set up the new system of combining individual layers to create the
character busts. Even though the base was in place, the corresponding assets had to be painted
under a lot of pressure and time constraints, which resulted in a very poor overall quality. This made
for an initially inconsistent look between these different Orc types.

30
 First iteration

THE ORC BANNERS

The first iteration of Orc banners were simple placeholders to get the basic principles in
place. White, crude painting on a ragged flag looks like something the heavy handed orcs
would be able to create by themselves. The depicted symbols represent important aspects
of orc culture like weapons, skulls, flames and other aggressive or intimidating themes.
Obviously, the low quality, lack of diversity and detail had to be improved on.

The second iteration of the banners are completely new graphics, but the basic principles
laid in the first iteration still apply. The color range has been shifted more towards a simple
range of brown, black and grey tones, giving the banners a dirty leather look as opposed
to a cloth flag. The frame for the banners now reflects the depicted symbol to create a
stronger identity and more unique look. The paintings look more detailed and have less of a
cartoony look. Final version 31
ORC ASSETS

32
ORC ASSETS

33
 THE GOBLINS
Introduction
Goblins reside in small states far beyond the eyes and ears of human civilization. The stunty greenskins tend to congregate within
a single, but heavily populated city. Although distant relatives to the Orcs, they don’t have much in common beyond the skin
color. The difference in size between the two species of greenskins has many wondering just what sort of creature they might
have shared a common ancestry with.

A complex caste system helps govern Goblin city states. The very architecture and geography of the cities themselves provide
the pathways to power: powerful political castes centralize the city, living and operating out of large towers right in the middle
of the city. Enervating from this opulent core, the castes sprawl outward, gradually losing power and status, and with it fanciful
architectures and lifestyles, until you get to the lower caste, a group which lives out of huts and tents that dwell beneath the
shadows of more towering, and tower-living, entities. From profligate peaks to destitute dales, the goblin city is a proverbial
mountain of acutely obvious social statuses.

Naturally, these statuses affect how the Goblins operate. Because Goblins are so
numerous, the political caste is not governed by a single, powerful goblin, but instead by
a council of the brightest or most shrewd. This council debates, decides, and delineates
tasks as it sees fit – usually whatever helps further their own pompous existence. When an
order of attack is given, for example, it is delegated to a Goblin Overseer who takes the
command and visits the lower castes. He conscripts as many from these lower castes as
he sees fit and then leads the troop out to do the bidding of the council.

Thankfully, much of the plotting and deceiving that goes on is largely between the
greenskins themselves. A Goblin Overseer is just as likely to follow an order as he is to turn
his newly-recruited army around and use it to kill off his rivals. For this reason, large scale From a game design perspective, we wanted to introduce a
military plans are almost always voted down until virtually every military endeavor is faction that felt very different from our existing factions. Instead of
slowly whittled into mere raids and patrols. Despite having the overwhelming numbers to directly engaging the player in line battles, Goblins have a heavy
threaten much of the land, these constant squabbles and backstabbing keeps the focus on ranged combat and lowering the effectiveness of Battle
greenskins in check. Brothers by applying various status effects. With their ranged
weapons, they often prefer a defensive tactic and let the player
“Don’t underestimate the Goblin. It lives its whole life looking up and it’s used come to them to press the attack, challenging the very stationary
to fighting from that position, too, with all the cheating and bullshit that approach that dominated many a player’s playstyle at the time.
comes with such a permanent position of disadvantage.” – Commander’s
note dispersed to his army after a third and surprisingly deadly run-in with Ultimately, we wanted there to be no one superior tactic that was
goblin raiders. best against all enemies, but instead force the player to always
adjust their tactics based on the enemy they’re facing. This makes
“After much study, it is the belief of the school that Orcs and Goblins do not for a much more interesting and diverse combat experience in
share a language or any other sense of unity. They will use one another for the long run, and Goblins were a great step in this direction.
their own gain and, failing that, will war one another just as well. We Despite early difficulties, players eventually found consistent ways
shouldn’t have much to worry about in regards to some supposed ‘greenskin to beat Goblins which helped demonstrate that we had a strong
invasion.’” - Ethics in Greenskin Study, as written and argued by the ‘Young and flexible combat system working for us.
Scholars’ organization. 34
Goblin Physique
In Battle Brothers, Goblins are physically weaker than humans and about the size of a large child. Due to their small
stature, they’re unable to wear heavy armor or wield heavy weaponry, and they can’t take a lot of physical
punishment before going down. As the bulk of their forces are conscripted from a lower and impoverished caste,
most goblin fighters have poor stamina and will rarely stick around if a battle starts going south.

On the other hand, Goblins are dexterous little creatures. They use their small weapons with astounding accuracy,
precisely aiming for weak spots in their opponent’s armor. Because of their size and general skittishness, the little
greenskins are inherently harder to hit. Goblins are also quite cunning and intelligent. They rely on their numbers and
wits to make up for physical deficiencies. No matter the size of the fight, ambushes and dirty tricks are part and
parcel to any goblin fighting troop. The core of their tactics revolve around keeping opponents at range, holding
stronger foes in place while the more durable and deadly Wolfriders flank around the sides.

Goblin Weapons & Armor

Being quite crafty and intelligent creatures, it’s no surprise that Goblins have developed a whole
arsenal of deadly tools. While neither their armor or weapons are particularly heavy, they’re well
made, balanced, and suited to specifically to fighting taller and stronger opponents. Their
equipment emphasizes their preference for both offensive mobility and defensive ranged combat
to wear enemies down. For protection, they wear leather, mail, and scale armor. Unlike orcish
monstrosities, goblin weapons are easily handled by humans, though they are not the most
damaging choice of gear. Unless you’ve an army of children, wearing goblin armor is a no go.

Anyone fighting a Goblin should be aware of the greenskins’ trickier

tools. A popular weapon with Goblin infantry is the ‘Spiked Bola’ – small
iron balls with metal spikes bound together with rope, to be hurled from
a distance. Another specialized tool is the ‘Throwing Net’ – tossed over
opponents, immobilizing them and leaving them open to future
attacks. Even their frontlines prefer distance as Goblins utilize the
‘Jagged Pike’ to push foes away and inflict terrible bleeding wounds.

35
Goblin Skirmisher Goblin Wolfrider
Goblin Skirmishers make for the bulk of the faction’s infantry. They are Goblins breed and train large wolves to use as mounts for their feared
armed with a melee weapon of Goblin design – pikes, spears, falchions, Wolfrider regiments. Wolfriders are faster than any infantry on the
long knives – and usually a shield for defense. They also tend to carry battlefield and can easily pass through difficult terrain. This makes them
bolas and nets to stifle incoming enemies. Skirmishers are not natural them ideal flankers and a large threat to archers and other lightly armed
attackers, but are very competent in delaying an enemy charge and troops with from the rear. Both the wolf and the rider will attack a target,
holding the line for Goblin Ambushers to pick the enemy off one by one. making the goblin cavalry an especially deadly enemy.
Being skirmishers, this fighting force won’t stick around for long if bogged
down in a hard-hitting, close-quarters slog. On hitting a Wolfrider unit, either the rider or the wolf may be hit, and
they may be killed independently from each other. Slaying just the wolf
will leave a Goblin Skirmisher to continue fighting on foot, while killing the
rider will have you face a frenzied wolf as dangerous as any wild animal.

Goblin Overseer Goblin Shaman

Goblin Overseers are veterans and members of a higher Goblin Shamans are members of a small and secretive caste
caste mandated by a Goblin council to lead and oversee a who seemingly possess otherworldly powers. This magick is no
regiment of Goblins in performing a task. They’re easily less mysterious and inexplicable to the average Goblin than
identified by their ornate armor and helmet. Each Overseer they are to a human witnessing them, and the nature of their
uses a whip with which they can ‘encourage’ the common power is a jealously guarded secret. In Goblin society,
Goblin Ambusher Goblin to perform better or to flog fleeing Goblins until they Shamans are often consulted as oracles, healers, and experts
Goblin Ambushers are dedicated ranged troops armed with bows of return to the fight. on poison. Although not part of the political caste, they hold
and wearing light camouflage armor that offers little protection but tremendous power and influence.
makes them hard to spot from a distance. Presumably because of their
experience in fighting heavily armored Orcs, they’re trained to target
weak spots in their opponent’s armor for increased direct damage. Their
arrow tips are coated in poison that blurs vision and makes coordinated
movement a monumental effort. The effect of poison slowly diminishes
with each turn after getting hit.

Because Goblins are drafted into service, the Overseer plays In battle, Goblin Shamans support their troops by
an important part in keeping everything together. Should he commanding nature itself. They have been witnessed
fall, Goblins are much more likely to rout and flee the spurring vile roots grow from the ground in an instant to hold
battlefield instead of soldiering on. For these reasons, they people in place and sending swarms of black flies onto their
should be prioritized as high value targets. opponents. Up close and personal, however, they are but 36
frail old Goblins with no real weapon to protect themselves.
 GOBLIN VISUAL DEVELOPMENT
First Iteration Visual Rework
The first iteration of the Goblin busts already shows some elements recurring in later versions, like Creating the final assets was predominantly a task of polishing and adding detail, as the
the scale armor and facial expression. Similar to the Orcs these busts were inspired by board second iteration was already very close to our vision. Apart from that it was important to create
games like Hero Quest and old school RPGs. Although the style was okay to start out, it wasn’t better visual variety by adding a range of different faces for the most numerous classes:
unique in any way and didn’t add anything new to the Goblin faction. Ambushers and Skirmishers. In the same vein, we added three different types of armor and
helmets for these classes, thereby creating a large visual variance when facing Goblins.

Second Iteration
The first step of the second iteration was defining the Goblin faction archetypes. Based on
these archetypes we then started designing the new visuals, aiming for a more realistic and
gritty look to create a menacing impression. Due to their more iconic look, the different classes
of Goblin combatants are now easily recognizable. Although going in the right direction, the
Goblin assets were still missing detail and variety.

37
 First iteration

THE GOBLIN BANNERS

In their first iteration, the Goblin banners were set up the same way all other banners worked: a
wooden frame with a cloth canvas to display white on dark symbols. By sharing the same
basic setup, however, it’s hard to create a clear visual identity establishing Goblins as a faction
of their own.

The goal for the second iteration was to create a unique visual style, clearly setting the Goblins
apart from Orcs and other factions. This was achieved by avoiding white on dark symbols and
by breaking up the classic ‘banner’ shape. The metal banner poles were inspired by Goblin
lore, where parallels to Roman city-states can be found. The symbols themselves represent
different goblin states and often use themes of power in Goblin culture like night skies, spiders, Second iteration
skulls and ancient, shamanistic runes.
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GOBLIN ASSETS

39
 THE BEASTS First iteration

Nachzehrers
The origin of Nachzehrers is unknown, but a popular story amongst peasantry is that they are manifestations of
sinful suicides. Punished by the old gods for giving up the gift of life, someone who commits suicide is brought
back to exist as a ghoulish monstrosity. Their garish and ugly appearance serves to further remind the Nachzehrer
of the beauty of life, the beauty which they sinfully forfeited by killing themselves. Many believe that this is why
they not only seek to end life, but also to consume it, engorging themselves on the recently slain. Then again, Final version
others believe that there is nothing supernatural about them at all and that they are but wild beasts.

Whatever their origin, the Nachzehrer should be taken seriously as a threatening presence on the
battlefield. They carry large claws capable of slashing through leather armor with ease and their
musculature makes for hardy strikes that can batter even the sturdiest of soldiers. But the most notable
feature of the creature is its head. With faces shaped like shovels, these monsters consume any corpses
they come across, piling the gore into their mouths with grisly glee. Having eaten their fill, the
Nachzehrer will both heal and grow larger. In its biggest state, the Nachzehrer can eat a man whole! If
said man is not rescued, he will be digested within the monster’s stomach.

Fighting Nachzehrers comes with a particularly unique tactical Direwolves

consideration: making sure that you are not leaving dead bodies “If a lumberjack has sensitivities about shitting or pissing in front of his peers, he should
within reach of the creatures. A Spearwall might work for a time, but if not be in the forest. Any lumberjack who wanders away from the group is likely to
the beasts crash through and eat their fallen brethren, you will have a never be seen again and we will not go looking for you.” – The World’s Longest Guide
row of mighty and large Nachzehrers on your hands. Similarly, while to Cutting Trees, found in the first paragraph of the one-page pamphlet.
their lack of armor makes them easy to kill from a distance, the beasts
are not adverse to cannibalism and will gladly eat these corpses just Direwolves in the world
as well. Once fully grown, the monster is not only extremely dangerous Foul, feral, ferocious. The direwolf is an extremely dangerous animal and should never
in melee combat, but it will devour men while it fights. Stepping on be approached. Direwolves do not mindlessly roam the forests so much as
corpses to cut off potential meals and heals is a great way to fight meticulously stalk them, displaying a rather scary intelligence to avoid fights they
these foul creatures. might lose. It is for this reason that a direwolf itself is impossible to study in the wild.
Instead, corpses are brought to scholars for analysis.
“Behold that suicide is not the end, behold that for such sin
A direwolf’s physiology is oddly man-like. While they share the inverted shins of a wolf
there is no end!” – Friar standing over the corpses of two
or bear, direwolves are often reported attacking upright, standing on both legs to
Nachzehrers slain after killing a noble. Given an odd ring-like
better angle their assault. Survivors state that direwolves attack with blinding speed
indention on one of the beast’s fingers, they were believed to
and lethality. Speaking of attacks, direwolves are known to bite, swipe, and claw-kick
be the bodies of a Lady Garrett and Sir Theo who had been
their victims. One report states that a lumberjack was killed in this manner: a direwolf
caught trying to elope a week prior. The distraught couple
jumped on him and bit into his skull and, using that as upper leverage, dropkicked
threw themselves into the river which ran beside the hamlet.
the lower end of his body to effectively split him in twain.

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BEASTS ASSETS

41
 THE ANCIENT DEAD
Introduction
“Shemb’akh, yusarra le ferrer del ustibembi. The Fashle-keng vast mordier.” – An inscription found on an ancient shield. Unable to decipher
what it meant, and much to the horror of the scholars, the shield was melted down for its precious metal.

Petty nobles, destitute villages, roaming monsters. This is not how the world has always been. Long ago, in a different era, perhaps with a
different kind of man, a great empire spanned the known world. Provincial lands saw sound governance whether they were in the blistering
sands of the south or the harsh frozen tundra of the north. Even with dozens of peoples and cultures, this empire ruled through solidarity and
unity. Commerce was strong and a sense of purpose even stronger: that the Empire must last forever, an idea purposed into respected and
adored Legions. These soldiers, through overwhelming power, protected the Empire not only from outsiders, but from internal strife.

It is not known how this Empire fell apart. A common belief is that dozens of peoples could never be peaceful beneath
one banner, that the sense of tradition and culture would inevitably pull them away from the core rule, like wiry seams
unwound from a banner of many colors. However, some scholars believe that the Empire was rotted from within not by
politics, but by religion. Cultists, doomsayers, and shamans of all sorts withered the core tenets and ultimately pitched
the Empire into total chaos.

But does it matter what brought it down? What is known now is that these ancient dead are rising again, not alive and not
yet dead, either. Legions that never tire, legionnaires that know no fear, a cold machine that ever marches forward, to
claim again what was once theirs.

The Ancient Legions

“How would I design the perfect army? I’d start with the perfect warrior: a cold, calculating man who has no fear, does not tire, and
will always go where I tell him. Give me a thousand such men and I will conquer the whole world.” – Nobleman in response to a
scholar’s question.

The Ancient Undead armies are spearheaded by their Ancient Legions. This fighting force once swept over the known world,
dominating new lands and keeping old ones stable. In the afterlife, they still serve to fulfill both purposes – but now they are mindless
and without human frailties. Nothing more than bones, they constantly test the resolve of the men who fight against them.

Legions fight in tight formations two ranks deep. Tall shields bolster the front while long polearms do damage from the rear row. A
formation like this does not mindlessly charge, but slowly advances to make better use of its shields and weapons. With no ranged
support, the legion prefers to walk down its enemies slowly and carefully. So it follows that anything which can disrupt their formation
– such as abilities, hills, or forests – also disrupts the fighting effectiveness of the legion.
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Ancient Auxiliary
The bulk of the Ancient Undead’s fighting forces is made up of the auxiliaries,
recruits once conscripted by local vassals. These enemies carry spears, short
swords, or a falx. They’re lightly armored and wear cloaks sporting the pattern of
their ancient clans. Because Battle Brothers focuses on a pseudo-Germanic region
of the world, the equipment is based on the look of ancient Germanic and Celtic
warriors.

Time has taken a toll on both weapons and armor, and so you may find them
attacking with broken swords seemingly unaware of it. Much of their gear is
unsalvageable, but their helmets, rusted and worn down they may be, are still
heavy and thick enough to give some protection.

Ancient Legionary
Ancient legionnaires make up the medium infantry. Once professional soldiers,
legionnaires enlisted for several years to be trained and used in the Empire’s
campaigns. In exchange, they received land they could settle at and call their
own. Legionnaires are well-armed with metal armor, sword and shield, or pike.

The legion existed across every age of the empire so you’ll find legionnaires that
died a hundred years apart, all with different armor, helmet and shield design, yet
still marching together. Different were their eras, but singular their purpose.

Ancient Honor Guards

The highest honor a common legionary could hope to achieve, joining the honor
guard involved a symbolic death to shed the weakness and frailty of man, and
being transformed into a tool of the emperor. No longer a man, but the
manifestation of the emperor’s will, the honor guard was encased entirely in
armor that did not show any flesh, becoming essentially a living, moving and
fighting statue. The process and ceremony behind this transformation is lost.

Honor guards make use of heavy weaponry such as the warscythe, the
rhomphaia, and a two-handed cleaver. They were once among the finest and
most dedicated warriors of their time, and although now but bones in rusty armor,
their skills still echo through their every swing of the sword.

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Necrosavants Ancient Priests
As the Empire conquered most of the known world, once foreign and remote lands turned into The Empire had countless religions and cults, and each had priests spreading the word of their gods.
provinces. What was local custom or cult once, hidden away and not spoken of elsewhere, Keeping the layman faithful, these powerful clerics performed rites and proclaimed miracles. The
suddenly found itself a part of a large empire where roads and couriers carried commerce and ancient priest was one such individual once. Now brought back to a sort of unlife, his very existence
culture further than ever. Using the Empire’s own road system, a secretive cult blossomed out of the is making a mockery out of the very faith he once held dear. His work is turned into a perversion of
blistering deserts of the south. While the Empire’s gods promoted strength, humility, compassion, what he once devoted his life to: he no longer gives blessings or comfort, but brings foulness and rot,
fertility, and health, the cultists worshipped and proselytized death itself. and horrible visions of worlds well beyond our own.

“When you have nothing but misery, it’s easy to let go, to welcome the warm embrace of the gods The Ancient Priest fills a support role. While of little danger all by himself, he quickly becomes a
that sets you free from all earthly burden and hardships. But it’s those that have everything on this decisive piece in any battle when protected by ranks of ancient legionnaires. If one can manage to
earth, power and wealth, that cling to it at the end of their life, that clutch to it in desperation, that cut through the frontlines, they’ll often still find the ancient priest protected by the ever deadly and
bargain, that curse, that would pay any price to stay. And it is those who would embrace not the armor-encased Honor Guard.
gods, for their touch is not salvation for them, but whose touch would tear them away and apart
from the earthly things they prize above all, the things that they have chosen to become. It is those The ancient priest’s first skill is to summon Miasma, a thick mist of rot that is rather incompatible with
who would forsake the gods and turn to the cult of death instead, that would die over and over life. Miasma is created in an area of 7 tiles and sticks to these tiles for several rounds. Any living being
again, and yet never leave this earth, forever bound to it, forever paying the price.” - Strange script ending its turn on a tile affected by miasma will lose hit points – it’s only a few each round, but armor
found in an ancient crypt. does not protect against breathing in the foul fog, and choking on the deadly smog does eventually
add up if you don’t move out of it.
Whether an ardent cultist once, or a decadent noble seeking eternal life, they have long since
become a being that measures time no longer in years but in lifetimes: a Necrosavant. It will wither Horror is the Ancient Priest’s other skill and, as the name implies, it brings horrific visions to its
away and die in time, again and again, but never leave this world as long as it is rejuvenated with unfortunate victims. It’s an area-of-effect spell, like ‘Miasma’, but targeted at people and not tiles.
the blood of the living. Anyone affected will have to make a morale check – the higher the resolve, the higher the chance
that they won’t be affected at all. If a character fails the morale check, their morale will drop by one
The less hit points a Necrosavant has, the more it will visually wither away, and the more hit points it level. Additionally, if the character critically fails a roll, they’ll be affected by the ‘Horrified’ status
gains by savouring a victim’s blood, the more it will rejuvenate until its appearance is almost that of effect for one turn and be unable to act.
a healthy human. The Necrosavant has the unique ability to turn into a flock of bats to quickly
position itself on the battlefield, making it perhaps the most mobile opponent in Battle Brothers. While Horror can be quite powerful against a company of the weak-willed, it can be countered by
However, it doesn’t wear any armor or carry a shield, leaving it vulnerable to damage and investing into the Resolve attribute, picking certain perks, staying close to the company Sergeant,
immobilization. and making use of the ‘Rally the Troops’ skill.

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ANCIENT DEAD ASSETS

45
ANCIENT DEAD ASSETS

46
ANCIENT DEAD ASSETS

47
 First iteration

PLAYER BANNERS
The earlier player banners were composed of various heraldic patterns roughly following
historical rules. The original idea was to create a huge variety of banners by randomly
combining shapes, patterns and emblems. As it turned out, these banners were completely
lacking personality and looked uninspired.

For the second iteration the banners had been individually painted. They are using a broad
variety of different shapes with applications and details supporting their visual identity.
The featured emblems are unique and inspire the viewer to think about the banner’s actual
backstory, and they are notably distinct from other human banners in their exaggerated style.

A big bunch of the design ideas were submitted by the community, including company names
and backstories about the banners’ origins. This information facilitated designing believable
mercenary banners with a sense of purpose.
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 NOBLE HOUSE BANNERS
Like any other faction, the noble houses needed to have banners of their own. Based on
medieval heraldry, the coat of arms had to feel authentic and believable, but we still took a bit
of artistic licence to make them easier to read and more catchy looking.

We decided to have ten different banners randomly assigned to the three noble houses that
appear in each campaign. Every banner comes with its own colored shields and surcoats, as
well as knight crests. This additional workload limited the number of banners we could provide,
but added a lot of visual identity to the different noble houses. To tell them apart from
“It’s not just a color. It’s about the
mercenary banners, the noble house banners would stick strictly to heraldic rules and symbols
honor. And the prestige. And how
resulting in a more historical and noble look.
much money they pay me.” -
Soldier on his liege’s banner.
The top left image shows the first phase of iteration with 60 different banners. The next image
shows the final candidates determined by internal voting and discussions. It was important to
have ten distinct and unique banners which did not just copy historical references. 49
 BRIGAND BANNERS
The first iteration of Brigand banners was very similar to the Orc and Goblin banners. Sporting
white emblems on dark canvas, they had nothing unique or characteristic to them.

The approach for the second iteration was different. The question was, how would real life
brigands create their banners in a medieval world?

Firstly, they would take the insignia of local authority and turn them into symbols of ridicule and
disrespect boasting about their freedom and outlaw status. Secondly, they would use materials
available in the wild to create intimidating banner poles, such as heads and furs of ferocious
animals. The horse's head specifically is inspired by the Nithing Pole, a Germanic pagan ritual to
curse an enemy.

“I wish to drink from the noble’s chalice with his blood still on the cup and his woman between
my knees..” - Gustav the Raider

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HUMAN ARMOR

51
HUMAN ARMOR

52
WIEDERGANGER ARMOR

53
HUMAN HELMETS

54
HUMAN HELMETS

55
HUMAN WEAPONS

56
HUMAN WEAPONS

57
HUMAN WEAPONS

58
HUMAN WEAPONS

59
HUMAN WEAPONS

60