I feel like since your in the industry you’d really appreciate this was made by one person! One! Not sure what engine was used but it’s incredible the quality of their work!
I've been enjoying Manor Lords, and was just watching one of your videos (on Medieval Inn) last night, and today I got to watch you talking about Manor Lords! What a joyful coincidence! Thank you so much for the fun & educational info!
you're def one of the most qualified people who could possibly comment on this game. I dig your channel, and really enjoyed hearing your thoughts here.
Jason is a great guy, and a nice guy (I have communicated a bit with him on FB and he is as nice and gentlemanly as he seems). But someone else, like Matt Easton, would be better for combat stuff. For riding and jousting Jason is best. Thinking about it while watching, I would say a collab. Jason for the mounted stuff. Matt for the "HEMA" stuff and archery (unless they bring in Joe Gibbs) Toby Cabwell for the armour Jonathan Ferguson Keeper of Firearms & Artillery at the Royal Armouries Museum in the UK housing thousands of cool weapons through the ages, for the early "bangsticks" they use.
I would love to see him comment on KCD as a preparation for the upcoming sequel. I fell in love with KCD recently when I finally got to finish it, played upon release but the game was so buggy I stopped and did not return until 6 years later.
He even has a CBE from a chivalric order, which is as close to knighthood one can get without being a knight. CBE stands for "Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire" and is rank 3 out of 5. Rank 1 and 2 makes you a knight/dame.
GameSpot forgot to mention he's also the 26th Steward of Gondor, Son of Ecthelion, and Lord of the White City. Odd dining habits, but we all have our flaws.
Interviewing Jason for this was pribably the best choice for this kind of a video. He's in such a unique position to be able to comment on historical accuracy while also being a game studio ceo (and not something like an activision or EA studio, a guy that avtually knows video game development) to be able to comment on acvuracy while allotting necessary give and take for developing a game such as the cart turning
Then why didn't he say something about the awkward and not at all realistic animations and movement of the oxen and the log tied to the oxen with rope?
@@atlantic_love he did, but more importantly because he's not here to comment on the quality of the animations, they are obviously just a time/budget issue and have nothing to do with historical accuracy
For those interested in the location/architectural style: it is 14th century Franconian, which is a cultural/dialect (early 10th century creation of the Duchy of Franconia) area in southwest Germany (modern day northern half of Bavaria, north-east corner of Baden-Württemberg and south Thuringia). The historical advice team suggested it due to the quite decent number of sources available e.g. the Museum villages Bad Windsheim and Hohenlohe. Details where you can see this are e.g. the churches (lvl. 2) tower being above the altar, the half-hipped roofs and generally the clothing
That's marvellous. And I am very glad the creator is sticking to one region and one time period instead of like many medieval games that do All of Europe, Africa and the Middle East for 200 years as their references.
@@littlekong7685 The game was originally going to be like that. Old videos of the game displayed vikings/ango-saxons and knights in full plate armour, but it was then decided to be narrowed down in time period and cultural location as to not be as anachronistic (a wise choice)
@@puppyenemyI think the choice of doing a small scope but doing it well is a big part of manor lords success. Too many early access games try to do too much to early on.
@@dmc6262 they speak english because if you have to do one voiceacting first on an international market it's usually english. The location could've been England (it was one of the possible locations) but it is southern Germany now (it even says it on the steam page). Part of the historical advisory team is, for example, the German medieval history channel "Geschichtsfenster". If they made the language part accurate you wouldn't get subtle hints like them telling you that they start working, and if they did it historically accurate most Germans wouldn't know either, because language changes
This game was inspired by late 14th century Franconia, which is a region in southern Germany, and many historians and historical researchers are responsible for the current artstyle of the game, such as Jakob Münsberg, who is an expert in this region and he often posts his researches and sketches in his Twitter account and also helped in the making of the Artbook DLC, so if you want to know more about the architecture which this game tries to depict, then those are good options. Many historians who are experts in the region in which the game is inspired, such as Geschichtsfenster (has a TH-cam channel and is one of the participating historical experts), explain that in the 14th century, in this region, rural houses had actually three compartments and it remained the most common type of traditional village house until the 20th century (like the bohemian houses depicted in KCD), and the houses depicted are NOT too big. However, some houses were quite small or, more correctly, had lower ceilings but why did that happened? For at least two reasons: first, to retain heat, since smaller rooms with lower ceilings and small windows are cosier and also easier to heat; secondly (and most importantly), peasant houses were usually not planned and then built by architects or expert craftsmen like in towns and cities, so what happened is that some houses were smaller than they should be because of lack of planning, which resulted in some unsatisfactory results and imperfections. Besides, in some peasant houses and even townhouses the living room was the only room heated (not with a fireplace but with the kitchen oven, which was in the adjacent kitchen but the oven was attached to the wall that divided both rooms and had a hopening which allowed tha living room to be heated), this was generally the only room which was smaller with walls made of wooden planks for insulation and lower ceilings (while the rest of the house had whitewashed wattle and daub walls). Nonetheless, planed or not planed, most rural houses had many things in common like whitewashed wattle and daub walls, timber framing (skeleton of the house), small unglazed windows, externally attached-lap-jointed-braces (core visual element) and a three compartment division. Historian also explain that, as the medieval period progresses, there were more peasant houses with roofs made of wooden shingles or even clay tiles, just like town houses, also due to the fact clay was and still is abundant in this region, so it was mined extensively and, therefore, it was quite cheap. Many villages and towns at this time and in this region had at least one church, even if it was wooden (it was never a hut), and many of these churches were either Romanesque, Gothic or a combination of both (it could be a church built in the Romanesque style but some parts of which were built or altered later in the Gothic style). There were also hamlets or small villages who didn't have any churches nor chapels, but they could have had small wayside stone shrines, which were usually placed on the side of the main roads (they served as a reminder that God is everywhere and he is watching you, so you wouldn't feel isolated or alone wherever you were: they would be built in the absence of a religious building or placed on the side of roads that connected villages/towns or in trade routes). We all know the Middle Ages is a period of about 1000 years, but we are talking about the second half of the 14th century, not the 10th century, these are remotely different times. I also know that this historian is english and he is probably an expert of medieval history of Great Britain, but I still think he should not generalise so much and make oversimplified comments such as stating that peasants lived in huts throughout Europe. In the 14th century, most peasants lived in houses, not huts, including in England. The only people who lived in huts at this point in time were charcoal burners, some hunters, foragers, herbalists and construction workers (masons, carpenters and other craftsmen who worked in construction sites built temporary huts or even tents and small encampments). If he explicitly mentioned that it was common for peasants to live in huts in the Early Middle Ages, then it would be more correct, but there are also evidences of houses from this period in other regions, such as viking houses from the 8th and 9th centuries. Rural, secular and religious architecure changed throughout centuries and varied across regions. Nowadays, you can clearly distinguish a rural czech house from a rural french house, and even inside France there are differences between houses from Alsace and Aquitaine, and the same is applied to the Middle Ages. Also, in the Early Middle Ages rural buildings were usually more primitive than their successors centuries later, so claiming that peasants in the Middle Ages lived in huts is imprecise and innaccurate, not to mention the regional variations. If you found all this information interesting then you'll find more on these links down below: th-cam.com/video/SshCvLZKGa0/w-d-xo.html twitter.com/JakobMunsberg twitter.com/ClippyMagic geschichtsfenster.de www.youtube.com/@Geschichtsfenster th-cam.com/video/m6qVKwP5-wg/w-d-xo.html freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
yes I agree it became like that but I think it very unlikely peasants began a vill with 100 ox carts of oak to build those structures. Much more likely that they started small and over the years rebuilt into what we see here as do allmost settlements breaking new land. However if there's evidence they had the time and money to initially build those large structures then I happy to learn. Same with churches. What we see in the record generally is places starting small and modest and growing over the years. Maybe this is a uniquely different situation?
@@ModernKnight Exactly, when settling new lands, like during the german colonization towards east, villages were built more modest and primitive and then they were upgraded or even extended if necessary, but that didn't happened in Franconia, since this region was not slav but german and part of the Holy Roman Empire for many centuries, the villages, towns and cities were already established and there was no untammed land to settle. However, in Manor Lords you start the game in an empty land in the 14th century in a fictional place inspired by Franconia, it was a liberty taken by the developer, but in future updates there will be AI enemies and they will grow their own settlements in adjacent territories. Btw, the open-air museum in Bad Windsheim, in Bavaria, has some really good reconstructions and was recommended by historical advisers (some of them actually work there). You can see here one of the reconstructions and the whole process, I think this one is supposed to be a late medieval bathouse: freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
England: The government give us permission to use the land behind our rented house to grow a garden USA: Bought a house for $200k that came with a 20 acre backyard, might install a pool and a pond to stock for fishing What a contrast in individual freedoms.
@@joebenson528 If I had that kind of land, I wouldn't install a pool, but would get a fishing pond. I would have to also be close to a wood/forest. Part of my land would have a garden and an orchard as well as berry bushes. :sigh: Once can only dream...
Thanks again to Jason for joining us on this episode! Remember to visit his channel for more deep dives into medieval life and history! th-cam.com/users/ModernHistoryTV And feel free to critique the aesthetics of my town in the comments 😅
I watched his channel for years then one day I looked him up on wikipedia to see more of his background and was surprised he was ceo of a game company. Unexpected but very interesting.
11:10 I love the fact that the hunter drew back to his ear, rather than the corner of his mouth, like a modern archer would. It's attention to little details that make a game like this.
Watching to se what Jason may have missed. Newer information indicates that as the medieval period progressed even many peasant houses started to have the three typical sections: Front/Solar, Hall, and Service sections. The service section could be a kitchen, but likely a byre/barn for some of the animals (back third of the house) with a loft above the front & service sections that could be chambers or storage as needed whereas the hall section would typically be open to the rafters and the building deliberately two stories with openings above the door for added light. Older or poorer peasant housing would be more shack or shop like, with open rafters as without chimneys the smoke would gather up there, drive away the vermin, and act as a smoky larder. That was one of the main reasons for me to reply was the lack of chimneys in the older and poorer peasant huts, and thus potentially a roof opening(s) bringing in light but releasing the smoke
Regarding the houses... they are based on actual village houses etc. in southern germany. They are accurate for village houses and such for the timeframe and location the game is based on.
But he is right they are a quite big. I live in southern Germany. Some of the level two homes are as big as the former tannery i currently live in and thats the biggest historic house (1720) in my town. We have a few surviving single family homes from 1440 and they are really small. Even thought they are build with what is the "level 3" materials in the game. The height of a floor was barely 190cm and each floor had a maximum of 3 rooms that could barly fit a table and a few chairs maybe a bed. And they lived there with children and grandparents.
@@Zazu1337 No, he is wrong, the houses depicted are not too big, if they were any smaller they would be huts and in the 14th century most peasants lived in houses, not huts, including in England. The only people who lived in huts at this point in time were charcoal burners, some hunters, foragers, herbalists and construction workers (masons, carpenters and other craftsmen who worked in construction sites built temporary huts or just tents and small encampments). The example you gave from the area you live is not representative of all franconian peasant houses, since we have many other examples from other places in Franconia as well, such as the open-air museum in Bad Windsheim (where some historical advisers for the game actually work) that disprove your claim. However, you're not wrong that some houses were quite small or, more correctly, had lower ceilings but why did that happened? For at least two reasons: first, to retain heat, since smaller rooms with lower ceilings and small windows are cosier and also easier to heat; secondly (and most importantly), peasant houses were usually not planned and then built by architects or expert craftsmen like in towns and cities, so what happened is that some houses were smaller than they should be because of lack of planning, which resulted in some unsatisfactory results and imperfections. Besides, in some peasant houses and even townhouses the living room was the only room heated (not with a fireplace but with the kitchen oven, which was in the adjacent kitchen but the oven was attached to the wall that divided both rooms and had a hopening which allowed tha living room to be heated), this was generally the only room which was smaller with walls made of wooden planks for insulation and lower ceilings (while the rest of the house had whitewashed wattle and daub walls). Nonetheless, planed or not planed, most rural houses had many things in common like whitewashed wattle and daub walls, timber framing (skeleton of the house), small unglazed windows, externally attached-lap-jointed-braces (core visual element) and a three compartment division (like the bohemian houses depicted in KCD), and the houses depicted are NOT too big. For more information around this topic you might want to take a look at the Artbook DLC for Manor Lords, check out Jakob Münsberg Twitter profile (historical researcher who is responsible for the current artstyle of game) or Geschichtsfenster (has a youtube channel and is a historian who also collaborated with the developer): th-cam.com/video/SshCvLZKGa0/w-d-xo.html twitter.com/JakobMunsberg twitter.com/ClippyMagic www.youtube.com/@Geschichtsfenster freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
Maybe he was referencing the situation of starting with nothing. It's easier to build a smaller home first, just for shelter. Especially if you are poor.
@@Laticia1990 Exactly, when settling new lands, like during the german colonization towards east, villages were built more modest and primitive and then they were upgraded or even extended if necessary, but that didn't happened in Franconia, since this region was not slav but german and part of the Holy Roman Empire for many centuries, the villages, towns and cities were already established and there was no untammed land to settle. However, in Manor Lords you start the game in an empty land in the 14th century in a fictional place inspired by Franconia, it was a liberty taken by the developer, but in future updates there will be AI enemies and they will grow their own settlements in adjacent territories. Btw, the open-air museum in Bad Windsheim, in Bavaria, has some really good reconstructions and was recommended by historical advisers (some of them actually work there). You can see here one of the reconstructions and the whole process, I think this one is supposed to be a late medieval bathouse: freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
@@Zazu1337 Maybe the level 1 houses are a bit big, but the level 2 houses have artisans (i.e. include workshop space) and the level 3 ones house 2 families.
Could we possibly get an uncut version of this talk? I've heard that there was quite a bit more and I would love to hear all of it. In any case, thank you so much for setting this up, it's really fun!
The way modern foresters estimate the deer population is by fencing in a very small area of the forest and let the saplings / plants there grow. Deer normally eat saplings which prevents trees from developing. Then you can compare the new tree growth outside and inside the fence.
Yay, three-field system FTW!:D And an allusion to the Morgan's Bible's illustrations (people's attire while working in the field), great stuff:) Great to see Jason here- honestly, I'd love to see more "medievalist reacts" to either historically-located or just fantasy games, but from more of the everyday life perspective! Arms and armour are awesome, and that's what gets the crowds attention, but the everyday life often gets overlooked. I know it's a really niche subject, but there's hope:)
I think some of these criticisms do stem from Kindsley mainly being knowledgable on medieval England while the game is set in 14th century Franonia, Germany. For instance on taverns. Not sure on England but in 14th century Germany taverns and hostels were absolutely a thing (again) even in some villages. Taverns could even be found in smaller villages on occasion but nowhere near as commonly as depicted in fantasy yes. So it's not really "fantasy" to be able to build one and not out of place in a sizeable 14th century franconian village.
made me question his expertise. He seems to not even be enough of an expert to realise that medieval england in the 14th century is different then medieval middle-europe in the 14th century. His statement that "medieval warfare was pontentially worse then modern warfare, because you had to get close" was very weird as well. Most people ive talked with prefer the face to face, in comparison to sitting in your trench with the chance of randomly dying because of artillery, or a rifle-bullet wich you cannot even see. Especially when we take a look at how modern citys look after modern warfare... the destruction of modern warfare is without comparison and yet the "medieval expert" is sitting here, unironically saying that medieval warfare was potentially worse, because you went face to face...
I feel like this kind of collaboration has great potential for classrooms. Getting a genuinely qualified historian...especially one who does living history work like Jason.. to comment on games (all periods) could really bring the subject to life and pull kids in.
Just a tidbit, but the occasional mutation in Oak trees can produce relatively nice tasting acorns, unfortunately this is complex and fairly random mutation not easily bred into the next generation of oak trees (which is why the Oak was never properly domesticated)
I cannot comment a lot on the various aspects of architecture, housing, alehouses etc which are outside of my area of research. That being said I am one of the advisors which deals with the material culture of this game, primarily the weapons and armour. To begin with it's important to point out that this game is squarely set in the late 1300s, which is very important to the context of how much weaponry you'd expect to see on the average person. In this period we're talking about a society in which lots of industries have established themselves, technology has progressed a lot in terms of metalworking et cetera. The progression in Manor Lords is not meant to represent just a village, but as the game goes along you expand and build up the village into a proper town, and eventually you might even reach a size large enough to be called a city. The requirements for equipment on the militia were in the late medieval period pretty strict and also a lot higher than compared to the earier periods. There were standards on weaponry that each household had to own and maintain, and in some places the quality and amount of this equipment was tied to the value of your land. In the game this is represented by making it so that each new level of housing makes the militia equip themselves with even better armour - provided of course there is the industry and production set up to source it. Swords were extremely common in this period. From the 12-13th century onwards we see swords as being very common requirements for militia to have, and we have lists of purhases that show that their prices could be very low. In some towns all militia are required to own and maintain swords, alongside their other equipment. This is why they're prevalent among the militia in this game, and honestly they're possibly less common in the game than they'd be in reality. Of course in reality you wouldn't have 'sword units' as separate thing to 'polearm units', as people would simply be required to bring both a polearm and a sword or other sidearm (usually if an alternative to a sword is allowed it tends to be an axe), but this split was done for gameplay purposes.
Hunting was more common than you said. Dad was working on excavations in Olomouc, czech republic. They discovered old well, which was used as dump. There were skeletons of many forest animals, supposedly there was a tanner or butcher living there. The sheer quantity suggested that the meat was available for common folk. Just because noble owns the game, does not mean he does not send his people to hunt for him.
@@KyleNelson89 he wrote a self help book but he publishes a series: Toby Venables Knight of Shadows: A Guy of Gisburne Novel (Hunter of Sherwood Book 1)
I've recently been getting recommendations for Jason's channel and I've watched a few medieval peasant videos and only just learning he's the CEO of Rebellion came as a massive shock.
Man I love this. The guy is an expert at Medieval stuff AND also understands that sometimes game devs will simplify something otherwise it would take days to get something totally accurate. The hand cart for example.
So cool to see Jason singing praises for another game so candidly as what could be considered as a 'competitor' as a CEO of another game dev company What a wonderful guy
I always love when Jason is on the channel! I told myself I was going to wait for Manor Lords to get out of early access before diving in, but this video might make me break that promise. 😂👀
Modern History feels good to watch in just the way that watching a bunch of PBS specials as a kid felt good. It feels like an honest to goodness show. Inspired choice getting him to talk about this game.
Thank you for talking about the scale of battles. This is something the game was bashed about because most people dont realize that this is the actual scape of battles in that period. Only a king could a afford an army of few thousand , small lord-> a couple hundred will be a luxury.
Love watching my favorite youtuber talk about my favorite game!! He should collab with Slavic and share ideas to make the medieval experience much more authentic!
Jason Kingsley is excellent, really passionate about medieval historical knowledge. He is a great resource and a national treasure to the United Kingdom and also the video game industry.
This is the most informative bit of history I've watched. It's so great to see a good visualization of it in a very close to true form in this game. This game is so beautiful and well put together. I'm looking forward to its future and its clear goals of representing the real world as it was.
I remember a Duchy I built for an AD&D campaign, the cavalier subclass of fighter *had* to be a noble, and I wrote out how their house handled things like equipping their army. The Duke had a 'castle forge' that trained and apprenticed blacksmiths, usually selecting from orphaned youths. Do X years dishing out helms and shield bosses, making spearheads, etc. Those would be sold on "credit" to the soldiers, paid for out of reduced take of post-battle spoils. Example: if a green recruits 'share' of loot amounted to ten silver, they'd get a few silver pieces in pocket and the rest taken off the debt. There was usually a decent amount of loot because when the Duke's men weren't going out on a punitive operation, or supporting anti-piracy efforts, they were often 'rented out' to neighbors to support their own campaigns. Was so bummed the computer I had all that on went kaput. It had trade and tax policies, the structure of the baronies under the Duke, etc.
The team behind Manor Lords is one guy. Rebellion Developments has 600 employees. Makes you apreciate just what a sterling job Manor Lords sole Dev has done.
Yes, although it is also helpful that he has a very good historical advice team, which for example traveled to the Franconian regions of Germany and rly did their homework when it comes to even smaller details, like it having been a common thing to have the church tower above the alter, or half-hipped roofs in that region
"According to the publisher of Manor Lords, the team is a "solo developer plus contractors" (3D artists, animators, illustrators, concept designers, history consultants, game writers, etc.). Styczeń started working alone and as a hobby. Only after funding from Patreon and an Epic MegaGrant as well as the entry of Hooded Horse did he receive support in development. Whether Manor Lords can still be described as a solo project is a question of definition."
It's not one guy, it's one guy's vision and drive but a lot of other people's work. Contractors and employees are people too. None of which takes away from what a fun game it looks to be.
Its one guys project. But nowadays its hard to estimate how many peoples work went into a game as final product, as there are plenty of purchasable third party assets and contractors. And main parts such as the engine itself, that was created by a very large team.
Didn't see it in the top comments and I guess it doesn't matter because it's 2 months ago but The creator of Manor Lords very specifically says it is not meant to be historically accurate. Just thought I'd throw that out there.
So interesting, when you realize that this is essentially "school lesson" in which you are not bored, but quite opposite you feel passion about topic (while it is different to compare attention and priorities of 30+yo and kids... still i think this video may greatly interest&educate any schoolkid now). Well done sir, awesome video :)
Jason is honestly the perfect guest for this type of series. He somehow has extensive expertise both with game design and medieval life. You could not get a better guest for this.
There is a yt’er One Proud Bavarian, who made an amazing manor lords series. He is also a historian who put historical realism into the game, I recommend checking him out if you enjoy medieval history
Whenever I need to be reminded of what an Ox is, I refer to this quote from the musical 1776 (Sadly, it's NOT a historical quote.): "Nor would I, were I given the full rights of an Englishman. But to call me one without those rights is like calling an ox a bull. He's thankful for the honor, but he'd much rather have restored what's rightfully his." Benjamin Franklin, 1776.
Great looking game and this video taught me a lot about medieval life. Jason is a great educator. Good to see him involved here. Didn't realise he was a developer himself.
I highly respect you, however, you talking about Britain. This is Central Europe, where settling new areas did occur, primarily towards the east or in Sudetenland, among other regions. Such events were quite common in this period and geographic area.
I'm so addicted to this game, I already have over 70 hours played I grew up watching LOTR, going to the ren fest, playing Zelda, so any time there are swords, leather boots, and hovels around, I'm here for it
Very good what he said. We must not forget that this is a German rural setting and that the sourcess he probably know are mostly english cities. Firstly, spears are very cheap and if you have to go to war/combat, you do your best to get your hands on something decent. You would do anything to avoid having to go into battle with tools. Secondly, "the chances of having swords in the early Medieval Period is unlikely" is true, but our historian forgets that we are talking about the late fourteenth century, which is no longer the early Middle Ages (if i understood that right). and it is easy to forget that there were also rich peasants who, I would say, were very well equipped. I would also point out that according to the sources of the late Middle Ages, cities gave official information on what everyone had to have at hand as war equipment depending on their income. And now to the point about smell, don't forget that people knew which flowers and herbs to plant to get good smells. People also believed that bad odours would make them ill, so they certainly did something about it. But all in all, very good commentary and a good mediation of the situation at the time. (English is not my native tongue ;D )
@@JohnyG29 I'm not sure which part you're referring to, but I can certainly agree. He knows more about history. However, perhaps there are areas where I have knowledge he lacks, because the history of our world is too vast for one person ;).
important is not that special region but that it is the HRE (Holy Roman Empire), because that was the biggest hotspot and is the best prototype for the medieval world (just like today, thats also the reason why it is the most populated region in europe today, the biggest transit region, most infrastructure, most industry, it had most innovations, almost all renaissances happened here and so on) which connected not just different SubEmpires (like the Northern Italian cities and maritime trade empires as well as the Northern maritime trade empires - Hanseatic League (both were also the most wealthy sub empires) but is also the interface region which connected to the Slavic world as mixture. and due the most complex situation it also is on one hand representative for most of the medieval age and on the other hand represents the different rules/laws and infrastructures/structures the middle age had for different reasons (things like the different rights (market, Residential cities vs. 'Reichsstaedte' vs. 'free cities') etc.
@@kristencherrie9224 I don't know enought about Scotland, but in the Middle Area of the HRE (Bavaria and surroundings, Franken) where enought good Weapons, the Peasant Armys with Pitchforks where uncommon, the Army's had more Spears and Pikes and every little more wealthy Peasan could buy a Simple armour or sword/shield. The problems that Peasantarmy's mostly had, where lack of Cavalry and Commanders that know anything about tactics. A source i had found abount the Peasantarmy said that there military tactics where called "Pile or Heap" don't really know how to translate the source correct ^^ . And about the Claymore and armour facts i would recommend watching anything about historical reinactment, because I would deny that completely
Oh, a good point about the smell. If that mechanic was to be implemented, it should probably come with the static wind direction. I don't know if it's a good idea from gameplay perspective, but absolutely fantastic in terms of immersion.
I love Jason Kingsley's Modern History TV channel. I was looking to hearing what he has to say about Manor Lords. I would love to know what his take on KCD2 will be when it comes out later in the year.
I've watched Jason Kingsley's You Tube channel for years, and I find it interesting that Rebellion has never made a Medieval game, considering his knowledge of the Medieval world.
1:00 "... this period of medieval history, there weren't that many areas of wilderness and such" - fun fact, here on the mainland there were some places that were savaged to such a degree by invaders, that sometimes settlers from other places came over, and it was a bit like settling the Wild West! Especially Eastern Europe experienced that with the Mongols. Hmm, maybe not so "fun" fact.
It is however some of the best documented. Granted the game is more Central to Eastern Europe inspired but a lot of crossover applies from Britain to the rest. @@CzechMirco
The game is very specifically set in the late 14th century, so you could also argue that it may depict re-settling of lands that have been abandoned during the plague epidemic and subsequent decline in population around 1350. I would agree on Jason being a bit anglocentric, it seems from the video that he did not know or wasn't told the game is very specifically set in the Franconia region in Germany as well. So some of his points didn't apply there, but as he didn't seem to be aware it can't really be held against him. Also this video was likely heavily cut down from a much longer commentary/conversation to focus on specific key points. How well documented British history might be is not really relevant to this as the Franconia region was specifically chosen as setting for its wealth of sources for this time period, especially for architecture. Other regions in mainland Europe have just as much or even more sources available as Britain, they just might not be available in English. Funnily enough one anachronism in the game is the use of bows in warfare, which was pretty much an English oddity at this point, while in the relevant areas in mainland Europe they had completely fallen out of use in favour of crossbows. So that is in fact one little English quirk that was incorrectly carried over.
@@porter-831 Actually a thing I would like the developer to include is ruins and abandonment. If buildings are destroyed or demolished they could leave behind some trace, the map could start with some small and scattered abandoned farms. Of course that's just a detail and a LOOONG way down on the list of priorities, but one day perhaps!
@1:04 I can't agree. In Central and Eastern Europe the situation was different in the 12th-13th centuries, especially after the catastrophic Mongol invasion. Not counting a vivid internal migrations in this region, a numerous settlers were coming from relatively overpopulated German countries, brought by local princes (It was a socio-economic phenomenon that took place in Central and Eastern Europe, strongly shaping e.g. Polish principalities of XIIIc) Although such settlers mainly enriched the already existing infrastructure, they also developed wastelands, sometimes indeed of a primaveal nature. Even in Western Europe, a special role in this case was played by monks of the Cistercian order, who cleared forests with their own hands, being true pioneers. Cistercians also played an important role on the eastern regions of Latin Europe. The situation was particularly unique in the Teutonic state in Prussia, which can be considered a quasi-colonial state. The Order not only exterminated or Germanized the local Baltic population, but also brought in a large number of German and even Polish settlers, developing the wild forests and creating the basis for its economic power, which, thanks to its special legal and international position, translated into the military power of the Order.
This entire video was wonderful. I'm gonna follow this man's channel and play his videos as I upgrade my burgage plots haha. Extremely knowledgeable and entertaining.
Jonathan ferguson and now modernknight?? Gamespot has been on FIRE witht their decisions, high quality stuff which is both informative and entertaining!
I absolutely love Kingsley's channel ModernKnight ! That being said, if I'm not mistaken, he is not a historian in an academical sense (although I believe he studied zoology which also super cool). That doesn't invalidate his opinions in the slightest, but since it is mentionned in the title, intro and description, I felt it was worth pointing out for rigor's sake
He studies history, and he gets paid to give lectures on the subject, and his work is regularly reviewed by a number of peers in the field... He's probably on a par with most academic historians with regard to knowledge of his own, particular section of the field.
Acorns are delicious, especially from white and black oaks. Thing is, you have to grind it and soak out all the tannins before eating it or drying it for use as a flour. If it tasted bad, you didn't change the water enough when soaking out the tannins
@@gas4348 to make beer first you heat up water to boiling point killing the germs every time and then fermentation preserves it even more then stagnant water could if left in a bottle. wells usually were safe but they could become infected with rotten animals that fell in the well and got stuck. wells have been historical poisoned in times of war. drinking well water straight was clearly higher risk then any drink that requires boiling first.
One tactic for battle I've found useful once you get enough men is two units of spearmen and two units of small arms men. Set the spearmen to defensive mode and let them take the brunt of the enemy charge, with the retinue and the axemen in the rear. Then circle them around behind the enemy and sandwich them.
The banners and their usefulness was sort of a thing even as late as in WW2, even if they weren't actual banners anymore but similar kind of symbol markings in the vehicles. Especially that thing about coordination was very apparent in the (western) allied bombing champaings, where they painted the leading plane of each wing in bright colours, so the others knew whom to follow without resorting to radio signals (which would've revealed the incoming attack to the enemy).
Minor nitpicking, D&D isn't really a setting, it's a set of rules. It's like saying your favorite airplane is the laws of aerodynamics. The various world settings like Forgotten Realms set the tone and realism.
The other thing is the game requires you to produce everything in your town, whereas complex things (or arguably, most things) like armor would have been produced from afar in cities by guilds. There was a lot of trade in middle ages.
Seeing Sir Jason doing that is especially interesting after seeing streams with the historical advisors. (In German, and the looks are based on Franconia in Southeast Germany, 14th century. IIRC even of real houses... presumably fro ma village, but that got never mentioned.)
The game had tons of historical advisors, they got the houses down to the wooden nails, same for the clothing. If you speak German i highly recommend the video series from Geschichtsfenster
If I recall correctly, Border Barons (aka Marcher Lords) had more authority than anyone in the King's court (except for the King, of course), but even then, they still didn't have the authority to hold a market without the approval of the King.
"This is the 13th-14th century by the look of the clothes" "Chances of the militia having swords in the early medieval period" I know I'm missing something and if I knew what it would be really funny and that's enough
Thanks for letting me be here. It's fun to bring both areas of my life together sometimes!
I never would have guessed. Pleasantly surprised 👍
I feel like since your in the industry you’d really appreciate this was made by one person! One! Not sure what engine was used but it’s incredible the quality of their work!
This is a fun video. Thanks for doing it!
I've been enjoying Manor Lords, and was just watching one of your videos (on Medieval Inn) last night, and today I got to watch you talking about Manor Lords! What a joyful coincidence! Thank you so much for the fun & educational info!
you're def one of the most qualified people who could possibly comment on this game. I dig your channel, and really enjoyed hearing your thoughts here.
Please have this guy back for the KCD2 release!
Jason is a great guy, and a nice guy (I have communicated a bit with him on FB and he is as nice and gentlemanly as he seems). But someone else, like Matt Easton, would be better for combat stuff. For riding and jousting Jason is best.
Thinking about it while watching, I would say a collab.
Jason for the mounted stuff.
Matt for the "HEMA" stuff and archery (unless they bring in Joe Gibbs)
Toby Cabwell for the armour
Jonathan Ferguson Keeper of Firearms & Artillery at the Royal Armouries Museum in the UK housing thousands of cool weapons through the ages, for the early "bangsticks" they use.
@@PalleRasmussen the more the merrier!
@@morpho5539 that would be fun.
I would love to see him comment on KCD as a preparation for the upcoming sequel. I fell in love with KCD recently when I finally got to finish it, played upon release but the game was so buggy I stopped and did not return until 6 years later.
There's also Skallagrim. I still watch and enjoy his videos
It's an honor to see a historical Knight be brought to the modern world to give reviews about the medieval game Manor Lords.
He even has a CBE from a chivalric order, which is as close to knighthood one can get without being a knight.
CBE stands for "Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire" and is rank 3 out of 5. Rank 1 and 2 makes you a knight/dame.
@@Spacemongerr he has OBE not CBE iirc, Officer not commander which is 2 ranks below knight
@@mwheezee Nah, he is a CBE.
He was appointed OBE in 2012 and then appointed CBE in 2023 :)
@@Spacemongerr oh my bad, im not up to date then
@@Spacemongerr I want to be Commander of the Least Excellent Order of the British Empire
GameSpot forgot to mention he's also the 26th Steward of Gondor, Son of Ecthelion, and Lord of the White City. Odd dining habits, but we all have our flaws.
Also.... randomly the owner of the judge dredd franchise.
Cherry tomatoes quake in fear near him.
huh? No hes not .. Denethor II was played by John Noble....what are you meming on?
@@TheInfidel_SlavaUAthat he looks very similarly to John Noble.
Shaaaaall
-thhpp-
Fade...
Screw adventuring. In Manor Lords we learn farm maxxing. 🗿
...then I took a grain flail in the knee.
veggie lord ftw
farming?
a man of your talents?
@@t4rsus90 a man of massive burgage plots and turning the countryside into the midwest
Interviewing Jason for this was pribably the best choice for this kind of a video. He's in such a unique position to be able to comment on historical accuracy while also being a game studio ceo (and not something like an activision or EA studio, a guy that avtually knows video game development) to be able to comment on acvuracy while allotting necessary give and take for developing a game such as the cart turning
Considering who Jason is it’s astounding his company hasn’t made Manor Lords 8 by now.
The intersection on the plot of game dev experience and medieval history runs right through Jason.
Then why didn't he say something about the awkward and not at all realistic animations and movement of the oxen and the log tied to the oxen with rope?
@@atlantic_love 12:04
@@atlantic_love he did, but more importantly because he's not here to comment on the quality of the animations, they are obviously just a time/budget issue and have nothing to do with historical accuracy
For those interested in the location/architectural style: it is 14th century Franconian, which is a cultural/dialect (early 10th century creation of the Duchy of Franconia) area in southwest Germany (modern day northern half of Bavaria, north-east corner of Baden-Württemberg and south Thuringia). The historical advice team suggested it due to the quite decent number of sources available e.g. the Museum villages Bad Windsheim and Hohenlohe. Details where you can see this are e.g. the churches (lvl. 2) tower being above the altar, the half-hipped roofs and generally the clothing
That's marvellous. And I am very glad the creator is sticking to one region and one time period instead of like many medieval games that do All of Europe, Africa and the Middle East for 200 years as their references.
@@littlekong7685 The game was originally going to be like that. Old videos of the game displayed vikings/ango-saxons and knights in full plate armour, but it was then decided to be narrowed down in time period and cultural location as to not be as anachronistic (a wise choice)
@@puppyenemyI think the choice of doing a small scope but doing it well is a big part of manor lords success. Too many early access games try to do too much to early on.
The npc's speak English, therefore the location is England. In terms of immersion, that's the only thing that matters.
@@dmc6262 they speak english because if you have to do one voiceacting first on an international market it's usually english. The location could've been England (it was one of the possible locations) but it is southern Germany now (it even says it on the steam page). Part of the historical advisory team is, for example, the German medieval history channel "Geschichtsfenster". If they made the language part accurate you wouldn't get subtle hints like them telling you that they start working, and if they did it historically accurate most Germans wouldn't know either, because language changes
This game was inspired by late 14th century Franconia, which is a region in southern Germany, and many historians and historical researchers are responsible for the current artstyle of the game, such as Jakob Münsberg, who is an expert in this region and he often posts his researches and sketches in his Twitter account and also helped in the making of the Artbook DLC, so if you want to know more about the architecture which this game tries to depict, then those are good options.
Many historians who are experts in the region in which the game is inspired, such as Geschichtsfenster (has a TH-cam channel and is one of the participating historical experts), explain that in the 14th century, in this region, rural houses had actually three compartments and it remained the most common type of traditional village house until the 20th century (like the bohemian houses depicted in KCD), and the houses depicted are NOT too big. However, some houses were quite small or, more correctly, had lower ceilings but why did that happened? For at least two reasons: first, to retain heat, since smaller rooms with lower ceilings and small windows are cosier and also easier to heat; secondly (and most importantly), peasant houses were usually not planned and then built by architects or expert craftsmen like in towns and cities, so what happened is that some houses were smaller than they should be because of lack of planning, which resulted in some unsatisfactory results and imperfections. Besides, in some peasant houses and even townhouses the living room was the only room heated (not with a fireplace but with the kitchen oven, which was in the adjacent kitchen but the oven was attached to the wall that divided both rooms and had a hopening which allowed tha living room to be heated), this was generally the only room which was smaller with walls made of wooden planks for insulation and lower ceilings (while the rest of the house had whitewashed wattle and daub walls). Nonetheless, planed or not planed, most rural houses had many things in common like whitewashed wattle and daub walls, timber framing (skeleton of the house), small unglazed windows, externally attached-lap-jointed-braces (core visual element) and a three compartment division.
Historian also explain that, as the medieval period progresses, there were more peasant houses with roofs made of wooden shingles or even clay tiles, just like town houses, also due to the fact clay was and still is abundant in this region, so it was mined extensively and, therefore, it was quite cheap. Many villages and towns at this time and in this region had at least one church, even if it was wooden (it was never a hut), and many of these churches were either Romanesque, Gothic or a combination of both (it could be a church built in the Romanesque style but some parts of which were built or altered later in the Gothic style). There were also hamlets or small villages who didn't have any churches nor chapels, but they could have had small wayside stone shrines, which were usually placed on the side of the main roads (they served as a reminder that God is everywhere and he is watching you, so you wouldn't feel isolated or alone wherever you were: they would be built in the absence of a religious building or placed on the side of roads that connected villages/towns or in trade routes).
We all know the Middle Ages is a period of about 1000 years, but we are talking about the second half of the 14th century, not the 10th century, these are remotely different times. I also know that this historian is english and he is probably an expert of medieval history of Great Britain, but I still think he should not generalise so much and make oversimplified comments such as stating that peasants lived in huts throughout Europe. In the 14th century, most peasants lived in houses, not huts, including in England. The only people who lived in huts at this point in time were charcoal burners, some hunters, foragers, herbalists and construction workers (masons, carpenters and other craftsmen who worked in construction sites built temporary huts or even tents and small encampments). If he explicitly mentioned that it was common for peasants to live in huts in the Early Middle Ages, then it would be more correct, but there are also evidences of houses from this period in other regions, such as viking houses from the 8th and 9th centuries. Rural, secular and religious architecure changed throughout centuries and varied across regions. Nowadays, you can clearly distinguish a rural czech house from a rural french house, and even inside France there are differences between houses from Alsace and Aquitaine, and the same is applied to the Middle Ages. Also, in the Early Middle Ages rural buildings were usually more primitive than their successors centuries later, so claiming that peasants in the Middle Ages lived in huts is imprecise and innaccurate, not to mention the regional variations. If you found all this information interesting then you'll find more on these links down below:
th-cam.com/video/SshCvLZKGa0/w-d-xo.html
twitter.com/JakobMunsberg
twitter.com/ClippyMagic
geschichtsfenster.de
www.youtube.com/@Geschichtsfenster
th-cam.com/video/m6qVKwP5-wg/w-d-xo.html
freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
Indeed. Leaving a comment so hopefully this'll get pushed further to the top.
yes I agree it became like that but I think it very unlikely peasants began a vill with 100 ox carts of oak to build those structures. Much more likely that they started small and over the years rebuilt into what we see here as do allmost settlements breaking new land. However if there's evidence they had the time and money to initially build those large structures then I happy to learn. Same with churches. What we see in the record generally is places starting small and modest and growing over the years. Maybe this is a uniquely different situation?
@@ModernKnight Exactly, when settling new lands, like during the german colonization towards east, villages were built more modest and primitive and then they were upgraded or even extended if necessary, but that didn't happened in Franconia, since this region was not slav but german and part of the Holy Roman Empire for many centuries, the villages, towns and cities were already established and there was no untammed land to settle. However, in Manor Lords you start the game in an empty land in the 14th century in a fictional place inspired by Franconia, it was a liberty taken by the developer, but in future updates there will be AI enemies and they will grow their own settlements in adjacent territories. Btw, the open-air museum in Bad Windsheim, in Bavaria, has some really good reconstructions and was recommended by historical advisers (some of them actually work there). You can see here one of the reconstructions and the whole process, I think this one is supposed to be a late medieval bathouse:
freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
Timber-framed houses in Wolframs-Eschenbach are almost identical as lvl 3 burgage plot :)
Very well spoken!
Big fan of Jason and I'm also LOVING Manor Lords so far! What a time to be a medieval-loving gamer!
KCD2 too. Medieval fans are eating good
England: The government give us permission to use the land behind our rented house to grow a garden
USA: Bought a house for $200k that came with a 20 acre backyard, might install a pool and a pond to stock for fishing
What a contrast in individual freedoms.
It really is.
@@joebenson528 Got very little to do with 'freedom' and a whole lot more to do with land scarcity.
@@joebenson528 If I had that kind of land, I wouldn't install a pool, but would get a fishing pond. I would have to also be close to a wood/forest. Part of my land would have a garden and an orchard as well as berry bushes. :sigh: Once can only dream...
Thanks again to Jason for joining us on this episode! Remember to visit his channel for more deep dives into medieval life and history! th-cam.com/users/ModernHistoryTV
And feel free to critique the aesthetics of my town in the comments 😅
I see those models in the cabinet. What you got in there?
@@MatthewGDunlap Hah I have my Ork Freebooter Kill Team, a few Death Guard, my Dark Angels characters, my Eisenhorn model and a few AoS minis
Just here to bump Jason's channel! It's a real gem.
It was a great interview 👍
This man is one of my favorite youtubers. Nicest, smartest man that looks like a apple carving villain in a children’s movie.
I'm subbed to this guy and had no idea he was the CEO of Rebellion. That's crazy.
I watched his channel for years then one day I looked him up on wikipedia to see more of his background and was surprised he was ceo of a game company. Unexpected but very interesting.
11:10 I love the fact that the hunter drew back to his ear, rather than the corner of his mouth, like a modern archer would.
It's attention to little details that make a game like this.
"Well done the team that did it."
I agree, good job Greg.
so crazy to me still it beats out AAA studioss
I'm disappointed that they didn't mention this to him.
Watching to se what Jason may have missed.
Newer information indicates that as the medieval period progressed even many peasant houses started to have the three typical sections: Front/Solar, Hall, and Service sections. The service section could be a kitchen, but likely a byre/barn for some of the animals (back third of the house) with a loft above the front & service sections that could be chambers or storage as needed whereas the hall section would typically be open to the rafters and the building deliberately two stories with openings above the door for added light.
Older or poorer peasant housing would be more shack or shop like, with open rafters as without chimneys the smoke would gather up there, drive away the vermin, and act as a smoky larder. That was one of the main reasons for me to reply was the lack of chimneys in the older and poorer peasant huts, and thus potentially a roof opening(s) bringing in light but releasing the smoke
like they said the game is early access but would be nice to see if the dev start to tweak a little about that
We can all read Google articles..
@@snavisTM Sure, but the big difference is *actually* reading them.
as a medieval peasant, i thank you for giving us representation.
back to work
Thank you Jason Kingsley historian host of modern history TV and CEO of the video game studio rebellion for the insight into manor lords!
Regarding the houses... they are based on actual village houses etc. in southern germany. They are accurate for village houses and such for the timeframe and location the game is based on.
But he is right they are a quite big. I live in southern Germany. Some of the level two homes are as big as the former tannery i currently live in and thats the biggest historic house (1720) in my town. We have a few surviving single family homes from 1440 and they are really small. Even thought they are build with what is the "level 3" materials in the game. The height of a floor was barely 190cm and each floor had a maximum of 3 rooms that could barly fit a table and a few chairs maybe a bed. And they lived there with children and grandparents.
@@Zazu1337 No, he is wrong, the houses depicted are not too big, if they were any smaller they would be huts and in the 14th century most peasants lived in houses, not huts, including in England. The only people who lived in huts at this point in time were charcoal burners, some hunters, foragers, herbalists and construction workers (masons, carpenters and other craftsmen who worked in construction sites built temporary huts or just tents and small encampments). The example you gave from the area you live is not representative of all franconian peasant houses, since we have many other examples from other places in Franconia as well, such as the open-air museum in Bad Windsheim (where some historical advisers for the game actually work) that disprove your claim. However, you're not wrong that some houses were quite small or, more correctly, had lower ceilings but why did that happened? For at least two reasons: first, to retain heat, since smaller rooms with lower ceilings and small windows are cosier and also easier to heat; secondly (and most importantly), peasant houses were usually not planned and then built by architects or expert craftsmen like in towns and cities, so what happened is that some houses were smaller than they should be because of lack of planning, which resulted in some unsatisfactory results and imperfections. Besides, in some peasant houses and even townhouses the living room was the only room heated (not with a fireplace but with the kitchen oven, which was in the adjacent kitchen but the oven was attached to the wall that divided both rooms and had a hopening which allowed tha living room to be heated), this was generally the only room which was smaller with walls made of wooden planks for insulation and lower ceilings (while the rest of the house had whitewashed wattle and daub walls). Nonetheless, planed or not planed, most rural houses had many things in common like whitewashed wattle and daub walls, timber framing (skeleton of the house), small unglazed windows, externally attached-lap-jointed-braces (core visual element) and a three compartment division (like the bohemian houses depicted in KCD), and the houses depicted are NOT too big. For more information around this topic you might want to take a look at the Artbook DLC for Manor Lords, check out Jakob Münsberg Twitter profile (historical researcher who is responsible for the current artstyle of game) or Geschichtsfenster (has a youtube channel and is a historian who also collaborated with the developer):
th-cam.com/video/SshCvLZKGa0/w-d-xo.html
twitter.com/JakobMunsberg
twitter.com/ClippyMagic
www.youtube.com/@Geschichtsfenster
freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
Maybe he was referencing the situation of starting with nothing. It's easier to build a smaller home first, just for shelter. Especially if you are poor.
@@Laticia1990 Exactly, when settling new lands, like during the german colonization towards east, villages were built more modest and primitive and then they were upgraded or even extended if necessary, but that didn't happened in Franconia, since this region was not slav but german and part of the Holy Roman Empire for many centuries, the villages, towns and cities were already established and there was no untammed land to settle. However, in Manor Lords you start the game in an empty land in the 14th century in a fictional place inspired by Franconia, it was a liberty taken by the developer, but in future updates there will be AI enemies and they will grow their own settlements in adjacent territories. Btw, the open-air museum in Bad Windsheim, in Bavaria, has some really good reconstructions and was recommended by historical advisers (some of them actually work there). You can see here one of the reconstructions and the whole process, I think this one is supposed to be a late medieval bathouse:
freilandmuseum.de/entdecken/neuigkeiten-und-blogs?tx_news_pi1%5BoverwriteDemand%5D%5Bcategories%5D=89&cHash=bb2a6ce4ee11c7aba6cbb816f0e7de52
@@Zazu1337 Maybe the level 1 houses are a bit big, but the level 2 houses have artisans (i.e. include workshop space) and the level 3 ones house 2 families.
Could we possibly get an uncut version of this talk? I've heard that there was quite a bit more and I would love to hear all of it.
In any case, thank you so much for setting this up, it's really fun!
Insightful as ever.
I love having 24/7 access to knowledge.
Best era to be alive indeed.
10/10, the dude is passionate about Medieval history and you can tell. great video
The way modern foresters estimate the deer population is by fencing in a very small area of the forest and let the saplings / plants there grow. Deer normally eat saplings which prevents trees from developing. Then you can compare the new tree growth outside and inside the fence.
He should do Kingdom Come:Deliverance as well.
They'll probably get him for the sequel now that it's announced
@@pppppffffffmmmmmmmnn totally! im excited
Yay, three-field system FTW!:D And an allusion to the Morgan's Bible's illustrations (people's attire while working in the field), great stuff:)
Great to see Jason here- honestly, I'd love to see more "medievalist reacts" to either historically-located or just fantasy games, but from more of the everyday life perspective! Arms and armour are awesome, and that's what gets the crowds attention, but the everyday life often gets overlooked.
I know it's a really niche subject, but there's hope:)
The guest is so knowledgeable & well-spoken, love how enthusiastic he is about everything too. One of the better guests I've seen on here!
I think some of these criticisms do stem from Kindsley mainly being knowledgable on medieval England while the game is set in 14th century Franonia, Germany. For instance on taverns. Not sure on England but in 14th century Germany taverns and hostels were absolutely a thing (again) even in some villages. Taverns could even be found in smaller villages on occasion but nowhere near as commonly as depicted in fantasy yes. So it's not really "fantasy" to be able to build one and not out of place in a sizeable 14th century franconian village.
made me question his expertise. He seems to not even be enough of an expert to realise that medieval england in the 14th century is different then medieval middle-europe in the 14th century.
His statement that "medieval warfare was pontentially worse then modern warfare, because you had to get close" was very weird as well.
Most people ive talked with prefer the face to face, in comparison to sitting in your trench with the chance of randomly dying because of artillery, or a rifle-bullet wich you cannot even see.
Especially when we take a look at how modern citys look after modern warfare... the destruction of modern warfare is without comparison and yet the "medieval expert" is sitting here, unironically saying that medieval warfare was potentially worse, because you went face to face...
I feel like this kind of collaboration has great potential for classrooms. Getting a genuinely qualified historian...especially one who does living history work like Jason.. to comment on games (all periods) could really bring the subject to life and pull kids in.
Jason Kingsley`s knowledge is unreal.... unlecturing delivery makes it a joy to listen to
I feel like Jason should combine his passions and do a medieval game himself! He clearly knows a lot and I think the realism would be epic.
Just a tidbit, but the occasional mutation in Oak trees can produce relatively nice tasting acorns, unfortunately this is complex and fairly random mutation not easily bred into the next generation of oak trees (which is why the Oak was never properly domesticated)
I cannot comment a lot on the various aspects of architecture, housing, alehouses etc which are outside of my area of research. That being said I am one of the advisors which deals with the material culture of this game, primarily the weapons and armour. To begin with it's important to point out that this game is squarely set in the late 1300s, which is very important to the context of how much weaponry you'd expect to see on the average person. In this period we're talking about a society in which lots of industries have established themselves, technology has progressed a lot in terms of metalworking et cetera.
The progression in Manor Lords is not meant to represent just a village, but as the game goes along you expand and build up the village into a proper town, and eventually you might even reach a size large enough to be called a city. The requirements for equipment on the militia were in the late medieval period pretty strict and also a lot higher than compared to the earier periods. There were standards on weaponry that each household had to own and maintain, and in some places the quality and amount of this equipment was tied to the value of your land. In the game this is represented by making it so that each new level of housing makes the militia equip themselves with even better armour - provided of course there is the industry and production set up to source it.
Swords were extremely common in this period. From the 12-13th century onwards we see swords as being very common requirements for militia to have, and we have lists of purhases that show that their prices could be very low. In some towns all militia are required to own and maintain swords, alongside their other equipment. This is why they're prevalent among the militia in this game, and honestly they're possibly less common in the game than they'd be in reality. Of course in reality you wouldn't have 'sword units' as separate thing to 'polearm units', as people would simply be required to bring both a polearm and a sword or other sidearm (usually if an alternative to a sword is allowed it tends to be an axe), but this split was done for gameplay purposes.
Hunting was more common than you said. Dad was working on excavations in Olomouc, czech republic. They discovered old well, which was used as dump. There were skeletons of many forest animals, supposedly there was a tanner or butcher living there. The sheer quantity suggested that the meat was available for common folk. Just because noble owns the game, does not mean he does not send his people to hunt for him.
England had a lot of laws regarding the their forests and hunting since the Normans, perhaps this was different in Bohemia or Moravia?
I think noble's people sent for hunting on their own...
I couldn’t ask for a better interview for this game than him. He knows his medieval stuff. So glad he agreed to do this. ❤❤
oh hes great. Been watching him for years now AND hes published some historical fiction books or his friends have? and they are kinda good no lie
what books do you recommend from him?
@@KyleNelson89 he wrote a self help book but he publishes a series: Toby Venables
Knight of Shadows: A Guy of Gisburne Novel (Hunter of Sherwood Book 1)
Jason seems like an absolutely lovely chap. I could listen to him talk for hours.
I've recently been getting recommendations for Jason's channel and I've watched a few medieval peasant videos and only just learning he's the CEO of Rebellion came as a massive shock.
he also owns the rights to Judge Dredd
@@davidrenton What an incredibly cool guy
Man I love this. The guy is an expert at Medieval stuff AND also understands that sometimes game devs will simplify something otherwise it would take days to get something totally accurate. The hand cart for example.
So cool to see Jason singing praises for another game so candidly as what could be considered as a 'competitor' as a CEO of another game dev company
What a wonderful guy
You couldn't ask for a better person to talk about this game than Jason. Modern History TV and CEO of a gaming company is well credentialed.
I always love when Jason is on the channel! I told myself I was going to wait for Manor Lords to get out of early access before diving in, but this video might make me break that promise. 😂👀
Modern History feels good to watch in just the way that watching a bunch of PBS specials as a kid felt good. It feels like an honest to goodness show. Inspired choice getting him to talk about this game.
Thank you for talking about the scale of battles.
This is something the game was bashed about because most people dont realize that this is the actual scape of battles in that period. Only a king could a afford an army of few thousand , small lord-> a couple hundred will be a luxury.
Love watching my favorite youtuber talk about my favorite game!! He should collab with Slavic and share ideas to make the medieval experience much more authentic!
Jason Kingsley is excellent, really passionate about medieval historical knowledge. He is a great resource and a national treasure to the United Kingdom and also the video game industry.
Always a pleasure to listen to Jason talking about medieval history! Modern History TV is a fantastic TH-cam channel!
This is the most informative bit of history I've watched. It's so great to see a good visualization of it in a very close to true form in this game. This game is so beautiful and well put together. I'm looking forward to its future and its clear goals of representing the real world as it was.
I remember a Duchy I built for an AD&D campaign, the cavalier subclass of fighter *had* to be a noble, and I wrote out how their house handled things like equipping their army. The Duke had a 'castle forge' that trained and apprenticed blacksmiths, usually selecting from orphaned youths. Do X years dishing out helms and shield bosses, making spearheads, etc. Those would be sold on "credit" to the soldiers, paid for out of reduced take of post-battle spoils. Example: if a green recruits 'share' of loot amounted to ten silver, they'd get a few silver pieces in pocket and the rest taken off the debt. There was usually a decent amount of loot because when the Duke's men weren't going out on a punitive operation, or supporting anti-piracy efforts, they were often 'rented out' to neighbors to support their own campaigns.
Was so bummed the computer I had all that on went kaput. It had trade and tax policies, the structure of the baronies under the Duke, etc.
I’m mostly blown away by the fact that the Modern History guy is a video game producer. 🤯
The team behind Manor Lords is one guy. Rebellion Developments has 600 employees. Makes you apreciate just what a sterling job Manor Lords sole Dev has done.
Yes, although it is also helpful that he has a very good historical advice team, which for example traveled to the Franconian regions of Germany and rly did their homework when it comes to even smaller details, like it having been a common thing to have the church tower above the alter, or half-hipped roofs in that region
"According to the publisher of Manor Lords, the team is a "solo developer plus contractors" (3D artists, animators, illustrators, concept designers, history consultants, game writers, etc.). Styczeń started working alone and as a hobby. Only after funding from Patreon and an Epic MegaGrant as well as the entry of Hooded Horse did he receive support in development. Whether Manor Lords can still be described as a solo project is a question of definition."
It's not one guy, it's one guy's vision and drive but a lot of other people's work. Contractors and employees are people too. None of which takes away from what a fun game it looks to be.
I mean he is not really one guy. The studio is technically just him but a lot of people worked on it.
Its one guys project. But nowadays its hard to estimate how many peoples work went into a game as final product, as there are plenty of purchasable third party assets and contractors. And main parts such as the engine itself, that was created by a very large team.
Cant tell you how stoked I am to see Jason on here!, I can't think of a better person for this
Didn't see it in the top comments and I guess it doesn't matter because it's 2 months ago but
The creator of Manor Lords very specifically says it is not meant to be historically accurate. Just thought I'd throw that out there.
So interesting, when you realize that this is essentially "school lesson" in which you are not bored, but quite opposite you feel passion about topic (while it is different to compare attention and priorities of 30+yo and kids... still i think this video may greatly interest&educate any schoolkid now).
Well done sir, awesome video :)
Sir Jason's channel is awesome. Well worth a look. Been a fan for years.
Jason is honestly the perfect guest for this type of series. He somehow has extensive expertise both with game design and medieval life. You could not get a better guest for this.
There is a yt’er One Proud Bavarian, who made an amazing manor lords series. He is also a historian who put historical realism into the game, I recommend checking him out if you enjoy medieval history
Whenever I need to be reminded of what an Ox is, I refer to this quote from the musical 1776 (Sadly, it's NOT a historical quote.):
"Nor would I, were I given the full rights of an Englishman. But to call me one without those rights is like calling an ox a bull. He's thankful for the honor, but he'd much rather have restored what's rightfully his." Benjamin Franklin, 1776.
This was wonderfully entertaining and brought a deeper depth to my gameplay. Thank you @modernknight
Acorn was eaten in medieval spain and mediterranean countries. When the wheat spoiled because of drought and cheap way to make bread were acorns.
Great looking game and this video taught me a lot about medieval life. Jason is a great educator. Good to see him involved here. Didn't realise he was a developer himself.
I highly respect you, however, you talking about Britain. This is Central Europe, where settling new areas did occur, primarily towards the east or in Sudetenland, among other regions. Such events were quite common in this period and geographic area.
What're you talking about? He didn't criticize the game for settling mechanics. Am I missing something?
The game, however, is based on Franconia, where this settling certainly wasn't the case.
@@surgeonsergio6839Jason is correct but about England, the game isn't set there. So some things will be a bit different.
Yes but there were already roads and "pagan" settlements there.
@@OCinneideNot in case of Sudetenland, this is why Czech kings invited Germans to settle the area.
I'm so addicted to this game, I already have over 70 hours played
I grew up watching LOTR, going to the ren fest, playing Zelda, so any time there are swords, leather boots, and hovels around, I'm here for it
Very good what he said. We must not forget that this is a German rural setting and that the sourcess he probably know are mostly english cities.
Firstly, spears are very cheap and if you have to go to war/combat, you do your best to get your hands on something decent. You would do anything to avoid having to go into battle with tools. Secondly, "the chances of having swords in the early Medieval Period is unlikely" is true, but our historian forgets that we are talking about the late fourteenth century, which is no longer the early Middle Ages (if i understood that right). and it is easy to forget that there were also rich peasants who, I would say, were very well equipped. I would also point out that according to the sources of the late Middle Ages, cities gave official information on what everyone had to have at hand as war equipment depending on their income.
And now to the point about smell, don't forget that people knew which flowers and herbs to plant to get good smells. People also believed that bad odours would make them ill, so they certainly did something about it.
But all in all, very good commentary and a good mediation of the situation at the time. (English is not my native tongue ;D )
Well, judging from what you've just written, he knows more than you.
@@JohnyG29 I'm not sure which part you're referring to, but I can certainly agree. He knows more about history. However, perhaps there are areas where I have knowledge he lacks, because the history of our world is too vast for one person ;).
important is not that special region but that it is the HRE (Holy Roman Empire), because that was the biggest hotspot and is the best prototype for the medieval world (just like today, thats also the reason why it is the most populated region in europe today, the biggest transit region, most infrastructure, most industry, it had most innovations, almost all renaissances happened here and so on) which connected not just different SubEmpires (like the Northern Italian cities and maritime trade empires as well as the Northern maritime trade empires - Hanseatic League (both were also the most wealthy sub empires) but is also the interface region which connected to the Slavic world as mixture. and due the most complex situation it also is on one hand representative for most of the medieval age and on the other hand represents the different rules/laws and infrastructures/structures the middle age had for different reasons (things like the different rights (market, Residential cities vs. 'Reichsstaedte' vs. 'free cities') etc.
@@kristencherrie9224 I don't know enought about Scotland, but in the Middle Area of the HRE (Bavaria and surroundings, Franken) where enought good Weapons, the Peasant Armys with Pitchforks where uncommon, the Army's had more Spears and Pikes and every little more wealthy Peasan could buy a Simple armour or sword/shield. The problems that Peasantarmy's mostly had, where lack of Cavalry and Commanders that know anything about tactics. A source i had found abount the Peasantarmy said that there military tactics where called "Pile or Heap" don't really know how to translate the source correct ^^ . And about the Claymore and armour facts i would recommend watching anything about historical reinactment, because I would deny that completely
Wow! This is the cross over that I never expected and am so happy that it happened! Thank you, Jason!
Oh, a good point about the smell. If that mechanic was to be implemented, it should probably come with the static wind direction. I don't know if it's a good idea from gameplay perspective, but absolutely fantastic in terms of immersion.
Jason is such an excellent communicator and all around great creator, I would really like to see more videos with him sharing his knowledge!
Just as a tip: you could also contact the scientists who are responsible for the depictions in the game.
I love Jason Kingsley's Modern History TV channel. I was looking to hearing what he has to say about Manor Lords. I would love to know what his take on KCD2 will be when it comes out later in the year.
I've watched Jason Kingsley's You Tube channel for years, and I find it interesting that Rebellion has never made a Medieval game, considering his knowledge of the Medieval world.
I love this man, he's awesome.
1:00 "... this period of medieval history, there weren't that many areas of wilderness and such" - fun fact, here on the mainland there were some places that were savaged to such a degree by invaders, that sometimes settlers from other places came over, and it was a bit like settling the Wild West!
Especially Eastern Europe experienced that with the Mongols.
Hmm, maybe not so "fun" fact.
He is great historian, but a bit Anglocentric, and the British Isles definitely weren't representative of the rest of Europe.
It is however some of the best documented. Granted the game is more Central to Eastern Europe inspired but a lot of crossover applies from Britain to the rest. @@CzechMirco
The game is very specifically set in the late 14th century, so you could also argue that it may depict re-settling of lands that have been abandoned during the plague epidemic and subsequent decline in population around 1350. I would agree on Jason being a bit anglocentric, it seems from the video that he did not know or wasn't told the game is very specifically set in the Franconia region in Germany as well. So some of his points didn't apply there, but as he didn't seem to be aware it can't really be held against him. Also this video was likely heavily cut down from a much longer commentary/conversation to focus on specific key points.
How well documented British history might be is not really relevant to this as the Franconia region was specifically chosen as setting for its wealth of sources for this time period, especially for architecture. Other regions in mainland Europe have just as much or even more sources available as Britain, they just might not be available in English.
Funnily enough one anachronism in the game is the use of bows in warfare, which was pretty much an English oddity at this point, while in the relevant areas in mainland Europe they had completely fallen out of use in favour of crossbows. So that is in fact one little English quirk that was incorrectly carried over.
@@porter-831 Actually a thing I would like the developer to include is ruins and abandonment. If buildings are destroyed or demolished they could leave behind some trace, the map could start with some small and scattered abandoned farms. Of course that's just a detail and a LOOONG way down on the list of priorities, but one day perhaps!
@@MartinTraXAA Occasionally, buildings like ruined windmills and granaries do spawn, but I'm not sure if you can rebuild on those plots of land
"Shoveling s#!t gets you fit".
@1:04 I can't agree. In Central and Eastern Europe the situation was different in the 12th-13th centuries, especially after the catastrophic Mongol invasion. Not counting a vivid internal migrations in this region, a numerous settlers were coming from relatively overpopulated German countries, brought by local princes (It was a socio-economic phenomenon that took place in Central and Eastern Europe, strongly shaping e.g. Polish principalities of XIIIc) Although such settlers mainly enriched the already existing infrastructure, they also developed wastelands, sometimes indeed of a primaveal nature. Even in Western Europe, a special role in this case was played by monks of the Cistercian order, who cleared forests with their own hands, being true pioneers. Cistercians also played an important role on the eastern regions of Latin Europe. The situation was particularly unique in the Teutonic state in Prussia, which can be considered a quasi-colonial state. The Order not only exterminated or Germanized the local Baltic population, but also brought in a large number of German and even Polish settlers, developing the wild forests and creating the basis for its economic power, which, thanks to its special legal and international position, translated into the military power of the Order.
This entire video was wonderful. I'm gonna follow this man's channel and play his videos as I upgrade my burgage plots haha. Extremely knowledgeable and entertaining.
have a berry
I don't normally watch this channel but I saw the modern cavalier himself and had to give this a watch.
Jonathan ferguson and now modernknight?? Gamespot has been on FIRE witht their decisions, high quality stuff which is both informative and entertaining!
I absolutely love Kingsley's channel ModernKnight ! That being said, if I'm not mistaken, he is not a historian in an academical sense (although I believe he studied zoology which also super cool). That doesn't invalidate his opinions in the slightest, but since it is mentionned in the title, intro and description, I felt it was worth pointing out for rigor's sake
He studies history, and he gets paid to give lectures on the subject, and his work is regularly reviewed by a number of peers in the field... He's probably on a par with most academic historians with regard to knowledge of his own, particular section of the field.
Acorns are delicious, especially from white and black oaks. Thing is, you have to grind it and soak out all the tannins before eating it or drying it for use as a flour. If it tasted bad, you didn't change the water enough when soaking out the tannins
Beer was also more safe to drink than water at the time, probably the biggest reason it was so widely consumed.
That’s just an old popular myth
@@gas4348 to make beer first you heat up water to boiling point killing the germs every time and then fermentation preserves it even more then stagnant water could if left in a bottle. wells usually were safe but they could become infected with rotten animals that fell in the well and got stuck. wells have been historical poisoned in times of war. drinking well water straight was clearly higher risk then any drink that requires boiling first.
I had no idea he was the CEO of Rebellion. GIBE ME MOAR AVP!
One tactic for battle I've found useful once you get enough men is two units of spearmen and two units of small arms men. Set the spearmen to defensive mode and let them take the brunt of the enemy charge, with the retinue and the axemen in the rear. Then circle them around behind the enemy and sandwich them.
never expected this crossover to happen, but it was a very pleasant one
I personally hope soldiers on horseback get added to the game, maybe added to retinues. It would open up battle maneuvers.
The banners and their usefulness was sort of a thing even as late as in WW2, even if they weren't actual banners anymore but similar kind of symbol markings in the vehicles. Especially that thing about coordination was very apparent in the (western) allied bombing champaings, where they painted the leading plane of each wing in bright colours, so the others knew whom to follow without resorting to radio signals (which would've revealed the incoming attack to the enemy).
I could listen to Jason Kingsley talk medieval history all day.
Minor nitpicking, D&D isn't really a setting, it's a set of rules.
It's like saying your favorite airplane is the laws of aerodynamics.
The various world settings like Forgotten Realms set the tone and realism.
17:30 positively delighted by the art work!! Looks much like or could even be actual medieval depictions…!
The other thing is the game requires you to produce everything in your town, whereas complex things (or arguably, most things) like armor would have been produced from afar in cities by guilds. There was a lot of trade in middle ages.
He's the CEO of Rebellion? I would have never have guessed that. His TH-cam channel is great.
This was great, bring Jason back for more of these!
Jason is amazing. Met him once at Rebellion. Good bloke.
Seeing Sir Jason doing that is especially interesting after seeing streams with the historical advisors. (In German, and the looks are based on Franconia in Southeast Germany, 14th century. IIRC even of real houses... presumably fro ma village, but that got never mentioned.)
hes looking through an english lense, thats the problem.
Very informative and useful. My vocabulary has increased playing this game:
burgage, morgan , gambison to mention a few.
Sir Jason Kingsley is an absolute pleasure to watch
I love Jason's channel, and so if he said this game has done a good job with the realism of the Medieval period, then it has.
The game had tons of historical advisors, they got the houses down to the wooden nails, same for the clothing. If you speak German i highly recommend the video series from Geschichtsfenster
Loving this! Great video and thanks to the historian 💪🏼
If I recall correctly, Border Barons (aka Marcher Lords) had more authority than anyone in the King's court (except for the King, of course), but even then, they still didn't have the authority to hold a market without the approval of the King.
"This is the 13th-14th century by the look of the clothes"
"Chances of the militia having swords in the early medieval period"
I know I'm missing something and if I knew what it would be really funny and that's enough
I am a simple peasant: I see my Lord Jason Kingsley, I press the like button as is my duty
This was great. Love Jason Kingsley. I had already bought the game, but this will help jump into it.