I think the biggest issue with rvr right now is that most meaningful objectives naturally pull everyone into the same place. Once a warband or blob forms, the best way to contribute is usually just to join it.
I would love to see more objectives specifically designed around solo players and small groups, where you can have a meaningful impact on the campaign without needing 24-72 people behind you.
Here are some ideas:
Skaven Tunnels / Sewer Networks
Add underground tunnel networks throughout certain rvr lakes, perhaps using skaven tunnels found in badlands/barak var, shadowlands etc. Using these tunnels will take you to a separate instance.
These areas would be specifically designed for small groups, with a maximum of around six players able to enter together.
The tunnels could function almost like small mazes with multiple entrances and exits. Some could lead near BOs, around common chokepoints, close to keeps, or even behind enemy positions.
Inside you could have:
• Small pve encounters
• traps
• hidden supply caches
• battle objectives
• Alternate routes through the zone
• Enemy players using the tunnels for the same purpose
The main idea is to give small groups another way to move around the battlefield. It would also create an entirely different type of PvP environment where small groups might bump into each other underground.
Hidden Keep Tunnels/Sappers
During an active keep siege, additional hidden tunnels could become available around the keep.
These would be separate from the normal postern entrances and would only allow a limited number of players through at a time.
The tunnels should not allow a small group to bypass the entire siege and capture the keep themselves. Instead, they would give small groups opportunities to support the larger battle.
A keg bomb can be placed at the end of the tunnel – which the attackers must destroy. Destroying this bomb will deal x% amount of damage to the keep doors.
Defenders could also enter the tunnels to hunt down infiltrators.
This creates a little side battle happening underneath or around the main siege. While the warbands are fighting at the doors, six-man groups could be fighting over control of the tunnels.
BO Recaptures Affect Keep Sieges
Battle Objectives should become much more important during an active siege.
Right now, once the siege begins, most players naturally move toward the keep. Instead, the attacking realm should have a reason to continue defending the surrounding BOs.
For example, if defenders successfully recapture a BO during a siege:
• Keep doors slowly regenerate health
• Defender NPCs become stronger
• Keep defenses receive temporary buffs
The effect should be meaningful, but not so powerful that one BO instantly resets an entire siege.
This creates an important strategic choice.
Do attackers keep everyone at the keep doors, or do they spread groups around the zone to protect their BOs?
At the same time, defenders suddenly have options beyond sitting inside the keep waiting for the doors to fall.
Small groups could leave through the postern, sneak across the zone, and attempt to recapture BOs to buy their realm more time.
Supply Caravans
NPC supply caravans could periodically travel through the RvR lakes.
Enemy players could ambush the caravan and destroy it. Once destroyed, the caravan might drop something like six to nine supply boxes that players can pick up and carry.
Now you have a small dynamic objective forming naturally.
Because the caravans are constantly moving, these fights would happen in different areas of the zone instead of always around the same BOs.
It would also give roaming groups something useful to hunt while looking for fights.
Wounded Commander Escort / Assassination Mission
Occasionally, a wounded commander or important NPC could spawn somewhere in the RvR lake.
One realm receives an objective to locate and escort the commander back to safety.
Possible destinations could include:
• A keep
• A warcamp
• A Battle Objective
The opposing realm receives the opposite mission: locate and kill the commander before they reach safety.
The commander should move relatively slowly, forcing the escorting group to protect them while traveling across the zone.
Successfully completing the escort/assassination could provide a temporary bonus such as:
• Increased morale generation
• Additional renown
• Crests
This could create some really fun spontaneous fights where two small groups suddenly collide over an NPC moving across the battlefield.
Skaven Incursions
Skaven forces could occasionally emerge and attack Battle Objectives.
These events would be relatively small and designed for solo players or small groups rather than full warbands.
If nobody responds to the incursion:
• The BO eventually becomes neutral
• Supply generation stops
• Any associated strategic bonuses disappear
Players would then need to clear the Skaven forces and reclaim the objective.
The important thing is that these events should happen unpredictably.
A realm that completely abandons the rest of the zone to stack 100 players at a keep might suddenly find two of its BOs under attack.
Now someone has to leave the blob and deal with the problem.
It also gives smaller groups something meaningful to do while roaming around the zone.
Bounty System
Players who build up significant kill streaks could become bounty targets.
The system should not reveal their exact position. Instead, it could show an approximate area or update their location periodically.
For example:
"An enemy champion has been spotted near the northern ruins."
Players who hunt down and kill the bounty target could receive:
• bonus renown
• additional currency
• titles
• cosmetics?
The player carrying the bounty could also receive increasing rewards the longer they survive.
Battlefield Relics
Temporary relics could randomly appear throughout the RvR lake.
Once picked up, the player carrying the relic would have to return it to a keep, BO, or warcamp.
However, carrying the relic comes with disadvantages.
The carrier:
• Cannot mount
• Has their location revealed
• Moves slightly slower
• Becomes a valuable target
This creates a moving PvP objective.
A solo player might discover the relic, but suddenly they need help getting it home.
Small groups might form around protecting the carrier.
Enemy players might try to intercept them.
If the carrier dies, the relic drops and can be picked up by anyone.
Sabotaged Supplies
Players could purchase something like Supply Poison or Sabotage Kits from the quartermaster.
The item would allow a player to tamper with an enemy supply box.
Using the sabotage item should require a short channel time so there is some risk involved.
Once sabotaged, the supply box would visually appear normal to the enemy.
If the enemy unknowingly delivers that supply box to their keep or warcamp, it would have the opposite effect of normal supplies.
There would obviously need to be limits so players could not completely destroy a keep's progress using dozens of poisoned boxes.
You could also introduce a way to inspect or cleanse suspicious supplies, creating another layer to the system.
This would give solo players and stealth classes another form of guerrilla warfare.
Instead of killing 30 players, maybe one Witch Hunter or Witch Elf sneaks behind enemy lines, sabotages several supply crates, and quietly causes problems for the enemy logistics network.
Realm Recon System
Solo players could purchase a Scrying Orb from the quartermaster.
The player travels to a location in the RvR lake and begins a 60-second channel to deploy it.
The channel leaves the player vulnerable, so attempting to scout deep behind enemy lines carries some risk.
Once successfully placed, the orb provides temporary reconnaissance information about the surrounding area.
It might reveal:
• Approximate number of enemy players
• General direction of enemy movement
• Whether a warband-sized force recently passed through
The information could then appear temporarily on the realm map.
The orb should not provide perfect real-time tracking. The goal is intelligence, not radar.
Enemy players could also discover and destroy deployed scrying orbs.
This would give solo players an actual scouting role within the campaign.
The General Idea
The goal with all of these systems is not to replace warband gameplay. Large battles and keep sieges should obviously remain the centerpiece of RvR.
Importantly - some of these systems actually exist in areas like LOTD, SCs, RVR lakes, city sieges.
The goal is to create parallel objectives.
Warbands fight the main battle.
Six-man groups fight over logistics, tunnels, caravans, BOs, escorts, and sabotage.
Solo players scout, hunt bounties, intercept supplies, sabotage logistics, and discover objectives.
All of these activities would still feed back into the same RvR campaign.
I think that would make the lakes feel much more alive. Instead of one giant fight happening in one corner of the map while 80 percent of the zone is empty, you would have smaller battles and objectives happening everywhere.
And most importantly, when you log in without a warband, you would still feel like there are things you can do that actually matter.
Thanks!
