Donkey Crew are a team of experienced modders from all over the world who crafted what is easily the most ambitious mod for Mount & Blade: Warband, the “cRPG mod”.

For those unaware of the scope of their mod, it added a whole host of multiplayer options to the game, essentially creating what many fans considered to be an entirely different game.

Now they’ve taken their experience and their mod to build a standalone game, dubbed Melee: Battlegrounds. Featured above, you can view the game’s Kickstarter trailer in full high-definition.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxFaOat2_HU

Here are some of the key features that Donkey Crew is planning to have in the game:

• Medieval combat – The combat is intense, direct and personal. Every player brings their own style to the battlefield. Try to anticipate your foes’ actions – outmaneuver, outplay or outsmart them! The 360° attack/block system makes combat easy to learn, but impossible to master – there will always be something new to learn.
• Customize your character – There are no perfect weapons – you will have to figure out which one fits your playstyle the most. There are no predefined classes – pick whichever combination keeps you above ground and your foes six feet under.
• Upgrade your skills – Earn experience on the Battlegrounds. Unlock skills that allow you to enhance your fighting style and give you an advantage in combat. Use a clever combination of skills to strengthen your playstyle.
• Build Castles – Construct your own fortifications and castles with your team. Make sure you allocate your resources wisely, because building is only half of the fun…
• Use Siege Engines – The other half is wrecking them again. Take full control over Catapults, Trebuchets, Battering Rams, Siege Shields, Siege Towers, Ladders, Ballistas, Tunneling and a few crazy things you’ve probably never seen before. They sure were creative back then to get from point A to point B, especially with point B being walled in.
• Experience Massive Battles – The game can feature battles with over 200 players fighting against each other at the same time. Are you a lone wolf, or will you use the advantage of working as a team?
• Fight, Die, Learn – You will die – a lot. It’s part of the experience, so get used to it. A few of you may be gifted, but most will have to practice to become a renowned Battleground Warrior.

There are currently five different gameplay types for you to experience grueling medieval warfare from, and they vary pretty intensely.

• Battle is the biggest of them all. In a battle, you have only one life and you’ll fight on a team of dozens, if not hundreds, against another team of an equal size. This is clearly meant to mimic the grand scale battles of old, while reinforcing the feeling of tension by only giving you on life for that particular battle.
• Conquest is similar to a battle, only it shifts things up in making you focus on securing and holding various tactical points in a battleground.
• Duel is exactly as you’d expect it – you fight in a one versus one duel to test your skills with the blade (or what have you), but there’s also the option for group vs. group duels. There are three different types, which include practice, ranks, or bets. This is a perfect opportunity to master your weapon of choice, instead of getting annihilated in a grand scale battle.
• Siege is the ultimate conquest simulation in which you assemble an army, only to assault a castle in multiple stages. You’ll have to utilize the proper siege equipment to slowly whittle down a castle’s fortifications, and you’ll be enabled to attack your enemy’s castle from multiple vantage points.

Stronghold is probably the most exciting gameplay type, in my opinion. It’s easily the most ambitious of all the gameplay modes, and thusly Donkey Crew even provided a completely separate developer walkthrough to talk up what players can expect.

Think of it as a mix of the Stronghold series (or whatever medieval strategy game you prefer) and a modern medieval action game. You’ll have to create your own castle and army, only to launch an attack on your enemy’s keep later. This looks incredibly fun, and yet insanely deep and rewarding.

Just in case you’re not all that fond of playing online against other human beings, there is also an offline mode where you can play against bots. An option also exists to play single-player mods, all of which are playable offline.

Melee: Battlegrounds is currently an alpha build, running standalone from Mount & Blade Warband, and developed entirely in the developers’ own engine. If you want to back it on Kickstarter, head on over to their crowdfunding page.