After many years of waiting, Mount and Blade 2: Bannerlord is here. Bannerlord takes everything good about Warband and refines the concept. Massive, epic battles, physics-based combat, and endless character customization will keep you busy replaying the game through a seemingly endless parade of character concepts.
One of Mount & Blade 2 Bannerlord's strengths is that there isn't an answer for which concept is the best. Each choice you make will have tradeoffs, and there's an element of rock, paper scissors. Massed infantry destroys cavalry, but mounted archers laugh at infantry, at least until they run out of ammunition. Archers are vulnerable to the speed of cavalry…one good flanking attack can destroy an entire archer line.
In the single-player campaign, companions can cover for some of your weaknesses, but you're still going to want to be able to lead your army and stay alive during the insanity of battle. With that in mind, here are the top five choices that you can make to get started right.
5. Cultural Identity
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Battanians move fast.
When you first start the game, there will be a quick cutscene, and then you need to start making choices. First, you need to choose your culture.
In patch 1.6, cultures got some much-needed balancing. Each culture now has two positive traits and one negative trait. Battanians receive 50% less speed penalty and a 15% sight range bonus in forests.
There are forests across most of the map, and you will spend a large portion of the game chasing enemy armies. You'll feel like Napoleon, dividing and conquering your enemies, constantly finding yourself in the right spot at the right time.
The fastest armies use smaller numbers of high-tier mounted troops. You aren't limited to Battanian troops. Feel free to mix Aserai horse archers with Empire lancers and explore your perfect mix.
Higher-tier troops are incredibly beneficial. Smaller armies of elite troops move faster, die harder, have higher morale, and have the punch to slice through lower-tier troops like butter. The only disadvantage to higher-tier armies is that you have to pay them higher wages. Just focus on the trade skill to cure the financial pain.
Which to Choose:
Best: Battanians.
Runner up: Empire.
4. Character Backstory
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My parents were simple healers. I'm a killer. Such is life.
Character Backstory is where you will start making meaningful choices. Each Backstory choice will give you two focus points and one attribute point.
These selections shape your character over time by allowing faster growth and higher skill caps for your skills. For example, if you want to do massive melee damage, your character will want to raise Vigor and use focus points on one of the three melee skills.
The selections give you a broad mix of low levels rather than one good skill. Feel free to get some less used skills here. Primary skills will go up quickly during regular play.
You will earn focus points and attribute points during play. You will also get one focus point each time you level up and one attribute point for every three levels.
The most important thing is to focus. Do you need focus points in one-handed, two-handed, and polearms? Choose one and stick with it. You're going to want a mix of skills by endgame, but do try to focus.
Also, keep in mind that as the game progresses, the battles will become larger and larger. You can become a devastating engine of solo destruction, but there are limits.
Consider team skills like medicine to make your entire army fight better. The medicine skill is fantastic for keeping troops alive and healed up. Each level increases casualty survival by 0.01%, but you're looking for the 300th level perk Minister of Health. Your troops will get one hit point for every two skill points above 200 medicine skill. Amazing.
Which to Choose:
Best: Look for medicine, but most importantly, focus on a coherent build strategy instead of spreading yourself thin.
3. Melee Skills
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That's not going to feel good.
Polearms have long been Mount and Blade meta winners because of their incredible versatility. Need to stab someone on the castle walls without putting your beautiful skin in harm's way? Poke them from far away! Are you charging the enemy line on horseback? Couched lances are devastating!
You're going to have to make choices. There are 18 skills, with lots of perks in each skill. You can't get them all, so you will need to find a character concept.
Which to Choose:
Best: Polearms win for versatility.
2. Ranged Skills
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Your job as commander is not to get killed. Try not to mess it up.
The problem with dying is that your troops will notice, it lowers their morale, and then they run away. No matter how good you are with a sword, you're going to lose battles if you insist on sponging up arrows on the frontlines.
Taking a nice, comfortable sniper's position is a great way to help your army while keeping your skin whole and beautiful. Crossbows are Bannerlord's sniper rifle. Hard-hitting and with great accuracy, you outrange the enemy archers.
Which to Choose:
Best: Crossbows.
1. Non-Combat Skills
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Legendary swords and armor of awesomeness? Yes, please.
There are 11 non-combat skills, and each one is excellent. You really can't go wrong. Medicine, smithing, and steward completely change your game, though.
Medicine and steward pack a one-two punch on the battlefield, allowing larger armies while keeping them alive. Smithing is excellent for your commander and companions.
Medicine gives you a chance to turn troop deaths into knockouts instead. Tier 6 and Tier 7 units take a long time to train. With a high medicine skill level, many of the casualties you take in battle will turn out to be temporary.
Steward is great because having a larger army helps prevent groups of enemies from focusing down your shock troops. Steward allows larger armies and reduces their wages.
Smithing, on the other hand, has two critical benefits. First, you can craft high-quality goods and sell them. Easy money. Second, you can outfit your lord and companions with high-quality gear, turning them into unkillable engines of destruction.
Born with two right thumbs, Dan discovered an early talent for console gaming. He actually lived in an MMORPG for 2 years, and he has discovered numerous interesting uses for hot sauce.
