Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord - Overview, Factions, Gameplay, Skill Tree, Clan Management, System Requirement, more

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Released on March 30 in Early Access.
Platforms: PC (PS and Xbox on full release)

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System requirements:

MINIMUM:
Processor: Intel® Core™ i3-8100 / AMD Ryzen™ 3 1200
Memory: 6 GB RAM Graphics: Intel® UHD
Graphics: Intel® UHD Graphics 630 / NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 660 2GB / AMD Radeon™ HD 7850 2GB
Storage: 60 GB available space
Additional Notes: Integrated GPUs require additional 2GB of system RAM.

RECOMMENDED:
Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-9600K / AMD Ryzen™ 5 3600X
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1060 3GB / AMD Radeon™ RX 580
Storage: 60 GB available space


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Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord is a 1st/3rd person action-roleplaying sandbox experience that prides itself on letting us, the player, create our own stories and adventures. It is set on a fictional continent of Calradia, 210 years prior to the events of Mount & Blade: Warband (2008). The prequel drops us into a turbulent era within and surrounding the decaying Calradic Empire, where 8 major factions are vying for power, each with their own aspirations and views on how Calradia should be ruled. Their distinct cultures, architecture and combat specializations draw inspiration from their real world counterparts.


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There are 387 locations in total which you can visit: 53 towns, 67 castles and 267 villages

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The Aserai are desert peoples, who farm on osases, springs and shores of the Great Southern Lake. Their army is based on fast-moving medium spear cavalry and foot archers. The ones setting their sights on Aserai territory, must be first prepared to overcome the danger that is the Aseria desert. They are ruled by Unqid

The Battanians are woodland peoples from the North-West. Their army specializes in forest warfare and deadly ambush longbowmen. They are ruled by Caladog.

The Sturgians are fearless warriors and masters of hand-to-hand combat. Their armies are based on heavy infantry and are the ultimate siege troops. They can hold their own in siege defense and break through enemy barriers in siege offense. They are ruled by Raganvad.

The Khuzaits of the Khuzait Khanate are nomads who populate the Eastern steppe and specialize in mounted archery. Encountering them in open plains without proper counter-cavalry is not a good idea. They are ruled by Monchug.

The Vlandians are feudal peoples who specialize in heavy cavalry. They arrived to Calradia as mercenaries and adventurers. They were employed by the Calradic Empire and paid in land and titles, eventually settling down on the western coast of the Calradia continent. They are ruled by Derthert.

The once massive and powerful Calradic Empire has fallen into turmoil and a civil war broke out between 3 warring sub-factions. Western, Northern and Southern Calradic Empires are now at odds, with each one insisting their way of governing is the right way. They are ruled by Garios, Lucon and Rhaghea respectively. The armies of all three factions have a specialization in shock cavalry, with a good mix of heavy infantry and skilled archers.

Each of the aforementioned factions have different clans/families and smaller sub-factions within them. Bandits and looters roam the lands and attack anything and anyone weaker than themselves.



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You start your game by naming and customizing your character. You choose your backstory via different offered options for different stages of your character's life. The options you choose end up giving starting points to certain characters skills. After completing the character creation, you are thrust into the fascinating world of Calradia. You can complete the tutorial or opt out of it. There is a main quest which mainly serves as faint guideline towards the ultimate goal, which is gaining power within a kingdom or starting up your own.

The simulated sandbox economy system is there for you to influence. Take up the role of a trader, gauge local prices and travel between towns to offload your goods at a profit. Invest in workshops and caravans and become the ultimate entrepreneur. Become a mercenary and fight for coin or become a sworn vassal for one of the kingdoms, conquer land, marry into royalty, forge connections, become a king/queen and leave a lasting legacy to your children. These are some of the many playstyles possible.

Permadeath is a new and important addition to the game which can be enabled at the end of character creation. You can execute captured lords and rulers, but be careful; their families and friends won't be very forgiving if you find yourself on the wrong end of the stick, in this case; blade. If you get executed, you will assume the role of your children or companions.

As a vassal/ruler, you gain influence points and use them how you see fit. You can vote for new policies which add certain buffs to clans and nobles, or for awarding conquered settlements and summoning armies.

Sieges are expanded. Now before attacking a settlement, you can build and tactically place siege equipment and bring down walls before you enter combat. In siege combat, you can now use and fire heavy siege equipment. If you are defending, you can use defensive structures and weapons, burn down enemy siege towers, throw rocks on the heads of the attackers. Building a ram is crucial if you want to breach through the heavily defended walls.

Crafting is a brand new addition. You can craft your own weapon and assign a name to it. Crafting consumes materials and stamina. As you craft more and more, you'll gain more experience and be able to craft better quality weapons. Every weapon you craft enters the economy permanently. It has a price based on its quality and even if you lose it in battle, you can get it back by defeating the enemy that you lost it to. It can also be found as a tournament reward. Neat.

Combat is based on the directional system, meaning that by positioning your mouse left/right/up/down from the center, you can change the direction accordingly. The same is with blocking, where matching the angle of attack will block the attack (auto-block is rumored to return during the EA). Shield-bashing is introduced (same button as kick button)

Tournaments make a return and now are even more frequent. Other than placing a wager on yourself, you are able to win a reward if you come through on top. They also give experience points.

The skill system has been revamped. Now as you level up you gain focus points(1 per 1 lvl) and spend them on a skill which results in you learning that skill faster by playing a certain way/using a certain weapon. Every 3 levels, you gain 1 point which you can spend on one of the 6 attributes - VIGOR, CONTROL, ENDURANCE, CUNNING; SOCIAL and INTELLIGENCE. Assigning points to attributes further accelerates and expands the learning of a skill. As you learn a certain skill, you unlock perks which add bonuses to your character.

Skill Tree
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Clans are a brand new addition. Clans are a substitute for the family mechanic back in Warband. At the top left of the screen you can see your character(leader) and your clan banner which is customizable in-game (Bannerlord duh). There's a neat site where you can create a custom banner and paste it directly into the game.
You can expand your clan by hiring companions, which you can assign to clan roles, depending on their most prominent skills. You can also create new parties and form caravans which must be led by one of your companions. Each aspect of your clan can be monitored and controlled from this screen. As you level up, you will gain more slots for parties and caravan and thus further expand your clan's power.

Clan Management
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Kingdom diplomacy mechanics are not yet fully implemented. Following the main quest, you are able to start your own or join an existing kingdom. More to come

Latest patches/fixes:
Patch Notes e1.0.8 - TaleWorlds Entertainment
 

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