Mount & Blade II
Could Mount & B lade I I: Bannerlord be 2017’s best RPG?
Our most comprehensive look yet at Bannerlord, the sequel to the massively popular Warband.
Mount & Blade is an unlikely success story of the kind that only really happens on PC. Awkward, weird, and not particularly pretty, it’s nonetheless a triumph of sandbox design. It mixes tactical combat, RPG progression, and strategic simulation, all in a sandbox world full of possibilities. In Mount & Blade: Warband, 2010’s standalone expansion, and easily the best game in the series, players are free to explore a massive, politically intriguing medieval kingdom.
Now, after years of waiting, a full sequel is on the way. TaleWorlds’ sizeable, dedicated fan base has been clamoring for Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord ever since its announcement back in 2012. It’s one of my most anticipated games of the year, and I’m excited to find out how it has progressed since the footage shown at last year’s PC Gamer Weekender. TaleWorlds doesn’t disappoint, and I get to watch as community manager Frank Elliott plays through an hour of a new campaign.
A new character, Yasmin, is created. She’s spawned into the Southern Empire—a once mighty imperial power, now on the brink of collapse. Bannerlord is set 200 years before Warband, and depicts the early days of some of this world’s great powers. Despite the fictional nations, this is no fantasy land. Weapons, armor, and architecture are all designed to resemble historical equivalents from between 600 and 1100 AD.
Character creation is skipped in the demo—TaleWorlds has previously shown off the creation sliders, but isn’t ready to detail the full extent of customization. Needless to say, there should be plenty of options, including new builds that are part of an improved progression system. “Bannerlord’s skill system builds upon what we had in Warband,” says CEO Armagan Yavuz, “but it is vastly improved, and in many ways much deeper and more fun. We have traits, skills, and perks that work together in an interesting and unique way. Each skill has its own kind of XP category, and is exercised individually. For example, you improve the Tracking skill by finding older and more difficult to find tracks.”
Entering the nearby city of Syronaea, Yasmin goes looking for a job. As in Warband, settlements can be traversed on foot, or via a menu. You’re free to explore each town, village, and castle, or, if you’re in a hurry, instantly access essential services. New for Bannerlord, important NPCs can be accessed through the menu, teleporting you to their location to instantly pick up a quest.
Settlements are also where you expand your army. This is an important part of Mount & Blade. You can travel alone, but you’ll be at the mercy of bandits and rival factions. It’s better to have at least a small band of troops.
In Warband, you could visit villages and attempt to rally volunteers to your cause. In Bannerlord, troops are provided by important NPCs. The better your relationship with that person, the more soldiers you’ll receive for your gold. Of course, each major NPC has different desires and allegiances, and working with one may put you at odds with another. Bannerlord isn’t just about building alliances with the people you meet. In most situations you’ll be picking a side, and that will have effects both on the specific people involved, and the population at large.
allies and alleys
As a new character with no notoriety, Yasmin is only able to acquire a single soldier per each 100 gold she pays. She nevertheless hires a few troops, and accepts a quest from Suterios the Sutler, a local merchant. He has a problem with a local gang of smugglers, who have taken over an alley that could otherwise be used for legitimate market stalls. Yasmin is tasked with clearing them out. This quest ties into what Yavuz describes as a desire to make towns more interesting by adding “opportunities for you to get into trouble.” Towns and villages have back alleys and other areas of interest that are a point of conflict. The controlling faction can change based on your actions—it’s even possible to take ownership of them yourself.
Yasmin’s new troops can’t enter the settlement. Instead, Yasmin heads to the nearby tavern to find mercenaries for hire. These, as in Warband, are named companions with a backstory and special traits. Yasmin chooses Garitops the Golden, a heavy-set cavalryman, and Urios the Bull, a heavy-set swordsman. Less than ten minutes in, and she already has a type.
Yasmin has them follow her to the alley. As she approaches, the smugglers stand up for their turf. It’s the usual tough talk between two sides, but the smugglers reveal they are friends with the Oath Keepers—a local syndicate. They give Yasmin the option to switch sides—betraying Suterios and the merchants. “We are trying to make it so all quests have multiple ways to resolve them,” Yavuz tells me.
Because of its sandbox nature, the quests are procedurally generated around set templates. They can have a great effect on the story of your campaign, but no individual quest ever felt like a compelling story by itself. Not only is Bannerlord attempting to increase the complexity of these scenarios, but their generation is now based on what’s happening in the
Yasmin heads to the nearby tavern to find mercenaries for hire
world. That means you’ll only get a quest to hunt down bandits if a settlement has a bandit problem. Everything is tied more fully into the sandbox. That’s important, because the simulation is the story. The narrative emerges based on your actions. While there will be a more traditional story, it’s mostly optional, and designed to get players familiar with Bannerlord’s world and systems.
smugglers’ doom
Yasmin attacks the bandits. As in Warband, Bannerlord’s swordplay is about directional strikes and blocks. It’s not complicated, but does require some finesse. Your character’s stats have an effect, as do your weapons and armor, but most important is your own ability. No matter your experience or equipment, you’ve got a better chance of survival if you can avoid being hit.
With the smugglers dead, Yasmin hands over control of the alley to Suterios. Not only is she given a reward, and the chance to steal and sell the bandits’ loot, but the reputation increase means Suterios will now offer two volunteers per payment of 100 gold—doubling the basic rate. Pretty soon, Yasmin is leading a small army.
Getting to know an important NPC doesn’t just confer a recruitment bonus. Later in the game, your friends will offer extra services. “For example,” says Yavuz, “if you need to kidnap someone, that will be much easier if you have some friendly NPCs in the town. They open up opportunities for mischief.” The service is based on the type of NPC you befriend. “Merchant NPCs give you an advantage in trading. A gang leader can give you advantages in ‘special operations’,” Yavuz says.
Before leaving the town, Yasmin joins a local tournament. Arena tournaments were a feature of Warband, but they’ve been rebalanced so that each side is wielding the same equipment. In the first round, Yasmin, Urios, and two other fighters are up against a team that includes Garitrops the Golden. Yasmin wins, and, partnered with Urios, progresses through to a final round where they’re pitted head to head. Yasmin walks out the victor, and earns some expensivelooking armor for her efforts.
Tournaments, as in Warband, are just a small part of the bigger game, but feel important for the fantasy. For me, Mount & Blade finds a captivating midpoint between Skyrim and Crusader Kings II. The former is reflected by your freedom, and the ability to choose any role, from noble lord to fiendish bandit. But instead of a linear progression around set narratives, Mount & Blade’s story is emergent—a trade-off between your actions and that of the other AI characters. It feels grand in scope, but still lets you focus in on personal achievements and actions.
Victory achieved, Yasmin and her army leave the town. It’s here, on the world map, that the sandbox meets the simulation. On the map, you can see traders, knights, and bandits. One such group—a band of forest bandits— intercepts Yasmin as she journeys to a nearby castle. This triggers a dialogue scene in which the player can choose to fight, surrender, or negotiate. The bandits are tough, and the two sides are evenly matched. Not one to back down from a fight, Yasmin charges into battle.
You directly control your character at all times, whether fighting a handful of smugglers, or leading an army against a gang of bandits. The difference when fighting out in the world is the ability to command your troops. It’s a simple system, letting you give basic orders and place markers to