In Mount&Blade, war is the primary game mechanic. The end goal of every faction, as well as the player's goal should they found a faction in Warband, is to conquer all of Calradia. As a result, all factions are in an uneasy peace when not at war or in a truce. Wars do not last for a set number of days, and can even go on indefinitely. When a kingdom is at war with another, the marshall will frequently summon all vassals in a kingdom to go on campaign in which they besiege towns or castles or raid villages.
Reasons for Declaring War[]
Unlike the original Mount&Blade, in Warband, kingdoms declare war for a variety of reasons. They are as follows:
- In response to a border provocation: random events occur in-game that allows a faction to declare war against another with justification. For example, a notification will appear stating that farmers were killed in a dispute over the diversion of the river, making it easier for one faction to go to war with another. As a player, declaring war in response to a border provocation is the only way to go to war without losing honor. Note that ignoring provocations results in a loss of relation with certain lords. Martial (-2-3) and Sadistic (-7) lords in particular lose relation with their liege. This effect is global, and affects NPC kingdoms.
- Convinced vassals: If the player convinces a vassal to defect to another kingdom, this is treated as a provocation and will enable kingdoms to declare war against the player's.
- To regain lost territory: If a faction lost a fief to another during a war, the ruler may be anxious to reclaim it and thus declare war to get it back.
- Religious differences: If two kingdoms have different religions, they may declare war on each other out of distrust.
- Out of personal enmity: Two rulers may dislike each other personally and declare war on each other as a result. This can occur even when a faction is already at war with two others. When asking a town's Guild Master for a king's policy toward another faction (or if cheat menu is enabled and viewed on the Faction page), he will have a unique response for this situation: "{King} considers {enemy king} to be dangerous and untrustworthy, and {king} wants to bring him down," will appear if the faction is more powerful. If they are evenly matched to or weaker than the enemy faction, the Guild Master instead says, "{King} distrusts {enemy king}, and fears any deal struck between the two realms will not be kept." Uniquely, these wars go on much longer than any others, as the rulers detest and mistrust each other and are thus reluctant to make peace. They are also immensely difficult to end if the player is at war with a ruler who hates them.
- To control all of Calradia: if a faction is not only the strongest kingdom but significantly stronger than others, they may attack without pretext in order to control all of Calradia.
- To curb the other realm's power: a companion to declaring war to control Calradia, weaker kingdoms often declare war on the strongest if the latter is at war with another to curb their chances of controlling all of Calradia. In this situation, the Guild Master may say, "{King} is alarmed at the growing power of {enemy king}." Note that this is also an intended mechanic to prevent one faction from dominating all of Calradia without the player's involvement.
Prosecution of War[]
Wars are prosecuted in a variety of ways, with the main goal in every war being to conquer as much of the enemy's territory as possible, even all of it (though this is not possible in Native Warband absent the player's involvement), resulting in debellation, while minimizing losses or villages raided. Defeating enemy vassals will force the kingdom onto the defensive, as they need time to rebuild their armies if released (or escaped). Taking all lords prisoner and putting them in a town with a Prison Tower reduces their chances of escaping to 5% every two days, an effective way of crippling a kingdom's ability to make war.
NPC Campaigns[]
Compared to the player, NPC marshalls can appear incompetent. When the player directs a military campaign, they may focus on conquering towns and castles, quickly swallowing enemy territory before they have the opportunity to recover. This can result in such severe damage that an enemy is functionally powerless to resist further advances. NPC campaigns, however, often result in the conquering one or two towns before the campaign ends and the lords return home to collect their dues or attend a feast. As a result, this enables the enemy to recuperate and reconquer their lost territory. They can also waste time repeatedly raiding villages, doing war damage and hampering the enemy's economy but not dealing lasting, irrevocable damage. This can make evenly-matched factions appear as though they are not making any real progress in war.
As a ruler, an easy way to exploit this loop is to declare war when a faction is having a feast. All vassals will be in one place, enabling the player, if they can travel fast enough, to deal a crushing and decisive blow by besieging and conquering the fief they are at, causing all lords to spend time respawning and rebuilding their armies if not captured. This puts the enemy on the backfoot for the rest of the war as they constantly attempt to recoup at their remaining fiefs, only for the player to conquer them and destroy their progress.
NPC campaigns prioritize several factors in deciding which fief to besiege, such as proximity to other fiefs, the garrison, its overall value (which itself is determined by a variety of factors). They often target lost territory first, followed by the enemy king's court, then towns, and finally castles. Heavily garrisoned stolen territory or courts will dramatically slow the enemy, or force them to prioritize less valuable assets, such as castles, instead.
War Damage[]
Within Warband, there is a hidden mechanic called war damage. War damage determines who is winning a war and how soon a war may be brought to an end. Unless a faction is at war with three or more factions, it cannot be persuaded to make peace if the war damage to its enemy is under 100. When talking to the Guild Master, he will say, "{King} feels {he/she} must pursue the war against {enemy king} for a little while longer, for the sake of honor." However, if the kingdom is at war with three or more factions, peace is assured, and the Guild Master will say, "{King} is at war on too many fronts, and eager to make peace with {enemy king}."
War damage is accumulated in a variety of ways:
- A day passes in the war (1 point for both factions)
- Defeating a vassal in battle (10 points)
- Raiding a village (15 points)
- Besieging and taking a castle (60 points)
- Besieging and taking a town (120 points)
For NPC kingdoms, the amount of war damage dealt to each other when besieging is lessened. Besieging a castle or town results in 40 points of war damage for NPC kingdoms. All others are the same.
Because a faction will refuse to make peace unless war damage on their enemy is above 100, wars must last a certain period of time and a faction must either take a few losses, eradicate a faction, or allow the war to proceed for 100 days while taking no actual damage.
States of War[]
For players who choose to use Cheat Menu, all information, including war damage ratio, will be on the Faction page, but for players who prefer to play with it off, Guild Masters are helpful guides to gauging how far along a war is and if it can be brought to an end. Below are a number of responses the Guild Master may say in response to asking for a monarch's policy to another kingdom, along with what they indicate about the state of a war.
| Dialogue | Meaning | Make Peace? |
|---|---|---|
| {King} feels {he/she} must pursue the war against {enemy king} for a little while longer, for the sake of honor. | War damage on enemy under 100 | No |
| Even though {he/she} is fighting on two fronts, {king} is inclined to continue the war against {enemy king} for a little while longer, for the sake of honor. | At war with two factions; damage on enemies under 100 | No |
| {King} feels {he/she} is winning the war against {enemy king}, and sees no reason not to continue. | Lopsided war damage (high ratio inflicted vs. suffered) | No |
| {King} is frustrated by {his/her} inability to strike a decisive blow against {enemy king}. | War damage on enemy over 100, long time since last decisive event | Yes |
| {King} has suffered enough in the war with {enemy king}, for too little gain, and is ready to pursue a peace. | War damage on enemy over 100; even or losing WD ratio | Yes |
| {King} considers {enemy king} to be dangerous and untrustworthy, and {he/she} wants to bring {enemy king} down. | Negative relationship with enemy king, more powerful faction[1] | No |
| {King} distrusts {enemy king}, and fears any deal struck between the two realms will not be kept. | Negative relationship with enemy king, weaker or evenly-matched faction[2] | No |
| {King} is anxious to reclaim old lands such as {fief}, now held by {enemy king}. | Enemy faction has stolen a fief | Depends (war damage) |
| {King} is at war on too many fronts, and eager to make peace with {enemy king}. | At war with three or more factions | Yes (regardless of war damage) |
| {King} is currently on the offensive against {fief}, now held by {enemy king}, and reluctant to negotiate. | Attacking enemy fief | No |
| {King} is alarmed by the growing power of {enemy king}. | Enemy is strongest faction | Usually no (if war damage is very high, peace may be pursued) |
| {King} would like to firm up a truce with {enemy king} to respond to the threat from {second enemy faction}. | At war on two fronts; war damage on enemy above 100, losing WD ratio | Yes |
| {King} has no particular reason to continue the war against {enemy king} and would probably make peace if given the opportunity. | War damage on enemy above 100, either weaker faction or insufficient gains to justify war | Yes |
| {King} cannot negotiate with {claimant}, as to do so would undermine {his/her} own claim to the throne. This civil war must almost certainly end with the defeat of one side or another. | At war with claimant or rebellious player | No |
The Guild Master is also helpful for gauging whether a war will soon come during peacetime. Below are possible responses and their meanings:
| Dialogue | Meaning | War Likely? | War Likely With Provocation? |
|---|---|---|---|
| {King} seems to be willing to improve relations with {other king}. | No reason to declare war | No | Moderate possibility |
| {King} wishes to be at peace with {other king} so as to pursue the war against {enemy faction}. | At war with different faction that is not a common enemy or faction holds fief | No | Moderate possibility |
| {King} may attack {other king} without pretext, as a bid to extend control over all of Calradia. | Strongest faction, 30 point advantage over other faction | Yes | Strong possibility |
| {King} seems to think {other king} and {he/she} have a common enemy in {enemy faction}. | Both at war with same faction, no reason to declare war | No | Low possibility |
| {King} faces too much internal discontent to feel comfortable ignoring recent provocations by {other king}'s subjects. | Disgruntled and restless lords in faction, recently provoked | Yes | N/A |
| {King} seems to be intimidated by {other king}, and would like to avoid hostilities. | Other faction significantly stronger | No | Very low possibility |
| {King} is alarmed by the growing power of {other king}. | Potential enemy is strongest faction and already at war | Yes | Almost certain |
Vassals are also useful guides for assessing the progress of a war. In addition to the above dialogue, they will tell the player the war damage ratio through dialogue:
| Dialogue | Meaning |
|---|---|
| We've been hitting them very hard, and giving them little chance to recover. | War damage ratio at least 2; inflicted double the war damage suffered |
| The fighting's been hard, but we have definitely been getting the better of them. | Positive war damage ratio below 2 |
| The war has barely begun, so and it is too early to say who is winning and who is losing. | Both factions have war damage under 100 |
| No clear winner has yet emerged in the fighting, but I think we are getting the better of them. | War damage under 100, winning war damage ratio |
| No clear winner has yet emerged in the fighting, but I fear they may be getting the better of us. | War damage under 100, losing war damage ratio |
| Both sides have suffered in the fighting. | Even war damage ratio |
| The fighting has been hard, and I am afraid that we have been having the worst of it. | Losing WD ratio, WD over 100 |
| They have been hitting us very hard, and causing great suffering. | Catastrophic war damage ratio; double suffered than inflicted |
Effects of War[]
Although war is the primary game mechanic of Mount&Blade, it can have a number of deleterious and beneficial effects. Consequently, going to war constantly, or rapidly declaring war after one faction has been defeated, may be inadvisable. War necessitates careful consideration unless a player is in so strong a position that victory is assured.
Some potential negative effects of war in-game include:
- Loss of honor: declaring war without justification results in a loss in honor.
- Loss of relation: chivalrous lords (martial, good-natured, and upstanding) will become upset if war is declared without justification. This effect is global and affects both the player's vassals and other factions'.
- Lessened prosperity: during war, enemy vassals, particularly sadistic, pitiless, and bad-tempered lords, raid villages, destroying their prosperity and significantly penalizing the prosperity of nearby towns. Castles and towns also lose five points of prosperity when besieged.
- Destroyed trade: caravans will almost assuredly be attacked during war, meaning that trade can often become difficult. The result is that the prosperity of towns cannot regenerate as trade grinds to a halt.
- Captured and defeated vassals: when vassals are defeated in battle, they lose one point of relation with their liege. This affects both the player and NPC sovereigns. Vassals who are repeatedly beaten may become disgruntled over time.
- Loss of territory: the most obvious effect of war is that enemy factions will attempt to conquer each other's territories, which will weaken a kingdom.
Some potential positive effects of war in-game include:
- Gain of honor: declaring war with justification (a border provocation) results in an honor gain for the player.
- Gain of relation: similarly, declaring with in response to a provocation raises relation with martial, good-natured, and upstanding lords by 1.
- Crippling a faction's prosperity: war can often permanently reduce a faction's fighting ability for the rest of the game via village raiding and attacking caravans. Economic disaster will make it much more difficult for vassals to raise troops, and thus can quickly become a spiral of decreasing military might.
- Capturing vassals: war enables a player to remove troublesome vassals from the equation for a period of time, particularly if a Prisoner Tower has been built. An honorable player may wish to imprison bad-tempered and sadistic lords indefinitely, functionally removing them from the game. However, refusing a ransom offered for a prisoner results in a loss of honor, thus, dishonorable players may wish to remove honorable and chivalrous lords from the game.
- Expanding territory: as conquering Calradia is the primary goal of Mount&Blade, the most obvious benefit to war is the ability to besiege and conquer enemy territory. The more castles and towns are successfully stormed, the greater the war damage and more ineffective a fighting force the enemy becomes. This will multiply over time, as conquering all of one faction's territory will give a stronger advantage over other factions within the game.
Debellatio[]
Debellatio (or debellation) refers to the complete eradication of a hostile state through warfare. It is a game mechanic in Mount&Blade and the primary goal of every war within the game. This occurs when all vassals have been defeated and all of a faction's territory has been conquered. When a faction has no territory, vassals can no longer raise armies, and future resistance becomes futile. No minimum war damage is required for this to occur, and even if a faction is on the brink of destruction, a ruler will still refuse to make peace if war damage on their enemy is under 100. However, after a certain period of time of where all vassals are despawned and no territory remains, the player will receive a notification declaring that a faction is no more. The faction page is cleared out, and the king will leave the realm (they will cease to spawn).
After a period of time the defeated vassals will respawn, and they will all realign to a new kingdom unless they remain captive in a dungeon or a party. However, due to Mount&Blade's relations system, potential quirks exist following a faction's defeat. Even if a faction is defeated, the victor is still at "war" with the remnants of that faction, and as a result, NPC marshals will still begin campaigns. Parties of 1 may also travel across Calradia raiding enemy villages before they realign. This can also occur if the vassals respawn after all territory is conquered, but before the faction is declared vanquished. This may become obnoxious for the player, but in due time, all vassals will realign and this should cease to occur.
Trivia[]
- If a player attempts to make peace with a king who dislikes them in-person, the king will refuse and give a humorously unique reply: "Do you, {Player Name}?" Then go and fall on your sword. Give us all peace." However, the faction may still offer the player peace agreements when not in-person.
- There appears to be a bug where the pronoun in the phrase, "{King} considers {enemy king} to be dangerous and untrustworthy, and {he/she} wants to bring {enemy king} down" instead refers to the player's gender, not the king's.