Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord: The best mods and how to install them - Game Guide

 Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord is a massive sandbox RPG with a large, active modding community. Are you looking for exciting new features or do you even want to completely change the game with total conversion mods? We introduce you to some of the best mods.

Install mods: a step-by-step guide

If it's a mod that's available on Steam, installing it is a breeze - provided you own Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord for the Steam platform.

Important: Many mods have other modifications as a basic requirement to be able to work. You can find these requirements on Nexus Mods under "Description" > "Requirements". On Steam, when you click the Subscribe button, you'll be presented with the requirements.

Installation of Steam mods

• Click on the game in your Steam library.
• Select "Workshop".
• Search the workshop for a mod of your choice and click on it.
• Select "Subscribe".
• The mod will be downloaded automatically if you have the game installed.
• Start the launcher from Steam and click Mods.
• Activate the mods of your choice here so that they are integrated into the game. If a mod cannot be activated, you have not fulfilled one of the requirements.

The Nexus Mods website offers an even wider range of modifications. To install mods on this website, we recommend downloading the in-house Vortex Mod Manager. However, you must first register before downloading. The advantage of a mod manager is that it uses a virtual file system, which means that the actual game files cannot be damaged.

Installation of Nexus mods

• Download the Vortex Mod Manager.
• Click Games in Vortex and type the installed video game you want to install mods for into the search bar.
• Once you have found the game, click on "Manage".
• Now search the Nexus Mods website for modifications that you want to install.
• If you click on a modification, "Vortex" should now appear next to "Download".
• Select "Slow Download" if you are not a premium user to download the mod for free (you may need to authorize Vortex to continue).
• The mods should install and activate automatically. Check this in the Vortex app (Mods > Enabled).
• Launch the game from Vortex and click Mods in the Bannerlord launcher to find all the mods installed. They must also be activated here.

The best mods for Mount & Blade 2

• Bannerlord Tweaks allows you to make significant adjustments to the gameplay. For example, you can change the troop limit for bandit hideouts, multiply the amount of experience points you receive via a multiplier, increase the fame earned after battles, or adjust the food production of settlements.

• Diplomacy finally allows you to conduct diplomacy with other factions. You can forge alliances, declare armistices or send messengers to distant princes or hikers.

• Dismemberment makes Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord even more brutal and now lets you sever body parts in battle.

• Improved Garrisons gives you more options for managing your castles and settlements and hands over some complex activities to the AI. For example, you have an influence on the recruitment and training of the garrison and get an insight into important statistics (such as food supplies) via a menu, which means that you don't have to be there all the time.

• The Realistic Battle Mod is designed to make battles more realistic. Weapon weight plays a bigger role, units try to parry and block more often, and troops try to stay in formation.

• Realm of Thrones is a "total conversion" mod that transforms Calradia into Westeros and Essos. Fans of the fantasy series Game of Thrones know what that means: In this mod, you can fight for the throne yourself or join one of the 19 kingdoms.

Not available at the moment but definitely worth checking out is Kingdoms of Arda. This is also a "total conversion" mod, which will not delight "Game of Thrones" fans, but "The Lord of the Rings" fans. Here the game world Calradia is transformed into Middle-earth. In addition to over 35 new factions, you should also be able to slip into the skin of an elf, dwarf, hobbit, orc, or Uruk.

Info: Since many mods have to be adjusted after each update, you may have to revert to a previous version of Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord. Luckily you can on Steam: Right-click on the game > Properties > Betas > Select a version.