Bannerlord 2‘s sprawling sandbox offers immense freedom, but its diplomacy system can often feel restrictive and frustrating. This article solves 3 problems that plague players: difficulty forming alliances, frustrating kingdom decisions, and the constant drain of influence. By understanding the underlying mechanics and employing strategic tactics, you can navigate the political landscape of Calradia with greater success.
One of the biggest frustrations is the difficulty in forging lasting alliances. You pour resources into improving relations, only to have a faction leader reject your proposals repeatedly. Here’s why, and what you can do about it:
Understanding the Root Cause: AI Logic and Relationship Caps
The AI doesn’t simply look at your relationship score. Many hidden factors influence their decision-making. These include their current war situation, their clan strength compared to yours, their overall strategic goals, and even their personality traits. Furthermore, relationships above a certain threshold (often around +30 or +40) provide diminishing returns on alliance proposals.
Practical Solution: Beyond Relationship Grinding
Stop solely focusing on gifting and charm-based interactions. Here are more effective methods:
- Target Clans, Not Just Leaders: Positive relationships with multiple influential clan leaders within a faction dramatically increase alliance success. Attend tournaments held in their territory, help them in battles, and consistently side with their proposals in kingdom decisions.
- Exploit War Weariness: Factions deeply entrenched in long, costly wars are far more likely to consider alliances. Monitor the map for factions suffering heavy losses and strategically time your proposals.
- Offer Strategic Advantages: Highlight the mutual benefits of an alliance. For example, offer to defend a vulnerable border region or provide military support against a shared enemy. Verbal promises are useless; demonstrable action speaks louder than words. Station troops near the area you promised to defend.
- Influence Their Council: If you’re already part of a kingdom, use your influence to sway council decisions in favor of alliances with specific factions.
My Experience: Building an Alliance with the Aserai
In my current campaign, I struggled to ally with the Aserai. Despite a +45 relationship with their Sultan, they consistently refused. I then shifted my focus to the influential Banu Sarran clan. I consistently aided them in battles against the Western Empire, gifted them workshops in captured cities, and supported their policies in the Aserai council. Within a few weeks, their opinion of my clan skyrocketed, and the alliance was secured almost effortlessly.
Kingdom decisions often feel arbitrary and detrimental to your interests. You pour influence into proposing beneficial policies, only to be overruled by other clans voting based on short-sighted gains or personal biases.
Why It Hurts: A Disconnect Between Effort and Reward
The primary issue is the perceived lack of impact your efforts have. You invest time and influence, but the system feels rigged against you.
Practical Solution: Mastering the Art of Political Maneuvering
Don’t rely solely on influence. Politics in Bannerlord 2 is a game of persuasion, manipulation, and strategic alliances.
- Form Coalitions: Identify like-minded clans within your kingdom and coordinate your votes. Consistent collaboration builds trust and ensures your proposals have a higher chance of success.
- Target Weak Links: Identify clans with low influence and try to sway their votes through persuasion or strategic gifts. A few key votes can make all the difference.
- The Power of Timing: Propose policies during periods of stability and prosperity. Clans are less likely to support drastic changes when things are going well. Avoid proposing controversial policies immediately after a major defeat or internal conflict.
- Understand Clan Cultures: Each culture has unique preferences in policies. Battanians, for example, will likely vote against policies that weaken their forest-based advantages. Sturgians will resist anything that hinders their use of snow.
- Strategic Gifts: Gifts alone are not enough, but are most effective when targetting a specific need (ie. if a clan has recently been raided, sending food supplies can be an effective way to increase support)
My Experience: Overturning a Harmful Policy
My kingdom initially adopted a policy that heavily taxed trade caravans, severely impacting my clan’s income. I knew I couldn’t overturn it alone. I began consistently supporting the interests of the Vlandian clans, gifting them horses and weaponry. I then formed an alliance with the Battanians, promising to support their territorial claims. With their combined votes, we successfully repealed the harmful trade tax policy.
Constantly losing influence through kingdom decisions, army mobilization, and other activities is a common complaint. It feels like you’re constantly fighting a losing battle to maintain your power.
The Core Problem: Unclear Sources and Inefficient Spending
Many players struggle to identify the primary sources of their influence drain and fail to utilize their influence effectively.
Practical Solution: Strategic Management and Conservation
Influence is a precious resource. Treat it as such.
- Minimize Army Mobilization: Only mobilize armies when absolutely necessary. The daily influence cost can be crippling. Consider relying more on your clan’s parties and garrisoned troops for smaller conflicts.
- Avoid Unnecessary Decisions: Don’t waste influence voting on trivial matters. Focus on decisions that directly impact your clan’s interests or the overall stability of the kingdom.
- Clan Tier Matters: Higher clan tiers naturally generate more influence. Focus on improving your clan’s renown and expanding your holdings to increase your daily influence gain.
- Governors: Governors with high Steward skills can generate more influence as well. Place skilled governors in important settlements to maximize income and influence.
- Influence-Boosting Policies: Prioritize policies that increase influence generation, even if they have minor drawbacks. A small boost to influence can make a huge difference in the long run.
- Charitable Donations: Gifting prisoners to lords or releasing them can gain you a small amount of influence, but it also gains you relationship points, which will pay off further down the line.
Table: Influence Sources and Management Tips
| Source of Influence | Management Tip |
|---|---|
| Clan Tier | Increase renown through battles, tournaments, and completing quests. |
| Settlements Owned | Improve settlement prosperity and security. Appoint skilled governors. |
| Policies Enacted | Prioritize influence-boosting policies. |
| Army Mobilization | Only mobilize when necessary. Rely on clan parties and garrisons for smaller tasks. |
| Kingdom Decisions | Strategically choose which decisions to participate in. Focus on matters of importance to your clan. |
| Governor Skills (Steward) | Appoint governors with high Steward skills in prosperous settlements. |
| Successful Charm/Persuasion Checks | Invest in charm skill. |
My Experience: Turning the Tide on Influence Loss
Initially, I was constantly struggling to maintain a positive influence balance. I realized I was wasting influence on minor kingdom decisions and frequently mobilizing armies for trivial conflicts. By focusing on clan tier progression, carefully managing army mobilization, and prioritizing influence-boosting policies, I was able to not only stabilize my influence but actually generate a surplus. This allowed me to exert greater control over kingdom decisions and shape Calradia to my liking.
In conclusion, mastering diplomacy in Bannerlord 2 requires understanding the underlying mechanics, employing strategic tactics, and making informed decisions. By focusing on building strong relationships, strategically maneuvering in kingdom politics, and carefully managing your influence, you can overcome these pain points and achieve your goals in the game.
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