How Will the Class System Work in Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord?

A new developer diary was recently held for Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord. The developer diary was mostly about the multiplayer class system and how the class system works mechanics wise. 

How Will the Class System Work in Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord

Here is what we learned in the diary:

We thought it was a good idea to talk about some of the multiplayer elements in detail while the game’s still in closed beta. On this week’s diary, we are gonna take a look at the multiplayer class system.

So what is the class system? Basically, it is the equipment and powers that you can predetermine for yourself before being generated into the world. In Bannerlord, these classes have been split into three categories: Infantry, Ranged and Cavalry.

Each class has its own set of strengths and weaknesses. Because of this, no one can class can be effective in every scenario. Some classes will always have better equipment than some others but this doesn’t mean that they will always show better performance and they will also have a higher resurrection penalty. With this approach, we hope to emphasize coordination, communication and synergy. Because of this, players can react to challenges in better experimental options.

Bannerlord also provides a quality system where if players desire, they are able to slightly adjust their equipment. Thanks to this, players can bend the classes to their own playstyle or counter the enemy team. This allows for players to not be severely disadvantaged and allow them to go on the offensive.

A system that’s being carried over from Warband but slightly adjusted is how gold works. In Bannerlord, points are used instead of gold. Instead of using them to buy equipment for your character, they are used to choose a class. Some game modes include resurrection and points not only matter for class but also for the number of times one can resurrect.

Thanks to these changes, the game is not so much about strength but about teamwork and coordination. We believe that this will prevent a snowball effect where the same team wins every single round, over and over. The matches start equally and this offers both teams a fair chance to win.

While determining the classes, we not only thought about the physical appearancesof the cultures they are inspired from but also their equipment and appropriate roles. This is why we thought that the strengths and weaknesses should be similar to that of said class’ culture. This design philosophy creates a diverse environment where the game feels alive and most of all, creating dynamic matches.

Generally, these changes push the skill based combat of the Mount & Blade games towards one more based on communication and cooperation, along with making it accessible and fair to everyone. With this system you are able to see everything your enemies can or can’t do, negating the development of meta trends not known to everyone. This creates a stable balanced environment.