Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord has always been a sprawling sandbox of medieval mayhem—leading armies into chaotic battles, sieging castles, and carving out your empire amid Calradia’s endless wars. With the War Sails DLC, released on November 26, 2025, TaleWorlds Entertainment finally takes to the seas, introducing naval warfare, a new Viking-inspired Nord faction, reworked maps with oceans and rivers, and piracy mechanics. It’s an ambitious pivot that feels like Bannerlord 2.0, complete with a massive free base-game patch that overhauls economies, lighting, and quality-of-life features.
Naval Combat: Chaos on the Waves
The star of the show is ship-to-ship warfare, where fleets of up to 16 vessels clash with rams, ballistae, archers, and boarding actions. Maneuvering feels weighty and tactical—adjust sails for wind direction, row with oars for bursts of speed, and position for devastating broadsides or grapples that lead to deck-grinding melees reminiscent of land battles but confined to rocking hulls. Boarding via rope bridges turns fights into desperate scrambles, with warriors queuing up in hilarious, physics-straining piles. Upgrading ships with fire arrows, better rams, or more crew adds depth, and varied vessel types (longships for agility, frigates for firepower) encourage fleet composition strategy.
A short naval questline kicks things off post-tutorial, involving pirate rescues and blockade runs that showcase the system’s potential—like sailing a fire ship into an enemy fleet. Pirates patrol seas as tougher bandit clans, adding risk to trade routes and making sea travel a financial gamble without steady income.
The Bigger Picture: Expanded World, But Not Seamless
The map swells with seas carving new arteries, ports bustling with shipyards, and the Nords settling a northern landmass for Viking raids on distant foes. Economies shift with coastal trade hubs, letting you ferry spices or blockade enemies, breathing life into exploration. Mods like Diplomacy integrate smoothly, hinting at community fixes ahead.
Yet, it’s pure Bannerlord: ambitious but rough. Old saves are wiped for the map overhaul, forcing restarts. AI fumbles artillery and disengages poorly, ships float corpses and hulls, and rivers dead-end without ports. The Shipmaster skill demands endless grinding (level 225 for max fleets), and navies feel optional—kingdoms rarely leverage them beyond ferrying troops. Steam’s Mixed rating (59% positive) echoes gripes: buggy tutorials, shallow Nords, and “Eurojank” glitches like crashes and wonky physics.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Thrilling, tactical naval battles with boarding and fleet management | Buggy AI, floating glitches, and high skill grinds |
| Reworked map/economy expands trade, raids, and Nord faction | Requires new campaigns; navies often ignorable |
| Graphical upgrades and mod-friendly | Shallow pirates, demanding for newcomers |
Verdict: Essential for Veterans, Patch-Worthy for Others
War Sails nails the “more Bannerlord” formula—chaotic, emergent warfare now with salty spray—but its jank and grind hold it back from greatness. Critics average 78 on Metacritic, praising depth for fans while noting flavor gaps. If you’re deep in Calradia conquests, it’s a no-brainer at full $30 price; newcomers, grab the base game on sale first. Wait for patches if bugs scare you—Steam forums scream “refund and retry later.”
Score: 7.5/10 – A worthy voyage, but mind the reefs.
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