TaleWorlds Entertainment announced yesterday that Mount & Blade Warband will get a new DLC called the Viking Conquest. The last bit of DLC for Mount & Blade Warband was the Napoleonic Wars DLC and this time it is going for the same amount of realism but set in the 8th century instead of the 19th century and will include a single player campaign. Viking Conquest will have a detailed Europe map, 300 locations, 21 kingdoms, 6 cultures, 200 historical characters, two religions, new battle systems, 15 companions, improved AI, siege warfare, new items and loads more.
Anyone who has played the Crusader Kings II: The Old Gods DLC and Mount & Blade Warband recently will know what the Viking Conquest DLC might be like. It will have similar Mount & Blade Warband gameplay and structure but feature more historical accuracy that games like Crusader Kings II provide.
From taleworlds.com: “From the creators of the popular “Brytenwalda” mod, we present to you “Viking Conquest”, an upcoming DLC for Mount & Blade Warband! This single and multi player DLC brings Mount & Blade to historical Dark Age Britain, complemented by authentic scenes and cultures. The DLC a story mode with a complex plot, where choices have real consequences, as well as a standard sandbox mode in an all new setting, with expanded options and controls. Online battling also takes on its own flavour, with special modes like Coastal Assault and Warlord.”
Screenshots:
(Click an image to see a larger version).
Mount & Blade Warband: Viking Conquest Features:
Campaign
- Living world that evolves around you, with historical and random events, as well as the actions of the player all contributing.
- Detailed map including the British Isles, Frisia, Denmark and Norway.
- More than 300 new cities, castles, villages and special scenes to discover, explore, conquer and plunder.
- Scenes, many based on archeological information, that allow the player to enjoy the true beauty of the Dark Ages.
- 21 Kingdoms and 6 unique cultures.
- More than 200 historical characters and 100 extra NPCs: Kings, Lords, Ladies, bards, priests and many others. Meet legendary figures like Ivar the Boneless or his bother Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye, royalty like Harald, later known as FairHair, or Aelfred of Wessex.
- A Dark and harsh world, where laws are weak and men forge legends.
- A story mode where the player will be part of a complex plot involving political conspiracy, during the time the sons of Ragnar were leading their Great Heathen Army through Britain. An immersive game style with choice and consequence, romance, betrayal, moments of greatness and ruin.
- A sandbox mode, the classic Mount&Blade system, where goals are determined by the player, but with all the richness and options offered by the new setting.
- A system of character creation complete with personality and background options that will affect how the player relates to the world around him and the characters within it.
- Completely new art work to immerse you like never before in the Viking world.
- More than 15 possible companions, with deep interaction and different personalities. Sometimes their conflicts will force you to use cunning and diplomacy.
- A complex religion system with two faiths, The Norse Gods and Christianity, with monasteries, special NPCs and parties. Religion will be an important factor in the game that will affect the player’s interactions even within their own party.
- Naval travel and warfare, a key feature to really make the setting complete.
- Build, buy and even name your own ships.
- Several historical types of boats: Langskip, Knorr, Snekkja, Karvi and more. Each has its own characteristics, which are also affected by the quality of the materials, with which it was constructed.
- Battles can range from simple robbery to massive naval conflicts between huge fleets laden with warriors, all in dynamic battles where you can pilot your own boat, adjusting for factors such as wind, waves, and weather.
- Coastal assault! You can lead your boat or your fleet in rapid assaults from the sea.
- And more: waves, storms, the option to create your own Viking expedition or hire a ship for travel.
- The option to build your own refuge, hire staff for it, and populate it with the family of your troops.
- A battle system based on what we know historically about warfare in the Viking Age.
- Morale and battle psychology
- Different kinds of troops: permanent companion soldiers or landed classes called to war for specific situations.
- Formations: Scildweall (shield wall), ranks, square, and wedge formations
- Tactic camera for an overview of the battlefield.
- Improved AI.
- Special units such as clerics, horn blowers, standard bearers and more.
- Wounds and critical hit system.
- Hundreds of new items, weapons and armors.
- Detailed siege warfare system, with options to reduce a defender by hunger or morale, or by direct assault. With hard choices, plagues and famines, coastal assaults.
- Immersive soundtrack and sounds.
- Several factions to choose from including Vikings, Saxons, Irish, Britons and Picts.
- Immersive multi player scenes.
- Massive multi player battles.
- Units/items with special capabilities are also present in multiplayer, along with berserk rage.
- Optional item Deadly Bow to transform any mode.
- Multitude of modes including dynamic sea battles, coastal assaults, warlords, deathmatch, team deathmatch, Capture the Flag, Conquest, Battle, and Siege.
Mount & Blade Warband: Napoleonic Wars was a good DLC but was only multiplayer, Mount & Blade Warband: Viking Conquest is offering both single player and multiplayer so it looks like it will provide more value for money. Also Napoleonic Wars was mostly focused on the use of ranged weapons and formations while Viking Conquest with have more traditional melee combat which I prefer.
I am looking forward to Mount & Blade Warband: Viking Conquest a lot as it looks like it could be something really special and will give me a good excuse to start playing Mount & Blade Warband again. There is plenty of mods and such that does similar things to this DLC already but sometimes a little more polish is all that is needed, Viking Conquest could be that bit of polish.
My other Mount & Blade: Warband posts:
- Mount & Blade Warband: Napoleonic Wars Version 1.005 is Available.
- Mount & Blade Warband: Napoleonic Wars Version 1.003 is Available.
- Mount & Blade: Warband Version 1.152 is Available.
- Mount & Blade: Warband Version 1.150 is Available.
- Mount & Blade Warband: Napoleonic Wars DLC is Now Available.
- Mount & Blade Warband: Napoleonic Wars Multiplayer DLC has been Announced.
King Toko 