Part 10

Learn how to manage factions, claim thrones, and lead rebellions in Mount & Blade: Warband. This guide covers claimants, right to rule, and forming your own kingdom.

Marshal's Powers: If you are chosen as marshal, you can summon or dismiss allied lords. This is most effective when targeting towns, which have large garrisons (300-400 troops, plus enemy lords). To use these powers, speak to an allied lord or hero and select the option to message lords, then choose your desired action.

Claimants & Rebellions: Claimants are special NPCs, one for each kingdom. Find them by speaking to the 'Traveler' NPC in a tavern. Once you meet a claimant and your renown is high enough (minimum around 250), you can offer your assistance. Agreeing to be a claimant's champion makes you part of their pseudo-faction and may cause you to leave your current faction. If it's your current faction's claimant, you keep your owned cities, castles, and villages. To complete a claimant's quest, you must defeat the faction they wish to control.

The six claimants in M&B: Warband are:

• Swadia: Lady Isolla of Suno
• Rhodoks: Lord Kastor of Veluca
• Vaegirs: Prince Valdym the Bastard
• Nords: Lethwin Farseeker
• Sarranid: Arwa the Pearled One
• Khergits: Dustum Khan

To defeat a faction in civil war, you don't need to fight all its lords. Before fighting, try to convince lords to join your side. Factors influencing this include your relations with the lord, their relations with their king, your argument for the claimant's claim, your Persuasion skill, and the consistency of your arguments. Focus on convincing town owners to defect, as towns are hard to siege.

Once you've convinced lords to join, you proceed with the war. While the rebellion is ongoing, the claimant will usually agree to award fiefs to whomever you suggest, allowing you to acquire property with less risk. Completing a rebellion involves capturing or convincing all their towns and castles, and ideally defeating their king in battle.

Forming Your Own Faction: To form your own faction, you must be unattached to any current faction and then successfully siege a town or castle. You may also be able to use a rebel faction formed by a failed rebellion.

Managing Your Faction: High Right To Rule is crucial. Increase it by sending heroes on campaigns. As king, you decide who receives fiefs. Giving a fief to a lord improves your relations with them but damages relations with others, so manage the number of lords in your faction.

Defense & Diplomacy: Other factions can declare war on yours. You can also try to declare peace by approaching the enemy leader, but they may refuse.