Army Cohesion & Food Management
November 21, 2025
Managing cohesion in armies and keeping stacks supplied.
An army that doesn't eat doesn't fight. In Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, managing your army's stomach is just as important as managing their swords. Starvation kills cohesion faster than any enemy lord, and a diverse diet is the secret to high morale.
Keep an eye on your food stores (bread icon) in the bottom right. If it hits zero, your army will disintegrate.
Feeding the Beast: Army Provisioning
When you lead an army, you are responsible for feeding it. While other lords bring their own food, they are notoriously bad at planning. They will run out, and when they do, they will eat your food. If you run out, they will leave.
How much food do you need?
A soldier eats roughly 1 unit of food per day.
Army of 500: Needs 500 food per day.
10-Day Campaign: You need 5,000 units of food.
This means you cannot rely on just looting villages. You must visit major towns and buy out their entire stock of Grain and Fish before heading into enemy territory.
Tip: Slaughtering livestock (Sheep, Cows, Hogs) converts them into Meat. Animals don't weigh anything until slaughtered, so carry a herd with you as "emergency rations."
Food Variety & Morale Bonuses
Soldiers hate eating just stale bread. Providing a variety of food gives a massive boost to Party Morale.
Base Morale: Affected by recent battles and leadership.
Food Variety Bonus: Each type of food (Grain, Meat, Fish, Cheese, Butter, Grapes, Olives, Beer, Dates) adds a bonus.
Steward Skill: The Steward Skill increases this bonus significantly.
Leveling up your Steward skill (or your Quartermaster's) is essential for maintaining large armies efficiently.
High morale means your troops move faster on the map and fight better in battle. Low morale leads to desertion.
The Cost of Starvation
What happens when the food hits zero?
Morale Plummets: You lose huge chunks of morale daily.
Wounded Troops: Soldiers start getting "wounded" from starvation. They won't die immediately, but they become useless in battle.
Cohesion Loss: Your army cohesion decays rapidly as lords become disgruntled.
Desertion: Eventually, troops will just leave.
Siege Logistics
Sieges are the ultimate test of your food management.
Siege Camp: You consume food while building the camp and engines.
Besieged Defenders: The town also has a food supply. If you starve them out, their garrison dies off.
Supply Lines: You cannot enter a village to buy food while leading a siege without lifting the siege.
Strategy: Before starting a siege, ensure you have at least 20-30 days of food. If you are running low, leave the siege to a different lord (if possible) or abandon it to resupply. It is better to retreat and eat than to starve and lose your whole army.
Just like running caravans, keeping an army fed requires planning your route through friendly, food-rich settlements.
For more on moving large armies, check out Party Speed & Map Movement.