Execution & Honor System
November 21, 2025
Consequences of executing nobles and honor-related actions.
Execution & Honor System
In Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, your reputation is tracked not just by a number, but by Traits. The most impactful of these is Honor. Your actions on the battlefield and the chopping block will determine if Calradia sees you as a paragon of virtue or a butcher.
The Honor Trait
Your character's Honor trait (visible in the Character tab under Traits) affects how the world reacts to you.
How to Gain Honor
Release Lords: After winning a battle, if you capture an enemy noble, choose the dialogue option "You are free to go." This is the fastest way to grind Honor.
Quest Choices: Choosing the "moral" path in quests (e.g., not taking a bribe, protecting villagers) increases Honor.
How to Lose Honor
Executions: The single biggest penalty.
Raiding: Excessive raiding of villages can lower Honor (and increases the Devious trait).
Broken Promises: Betraying alliances or failing critical diplomatic promises.
An honorable reputation opens doors in towns and castles that are closed to tyrants.
The Price of Execution
Executing a Lord is a permanent action. They are removed from the game, and their clan loses a member. However, the cost is steep.
The Warning
When you click "Execute", the game warns you. Heed it.
Consequences
Honor Plummets: You will almost immediately gain the Devious trait.
Relation Nuclear Bomb:
Victim's Clan: -100 Relation instantly. They will hate you forever.
Friends & Allies: Any lord who was friends with the victim (which includes many in your own kingdom) will suffer a -30 to -60 relation drop.
Global Reputation: You are marked as "Dishonorable." AI lords are more likely to attack you and execute you if captured.
The aftermath of battle is where your legacy is forged. Mercy builds bridges; the axe burns them.
Benefits of High Honor
Why be nice in a war game?
Recruitment: Top-tier Noble Troops are often gated behind relations with powerful notables. Honorable characters get a bonus to these relations.
Persuasion: When trying to convince a lord to defect or marry, the "Honor" argument is often the easiest to pass if you have the trait.
Defection: Honorable lords are more likely to join your kingdom and stay loyal.
Only the most honorable commanders can easily rally the elite knights of Calradia.
Summary
Execution is a strategic tool of last resort—used to eliminate a nemesis who refuses to stop raiding you. It is not a standard way to wage war. For long-term rule, Honor is the stronger currency.