Sandbox Goals & Late-Game Paths
November 21, 2025
Alternate victory conditions and self-directed progression goals.
The beauty of Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord is its open-ended nature, but that freedom can be paralyzing. Once you've assembled a decent party and have some gold, what's next? Without a clear goal, the late game can become a repetitive cycle of sieges.
Defining Your Own Endgame
To keep the game engaging past day 500, you need to set a narrative goal. The main quest offers one path, but the sandbox allows for much more creativity.
Path 1: The King (Independent Kingdom)
This is the "standard" victory condition. You leave your current kingdom, keep your fiefs (triggering war), and declare your own faction.
Goal: Conquer all of Calradia under your banner.
Declaring a kingdom is the point of no return. Ensure you have millions in the bank and high clan tier before speaking to your governor.
Check out Starting Your Own Kingdom for a step-by-step guide.
Path 2: The Kingmaker (Loyal Vassal)
Instead of ruling, you serve. Pick a faction leader (e.g., Garios of the Western Empire) and dedicate your life to making them the Emperor of Calradia.
Goal: Ensure your faction owns every town on the map. You focus on winning battles, while the AI handles the politics.
Path 3: The Mercenary Captain (Perpetual War)
Never pledge vassalage. Instead, sign mercenary contracts with whichever kingdom is losing. This ensures you always have enemies to fight and keeps the map balanced, preventing one faction from snowballing.
Goal: Amass 10 million denars purely from battle loot and contracts.
Mercenary work pays well and carries no long-term commitment. If your employer declares peace, just leave and join someone else's war.
Path 4: The Tycoon (Economic Domination)
With the Trade 300 perk ("Everything Has a Price"), you can buy settlements for money.
Goal: Buy every town in Calradia without fighting a single siege. This requires an optimized trade empire.
Money talks. Why shed blood for a castle when you can just write a check?
See our Economy & Trade Guide to start building your fortune.
Late Game Crisis Management (Snowballing)
Sometimes one kingdom (usually Vlandia or Khuzait) starts conquering everything too fast. This is called "snowballing." To fix it:
Join the losing side as a mercenary.
Execute the lords of the winning faction to destabilize them.
Raid their villages to ruin their economy.