Skills & Perks Overview

Character development in Bannerlord is deep, with 18 different skills and hundreds of perks. Understanding which trees to prioritize can mean the difference between a struggling mercenary and a conquering Emperor.

Vigor (Melee Combat)

• One-Handed: Essential for shield users. Focus on speed and shield handling.

• Two-Handed: High damage, shield breaking. Great for breaking enemy lines.

• Polearm: The king of mounted combat (couch lance) and anti-cavalry.

Control (Ranged & Movement)

• Bows/Crossbows: Ranged superiority.

• Throwing: Deadly at close range, especially with the famous "Impale" perk which makes javelins ignore shields.

Endurance (Physical)

• Riding: Speed is life. High riding allows you to use noble mounts and charge through infantry.

• Athletics: Often overlooked, but high athletics makes you run faster than horses in sieges.

• Smithing: The money-making skill. See the Crafting & Smithing Hub.

Cunning (Tactical)

• Scouting: See enemies before they see you. Increases movement speed.

• Tactics: Win auto-resolve battles.

• Roguery: Increases loot quality and bandit recruitment.

Social (The Ruler Skills)

• Charm: Essential for diplomacy. Increases relation gain and chance to persuade lords to join you.

• Leadership: Increases party size and morale. The "Leader of the Masses" perk is vital for huge armies.

• Trade: Buy low, sell high. The Level 300 perk allows you to buy settlements with gold.

Intelligence (Party Management)

• Steward: The most important skill for army size. Increases party cap based on food variety.

• Medicine: Keeps your soldiers alive. High medicine turns deaths into wounded.

• Engineering: Speeds up siege construction.

Respecing Perks

Made a mistake? You can reset your perks by talking to the Arena Master in any town. For a small fee, they will let you re-select perks for a specific skill tree.

For specific character archetypes, check out our Character Builds & Development.