A new faction joins the "Mount and Blade: Bannerlord" roster; this time, they come in the form of Vlandians, where the developers have revealed their backstory and design choices for them.

Developer Taleworlds Entertainment has revealed that the Vlandians will be a fictional warlike sovereign loosely based on several real-world warrior cultures. In a developer blog on Steam, Taleworlds has revealed that the Vlandians came from overseas, mercenaries and adventurers, speaking the tongues of many lands, taking the empire's silver to guard the frontiers against the unsubdued tribes of the interior.

The strength of the Vlandians are their superior heavy cavalry which are second to none, which have laid waste to the enemy armies of the Emperor from Aserai to the steppes in-game. The inspiration for the Vlandians came in the form of the feudal states of early medieval Europe, most likely the Normans, as indicative of their helmet designs. Other influences include the Norse raiders who settled in France and the southern parts of Europe.

The Vlandians will have an initial advantage against other in-game factions since they will be starting out with a lot more territories under their control. This, however, is a double-edged sword, as the large territory will mean that a portion of them will have to be controlled by barons and vassals, which could then rebel against the players and seize control. In order to prevent this, players will have to ensure that they exercise a certain amount of influence over their captains and seconds-in-command.

As for the arms and armors of the Vlandians, they will be based of those which existed back in 12th century Europe, which the developers have claimed was a rapidly evolving state of technological warfare. This has posed some balancing issues for the development team since they also had to try to be as historically accurate as possible given the scope of their game.

No exact or expected release has been announced yet for "Mount and Blade: Bannerlord," so players will have to wait indefinitely.