If you want to be a warrior and carve your way to the top spend as much time as you can fighting other armies and competing in the arena. Think about what you want to do in the game. My tip would be don’t be daunted by all of this and approach it logically. There are different systems for trade, combat, managing your party, managing kingdoms, recruiting Lords and so on. There are many different systems working together behind the scenes and it will take you a long time to get your head around them. Other than a combat tutorial at the start this game gives you nothing in terms of help. With this in mind, I’ve pulled together a few tips and things I wish I’d known before starting out in this game. With so many options at your disposal, it can be very easy to get lost along the way.
You could choose to take over the kingdoms by force, through charm or you could ignore conquest altogether and build your own trading empire. Mount and Blade 2: Bannerlord has been in early access since March 2020 and has steadily grown into an absolutely massive, complex game that gives you the freedom to play however you like.