Artems Jousting Tournaments Preview

Greetings fellow warriors! Two riders, a fenced field, a wooden lance tucked under the arm. The whole thing is over in seconds - you spur your horse, pick your line, and either plant the lance on your opponent or take it yourself. It grew out of knights training for war in front of a crowd: a herald calling the names, bets in the stands, and a splintered lance counting as a good pass. Scoring came down to where you struck and how hard, and a rider who lost his seat lost the bout.

That's what I've been building for Bannerlord.

Jousting tournaments can now start at random in Vlandian towns - and if you're running custom cultures or total overhauls, you can configure which ones host them (via XML). Only heroes enter the lists, so the field is always made up of names you know. You can ride yourself, or sit back and watch the whole thing as a spectator.

There are two dedicated jousting scenes, and which one you get depends on the town's wall level. Both come with a crowd that reacts to every hit, trumpeteers with their own animations and instruments, and a herald who introduces you and your opponent before the first pass. You can also drop your own music into the tournaments if you want a particular track behind the charge.

The joust itself runs on new lances that actually break. When one splinters, the camera cuts to a cinematic shot of the moment; the rest of the time a dynamic camera rides along with the charge. A match goes over 10 passes, and if there's still no winner after the last one the two of you dismount and settle it on foot.

The AI is entirely custom. And on the gear side there will be new armour pieces, new horse caparisons, and a jousting specific equipment loadout you can set up seperately from your normal kit. If you want to practice before entering, there will be a training scene with a dummy waiting for you.

Let me know what you think in the comment section below, more soon!