The Digital Companion DLC for Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord was released on 19th December 2022, and it introduced a bunch of new content for players who want a bit more from the game, especially those interested in the lore and development behind it. We’ll take you through everything it offers including the Travels in Calradia audiobook, a lore-based map of Calradia, new concept art and a soundtrack.

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Digital Companion, M&B II: Bannerlord.

What Is the Digital Companion Release for Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord?¶

The Digital Companion release for M&B II: Bannerlord is a free DLC for current PC owners of the game, as of 19.12.2022. If you’re buying the game after this point, it will cost $9.99 or €9.99, unless there’s a sale on (as there currently is a launch sale of 30% on PC, and 20% on console). The DLC content can be accessed within the regular launcher for the game if you’re playing on Steam or GoG, but for those who own the game on the Epic, Windows Store, or console, you’ll need to load it via a separate application in your library.

Is It Worth Getting the Digital Deluxe Edition for Bannerlord?¶

A lot of people are confused about what the new Digital Deluxe edition for Bannerlord includes, and whether or not it’s worth buying it. The truth is that the only people who would benefit from this version of the game at the moment are those who haver never played Bannerlord before, and are thinking about buying it for the first time. this is because you don’t get any extra gameplay content with the Digital Deluxe edition. Instead, it just combines the base game with the Digital Companion release. So, if you’re thinking about getting the game for the first time and you also want to have access to the Travels in Calradia tales, the Calradia lore map, the concept art and soundtrack, it may be worth it for you. However, just know that you won’t be getting any additional gameplay content from this.

Digital Companion - Main Features¶

Travels in Calradia Audiobook¶

The Travels in Calradia audiobook is unique to the Digital Companion DLC. It offers a set of tales written by a wanderer known as Asaios, son of Valicos, a scribe of Vostrum, which is a town belonging to the Southern Empire by default in the game. The story is inspired by Marco Polo’s and Ibn Battuta’s travel books, and it comes in 17 parts. You can choose to read it on your own or have it read by a rather charismatic voice actor, a sample of which you can hear in the video below.

You’ll have options to turn the narrator off if you wish, and you can also mute the soundtrack which plays by default. There are also some basic text size options, and you can choose to turn the user interface off temporarily if you want a more immersive experience. We’ve had a listen to most of the story and it’s a lovely set of tales which brings the world of Calradia to life for any listener, whether you’ve played the game already or not.

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(1 of 2) There’s also original artwork associated with the Travels in Calradia story.

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There’s also original artwork associated with the Travels in Calradia story. (left), You can change the options to experience the story in your preferred way. (right)

Calradia Lore Map¶

The Calradia Map included in the Digital Companion DLC is quite different to the one in game. It’s beautifully hand-drawn and filled with numerous tiny details associated with each faction in the game, which you can pour over at your leisure. The map shows the default borders and boundaries for each faction by default, and you can click on any to see a brief description of the history and fundamental nature of the faction, as shown in the screenshot below.

There are hints of the historical influences for each faction in some of these brief descriptions, and it’s clear that some factions are inspired by a conglomeration of different historical kingdoms and empires. It’s well worth spending some time reading through these overviews and looking at the map for the small details which represent something of the culture or landscape for each faction. Don’t forget that you can also turn off the border colors in the bottom left of the screen if these are too distracting or harsh on your eyes.

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(1 of 3) You can see the map with the faction boundaries defined.

New Concept Art¶

There are a great deal of new concept art pieces which are included in the Digital Companion DLC, ranging from flag and banner models, to helmet and armor designs, exquisite weapon details, mount armor and decoration, interior design assets for towns, castles, and villages, and artwork for settings, characters, and landscapes. All of the major factions are represented in the concept art including Aserai, Battania, Khuzait, Sturgia, Vlandia, and the Empire. For those wondering, most of this art hasn’t been seen before so there’s plenty to feast your eyes on here.

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(1 of 3) There are plenty of NPC concept art pieces featured.

Bannerlord Soundtrack - Songs of Calradia¶

There are 11 songs featured in this Digital Companion DLC, each of which is taken from the main game. You will be listening to these by default as you explore other aspects of the content, but you can also cycle through them at your own pace if you wish. Most of these songs will be familiar to veteran players, and maybe even the names, which we’ve listed in the table below.

Credits¶

The final feature of the Digital Companion DLC includes a Credits screen which lists the names for all of the many people involved in creating Bannerlord, alongside a number of pictures featuring various members of the team at work or play. Some of these will be familiar faces for fans of the Mount & Blade series, and the pictures give a good sense of the amount of effort required and camaraderie involved in making these games.

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The credits feature all the names of people involved in the game, and quite a few pictures from the team as well.