Like Father, Like Son - Bannerlord Calradic Campaign #80 Post Event Summary
Lore
My father marched beneath the banners of Emperor Drosios Neretzes. I remember the way he spoke of the Senate. An inheritance, not of land or coin, but of duty. He did not call himself a soldier, but a citizen of the Empire, and when the time came, he took his place in the ranks of the Legion, as all men of standing were expected to do. He died at Pendraic.
They told us it was a necessary sacrifice. That the Empire would endure, and that the blood spilled upon that field would be repaid in victories yet to come. I believed them. I believed Lucon when he spoke of unity, Vaesor when he promised reform, and Mealios when he claimed we had weathered the worst of it. Years passed, and defeat followed defeat. Each campaign smaller than the last, each army thinner, each promise quieter. Still, we endured, or at least we said we did.
When word reached Epicrotea that Penton Neretzes had taken command, I believed again. Not in the man alone. In what he represented. Continuity. Legitimacy. The sense that we were not finished yet. So I took up my father’s armour. It did not fit me as it once fit him. The leather had stiffened, the steel dulled with age, but the family crest remained intact. I stood among the Citizen Legionnaires, heirs to something we no longer fully understand, and we marched beneath the banner of Penton Neretzes.
We expected a battle. What we found was a slaughter. The Kataphracts surged forward and found nothing to take. The Battanians seized the field before we could contest it. We stood on poor ground and never recovered. The Fianns filled the wheat fields and emptied their quivers into us, and our answer came too late to matter. The line never steadied. It was never close. We knew how it would end before it did. We were being broken. Rhesos Castle fell without relief.
And always, in the distance, Corbo. His riders moved where they pleased. What little cohesion we had came apart piece by piece until there was nothing left to hold. When the line gave, it did not bend, it shattered.
We ran for Epicrotea. I will not pretend otherwise. The gates closed behind us. For a moment I thought this was where I would die, beneath foreign blades in the streets of our own city. But the walls held. Penton rallied the survivors, and it was enough. We took our place upon the walls, not as an army, but as men who had made it back, bloodied, diminished, and still expected to endure.
We held.
I no longer know what I have been fighting for. Penton Neretzes is no less legitimate than his father, and the Senate still sits. The titles remain. We still act as though it means the same thing. We march beneath the same banners as those who came before us. But this is not the Empire my father served. Each year, we lose something, not in great collapses, but in the slow wearing down that leaves us weaker. The patricians still speak. The oligarchs still rule, but there is less behind it now. We are surrounded by enemies who grow stronger with every victory, and by Imperials who would see us diminished, if not destroyed.
The Battanians did not take the city. But they have pushed deep into our lands, reclaiming what was once theirs. There is nothing left to stop them.
We are the rightful heirs of Calradios. I have been told this since I was a child. I have believed it, even when there was little reason to. Now, I do not know what that inheritance is worth, or how much of it remains.
Still, I will fight. If Penton leads, I will follow. If another takes his place, I will follow them as well. Not out of hope, nor faith, nor even loyalty to the men who claim to rule us, but because this is what remains. My father stood in the ranks of the Legion, and so will I, for as long as there is still a Legion to stand in, and for as long as I am able to carry what little of the Empire still endures.
In Meta Terms
Welcome to the Bannerlord Calradic Campaign, which has just finished event #80!
The battle between the Northern Empire and the High-Kingdom of Battania ended in a Battanian Victory, with Rhesos Castle Seized!
When is the Calradic Campaign? The first and third Saturday of every month, at 4pm Eastern Standard Time.
Unfamiliar with the Calradic Campaign? Have no fear! The Calradic Campaign is a casual, player driven, story based event. There are no strict rules or signups, and players of all skill levels often come! If you've never tried multiplayer, now is your best chance to experience large scale formations and battles without the overly strict practices typically found in line battle/clan style events.
Victories in our flagship monthly events are represented on the overall campaign map, while roleplay surrounding the events and their consequences takes place both during said events and on the community Discord. Joining the Discord allows you to communicate with your fellow faction members, trash talk others, and rise through the ranks to one day become lord of a village, castle, city, or if you're particularly successful, an entire kingdom!
To join the event, you will need our Calradic Campaign Module. This module contains all of the custom battle and siege scenes used, as well as many stability fixes and balance changes. Most importantly, the module features three distinct empire factions in multiplayer, each with their own unique perks and cosmetics to lean into the different situations of the three!
There will be a manual installation of the module available for those not playing on Steam. Check the Nexus mods page no sooner than the Friday before the event for the correct download.
As a general rule of thumb, the Calradic Campaign module should be the only one enabled in your launcher! If you have any crashes or issues trying to launch the game / join the server, unsubscribing and resubscribing to the module on workshop will often fix any issues.
Note to clans: While the Calradic Campaign is a public event open to all, clans will not be allowed to organize their own formations and must spread out between teams. Failure to follow these guidelines will result in suspension from the event.
Community Discord
It is highly recommended you join our community Discord, as half the fun of the persistent campaign takes place outside of events. Meet fellow Mount and Blade fans, find new friends to queue with, and make fun of the Imperials together in our community of 30,000+.
Leave any questions, complaints, observations, memes and faction based riffing in the comments below!