Calradia at War (Custom Spawns)
🟡 Updated this yearPreview

🔍 Analysis
- 👍 1.2% endorsement rate — high engagement, a strong quality signal
- 🏆 #1 of 73 Troops mods in this game by downloads
📋 About This Mod
Introduction
History books may be linear and filled with the deeds of heroes and the aristocracy, but the reality of war is far from such orderliness. War means chaos. War means people not knowing what to do and turning to unorthodox means of livelihood. War, especially one that has been dragged out like in Calradia, means tens of thousands of people pushed into utter chaos.
A few bandits here and there simply doesn't reflect that.
The aim of this mod is twofold. First, it adds different hostile and allied troops, factions, and troop trees into the game without modifying any of the game files, all with varying patterns of spawning. Second, it allows for modders to add new troops into the game themselves.
The added chaos also makes economics harder to manage, as caravans can actually get looted and villagers captured. All of this is meant to make the game more immersive, and have you actually experience what it is like to try to make a name for yourself in a war-ravaged land rather than a stable, economically cohesive country. There are others trying to make a name for themselves, make a living, or pursue more unusual ends. Bandits and custom spawns upgrade troops as they loot, for example.
The initial setup of the mod is meant to be balanced, with the lords and armies still being much stronger than the custom spawns as they should be. Some of the rarer spawns (each has >1% chance to spawn daily) are stronger than individual lords but can be crushed by armies.
You are free to change the size of the spawns and how often they spawn in the mod files :). You are also free to use the API to create your own mods! I have tutorials regarding both and plan to make more.
FIRST TIME HERE? START HERE!
Some considerations:
- Calradia at War does not modify any factions nor does it remove anything from vanilla! Hence, it is largely patch compatible.
- Calradia at War requires a new start and will not work if added during an ongoing campaign.
Custom Spawns is the name of the API used by other mods. Download sub mods dependent upon the API such as Calradia at War for content. Combining mulitple sub-mods is supported.
Any mod that modifies factions or adds new ones will not be save-game compatible, which includes Calradia at War. If you run Calradia at War with an old save, your game will crash.
The API has tools for a Devastation System affecting spawn rates depending on various campaign factors, a Dialogue System for easy addition of dialogue to parties, custom AI for different spawns, a Reward System for killing larger spawns, AI recruiting prisoners depending on their party size and whether they have a hero onboard, and even more!
Currently, Calradia at War adds 70+ new spawns/party types with 200+ new troops all integrated into a troop tree of their own. It also adds 21 new factions each with their own heroes. The different spawns have different schedules of spawning, with some spawning much more rarely and being stronger than lords themselves. They also have different behaviour, and have alliances and wars with specific factions.
NEW ITEMS TO LOOT
Fixes to Some Known Issues
-
[]If the troops are appearing like children, this is a mod load order issue. Please try to load the mod last and definitely after the vanilla modules.
Regarding Bug Reports. Read Before Posting Bug Reports Please!
There are two types of bugs:
- [
[]A handled bug that displays a message I set up, saying that you need to report the bug to me with some information included. Please do not forget to include this message, along with the information it has provided. In this case, you can keep playing as your game will not have crashed.
[]your mod list.
[]steps to reproduce.
[]the full message shown because of the crash/bug.
Calradia at War adds dozens of hostile and allied custom troops, factions, and troop trees to Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord without modifying vanilla files. It introduces dynamic spawns, loot-driven upgrades, and an API for modders. With 9,810 endorsements and 786,469 downloads, it's a popular immersion mod for players seeking more chaos and economic challenge.
✨ Key Features
📊 Pros & Cons
✅ Pros
- Huge community trust with 9,810 endorsements and 786k downloads
- Adds real chaos without touching vanilla factions—pure addition
- Modder-friendly with an API and tutorials for custom spawns
⚠️ Cons
- Initial setup is balanced, but rare spawns might feel overpowered to some
- No explicit install instructions in the description—you'll need to figure it out
- Custom spawns can disrupt early-game economy if you're not ready for it
For Bannerlord veterans who find the base game too stable and want a living, war-torn world with dynamic threats. Also for modders who want to expand troop variety using the provided API. Skip if you prefer a predictable sandbox or dislike added difficulty in managing caravans and villages.
💡 Beginner Tips
- Check the mod's forum or Discord for load order advice—Bannerlord mods often need to be placed correctly to avoid conflicts.
- Start with default spawn rates to get a feel for the chaos before tweaking the mod files.
- If you're adding custom troops via the API, test in a separate save to avoid breaking your main campaign.
📊 Mod Details
- Game
- Bannerlord Mods
- Author
- CustomSpawns Development Team
- Version
- 2.1.0
- Downloads
- 786,469
- Endorsements
- 9,810
- Category
- Troops
- Created
- 4/11/2020
- Updated
- 1/4/2026
🧩 Commonly Used Together
Users add these mods to the same collections — a real compatibility signal, not an AI guess.
🔧 How to Install Bannerlord Mods
Use Vortex or manual. Enable mods in launcher. Harmony required.
📖 Full step-by-step install guide for Bannerlord →
Visit the official mod page for specific installation instructions for this mod.
🎮 Need cheat codes or console commands? Check ur gaming wiki for Bannerlord commands, item IDs, and more.
Keep browsing — more Bannerlord mods await