Ask any medieval lord or lady about their most prevalent aspiration, and most will talk of their legacy. Life was short back then, and most people know that securing a future for their offspring was their main motivation. Bannerlord captures this through its succession mechanic, which allows players to marry, have children, and continue playing after their initial player has died as an heir.
Heirs inherit traits from each parent, much like real life, and even bear a resemblance to both father and mother. For those looking to continue their own legacy beyond the final curtain, we’ve put together this guide about how to have kids in Bannerlord.
Finding a Spouse In Bannerlord
Before you can go about the task of siring children in Bannerlord, first you must find a husband or wife to continue your line. There are no illegitimate children in Calradia. The game’s encyclopedia (default key: N) is a great tool for narrowing down candidates if you want to start the path to courtship early. Taleworlds has even added features that let you narrow down the candidates by age and faction if you want your offspring to come from a specific stock.
The game allows characters to marry as soon as they reach 18 years of age unless you want to wait a couple of years. Generally, the women of Calradia begin having children around age 20. The rest is your discretion in terms of what you find appealing, and more importantly, the traits you want to pass on to your children.
Bannerlord: How to Have Kids
Once you’ve found a worthy wife or husband and are seeking an heir, the only thing left to do is create the ideal conditions for conception. Results certainly vary according to each person you ask so we’ll give a general consensus based on player feedback and personal experience since Taleworlds doesn’t release the official percentages. We have found the following actions increase your chance of getting pregnant in Bannerlord:
- Of course, it’s impossible to conceive if you’re not spending time with your spouse. There is a 24% chance of a pregnancy occurring if you are with your spouse ‘resting’ in town when the clock strikes 6 am. This is true for keeps as well.
- Choosing a perk called “Virile” at the first level of Charm raises your chance of having children by 30%, which means the base chance is raised to 31%. Granting this attribute to both parties–if you can find a spouse that hasn’t already progressed past the first perk in charm–will stack these bonuses and make pregnancies even more likely.
- While there aren’t any definitive results to verify this, it can be assumed that raising relations with your spouse increases the chances of conception. The quickest way to raise the relationship score with your spouse is to simply open a bartering window and give him or her all of your assets for nothing in return. The items will remain in your inventory and your score will increase with them by 2-5 points each time. It’s an exploit, though, so if you want to play it straight, you’ll have to accept that the relationship scores with your spouse will remain at the level of your wedding day.
- Raising your Charm score will increase the likelihood of pregnancy, according to many players. This has not been verified with percentages, however.
That’s all there is to it, really. Having kids in Bannerlord is really just a matter of finding a spouse, picking the right perk, and waiting in settlements with them until the pregnancy notification appears. Different ladies will have different temperaments that make them more or less likely to conceive, but these change with each update. Also bear in mind that miscarriage is possible at higher difficulties with birth and death turned on in the game’s settings, though this is an infrequent occurrence.
Bannerlord: How to Have Kids FAQ
The following are frequently asked questions about having kids in Bannerlord.
Q: What is the pregnancy age limit in Bannerlord?
A: Women in Bannerlord stop getting pregnant at 39-40 years old.
Q: What is the base chance of pregnancy in Bannerlord?
A: 24%, if you and your spouse sleep in the same place and the female is older than 20.
Q: Can my wife get pregnant in the army?
A: Yes, if you wait with that army in a settlement and she is in your party.
Q: How long does it take to have a child in Bannerlord?
A: Each week in Bannerlord is equal to a month (a year is 12 weeks or 84 days). A pregnancy lasts for 9 weeks (or months), meaning it takes about 63 in-game days to have a baby. Exact birth dates may vary by a day or two.
Q: Can you play as your child in Bannerlord?
A: Yes. One of the main reasons to have children in Bannerlord is to choose an heir that will take over all your assets once your original character passes away from old age. The game will allow you to choose an heir when the time is right.
