Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord Coop
Bannerlord's campaign is single-player — TaleWorlds never shipped co-op. The community-built Bannerlord Coop mod fills the gap: a shared persistent campaign where friends roam the same Calradia, now in active development.
Short version: yes, Bannerlord co-op exists in 2026 — via the free Bannerlord Coop mod (first released July 2026, updated October 30). It's real, it works, and it's still early: expect bugs, and disable the War Sails DLC and all other mods before playing.
What the mod actually gives you
- Shared campaign map — everyone travels the same persistent world with their own character, party, clan, troops and resources.
- Multiplayer battles — join field battles as allies or opponents; nearby AI parties can join fights under supported conditions.
- Persistent sync — movement, encounters, battles and campaign progress stay synchronized as every player shapes the same world.
- Player count — optimized for up to 8 players. Bigger groups may work but hit stability.
Recent releases have focused on polish: the October 30 update (v0.1.7) added lobby filters, fixed war stats display, made lords remember players across restarts and unified alliance votes to a single shared outcome.
Setup requirements
The mod is picky about its environment — most connection problems trace back to one of these.
- 1Every player on the same mod version
Mismatched versions won't sync — agree on one release (latest: v0.1.7) before hosting.
- 2Disable all other mods
Bannerlord Coop wants a clean load order — other mods cause desyncs and crashes.
- 3Disable the War Sails DLC
The naval expansion is not yet compatible — turn it off for co-op sessions even if you own it.
- 4Host and join through the Steam lobby
The mod adds its own lobby browser with password and player-count filters; one player hosts the campaign, others join.
What works and what doesn't yet
| Status | Feature |
|---|---|
| Works | Shared overworld travel, parties and clans; field battles and sieges with allies; AI parties joining player battles; kingdom diplomacy shared across players; disconnect/rejoin handling |
| Partial | Siege ambushes (fixed recently), some settlement interactions, nameplates (configurable in mod-config.json) |
| Not yet | War Sails content, mod compatibility, large-player-count stability beyond ~8 |
It's alpha software. The version is 0.x for a reason — desyncs and the occasional stuck quest or crash happen. Save often, and treat long campaigns as co-op adventures rather than permanent saves.
FAQ
Does Bannerlord have official co-op?
No — TaleWorlds has never added a multiplayer campaign. Co-op only exists through the Bannerlord Coop mod on PC.
Is Bannerlord Coop free?
Yes — it's a free community mod (Nexus Mods / GitHub, by the Bannerlord-Coop-Team). You only need the base game on PC.
How many players can play together?
Up to 8 is the tested target. More may technically connect but performance and stability drop off.
Does it work with War Sails?
Not yet — the mod explicitly tells you to disable the DLC. Keep an eye on the changelog for naval compatibility.
Can I use other mods with it?
No — the setup guide says disable all other mods. Mixed load orders are the top cause of desync.