Combat and Army Guide: How to Battle

Combat in Manor Lords is done by rallying your army and directing them with commands. Check out Manor Lord's army size, combat controls, and tips for warfare and battle!

Manor Lords Army Size

Armies Containing Hundreds of Soldiers

Warfare in Manor Lords can get huge, with you and the opposing Lord fielding multiple Militia, Mercenaries, and Retinues.

Your own Army can grow as large as 300+ men, as long as you can sustain them with Military Resources and Treasury.

All Recruits and Best Unit Types

There's a Maximum Army Limit

Amount	Unit Type
6	Militia
8	Retinue
18	Mercenaries

Currently, there is a limit to the amount units you can recruit. This is implemented to prevent players from creating an army with an infinite amount of soldiers.

As of now, you can only recruit up to 6 Militia if you don't have any other units in your army when you recruit them, 8 Retinue since you get 1 per region, and 18 Mercenaries spread out between the 8 different Mercenary Companies.

All Recruits and Best Unit Types

Manor Lords Combat Controls

You can move and command your army through the following controls:

1. Rally Your Army From the Army Tab
2. Select Units by Holding and Dragging Left Click
3. Move and Attack With Right Click
4. Adjust Unit Width by Dragging Right Click
5. Organize Your Army Into Subgroups
6. Direct Your Army With Stances

Rally Your Army From the Army Tab

Battles occur when pressing claim on an enemy's region or defending from raiders and bandits. To rally your army, open the Army tab by pressing V or clicking the army button, select the units to deploy, and click the Rally button, denoted by a Flag UI Icon.

After selecting a Rally Point, your Militia will promptly stop what they are doing, and get their equipment to go to the rally point.

How to Claim and Settle a Region

Select Units by Holding and Dragging Left Click

You can select your units on the field by holding and dragging Left Click over the units you want to select. Alternatively, you can select units by clicking on their unit portrait on the bottom side of the screen.

Move and Attack With Right Click

Once you have selected a unit, you can order it to move by pressing Right Click on your desired location. You can also order them to attack an enemy unit by pressing Right Click on the enemy unit.

Adjust Unit Width by Dragging Right Click

You can also adjust the width of a unit's formation by holding and dragging Right Click when a unit is selected.

If the situation in battle allows for it, we recommend forming short formation widths to increase unit Cohesion and Effectiveness.

Organize Your Army Into Subgroups

Organize your army into subgroups by selecting units with Control + Left Click and pressing Control + 1 - 0. Doing so will group units to your assigned number.

We recommend organizing your army into three or more subgroups so that you can command and move them more easily.

Direct Your Army With Stances

Stance	Effect
Give Ground	The unit slowly moves backwards and concedes ground to lure enemies.
Missile Alert	The unit's chance to evade or block arrows is doubled, but melee defense is halved.
Balanced	The default stance for all units.
Stand Your Ground	Unit's defense is doubled, but reduces attack frequency
Push Forward	The unit will try and push forward with full force.
Disband	Disbands your army.
Run to Positions	The unit runs to the designated area at the cost of fatigue.
Hold	Unit holds their current position.
Shoot at Will	Orders an Archer unit to shoot directly at the enemy instead of in volleys. Gains increased accuracy in closer ranges, but has less accuracy at half the maximum range or more.
Friendly Fire	Orders Archer units to fire even if allied units will be hit.
Spread Out	Orders Mercenary and Retinue units to break formation and spread out to evade arrows and run faster. Ineffective against melee opponents.

While in combat, you can adjust your army's stances to help turn the tide of battle. You can find these stances above your units' portraits at the bottom of the screen.

Unit Stances Explained

Battle Tips for Manor Lords

Combat in Manor Lords can quickly become complicated, with many factors to consider. Here are some tips for you to consider to help you and your growing army:

1. Deploy Diverse Unit Types
2. Avoid Getting Flanked
3. Pay Attention to Unit Icons
4. Check Your Army's Fatigue in Battle
5. Keep an Eye on Morale
6. Be Wary of the Weather and Environment
7. Position Army on the High Ground

Deploy Diverse Unit Types

We recommend having multiple unit types in your army. Once you have your Spear Militia built up, complimenting them with backline units such as Archers will make your army more formidable.

All Recruits and Best Unit Types

Avoid Getting Flanked

Make sure to adjust your army's formation to avoid getting flanked by enemy units. Your units will suffer double damage if enemy units attack them from behind.

Select your units, hold Right Click, and drag your mouse to adjust your army's formation against flanking enemy units.

Look to Flank Enemy Units

Inversely, you'll want to position your army in a way where your units are flanking theirs. Try to have your melee units, like your Retinue, lock the enemy in place so that your Archers can go around the side and attack them.

Make sure that your Archers have a direct line of sight of the enemy, otherwise, they'll stand around doing nothing.

Pay Attention to Unit Icons

Each unit from both armies will have a designated icon above it, displaying what weapons the unit is composed of. Watch out for enemy units with a Star Icon, as they are the opposing Lord's Retinue.

Check Your Army's Fatigue in Battle

Each unit in your army has a Fatigue bar that acts as their Stamina. Low Fatigue levels decrease a unit's Effectiveness, lowering its Attack and Defense multipliers and eventually disabling it from running.

We recommend supplementing your army with tactics from stances to help avoid prolonged battles and depleting their Fatigue bar completely.

Keep an Eye on Morale

Each unit also has a Morale bar that dictates their willingness to fight. Notably, Militia units in their homeland and experienced units will have increased morale.

However, low morale will lock you out of stances and cause units to flee if depleted.

Be Wary of the Weather and Environment

The surrounding weather and environment affect how warfare plays out. Battlefields littered with corpses and forests will wear your army's Morale down, while rains decrease the effectiveness of your Archer units heavily.

All Seasons and Weather Effects

Position Army on the High Ground

Having your army on the high ground while the enemy is below will give you a sizeable advantage. When your armies charge into battle, your units will receive a Moving Downhill buff, while the enemy will have a Climbing debuff.

This buff carries over when they're locked into battle. Moving Downhill will turn into a High Ground buff while Climbing turns into a Low Ground debuff. This is especially important for Archers who don't charge into battle.

View Terrain Elevation to Find the Best Battle Location

Click on the option to build a road and zoom in on the battlefield to see the terrain elevation. This will make it easier to see where you want to position your army to maximize the high-ground buff that they get.

Manor Lords Related Guides

Beginner's Guide: Tips and Tricks

Manor Lords Tips and Tricks

List of Tips and Tricks
Game Setup and Difficulty Options	How to Explore World in Third Person
List of All Achievements	How to Change Region Name
Character Creation Guide	All Seasons and Weather
How to Change Church Bell Sound	How to Make a Custom Coat of Arms
What is the Best Scenario?	How to Get Clothing Stalls
Best Settings to Change	What is Diplomacy and Mechanics
What is the King's Road?	How to Get Artisan Workshops
How to Store Exposed Goods	How to Fix of Generic Storage Full Alert
Lack of Entertainment Explained	What Does Burn Field Do?
What to Do With Dead Oxen	How to Make Money Fast
Best Starting Resources	How to Fix the Stuck Ox Bug
What is King's Favor?	Is There Controller Support?

City Building Tips and Tricks

List of Tips and Tricks
How to Increase Approval to 100%	How to Survive Winter
How to Win a Growth Victory	Crop Rotation and Fertility Guide
How to Claim Regions	How to Get More Families
Trade Rule Guide (Set to No Trade Fix)	How to Pay Royal Tax
How to Relocate Buildings	How to Cure Diseases
How to Maintain Public Order	How to Put Out Fires
How to Check Map and Overlays	How to Delete and Remove Roads
How to Get Rid of Homelessness	Build Order and What to Build First
How to Assign Workers	How to Move Supplies
How to Make Roads	How to Limit Work Area
How to Rotate Buildings	How to Use the Castle Planner
Best City Layout	-

Combat Tips and Tricks

List of Tips and Tricks
How to Beat Restoring the Peace Scenario	How to Win a Conquest Victory
How to Win a Domination Victory	Combat Guide: How to Battle
How to Stop Bandits From Stealing	How to Make Weapons and Armor
How to Survive Raiders	-