Beta Patch Notes - WS v1.3.0 / BL v1.5.0

AI summary1h

Bannerlord War Sails beta patch introduces naval content access and variety, new mooring and ferry systems, expanded starting options, and numerous balance/quality updates across naval battles, map, UI, and quests.

Images © Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord via Steam

▲Buffs6

Character Development SystemBoatswain:More Boatswain XP from repairing ships to reward maintenance work.→Increased repair XP
Mariner - Forceful perkMariner - Forceful:Fixed a bug where the secondary effect of Mariner - Forceful perk did not apply correctly.→Secondary effect now properly applies
Quests & Issues
- Gunnar rescue scene:Extends Gunnar's invulnerability window after rescue to improve mission fairness.→Increased during rescue event s
- Escort the Vlandian Merchants:Increases allied ship troops in the Escort the Vlandian Merchants mission for a tougher challenge.→Ship troop count increased to 14
- Break Out of Omor Estuary:Fireship is now harder to sink before reaching its target ship.→Increased health
- Break Out of Omor Estuary:Raises resilience of the second ship to improve mission balance.→Second ship max health increased

▼Nerfs2

Bannerlord Naval SystemsSeaborne Village Raid:Fixed a bug where the lost battle simulation of Seaborne Village Raid could be incorrectly counted as a win if the simulation started right after a loss.loss→loss when simulated immediately after losing
Character Development SystemNon-governor perks:Most non-governor perk effects are halved in naval combat to balance ship-based engagements.full effects→reduced by 50% in naval battles (except Mariner/Boatswain/Shipmaster group)

✚Bug fixes5

Naval SystemsPositioning after setting sail:Fixed a bug that caused the player's party to have position errors after setting sail, preventing entry into settlements.→Fixed position errors after setting sail
Naval BattlesCollision/scoreboard:Stabilizes visuals and accuracy of ship status in battles and raid missions.→Fixed camera shakes on collisions; ships no longer show as destroyed prematurely in scoreboard; ships appear in scoreboard during seaborne village raids
Clan and PartyHostile villages:Fixed an issue that blocked sailing from hostile villages.→Fixed bug preventing setting sail from hostile villages
Ships & Upgrades
- Square Sails (level 3):Ensures wind affects upper sail parts as intended.→Wind physics affect top cloth parts correctly
- LOD color variation:Prevents unintended color shifts across LODs on ship roofs.→Different LODs do not change ship roof color

◆Other changes25

Settlement Actions (Town, Village, Castle and Hideout)
- Mooring:Added Mooring to Town Ports to allow players to moor ships and manage fleets without selling or sending ships to clan; moored ports can become inaccessible if the town owner is at war, then accessible again when hostile status ends.→Added
- Mooring:Mooring supports multiple ports without a ship limit, enabling broader fleet management across towns.→Accessible at multiple ports
- Ferry System:Introduced ferries allowing travel between some coastal villages without owning ships; requires proximity to coastal village, not in an army, party size <= 50, and sufficient gold.→Added
- Coastal Castles:Added the ability to embark and disembark at coastal castles and extended the siege blockade feature to coastal castles.→Embark/Disembark at coastal castles
Random EventsNaval random events:Adds 39 naval random events that appear based on sea actions, offering choices affecting traits, skills, party, items, or gold.→39 events added
Character Development System
- Boatswain:Boatswain XP now earned by maintaining high morale at sea, not by ship damage.gained when ships take damage→gained by maintaining high morale at sea
- Naval skills:Adds core naval skills to faction leader templates for broader naval progression.→Mariner, Boatswain, Shipmaster added to faction leader templates
Boatswain Perk EffectsBoatswain - Streamlined Operations:Boatswain perks' primary effect becomes personal (ballista usage) rather than global.→Personal effect; applies when the hero uses a ballista on a ship
Nord noblesNord beards and scars:Nord nobles receive more facial hair and scars to enhance rugged appearance.→More rugged look (beards/scars)
Naval Battles
- Ship deployment:Loosens crew requirements for ship placement during OoB phase to allow under-crewed ships with warning.Restricted to ships meeting skeletal crew→Relaxed; ships with fewer troops than skeletal crew allowed to deploy (UI warns underperformance)
- Deployment zone planning:Improved naval deployment logic for better formation control across battle types.→Dynamic spacing with max 20m gap; river battles have fixed deployment depth (50m front/back); sea battles extend to mission boundaries meters
Clan and Party
- Noble party AI:AI now assesses tasks and nearby settlements to reduce random pirate engagements at sea.→Improved decisions; consider active task and proximity before engaging pirates; avoid unnecessary engagements near settlements
- Pirate parties:Smaller pirates make early naval exploration and combat more accessible.→Added smaller pirate parties for earlier naval encounters
Ships & Upgrades
- Ship upgrades:Improved the descriptions to better convey upgrade benefits.→More detailed upgrade descriptions
- Ghurab captain pose:Adds a new captain pose to the Ghurab ship for enhanced visual flair.→New animation pose for captain point
- Reinforced Battlements with Improved Rudder:Fixed visuals for a ship upgrade so players can see the upgrade properly.→Visual appearance fixed
- Ship sails & rooftops colors:Fixes color display issues on ship sails and rooftops.→Colors show correctly on sails and rooftops
UI
- Mariner icon visibility:Mariner icon visibility now reflects the upgraded troop's type when upgrading, improving clarity.→Visibility check uses upgraded troop type rather than current mariner
- Scoreboard ordering:Scoreboard now prioritizes the player's ships in formation order.→Player ships shown first in formation (1->8)
- Fleet draft type:Fleet menu reflects naval raid capability in draft options.→Draft type updated to include naval raid ability
- Ship thumbnails:Visual refresh of ship thumbnails for clarity.→Updated ship thumbnails
- Custom battle screens:Limits quick-add ships in custom battles Seaborne Village Raids to prevent clutter.→Removed + ship buttons beyond 3 ships
- Screen access lock:Prevents accidental navigation away from fleet management during naval setup.→Cannot open other screens while Manage Fleet is open
Quests & Issues
- War Sails storyline:Adjusted multiple missions (alley fight, ship escape) to be easier on early players.→Adjusted to reduce difficulty in certain missions
- Free the Sea:Adds visual cue for throwable axe barrels during escape ship sequence.→Throwable axe barrels highlighted