TaleWorlds, developer of "Mount And Blade 2: Bannerlord," has quietly announced a surprising change to the way the medieval battle game generates terrain for real-time third-person small battles. Instead of choosing from pre-populated maps based on terrain types such as forest or plain, the battlefield will be based on the overall terrain of the surrounding strategic map region. This terrain will not only reflect the terrain near where you are, but the new battle terrain system "also takes into account the location and direction of the party within the region and uses this to determine where each side will spawn in battle."

No release date has been set for the update, but most previous features have appeared within a month of the development journal's debut.

Until this point, there had been no real indication that this level of detail was planned at Banner Road. There has also been a revolution in the way battles are decided, with key strategic points such as bridges, rivers, and mountain passes, as well as favorable terrain such as wide open plains and lush forests, becoming key positions for different playstyles, whereas in the past the battlegrounds were chosen based on fixed terrain types. Cavalry-focused Varandians prefer to engage in open fields, while infantry-focused Battandian skirmishers benefit from forest ambushes.

While this system is still a work in progress and details are subject to change, it is a significant change from the previous banalord system and a major update to the strategic layer of the banalord.

Another major update will be the addition of a duel server for multiplayer, where players will be able to join up with other players in one-on-one one fights. Players will be able to move around a central hub and challenge each other to one-on-three duels for high scores. All classes of the game will be available, and the battlegrounds will be chosen based on the combination of challenges between players. The hub area also offers a view of the duel arena so that players can watch the ongoing battle.

The development update also includes new town and castle maps for sieges, looting for successful sieges, and several new . It also introduces sandbox character creation for those who want to skip the main storyline and have a more customizable experience, including body size, weight, and age sliders and starting positions for each culture.

You can find Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord on Steam.