Manor Lords Guide: How to Create a Militia

In Manor Lords, creating a militia is essential for defending your settlement against bandits. A militia is an army composed of local townspeople equipped with weapons and armor to fight incoming foes or help stake claims to enemy territories. This guide will walk you through the steps of setting up a militia in Manor Lords, ensuring you are always prepared for battle.

Prerequisites for Creating a Militia

To form a militia in Manor Lords, you need two key components: recruits and equipment. Recruits are the healthy adult male members of your population, which can be checked by hovering over the "Total Population" icon in the top hotbar or by looking at the first icon in the recruit army menu.

Equipment, such as weapons and armor, is also crucial for your militia. The game provides a starter set of weapons and shields, but you'll need to expand and level up aspects of your burgage plots to obtain more and mount a formidable fighting force.

Militia Types and Required Equipment

Manor Lords features four militia types, each requiring specific weapons or defense tools:

To reach the minimum headcount for your militia, you must have a high enough approval rating to attract sufficient people to live in your settlement.

Crafting Weapons and Armor

To craft weapons and armor for your militia, you need to construct backyard extensions on Level 2 Burgage plots and assign residents as artisans. The following backyard extensions produce combat-relevant equipment:

• Armorer's Workshop: Produces helmets for any militia type
• Blacksmith's Workshop: Produces smithing tools, spears, and sidearms
• Bowyer's Workshop: Produces warbows
• Joiner's Workshop: Produces wooden parts and all shield types

Ensure that you have the necessary industry structures, such as a Bloomery to refine Iron Ore into Iron Slabs, and assign workers to each building to maintain a steady supply of weapons and armor.

Rallying Your Militia

Once your militia is equipped and ready, you can rally them by clicking on the troop from the rally menu and then clicking on the rally icon (a flag). Set a rally point within your territory, and your militia members will gather there. After they have assembled, you can send them to defend against attacks or challenge rival lords for more territory.

When controlling your militia, you have several options to optimize their performance in battle:

• Give Ground: Lures the enemy by moving backward
• Missile Alert: Increases ranged defense and lowers melee defense
• Stand Your Ground: Increases defense and reduces attack frequency by half
• Push Forward: Soldiers push forward with no stat changes
• Shoot At Will: Archers aim directly at the enemy, decreasing ranged accuracy but increasing close-range effectiveness
• Run To Positions: Militia runs to their destination, causing fatigue
• Hold: Militia stops and reforms their shape

To attack, simply highlight the units and right-click on the destination, enemy troop, or camp.

Retinue and Mercenaries

In addition to your militia, you can create a Retinue after building a Manor. The Retinue is an improved group of troops that you can customize, with a maximum of 12 members. By building more Manors, you can acquire additional Retinues.

Hiring mercenaries is another way to bolster your army if you lack manpower or weapons. Mercenaries are paid for using your treasury, which can be increased by taxing your villagers.

By following these steps and utilizing the various militia types, Retinue, and mercenaries, you can create a strong fighting force to defend your settlement and expand your territory in Manor Lords.