The Way Of The Hedge Knight And Brotherhood Without Banners Duel Guide~ AWoIaF [Version 9]

"And what do knights swear to do? Protect the weak and uphold the good."


Hedge knights are typically commoners who have risen to knighthood. They have no fixed abode and wander the Seven Kingdoms looking for a cause to fight for. They are called "hedge" knights because it is said that they are so poor that they just sleep under hedges by the side of the road as they wander from one job to the next.

Will you find a worthy cause?

Or perhaps you could become one with the Brotherhood Without Banners?

Introduction To Both

"Hedge knights, now, are a different breed. Take a sellsword and remove the sense. They get their name from where the sleep: under the hedges of the Seven Kingdoms and ditches and stables. They do not have the family name or the purse like real knights, so they spend all their money on armor and a horse and riding tourney after tourney in the hope of impressing some lord or winning some prize."
―Bronn
A Hedge Knight can be many things, a lords Retainer, an adventurer, Torney fighter, Bandit Hunter. Or all of them at once over time, they can be honorable or dishonorable depending on their way of doing things. A Robber Knight and a Hedge Knight are two sides of the same coin as one once put it.
Will you choose benevolence and malevolence? Or somewhere in between...




The Brotherhood Without Banners is what some would regard as an outlaw group working against Lannister interests in the Riverlands. Their goal is simple, to protect the smallfolk from any force preying on them, regardless of which King or Lord they support.

The group was indirectly created by Eddard Stark, when he sent out a force of knights to restore peace and justice to the Riverlands. Trapped behind enemy lines, they became a guerrilla fighting group, and were joined by deserters from different armies in the war as well as commoners trying to defend their homes. The Brotherhood continues to fight to protect the commoners of the Riverlands in the name of King Robert and Lord Eddard. Will you join their cause and do the same?

(Part Credit to Wikia)

Hedge knight Character Creation

First you have to choose your background. What would make the most sense would be being a son of a retainer , then his Apprentice retainer then becoming a retainer yourself. And choosing the end traits of the religion of the likely faction you'll serve and then your reasons is your choice. Be aware that does have an effect on stats though, I think Personal Revenge gives a bonus to strength. Some good skills to upgrade would be...

If your going ranged...

• Power Draw(unless your using a crossbow)
  
• Power throw
  
• Horse Archery and riding [If your heading east]
  
• Athletics for running.

For a future mounted or unmounted Hedge Knight Champion.

• Ironflesh
  
• Power Strike
  
• Power throw(for throwing weapons.
  
• Riding...it be promoted to ride a horse you should have the skils beforehand.
  
• Athletics! Because armour weighs you down and tires you, so do heavy weapons. With high enough of this however that won't be a problem.

Entertainment- If you upgrade this you can perform in towns as a bard while your lord waits an heals. This is a good idea to get if you plan to serve a lord with a city.

Traits
Your main choice will be that of your trait. Being a leader or a warrior, this is important as both have great benefits but you can only have one.

The Warrior-- It allows you to do a fearsome shout that causes all nearby enemies to back away from you or even flee a matter of feet. This is more useful for the individual, though in seiges can be used to open up the top of a ladder or a hole in the enemies lines. If you command from the front then this is for you.

The Leader-- This allows you to do a rallying cry, beating your shield as all your men join their voices in a choir of death. Recovering their health by as much as 20%, the only danger is for a brief moment they are exposed as they cheer. If you are one to sit on a horse and observe the battle more tactically then this is for you.

Hedge Knight Early Game

Static Wars or Normal?

I would recommend Static Wars for the most realistic GOT setting, where the Westerlands, The Stormlands, Dragonstone, The North, The Riverlands, The Iron Islands and The Reach quite actively fight one another in Westeros. The War Of The Five Kings...

The Nights Watch and Wildlings also constantly fight, though the Nights Watch are badly outnumbered. While Essos is mostly peaceful and Dorne and the Vale stay out of the fighting.

However if you want a more volatile world then do normal and all factions will declare wars at will and Essos most of all will be more violent.

Take into account that this feature is a work in progress.


WHO TO SERVE?


Your first order of business will be to decide whom to serve if any. First of course it'd be a choice of which kingdom, then down to which lord or even a King.

Judge wisely whom you wish to serve for a time. Lords who are along borders fight far more often than lets say a lord with a castle in the far north. It is most wise to serve one who owns a city because when he is inside it, you can take part in all it's functions. Such as...

• Gambling
  
• brothols
  
• buying land or business
  
• Arenas where you can fight for experiance
  
• Markets of all types ect.
  
• Can hire troops ect.
  
• Kingdom bards in castle can raise your renown if you pay them too

Lords with smallers armies commonly fight much more and it is more easy to distinguish yourself among the ranks in battle. However it can also prove more dangerous as being captured is not good.

A larger army is safer however it can be harder to distinguish yourself, with less opportunities to fight.

Serving a certain lord with a city has obvious benefits in the far future as longtime services earns the trust of them. To earn the good favour of a king may be quite benefical longterm if you plan on joining that faction.

It is best to serve a Marshal or a king who actively fights for the most safety.

In the next section is a list of the Seven Kingdoms in Westeros who are at war with one another.

~Enlisting~ If you wish to enlist you simply speak to any lord that you have atleast Zero or neutral relations with and then enlist in their ranks. Your starting rank is peasant and you only rise through your valor. Your rank is only held within that faction...

It is possible for you to rise to the stature of a Hedge Knight with all that entitles. To fight for a Lord, to gain renown and honor and wealth.

Then fight in the torneys, if needed you could even request leave to attend one. As you are informed in your quests sometimes when one is happening and given a few weeks to attend. However be warned, if you do not return in two weeks you will be branded a deserter.

Tip~You can arm yourself with any weapon you wish before a battle but you cannot ride a mount unless your class rides one. You are granted weapons and armour according to your class and rank as well.

Promotion
Can be gained in these ways for better gear and armour.

• Fighting in battle
  
• Fighting In The Arena
  
• Gaining any sort of experience while in active service

~Questing~ In the beginning you can start out hostile to the Westerlands if you choose to take the letter and embark on the first questline. If you refuse to take it then it ends there.

There are many more quests, some shorter and others longer.

Here is a list of all the current quests[aworldoficeandfire.co.uk].

~Arena And Torneys~


In cities you can fight in arenas for as much as 750 reward if you survive till the end. Or every now and again Torneys are held where you...

• Fight with your own Armour, Weapons and sometimes your own horse
  
• You can bet on yourself up to 500 each time, if that is your first bet your potential reward is already around 10k, but can be as high as over 15k.
  
• Gain great renown ect
  
• Many towns have different scenes and layouts for them.

~Should I hire men when serving in an army~
It isn't a bad idea to have your own small group that you can personal command in battle as a sort of bodyguard. But take into account you still must feed and pay them.
And you keep them when you leave. But IF you enlist in an army you do not keep your men you had with you.

~After Battle Decisions~

Congratulations if you survived a battle, if you broke anything then either wait a month for it to heal or visit a castle Maester to be healed. Now you have a choice on what you wish to do...

The First~ Will gain you honor but less money
The Second~ Will cost you some honor but get the most amount of money
The Third~ May get you little to no money, much greater honor and better relations with your lord.
The last~dont do the last...

Promotions And Pay
Are within the commander reports...

How long should I stay?
As long as you wish, but your exact rank will not carry over to other factions. When you retire from service then your service weapons and armour are taken back from you. Unless you revolt or they lose a battle and you escape.

Should I desert?
The main benefit of desertion is quite obvious. If you reach the rank of a mounted Knight, you will keep your horse, armour and weapons if you desert. I am quite sure this is less costly to relations than revolting but you will still be hunted down none the less.

Whether you wish to buy your own things over time, or take the armour you get from service(which you commonly can't buy on the markets) is up to you to weigh the pros and cons.

The best way could be just to be apart of an army that is bound to lose in your faction and then when they lose and you are let go, you will likely keep your armour and can set out on your own. Other ways of leaving with to much backlash are being tired out.

Revolting
Is quite dangerous as you attempt to lead a portion of your own lords troops against him. Most of all troops in your own subparty, why you'd want to do this. I don't exactly know, perhaps if you hated a lord you could revolt when he is weak. Capture him and then kill him for his armour or ransom.
The main key is you can free the prisoners and many may help you fight. So if they are a weak with alot of prisoners then that would be the best time to do so. However it may earn you a very bad status with many factions.

Perhaps at that point you could leave for the Wall to redemn yourself with the Nights Watch or Pledge to the King-Beyond-The-Wall of the Wildlings. Form a Merc Company and fight for a factoin in the classic style.
Or travel to Esso and fight with or against the invading Horselords.

Or change your parties name to 'Brotherhood Without Banner' and take on their name and duties of bandit and Lannister hunting.

May the gods bless you on your travels

War Of The Five Kings Factions

~War Of The Five Kings Westeros Factions~
This is if you have it on Static Wars, which is a WIP, however I have yet to come across issues with it. On normal things could be much different if Dorne or The Vale get involved. Perhaps even in static you could spur them too war.
And Esso is very peaceful other than the slow invasion from the east by the Horselords.

Here are relations and facts in that context. First I will list how good they seem to serve under static wars. If you want to serve any faction then do normal wars for a more volatile realm. Most of all in Essos.


The Westerlands

Lead by House Lannister, they are in the middle of the War Of The Five Kings. These fight so much in the south that it is hard to stay with an army for to long before they are defeated. A few facts..

-In a state of constant fighting.
-They specialize in the use of Crossbows and commonly light armoured troops, and light cavalry.
-The are medium sized faction with many armies but they are at war on more than one front.
-Mostly use swords and short swords at close range while crossbows are deadly at long range
-Defend themselves quite often
-Worship The Seven on average

Dragonstone

Lead by Stannis Baratheon, a rare follower of the R'hllor. A few facts..

-Have quicker troops with maces
-Use Bowmen and Longbowmen
-Use Calvary as well but not as much it seems
-A smaller faction at war with seemingly everyone, the most fighting
-Mainly use maces and invade areas
-Men wear cool black armour and outfits
-Worship R'hllor on average (you can sacrifice prisoners to him)

The Stormlands

Lead by Renly Baratheon, with similar troops to Dragonstone.

-Have quick strong med armoured troops and heavy calvary more often
-Also use maces
-A medium size kingdom who commonly invades(more successfully than dragonstone) and defends itself.
-Some different armours than the others(have yet to study the value differences)
-Constant fighting and most often sucessful
-Worship The Seven on average

Ironborn
Lead by House Greyjoy on the Iron Islands in the north.

-Use Axes and other Viking influenced weapons
-If you have Ironborn ancestry you suffer no morale loss from sea travel
-Very Heavy raider troops
-Few Calvary or Archers
-Small faction that harrasses the North and the Westerlands from time to time in quick bloody wars.
-Only ones who worship the Drowning God (you can sacrifice prisoners to him)

The North

Lead by Robb Stark the North is the northern most kingdom...

-Their troops commonly lack shields in return for two handed weapons
-Use Longbowmen
-Are certainly one of the largest and most spread out kingdoms
-Some Lords rarely fight at all while others constantly fight the Ironborn or Westerlands
-Have Knights that rival the Westerlands.
-Are allied with Riverlands
-Are among the few who worship The Old Gods, as do the Free Folk north of the wall, whom may attack them in time if they ever were to defeat the Nights Watch


The Riverlands
In the middle The Westerlands and The North their main enemy is the Westerlands.

-Moderately powerful with many cities
-Mainly on the defensive
-at peace in the beginning
-Allied with the North
-Good bowmen and wealthy


The Reach

Lead by the Tyrells and have limited involvement in the war. Though on normal mode are much more active in the fighting...

-Mainly Fight Dragonstone
-Have more average troops
-Much more Calvary, as that is their second tier unit
-More spread out
-Fight rarely

IN ESSOS
A more peaceful land with few castles and cities and large armies fighting to defend these few lands.

Pentos ~A City state fighting against an invading horse army to survive.

Bonus Note:

If you want to keep the equipment you get from being enlisted, say if you achieved knight status and wanted to keep the plate they give you,. This is how: In any city, pay the armourer/weaponsmith to upgrade them.

This basically replaces the set given to you with a new upgraded set which you actually own and isn't taken away when you retire.

Brotherhood Without Banners

The brotherhood without banners contrast greatly from the common bandit or poacher as laid out in other guides in quite simple terms...they hunt them down. Some even hunt lords down who would dare come and loot and burn the innocent villages of the Riverlands.

Most on the map hunt bandits and other degenerate groups. What you will do is up to you...


They are the true protectors of the people...



[More to come]

Decided to put it off for a while. Anyways find Hollow Hill in the Westerlands to find them. It only appears when you are close and is northwest of that one lake above kings Landing I think. There it is said you can hire them and there is a questline for you.

Music For The Dark Ages

If you wish for music to best fit a character who worships the Old Gods, The Drowning God or R'hllor then this playlist is perfect for the griddy reality of a harsh realm. Follow or listen to the Playlist below on spotify for 10 hours of handpicked Dark Ages music for your travels and battles...with dark griddy music. Perfect for dark Pagan characters in other mods.(Pagan styled music from Wardruna is included in the playlists and the best Vikings songs) Along with many of the best GOT songs ect.

https://open.spotify.com/user/josh42392/playlist/2qZrnhe91iH5wWWhQZuwri

Below is a second Playlist called 'FOR GLORY!' more fitted for followers of the New Gods. Focused more on epic music with choirs for the pious christian knight fighting for Glory.

https://open.spotify.com/user/josh42392/playlist/7afCqCx1EbQDWKZebMEMJY

If you follow the links you can click on any song for a 30 second preview ect.

LINKS FOR A World Of Ice And Fire Mod

"Be prepared to create your own House and challenge the Seven Kingdoms in this adaptation of A Game of Thrones. A gritty world awaits you full of treachery and traitorous Kings, Lords and Knights. Will you survive the slaughter and take the Iron throne, or will you succumb to the traitorous ways that goes forth in Westeros and Essos"

http://www.moddb.com/mods/a-world-of-ice-and-fire


Here is a link directly to the downloads. Be sure to download 2nd one which is the main game, and then the top one is the patch for it.

http://www.moddb.com/mods/a-world-of-ice-and-fire/downloads

Other Complete Guides

~The Way Of The Poacher and Peddler Duel Guide~

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=716241891

~The Way Of The Wildling~King-Beyond-The-Wall Full Guide~

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=719333819

[Emperorpphed slayer of Archers]

dang dude sucks you dont have any more guides on this mod they are very entertaining

[Hairboy523]

Never been a Nights Watch before. I'd imagine you can join as a regular watch for the Lord Commander or as a commander. Though early on it was only commander. I haven't played the newest version. They are a very unique faction though. The only one fit to fight White Walkers.

[Absense]

Any guide for the best way to play and enjoy a Night's Watch character?

[Hairboy523]

Dragonstone is a hard one but they are my favorite Army as far as the kneeler kingdoms go. Plus they have Red Priests ect so you can follow the Fire God more openly there. @spookytoxin

[spookytoxin]

Doing this while enlisting in dragonstone seems to be pretty hard, as they seem to get stomped by the stormlands, even if you enlist in King Stannis/Davos Seaworth's armies

[Hairboy523]

Only the lower leveled ones. The upper ones are quite heavy and they have quite the numbers too usually.

[DerRitter]

Why do Lannisters get light armored troops? That doesn't seem to make much sense...

[Hairboy523]

Will include, good idea.

[Vile Calumnies]

If you want to keep the equipment you get from being enlisted, say if you achieved knight status and wanted to keep the plate they give you, paying the armourer/weaponsmith to upgrade them. This basically replaces the set given to you with a new upgraded set which you actually own and isn't taken away when you retire.

[The CEO of Based]

-Mindbogling!
Now clean your room and look her square in the eye, bucko!