Bannerlord: A Smith’s Guide to Getting Charcoal

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For any aspiring weaponsmith or armorer in Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, charcoal is the lifeblood of your craft. It’s the essential fuel needed to smelt down weapons for materials and forge powerful new gear. Running out of charcoal mid-project can bring your entire smithing enterprise to a halt.

This guide will cover the best methods for keeping your forge burning bright by acquiring a steady supply of charcoal.

Contents

  1. The Best Method: Smelting Hardwood
  2. The Easy Method: Buying Charcoal
  3. The Bonus Method: Looting
  4. Where to Find Hardwood
  5. Key Tips for Smiths

The Best Method: Smelting Hardwood

By far the most efficient and sustainable way to get charcoal is to make it yourself. This gives you direct control over your fuel supply and is crucial for any serious smith.

  • The Process: Go to the smithy in any town. In the “Smelt” tab, you can convert Hardwood into Charcoal. The standard conversion rate is 2 Hardwood -> 1 Charcoal.
  • The Perk: The process becomes significantly more efficient once you unlock the Efficient Charcoal Maker perk at Smithing Level 25. This changes the conversion rate to 1 Hardwood -> 1 Charcoal, effectively doubling your output and making it the best source of fuel in the game.

The Easy Method: Buying Charcoal

If you have more denars than time, you can simply buy charcoal from towns and villages across Calradia.

  • Where to Buy: Charcoal is often available in the trade goods section of major towns. However, the best and cheapest sources are villages that produce hardwood as their primary good. Look for villages in forested regions, especially in Battania and Sturgia.
  • Price Fluctuations: Be aware that prices can vary wildly depending on supply, demand, and whether any caravans have been recently raided. If you see a good price, stock up!
A soldier form mount and blade bannerlord standing in a field with a sword and shield

The Bonus Method: Looting

While not a reliable primary source, you can often acquire small amounts of charcoal and hardwood as loot after a battle.

  • Best Targets: Caravans are the most likely to be carrying trade goods like charcoal and hardwood. Attacking them will negatively impact your relations and trade, but it’s an option.
  • Bandit Parties: Some bandit groups, particularly Forest Bandits, may also drop hardwood after being defeated. Think of this as a welcome bonus rather than a dedicated farming strategy.

Where to Find Hardwood

Since making your own charcoal is the best method, you’ll need a lot of hardwood.

  • Buy from Villages: The most reliable way to get hardwood is to travel to villages that produce it. You can see a settlement’s production by hovering over it on the world map. Villages around Seonon, Marunath, and Ortysia are excellent sources.
  • Buy from Towns: Towns will also have hardwood for sale, often brought in by local villagers. The price will usually be higher than buying directly from the source village.

Key Tips for Smiths

  • Get the Perk: Rush to Smithing Level 25 and unlock “Efficient Charcoal Maker.” It’s the single most important perk for long-term smithing.
  • Carry a Mule: Hardwood is heavy. As you travel to collect it, make sure you have sumpter horses or mules in your inventory to increase your carry capacity.
  • Establish a Base: Find a town with nearby hardwood-producing villages to use as your primary smithing location. This cuts down on travel time and lets you focus on crafting.