Mount&Blade: With Fire and Sword continues the saga, this time in the gunpowder age of medieval Eastern Europe.
The player starts with a pre-generated male character (character creation has been disabled, however the player may still customize the physical features) in the outskirts of Smolensk, in Polish territory. To survive, the player must once again gain reputation from one of the available factions: the Polish Republic currently allied with Crimean Khanate is at war with the Cossack Hetmanate, who are allied with the Muscovite Tsardom. The powerful Kingdom of Sweden awaits the outcome of the war. Although still an open-world game, a few faction-specific plots now may be pursued by the player.
Mercenary camps is a new feature allowing the player to hire region-specific units. These mercenaries may be upgraded in weapons and armor for a price. One mercenary camp is available per faction.
All crossbow weapons have now been replaced with firearms, capable of delivering devastating damage, though with a slow loading process, slightly lower accuracy, and lower levels of ammunition. Firearms come into two versions: muskets and pistols. Muskets have longer range, damage, and more angle when firing from a horse. Pistols are noticeably faster in reloading time, however have shorter range, and may only be fired frontally from a horse.
The player may now send (and accompany) caravans between towns and castles as an alternate to profit. The previous income feature of building investment has been replaced with this new feature.
