The infantry is considered one of the best unit types in Bannerlord, especially by the fans that love rotating shield walls.
However, you can go through a whole playthrough and never know which infantry units in Bannerlord are the best.
Recommended Read: What Happens When You Die in Bannerlord?
There are the javelin-throwing Imperial Legionaries, the relentless Mameluke Palace Guards, and the powerful polearm users, the Flaxmen.
Every culture and faction boasts some impressive troops, so here are the best, highest-tier Bannerlord infantry units, from best to worst, properly graded in our tier list.
Table of contents
Bannerlord Infantry Units Tier List
If you already know what the best factions in Bannerlord are, you probably already have an idea of which troops will be the best.
These are the finest infantry troops in Bannerlord, from best to worst:
| Unit | Tier | Faction |
|---|---|---|
| Imperial Legionary | S | Empire |
| Battanian Veteran Falxman | A | Battania |
| Imperial Elite Menavliaton | A | Empire |
| Vlandian Voulgier | A | Vlandia |
| Aserai Mameluke Palace Guard | A | Aserai |
| Sturgian Heroic Line Breaker | A | Sturgia |
| Khuzait Darkhan | B | Khuzait |
| Vlandian Sergeant | B | Vlandia |
| Battanian Wildling | B | Battania |
| Aserai Veteran Infantry | B | Aserai |
| Sturgian Heavy Infantry | C | Sturgia |
| Battanian Oathsworn | D | Battania |
| Sturgian Heavy Spearman | D | Sturgia |
| Hired Blade | F | Mercenary |
| Vlandian Pikeman | F | Vlandia |
S Tier
Imperial Legionary
It is a known fact among the community that the Imperial Legionary dominates the infantry scene. There is no unit in Bannerlord that can even come close.
They can do everything: stop cavalry charges, break through every infantry-type shield wall, and can easily get through archers when conquering settlements.
The Empire boasts some of the best overall troops in the game, and it easily gets the number 1 place when it comes to infantry.
A Tier
Battanian Veteran Falxman
When it comes to close melee, one on one battles, the Battanian Veteran Falxman is the king of kings. No troop can win a melee against this infantry troop.
They are also some of the best when it comes to stopping cavalry charges. Their polearms are strong enough to destroy some of the most daring knights.
Most Battanian infantry troops in the game are relatively disappointing. However, when you consider how powerful the Falxman is on the frontlines, all other problems can easily be forgotten.
Imperial Elite Menavliaton
The Empire makes sure to get another high spot on the tier with another one of its troops, the Elite Menavliaton.
Their menavliaton is incredibly powerful against cavalry, and their combat capabilities against other infantry troops are nothing to scoff at.
Vlandian Voulgier
The Vlandians have amazing cavalry troops and an elite infantry unit that most would love to get in their ranks.
It is very similar to the Imperial Elite Menavliaton, as it can destroy cavalry charges and can keep up with some of the best infantry troops out there.
It also comes stacked with 3 different weapons: a one-handed sword, a two-handed sword, and a voulge. It will almost always use the voulge, and that is alright since it is an incredible weapon.
Aserai Mameluke Palace Guard
The Aserai Mameluke Palace Guards could only be described as tanks. They wield huge two-handed axes and can get through shields like they don’t exist.
A disadvantage for their great Executioner Axes is the fact that the armaments are really heavy, and the animation can take a while, leaving them vulnerable.
They also wear some amazing armor and are the best shock infantry units in Bannerlord, only being closely tied in skill with the next soldiers:
Sturgian Heroic Line Breaker
These are the Sturgian equivalent of the Mameluke Palace Guards. If you like one, you will like the other as well.
Though both of these units are amazing, they have one great disadvantage that does not let them get into the S tier: they can easily break apart against other two-handed troops.
If you used a squad of Line Breakers against one of Palace Guards or vice versa, the winner would be the battalion with more troops, with heavy casualties.
B Tier
Khuzait Darkhan
The Khuzait have finally made an appearance in this tier list, and their only entry is decent. The Darkhan is a powerful troop that can hold its ground well enough.
There is a meme that holds a bit of truth, where players dismount their Khan’s Guard and say that these are the best infantry troops in the game.
And the answer would be yes, dismounted Khan’s Guard would be better infantry troops than the Darkhan. Does this mean you shouldn’t use them in your Khuzait playthrough? No.
They have decent armor and can properly keep the line against most troops. However, don’t expect them to bring you any miracles.
Vlandian Sergeant
The Vlandian Sergeant is easier to get than the Voulgier and is a very reliable troop for the Vlandians.
They have the capability to use the pike brace tactic, allowing them to stop cavalry charges with ease, and can hold shields as well. As opposed to other troops, though, they don’t wield any ranged projectiles.
The only problem with them is that their armor is a lot weaker than it would seem. They can die quite easily when engaged in close combat if they don’t get their shields out in time.
Battanian Wildling
The Wildling is an interesting troop. It dies easily but is the best skirmisher infantry troop in the game. This is why we decided to give them a mid rating.
Sure, they can destroy other infantry units before they get into close range, but once the melee starts, the Wildling becomes a liability.
If you want to understand how easily they can break, just look at their armor ratings compared to the Imperial Legionary:
- Foot Armor
- Wildling -> 6
- Legionary -> 22
- Hand Armor
- Wildling -> 5
- Legionary -> 22
- Head Armor
- Wildling -> 25
- Legionary -> 47
Aserai Veteran Infantry
The Aserai Veteran Infantry is an all-around decent unit. They can keep your lines intact but also have some annoying disadvantages.
They can use javelins, but they will most likely miss, and they have spears that can’t be used to pike brace, which makes the polearm weapons slightly ineffective.
The thing that makes the Aserai Veteran Infantry units still relevant is their beefy armor. They can properly tank and keep the line-up.
C Tier
Sturgian Heavy Infantry
The lone wolf of Tier C, the Sturgian Heavy Infantry is a weird one. This one was a long time ago, at least an A tier, but after many nerfs, it has now fallen down to tier C.
Its armor is decent, and its melee capabilities are good enough. These infantry units also wield some throwing axes that, most of the time, will never be used.
D Tier
Battanian Oathsworn
When you first start the game as a Battanian, you would most likely want to use the Oathsworn, since it sounds really good on paper.
However, the Oathsworn gets destroyed in large melee combat and has throwing axes, which are really weak in Bannerlord. On the other hand, it can pike brace, which is always a welcome bonus.
It is also one of the only infantry troops in the game with both polearm and shield, which can help a lot during sieges.
Sturgian Heavy Spearman
These guys are really bad. We would put them even lower if the next ones wouldn’t be even worse.
The Sturgian Heavy Spearmen have no chance in melee, have no throwing weapons, and wield spears, which means they can’t pike brace. All in all, a total disappointment.
F Tier
Hired Blade
If you are a Mount and Blade: Warband veteran, then you might recognize and even might want to recruit a few Hired Blades here and there. Do not do it.
These guys are supposed to be shield units, but they have horrible armor and get trampled by almost any decent troop in Bannerlord. They also don’t have any throwing weapons, which leaves them in the worst tier.
Vlandian Pikeman
These units are a joke. They are the poor man’s Vlandian Sergeant. You would have no reason to ever pick them.
The Vlandian Pikemen can pike brace, which is great! However, the Sergeant can do this as well. The Pikeman is also horrendous in melee combat and has no ranged weapons, leaving it in the worst spot on this tier list.
That’s everything you need to know about the best infantry units and their ranking in Mount and Blade 2: Bannerlord!
Have any input or suggestions for this guide? Let us know in the comment section below.
