There are three Manor Lords scenarios to choose, each enforcing their own rules and victory conditions for your new settlement. Do you want to focus on city-building and making a town filled with cheerful medieval peasants or do you want to crush and conquer other lords who dare to establish themselves nearby in RTS battles? These scenarios, along with three difficulties to choose from - relaxing, default, and challenging - have a big impact on how harsh the game's systems are and how aggressive the enemy AI is. If you're unsure on which Manor Lords scenario to start with, I'm here to help as I've explained how each scenario works and how difficulty levels affect the experience so you know what to expect.
All Manor Lords scenarios
Here's a very basic overview of the three Manor Lords scenarios you can choose:
- Rise to Prosperity (city builder only mode)
- Restoring the Peace (balanced mode)
- On the Edge (survival mode)
Manor Lords Rise to Prosperity scenario
- End goal: Growth
- Starting season (default): Spring
- Starting season (challenging): Winter
The Rise to Prosperity scenario in Manor Lords is the one I recommend for new players. This combat-free mode allows you to lean into the game's vast array of management systems and get to know each one before you even think about the RTS elements. Trust me: there's plenty to see and do without worrying about bandits.
Since Rise to Prosperity has the Growth end goal, your winning conditions are simple: reach the Large Town settlement rank at your own pace. To do this, you'll need to tend to the needs of your townsfolk and keep your Manor Lords approval high enough, which in turn will attract new settlers to move in and help keep the town thriving. Spring is the ideal time to start any new scenario across the board, but it is especially helpful in Rise to Prosperity if you want to stockpile as much seasonal food, Manor Lords fuel, and supplies before a harsh winter – which is exactly when things kick off if you're playing on the challenging difficulty setting.
Manor Lords Restoring the Peace scenario
- End goal: Domination
- Starting setting (all difficulties): Spring
The Restoring the Peace scenario in Manor Lords provides a more even keel between city building and RTS combat. With an end goal of Domination, your aim is to eliminate all neighboring lords and claim their land. The size of your settlement is less important than dividing and conquering in this scenario, though you will still need plenty of hands on deck if you want to prepare your own Manor Lords militia, so you can't ignore the needs of your people entirely.
The main difference implemented by a higher difficulty level is AI aggression, which is Balanced by default and Aggressive in challenging mode. This dictates how often your township is attacked by bandits and raiders, so choose wisely.
Manor Lords On the Edge scenario
- End goal (default): Growth
- End goal (challenging): Conquest
- Starting season (default): Spring
- Starting season (challenging): Winter
The most intense Manor Lords scenario is aptly named On the Edge, because that is how you'll be feeling most of the time. This setting feels like the game's unofficial "survival" mode, with the default version tasking you with building your settlement rank up to that of Large Town while fending off aggressive bandit attacks multiple times per in-game year. It's basically Rise to Prosperity with actual enemies.
When raising the difficulty level to challenging, your end goal switches to Conquest – claim all territories to win – and you'll start your gruelling mission at the height of winter. There will also already be two bandit camps on the map from the get-go, so expect your hard-earned materials and supplies to be pilfered on the regular, even when you aren't besieged. Hey, it's called On the Edge for a reason!
© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.
