Trading goods is a great way to make money in Mount & Blade: Warband. In this post, you learn example price ranges and thresholds (to buy under X, to sell over Y) for the most profitable goods. You also learn an example trade route that goes around all Calradia in Warband.
(All information is for the game without any mods, as mods might change the trade/economy/map in the game. UPDATE: This information is valid for game version 1.143. It might work for newer versions too, but newer versions might change the trade routes and economy.)
You can learn all this info in game, by doing trading, using the asses good deals option in the marketplace of the towns, talking to the guild master about trade and production of the different cities, so consider the information below SPOILERS.
Also, there are a lot of trading opportunities in the game I do not list here, because these are the ones I've found working for me. Feel free to experiment and take on the opportunities you see :)
Note: I didn't come up with any of this (although I have "tested" all of this in-game). The hard work has been done by the awesome people and gamers at the Taleworlds Forums. I just put it here on my blog as it's sometimes hard to find stuff from forums.
General Tips
Travel fast:
- give riding skill and horses to all companions,
- invest in pathfinding skill (e.g. increase the skill with one companion and have two points on your own),
- prefer cavalry over infantry (for trading journeys),
- keep the army size small (but high enough to "scare" bandits away),
- keep the morale of the army high,
- have 6 horses in your inventory (as "pack" horses) - the cheapest you can find (quality of the horse doesn't matter)
Put points to inventory management (at least 2) to have more space for goods.
If you increase trading skill with one of the companions, put 2 points in it for your character to get the +1 extra.
Get some experience and levels before you start "heavy trading", as you will run into robbing attempts when entering marketplaces and you'll have a better chance dealing with the robbers if you have some combat skills (and good weaponry, it's good to have a bow/crossbow).
(optional) Do quests for the towns to improve your relations. You'll get better prices this way. To get the quests, talk to the guild master. You get experience while at it, and it's a welcome change to the trading as well. Be careful with bandit quests thou if your low level.
Price Ranges
Here are the price ranges I use in the game.
If I see goods under the threshold I buy. And I only sell if the price is high enough.
If you need to empty inventory, any price over the buying threshold is profit, so it's OK to "dump" inventory if you know that the next cities in your route don't pay well for those goods.
BUY under X means buy when the buying price is below X
SELL over Y means sell when the selling price is over Y
Most Profitable Goods
- Iron. BUY under 150, SELL over 300
- Salt. BUY under 150, SELL over 270
- Oil. BUY under 320, SELL over 450
- Tools. BUY under 380, SELL over 450
- Velvet. BUY under 700, SELL over 950-1000
- Wine. BUY under 200, SELL over 300
- Spice. BUY under 600, SELL over 800
- Flax. BUY under 100, SELL over 150
- Linen. BUY under 220, SELL over 350
- Wool Cloth. BUY under 200, SELL over 270
"Filler" Goods
Buy these to avoid travelling empty, if the above are not available.
- Date Fruit. BUY under 70, SELL over 120
- Fish. BUY under 30, SELL over 100
- Hides. BUY under 90, SELL over 100
- Grain. BUY under 30, SELL over 50
If you don't have much trading skill in your party, or the economy in the towns is a bit off because of wars etc, you might not get prices as high, so do drop them by ~10% or so, e.g. SELL iron over 270, SELL salt over 250 etc.
For buying, avoid buying for higher than the threshold. Just move on to another city.
The Trade Route
I learned this route from Floris at Taleworlds forum, from his "after action reports". It's a complete route around Calradia, focusing on the most profitable (small) routes and most profitable goods (only buying "filler" goods in between to avoid travelling empty).
If some goods are not available or not available below threshold price, wait for a day or just move on (I usually just move on). Sell to the other merchants if the goods merchant runs out of money and the price is still high enough (the arms/armor/horse merchant).
1. Ruvar, a village near Wercheg: BUY UNDER: Salt 150
2. Wercheg: BUY UNDER: Salt 150, Hides 90 (although not too much of them)
3. Curaw: BUY UNDER: Iron 150, Tools 380, Sell: Salt 270
4. Ismarala, a village near Curaw: BUY UNDER: Iron 150
5. Fenada, a village near Sargoth: BUY UNDER: Flax 100
6. Sargoth: SELL OVER: Salt 270
7. Tihr: SELL OVER: Iron 300, Tools 450
8. Kwynn, a village near Sargoth: BUY UNDER: Flax 100
9. Sargoth: BUY UNDER: All of the Flax 100 and Linen 220, Wool 70
10. Uxkhal: SELL OVER: Hides 100, Wool 120
11. Suno: BUY UNDER: Oil 320, Wine 200
12. Shariz: BUY UNDER: Date Fruits 70, SELL OVER: Linen 350, Wine 300
13. Durquba: SELL OVER: Flax 150
14. Ahmerrad: BUY UNDER: Iron 150, Wool 70, SELL OVER: Wine 300
15. Bariyye: BUY UNDER: Date Fruit 70, Iron 150, Salt 150, Tools 380, SELL OVER: Linen 350, Wine 300, Wool 120
16. Iqbal, a village near Bariyye: BUY UNDER: Salt 150, Date Fruit 70
17. Fishara, a village near Bariyye: BUY UNDER: Salt 150, Date Fruit 70
18. Uzgha, a village near Ahmerrad: BUY UNDER: Iron 150
19. Tulga: BUY UNDER: Spice 600, Salt 150, SELL OVER: Iron 300, Date Fruits 120
20. Ahmerrad: BUY UNDER: Iron 150, SELL OVER: Spice 800
21. Durquba: SELL OVER: Spice 800
22. Jelkala: BUY UNDER: Velvet 700, Fish 30, Hides 90, SELL OVER: Iron 300, Salt 270, Tools 450
23. Veluca: BUY UNDER: Grain 30, Hides 90, SELL OVER: Fish 90, Velvet 950
24. Uxkhal: SELL OVER: Grain 50, Hides 100, Salt 270
25. Suno: BUY UNDER: Oil 320, Wine 150, SELL OVER: Grain 50, Hides 100, Salt 270
26. Praven: BUY UNDER: Wool 70, SELL OVER: Oil 450, Salt 270
27. Yalen: BUY UNDER: Wine 200, Wool 70, SELL OVER: Salt 270
28. Jelkala: BUY UNDER: Fish 30, Velvet 700
29. Shariz: BUY UNDER: Date Fruit 70, SELL OVER: Fish 100, Wine 300
30. Dhirim: BUY UNDER: Iron 150, SELL OVER: Velvet 1000
(Optional: Visit Narra and Ichamur. Sell according to thresholds.)
31. Tulga: BUY UNDER: Spice 600, SELL OVER: Iron 300, Wool 120
32. Bariyye: BUY UNDER: Iron 150, SELL OVER: Velvet 1000
33. Ahmerrad: BUY UNDER: Iron 150, Wool Cloth 200, SELL OVER: Spice 800
34. Durquba: SELL OVER: Spice 800
35. Halmar: BUY UNDER: Salt 150
36. Dhirim: BUY UNDER: Iron 150, SELL OVER: Wool Cloth 270
37. Reyvadin: SELL OVER: Iron 300
38. Khudan: SELL OVER: Iron 300
39. Rivacheg: SELL OVER: Iron 300
If you have inventory space between towns (could not get enough cheap goods), stop in villages on the route (don't go off it too much thou) and buy cheap items. Also, buy variety of food from those villages (to keep) army fed and morale high). This money will help the economy of the town as well.
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| Mount and Blade: Warband Trade Route |
IMAGE CREDIT: map modified from the original by Floris. (original)
The Warband Trade Route Video
Here's the Mount & Blade: Warband trade route on video. It's an hour long and it's a part of my let's play series, and there's some other stuff in it but trading, but it shows the whole route.
Watch HD/720p in YouTube:
Mount & Blade: Warband Let's Play E024 - Trade Route Around All Calradia
(Amazon):
