“A realistic, low fantasy medieval roleplay server with real grit”
Tale of Banners is now open!
The server will continue release with its next event on:
The 13th of May at 9PM BST!
Come join us for betrayals, intrigue, blood & politics in;
The second great blizzard had taken everything, the land was blanketed in white death as those remaining starved or died from the plague. The North had entered its darkest hour.
As the great death of the southlands ravaged through the population, the frozen north was left in an isolated retreat. Paranoia of travelers and the vicious blizzard kept the North-folk relatively safe, but would destroy what was left of the brave new northern kingdom and its infrastructure.
Yet hope remains…
The North-folk, known for their stalwart resistance in the face of conquest and adversity, survived. This is the story of the hardiest people on the continent of Esna, and those that would aid them in the rebuilding of the great north.
Now it is up to the survivors to once again bring order to this frozen, chaotic land and bring the northern territories back into glory.
[We are currently recruiting new staff for server release, if you want to help us develop the server contact our admin team over discord]
[Our Discord Server]
The Server
Tale of Banners is the hardcore medieval role-playing experience you have been waiting for.
Our in game systems create a platform where players can build independent settlements, start nations, rule empires, or simply spend their working days as a farmer or lumberjack.
Our server is rich in lore and history, boasting over 100 pages of information and ancient history on just our servers unique cultures alone!
The server is set on the continent of Esna, a war and plague ridden land which is viciously fought over by four widespread cultures, each seeking dominance over their borders.
Esna is scattered with ancient hidden ruins and crumbling castles where players can search for and discover valuable treasure with our adventure chests plugin.
The world of Tale of Banners is an ever changing one filled with ruins to explore, wars to be fought and empires to conquer. Do you have what it takes?
The Theme
Tale of Banners is roughly based on the real european middle ages and revolves around the conflict of various early developing cultures who find it difficult to co-exist.
The server is set in a realistic low-fantasy setting which means everyone is human, and there is no magic (to an extent, things such as alchemy and other low fantasy themes such as monsters are still valid on ToB).
Tale of Banners is also proud of its building style influenced by the likes of Cirdanoth and the popular “Messy Medieval” building style.
Dungeons
Tale of Banners features many hidden dungeons and ruins which can be found across the map, each with their own style, story and treasure to be found.
Our adventure chest plugin allows players to explore the wilderness and gain interesting rewards for their adventures.
To keep players on their toes these dungeons will open, close and appear unannounced. There will be always something new to discover.
The Cultures
The “Oserians”Living in an area famously known as the Oserian Plains, is a culture with the same name. The Oserians. They are a highly religious group with strong political views, a large military and many hard working men and women. Their vast farming lands yields the Oserians a good source of crops and animal produce letting them develop rapidly and trade with other nations. The Oserians were once a part of the Northmen, before they split off and became their own nation due to their different religious views and cultural separation.
The Oserians offer good security to large parts of Esna through their guard forces. They actively oppose bandits, criminals, and criminal gangs, and as such are considered as the most secure of the four nations. For those who intend to keep the nation secure, the famous knights of Oseria are the absolute premier inspiration. The knights of Oseria take on the mantle of good willed people, and embody an immeasurable spirit of courage for the realm.
Click here to read more!
The “Korsians”In the blistering hot deserts of Esna are home to the Korsians, a culture considered foreign to Esna. They are lavish by nature, holding a deep appreciation of the finer things in life. The most sought after thing any individual can ask for in Korsia is a refined taste in arts, music, and politics. Someone who has all this will flaunt their wealthy possessions. The divide between social classes is extreme, as the poor are often broke, while the rich grow their piles of gold.
The Korsians are considered to be the most gifted merchants on the continent, due to their export of large quantities of gems and minerals found in the hot climates of the deserts. They are also, however, dependent on receiving vital resources from trading, in order to keep their luxuries and goods, such as their grand naval fleet, in acceptable condition.
Historically, the Korsians have been firm believers in the sun being a god, but in more modern times they have begun to convert over to the belief that everything is scientifically explainable. This has created a split in the community, where some still believe in the religion, while others study the sciences.
Click here to read more!
The “Northerners”Across the northern regions of Esna exists a culture immersed heavily within the tenants of survival, family, fighting and unorthodox religious practices. They are known as the Northerners, or Northmen, and have adapted customs geared for survival in the harshest and most frigid climate of Esna. The Northerners face great challenges with everyday tasks like hunting for food, defending their territory, and worshipping their five great spirits, all to keep stability in the realm. Deeply etched within the very being of the Northerner culture and religion is their views on family and honor. You will almost never see a Northerner betray his own clan or smear his name with dishonor.
The Northerners bring several trades to the lands of Esna. Their vast iron mines, forests and expertise regarding the fields of smithing and masonry make them a talented and resourceful nation. Northern territorial defense and the absolutely incredible amount of wars that the North has involved itself in, has led to the people being known as some of the most capable fighters on Esna. Mercenaries from the North are a force that is sought after by many.
Click here to read more!
The “Drahl-Folk”Spread across mountains high, swamps deep and deserts vast, the Drahl-Folk of Esna include anyone who is not considered either Oserian, Korsian or Northern. The Drahl are a collective of minor sub-cultures who slowly developed a unique identity after various disasters and tragic wars, with the most prominent subcultures being the Krelkans and the Crookmen. “The Teachings of Tsarra” is the most widespread religion across Drahl lands and are often seen as controversial due to its heavy reliance on psychedelic drugs to induce visions and a state worthy of worship.
Drahl systems stem from the “Dark Ages” and are severely different than those of their neighbours. The Drahl do not work or have any system of employment, each individual has a duty to the realm if they want to perform it or not. Each townsperson simply earns their own keep through trade and barter. The majority of the Drahl economy is based around weapons and herbs, which they have always been historically skilled in. Any other goods often come from piracy or bandity, which the Drahl have gained a nasty reputation for. The Drahl are known for heavy usage of vigilante justice and in the Drahl people’s mostly lawless lands, you’re often guilty before proven innocent.
Click here to read more!
The Systems
Note that most of these systems are not fully operational during the early stages of release.
Settlements
On Tale of Banners players can come together and form settlements on the server. Settlements must be applied for, but when accepted the player assigned to lead the settlement can develop it as they see fit.
On Tale of Banners players can come together and form settlements on the server. Settlements must be applied for, but when accepted the player assigned to lead the settlement can develop it as they see fit.
Settlements are only allowed to grow in size if they follow the servers building guidelines, however if the player assigned to lead the settlement is offline for longer than three months the settlement will become inactive and fall into disrepair.
If you think you want to start or join a settlement its advised you read the settlements and building system breakdown found here before you apply:
Settlement System
Small villages and towns are the inner heart of roleplay servers and we try our best to ensure everyone has an equal chance to get roleplay. Each settlement is entitled to a fast travel cart that leads from their town to the local capital (which can be reached from spawn), and an area of forest for woodcutting. Settlements are also never at risk physically from noble power play and wars, just simply inactivity.
Intrigue
In order to commit villainous acts on the server you need to work through the servers intrigue system. Each villainous character needs to be applied for, once this character is accepted they are considered a villain. Villains are allowed to commit the various crimes associated with their level of villainy.
Playing a villain in roleplay should be fun for both parties involved, to make villain role play more realistic if killed in roleplay they must forfeit their character and make a new Intrige application if they wish to play a new villain character.
If intrigue applications do not meet the requirements of the application they will often be denied, this is because whitelist applications can be improved but intrigue applications should meet the standard on creation.
The full intrigue system can be found here;
Intrigue System
Nations
The Tale of Banners “Nations System” revolves around a working server economy. Server maintained cities have access to npc shops of every major produce. Players can mine, farm or even buy and raise animals and sell what they produce in the city to gain Kuras, the currency of Esna. We do however advise players to trade amongst each other for better value of their goods and added roleplay.
On Tale of Banners every 2 weeks in real time is considered a year in the game.
Settlements by default are not protected from raids, but if a monarch of an independent nation seeks to offer protection, he may offer to the head of the settlement. The settlement will then give kuras every 2 weeks the settlement becomes safe from raids.
Running a nation is extremely complex and is generally for players with keen political and economic interests, if you think you want to start or run a nation please read the breakdown of the nations system found here:
Nations System
Physical destruction caused by political power play is restricted to player strongholds. Noble houses can also be removed from power, but settlements are never at risk. Settlements are only threatened by PvP. Running a nation requires a keen balance of political power and Kuras earned from taxation to be powerful enough to stand independent.
(Note) Just because your nation is accepted on the forums as an official nation, that does not mean it is necessary independent. On Tale of Banners if an Independent Nation conquers your nation you often only lose your independence, not your land.
War and Combat
The War and Combat system on Tale of Banners tries to make it as fair as possible for all, aggressors and defenders, the default combat rule is RP, but this can change under certain circumstances…
The key part of the war and combat system is war and battles, when two nations go to war they declare a home county as their war capital, if this capital is captured then one nation is victorious.
There are two main types of battles on Tale of Banners: Sieges and Open Field Battles. Open field battles last a maximum of three rounds (players can return from death between each round), if a nation wins twice the other one loses. A Siege lasts much longer and consists of only one round. The attacking nation uses siege equipment supervised by moderators and the defending nation tries to kill all the attackers. There is no returning from death in a siege.
Battles spread from county to county and any county bordering a hostile nations border also becomes PvP default, regardless of upkeep paid before the war. If you are in a PvP default area the server will notify you. PvP default during wartime helps emphasize the chaos of open war.
If you want a more in-depth breakdown on the War and Combat system just simply follow this link:
War and Combat System
Tale of Banners
If you’re interested in joining our server, just follow this link to the whitelist application and we hope to see you there soon!
Whitelist Application