Norland: What to do with prisoners? Norland guide, tips
Proper management of prisoners is an essential part of the gameplay in Norland. This page will tell you where to hold prisoners of war and criminals, as well as how to make creative use of their labor.
Last update: 18 July 2024
Managing your realm and engaging in battles in Norland will inevitably lead to the appearance of prisoners in your kingdom. This particular social group has its own set of mechanisms that, if used correctly, can have a positive influence on the entire community. On this page, we will tell you the best way to manage your prisoners.
Where to get prisoners?
Prisoners are closely linked to the conduct of military operations. Whether you are fighting a group of local bandits or the army of a neighboring kingdom, after each won battle, your soldiers have the opportunity to bring a group of prisoners of war from among the survivors to the settlement.
The prisoners of war likely sustained severe injuries in the battle, which will make them disabled. Disabled prisoners aren't allowed to work.
Prisoners also include criminals caught from among your own citizens. A vagabond captured and convicted for his crimes may become a prisoner.
Unemployed peasants who haven't left the city become vagabonds. They wander around the town, stealing small items from the warehouse or intimidating citizens. If they are caught by the guards and punished on the scaffold, they will join the group of prisoners.
The last option to obtain prisoners is to buy them. Prisoners are traded by, among others, the Holy Caravan, which visits your settlement in the evenings. At times, entities on the world map, such as bandit camps, may also provide the opportunity to purchase prisoners. Bringing prisoners to your settlement may not be a bad idea to quickly obtain cheap labor or dedicated warriors.
You can also sell your own prisoners. The easiest way to do this is to trade with the Holy Caravan.
Where to keep the prisoners?
Prisoners don't reside in houses, unlike the free citizens of the city. To accommodate them, it will be necessary to build a special building - a prison ward.
However, you won't receive access to the prison ward immediately. You will need to acquire the "Keeping prisoners" knowledge. Go to the "Knowledge" tab at the bottom of the game screen (third from the right). A book teaching the necessary skill should be in your equipment from the beginning of the game. If you don't have it, you can buy it from the Caravan, which visits your city in the evenings.
Click on the plus icon next to the appropriate option in the window. Select the "Learn" option and then delegate one of your lords to learn (the higher the intelligence factor, the shorter the process of acquiring knowledge will be). Wait until your lord absorbs the necessary information. After the whole process, you can go to the "Construction" tab (first from the left), select the "Housing" group, and then build the prison ward.
Remember that acquiring knowledge from books is only possible after building the library.
One prison ward can accommodate as many as 21 prisoners. One of the city's citizens will be delegated to work as a warden. Make sure that the warden has been automatically allocated (relevant information can be found in the window after clicking on the building).
There is an altar inside the prison ward, thanks to which prisoners will be able to fulfill their basic religious needs.
We recommend that you build the prison ward as soon as possible. It's only a matter of time before prisoners appear in the settlement, and the lack of infrastructure for their detention will cause hunger and general dissatisfaction among the prisoners (residents?).
What can prisoners do?
Prisoners who are able to work will be assigned to tasks together with other villagers during the day. They work three hours more than the other villagers, and in addition, they don't receive any salary, making them a highly valuable and cost-effective workforce. However, they still have to eat like all other residents. You can adjust the feeding conditions for prisoners from the "Finance" tab at the bottom of the game screen (third from the left).
However, mistreatment of prisoners can have serious consequences. Unhappy prisoners will try to escape from the prison ward or from their workplace during the day. You can counteract this by organizing guard patrols around the prison ward.
Chronically dissatisfied prisoners may start a riot and try to destroy the village. To prevent this from happening, take care of the needs of your prisoners and monitor their moods.
Prisoners of war are often experienced warriors, which makes them great material for soldiers. In the "Army" tab (fifth from the left), you can integrate your prisoners into units, thus granting them freedom. Regaining freedom will bring a strong sense of empowerment to the newly recruited, which will have a positive impact on their morale.