Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord Smithing and Crafting Guide

Making a name for yourself in Calradia isn’t just about swinging swords and winning battles—sometimes it’s about forging them, too. In Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, smithing isn’t just a side activity; it’s a full-fledged system that lets you craft weapons tailored to your playstyle, manage resources for profit or power, and experiment with a huge variety of designs. Whether you’re looking to make some extra denars, equip your companions with custom gear, or simply enjoy the satisfaction of turning raw materials into something deadly, understanding how smithing works can open up a lot of new possibilities on your journey. Like many aspects of Bannerlord, it can be a little overwhelming at first, with plenty of menus, recipes, and skills to keep straight. But once you get the hang of it, the process becomes as rewarding as it is efficient.

Material Gathering Guide

Knowing how to craft is only half the battle—the real trick is keeping your pack full of the right materials. In Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, you’ll need various types of metals and resources to forge new weapons or refine components. This section covers how to reliably gather everything you need for smithing, from mining in towns to melting down loot, and how to get the most out of every piece of scrap that crosses your path.

Core Materials Used in Smithing

Before you start chasing down resources, get to know the main materials required:

• Crude Iron
• Iron Ore
• Charcoal
• Iron (regular and Fine Steel)
• Thamsk Steel, Wrought Iron, Steel
• Hardwood (mainly used to make charcoal)

Each tier of weapon or part needs different combinations of these, with higher-tier recipes demanding higher-grade metals.

Main Ways to Gather Materials

You have three reliable options for material gathering in Bannerlord:

1. Smelting Weapons and Equipment

Looting after battles isn’t just about cash—you can melt down nearly all weapons (and some tools) for metal components. Not all gear is equally valuable, though. Here’s how to maximize returns:

• Cheaper weapons like sickles, pitchforks, and basic axes often yield a surprising amount of iron and sometimes steel compared to their market price.
• Smelt everything you don’t intend to use or sell for high value—check the smelting results for each item. Some give mainly crude iron, while others break down into hardwood or even fine steel.
• To smelt, visit any city, head to the Smithy, select “Smelt,” and pick surplus items from your inventory. Stamina, determined by your smithing skill, limits how quickly you can process items.

2. Buying Materials from Towns

Town markets are a direct (if sometimes pricey) way to stock up on smithing needs:

• Hardwood can be purchased in most settlements, especially those near forests. Get as much as you can carry—you’ll burn through hardwood quickly converting it to charcoal.
• Iron Ore and other refined metals sometimes turn up in smithies or markets, usually in towns with iron-producing villages nearby.
• Prices fluctuate based on town prosperity and supply, so keep an eye on trends—buy cheap and in bulk when prices dip.

3. Refining Raw Materials

Once you have raw goods, you’ll need to refine them:

• Use hardwood to make charcoal—absolutely essential for almost every smithing recipe.
• Convert Iron Ore into Crude Iron or Iron bars at the smithy.
• Upgrade metals: Two bars of a lower-tier metal can often be refined into one bar of a higher tier, useful for building up to steel and fine steel.
• Try not to refine all materials immediately—some recipes need the lower-tier components.

Best Places to Gather Materials

Some regions are naturally richer in certain resources:

• Northern and central towns: Better for iron ore and hardwood, thanks to mountain and forest villages.
• Southern and coastal towns: You’ll mostly find basic hardwood or might need to pay more for specialty metals.
• Towns near mines (like Marunath or Balgard): These places usually offer cheaper and more plentiful iron ore.

If you have the patience, check taverns for rumors about caravans or towns with surplus—sometimes prices for hardwood or iron plummet after a caravan arrives.

Efficient Smithing Workflow

Smithing stamina runs out fast. To save trips:

1. Stockpile loot from battles, don’t bother smelting until you have several items.
2. Buy hardwood whenever you see it cheap. If you notice a surplus, grab extra for later.
3. Check merchants’ stocks and smithies in every town.
4. Mix smelting with refining so you always have the right bar types for new projects.

Consider sending companions with decent smithing skill to help. You can swap between party members in the smithy, refilling your daily stamina pool and speeding up the grind.

Tips for Material Management

• Inventory space matters: Don’t overload your party with loot—iron bars get heavy.
• Prioritize space: Convert low-value loot into bars, which stack and free up room.
• Sell extra bars if you’re tight on cash, but remember: buying them back is expensive.

Wrapping Up: The Path to Master Smith

Constantly refill your stores as you travel, and every battle, town, or trade run can turn into an opportunity. Savvy smiths never waste a single scrap—the more you refine your material-gathering habits, the smoother the smithing process becomes. Soon you’ll have everything you need to craft legendary weapons, outfit your companions, or turn a tidy profit. Next, let’s look at how to turn all those resources into actual gear.

Part Unlocking Guide

In Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, your ability to craft unique or powerful weapons depends on having enough weapon parts unlocked. Unlike other crafting systems, you can’t simply buy or learn these components—you’ll have to earn them through regular smithing activities. Here’s a detailed look at how part unlocking really works, plus tips for making the grind much easier.

How Part Unlocking Works

Every weapon you craft in Bannerlord is made of different “parts.” For example, a sword needs a blade, guard, grip, and pommel. Each of these has multiple variants, and the more options you unlock, the more customized (and stronger) your weapons can become.

When you first start smithing, you’ll only see a handful of basic part options. As you forge or refine weapons, you’ll gradually unlock more parts, which show up in the weapon design window as you level up and complete specific activities.

Here’s where many players get tripped up

Unlocking new parts isn’t tied to what you can make; it depends on what you actually craft. Every time you complete a craft (not smelting, not just refining), you have a chance to unlock a new part for that specific weapon type. The type and complexity of what you craft also matters in how the unlocking process works.

Unlocking Process, Step-by-Step

1. Pick a Weapon Type Part unlocking is split by weapon category: one-handed swords, two-handed axes, spears, javelins, etc. Crafting in one type won’t progress unlocks for another. If you want sword parts, make swords.

2. Craft Any Weapon Each successful craft in a category triggers a roll to unlock a random part for that class. Your smithing skill level doesn’t matter for the unlock—just the fact you crafted something of that type.

3. Unlock Rolls The chance to unlock a part is 100% per craft until you’ve acquired almost all the parts in that category. Late in the process, after many parts are unlocked, there’s a decreasing chance per craft for the final pieces. This can feel grindy, but the early unlocks come rapidly.

4. Repeat The fastest way to unlock all parts is to spam craft the cheapest possible weapon of that category. This uses minimal materials and lets you roll for new blueprints over and over.

Tips for Efficient Part Unlocking

Focus on Cheap Crafts

The amount of materials used in crafting doesn’t influence your unlock chance. So don’t be precious—crank out the most basic version of a weapon with the lowest-cost parts and materials you have. One-headed swords, for example, can be made using just a simple guard and cheapest blade/grip/pommel options. Do this repeatedly for rapid unlocks.

Prioritize What You Need

If you’re after a specific weapon for your main character, focus your smithing stamina and materials on that category until you’ve unlocked enough interesting combinations for the weapon you want. Don’t spread your resources too thin at first.

Use Companions

Once you’ve used up your main character’s smithing stamina for the day, swap to another companion and let them continue crafting. Each hero or companion has their own stamina pool for smithing actions. This can double or triple your daily unlocks if you have a crew.

Monitor Your Progress

At the smithy, select a weapon type, and hover over the part slots to see all available and locked variants. This shows your progress and what’s left to open. Don’t forget, some late-game blades or pommels can take a lot of crafts to appear.

Smelt for Blueprints (Bonus)

Occasionally, smelting down certain weapons (especially rare or high-tier gear) can unlock unique parts you haven’t found yet. Always check the tooltip before smelting a weapon—a “New Part Unlocked!” message may appear after you break down certain loot.

Part Unlocking and Character Progression

Building your best arsenal ties directly to unlocking valuable parts. More blueprints mean more damage, better reach, and extra special effects (like handling or swing speed). Unlocking isn’t about luck; it’s all about volume:

• Use extra materials for spamming basic crafts.
• Mix weapon types if you want variety, but focus for quickest results.
• Take your smithing party to towns with ample hardwood or cheap basic metals, and rotate through their stamina pools.

Dealing with the Late-Game Unlock Wall

Many players hit a wall when only a few rare parts remain locked. The odds per craft drop, and it can take dozens—sometimes hundreds—of basic weapons to unlock the last few fancy grips or high-tier blades.

To stay sane:

• Break up the grind by trying different weapon categories.
• Smelt down high-value loot whenever you find it.
• Some late-game parts seem almost “bugged” until you craft an unusually expensive or unique weapon in that category—don’t be afraid to switch up your recipes and try more lavish combinations.

Quick FAQ

Do smithing skill points or perks improve the unlock rate?

No. More skill means faster stamina regen and better stats, but part unlocks are purely about attempting new crafts.

Can I buy or trade for parts?

No—blueprints are strictly unlocked by your own crafting/smelting work.

What about mods?

Some mods overhaul the unlocking system, so check your modlist if your experience feels different.

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You’ll unlock dozens of new weapon blueprints with regular use of the smithy in Bannerlord, and the best way to gather them all is by sticking to a focused, repeatable crafting loop. The more you work that forge, the more options you’ll have when it’s time to design your perfect blade, polearm, or hammer. With every unlock, you get one step closer to smithing greatness.

Weapon Design Guide

With a stash of unlocked parts filling your smithy’s menu, the fun part begins: making weapons that actually fit your playstyle (or that compliment your companions and troops). Bannerlord’s weapon crafting system isn’t just for stats-min/maxers—it’s a playground where creativity, aesthetics, and function mix. Here’s how to make the most out of each part and stat, and what to consider when bringing your own designs to life.

Understanding Weapon Part Slots

Almost every weapon category is composed of several parts. Each of these slots will affect the weapon’s appearance and, more importantly, performance. Here’s a quick breakdown of the main components you’ll see:

• Blade/Head (for swords, axes, spears): Impact reach, damage type, and weapon speed.
• Guard or Hilt: Alter handling, weight, and sometimes even effective length or block efficacy.
• Handle/Shaft: Determines reach and handling (longer handles aren’t always better—more length can slow your swing).
• Pommel or Counterweight: Tweaks handling and overall weight distribution.

Each part slot has locked and unlocked options. More elaborate pieces usually come with subtle trade-offs, so read those stat numbers before clicking "craft."

Key Weapon Stats (and What They Actually Do)

Weapon stats can be a little overwhelming, especially when the difference between two blades might be “one extra swing speed” or “five more piercing damage.” Here are the numbers that really matter—plus, how to balance them for your needs.

Damage Types

• Cutting: Strong against lightly armored targets like looters and bandits.
• Piercing: Shreds through heavy armor (like Imperial Cataphracts). Spears, maces, and thrusting swords build around this.
• Blunt: Knocks out rather than kills (good for taking prisoners), but usually does less raw damage per hit.

Reach

Measured in centimeters, reach is king for cavalry who want to hit before getting too close or for foot soldiers keeping enemies at arm’s length. However, longer weapons tend to swing slower and be less effective indoors or in tight places.

Swing and Thrust Speed

Measured as a number (higher is faster). If you prefer hitting first or reacting to quick opponents, favor speed. A heavy axe may hit hard, but a fast sword will interrupt more attacks and keep shields busy.

Weapon Handling

This stat tells you how easy the weapon is to maneuver. Higher handling makes chambering, blocking, or quickly switching targets easier. Weapons with high handling are useful for 1vX duels or TDM multiplayer matches.

Weight

Affects stamina and swing speed. Super heavy weapons exhaust you faster and are harder to recover after a miss, but can crush through blocks.

Balance

The stat called “balance” (when you view crafted previews) influences both attack speed and recovery. Try to avoid extremes—overly front-heavy weapons feel sluggish, while “hilt-heavy” builds lose out on raw damage.

How to Design a Weapon for Specific Roles

1. One-Handed Sword (Versatility)

• Use Case: All-around melee combat, riding with a shield, duels.
• Balance: Go for moderate reach (90-100cm), decent swing speed (95+), and mid-weight. For damage, prioritize a broad blade if facing lots of bandits; switch to a pointed blade for armored foes.
• Parts: Simple crossguard, practical handle, pommel for handling.

2. Two-Handed Greatsword (Damage Dealer)

• Use Case: Decimating lightly armored troops, hitting packed lines.
• Balance: Long blade (110-130cm), slower swing is OK if the cutting damage is maxed.
• Parts: Massive blade, long grip, big pommel. Sacrifice just a little bit of reach if your speed stat tanks.

3. Spear or Lance (Anti-Cavalry or Mounted Combat)

• Use Case: Dismounting enemy riders, keeping foes away.
• Balance: Max out reach—go as long as you can without losing too much handling (~180-200cm). Prioritize piercing damage and keep weight down.
• Parts: Lightweight shaft, leaf or diamond-point heads, counterbalanced handle.

4. Mace (Capturing Troops)

• Use Case: Knocking out targets for ransom or recruitment.
• Balance: Blunt damage, decent swing speed (don’t go heavy just for the sake of it—small maces swing faster and are easier to use).
• Parts: Short handle, spiked or flanged head, optional counterweight.

5. Throwing Weapons (Javelins, Throwing Axes)

• Use Case: Opening volleys, softening up heavy units.
• Balance: Light, short, high handling (for quick throws). Damage is secondary to speed—a thrown weapon can still do plenty if it hits first.
• Parts: Compact shaft, small blade or weight, balanced fletched end.

Aesthetics vs. Function: Finding Your Style

The smithy lets you preview not only stats, but also the look of each weapon. Some players want their blade to feel as intimidating as possible, while others like slim, refined styles. If stats are equal, there’s nothing wrong with going by look—just remember to save your favorite designs for future reference.

Bannerlord also lets you name your crafted weapons. Give your masterpiece a legendary title, or just call it “Bread Slicer Mk. 3” to keep things lively.

Advanced Tips for Weapon Tuning

• Watch Resource Costs: That legendary two-hander might be tempting, but steel and fine metals are rare early on. Sometimes it’s smarter to go for a good enough weapon you can make in bulk.
• Match to Companions: Create custom weapons for your party heroes. If your mounted lancer keeps getting stuck in melee, pivot toward a sword with better handling.
• Multiplayer Viability: In PvP, reach and swing speed edge out absolute damage. Going too heavy or unwieldy can backfire against human opponents.

Common Weapon Design Mistakes

• Over-focusing on Damage: Huge numbers look cool, but if the weapon’s too slow or hard to control, you’ll miss more often than not.
• Ignoring Handling and Speed: Especially in duels or tournaments, a weapon that lets you outpace and counter enemies will save your neck.
• Making Overly Long Weapons for Indoors: Maps with lots of doorways or hallways punish long spears and massive axes—carry a backup sidearm.

Conclusion

Weapon design in Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord is all about tailoring stats and parts to your specific needs and style. Whether you’re making a blade fit for a king or mass-producing gear for your companions, learning how each part shifts a weapon’s strengths is the real trick. Keep experimenting, test your designs out against different enemies, and don’t get too hung up on chasing perfect stats. Sometimes, the coolest weapon is the one that just feels right for your next battle.

Stamina Management in Smithing

When you first start smithing in Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, one thing catches you off guard: stamina. Like combat, the smithy limits your actions—except here, it’s not a sudden axe to the face, but a tap-out when your character is “too tired” to swing the hammer. Understanding how this system works and juggling your stamina makes all the difference between churning out legendary blades or walking out of the forge with nothing but soot on your boots.

How Smithing Stamina Works

Your smithing character has a green stamina bar visible in the smithy screen. Every action—smelting, refining, forging, or ordering something new—consumes a slice of this bar. Once it runs out, you can’t do more smithing until you recover.

• Every Click Costs: Each forge, smelt, or refine action uses a set amount of stamina. Simple actions (like refining hardwood to charcoal) cost less, while forging the complicated, multi-piece sword drains more.
• Shared Pool: The smithing stamina is separate for each character. If you have a companion with smithing skills, swap to them to keep the hammers pounding.
• Stamina Doesn’t Autorecover Quickly: You get some stamina back by waiting in settlements, but overnight stays are the most efficient. Roaming the world map does almost nothing for blacksmith recovery.

Actions and Their Stamina Costs

It helps to know what chews through your stamina fastest. Here’s a breakdown:

| Action | Approximate Stamina Cost | |------------------|-------------------------| | Refining | Low | | Smelting | Medium | | Forging | High (varies, weapons cost more) | | Ordering | Same as forging | - Refining Charcoal: Minimal cost—do this first and use all your excess hardwood since everything else needs charcoal.

• Smelting Looted Weapons: Strong way to turn junk into rare metals (but can rack up if you go on a smelting spree).
• Forging Custom Weapons: The real stamina hog. More complicated items (or two-handers) drain more per swing. High tier materials and advanced blueprints also tack on extra cost.

Tips for Effective Stamina Use

Use Multiple Smiths

The smithy lets you switch between any companion or clan member with smithing skills. Every character has their own pool. Keeping three to five forges cycling means you can process much more per town visit.

Prioritize Efficient Actions

• Batch Your Work: Refine a batch of charcoal, then smelt all your junk, then forge weapons—all before anyone gets tired.
• Save Advanced Blueprints: Only attempt big or expensive builds when you have a full bar. Don’t waste stamina on low-reward projects.

Rest the Right Way

• Stay at the Smithy: Resting in towns (or especially at a city’s smithy) restores your smithing stamina. Yes, waiting for 12 or more hours can feel slow, but sometimes you’ll exit and re-enter the smithy several times during long stays to top off each character.
• Recover Faster with Perks: Some smithing perks (like Stamina Recovery Rate) let you recover points while just chilling—later in the game, these are lifesavers.

Avoid Wasting Stamina

• Don’t Experiment Needlessly: Early on, don’t burn stamina making junk or swinging at designs you don’t plan to use. Plan your weapons, then commit.
• Maximize Value per Point: Smelting rare loot and forging high-value custom weapons gives the most profit for your spent stamina. Don’t use up your bar on basic iron daggers if you’re about to unlock something better.
• Use the Blacksmith in Smaller Towns: Popular cities mean longer waits if you’re low on stamina (because of constant sieges or events). Lesser-used towns let you rest and hammer with fewer interruptions.

Perks That Change the Game

Several perks in the Smithing skill tree directly affect stamina:

• Stamina Recovery Rate Upgrades: Worth taking early, especially on your main smith.
• Stamina Cost Reductions: Available deeper in the tree. These let you do more per bar and are great for mass production.
• Passive Recovery: Some perks regenerate stamina passively while you travel on the map or when simply waiting.

Example Stamina Workflow

Here’s how seasoned smiths run their routine in Bannerlord:

1. Arrive in Town.
2. Refine Charcoal with all smiths—costs little, gets everyone warmed up. . Smelt Looted Weapons you'd like to turn into rare ingots.
3. Forge Priority Weapons with your best smith—spend stamina where it counts.
4. Switch to Next Smith when one gets tired—rotate all available companions.
5. If Everyone’s Out: Rent a room (wait in town) until at least one is ready.
6. Repeat or Move On depending on your travel plans.

Managing Stamina Early vs. Late Game

• Early Game: Fewer companions means you have to ration stamina carefully. Focus on smelting and learning blueprints. Don’t burn your energy on low-tier weapons.
• Late Game: With a trained smithing crew, you can basically run a weapon factory. Perks, better food, and non-stop rotation let you supply your whole army and make bank at the shop. Just remember: stamina still caps your output, so plan big crafting batches.

Final Thoughts on Smithing Stamina

Mastering stamina management is part of what separates efficient weapon makers from tired amateurs in Bannerlord. Use your companions wisely, rest when you must, and plan your crafting sessions for maximum value. With smart stamina savings, your smithy will never sit cold, and your weapons rack will fill up faster than you expect.

Perk Tree Guide

Building an effective smith in Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord isn’t just about grinding stats—it’s about picking the right perks at the right time. The smithing skill tree is divided into five main sections: Smelting, Refining, Smithing, Crafting, and Orders. Perks offer more than just minor bonuses; the best ones can totally change how you operate your smithy, manage resources, and crank out high-quality weapons. Let’s walk through how these perks work, what they actually do, and the order most players should grab them.

How the Smithing Skill Tree Works

The Smithing skill (hit "V" in the character or companion screen) grows as you smelt, refine, and craft. Every 25 levels you hit, you get to pick one perk from a two-option split. Each perk generally fits a different playstyle—focusing on resources, profit, faster work, or better loot. Your choices are permanent, but some perks affect your whole party, not just the smith.

Some perks are highlighted as “Personal” (works only for that character). Others affect your whole party or clan, which is helpful if you plan to make everyone a little bit handy with the forge.

Smithing Perk Branches Overview

Here's a quick look at the general perk path:

| Smithing Level | Perk Split | Main Focuses | |----------------|--------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------| | 25 | Smelting/Refining | Extra materials or efficient charcoal production | | 50 | Stamina Boosts | Stamina regen or fuel savings | | 75 | Smithing Orders | Profits or faster order completions | | 100 | Crafting Perks | Better stats or higher tier unlocks | | 125+ | Advanced Crafting | Rare materials, stats, further stamina, rare parts | | 175+ | Master Smithing | Legendary weapons, super-stamina, or trade bonuses |

Each perk is tailored for repeated playthroughs: you can either go for min-max resource efficiency or push for the best weapons as early as possible.

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Breakdown of Key Smithing Perks

We'll walk through each set of perks you unlock along the way, explaining what they actually do.

Levels 0-25: Getting Started

Smelting Perk

• Efficient Charcoal Maker: Doubles the charcoal you get when refining hardwood. Take this if you want to maximize early game resource generation (almost everyone should).
• Curious Smelter: Gives a chance to recover extra materials when smelting weapons. Handy, but not as universally useful as more charcoal.

Verdict: Efficient Charcoal Maker is far and away the best early-game pick. Everything else in smithing needs charcoal, and you’ll go through stacks of it processing loot.

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Levels 25-50: Stamina & Efficiency

Stamina Recovery vs. Resource Saver

• Stamina Recovery: One option gives you faster smithing stamina recovery when in towns—a huge lifesaver if you’re batching work.
• Fuel Saver: Alternatively, reduce the amount of charcoal needed per action, letting you squeeze more output per log.

Verdict: Stamina perks tend to be more valuable in the long run, but if you always short on wood to charcoal, the fuel savings can add up—especially if your party is in forested regions ignoring towns.

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Levels 50-75: Smithing Orders (Fulfilling Requests)

Profit vs. Speed

• Paid in Silver: Earn more gold by completing smithy weapon orders in towns. Pick this if you want to get rich fulfilling contracts.
• Quick Smith: Lets you craft and complete orders faster, saving valuable in-town crafting time.

Verdict: Paid in Silver is the favorite for most, since Bannerlord’s early economy can be rough and money is always welcome.

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Levels 75-100+: Increasing Yields and Weapon Quality

Smeltmaster: Lets you get rare materials (e.g., Fine Steel, Thamaskene Steel) more frequently when breaking down weapons

Steelmaker: These perks grant more steel per batch of smelting or refining

You’ll also see perks that improve forged weapon stats, add critical hit chances, or unlock secret part blueprints for even crazier hammers, swords, and axes.

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Levels 125+: Going from Good to God-Tier

Master Smith Perks

• Make legendary weapons (higher sell price, bonus stats)
• Further stamina upgrades
• Boost companion smithing efficiency
• Massive bonuses to crafted weapon value

Certain perks at 175+ even let you recover smithing stamina while moving on the map—letting you operate like a mobile foundry.

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Tactical Perk Picks for Different Playstyles

If You Want to Make Money

• Start with Efficient Charcoal Maker
• Always take perks that boost order profits
• Go for those that give bonus materials or sell price increases for crafted weapons

If You Want Top Tier Weapons

• Choose perks that boost rare material returns
• Prioritize stamina recovery to get more craft attempts in per town visit
• Unlock "Legendary Smith" so you can eventually craft the highest quality blades

If You’re All About Efficiency

• Mix stamina boosters and fuel savers
• Take every group-wide or party-perk you see for maximum value across multiple companions
• Set up a crafting rotation using several smiths, all with stamina and resource perks

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How to Reset Perks—Can You?

Bannerlord (as of late 2023) doesn’t have a native way to reset perks. Your choices stick for that playthrough, so take a minute to consider your playstyle. If you really mess up, mods exist for perk respecs, but if you’re playing vanilla, make sure to plan ahead.

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Final Tips for Perk Progression

• Level Up as You Work: Smithing levels up steadily if you alternate between smelting, refining, and crafting regularly. Don’t lay off one aspect for too long.
• Blueprint Unlocks Come with Practice: To unlock all parts, keep forging and experimenting. Every unique weapon crafted increases your knowledge.
• Specialize Your Companions: Have one or two characters go down full smithing perk trees for legendary weapons, while others focus on money/profit for order completion.

Your perk path will shape your smithing career, whether you’re forging the blade that topples a kingdom or simply keeping your warband swimming in coins. Experiment a bit—and keep that charcoal burning.