Istiana's/Arazgos' plan and the conspiracy quests are RIDICULOUS

I don't want to be too negative but I have to get this off my chest. I'm new to Bannerlord (and Mount and Blade) and have been enjoying the game and its mechanics a lot. The quests and storyline on the other hand... not so much. The ticking time bomb that is Istiana's plan, and the same missions you have to do over and over and over again to no avail, have pretty much ruined the immersion of the game for me.

Some context (skip this if you want): I'm a vassal of the Aserai/Unqid, and for some reason the sultan was nice enough to grant me a castle without me doing anything. Problem is, it's a castle on the border with the Southern Empire. Every month and a half or so (in game) either us or them declare war, and so we've been fighting the same pointless war 5 times now (we usually win and get a few denars, but nothing really changes). Because my castle is on the border, I'm the first one to deal with huge armies besieging my castle and raiding my villages, which (I think, but it's not properly explained anywhere) really fucks with my finances. The ally AI armies usually wander around for a week or two before finally deciding to help out (if it all). I can deal with all of this because I'm new to the game and it helps me learn the tactics of warfare.

What I can't deal with is the main 'story line' quests popping up constantly while I'm trying to save my own ass. At first, I thought I HAD to do the quests, you know, it being part of the main story and all, but I soon found out it's just delaying the inevitable. Who enjoys being stuck in this (if you want it to be) never ending loop? Also, what actually happens when the thingy reaches 2000? Does this mean 2000 troops will attack me? Will Unqid help me out? Will every empire faction declare war? What does it all mean?! My max party capacity is still at a 100, and because I'm constantly under attack, I can't really develop my troops or fiefs. Does this mean I'm screwed?

I get that the game is not fully released yet, but after more than a year I'd expect there to be a bit more to the main story. I've slaughtered the 'conspiracy war party' about five times now; every time is exactly the same. I've never seen a game be so cool and great when it comes to so many of the mechanics, and so bad when it comes to the story/quests/NPC dialogues/relations.

Still though, I really do enjoy the battles, troops, tactics and all that. I also want to emphasize that I think most of the developers I've seen are great with the community and really care about the game, so I want to be optimistic about the future of Bannerlord. I just think there is a LOT of work to be done when it comes to quests, apart from the (almost game ruining bugs) I've encountered so far.

submitted by /u/Vivazu
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