Trap 1 : There is no explanation of what the important things is for Norland
In Norland, the most important thing is the inheritance of knowledge.
However, there is almost no explanation about the inheritance of knowledge in the game, and it seems that many people fall into a trap and get bored halfway through.
The effect of knowledge is tied to the corresponding lord, and the effect will not be activated unless one of the lord members has acquired the knowledge by reading a book or having a flash of inspiration.
Furthermore, if a lord member who possesses knowledge dies, that knowledge will be lost and the building will no longer be usable.
Since lord members will age when they reach the age of 50 (60 if they have acquired the longevity knowledge), and will lose knowledge and the skill values ​​themselves will decrease, it is best to think of the knowledge possession limit as being until the age at which they effectively become elderly. How this knowledge is passed on is an important aspect of the game.
For this reason, it is best to have a maximum of two lords concentrate on learning the knowledge, rather than dividing it up amongst themselves and having them learn it evenly.


Trap 2 : There is only a maximum of six slots for lord members
The biggest trap in this game is the problem of the number of lord members. As others have mentioned, you can only have a maximum of six lords in your country.
Therefore, if you keep the following in mind while playing the game, it will be much easier.
-Don't recruit free lords
It is more advantageous to raise your own children, so don't recruit free lords. *Please ignore notifications from free lords.
-Only one couple of the same generation can marry
If there are two couples, there will be only two slots left for lord members who can join the country at that time, so do not marry them. One of them should remain single for life and become the foundation for the prosperity of the territory. *Please ignore notifications from your marriage partner.
-The recommended personality for your spouse is "monogamy".
If you do not want your wife to be seduced by the bishop or brothers who come, it is recommended that you have your wife acquire the monogamy skill. Since illegitimate children can cause discord among the lord members, it is better to continue the blood of the original lord's family. If an illegitimate child is sandwiched between them, have them go on an adventure with one soldier to a bandit camp when they turn 18 and die.
-The ages of the siblings should be about 10 years apart.
Due to the importance of knowledge inheritance, if the ages are too close, their lifespans will be at the same time, and more than two lord members will leave at the same time, which will greatly weaken the family. To prevent this, it is recommended that the eldest and second sons be more than 10 years apart. If you save and load repeatedly, the outcome of the birth (including miscarriage) will change each time, so after the first son is born, you can have a miscarriage until the age difference of 10 years. The game is difficult, so it's pretty tough if you don't save and load with baby rerolling. Be careful, because women can't have children after they turn 40.


Trap 3 : Don’t leave the skills of your initial members half-baked
In Norland, children (up to age 18) can effectively improve their skills by asking other adults for guidance. The maximum level of skill that can be improved is determined by the adult's maximum skill level.
In particular, these two skills can be taught together, so have them learn them while keeping these two groups in mind.
"Manners & Persuasion", "Trade & Management", "Intelligence & Education", "Combat & Command".
You can also create a versatile character who can do anything halfway through, but in the early stages you don't have that luxury, so have your initial members acquire specialized skills while considering their roles.


Trap 4 : The beginning of the game is difficult
Norland is a knowledge inheritance game, so the initial accumulation of knowledge can be extremely difficult.
As you collect knowledge, you can increase the efficiency of various productions, eliminate some of the disadvantages in the game, and increase the speed at which skills can be acquired, making it easier to strengthen your lord members and citizens in many ways.
Once you've collected all thease knowledge, buildings are built, weapons, armor, and soldiers are gathered, and you enter the strategy phase, the fun really explodes, so while you're still getting used to the game, it's best to keep the start-up phase on an easy setting. I'll write about the specific initial settings if there's any response to this guide.


Trap 5 : Pay attention to the interest between the lord and his wife.
The lord and his wife will generally have children, but if their interest level drops, they may not want to have children. Here are some reasons why interest levels drop and how to deal with it.
-Differences in religious beliefs (fanatics or atheists) : If these are incompatible, interest levels will be heavily negatively adjusted. Check from time to time, and if only the lord's wife is a fanatic, set the church's doctrine to "Sermons of Doubt."
-Scars : When attacked in battle, scars are left behind. Each scar reduces interest levels by 5, and the scars accumulate, so your charm level will decrease. When fighting, first select your troops, then check "Protect the archers" in the bottom right to prevent the front line from charging into the enemy, and check "Wait in the rear" to set the lord to stay in the rear among the front line.
-Manners : The higher the level, the better, as interest levels will be positively adjusted.
-Beautiful : Recommended to acquire with the initial character's lord
-Ugly/balding/not cute : Do not take as it will lower the interest value
-Wife's culture: It does not directly affect the interest value, but if they are different it will cause discord between the lord members, so it is better not to choose a wife from a culture that does not get along.
Caiden and Vaan, Marka and Tanaya are cultures that don't get along
-Marka culture : Priests are always from Tanaya culture, so do not choose a wife from Marka culture.


Trap 6 : Unchangeable element that increases the difficulty from the middle of the game
-Two types of resources to choose when specifying a territory: one is always iron, the other is wood or herbs
Resources are delivered from the village every few days. You can also obtain these resources by trading with other territories or by caravanning, but in the start-up phase, it is recommended to choose iron, which tends to run out, and wood, which becomes less and less efficient to collect if you cut down too much. Iron is essential because it will eventually become impossible to obtain once the mines run out. I chose herbs for the other resource, but I think wood, which tends to run out, would have been more convenient. You could also choose herbs to secure the caravan's sales items (ointment and special ale) and purchase wood each time you go to the caravan, so please try both.

Trap 7 : Forming a vassal state is one of the most difficult play stile
At first glance, Norland seems like a game where you subjugate all other territories to build your own empire, but when you request subjugation, you will almost always be refused, and you will have to annihilate the enemy army and force them to subscribe. At this point, the subjugated country has 0 soldiers and cannot defend itself, while the trust of the church drops and you will not be able to attack the next territory right away, so you will have a hard time progressing.
Therefore, the recommended play style is to form an allied nation.
When inviting an allied nation, if the other party refuses to join the alliance, you cannot choose it in the first place and there will be no war. And if you become an alliance, your soldiers will be preserved, so you can connect territories that do not have 0 soldiers and form a nation.
If the reason for refusal is due to your own country, you can deepen diplomatic relations, and if it is because you do not like the other allied countries, you can wait for the generation change, etc., and the relationship value of those countries is periodically reset for various reasons, so you can turn your attention to other countries and work on enriching your country and strengthening your military. Sometimes there are countries that are neighbors of enemy allies or vassals, but if you wait, they will usually fall out and collapse, so you can wait for a chance to collapse and then bring them into an alliance. You can enjoy playing while negotiating between countries like this, so I recommend that you choose the path of an ally when you first play.

I returned to playing Norland after one year, and while many updates have been made, I confirmed that the trap-avoidance method I discovered back then is still effective. Here, I’ve compiled a list of techniques you should know to gain an advantage in the game.
By combining these strategies with the trap-avoidance method mentioned above, you can make your Norland playthrough much easier.

Guide 1: How to Deal with a Rebellious Bishop
Occasionally, a bishop may attempt to assassinate your lord.
In that case, defeat the bishop through a duel. Select the bishop and choose Duel from the Intrigue menu to challenge them.

However, most bishops have very high combat skills. At the start of the game, ensure at least one of your lords has a combat skill of 10 or higher. Raise this lord further through wars and wolf hunting until they become your dedicated “Bishop Killer.”

Bishops do not always die in a single duel. If you engage them multiple times while they are already wounded, they will be much easier to kill. Eventually, even other lords with lower combat skills can finish off an already weakened bishop.

Guide 2: Combat Power Requires Combat to Improve
Other skills like Manners or Trade can be trained without risking death. Combat, however, always carries a fatal risk during training.

The simplest way to raise combat skill is wolf hunting inside your domain. Wolves are as strong as a lord with 10 combat and armed with a spear.
To have a good chance of winning against wolves, your lord should start with at least combat 10. This also ties into creating a future “Bishop Killer,” so always make sure one of your lords begins the game with 10+ combat.

Guide 3: Trade Away What You Don’t Need
At the beginning of the game, you start with paper—but do you need it right away? In most cases, the answer is no.
Instead, sell off unneeded goods and use the money to buy essential resources.

The most important items in the early game are:
Wood
Books (Knowledge)
Iron

Without wood and iron, upgrading buildings will stall. Without knowledge, you won’t be able to construct new types of buildings. Since these three resources are critical early on, prioritize acquiring them.
Additionally, having maces and bows from the start will prepare you for unexpected battles.

Guide 4: How to Make Use of Bastards
Even if they are not the children of your main lord, bishops’ or lords’ offspring must be considered. If bastards are promoted directly to lordship, they often become a source of discord.

Instead:
・Send them to the church upon adulthood to receive gold.
・Or employ them as knights who command your armies.

As knights, only Combat and Command are essential. Focus on raising these two stats before they reach adulthood.

Guide 5: Controlling Male Lords Who You Don’t Want Having Children
Marry them to free female lords over 40. Since they no longer bear children, there’s less risk of illegitimate heirs appearing.

Another option is marrying your lords to widows who are not close relatives but are eligible for marriage. This is a useful strategy to avoid unwanted children.

Guide 6: Gathering Prisoners
To gather many captives, attack refugee camps with squads equipped with maces. Maces are effective because they often stun bandits instead of killing them, making capture easier.

If you have surplus spears, you can assign spear-wielding soldiers as well. Spears generally pile up over time, so in wars you are certain to win, make use of this excess supply.
⚠️ Avoid using swords or axes. These weapons may sever prisoners’ limbs, rendering them useless as a labor force.

Guide 7: How to Acquire Rare Books
The best method is raiding libraries.
Your chance of success in these thefts depends on the lord’s Intelligence and Persuasion.

Send an elderly but intelligent lord to raid libraries across different realms to steadily steal rare books.

Trade usually only gives access to basic books, while special book merchants appear too infrequently and make full collection impractical.
If you want to get rare books efficiently, raid libraries whenever possible.