Best lancer Knight build-up?

I have not played for a long time and have not written in this forums for a long time as well. I have really no idea what has changed or changed? I am just planning to play warband on this weekend to remind my old days and till taleworlds release bannerlord.
Personally I am not a newcomer but never played multies still prefer native version. From my old times I was a master lancer and my favourite was couched damage. I know that I have to spend some of my exp points on leaderships to lessen the cost of my retinues.
So if you give me some hint on spending my exp points I would be grateful.
My personal gameplay,
- I mostly fight mounted and use lances and long lances and one handed or twohanded sword as a secondary weapon I like having two handed ones but in my non-cheating games which may reduce protection I opt the one handed ones.
- I mostly start with with a warrior father/squire/forced from home.
- I just use crossbows hate archery hate steppe bandits!
- I serve either swadian king or vaegir kings but like Swadians although they are poor at sieging as a mercenary.
- During peace time I mostly hunt sea raiders which gives me good booty.
- I also no idea what is best warrior company build for it.

Currently I am testing different builds and mostly spend my exp points on AGILITY skills and some on leadership. After I am satisfied I will begin non-cheaty games.

Any comment will be welcomed thanks beforehand.

In my last game I took Narra then joined Khergits I am level 25 now.
I have plate armor and charger and a steppe charger. I have 12 STR 12 AGI 7 INT (for the book of alexinus) 27 CHA but 10 Leadership thanks to book. Around 500 reknown and full leadership I can get 125 men under my arms. I have more than 250 polearm proficiency. I use balanced hafted blade as secondary and just began using iron mace but at low levels of profiency two handed ones, it sucks on foot but it is very good on horse for taking captives. Currently I reverted to my earlier game to save Swadia I do know whether it will help them or not. 

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Companions: Alayen, Bahestur, Firentis, Matheld, Artimener, Borcha, Rolf, Lezalit. 

You can shape them however you like.  I advocate STR-12/AGI-12/INT-Max/CHA-whocares and maxing Trainer on all of them, because Trainer skill stacks.  They can cover any other party skills too, due to lots of points from INT.  Their combat effectiveness depends mostly on their kit and weapon proficiency, not on stats.  I tested it.

As for building your character, start with STR 9 and pump up AGI until you reach your target.  Max Weapon Master first, then riding.  After that pump up STR until you reach your target.  Then just pump CHA and Leadership skill.  Getting INT up to the point when you can read books can be useful, so consider that too. 

Tracking or Trade are obviously wasted points.  They don't do very much even when maxed, and your companions can cover them.  What I suggest here is not how I actually play, because I do extreme powergaming nowadays, but it should be fun.  If you are interested in my current builds have a look at this thread: http://forums.taleworlds.com/index.php/topic,289920.0.html

Race for 4 points of riding and a charger ASAP, on yourself and every companion. It just massively improves their survivability when they can plow over that group of sea raiders the crappy AI just steered them through, rather than get stuck and hacked to bits.

30 Str 30 Agi 9 Cha 6 Int, accept no substitute.

Bobtheheros said:

30 Str 30 Agi 9 Cha 6 Int, accept no substitute.

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Um, yeah but that requires at least 42 levels.  Honestly, in all the years I've played M&B I've never gotten that high. I don't doubt it would be a serious character but how do you get there?

Kill stuff on your way to the top? I've reached it a few times, the fact that you actually get involved in fights gives you a lot of experience.

And obviously, this is the final build, aiming for that is good, which mean you just constanstly raise your str then your agi.

Bobtheheros said:

Kill stuff on your way to the top? I've reached it a few times, the fact that you actually get involved in fights gives you a lot of experience.

And obviously, this is the final build, aiming for that is good, which mean you just constanstly raise your str then your agi.

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OK, I guess 24 of each would be pretty effective too. Kind of point starved though. Do you stay mounted or do you max Athletics and fight on foot?

fragonard said:

OK, I guess 24 of each would be pretty effective too. Kind of point starved though. Do you stay mounted or do you max Athletics and fight on foot?

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I take Athletics to 6.  As for fighting, it depends upon several factors (including my mood), but if a fight is in the hills or other vertical land, on foot.  Vertical acreage is no place to fight with  cavalry, IMHO.
I prefer archery to x-bows, so i build str/PD and PS  as high as i can along with riding and horse archery.  It's nice to have options.
  Regards,
TA

fragonard said:

Bobtheheros said:

Kill stuff on your way to the top? I've reached it a few times, the fact that you actually get involved in fights gives you a lot of experience.

And obviously, this is the final build, aiming for that is good, which mean you just constanstly raise your str then your agi.

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OK, I guess 24 of each would be pretty effective too. Kind of point starved though. Do you stay mounted or do you max Athletics and fight on foot?

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Both, fight on the horse more often than not, but not being a molass when it dies has its perks.

Currently I take a coursier and a lance no companion. After that I hunt sea raiders I managed to collect 5k on my 10th days. I levelled soloing till ten on normal damage to me and to my men. Yes, I can handle 10-15 sea raiders alone with a lot of patient by circling around them to make them finish all their missile and throwing weapons but on my test (on custom battles) archers always decimates xbowmen in 200 vs 200 missile battles that really annoyed me so I think I will restart as an cataphract Archers because I plan to protect my own castle. I currently plan two possible skill tree one 12 for all rest on int the latter 15 for all rest on INT. 

And the most important question: I mostly go with my lancer as warrior/page/squire/loss for best getting leadership early is it possible to get 4 riding via starting options?

P.S. I completely forgot at what reknown and relation points dop kings invite me as their vassal AFAIK it is recommended to wait for it than being a mercenary? 

Base - Riding 1
Nomad - Riding +2
Sqire/Lady - Riding +1

Lady in Waiting gets a Spirited Courser too.

bakters said:

Base - Riding 1
Nomad - Riding +2
Sqire/Lady - Riding +1

Lady in Waiting gets a Spirited Courser too.

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I will go for warrior / page/ squire / revenge I do not want to be a cataphract archer again. I never made a female, either.
I like banners but I hate nobility I like roleplaying as a commoner rises up to the rank of a new King of calradia.
I am still indecisive between hafted blade and sword of war as my secondary weapon.

Polearms disappoint in this game.  They are too slow and long range is not really an advantage when crowded, so I'd take a SOW over any polearm on foot.

bakters said:

Polearms disappoint in this game.  They are too slow and long range is not really an advantage when crowded, so I'd take a SOW over any polearm on foot.

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Yes you are right but I play with jousting lance very well. I mostly do manhunting in peacetime. So couching damage is a must on field battles. At the moment I suck on melee but after I got 15 for attributes I think I will begin investing on melee as well. I have a morningstar in my inventory but it is too slow and I am still looking for a fast one handed weapon but have not find any good one yet.
I am now around level 20 (currently 17) and I can enslave 20-25 sea raiders alone but fell twice because of bad luck. I have no worry now on soloing as I have invested on my gear well only could not find any plate armour yet.

My worst habit was over I am not a cataphract archer but other than sea raiders and other shielded outlaws I have also practiced with my light crossbow my previous horse archery experience helped a lot as well. 
I think 15 strength and agility is enough for me I will invest rest on cha and int equally to have a large army.

On horseback I use a Long Awl Pike.  It's faster than any lance and you can kill several opponents with one pass.  Couched damage is not as great as it seems on a crowded battlefield.  When I do use couched lances, I aim for the horse of the enemy, because it's a bigger target and if I one-shot it, my own horse gets to keep its speed.

Also, once I started wearing a plate armor, I was pleasantly surprised with iron mace as a weapon.  Plate armor is important here, because without it you will get interrupted by enemy attacks and essentially stun-locked.  But once you avoid a stun-lock, you can happily swing your mace and knock down your opponents.  Horizontal swings are faster, and if you alternate sides you don't lose much time.

But it's just a matter of personal preference.  Try various weapons and see what you tend to do well with. 

I use wolf tactic (Even on good battle AI does not attack you as a whole 1 or 2 leaves the security of shield wall so as a wolf do I monitor them when one leaves attack the alone sheep) so crowded battles no worry for me. I began with coursier than found a heavy charger. Speed and manouvre is not important for me on soloing but we need armour on us and on horse. I also mastered reverse couching which is very vital on survival. You just couch from your left as you wear a shield even enemy spearmen hopeless against it.

As I am still investing on my gear, I still do not use one or two handed ones yet. I need plate armour to test which is my style but on good battle AI and on solo it is logical to have a two handed weapon that can crush blocks and shield but morningstars are very on horse other than chasing running enemies it is useless. On normal M&B long twohanded bardich?(forgot the spelling) was my favourite.

I like your approach.  You will get very good very fast.

Anyway, weapons are fun to use, but what wins the game is being able to direct your troops well, use terrain well, use enemy advantages against themselves and all that.  DPS-out vs. DPS-in.  No matter how well you fight, your own DPS is largely inconsequential, until you are able to hide your army from taking damage (which is a good strategy, BTW).

Good luck.

bakters said:

On horseback I use a Long Awl Pike.  It's faster than any lance and you can kill several opponents with one pass.  Couched damage is not as great as it seems on a crowded battlefield.  When I do use couched lances, I aim for the horse of the enemy, because it's a bigger target and if I one-shot it, my own horse gets to keep its speed.

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I have never used long awl pike on horse. My favourite non couching polearm is bamboo spear that mostly use against Khergits. As I said before I suck on melee unmounted. I will try it as awl pike as well I hope it is good as unmounted because I lack points on 1/2 handed weapons I am too slow.

Unmounted it's not good.  I was about to try Iron Staff, but I couldn't find it.  My guess is, it might work.

Anyway, your character can't be as bad as mine is.  STR-9/AGI-7, weapon proficiency 1-handed 120-ish, 2-handed 140-ish, polearms and crossbows somewhere around 200.  I can do fine on foot, so can you.

bakters said:

Unmounted it's not good.  I was about to try Iron Staff, but I couldn't find it.  My guess is, it might work.

Anyway, your character can't be as bad as mine is.  STR-9/AGI-7, weapon proficiency 1-handed 120-ish, 2-handed 140-ish, polearms and crossbows somewhere around 200.  I can do fine on foot, so can you.

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I suck on foot and I really hate it! I tried any weapon, polearms sucks, two handed sucks, one handed sucks after you lost your shield. So to invest heavily on highest armour makes you slow when you are surrounded you fall. So I will try my next character heavily on CHA if I want to be a king.

I like Mount section of game not blade even had a record of killing 59 sea raiders of 100+ group alone on normal damage setting and on good battle AI before I fall.