Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord's spiritual predecessor, Mount and Blade: Warband is a medieval-themed action-adventure game developed by TaleWorlds Entertainment. Released in 2007 as the first expansion to its critically acclaimed parent title, it offered an expansive open-world experience set during the Crusades era.

The game received positive reviews from critics upon release due to its engaging gameplay mechanics and immersive atmosphere. However, some users experienced technical issues such as crashing or freezing, which led to numerous patches being released over time.

One of these patch cycles spans version 1.153 through 1.173, covering nearly a year's worth of updates between October 2017 and January 2018. While specific changes were not explicitly stated in the provided changelog for Patch 1.173 beyond general stability improvements, it is safe to assume that this patch addressed several bugs and minor balance adjustments were made throughout.

For those new to Mount & Blade series or looking into modding their existing copies of Warband, there are a few things worth noting:

* The game requires both the base Mount and Blade: Warpack (v.1.165) and either Viking Conquest or Napoleonic Wars expansion packs installed on your computer.

* For optimal performance with these mods enabled, ensure you have at least 4 GB RAM available.

If you're considering diving back into this classic action-RPG experience from the early 2000s or just curious about what started it all for TaleWorlds Entertainment before they went onto bigger and better things like Bannerlord's more polished gameplay mechanics - then give Mount & Blade II: Warband a try today!

Mount and blade warband 1.153 - 1.173