emmahyde / crusader-kings-guide

A Beginner's Guide for Crusader Kings 3

What is Crusader Kings?

The primary goal of Crusader Kings is to survive your dynasty. The game begins by selecting a character to play sometime between the start dates of 769-1337 AD.. The game always ends in 1453.

You'll die many times, but as long as you still have an heir within your dynasty to succeed you, you'll continue to play.

The game ends in two cases:

1. You die, and have no more dynasty members that can succeed you.
2. You are stripped of all of your titles (i.e., your dynasty is unlanded).
3. Your dynasty survives until 1453, and the game ends naturally.

The win/loss condition, unlike other games of its type, is not defined by the end-state of the game.

The game is lost in practice when: You put yourself in such a shitty position that you feel it's time to start over, or your dynasty is destroyed by fate.

The game is won in practice when: You succeed in achieving whatever goals you put in place for yourself when roleplaying your characters.

The flexibility and emergent nature of the gameplay means that many different styles are possible, which makes the game hard to learn and leads people to describe it as inaccessible. Crusader Kings is overwhelming as there is lots of data thrown at you at any given moment, but it exposes more of its underlying system than many other games.

Crusader Kings is set apart from others within its genre with:

• The win condition. For the purposes of your play, the win condition will be represented by fulfilling your own personal win conditions. This sort o dynamic goal-forming as you play is one of the things that makes it unique.
• Trusting you to strategize yourself. Since there is such a significant variety of approaches and goals in the game and no true singular win condition, as well as being defined by history and unpredictable events, the tutorial is not very valuable past explaining what all the HUD elements are and the basic diplomatic and war mechanics. Assume that you'll be figuring it out as you go a lot of the time.
• Having a steep learning curve. In this context, that means it takes probably 5-10 hours of your time to really reach an understanding where you can begin to strategize and plan effectively. The difficulty level of Crusader Kings lies exclusively in your ability to strategize. All of the actual statistics and values are exposed at a surface level.

As a rule of thumb, it's best to start with the tutorial. If you for whatever reason refuse to do that, an excellent place to start is Ireland 1066.

• Small, equal-power duchies
• Less restrictive branch of Christianity (Insular)
• Very few invaders during this time

OK, how do I play?

What are the most important things to know?

Characters

Every landed character in the game is playable and follows the same structure.

Sense of "personality" is developed during childhood, and solidified at age 16. An average adult character will possess 3 Personality Traits, many Minor Traits, and a number representing aptitude for each of the 5 basic skillsets:

• Diplomacy,
• Marshal,
• Stewardship,
• Intrigue,
• and Learning.

In order of occurrence over the lifespan of a character:

Congenital Traits:

Congenital traits have a very small chance to appear upon birth and can be inherited by a character's descendants, especially if both parents have the same trait.

Some congenital traits come in tiers:

(e.g. (-3) Imbecile, (-2) Stupid, (-1) Slow, (1) Quick, (2) Intelligent, (3) Genius)

While others do not:

(e.g. Club-footed)

Congenital traits are marked with a white aura and are always present at birth.

Childhood Traits:

From ages 0-16, characters form their personalities. Some traits are only seen in childhood, but permanent adult personality traits will crop up during childhood as well. By the time a child is 16, they will usually possess their permanent traits. Which traits form is largely dependent on their education and their Guardian.

On Guardians:

• Any character over 16 can be a teacher to a child, or a Guardian to a Ward. A character may only have two Wards at a time. (If the Player Character is a Guardian, they will receive special events participating in the Ward's growth until that child turns 16 or they quit.)

• Any character under 16 must deal with a regency (sucks) and will not possess an education trait. Any child can be a Ward to a single Guardian at a time. This person will greatly influence the development of the Ward's personality. I highly recommend avoiding playing as a child as much as possible, or in a regency period.

Personality Traits:

The traits that represent a character the most and impact if and how much Stress a character receives for actions and decisions that conflict with these traits.

Characters tend not to have more than 3 major personality traits. While typically solidified for a given character at age 16, it is possible for these traits to shift over a lifetime. This most often occurs as the result of a mental break.

Each personality trait has an opposite trait, and characters with opposite personality traits will have a lowered opinion of each other.

Education Traits:

When reaching adulthood every character receives an education trait. Which education trait a character receives is greatly influenced by family, events, skills, and their guardian. Education traits grant a bonus to one skill as well as to the monthly experience gained in the Lifestyle associated with the trait.

Other Traits:

• Coping Mechanisms:
  • A coping mechanism is a trait that can be obtained when a character suffers a mental break and helps a character lose Stress and usually imparts negative effects. Each coping mechanism unlocks a unique decision.
• Lifestyle Traits:
  • Lifestyle traits can be obtained through either the final perk of each Lifestyle tree or as a result of Lifestyle Decisions.
• Commander Traits:
  • Commander traits give various bonuses to armies led by a character with such traits. They are usually gained through experience leading armies and through events.
• Infamous Traits:
  • Infamous traits may be accepted, shunned or considered criminal by a character depending on the Doctrines or Tenets of its faith.
• Health Traits:
  • A Health trait is a negative trait that lowers a character's Health and is visible on the character. They last a varying amount of time and differ greatly in lethality.
• Dynastic Traits:
  • Traits regarding the character's relationship to the dynastic line (e.g. child of concubine, bastard, born in purple)]
• Event Traits:
  • These traits can only be gained by - you guessed it! - events.

Lifestyles

• Diplomacy
• Marshal
• Stewardship
• Intrigue
• Learning

Religion and Culture

• Tribal/Feudal
• Doctrines
• Tenants
• Holy Sites
• Religious Head
• Innovations
  • Cultural Fascination

Schemes

• Schemes
• Hooks

Marriage

• Politics
• Genetics
• Matrilineal

Court

• Guests
• Courtiers
• Vassals
• Physician
• Spouse
• Bishop
• Chancellor
• Steward
• Marshal
• Spymaster

War

• Levies
• Men-At-Arms
• Champions/Knights
• Allies
• Claims
• Casus Belli

Resources

• Gold
• Prestige
• Piety
• Renown
• Soldiers/Levy
• Domain

Hot Tips

Converting Territories

Converting populations of territories you own to your religion is a slow and arduous process. You can have one of your councillor's slowly chip away at it but their time is better spent elsewhere.

Zealot's approach:

Given that a particular region is giving you trouble, you may be able to work around it.

1. Pick a problematic-religion-matching, potential vassal from the character search tools.
2. Gain a hook on this character
   • If you have the Truth is Relative perk, you can fabricate a hook.
   • Otherwise, it is actually easier to imprison the vassal for a tyranny hit and then release on a favor.
3. Grant the new vassal the territory. The population, the growth, and you will all get bonuses for this appointment. These commoners will believe anything.
4. After he has taken power, demand conversion using the hook if you have to.

note: NPC vassals will, upon conversion, also convert their territories, because the populations see them as trustworthy.

Winning Wars

What makes it easy to seal the deal? Waiting for battle sucks. Why w

Kidnapper's approach:

1. Get Lifestyle Intrigue > Schemer > 3rd Tier: Kidnapper Perk, which enables the Kidnap scheme, to kidnap a target character.

Land that is Rightfully Yours

If you have a claim on the land, you can revoke it from your vassal without the tyrant penalty. This is a good reason to fabricate a claim on a territory that is technically under your rule. This has to be done 1 county at a time and could definitely spawn rebellions.

Living as a Vassal

1. Get Lifestyle Stewardship > Administrator > 1st Tier: Meritocracy Perk, which enables the Claim Throne scheme for the primary title of your liege.
2. Now that you have the claim, go to the Factions tab and Create Claimant Faction instead of being pitted against possible allies.
   • helps if the liege is disliked
   • use his army against him
   • establish relationships with the people who would potentially be your allies in this situation

Denethor your Faramirs

1. Make disruptive courtiers or vassals be knights and send them out to be... killed unceremoniously.

Long Truce?

Murder the person you created it with.

Great Spouse

Use your spouse's council position in order to change the odds on event decisions – you can go switch their focus and see what bonuses it grants you.

Abduction

the lifestyle Intrigue > Schemer > 3rd Tier: Kidnapper perk, which enables the Kidnap scheme to kidnap a target character, is highly useful.

War

1. Scheme the abduction of your target territory's lord.
2. Send declaration of war immediately before attempting the kidnap.
3. If the kidnapping is successful, you will immediately have a Warscore of 100.

Claimants

1. If there is a claimant who:
   • Is a claimant for a lower-tier title than you
   • Does not already possess land
2. Abduct claimant for a hook
3. Negotiate their release with "Recruit" instead of a hook

Lots of Pretenders

Utilize dread when new ruler with lots of pretenders. This occurs when you die and become your heir.

Before dying:

1. Amass prisoners (problematic or otherwise powerful people) so that the heir can milk them for hooks
2. Execute imprisoned for dread

Succession

Avoid parititon succession systems and "select" an heir.

1. Be the dynasty or house head.
   • make cadet branch if you are unable to become the dynasty head.
2. Groom your heir.
3. You can disinherit all of your heirs as dynasty head.
   • this costs renown but can be useful
   • in the waning days of a ruler, some sacrifices must be made

Marriage

Matching faith is a good idea.

Force a divorce in worst case, or use hook for intrafaith marriage.

Hooks are MOST effective for getting an 'unwanted' marriage to occur.

Marry courtiers off in order to get new people for your court – a woman will need a matrilineal marriage in order to stay at your court.

It will benefit you to get great genetic traits through marriage in this way because if their offspring stays within your court it will make it much easier for you to marry, develop knights, establish council, etc.

Bring claimants in but be careful: it's possible for someone to be a claimant but be restricted from acting on it in any meaningful way due to faith restrictions.

Infiltrating Enemy Courts

1. Have good relations with your own courtiers and marry them into the target's court.
2. Fabricate hooks on people in your own court and then send them into the target's court.
3. Marry lesser family members who you have dynastic hooks on.
4. Risk: Send family member with high intrigue in, in the hopes they will become the spymaster.

Dynasty

1. Marry children to high-ranking individuals to generate more dynastic renown.
2. Marry a claimant of a territory, of equal-rank to you, into your family. They will continue on being an independent ruler, but the children who are in your dynasty will have unpressed claims.
3. Use hooks and kill the claimant when the children are born into your dynasty in order to elevate them and gain more renown.
4. You will not directly rule this territory by claims alone (due to equal-rank title), but it will increase your renown to have multiple independent rulers.
5. You can do the same process with inheritors instead of claimants to skip the pressing their claim business, but it will be more difficult to convince inheritors to marry into your dynasty.
   • you would then need to ensure that all inheritors ahead of that inheritor in line, as well as the current title holder, are "taken care of".
6. The renown boost is only for 1 family member per realm – meaning, having brothers / cousins as dukes, etc. underneath you, or vassals in any way, will not boost this value.