Crusader Kings 2

**John I Tzimisces** · March 31, 2012, 03:38 AM

Originally Posted by Musthavename

I simply can't get into this game.

I tried the Duke of Munster. I declared war on the guy I have a CB on. Defeated his armies... but had less men than his fort had so my siege wasn't doing anything. Worse, his fort was reinforcing, so I was screwed. I would've hired mercs but had no way of affording them. I can't get my head around what on earth I should be doing most of the time anyway because it's so character driven. Any tips would be appreciated, since I don't want to completely give up on this.

Prior to taking anyone on in Ireland, rather than hiring mercs to make up the difference, use what gold you have to upgrade your counties (by which I mean the castles you personally control, not the cities or churches). Wooden palisade adds tax revenue, garrison/levy size, and fort level, and only costs 50 gold. Militia Training (I think) adds something like 100 troops (light infantry and archers) to a castle's levy (very helpful for bulking up your numbers), and costs 100 gold. If you want it to go faster (the wooden palisade takes at least a year, maybe more?) use your steward to oversee construction in that province (note: this only effects, specifically, holdings in a county that belong to you, not your barons/mayors/bishops).

**nhytgbvfeco2** · March 31, 2012, 03:44 AM

1)save up money for mercs before going to wars.
2)start fabricating claims on a province you want at game start, such as breifne or kildare (which ever one bothers you)
3)clicking on a title will show you claimants, once you invite one of these to your court you can invade a country to inforce his claim, making him either a vassal, independant, or just replacing the previous liege, depends on the title/claimant.

**Manuel I Komnenos** · March 31, 2012, 05:58 AM

Originally Posted by nhytgbvfeco2

3)clicking on a title will show you claimants, once you invite one of these to your court you can invade a country to inforce his claim, making him either a vassal, independant, or just replacing the previous liege, depends on the title/claimant.

I noticed that if they are not your de jure vassals, even if you press their claims they won't become your vassals. Thus, I can't get a foothold in Italy.

**Ascarona** · March 31, 2012, 07:59 AM

Originally Posted by Ferdiad

How many do you have

About 12 I think... and 3 kingdom titles. Do those count as well?

Originally Posted by Manuel I Komnenos

I noticed that if they are not your de jure vassals, even if you press their claims they won't become your vassals. Thus, I can't get a foothold in Italy.

Give them a holding before you press their claim, then when you conquer everything you need the regions will remain in your Empire.

**Vanoi** · March 31, 2012, 10:43 AM

Just got Crusader Kings. And all i have to say is wtf why didn't i get this earlier? Its a really good game. Like it better than Victoria 2.

**Big War Bird** · March 31, 2012, 10:46 AM

Originally Posted by Musthavename

I simply can't get into this game.

I tried the Duke of Munster. I declared war on the guy I have a CB on. Defeated his armies... but had less men than his fort had so my siege wasn't doing anything. Worse, his fort was reinforcing, so I was screwed. I would've hired mercs but had no way of affording them. I can't get my head around what on earth I should be doing most of the time anyway because it's so character driven. Any tips would be appreciated, since I don't want to completely give up on this.

When you start out as a lowly count or duke you definitely have to be patient for your opportunities. Judicious marriages and assassinations are a must. I started as count of Ulster and in 3 generations became King of Scotland with ony one war to take another province in Ulster to form the duchy. As duchess of Ulster I married the younger brother of the king of Scotland in a matrilineal marriage. I then proceeded to make sure my brother in law had no sons to succeed him. When the King of Scotland died my husband became king and my son the heir to both Ulster and Scotland.

I did have a marriage to the sister and heir to the queen of Wales, but unfortunately my homosexual king really didn't care to warm his wife's bed and they went childless and the opportunity to take the throne in Wales was lost.

**Ferdiad** · March 31, 2012, 11:29 AM

Originally Posted by Ascarona

About 12 I think... and 3 kingdom titles. Do those count as well?

Give them a holding before you press their claim, then when you conquer everything you need the regions will remain in your Empire.

You are mad.

**John I Tzimisces** · March 31, 2012, 05:08 PM

Originally Posted by Ascarona

About 12 I think... and 3 kingdom titles. Do those count as well?

Give them a holding before you press their claim, then when you conquer everything you need the regions will remain in your Empire.

Holy crap. With 12 ducal titles you're probably getting something like a -100 modifier to all of your vassals relations to you. Also no, Kingdom titles do not count against you. At least if you're a King, I don't know how it works with emperors since emperors don't seem to be able to create king level titles.

**Vanoi** · March 31, 2012, 07:08 PM

Can anyone give me any tips on gaining caucus bellis? I am Count of Ossey in Ireland and really want to expand. I can't however due to no cacus belli to go to war with, and the fact it takes years to get enough gold to really do anything. I just want to expand to become a Duchy so things will become easier for me.

**hellheaven1987** · March 31, 2012, 07:19 PM

Originally Posted by Azoth

Can anyone give me any tips on gaining caucus bellis? I am Count of Ossey in Ireland and really want to expand. I can't however due to no cacus belli to go to war with, and the fact it takes years to get enough gold to really do anything. I just want to expand to become a Duchy so things will become easier for me.

1. Have title claim.

2. Different religion group.

3. A successful plot.

**Manuel I Komnenos** · March 31, 2012, 07:20 PM

Originally Posted by Azoth

Can anyone give me any tips on gaining caucus bellis? I am Count of Ossey in Ireland and really want to expand. I can't however due to no cacus belli to go to war with, and the fact it takes years to get enough gold to really do anything. I just want to expand to become a Duchy so things will become easier for me.

Hmmm, I'm not sure but I think that your situation is kinda difficult due to the fact that as a simple Count, you won't be able to utilize the invitation of other title claimants to claim another county. This means that you've got to expand through

1) Fabricating claims, a procedure which might take from a few months to a decade and more.
2) Arranging marriages in order to get claims on other counties. In order to usurp a Duchy title, you need to have control over at least 50% of the duchy's de jure counties. Since my game is not open right now, I'm going to assume that the Duchy you want to claim has 4 de jure counties and you currently own one. That means that you have to capture at least one more to be able to usurp the Duchy title, which will give you instant de jure claims on the two other counties of the Duchy. A strategy for the marriage will be to marry your Count or his heir with the countess or her daughter of the county you want to acquire. Wait until the daughter dies and then you (or your son) will inherit the claim on the said county. Claim it by force and then you have the needed counties to usurp the Duchy title.

**Vanoi** · March 31, 2012, 08:00 PM

Originally Posted by Manuel I Komnenos

2) Arranging marriages in order to get claims on other counties. In order to usurp a Duchy title, you need to have control over at least 50% of the duchy's de jure counties. Since my game is not open right now, I'm going to assume that the Duchy you want to claim has 4 de jure counties and you currently own one.

Actually the Duchy i want to take over is only made up of 2 counties. Mine and another. I can already usurp him, i just don't have the gold for it. It takes me years to just get 100 gold.

Gold is a problem here. I need more of it.

**Border Patrol** · April 01, 2012, 12:43 AM

Castle Infrastructure is key. Also, getting the two basic economy upgrades for your vassal's cities will give them enough coin to fully upgrade their cities from there. Teach a man to fish and all that. Does wonders for your tax revenues.

**xcorps** · April 01, 2012, 02:37 AM

Ok, so I bought it and I played it about 8 hours today. Really impressed with the depth so far, also really intimidated by the scope. I fiddled some with France, then I started as an Irish noble. I started unmarried and spent probably 40 or so minutes looking for a wife. Found a good one and made her Spymaster. Spent some time squaring the kids away, spent some time trying to work out how to get my nose into a royal family. Failed. Then I decided to give military expansion a go. That was a bad, bad idea. I got causes belli on my little neighbor to the north and declared war. Raised a levy and marched to take a county. Hey, there's no army at all defending! Yay! Lay seige...and an army of 600 comes marching right to my county, takes both cities, crushes my army, says thanks for the peace dude...and off it goes into the FOW.

Rather annoying, that.

So I'm popping out kids left and right, and trying to build up a decent court. Marrying off the annoying -108 like half brother to a 72 year old courtier in Normandy was hilarious. Especially since he immediatly started studying their economy.

Then some Byzantine strumpet I arranged a marriage to decides to plot against my heir. As the guards are on the way to cart her off to prison, the lovely hag sprouts smallpox. She dies in a cell at about the same time my heir and his two brothers pass on. Fortunately, the spymaster is a baby factory. Unfortunately, it seems that the not having good relations with the Pope really makes God angry, because Typhoid takes half the court and my Chancellor. He wasn't a very good diplomat, but we were fond of each other.

A few years go by and the heir takes the chair. The heir decides that he's better at war, and tries where the father failed. Off to war we go. Oddly enough, the results are exactly the same. The troops even fell into the same graves. It was so bad that my venerable enemy apologized to me for embarrassing me so badly.

I confide in my grandmother, who was an excellent Spymaster by the way. She advises that the best course of action at this point would be to poison the entire family, including the pages, ladies in waiting, horses and hounds, guardsmen, bishops and the two farmers who asked me to resolve the pig dispute at a grand feast.

I take her advice and start a new game.

**nhytgbvfeco2** · April 01, 2012, 05:55 AM

get mercenaries in your early wars, very useful. just make sure you keep enough money around to pay them off else they can either join the enemy or even invade you!

**Manuel I Komnenos** · April 01, 2012, 06:34 AM

Originally Posted by Azoth

Actually the Duchy i want to take over is only made up of 2 counties. Mine and another. I can already usurp him, i just don't have the gold for it. It takes me years to just get 100 gold.

Gold is a problem here. I need more of it.

Get some marriages. You then get the option to receive prestige or gold. It's an easy way to earn some gold. Just make sure the marriages involve sons/daughters of counties or duchies.

**Vanoi** · April 01, 2012, 09:43 AM

Originally Posted by Manuel I Komnenos

Get some marriages. You then get the option to receive prestige or gold. It's an easy way to earn some gold. Just make sure the marriages involve sons/daughters of counties or duchies.

Got a question though. If my chancellor is able to fabricate claims on another county does that give me a caucus belli to invade them?

**Manuel I Komnenos** · April 01, 2012, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by Azoth

Got a question though. If my chancellor is able to fabricate claims on another county does that give me a caucus belli to invade them?

Yes, but when the chancellor informs you that he managed to fabricate a claim, you'll have two choices. Either decline the claim (this will give you some piety) or accept the claim something that will cost you prestige and a large amount of money. I wouldn't recommend it for your case. Better to arrange some marriages (each marriage gives you the ability to claim some gold) and usurp the Ducal title.