Easiest way to increase command?

**Sorkenlol** · August 31, 2008, 04:22 PM

I have a pretty decent commander, I've gotten his chivalry to max, and loyalty to max, piety to about 6 of 10, but his command is 2/10, he's pretty young but he's seen a crapload of battle, and won a "Famous Victory", there's a mark at the site where he won. Right now he would have 4 command, but he's afflicted with Pneunomia and something else that decreases it by -2, if I just got his command up a bit he'd be a very good commander. So what ways are the easiest? I'm already crusading as often as I can, so anything except that.

**Angrychris** · August 31, 2008, 04:28 PM

winning battles/epic battles especialy when sieging an enemy with odds against you.

**Sorkenlol** · August 31, 2008, 05:07 PM

After the heroic victory he won at the famous victory site he didn't gain anything, it was 30 against 70 or something like that, and he killed 1500 and lost about 200, yet he didn't get any bonuses or the "Famous Victor" trait, not as far as I know..

**Tsarevna** · September 01, 2008, 08:11 AM

I find a great way to get command stars is to fight little rebel groups.

Find the ones that don't have spearmen. Now, take your bodyguard, and one other group of cavalry (or 2, depending on the situation.)

If you're going up against say, a group of rebel peasants and a group of rebel archers, use your extra cav unit to swing around back of them. Put your general in front. Charge them both at the same time, so you hit them simultaneously from the front and rear.

Usually, it's enough to cause them to panic and surrender immediately.

Bonus: Press "continue battle" when it pops up, Stop the extra cav unit, and let your bodyguard kill all the survivors. This will get your general extra experience. It seems to be based up on # of enemies killed/captured, even if they are fleeing peasants!

Your general should gain a command star:

Because horsemen units are smaller than the peasant units, making it 2 units of 75ish vs 2 units of 36ish.
This makes for a clear or heroic victory, as your numbers lost will be very small, owing to the fact that it's hard for mere pesants to kill bodyguards with 2 hit points!

edit: And you won't get a command star each time you deserve one. That seems to just be the way it's coded. Luckily, if you have spies out and watch-towers, you'll be able to destroy every little peasant revolt that comes along. There are so many of these, you'll get stars in no-time!

**Orko** · September 01, 2008, 08:27 AM

Originally Posted by Sorkenlol

After the heroic victory he won at the famous victory site he didn't gain anything, it was 30 against 70 or something like that, and he killed 1500 and lost about 200, yet he didn't get any bonuses or the "Famous Victor" trait, not as far as I know..

fight more battles, especially sieges. one battle, as good as it may be, is still not enough.

**Celsius** · September 01, 2008, 08:52 AM

winning with JUST CAVALRY helps to.

**Stark of Winterfell** · September 01, 2008, 11:21 AM

If you're not orthodox, go on crusade/jihad. You can sometimes get some traits and ancillaries that will boost command.

**Sorkenlol** · September 01, 2008, 11:58 AM

Wow, I was just given a 16 year old commander with 8/10 loyalty and 7/10 command, no chivalry/dread or piety tho, to the holy lands he goes!

**Angrychris** · September 01, 2008, 03:00 PM

dread and command are the easiest to obtain

**Sorkenlol** · September 01, 2008, 03:24 PM

I find chivalry easier to obtain that dread, I had a commander with 3 chiv or 4 maybe, sent him off to denmark and just released all prisoners and occupied all settlements, after 3 or 4 turns he had full chivalry

**Spartan90** · September 02, 2008, 01:48 AM

Definately crusades. The generals get a command star rating boost, plus they also get large increases in their chivalry and their piety. talk about killing three birds with one stone

**Angrychris** · September 02, 2008, 03:29 AM

takes money sacrific though

**jimjimjim** · September 02, 2008, 06:31 AM

get your general to chase down routers - more prisoners he gets the quicker the command stars go up.

**Tsarevna** · September 02, 2008, 01:15 PM

Originally Posted by jimjimjim

get your general to chase down routers - more prisoners he gets the quicker the command stars go up.

That's true for gaining experience as well. Does anyone know if your little general's experience chevrons relate mathematically to his command star rating? :hmmm: Something like, 2 exp per star, etc?

**Sorkenlol** · September 02, 2008, 02:23 PM

Guys my commander has lost 2 stars all of a sudden, he had 8/10 command then I sieged a large city and it went down by 2, he didn't get any traits or retinue, it just went down, anyone know the cause?

**Double A** · September 02, 2008, 07:30 PM

Check and see if he has a trait that gives him extra command in siege battles, assaults, other religions/faction or at night.

**Sorkenlol** · September 02, 2008, 10:23 PM

I doubt, I sieged Cairo I think it was, then I waited there for a turn, next turn he had 6 stars instead of 8, tried walking out of the settlement to see if he had one of the bad defender traits but no..

**HighLord z0b** · September 03, 2008, 01:04 AM

There are other traits that give stars if the general is commanding infantry or cavalry, maybe it went down once he entered the city? This has happened to me before, I had a general simply called "Maccio" who I had on campaign constantly who had 10 stars and when I put him in a town it went down by 2. That's because he had both "Good with Infantry" and "Good with Cavalry" traits so when he was in a city they didn't count.

Another thing is that he may have had an increase from "Social Drinker" which gives +1 command (or morale can't remember which) to the next stage which makes them Drunk and removes command.