Assassins

[Geoffrey of Villehardouin]

What is your experience with assassins? I have lost several faction leaders to assasins and also some of my top generals. In my Crusaders Kingdoms campaigns I seem to have lost at least 3 times the number of generals to enemy assassins than on the battlefield. Generals seem especially prone to assassination whenever they are inside enemy territory, marching with their army out in the country (and especially in Iraq). They seem relatively safe once they take a city and stay inside.

Do others have the same experience? Do you have any helpful suggestions?

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My Antioch Crusaders mod campaign AAR
http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...ht=antioch+aar

[eXistenZ]

Putting a spy in the same settlement greatly reduce the chanche they'll succeed

[EP!anastasi]

Do others have the same experience? Do you have any helpful suggestions?

I rarely lose generals in battles, but from assassins even less often.

Putting a spy in the same settlement greatly reduce the chanche they'll succeed

Or in the same army.

Be extra cautious with the generals that have negative personal security traits, or traits that suggest they could fall victims of assassination easier than others. Especially when you spot assassins moving close, of course.

[Geoffrey of Villehardouin]

I rarely lose generals in battles, but from assassins even less often.

I wish I could say the same. In about 145 campaign turns (two campaigns) I think I have lost 1 general in battle, 3 generals to the plague and 6 generals to assassins (all near Mosul).

Be extra cautious with the generals that have negative personal security traits, or traits that suggest they could fall victims of assassination easier than others. Especially when you spot assassins moving close, of course.

The assassinated generals included two faction leaders, one with 10 dread points and the other with at least 8 chivalry points, so chivalry is obviously irrelevant. I can't remember what was the case with my last general but he was a good general and had won many battles, just like all the others. These were some of my best generals. Perhaps I should start checking what kinds of traits my generals have that will lead to their assassination, but it seems an experiment I should rather not try.

I expect most Turkish assassins are trained in Baghdad. Is proximity to an enemy capital a potential risk? Should I not be sending generals to Iraq until Baghdad falls? Would that be a good strategy?

Is there a config setting one could change? My own assassins seem to be no threat to enemy generals at all, they rarely have more than 10-15% chance of a successful assassination attempt.

My current faction leader has a spymaster and a master of assassins in his retinue, so I hope at least this one is going to be safe...

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My Antioch Crusaders mod campaign AAR
http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...ht=antioch+aar

[EP!anastasi]

But maybe the AI trained them there, so it cannot be a coincidence.

Sure, like where he had his generals wasn't a coincidence (he had chosen to take them there), but the "AI" could have trained the assassins in another city with the same facilities and still have the same effects. My response had more to do with what he had said here

Generals seem especially prone to assassination whenever they are inside enemy territory

and here

Is proximity to an enemy capital a potential risk?

and for all i know, being in enemy territory or near to a capital or a city doesn't affect an assassination's chances to succeed.

[Wegen7 die Große]

Also recruiting spies and assassins in your settlements will give your faction leader some special traits that will help against your little problem with Assassins.

[Avatar]

You'll find, when capturing or scouting enemy cities, that they always have the inn line of buildings in place, so they can make assassins and spies pretty much anywhere. The city being a capital makes very little difference.

If you have had two faction leaders assassinated then you are having some terrible luck. Unless they had developed some terrible traits like the "loves foreigners" one, faction leaders are usually on a 5% chance for assassins to kill them. Overall I have to echo what other people have said, getting your characters assassinated is usually very rare.

Dont spare your generals from attacking places like Baghdad. A captain-led army is going to have some serious morale issues when trying to take down a large city which likely contains the enemy faction leader and a big chunk of troops.

[Moon]

Recruit some assassins yourself and set them loose on every assassin in your regions, you will find they are the easiest character to kill and level 7 assassins should hold no fear for your newly recruited ones.

[Geoffrey of Villehardouin]

If you have had two faction leaders assassinated then you are having some terrible luck.

I just lost today a 7th general to assassins, while I think I have only yet lost one general in battle. Another general, however, foiled for the first time an asassination attempt. He had an architect and an astrologer in his retinue but had no relevant special traits other perhaps than being "cruel and cunning". He was also not near Baghdad and the assassination attempt was not from a Turkish assassin but an Egyptian one.

I am now heading back to Baghdad from the Holy Lands, across the Arabian desert with a new plan: I have paired up all my generals with spies, I hope that helps. If I was just unlucky, then I am going to overkill Baghdad with Byzantine spies.

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My Antioch Crusaders mod campaign AAR
http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...ht=antioch+aar

[jman47]

I just lost today a 7th general to assassins, while I think I have only yet lost one general in battle. Another general, however, foiled for the first time an asassination attempt. He had an architect and an astrologer in his retinue but had no relevant special traits other perhaps than being "cruel and cunning". He was also not near Baghdad and the assassination attempt was not from a Turkish assassin but an Egyptian one.

I am now heading back to Baghdad from the Holy Lands, across the Arabian desert with a new plan: I have paired up all my generals with spies, I hope that helps. If I was just unlucky, then I am going to overkill Baghdad with Byzantine spies.

Hmmm, you wouldnt happen to be the AI in my current game would you? I have assasinated several faction leaders, a few princes, countless generals, numerous Imans, many inquisitors and 6 popes.

I love assasins personally, one of my favorite units in the game. using them as exessivly as i do also leads to very dreadful faction leaders, which make great heavy cavalry in your main conquering armies...

[The_Valiant]

Hmmm, you wouldnt happen to be the AI in my current game would you? I have assasinated several faction leaders, a few princes, countless generals, numerous Imans, many inquisitors and 6 popes.

6 popes!!! Was that one very lucky and good assassin, or just swarms of them?

[jman47]

6 popes!!! Was that one very lucky and good assassin, or just swarms of them?

It was a very skilled 10 subterfuge assasin, and the chance was 95% on all of them, which i found a bit odd but didnt complain.

[Rougeman]

dont Islamic factions get this special guild which gives better assasins? they could have gotten that, then sent about 10 assasins at you, and they would have a better chance against assasination then your assasins, so yeah...unless your playing as one of the Islamic factions yourself...

[Geoffrey of Villehardouin]

dont Islamic factions get this special guild which gives better assasins? they could have gotten that, then sent about 10 assasins at you, and they would have a better chance against assasination then your assasins, so yeah...unless your playing as one of the Islamic factions yourself...

Apparently according to some note in the game, the hashashin were trained assassins, so there may be a mechanic of this kind at work. When I lost my first four generals it was my first encounter with an assassin. It was the same assassin who killed all four. I had been chasing him around with cavalry because I had nothing to kill him. The other assasins only got a chance each. There were no ten assassins, just one each time.

As I said, 6 of the assassinations happened near Mosul. Is that a coincidence?

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My Antioch Crusaders mod campaign AAR
http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...ht=antioch+aar

[EP!anastasi]

Apparently according to some note in the game, the hashashin were trained assassins, so there may be a mechanic of this kind at work.

The only difference is that muslims and Hungarians can train Hashashim and Hungarian battlefield assasins from their Assasssin's Guilds. This doesn't affect their assassin's performance more than similar guilds of the rest factions affect it.

When I lost my first four generals it was my first encounter with an assassin. It was the same assassin who killed all four.

It's logical that the same one killed them all, cause he probably was a good one (or he just got lucky at first) and he was getting better and better with each successful attempt.

As I said, 6 of the assassinations happened near Mosul. Is that a coincidence?

I believe it was. Afaik, the place of an assassination attempt doesn't affect the assassin's performance at all.

[marco17042]

Keep a spy with every general you have 24-7. Work them up by spying on passing priests, diplomats or rebels that yield a 95% chance of success, as they will have to go on several spy missions to get good. Move your spies around outside your cities one tile at a time as you can often spot a spy or assassin by "bumping" into them.
Also, I build WATCHTOWERS just outside some of my cities 2-3 per city) because they can spot assassins and spies lurking around. Build more watchtowers on approaches to your cities, especially roads, as the AI will take the path of least resistance and move down the road right past your watchtower. When you find a spy or assassin, click on him and the AI will know you have spotted him and sometimes withdraw if not at war, because known assassination is an act of war.
Also look on the spotted assassins scroll to see who or what has spotted him. Priests can spot them too, sometimes even as the priest moves around: station low quality priests with Choir boys next to your cities to spot. Click on the assassin to see how far he can move and withdraw generals that are in danger until the assassin is killed. You can also kill characters by surrounding them on all 8 sides with armies, cities and impassable terrain and then moving one more army or general onto him. Hence the need to maintain 8 units in cities where there is a threat. Kill them with your assassins FAST. I have played the campaign 5 times and never lost a general to an enemy assassin. Just sayin'.

[Geoffrey of Villehardouin]

Keep a spy with every general you have 24-7.

Well, since my last general got assassinated, I made sure my emperor did not trek through Jordan on his way to Baghdad like those before him. He was accompanied by a bunch of spies and assassins and each one of his generals also had at least one spy and one assassin with him. Moreover, emperor Stefanos was a master of assassins himself AND a spymaster AND had a master of assassins and a master of spies in his retinue. There were two attempts at his life, both unsuccessful and the would be assassins were dispatched in the blink of an eye. With Baghdad and Mosul now in Byzantine hands and the other cities in the area also occupied, hopefully my generals can count on a long and glorious life fighting the Turks to final victory.

Many thanks to all for the helpful advice.

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My Antioch Crusaders mod campaign AAR
http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showt...ht=antioch+aar

[herne_the _hunter]

Always good to recruit a few and test them out on rebels to get higher skills and some skill traits. you might lose a few but you will certainly get atleast one or two really specialised assassins. Then just send them off and recruit some more (but watching out for not over spending your budget becase of the upkeep but they and spies are worth it.) Well it works for me in RTW

Same with using them for sabotage which makes a small team of them quite good.

[painter]

You may want to recruit your own assassins to destroy the enemy's brothel series of buildings. While it won't do anything about enemy assassins or spies already on the field, you will deny them replacements.

[EmperorDan]

But maybe the AI trained them there, so it cannot be a coincidence.