What to do about the PLAGUE?

[Parzival2211]

It's around 1350, and the plague hit badly. I lost more than 3000 soldiers in the first year!

Is there anything that can be done?

1. A way to stop the spreading by limiting movement of troops and characters?
2. Any cure or means of making it end sooner (buildings, other measures - I assume not, if historically accurate...)?

Thanks, guys.

[Aeratus]

Nope. Its spread and duration are both automatic.

[eXistenZ]

the best thing to do is to put your family members outside the settlement a few turns before the plague hits

[Blaze of Macedon]

You know when it will come so plan for it.

Save money, move impiortant figures out of settlements, move important armies out of settlements etc...

[danny X]

Yes, definatly save alot of money!

[Parzival2211]

Yeah, actually, it was announced and hit 2 turns later. But it's the first time I am playing till 1350, so I thought it'd be more like in RTW where diseases are more containable...

but for this time, it's TOO LATE!!!

Are characters and armies outside settlements generally safe?
Can you purposely infect enemies by sending a sick spy into an enemy city?

[In3x]

Yes and yes.

[Parzival2211]

Great, thanks.

Last question: How long does it normally take till the plague disappears? And will it return every decade or so, like it did in RL?

[Silverheart]

The Black death disappears after around 5 turns, though it may linger in some settlements.
Also, enemy spies going in and out of your settlements can cause it to return there.

But a "global" plague like the Black death only happens once.

Counter the plague by building Town Halls, Cathedrals/Bimaristans, upgraded Walls, upgraded Farms...
Better population health will make it disappear faster, and improved farmland will make the population return to its´ former size quickly.

[The Gingie 500]

Question: when the plague hits does it hit every settlement at once or does it quickly spread from a starting settlement?

[Silverheart]

It quickly spreads.
The plague begins in the east, and then moves its´ way across the map - although some really remote settlements sometimes escape unharmed (I have once had one settlement in the middle of France that didn´t get affected for the whole duration - must have been a glitch or something, not that I was complaining...)

[Sitalkes]

Armies/characters with the plague have a blotch on them in their description cards. Wherever they go, they spread the plague. If you combine units from their armies with other armies, or vice versa, they spread the plague to the new units. Keep an eye on which units have the plague and don't move them into a city or combine them with other troops until the blotch is gone. that will stop the plague from spreading (unless you are catching it from an enemy). A classic tactic is to infect your spies with plague and send them into enemy cities (wait till the plague is gone before attacking them!). There are many good plague guides/threads on this forum, just search for them or read the Medievalopedia.

[Silverheart]

It´s also good to keep in mind that armies out in the field doesn´t get affected by plague unless they enter an infected settlement.
However, a field army that is already affected will not get cured unless they are borught into a settlement and kept there.

This is why you should bring out many of your armies ito the field when the plague strikes (to keep them from becoming infected) and use them mainly for defending your borders (if you conquer enemy settlements, you risk having an entire campaign army getting affected by the plague)
I also always disband as many units as I can when the plague strikes, and keep my military at a minimum for money-saving reasons - your economy will sink like a stone when half your population suddenly dies...

[GNU07]

Also if you have an elite army or a very good fm and they got infected, put them in a ship.

[eXistenZ]

Also if you have an elite army or a very good fm and they got infected, put them in a ship.

how does that help? it reduces casualties?

[Parzival2211]

Sitalkes, and Silverheart: Some valuable tips. Thank you.

GNU7: Seconding ExistenZ: How does that help?

[GNU07]

Ship crew will take casualties and the admiral may die due to infection. The armies however will take zero casualties and an infected FM will just be sick until he is fine again. I've never lost a FM from plague whenever i put him in a ship. At least from my experience..

[Silverheart]

Ship crew will take casualties and the admiral may die due to infection. The armies however will take zero casualties and an infected FM will just be sick until he is fine again. I've never lost a FM from plague whenever i put him in a ship. At least from my experience..

This may be worth trying, then.
I´m going to give it a shot the next time I encounter the plague.

[Parzival2211]

I definitely have to try that. So many of my main characters got infected.


Is it possible to infect an enemy army by inspecting it with a sick spy (like you can infect cities)?

[Silverheart]

Is it possible to infect an enemy army by inspecting it with a sick spy (like you can infect cities)?

I don´t think so, because the spy is never actually IN the army, as he would be in a city.
He simply stands next to the army when performing his mission, and doesn´t enter it (despite what the video shows)
But I´m not sure about that, so by all means: try it.
Check if it works