I might have to organize a LAN to introduce CK II to a few friends, and for some of them it will be the first game.
When I have to teach to just one I usually have her pick Dublin.
Crusader Kings 2 Earliest Start Date Dlc
However this time there might be 2-3 new players, plus 1-2 slightly more experienced players, plus me.
I'd like:
- everyone to start as a single-county Count, and to be a Feudal Christian (also independent, if possible).
- newbies to start in a position where it's not too difficult to form its (unformed) Duchy.
- the players will not be fighting each other.
- I'd avoid poor areas such as Scandinavia (I'm not sure about East Europe).
- Better if they are also somewhat close, so that they can decide to gangbang common enemies (this is not strictly necessary).
If the newbies end up being only two, I could have them both start in Ireland, and the more experienced ones in Wales or Scotland. I'm not terribly convinced, but it might work.
Otherwise there might be some suitable areas in Spain, France, HRE, Greece?
The Duchies of Susa and Ancona aren't formed in 1066 IIRC, but it's not exactly trivial to conquer them, since there are powerful neighbours…
Anyone has got any clever idea about this?
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It’s a rare strategy game that’s still receiving major expansions so many years after release. The fact that Crusader Kings II is one of those few represents just one of the aspects that makes it special. But with all that extra stuff comes a hefty, extra price tag. Across 15+ DLCs (if we’re just counting the major, gameplay-altering ones), you can expect to pay nearly $200 on top of the base game (at full price) to acquire the “full” experience.
We have guides for Paradox's other grand-strategy titles as well, namely Europa Universalis 4 & Stellaris - check them out!
Steam sales and combo bundles can easily knock more than half of that off, but it’s still tough to digest if you’re just getting started. So, we’ve broken down every gameplay DLC, and whether we think it's worth your money.
SWORD OF ISLAM (2012) - $9.99
Highlights:
Unlocks Muslim rulers (base CK2 only allows you to select Christian characters) with loads of new mechanics
- Decadence can cause your dynasty to collapse if you engage in immoral behavior.
- A new succession type for Muslim realms in which all legitimate sons have a shot at inheritance based on their prestige.
- Ability to have up to four wives.
- New CBs (reasons to go to war) specific to the Muslim world.
- Tons of new, Muslim-specific events and decisions, such as going on Hajj to Mecca.
Is it worth it?
As you’re going to discover with many CK2 expansions, it depends highly on whether or not you are interested in playing the new content it unlocks. You can play non-Muslim rulers forever and the fact that you don’t have this DLC installed will have no effect on you at all. They are a rather large, distinct, and interesting sphere of CK2’s world, however, and quite worth giving a spin if you’re looking for something different from feudal Catholic Europe.
LEGACY OF ROME (2012) - $4.99
Highlights:
- New decisions and events for the Byzantine Empire, allowing them to restore the Roman Empire by capturing its former territories.
- Orthodox rulers can Mend the Schism, re-uniting the Western and Eastern halves of the church and rendering Roman Catholicism a heresy.
- A new army type called retinues, in contrast to feudal levies which must be called to war each time, represent standing armies like those of the Byzantines that exist on the map at all times and never need to be disbanded.
Is it worth it?
Absolutely. It’s only $5, and retinues are such an essential element of late game CK2 that you’re basically handicapping yourself by not having access to them. The other features are fairly specific to Byzantium and other Eastern Orthodox rulers, but retinues alone put Legacy of Rome on the essential list - especially since it tends to go for under $3 on sale.
Crusader Kings 2 Earliest Start Date 2017
SUNSET INVASION (2012) - $4.99
Highlights:
- Adds an ahistorical invasion of technologically-advanced Aztecs who arrive from across the Atlantic to conquer Europe in the late game.
- Introduces Nahuatl culture and the Aztec pagan religion.
Is it worth it?
As probably CK2’s most controversial expansion, and the only highly anachronistic one, that’s a bit of a loaded question. It’s probably the least essential expansion, and I play with it turned off the vast majority of the time. That being said, there is enjoyment to be had if you go in knowing you want an unrealistic and almost silly campaign that’s quite a bit different from what CK2 has to offer otherwise. It also puts pressure on Western Europe at a time when things can start to feel static, similar to the role the Mongols play in Eastern Europe.
THE REPUBLIC (2013) - $9.99
Highlights:
- Unlocks playable merchant republics, such as Venice, Genoa, and the Hansa.
- Can build trade posts in other rulers’ provinces to extend their trade networks and get richer.
- Rather than playing a hereditary ruler, you play the head of one of a number of powerful families who try to influence elections to stay in power.
- Lots of new events specific to republics.
Is it worth it?
Like Sword of Islam, this one is entirely situational. You won’t see any of its effects if you only ever play feudal rulers. And given that there are a fairly small number of republics in the game’s timeframe, it opens up fewer, new options than most of the character-unlocking DLCs. Still, republics offer a rather unique way to play the game that can help keep things from feeling stale, especially for players who love to amass gold and spend it on cool stuff.
THE OLD GODS (2013) - $14.99
Highlights:
- Unlocks playable pagans (Norse, Slavic, Suomenusko, and Romuva) and Zoroastrians with tons of new mechanics for each.
- Adds a new start date in 867, the height of the Viking Age.
- Lots of new Viking mechanics, such as coastal raids and being able to sail your longships up major rivers.
- Revolts are now led by a named leader character who can be captured, killed, or reasoned with like other rulers.
- Adventurers are a new AI character type, representing warriors with no land who gather an army and set off to conquer distant lands.
- Adds the ability to “reform” a pagan religion to make it more capable of competing with the Abrahamic faiths.
- Zoroastrians can restore the old Persian Empire by reclaiming it from the Muslim conquerors.
Is it worth it?
Absolutely. This is still probably my overall favorite CK2 expansion, though I admit that I’m heavily biased towards all things Norse pagan. The 867 start date is far more volatile and dynamic than 1066, with greater ahistorical possibilities, while not straying so far out of the feudal age that it feels like a bad fit for CK2’s mechanics -- which is the impression I often get from the even earlier 769 start added in the Charlemagne expansion, which we will discuss below. Pagans and Zoroastrians are a ton of fun, as are their respective mechanics for cementing their places in history.
SONS OF ABRAHAM (2013) - $9.99
Highlights:
- Introduces the Catholic College of Cardinals, which can be manipulated to put a friendly Pope in power.
- Adds Judaism as a playable religion with new events, decisions, and mechanics.
- Two new Catholic holy orders.
- New holy orders for religions that didn’t have them already (such as Zoroastrians).
- The ability to borrow money from the Knights Templar/
- A huge number of new events, many for Abrahamic faiths.
- Christians can now go on pilgrimages to holy sites.
- Muslims can side with the Mutazilitie (science-focused) or Ashari (piety-focused) schools.
- Christians can force relatives and courtiers to take the vows and become a monk or a nun.
Is it worth it?
This is the first major expansion to expand on Catholic Europe, the area the game focused on at release. If that’s your thing, this one is borderline essential. The new holy orders make a big difference in making some previously bare bones religions feel fleshed-out. Judaism gets some pretty cool stuff, like being able to restore the Kingdom of Israel, which makes for a fun playthrough. And the new Muslim mechanics offer an interesting trade-off, allowing you to continue the scientific revolution of medieval Islam at the risk of potentially offending some of your more devout coreligionists. There’s something for everyone, but Muslim, Christian, and Jewish characters will get the most out of it.
RAJAS OF INDIA (2014) - $14.99
Highights:
- Unlocks playing as the Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain rulers of the Indian subcontinent.
- Tons of events and decisions for the religions listed above.
- Members of Indian faiths are tolerant of one-another, so a Buddhist ruler isn’t obligated to convert his Hindu subjects.
- War elephant units for Indian rulers.
Is it worth it?
This one is very easy to ignore if you’re not particularly interested in the Indian subcontinent, especially given its relative distance and isolation from the rest of the map. The Indian religions are each flavorful and interesting, but to this day still feel less fleshed-out and more disconnected from the rest of the map. There’s plenty of enjoyment to be had, but it’s definitely among the least essential DLCs.
CHARLEMAGNE (2014) - $14.99
Highlights:
- A new, even earlier start date of 769 AD, when Charlemagne was competing with his brother Karloman to rule over the Franks.
- A bunch of events and decisions tied to Charlemagne and Karloman that give a number of different ways for their fates to play out.
- Empires with sufficient legalism (like Byzantium) can now appoint titles to temporary governors called viceroys instead of handing them out as permanent, hereditary, feudal holdings.
- Adds the playable Zun religion.
- Can now create custom kingdoms and empires not based on historical ones if you own enough land.
Is it worth it?
I have mixed feelings about Charlemagne. At first, I loved the 769 start. But the more I’ve played it, the more two issues become apparent. One: CK2 was not designed to handle this time period. Two: 700 years (769 - 1444) is just too long to play a single campaign. I almost always get bored long before I’m finished, which makes the extra centuries more of a burden than a boon. The story events with Charlemagne are a lot of fun to play through a time or two, but leave the dozens of subsequent generations feeling less dramatic and dynamic. I find it hard to say this expansion isn’t worth ever getting. Quite the contrary. But I don’t consider it nearly as essential as I once did.
WAY OF LIFE (2014) - $7.99
Cefsharp.browsersubprocess high memory. Highlights:
- Adds character focuses, such as War, Family, and Theology, that each have many associated events to flesh out the day-to-day life of your character.
Is it worth it?
It doesn’t sound like much, but the answer is definitely yes. No matter what kind of character you’re playing focuses can break up the monotony and add a greater sense of reality to the world, while helping to break up the long chunks of time when there might be nothing politically interesting going on. Some of the best events in CK2 came out of this DLC, and I’d have a hard time making myself play without it.
HORSE LORDS (2015) - $14.99
Highlights:
- New playstyle for nomadic hordes that’s vastly different from their settled counterparts
- Clans can vie for power to become the Great Khan.
- Feudal holdings can be razed for pasture land, increasing the potential population of your horde.
- New succession mechanics where only strong rulers can command respect, allowing vast hordes to collapse with the death of one man.
- Members of your court and family can now found mercenary bands and gather followers to fight with them for pay.
- Adds the Silk Road trade routes, which can be fortified with trade posts to give their owners more income.
- Can now force another ruler to become your tributary in war.
Is it worth it?
We’re back in firmly situational territory here. The hordes can be a ton of fun to play, but are really emblematic of what I see as the developers trying to “hack” CK2’s systems and make them do things they were never intended for. The somewhat awkward management of nomad holdings and governments can get you to wondering why they didn’t just make a new game about horse nomads, instead of trying to shoehorn them into a feudal incest simulator. If you don’t plan on playing as a horse nomad tribe or holding land along the Silk Road, you can definitely skip this one.
CONCLAVE (2016) - $14.99
Highlights:
- Your ruler’s council now plays a much larger role, able to vote on certain issues and maneuver to gain more authority at the expense of the monarch.
- A new system of favors allows exchanges of resources for votes on the council.
- Powerful vassals will now be very unhappy if not on the council.
- Rework of regencies.
- New system for educating and influencing the traits/stats of young children.
- Rework of realm laws.
- Able to change laws defining the status of women in your society, giving them more equality over time.
Is it worth it?
For my money, absolutely. It was one of the more controversial expansions at launch due to the addition of some questionable features (and I was one of the loudest complainers!) that have since been revised and/or made toggleable game options. But the core of it, the new council mechanics, is fantastic. It brings new depth and strategy to internal politics, makes playing a vassal of a higher ruler much more fun, and more realistically simulates the simple fact that most rulers in the middle ages were not even close to being unchallenged, absolute monarchs. Getting your way is a lot more satisfying when you have to manipulate a bunch of people to do so.
THE REAPER’S DUE (2016) - $9.99
Highlights:
- Rework of the disease system including symptoms, new diseases, and treatment options via a new appointed office called Court Physician.
- Epidemic diseases can depopulate a province, lowering income and manpower, which takes time to recover from.
- Rulers can now build hospitals in provinces, which protect to some extent against depopulation.
- Provinces that have not been ravaged by war or disease can now become prosperous, increasing income and manpower recovery.
- Crown Focus allows rulers to choose one of their provinces to focus on, increasing its prosperity.
- Tons of new events, including many related to the revamped Black Plague.
- Adds the ability to seal yourself in your castle to avoid an epidemic, triggering many new events related to isolation.
- New ways to torture and execute prisoners
Is it worth it?
Before Reaper’s Due, I was always complaining about how one of the most momentous, continent-changing events of the Middle Ages, the Black Death, was barely represented in CK2. Now, it’s much more of a world event with fanfare and unique mechanics. And while it still doesn’t trigger the kinds of cascading historical changes it did in the real world, it’s still nice to see it getting more recognition. The court physician and prosperity systems are also useful and interesting no matter whom you’re playing.
MONKS AND MYSTICS (2016) - $14.99
Highlights:
- Adds Societies to the game, which characters can join and rise through the ranks of to gain access to new abilities.
- The Hermetic society focuses on esoteric learning and the secrets of the cosmos.
- Lucifer’s Own is devoted to Satan and gives its members dark powers to prolong their lives and harm their enemies
- The Shia Hashashin are masters of murder and intimidation.
- Monastic orders for many religions allow you to pursue a life of devotion and purity.
- Lots of new events related to societies.
- Characters now have inventories for storing weapons, artefacts, and symbols of office that have an impact on stats.
Is it worth it?
Some of the societies are really cool, but also nearly as unrealistic as Sunset Invasion at the higher levels. So if you want a purely historical playthrough, it’s probably safe to skip this one. The new events are really the highlight of it all. They’re well-written and often shocking, and combined with those added in previous expansions like Reaper’s Due and Way of Life, really give your character enough to do that you can play CK2 almost as an RPG or a visual novel instead of a strategy game about conquest. At least, until they start to get repetitive - which they definitely will if you stay with the same society for long enough,
Jade Dragon (2017) - $14.99
Highlights:
- Adds China as an off-map power that can conquer territory on the map by way of the Western Protectorate title, demand tribute, or even be conquered to install your dynasty on the throne.
- New Silk Road mechanics that react to the changing political situation in China
- Rally points that allow you to raise all of your levies and have them travel automatically to a specified province.
- New CBs that make it easier for small rulers surrounded by same-religion rivals to expand.
- Bön and Khurmazta relgions (also unlocked if you own The Old Gods)
- Taoism religion (also unlocked if you own Rajas of India)
Is it worth it?
Rally points and the new CBs are nice, all-around quality of life features. But what will really determine how much bang you get for your buck with Jade Dragon is how often you like to play on the Eastern edge of the map. Having the Chinese Emperor to deal with makes the region feel very different, both in terms of opportunities and challenges. The huge number of new events and diplomatic options tied to China liven things up as well. Obviously, however, the further from China your realm is located, the less any of this is going to matter.
Holy Fury (2018) - $19.99 (Review)
Highlights
- Adds ‘Random’ and ‘Shattered’ World generation options. One lets you play on a completely fictional map of Europe, a la Random New World from EU4, while the other keeps the land-mass in place and simply changes up the faction dynamics and configurations.
- Legendary Bloodlines allow for really good characters to pass on buffs and bonuses to their descendants. Players can found their own, but there’s also some pre-made historical ones as well.
- Some new event chains to go along with the (free) revamped Crusader mechanics.
- Extremely pious characters can become saints, and Feudal Kings must find Clergy to crown them and legitimise their authority.
- Lots and lots of other changes big and small.
Is it worth it?
It’s a strong yes, although there’s an equally strong caveat. Holy Fury manages to breathe new life into the wider game thanks to the Random/Shattered world options. Much like the Random New World from EU4, your mileage on this may vary, but Holy Fury also manages to completely revitalise the Christian game specifically on more standard map settings through new Crusade and Character mechanics. We didn’t think CK2 could do it again, but by gosh, it’s done it again.
CAVEAT: Unfortunately, if you lack DLCs like Sword of Islam, Sons of Abraham, and Rajas of India you may accidentally run into several ‘Game Over’ states if you switch your character to a religion you’re not allowed to play as. Check our review for more details. Also, the free patch once again proves to be as strong, if not stronger, than the DLC itself.
MINOR DLCs:
Ruler Designer ($4.99) - Allows you to create a ruler from scratch, selecting traits, appearance, culture, religion, and stats. They will replace any character in the historical map you choose. This is a fun, worthwhile little DLC… but keep in mind that in a game you will likely play for over a dozen generations, the character you create will only be a small part of the story.
Customization Pack ($4.99) - Allows you to change the hair and beard of a character any time you want, as well as rename any of your titles. While by no means essential, I’d definitely miss being able to call the empire I just founded whatever I damn well please if I were to play without it.
Europa Universalis IV Save Converter ($9.99) - In theory, this is one of my single favourite pieces of DLC Paradox has ever put out. Being able to continue my medieval shenanigans into the renaissance, potentially completing an epic, 1100-year-long mega-campaign makes me drool just thinking about it. The only reason this one doesn’t get my unreserved endorsement is that support for it is spotty. The team in charge of maintaining the converter is far too small (basically one guy, from what I understand), to keep up with the major changes being made to both games on a regular basis. Sometimes, it’s in great working shape. At other times, it’s largely nonfunctional with little concept of when a new update might get it up and running again. I’m so, so, so glad it exists, and it’s a wonder to behold when it’s in top form. I just wish it got the love it deserved to be an integral part of PDS’s grand strategy equation.
THE BREAKDOWN
Essential Expansions for Everyone:
- The Old Gods
- Legacy of Rome (Specifically for the Retinues feature)
- Way of Life
- Conclave
- The Reaper’s Due
Situational Expansions (In No Particular Order):
- Holy Fury (Essential for Christians and Pagans)
- Sword of Islam (Essential for Muslims)
- The Republic (Essential for Republics)
- Sons of Abraham (Essential for Judaism, Very Highly Recommended for Christians and Muslims)
- Rajas of India (Essential for Indian religions)
- Charlemagne (Essential for Zunists, Very Highly Recommended for playing large, advanced empires due to the Vice-royality features)
- Horse Lords (Essential for Steppe Nomads)
- Jade Dragon (Highly recommended for the Far East - particularly the steppe, Tibet, and the Tarim Basin. Not necessarily essential for India.)
Got any other thoughts on the Crusader Kings II DLCs? Let us know in the comments below!
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05 Jun 20198One of the most commonly asked questions about Crusader Kings is “What expansions should I get?” CK2 is six years old and releases multiple DLCs a year. There are fourteen full expansions and a ton of cosmetic DLC, and the complete bundle costs a considerable amount. Let's run down which expansions I think are the most worth your money and why.
The Old Gods
Most Crusader Kings 2 DLCs focus on a specific religion, culture or government type and are mandatory if you want to play as that kind of empire. Some are more universal and add interesting things for all players. The Old Gods does both, which is why it is hands down the best expansion, and the first you should buy.
Paganism is the focus here, but it comes in several different flavours, from the familiar Vikings to West African tribes. Pagans are very strong in the early game, where they can amass large armies and raid their neighbours, but have huge problems keeping their realms together as history marches on. To solve this an ambitious player can ‘reform’ a pagan faith into an organised religion, making it more stable and able to compete on a level playing field with Christianity and Islam. This also makes a great goal for a fun playthrough.
The biggest change however, and the reason this remains a top tier DLC even if you have no intention of playing as a pagan, is the addition of a new start date. With The Old Gods installed players can choose to begin the game in 867, when Christianity was less dominant and Vikings prowled the seas. It’s a really exciting period full of interesting characters to play as, like Alfred the Great, who historically founded the Kingdom of England, but has to usurp his useless brother Aethelred first. The 867 start is what transforms The Old Gods from “essential if you want to play as a pagan” to “essential for everyone”.
The Legacy of Rome
The Legacy of Rome is ostensibly focused on the Byzantine Empire and the Orthodox Church, adding lots of neat little flavour events and decisions, including the ability to mend the schism in the Christian church and restore the Roman Empire. But unless you’re specifically playing as a Byzantine character, you’re most likely here for Retinues.
Retinues are elite professional armies that are always active, as opposed to most CK2 armies, which are peasant levies who go back to farming their fields when they’re not fighting a war. As such they form a hardened core to a player’s army and a first line of defense against raiders. Each culture gets its own elite retinue, like English Longbowmen or Bedouin Camel Riders, so they’re extremely flavourful as well as useful.
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How can the answer be improved?
Retinues might seem like a small thing, but they’ve become a core part of the way wars are fought in Crusader Kings and, considering The Legacy of Rome is one of the oldest and cheapest DLCs, they’re well worth shelling out for.
Way of Life
Way of Life is focused on the role playing aspect of Crusader Kings, specifically ‘events’, those little ‘choose your own adventure’ pop ups that appear as you play informing you that your ruler has taken up falconry, insulted a priest, or slept with their sister (that last one comes up a lot). How much you enjoy this side of the game will determine whether you pick up this DLC or not, but I absolutely adore them, which is why I’ve rated this so highly.
One of the ways Way of Life achieves this is by allowing your ruler to pick a ‘focus’. This gives you a small stat boost and access certain themed events, often improving your skills in that area. For example pick ‘Business’ and you might get an chain of events about funding a trading journey to foreign lands, while a Scholarship focus might result in you building an Observatory.
It’s not just fun little stories though, these foci can often have powerful in game effects. The War focus allows you to challenge characters to a duel and kill them in single combat, while the Seduction focus lets you go all Double Indemnity and get a besotted lover to off their spouse for you. It’s all tremendous fun.
Charlemagne
Like The Old Gods, Charlemagne also adds a new start date, this time even further back in time in 769. 769 isn’t quite as fun as 867, but it’s pretty good anyway, especially as the sun worshipping Zunists still exist. The real fun though, comes for those who own both DLCs, as Pagans are far more powerful in 769. One particularly fun start is Sigurd Ring in Uppland, whose heir grows up to be Ragnar Lodbrok, a Norse folk hero and protagonist of the TV show Vikings.
The bulk of Charlemagne though is focused on Charlemagne himself, his descendants (the Karlings) and The Holy Roman Empire. The warring factions of the HRE are a lot of fun to play about with, making this a useful pick up if you ever plan to play a game there. The Karlings, on the other hand, have become a meme in CK2 circles for their tendency to unite against any attacker and then promptly backstab each other and shatter their realms to pieces the moment they’re left alone.
Monks and Mystics
Crusader Kings started out as a relatively straight laced historical game, but over the years it’s gotten increasingly silly. The Conclave DLC enabled a Caligula moment where an unstable monarch could fire their chancellor and replace them with a horse. Jade Dragon one upped that with a noble who turned out to have been a bear masquerading as a human this entire time. Meanwhile Reaper’s Due added more fantastical elements with the ability to play chess with death or seek immortality. Consider Monks and Mystics the culmination of this trend, and it’s specifically recommended for those who enjoy the silly side of CK2.
Monks and Mystics deals with secret societies. Most of these simply involve secretly practicing one religion while professing another, or joining the scientifically inclined Hermetic Society, but the star of the show is the ability to become a devil worshipper.
Worshipping Lucifer (or his non-abrahamic equivalent) will slowly gain you access to supernatural powers like the ability to curse your enemies or heal your wounds, all powered by the sacrifice of innocents and other evil acts. Reach the end of the event chain and you might find yourself giving birth to the antichrist and ushering in a powerful demon worshipping empire. Historical purists may frown, but everyone should play at least one game as a satanist.
A word on Sword of Islam, The Republic, The Horse Lords, Rajas of India etc
Each of these DLCs is heavily focused on a specific religion, government or culture. This means that if you want to play as a Muslim ruler, Sword of Islam is mandatory, but if you aren’t then there’s no real reason to buy it. Thus you should pick them up only when you need them.
What about Sunset Invasion?
Never buy Sunset Invasion. It may be fun *once* to see a horde of marauding Aztecs arrive from the West and obliterate Europe, but you’ll invariably forget to turn it off and then have one of your more ‘normal’ games ruined by a sudden Aztec invasion.