Crusader Kings 2 Redux

[Valmy]

You really have to watch either of the Empires when they have a strong leader.  But I know when you are King of France you are so freaking poor is hard to really do much to check the HRE since you are so busy juggling your vassals (who are mostly bigger and richer than you are) and trying to make ends meet.

[Valmy]

Is it me or is this game fucking hard? I had my ass kicked on normal difficulty, once as the Duke of Apulia and once as Toulouse - in each case I wasn't the aggressive one and just got destroyed by my neighbours (the muslims and Aquitaine, respectively).

My experience is I constantly have no money, no soldiers, and am surrounded by enemies...so yes.  I have only been able to win wars so far when they are total mismatches.  And man once your army gets beaten there is no recovering.

At least at first.

[HVC]

If the demo taught me anything you have to wait a while to wage wars. The short reign modifier kills your vassal levies. Use diplo to make your largest vassals like you

[Grallon]

Downloaded and installed.  Is there any patches out yet?  Will the savegames started with the... sample version work with finished product?



G.

[Martinus]

If the demo taught me anything you have to wait a while to wage wars. The short reign modifier kills your vassal levies. Use diplo to make your largest vassals like you

It seems to me this is much harder than the demo though.

[FunkMonk]

I've been playing the Duke of Apulia as my first game and I just fended off getting gangbanged by Hungary and Africa.

The Sicilian muslims were some trouble, but they were handled and brought to heel through careful use of mercenaries. One thing I've noticed is that it's VERY important to have enough money to afford mercenaries long enough to last at least one war.

After I created the Kingdom of Sicily, Hungary declared war on me for it's claim on Sicily and Apulia. Shortly after that the Sultanate of Africa declared on me as well. What saved me was buying the Knights Hospitaller to fight he muslims, leaving my kingdom's armies to fight the Hungarians. It ended up becoming a stalemate, until I lucked out and got one of my sons married to an HRE princess - and an instant alliance. The Hungarians crapped themselves as Germans started swarming them, which left me time to deal with a couple African armies. Not long after the Hungarians sued for peace, giving up their claims (which is what I was holding out for, to prevent this from happening again), and I white-peaced with the muslims. Awfully close run thing, still.

Good game.

Another thing I noticed: Holy orders don't seem to cost you any maintenance if you buy them to fight a defensive war against muslims.

[Tamas]

So, it appears the two mongol invader-states (golden horde and il-khanate) work like the two empires, and it looks like they have a CB to basically vassalize kings.

And since some Russian fucktard managed to unify the Kingdom of Rus a year or so before Golden Horde took the Cumans over, THEN lose the war against them, so my Polish-Hungarian-Croatian kindgom (with some Danes added for flavor) is now facing a Golden Horde the size of entire Russia.

[OttoVonBismarck]

Just got home and installed. Looks like someone's family is going to be neglected for awhile.

[Josquius]

thanks on the how to spot wars thing!

Is there anyway to deploy a levy when a province is being sieged?

Another thing I noticed: Holy orders don't seem to cost you any maintenance if you buy them to fight a defensive war against muslims.

Yep.
They seem incapable of siegeing christian provinces (makes sense) though.
I believe however that they don't count as levies so you can DOW with them- so one pagan/muslim nation attacks you, make sure they`re no longer a threat, then invade another allowing you to annex them.
The no levies to declare war thing is pretty darn annoying btw.
It just makes sense that if you have a super big army in an area, on a high after defeating one foe there, they might decide to go bash another pagan county.

[jimmy olsen]

Downloaded the game this morning, can't wait to get off of work.

Played 20 years as Navara last night with CK1DV, which is in a counterintuitively strong starting position. You have only one province, and one one province vassal, but you have a claim on the Kingdom of Aragon which is only one province. Take that crown immediately. Then wait a year and overrun the four province Muslim state to your southeast. Then spam the Duke of Barcelona with vassalization offers until he gives in. I managed to liberate all of Aragon in that 20 years despite my King dying in battle, and having a depressed minor son rule for several years before being assassinated by my spy master. His gregarious younger brother ended up on the throne.

Any idea how easy it is to play Spanish kingdoms in CK2?

[Iormlund]

Initial conquests as Aragón seem easy enough with a few mercs. In CK1DV the problems started once the powerful emirates south noticed you and kicked your ass, though. Haven't played that far in CK2 yet.

[Josquius]

Downloaded the game this morning, can't wait to get off of work.

Played 20 years as Navara last night with CK1DV, which is in a counterintuitively strong starting position. You have only one province, and one one province vassal, but you have a claim on the Kingdom of Aragon which is only one province. Take that crown immediately. Then wait a year and overrun the four province Muslim state to your southeast. Then spam the Duke of Barcelona with vassalization offers until he gives in. I managed to liberate all of Aragon in that 20 years despite my King dying in battle, and having a depressed minor son rule for several years before being assassinated by my spy master. His gregarious younger brother ended up on the throne.

Any idea how easy it is to play Spanish kingdoms in CK2?

Not tried it but going off my playing in Scandinavia and trying to crusade against the Finns: probally pretty hard, they've a tendancy to gang up together.

[katmai]

In game as Navarre i started the  Iberian peninsula is being lost to the Moors (Leon, Galicia are both almost non existant, but Zaragoza  and surrounding area is now all under control of France.)

[Ed Anger]

I've played a bit of Croatia.

Bitch wife plots.
King tells her to stop it
Bitch wife plots again.
OMG DIVORCE!
King marries 16 year old swedish poon.
KING HAPPY

[Syt]

Is it me or is this game fucking hard? I had my ass kicked on normal difficulty, once as the Duke of Apulia and once as Toulouse - in each case I wasn't the aggressive one and just got destroyed by my neighbours (the muslims and Aquitaine, respectively).

I'm playing Count of Lübeck and it's been a walk in the park for the first 25 years.

I kept raising my prestige through feasts/hunting and chummied up with the Emperor (joined the HRE on day 1). 25 years in I have an additional county in Pommerania, the title of Duke of Pommerania, a county in Italy (held by my half brother) and two counties in Spain - all bestowed upon me by the Emperor for my faithful services. 

I play the marriage/waiting game mostly, have my daughters in good positions and my second son will also marry at least into a Ducal family. Only war was when I had an uprising at home because people were pissed at my tax collector. My levy was with the Emperor somewhere in Hungary. So the rebels took my holdings and killed two courtiers. They also kicked the butt of a mercenary regiment who quickly left me because I had no cash for them.

Only thing I'm really lacking is cash, but I'm working on improving the infrastructure of my holdings one bit at a time.