Hey y'all. I picked up CK2 a few months ago after a few people here recommended it, and I've been really enjoying it. There were a few let's plays, with varying degrees of flavor v. pure mechanics, in the past at RB - I know that Cyneheard, Pindicator, and BRick all reported games, but the more recent of these were "borked" for various reasons. Since quite a few expansion packs have also been released since then anyway, the game has changed a fair amount, even though I don't actually own any of the expansion packs (btw, I love the way that Paradox uses Steam to add parts of each expansion pack to the vanilla game; for example, the map now stretches to India even if the player does not own Rajas of India).
Anyway, CK2 is a grand strategy game, similar in heart to CIV, where the player leads a noble dynasty through the Middle Ages, using military, diplomacy, intrigue, and more to expand his or her empire! Unlike may other games, there are no specific winning conditions, and setting one's own goals is part of the fun. It's also pretty hard to actually lose the game outright, so hopefully we'll be in for a long ride, even if things don't go as planned, which they rarely do.
So, I thought that it would be fun to run a let's play here, with you guys choosing as whom I play! I thought of a few interesting starts that I haven't yet played, and a brief description of each follows, but feel free to suggest other ones. I'll be mostly making this a mechanics and strategy-based introduction to the game, and won't be writing much flavor. Also, I'm still learning some of the more detailed interactions in the game, so if anyone has suggestions on how to play or specific decisions, they are more then welcome!
-I'm temporarily having trouble grabbing screenshots at the moment, so I will add those later. My apologies.-
Option 1: My real-life ancestor Earl Domnall Ua Néill Noígiallaich of Oriel (county in Ireland), Stamford Bridge start (15 Sept. 1066). The classic beginner's game, Irish counts are great because they control small, independent realms, but are surrounded by equally small to slightly larger realms (the much larger England is being invaded by both Norway and William the Bastard, so they'll be busy for a while), so they don't have to fear being immediately overrun. There is certainly a lot of fun in turning a single-province county into a kingdom. This would be a fairly focused and small-scale game, at least at first, and would probably be the most difficult out of any of the options here.
Option 2: One of the five Russian dukes at the Stamford Bridge start (Kiev, Novgorod, Rostov, Ryazan, and Polostk). Surrounded by pagans, having claims on the other fours' titles, and having connections to Poland and the Byzantine Empire, a game here would be filled with war from the the beginning. Things can get complicated here very quickly, but the potential to form Rus and/or Ruthenia, followed by the Russian Empire is great. Later, can we survive the Mongol hordes?
Option 3: One of the more powerful vassal dukes of the Holy Roman Empire at the Stamford Bridge start, especially Duke Otto II of Bavaria or Duke Vratislav II of Bohemia, who can fairly easily form the (still vassal) Kingdom of Bohemia. There is a whole intrigue and faction subset of the game that one rarely experiences when independent. In addition, the Holy Roman Empire's laws are lax enough to allow lots of warring without the Emperor's permission. Note: Even though the Empire is an elective monarchy and I could therefore get myself elected Emperor moderately easily within a few generations, I don't really want to do that unless I end up de facto owning most of the Empire. I'd much rather explore other options, like attempting to become independent.
Option 4: King Harold II of Godwin of England, Stamford Bridge start. Can England successfully defend itself against Harald Hardråde and William the Bastard? If so, we'll be in a powerful, but not dominant position, with possible expansion into the rest of Britannia (Scotland is the main rival, and a fair bit weaker), but still much smaller than France or the Holy Roman Empire. This game will involve war from the very beginning, and on a large scale.
Anyway, CK2 is a grand strategy game, similar in heart to CIV, where the player leads a noble dynasty through the Middle Ages, using military, diplomacy, intrigue, and more to expand his or her empire! Unlike may other games, there are no specific winning conditions, and setting one's own goals is part of the fun. It's also pretty hard to actually lose the game outright, so hopefully we'll be in for a long ride, even if things don't go as planned, which they rarely do.
So, I thought that it would be fun to run a let's play here, with you guys choosing as whom I play! I thought of a few interesting starts that I haven't yet played, and a brief description of each follows, but feel free to suggest other ones. I'll be mostly making this a mechanics and strategy-based introduction to the game, and won't be writing much flavor. Also, I'm still learning some of the more detailed interactions in the game, so if anyone has suggestions on how to play or specific decisions, they are more then welcome!
-I'm temporarily having trouble grabbing screenshots at the moment, so I will add those later. My apologies.-
Option 1: My real-life ancestor Earl Domnall Ua Néill Noígiallaich of Oriel (county in Ireland), Stamford Bridge start (15 Sept. 1066). The classic beginner's game, Irish counts are great because they control small, independent realms, but are surrounded by equally small to slightly larger realms (the much larger England is being invaded by both Norway and William the Bastard, so they'll be busy for a while), so they don't have to fear being immediately overrun. There is certainly a lot of fun in turning a single-province county into a kingdom. This would be a fairly focused and small-scale game, at least at first, and would probably be the most difficult out of any of the options here.
Option 2: One of the five Russian dukes at the Stamford Bridge start (Kiev, Novgorod, Rostov, Ryazan, and Polostk). Surrounded by pagans, having claims on the other fours' titles, and having connections to Poland and the Byzantine Empire, a game here would be filled with war from the the beginning. Things can get complicated here very quickly, but the potential to form Rus and/or Ruthenia, followed by the Russian Empire is great. Later, can we survive the Mongol hordes?
Option 3: One of the more powerful vassal dukes of the Holy Roman Empire at the Stamford Bridge start, especially Duke Otto II of Bavaria or Duke Vratislav II of Bohemia, who can fairly easily form the (still vassal) Kingdom of Bohemia. There is a whole intrigue and faction subset of the game that one rarely experiences when independent. In addition, the Holy Roman Empire's laws are lax enough to allow lots of warring without the Emperor's permission. Note: Even though the Empire is an elective monarchy and I could therefore get myself elected Emperor moderately easily within a few generations, I don't really want to do that unless I end up de facto owning most of the Empire. I'd much rather explore other options, like attempting to become independent.
Option 4: King Harold II of Godwin of England, Stamford Bridge start. Can England successfully defend itself against Harald Hardråde and William the Bastard? If so, we'll be in a powerful, but not dominant position, with possible expansion into the rest of Britannia (Scotland is the main rival, and a fair bit weaker), but still much smaller than France or the Holy Roman Empire. This game will involve war from the very beginning, and on a large scale.
Merovech's Mapmaking Guidelines:
I was pretty much responsible for the death of the last SG, and as much as is like to participate in some way I know I don't have the time. So please report / roll play / write stories -- anything to capture the feel of this great game! 