is crusader kings 2 worth the initial learning curve?

kinger8938

kinger8938

kinger8938

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Ive been looking to play a game like this for a while and have always wanted to really get into one. I found this by looking at the game of thrones mod for it which looks excellent so i tried the steam demo last night

It seems very deep/hardcore but i think thats what im after really. The tutorials didnt offer much guidence however i bet youtube would be a better bet

Anyone actively play the base game or the GoT mod? Thoughts? It seems pretty unique to me
 
Played both the basic game and the game of thrones mod quite a lot but I still wouldn't class myself as anything more than a novice! But even at my basic level I still enjoyed it a lot and was very rewarding to unite Ireland under one banner and conquer the rest of northern Europe :) If I'm honest though I'm preferring EU4 nowadays as I just prefer controlling a nation instead of individual people.
 
CK2 is a great game, the best way to learn is to play as a single count in Ireland and try to form the kingdom of Ireland. I got most of my knowledge of the game from watching people do let's plays on Youtube, I found the learning curve smooths out after the first 6-10 hours of gameplay.

https://www.youtube.com/user/arumba07 The best guy I have found, I watch all of his videos and I have learned lots from him.
 
the mod always used to crash on me or bug out o I gave up on it.

cK2 probably entertained me for about 30 hours though, just a pity the mod is such a buggy pos
 
Starting in Ireland is great, as mentioned above. Be careful with the marriages though as suddenly going from King of Ulster to running half of Europe due to an early death kind of ruins the game :D
 
See it sounds great! I watched a youtube clip over lunch and have a better understanding of what to start with doing so may try the demo again tonight and see how i get on!

I managed to marry when i first played but didnt realise the pros and cons to individual partners etc

The game mentioned above also looks really good, and its made by the same company i believe?
 
Yeha GoT mod is too buggy, had similar problems to Arknor and gave up with it in the end, went back to the vanilla game.

It's worth sticking with, the game only really gets rewarding once you've put in a few hours, realised where you went wrong and tried not to repeat it with the next generation.

So far my best game (from my point of view) was taking a minor noble family from the north of Scotland and eventually getting him the crown, tactics didn't sit well though so they were knocked back a fair bit by the Scandinavians. Apparently assassinating family members doesn't sit well with them :P
 
kinger8938 said:
Ive been looking to play a game like this for a while and have always wanted to really get into one. I found this by looking at the game of thrones mod for it which looks excellent so i tried the steam demo last night

It seems very deep/hardcore but i think thats what im after really. The tutorials didnt offer much guidence however i bet youtube would be a better bet

Anyone actively play the base game or the GoT mod? Thoughts? It seems pretty unique to me
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What other games like this have you played? I couldn't get into Crusader kings 2 at all. Tried for weeks. A lot of staring at the screen waiting for something to happen. I had conquered Ireland and was deep into wales and Scotland by the time I quit playing.
 
melmac said:
What other games like this have you played? I couldn't get into Crusader kings 2 at all. Tried for weeks. A lot of staring at the screen waiting for something to happen. I had conquered Ireland and was deep into wales and Scotland by the time I quit playing.
Click to expand...

Not many if im honest but its a genre that has always interested me but i get put off by the learning curves etc. So i was wondering if i push through, can i enjoy this sort of game or is it really just not for me.

I do own civ 5 and did start to get into that a while ago but left for another game before really getting stuck in
 
melmac said:
What other games like this have you played? I couldn't get into Crusader kings 2 at all. Tried for weeks. A lot of staring at the screen waiting for something to happen. I had conquered Ireland and was deep into wales and Scotland by the time I quit playing.
Click to expand...

it's only fun when you are struggling to keep your claims.

If you have no competition hen it gets pointless fast.

start a game as king Harold of England or whoever it is that instantly gets war from france and Norway, if you manage to fight off the 2 armies good luck keeping that kngdom of England when factions start pushing claims and demanding you resign.

you have no army because you just used it all winning 2 wars and the game quickly descends into game of thrones power struggles
 
arknor said:
it's only fun when you are struggling to keep your claims.

If you have no competition hen it gets pointless fast.

start a game as king Harold of England or whoever it is that instantly gets war from france and Norway, if you manage to fight off the 2 armies good luck keeping that kngdom of England when factions start pushing claims and demanding you resign.

you have no army because you just used it all winning 2 wars and the game quickly descends into game of thrones power struggles
Click to expand...

I think its this aspect that interests me the most tbh

*downloading now, got it for about £6.50 via kinguin so worth a shot at that price
 
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Hello all, bit of post resurrection!

What's the best version / way to buy this as loads of collections and dlc which I assume enhance gameplay, but would increase the base cost a lot!

Should add - same question for EU4 as flipping between which game to try
 
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You can get the 2014 version on key sites for around £20. That includes all the DLC apart from Horse Lords and Conclave (I think). That would be best imo.

The best of the big DLCs for me are The Old Gods (unlocks 869 start date and Pagans), Sons of Abraham (added Christian/Jewish mechanics), and Way of Life (lots of roleplaying events and whatnot). You'll get all of them plus the DLCs that unlock Muslim characters and republics, plus the face packs and unit packs.

http://www.kinguin.net/category/10724/crusader-kings-2-collection-2014-steam-key/

DLC overview: http://www.ckiiwiki.com/Downloadable_content
 
Like most of Paradox's games if you put the time in to learn then you'll be repaid with a game with plenty of depth which will give you many hours of enjoyment.

As for DLC the big packs like Old Gods, Legacy of Rome, Charlemagne etc are worth it for the extra content, start dates and all that. The portrait, sprite and music packs are much more optional. Regardless, it all goes on sale quite often so if you're unsure you could just wait for the next Steam sale (which I imagine we're due one soonish?) and you'll be able to pick up most of the major expansions for a decent discount.
 
Much of the DLC content is additions to the game that coincided with the DLC release. Owning the DLC just enables certain options. The key ones are The Old Gods (867 start date, ability to play as Pagans), Sword of Islam (ability to play as Muslims) and Way of Life (unlocks character focuses and IIRC creation of custom Kingdoms and Empires). There's another DLC that allows you to play as merchant republics, but I forget which one it is. If you want it, you'll also need Legacy of Rome to enable retinues, a small but expensive private army that you can keep raised at all times.

Less essential but still fun are Sons of Abraham (increases the effect of religion, lets you play as Jews), Rajas of India (lets you play as Indian characters) and Charlemagne (unlocks 769 start date).

The most recent DLC, Conclave, is an advanced political mod that changes how your Council works. I would only advise it for experienced players, but once you know the game I would call it essential.
 
Ok managed to get the collection pack for £17!

Working my way through the starting learning scenario mode in the game, and arumbas 2014 tutorial series.

Any other essential guides as it is a bit overwhelming to start with?

Thanks
 
Here's Lionheartx10 (most famous for his Total War videos) learning to play CK2:


That's what I watched to get a hang of things. He's playing for the first time and having things explained as he goes along, which is more useful than a regular tutorial series imo.

General advice would be to start as a Catholic character surrounded by other Catholics. They can't declare war on each other without a claim which gives you more time to get used to everything.
 
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