Europa Universalis IV: Paradox Games play Best with Friends
Hearts of Iron IV: Paradox Games play Best with Friends Part II
Crusader Kings II: Paradox Games Play Best With Friends - Part III
Crusader Kings II: Paradox Games Play Best With Friends - Part IV
Crusader Kings II's vassal system is essentially broken. The player can ask foreign rulers to vassalize under them. The ruler keeps their territory and their vassals, but becomes a vassal of the player. They become part of the player's kingdom, no longer independent. Vassals give a portion of their income and levies to their ruler. If the other ruler is a King, even a petty king, they will never accept vassalization. Rulers with a different religion or culture have negative qualifiers that are impossible to overcome. And some ruler's may claim they are “distant”, and refuse vassalization. This includes single territory countries that are separated from the player's realm by a single space. I can almost understand this position. But tiny nations will also claim they are distant, even if they are only separated by a single sea region.
Crusader
Kings II
also imposes a vassal limit. This is the number of vassals that
report directly to the player. CK2
determines the vassal limit based on the player's rank and diplomacy
attribute. When the player exceeds their vassal limit they suffer a
levy penalty. Levies are the soldiers raised by nobles to fight
their wars. The higher the rank of the player, the more they rely on
levies from their vassals. When the player has a vassal limit of 49,
but has 54 vassals, they suffer a penalty, losing 29% of their
levies. Crusader
Kings
implements these changes swiftly, chaotically, and inconsistently.
In one instance, I dropped from 800,000 levies to 400,000 levies in
seconds. Hoping to resolve the problem, I paused the game, worked
some diplomacy (revoked titles of vassals, consolidating vassals who
reported to me), and reduced my direct vassals to the required 49.
When I unpaused, CK2
didn't recognize the change in levies, leaving my nation stuck at
400,000 levies for five minutes. Before the game could restore my
full complement, power hungry factions revolted. Faction leaders and
potential revolutionaries compare their levy strength to the player's
value. The swift loss of levies, and the failure to restore them in
a timely fashion, cause unnecessary and dangerous revolts.
The problem of the vassal limit could be alleviated by eliminating it, or adding a sixth rank. Barons rule holdings, Counts manage provinces, Dukes oversee duchies, Kings administer kingdoms, and Emperors command empires. CK2 needs to allow any ruler of two Empires to become an overlord, able to hand off empires to vassals. Currently, if an Emperor gives an empire to a Vassal, the vassal separates to form their own country.
Despite these issues, I paid Paradox for an official DLC to transfer games from Crusader Kings II to Europa Universalis IV. CK2 starts in 897 and ends in 1444. EU4 starts in 1444 and finishes in 1821. I paid five dollars for the DLC, but it is absurd it isn't included. Paradox is infamous for monetizing its strategy series. With CK2, EU4, and the transfer program on Steam, it's straightforward to make the file, transfer it to EU4, and begin playing. But playing it with other players is full of complications. You need to find two files, email them to a friend, have them extract the files to the correct location, and then enable the files in a different spot. The DLC doesn't come with instructions. Players need to search the internet for the process. It caused a number of headaches, frustration, and wasted time.
In
preparation for a EU4
game I ended my CK2
game by inciting the collapse of the empire. Under my urging and
intentional negligence, I allowed my vassal kings to break away with
huge swaths of territory. On the transferred file my friends and I
experienced a new version of Europe.
In short; how is Crusader Kings II different from Europa Universalis IV? The latter has fewer mechanical issues. But Crusader Kings II, even without the obvious problems, has two elements that make it frustrating to play. The player's success is strongly affected by luck; when does a ruler die, who is their heir, and how often do their vassals revolt? A single inferior inheritance can end the game. Internal politics of CK2 are devastating compared to the foreign relations of EU4. A player can be a king one day, and a pauper the next. And no matter how powerful the player's nation is compared to other countries, their internal threats always remain just a step away from overthrowing them. No matter how strong you grow as emperor, your nobles keep pace. It's like trying to tread water, while surrounded by sharks.
Recent:
Crusader Kings II: Paradox Games Play Best With Friends - Part III
Relevant:
Massive Chalice: Repetition at One's Ease
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