CK2 - Who will you play as first?

[Jia Xu]

Maybe a Principality (Duchy) like Kiev or Novgorod. I just want a nice safe corner where I can just mess around a bit and get comfortable with the game.

[Straigthtsilver]

I'm debating whether to play as either a Duchy in Eastern Europe (Galich, Rostov) or to pick a Duchy in the western chunk of Byzantium.

[Comrade Chaos]

Lombardia aka New Rome.

[takedown47]

King of Norway for my first game, maybe. Looks like the north is independent, and you start in a difficult war where you'll have to beat both saxon England and William. And then comes the kicker: Send your heir to be raised by a norse pagan! When I get tired of that game, I'll either load up as a different ruler in some interesting area in the save, or do something new. Could be a good learning game.

I'd also like to start as the Duke of Apulia, rack up piety beating the sicilian/arab states in Sicily, hire the Hospitalliers and/or the Templars, and conquering and forming the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Keep it till I can change from gavelkind, then give it to a gifted 3rd son or something, or Bohemond if he's still alive at that point, and continue as him. Then push until my glorious crusading blob reaches from the Horn of Africa to Persia to Greece.

Or Barcelona --> Aragon --> Sicily and Sardinia --> Jerusalem, Greece, etc.

Another one: Duke of Toulouse, and then embrace Catharism!

You stole my idea! i got plans to start as the Duke of Apulia, long live the de Hauteville dynasty!

[SamWystan]

1135 (The Anarchy): King Stephen

I was thinking Stephen the day of his coronation would be a good one.

Bohemond I of Antioch after Antioch the Crusader States are established might also be a decent one, though you might get killed by Muslims real fast.

Henry the Lion in Saxony would be decent.

Otherwise, a Breton count might be a good place to get the best of the worlds of the Isles and the Continent.

[Doctor Zoviet]

Gonna start in an out-of-the-way area, and try to role-play my characters as they come. Irish duke with an idiot king? Attack England! King becomes a heretic? Spread the new faith! That kind of thing.

[Dogia]

I will want to play the duke of toulouse and see what happens when my family embraces the cathar heresy. Hopefully ill be able to hold off the crusades

[Sam L]

King of Norway for my first game, maybe. Looks like the north is independent, and you start in a difficult war where you'll have to beat both saxon England and William. And then comes the kicker: Send your heir to be raised by a norse pagan! When I get tired of that game, I'll either load up as a different ruler in some interesting area in the save, or do something new. Could be a good learning game.

I'd also like to start as the Duke of Apulia, rack up piety beating the sicilian/arab states in Sicily, hire the Hospitalliers and/or the Templars, and conquering and forming the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Keep it till I can change from gavelkind, then give it to a gifted 3rd son or something, or Bohemond if he's still alive at that point, and continue as him. Then push until my glorious crusading blob reaches from the Horn of Africa to Persia to Greece.

Or Barcelona --> Aragon --> Sicily and Sardinia --> Jerusalem, Greece, etc.

Another one: Duke of Toulouse, and then embrace Catharism!

Who knows which character I'll really end up with as my first game. I want to play them all..

Edit:

Nope, you can arrange a Matrilinear marriage now that keeps the mothers dynasty for any children. So Matilda is fully playable.

Awesome. Thanks!

[Kaiserjagen]

After a bit more research for a conveniently related history paper on Byzantium I'm now 90% sure I'll be going with the Doux of Paphlagonia. I'm assuming that's where the Komneni dynasty would be situated in 1066 with the head of the family being the future-emperor Alexios' father, Ioannes Komnenos. Alexios would be 10 at the game's start I do believe.

[Weke]

william the conqueror sounds fun but i think im going to be playing with friend or friends not sure (2-3 players) so i think we will pick another kingdom and be dukes there (france, hre for some easier game) but id like to pick something like byzantine or hungary wich would be wicked fun

[spinoza013]

I've tried several times with CKI playing as the Western Isles to Unite Scotland and install Norse-Gaelic culture. It's extremely difficult and relies more on luck than skill so hopefully CKII will provide alternative strategies for greater chances of success.

[Wallain]

King of Denmark.

[Darrigan]

I'll probably start with a king-tier character. Most likely the king of Sweden. That way I can learn how the game works.
My first real game will be as the count of Loon, because my family hails from that region. I'm not yet sure on what goals I will aim for. I had three ideas:

1) Become king of Scandinavia and Spain, just because they're respectivly the northern and southern border of the christian world. Might be challenging to keep control of two regions that are so far apart.
2) Become the HRE and expands from there. (Most realistic option)
3) Become king of Jerusalem. I'll probably have to hand out my European possesions if I manage to grab that title, though.

[vanadio]

Count of Coimbra

[Samusas]

Count of Norfolk

[Wezqu]

I hope they have the random count, duke, king options in the game as I'm going to chose my county at random. In CKI I almost always started as a lowly count and slowly raised my dynasty to rule a kingdom. In one game I managed to jump from a count to king in one war. What I remember I had hard time after that with the unruly vassals.

[A_Dane]

I'll see if I can find my added dynasty anywhere, get them into a count position, and start as them.

Glory to me!

[Skullheadhq]

Alexios Komnenos.

[tamius23]

Once I've learnt to play, my first game will be as the Duke of (Great) Perm, latest start.

[zonkie]

I have many possibilities.

Either i will play as William the Conqueror before the conquest and later unite all of Britain and northern France under my rule, or i will unite Sweden as Sverkerätten and later Scandinavia. Maybe unite Italy under the Normans or form a new Mediterranean empire under the Kingdom of Aragon.