Good rulers to learn with

Bertouch

Musical Tree Surgeon

19 Badges

Feb 15, 2007

1.952

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #1

As in, "Going with this ruler doesn't throw you in the deep end of the pool, where by we mean 30 feet deep, with a whirlpool undertow, and the Loch Ness Monster waiting to declare you the entree for its next meal." Some rulers don't face immediate wars, succession crises, Muslim invasions, Mongol hordes, rapacious neighbors, or rebellious dukes. These are the kings who provide a good first experience to a very deep game, and I thought we might want to make a list for those who have never tried CK2, or the CK series, for that matter. A slow introduction to something that could steal away your entire life, in other words.

My nomination is Sweden's King Stenkil. With allowances for shifting traits and love/hate relationships, the realm begins at peace. Norway's Harald IV is looking west for his thrills, and Denmark's got its own problems, so you're able to concentrate on internal matters for a while. There are a couple of potentials for breakaways from Norway, and to your north are some pagans who can be attacked if the player first raises enough cash to buy plenty of mercenaries. There are a few peasant revolts to put down over time; nothing big. Nice place to work out small ambitions (the royal hunt, etc) without any intrigues.

Over to you.

 

unmerged(199940)

Captain

8 Badges

Mar 18, 2010

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #2

I've been learning the ropes with the King of Scotland. I haven't played CK1, so I had no clue what I was doing at first. The tutorials take you through with the King of Scotland so it seemed natural to continue with him. You can go to war, or not. You can smash your vassals under your heel, or not. Seemed to be good for letting me know the possibilities in the game.

 

flame7926

Benevolent Imperialist

11 Badges

Mar 26, 2011

2.202

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #3

I would say king of Scotland too, he starts unmarried, with a male heir. If you have tried the tutorials, you will be familiar with him, which is important for me for connecting with characters.

 

sbr

Field Marshal

41 Badges

Dec 31, 2006

4.133

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #4

I like the Duchy of Apulia, but it is not quite as easy as in CK1. The Sicilian arabs will attack you or an ally within a few years, and they are at least as strong as your entire realm, so you have to be ready for that. There is also a Prince Bishop who hates you that will revolt soon too, but he is easy pickings since he is alone. There are 2 titles you can create and 1 you can usurp right from the start, just need to save up some money. Robert also has quite a few siblings and children to screw around with.

It defintely isn't an out of the way corner, but it lets you play with a a lot of stuff with no huge threat to yourself.

EDIT: Unless the Pope decide to be a jerk off while you are fighting arabs.

 

Werther

Lt. General

87 Badges

Jan 26, 2010

1.495

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #5

Duke of Iceland. 2 family members, 1 vassal, no war, nothing.

 

CatKnight

Disciple of Peperna

85 Badges

May 20, 2004

4.558

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #6

I tried Apulia a little while ago. In CK1 it was definitely my first choice for learning the game, but now aggressive Arabs really change the dynamics. There's a lot of potential here, but a lot of risk as well. I'd make it your second or third game, not your first.

I like Tuscany and Bohemia. Tuscany can be reasonably powerful early game, and while you're under the Kaiser's thumb it gives you a chance to see what happens when you're NOT on top of the food chain (and long to be there.) You can even attack Genoa if you get bored. As for Bohemia, you really just need to keep your nose clean to claim the King title in time. Of course, there are your annoying mutinous, murderous brothers.

 

Poddster

Second Lieutenant

65 Badges

Dec 28, 2009

197

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #7

Another vote for King of Scotland. Lots of possability to lear about how De jour ducal titles work with the Norwegian and Island intruders in Scotland and how that can bolster you. On of your vassal siblings starts of hating you so there's a chance for him to rebel. Try offering vassaldom to the isle of man straight away. You're also close to Ireland and can usually get a foothold there by inviting claimaints.

Plus, it's what was used in the tutorials

 

Scott1964

Lt. General

85 Badges

Apr 12, 2001

1.308

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #8

Duke of Whales :unsure: or Gwynedd

 

Deflare

First Lieutenant

106 Badges

Dec 2, 2004

294

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #9

Playing the demo, I found the King of Poland to be an interesting introduction. You're introduced to kingdom mechanics from the get-go, but you don't have all that many vassals to worry about and your kingdom isn't unmanageably huge. The king is unmarried, but young, skilled (Martial 21!), and has a member of his dynasty who can inherit if something happens before you have a kid. Your vassals are mostly friendly, with the exception of the Duke of Silesia; that can be a good introduction to how to handle unfriendly vassals without overwhelming you with THE ENTIRE KINGDOM RISING UP AT ONCE OH GOD. If you want to get aggressive, there are a bunch of pagans to the north to go beat up--they're pretty tough, but they also have to contend with the HRE and the Scandinavians, and I found that Poland's tax base allowed me to field mercenaries without too much trouble (and mercenaries are a frickin' godsend). Your big threat is the HRE, who have enough other concerns that they probably won't bother with you; sadly, the demo ended just as I was about to find out if I could tackle their military with the help of my allies.

So yeah, King of Poland--pretty good introductory game, I think.

 

Bertouch

Musical Tree Surgeon

19 Badges

Feb 15, 2007

1.952

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #10

Poddster said:

Another vote for King of Scotland. Lots of possability to lear about how De jour ducal titles work with the Norwegian and Island intruders in Scotland and how that can bolster you. On of your vassal siblings starts of hating you so there's a chance for him to rebel. Try offering vassaldom to the isle of man straight away. You're also close to Ireland and can usually get a foothold there by inviting claimaints.

Click to expand...

I think I'm misunderstanding you. How do you mean, "inviting claimants" to Ireland?

 

unmerged(199940)

Captain

8 Badges

Mar 18, 2010

303

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #11

Bertouch said:

I think I'm misunderstanding you. How do you mean, "inviting claimants" to Ireland?

Click to expand...

I haven't tried this myself but it's a good idea. I think you seek out those with Irish claims and get them to join your court. I've tried just inviting the Irish to Scotland and they don't want to come, so you probably need to use matrilineal marriages. Then you can press their claims.

 

A

Actinguy

Major

43 Badges

May 1, 2007

770

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #12

I haven't tried it in CK2, but in the original, you could play as any independent count in Ireland and have a decent shot at uniting the island under the Irish flag.

 

KroganElite

Major

74 Badges

Jun 18, 2011

618

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #13

War: A count/duke/king in spain
No war + political intrigue: count/duke in France/HRE
Keeping vassals happy/successions: King of France/HRE
Personal favorite: Leinster(Irish count)

Having played quite a few games now i would have to say that the hardest thing in this game is succession. Everything else is nothing compared to it. There is nothing like building up your dynasty for year and years just to lose it all because of an early death, or a weak/no heirs.

 

TheChronoMaster

King of the Underdogs

117 Badges

Feb 2, 2011

2.382

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #14

Pretty much anyone in Ireland is a good way to learn inheritance and realm expansion -- it's easy enough to get a ducal title as a count, and become a king from there.

 

andersonm

Coastal Elite

104 Badges

Aug 14, 2009

836

1.017

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #15

Duke of Bohemia is a nice easy way to learn, you start with a great ruler, a large demesne, and only a few vassals. You can easily fabricate claims on any of your HRE neighbors such as Meissen, Bavaria, or Osterreich and beat them pretty easily. You also are in a solid position to attack the pagans on the Baltic too if you want some quick expansion (you prob want to do this while Emperor is also fighting some of them so your homeland is nice and safe). You can create the Kindgom of Bohemia by saving gold and accumulating a bunch of piety... Also, with the Seniority law of Bohemia, the eldest member of the dynasty (i.e. including your brothers) always inherits all titles so very easy to keep everything with one person (unlike gavelkind), and there is always an heir.

 

TheChronoMaster

King of the Underdogs

117 Badges

Feb 2, 2011

2.382

709

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #16

Yeah, Bohemia and Osterreich are probably best for learning how to be a vassal.

 

brifbates

Field Marshal

99 Badges

Mar 4, 2004

10.915

2.902

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #17

Galich, Novgorod, Ryazan, or Rostov are all decent choices. Nearby action if you want it and all your brothers have your back. Independent so you can dump gavelkind. Some are obviously better than others but for pagan bashing goodness the Rurik clan is hard to beat.

 

TheChronoMaster

King of the Underdogs

117 Badges

Feb 2, 2011

2.382

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #18

Russian dukes have a slight problem in their _massive demesnes_ making all their courtiers and vassals hate them, and they'll find it difficult to pass that land to anyone loyal. Good to learn internal affairs and politics, I guess.

 

brifbates

Field Marshal

99 Badges

Mar 4, 2004

10.915

2.902

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• Feb 13, 2012

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• #19

TheChronoMaster said:

Russian dukes have a slight problem in their _massive demesnes_ making all their courtiers and vassals hate them, and they'll find it difficult to pass that land to anyone loyal. Good to learn internal affairs and politics, I guess.

Click to expand...

Meh, summon random noble, give them a prov (dumping ambitious ones if you can afford to), set for quite a while. You just need to be careful and not give someone enough land to grab a vacant duchy title before you do. If you try and be a greedy gus and personally hold your starting lands then yeah, you'll have problems with your vassals but keeping things together isn't all that hard. Remember, your brothers help boot traitors in the arse as well as booting pagans.

I suspect that later on it will get more interesting if you don't have the close family ties (are members of the same dynasty always allies or do they have to be closely related?).
The drawback to the Rus princes is you are squarely in the sights of the Horde invasion when it arrives.

 

Splorghley

Major

96 Badges

Feb 10, 2012

796

4.185

• Feb 13, 2012

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• #20

Bohemia is a brilliant game that softly introduces you to all aspects of CK2. Being a vassal, having vassals, murderous brothers, a nice set of children to be sent off to be educated and betrothed, war on heathens, various tiers of titles, etc. All whilst you get a decent income, are in no direct danger, and don't start with Gavelkind (which tends to confuse and irritate new players in my experience pimping the demo).