I'm back in CK2 after a hiatus. I read the 3 volume A History of the Eastern Roman Empire by JB Bury and was inspired to do a CK 2 campaign as Byzantium so I could beat the snot out of Venice before the Crusades.
Starting again, I now remember what a pain Defensive Pacts are, so I'm wondering what I can do to work around them.
Based on what (little) I remember and some research in the forums here is what I came up with:
· Attack big countries not yet in the Defensive Pact via claim throne (or similar). If they are part of the Empire they can’t be in a pact.
· Ignore the Pact and blitz a (very) small country. I haven’t done this as most of my neighbors are pretty big - the little guys have been picked off - but this could work if you have a sizable retinue and can move around quickly. Byzantium could do this as a sea power
· Watch carefully in the outliner if anyone leaves the Pact, then pounce. I’ve noticed this happens semi-randomly, but MUCH less frequently as my threat level increases.
· A gamey trick is to restart the game, which frequently causes AIs to join/leave pacts in a reshuffle. Sometimes a target country leaves
· Look for rebellions, which are not subject to Pacts. Rebellions pop up regularly, and this is good for Holy War against infidels or sniping a province
· Wait for threat to go below 75% so I only have to take on one religion and not the whole bloody map. This is good for smaller sects (such as Shia) that will have fewer defenders. This can be a LONG wait – sitting at 87% threat now in 889 I’ll have to wait almost 5 years.
· Look for new countries which sometimes appear perhaps from a rebellion or religious insurrection. Their threat is zero, so they are a target
· Ask if they want to be a vassal. This only works if they are same religion and/or culture - pretty rare, but worth trying
Anything else?
Starting again, I now remember what a pain Defensive Pacts are, so I'm wondering what I can do to work around them.
Based on what (little) I remember and some research in the forums here is what I came up with:
· Attack big countries not yet in the Defensive Pact via claim throne (or similar). If they are part of the Empire they can’t be in a pact.
· Ignore the Pact and blitz a (very) small country. I haven’t done this as most of my neighbors are pretty big - the little guys have been picked off - but this could work if you have a sizable retinue and can move around quickly. Byzantium could do this as a sea power
· Watch carefully in the outliner if anyone leaves the Pact, then pounce. I’ve noticed this happens semi-randomly, but MUCH less frequently as my threat level increases.
· A gamey trick is to restart the game, which frequently causes AIs to join/leave pacts in a reshuffle. Sometimes a target country leaves
· Look for rebellions, which are not subject to Pacts. Rebellions pop up regularly, and this is good for Holy War against infidels or sniping a province
· Wait for threat to go below 75% so I only have to take on one religion and not the whole bloody map. This is good for smaller sects (such as Shia) that will have fewer defenders. This can be a LONG wait – sitting at 87% threat now in 889 I’ll have to wait almost 5 years.
· Look for new countries which sometimes appear perhaps from a rebellion or religious insurrection. Their threat is zero, so they are a target
· Ask if they want to be a vassal. This only works if they are same religion and/or culture - pretty rare, but worth trying
Anything else?