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CK2 Dev Diary - The Rules of the Game

Well people, what do you know? I needed a break from the Stellaris crunch, so here’s an unscheduled dev diary! All the hubbub about Defensive Pacts and Shattered Retreats got me thinking about an old ambition I’ve had to improve the game set-up screens in order to allow players to customize their experience without having to resort to modding. The idea is inspired by games like Civilization and the Second Wave DLC for XCOM: Enemy Unknown, which allow players to change various advanced options and settings for a different experience in the game. I really like such options and typically make good use of them myself.

Now, of course there is such a thing as “the way the game was meant to be played”. That is, how the designers made the game and like to play it themselves. However, variety is the spice of life, and after 11 Crusader Kings II expansions things are not as clear-cut anymore. It’s actually pretty funny that I’ve been using a small personal mod for CK2 for awhile myself. There are some downsides to modding and using mods though:
  • It requires awareness that it’s possible, and where to find existing mods. The modding scene is a jungle.
  • It takes a modicum of extra effort and skill.
  • It might not feel quite legitimate (it can feel a bit like cheating) and you might not get any Achievements.
  • Mods typically do not have the same level of support as the base game. Many become fossilized or are otherwise problematic.
For these reasons especially, I think that adding a bunch of Paradox-approved, fully supported in-game rule variations is a good idea. Thus, when you start a new game, you are now presented with several interesting options. Most of them are simple flavor variations, but some are more fundamental and will disable Achievements in Ironman mode. Here’s the list of options we are currently showing in the new screen (still a work in progress though):
  • Sandbox vs Ironman
  • Shattered Retreats: On/Off
  • Defensive Pacts: On/Off
  • Gender Equality: Default/Historical/All/Players
  • Sunset Invasion: 13th Century/Random/Off
  • Mongol Invasion: Historical/Random/Off
  • Raiding: Historical/Unrestricted/None
  • Epidemics: Dynamic/Historical/Deadly
  • “Supernatural” Events: On/Off
  • Adventurers: Normal/Rare/None
  • Provincial Revolts: Normal/Rare/None
  • Regencies: On/Off
  • De Jure Drift: Default/Restricted/Off
  • Dynamic Kingdoms and Empires: On/Off
  • Diplomatic Range: On/Off
Red options disable Achievements.

Crusader Kings II - Rules 01.jpg


Our new rule system is itself fully moddable, so that modders can use the same system with pretty much any options they might want!

Crusader Kings II - Rules 02.jpg


I look forward to your thoughts and comments. Are there any rule variations you think we’ve missed, or that you would really like to see?
 
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Secret Bears CONFIRMSKBJAGDBJDKKVAD!!!!!!!!
 
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Doomdark said:
View attachment 173389
Click to expand...

There's a typo there. It should be. 'Platypodes' not 'platypi.'

Also, I'm curious: Does unrestricted raiding mean anyone can raid? Or does it remove limitations like carrying capacity for current raiders? If its the first, might I suggest that that not disable achievements? After all, there was loads of raiding done by everyone throughout the period.
 
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This sounds awesome, can't wait for this! Will we have to wait until the next major expansion, or will this be a patch some time soon?

Also, how about adding a rule for default council power? Full/historical/none or something along those lines.
 
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Doomdark said:
Well people, what do you know? I needed a break from the Stellaris crunch, so here’s an unscheduled dev diary! All the hubbub about Defensive Pacts and Shattered Retreats got me thinking about an old ambition I’ve had to improve the game set-up screens in order to allow players to customize their experience without having to resort to modding. The idea is inspired by games like Civilization and the Second Wave DLC for XCOM: Enemy Unknown, which allow players to change various advanced options and settings for a different experience in the game. I really like such options and typically make good use of them myself.

Now, of course there is such a thing as “the way the game was meant to be played”. That is, how the designers made the game and like to play it themselves. However, variety is the spice of life, and after 11 Crusader Kings II expansions things are not as clear-cut anymore. It’s actually pretty funny that I’ve been using a small personal mod for CK2 for awhile myself. There are some downsides to modding and using mods though:
  • It requires awareness that it’s possible, and where to find existing mods. The modding scene is a jungle.
  • It takes a modicum of extra effort and skill.
  • It might not feel quite legitimate (it can feel a bit like cheating) and you might not get any Achievements.
  • Mods typically do not have the same level of support as the base game. Many become fossilized or are otherwise problematic.
For these reasons especially, I think that adding a bunch of Paradox-approved, fully supported in-game rule variations is a good idea. Thus, when you start a new game, you are now presented with several interesting options. Most of them are simple flavor variations, but some are more fundamental and will disable Achievements in Ironman mode. Here’s the list of options we are currently showing in the new screen (still a work in progress though):
  • Sandbox vs Ironman
  • Shattered Retreats: On/Off
  • Defensive Pacts: On/Off
  • Gender Equality: Default/Historical/All/Players
  • Sunset Invasion: 13th Century/Random/Off
  • Mongol Invasion: Historical/Random/Off
  • Raiding: Historical/Unrestricted/None
  • Epidemics: Dynamic/Historical/Deadly
  • “Supernatural” Events: On/Off
  • Adventurers: Normal/Rare/None
  • Provincial Revolts: Normal/Rare/None
  • Regencies: On/Off
  • De Jure Drift: Default/Restricted/Off
  • Dynamic Kingdoms and Empires: On/Off
  • Diplomatic Range: On/Off
Red options disable Achievements.

View attachment 173389

Our new rule system is itself fully moddable, so that modders can use the same system with pretty much any options they might want!

View attachment 173388

I look forward to your thoughts and comments. Are there any rule variations you think we’ve missed, or that you would really like to see?
Click to expand...
Amazing. Thanks guys!
 
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I've got to say, this is the most unexpected and most welcome addition I've seen to CK2. Well done.
 
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Frank327 said:
Looks like a good idea. I especially like the option to make some features more harsh like historical gender equality and deadly epidemics. Turning mods/dlc's on or off can be a hassle. Can I make a suggestion though?

India region: On/off

Most of my campaigns have nothing to do with this region but my computer does have to simulate it every time. It would be nice to be able to turn the region off and make the game run faster.
Click to expand...

you can just disable it in the launcher. or are you missing something if you do that?
maybe it launches anyway?

just a suggestion.
I'm more of a "make the world bigger" enthusiast. I would love to see another regions added to the game. like Japan <3 or south Africa.

I would love to see pagan greek religion rise again too. xP
 
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jordarkelf said:
I love this idea. You're right in that a lot of mods I only use to disable or tweak existing features, having these instead be changeable like this would eliminate a lot of the overhead.
Click to expand...

That's right. I am sure there are many players who look for overhaul mods because they believe some or most of the changes make up for what they don't like in it.

This is a fantastic idea. Please give us more options in the future guys, don't stop the list there!

*** It's also very nice that it's been possible to select individually what you want in your game. Much better than adding a bunch of stuff (some that you like, some that you loathe) together under three or five different difficulty levels.
 
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otaku6 said:
you can just disable it in the launcher. or are you missing something if you do that?
maybe it launches anyway?

just a suggestion.
I'm more of a "make the world bigger" enthusiast. I would love to see another regions added to the game. like Japan <3 or south Africa.

I would love to see pagan greek religion rise again too. xP
Click to expand...
I'm pretty sure disabling the RoI dlc just prevents you from playing in India, but India still exists and is fully simulated as normal. I have to agree, I'd like the option to turn India off, I never reach that far, and it's usually even out of diplomatic range, so it's just wasting processor power for me.
 
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otaku6 said:
you can just disable it in the launcher. or are you missing something if you do that?
maybe it launches anyway?

just a suggestion.
I'm more of a "make the world bigger" enthusiast. I would love to see another regions added to the game. like Japan <3 or south Africa.

I would love to see pagan greek religion rise again too. xP
Click to expand...
If I remember correctly I tried doing that but the india region showed up anyways. Also I'm afraid that I'll be missing some of the general religion features by disabling ROI. Anyways, the same principle applies to sunset invasion which is chosen as part of the pregame options.

I don't know if it's possible to just take out a region like that in pregame without messing with balance or other stuff but if it's at all possible it would be nice.
 
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Sounds like a great idea, but how about being able to disable infamy and coalitions? Which at least for me are the worst mechanic that has been introduced in the (otherwise brilliant and fantastic :)) game.
 
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DominusNovus said:
Platypodes.
Click to expand...
No, platypuses, English uses English plurals. Spellcheck on here doesn't underline platypuses while it does underline platypodes and platypi.
Just like how it's octopuses, not octopi, because it's English, not Latin or Greek.
 
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