• We have updated our Community Code of Conduct. Please read through the new rules for the forum that are an integral part of Paradox Interactive’s User Agreement.

CK3 Dev Diary #86 - Under the Banner

Well met!

There is a possibility you have noticed the colourful banners decorating the halls of the upcoming Royal Court expansion and wondered just how they work. If so, you are in luck!

As I’m sure you’ve heard if you follow these diaries, equippable Artifacts are returning to the franchise in a big way, and banners are one of the types of Court Artifact which can adorn your hall.

wall1.jpg


Banners
There are currently three types of commissionable banner: Dynasty and House banners depict the respective arms of your family, while Realm banners display the arms of a specific title (generally the primary title of the commissioner). These banners are a cut above the standard colors carried by your armies and heralds; heirlooms in their own right.

You may wonder what happens if the design of a crest changes during gameplay, such as after the Norman conquest, or when using the new Coat of Arms designer to make ground-breaking contributions to the field of heraldry.

Never fear, you will not need to commission new banners every time you nudge a fleur-de-lis; the Artifact’s designs are tied to their corresponding dynasty, house, or title, and will automatically reflect the results of your questionable artistic skills.

graphicdesign.jpg


All Courts begin the game with a House banner, and also with a Dynasty banner if the ruler is a Dynasty Head. Additional banners may be commissioned at any time if you employ an Antiquarian. You will also be presented with these banners upon gaining a Court for the first time if relevant, reflecting your new status as a King or Emperor.

wales.jpg


You can also see above that you must be a member of the respective family or cadet branch to gain the full benefits of a Dynasty or House banner. While you may gloat by displaying the banners of other families — acquired through war or subterfuge doing so will only improve your Court’s grandeur.

The three banner types grant different bonuses when equipped, with greater benefits from better quality Artifacts. While House and Realm banners use the same logic as other Artifacts to determine their quality (based on the skill of the weaver and other factors), Dynasty banners are their own breed.

Dynasty Banners
Each Dynasty will generally only have one banner in the world at any given time. Unlike House and Realm banners which can be commissioned at will, Dynasty banners can only be commissioned by Dynasty Heads, and only if one does not already exist within range of you.

However, House Heads of a Dynasty will always have claims on their Dynasty’s banner, allowing them to duel or wage war for them at will.

jimena.jpg


In addition, the quality of a Dynasty banner is directly tied to its Dynasty’s Renown, granting greater benefits as your family’s fame grows.

famed.jpg


The highest tier is unlocked upon reaching Legendary Dynasty Renown level. You may be relieved to hear Dynasty banners will never lose tiers, only gain them.

To avoid unnecessary headaches, the AI knows that a Dynasty banner really belongs to the Dynasty Head, and is inclined to return it to its proper place if it ends up elsewhere, even if they are from another House (as long as they have good relations with them).

War Banners
In addition to these creatable banners, there is also a type gained only by event: the War Banner.

byz.jpg


These captured banners can only be gained after battles, and will display the emblem of the defeated side’s primary title; perfect for commemorating your glorious victories.

Banner Relics
Lastly, there are also some historical banners knocking around, such as the Banner of Muhammad, and others of more dubious provenence may be found by adventurers.

thank.jpg


I hope this has temporarily sated your hunger for banner information. Until next time!
 
  • 87Like
  • 30Love
  • 12
  • 4
  • 1Haha
Reactions:
Uhm... Do the banners all look like the ones presented? Mono-Coloured with a Border?
Cause that would be rather boring, IMO.
 
  • 21
  • 12
  • 3Like
  • 2Haha
Reactions:
Uhm... Do the banners all look like the ones presented? Mono-Coloured with a Border?
Cause that would be rather boring, IMO.
That's just the event image.

If you look at the War Banners screenshot, you can see the actual Byzantine banner hanging in the Khan's court room in the background.
 
  • 16
  • 5
Reactions:
Good DD, thanks PDX.
 
  • 1
  • 1Like
Reactions:
Looks great! By way of suggestion, it may be better for role playing purposes to amend the text in ‘The [Welsh] Court’ event to start ‘As King of [relevant title, e.g. Wales] you have new duties and responsibilities’. Otherwise IMHO it would read oddly if, e.g. King Alfred (for gameplay purposes a ‘petty king’ rather than a ‘king’), upon acquiring the King of England title, gets a message telling him simply ‘as King you have new duties and responsibilities’ - for all intents and purposes he has already been known as a king to everyone in the game world, and considers himself as such.
 
  • 14
  • 1
Reactions:
Interesting that many smaller mechanics are being added to give a variety of things to do.

Regarding War Banners - this sounds like we can recreate the revenge of Varius. Give me back my banners! Is it a CB? Can we pay to ransom them?
 
  • 3Like
Reactions:
I am not sure if the CB for a dynasty banner is justified. Maybe it should be automatically included in the peace treaty for the winning party if he had a claim on it during another war (like a county war). I am not a historian but wars should be expensive and morale of armies should play a role here too. Imo kind of immersion breaking, or are dynasty banners that important?

Besides the persons bowing in the first picture does not look healthy
 
  • 12
  • 1Like
  • 1
Reactions:
Besides the persons bowing in the first picture does not look healthy

"Nobody seems to know what Theo Low-Texture actually does at court, and he does not hold an official office. Most courtiers just assume he's kept around as an ornament, and to make others feel better about their appearance."
 
  • 14Haha
Reactions:
Glad to see you linked the banners to the title/dynasty they represent! Really looking forward to the release!

With our new designer? I doubt so :cool:
The Coat of Arms designer looks really great, but I have one small question : I didn't see an option to texture a charge/emblem, (fleur-de-lys, lion, etc.), seems like they can only be of one or two colours. Does that mean that a Coat of Arms like this one (Hesse) would be impossible to create in the in-game CoA designer?
Hesse.png
 
Last edited:
  • 13
  • 2Like
Reactions:
I asked last itme but sadly got no reply from a dev, is the DNA system reworked in RC update 1.5? it seems like some characters especially female characters facial structures look unfamiliar

Nevermind, my fault I didn't notice the dev's reply (somehow didn't get the notification) sorry for the misunderstanding, have a nice day ya!!
 
Last edited:
  • 3
  • 2Like
Reactions:
Banners
There are currently three types of commissionable banner: Dynasty and House banners depict the respective arms of your family, while Realm banners display the arms of a specific title (generally the primary title of the commissioner). These banners are a cut above the standard colors carried by your armies and heralds; heirlooms in their own right.

You may wonder what happens if the design of a crest changes during gameplay, such as after the Norman conquest, or when using the new Coat of Arms designer to make ground-breaking contributions to the field of heraldry.

Never fear, you will not need to commission new banners every time you nudge a fleur-de-lis; the Artifact’s designs are tied to their corresponding dynasty, house, or title, and will automatically reflect the results of your questionable artistic skills.

Erm... That doesn't make any sense? There should be at least an event for updating banners. Also, say that as a relative minor cadet branch, I want to keep the banners of the previous holders in my throne room (in RP terms) claim a spiritual descendance. With this system, it won't even be possible as they would automatically be changed to my ugly and honourless insigna...
 
  • 7
  • 1Like
  • 1
Reactions: