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Crusader Kings 3 Dev Diary #39 - Achievements Showcase

Greetings, dear friends, and welcome to the final pre-release dev diary! Today, we’ll be doing something nice and light, since we know you’re all hyped for the release next month, and couldn’t possibly stand the tension otherwise.

So, with that in mind, let’s have a look at what achievements you can get, and the ways of getting them. As we’re so close to release, we’ll be taking a gander at the full list!

… With apologies in advance for the puns. -_- They forced me to implement them.

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  1. A House of my Own: create a cadet branch of your dynasty.
  2. A Legacy to Last the Ages: complete an entire dynasty legacy path.
  3. A Name Known Throughout the World: have your dynasty reach the highest possible level of renown.
  4. A Perfect Circle: have only two distinct parents, grandparents, and great grandparents, counting absent ancestors as individual characters.
  5. Above God: have a strong hook on your head of faith.
  6. Al-Andalus: starting as an Iberian Muslim, control all of Iberia and take the Avenge the Battle of Tours decision.
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  1. Álmost There: as Álmos Árpád, form Hungary & convert to Christianity.
  2. An Unfortunate Accident: inherit a title from someone via murder.
  3. Bad Blood: go to war with one of your siblings over a claim.
  4. Beacon of Progress: have your culture unlock all innovations, excluding regional and culture-specific innovations.
  5. Blood Eagle: starting as any child of Ragnarr Lothbrok, conquer all of the British Isles.
  6. Carolingian Consolidation: starting as a Karling, be the only independent Karling to hold a landed title.
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  1. Celebrity: reach the highest possible level of fame.
  2. Death Did Us Part: murder your spouse.
  3. Dreadful Ruler: have the maximum amount of dread.
  4. End of an Era: play until 1453.
  5. Fine Print: use a hook to modify a feudal contract.
  6. Followed by Shadows: know ten secrets simultaneously.
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  1. For the Faith: take part in a successful Great Holy War, on either side.
  2. Frankokratia: as a French Catholic, hold and completely control the Kingdom of Thessalonika without holding or being vassalised to the Byzantine Empire.
  3. From Rags to Riches: starting as a count, lead your line to rule an empire.
  4. Give a Dog a Bone: starting as Matilda of Tuscany, lead your dynasty to rule the Kingdom of Italy, have at least fifty living dynasty members, and found a Holy Order.
  5. Going Places: as Haesteinn of Montaigu in 867, hold any kingdom-tier title.
  6. It’s not a Cult: create a faith.
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  1. Keeping it in the Family: have a child with the inbred trait.
  2. Kings to the Seventh Generation: starting as Count Eudes of Anjou in 867, lead your dynasty to rule the Kingdom of France.
  3. Know Your Place: defeat a faction in war.
  4. Land of the Rus: starting as Rurik the Troublemaker in 867, lead your dynasty to rule the Empire of Russia.
  5. Last Count, First King: starting as Duke Nuno of Portucale in 1066, form Portugal.
  6. Monumental: fully upgrade a duchy building anywhere in your personal domain.
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  1. Mother of Us All: starting as Magajiva Daura, reform an African pagan faith, and convert all counties in Africa to it.
  2. Moving up in the World: increase your rank.
  3. Non Nobis Domine: found a holy order.
  4. Norman Yoke: starting as William the Bastard in 1066, win the Norman Invasion, become English, and have only English Vassals below you in the Kingdom of England.
  5. Not So Feudal System: use the claim throne scheme successfully.
  6. Paragon of Virtue: have three or more virtuous traits.
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  1. Prolific: have one hundred living dynasty members.
  2. Reconquista: starting as an Iberian Christian, convert all of Iberia to Christianity.
  3. Rise from the Ashes: restore the Roman Empire.
  4. Royal Dignity: starting as Vratislav Premyslid in 1066, lead your dynasty to rule the Kingdom of Bohemia & the Holy Roman Empire simultaneously.
  5. Saint: reach the highest possible level of devotion.
  6. Seductive: as any one character, successfully seduce ten people.
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  1. Seven Holy Cities: as a Hindu ruler, hold all seven Hindu holy sites at the same time.
  2. Sibling Rivalry: starting as any of the Jimena siblings in 1066, become Emperor of Spain.
  3. Stressful Situation: suffer a mental break.
  4. The Emerald Isle: starting as an Irish ruler, hold the Kingdom of Ireland.
  5. The Emperor’s New Clothes: while holding any empire title, be naked.
  6. The Succession is Safe: have ten living children.
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  1. The Things Love Does for Us: have a lover save you from a murder attempt.
  2. The Things We Do for Love: murder your lover’s spouse.
  3. Trapped in the Web: have strong hooks on three direct vassals.
  4. Turning to Diamonds: reach the highest possible stress level.
  5. Until Death Do Us Part: marry another character.
  6. Way of Life: obtain every perk in a lifestyle.
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  1. What Nepotism?: have your dynasty rule ten independent realms of at least kingdom tier simultaneously.
  2. Wily as the Fox: starting as Robert the Fox in 1066, rule the Kingdom of Sicily, hold either the Kingdom of Epirus, Hellas, or Thessalonika, and convert all of its original counties to Catholicism.

And with that, we come to the end of the showcase! Anything here that particularly caught your eye, or something you’d like to have seen? I’ll be hanging around in the comments for a couple of hours afterwards, per the usual, so feel free to tag me with any questions you may have.
 
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Nobody found this to be a bit stupid ? or just a harmfull mistake? or is it part of the joke?

Overall nice achievements.
I don't get it, why is it stupid or harmful?

Nuno Mendes was the first Portuguese count that attempted Indepence for Portugal, and the 1066 start is the perfect startdate to play as him.

Sure, he lost and got killed in real life, but having you and your dynasty die in a few years isn't exactly achievement worthy is it? This is an achievement representing an alternative reality where Nuno Mendes wins. Nothing wrong with that. I find it quite wholesome that he and his struggle actually gets some exposure and credit, since everyone drools over Afonso Henriques successful rebelion, but nobody even knows who Nundo Mendes was, or that his rebelion even happened.
 
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Where does that nickname come from? I've googled it and it just gives me this very thread.
It appears to come from Estonian folklore:

"The brothers were called Rahurikkuja (Troublemaker), Siniuss (Blue snake) and Truuvaar (Loyal man) (estonianized names for Rurik and his brothers Sineus and Truvor), names given to them by their childhood friend, a blue snake." (emphasis added)
 
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So, after watching the Monthly dev diary roundup video, apparently the origins for the Give a Dog a Bone achievement name is better/worse than just the coat of arms.

Apparently, in the original Itallian/Tuscany, Cannosa sounds a lot like the words cane and ossa smashed together, which are "dog" and "bone" (or is it "(its/his) bone"? As a native English speaker cases on anything other than personal pronouns are always hard to parse), though it wouldn't be grammatically correct as "dog bone." A similar play on words shows up in the family motto, which is basically "When the cane has no ossa, there will be no House Cannosa."

So basically the motto and choice of having the family coat of arms being a dog with a bone is basically proof that even when involving prestigious medieval families, people can't avoid partaking in a good pun now and again.
 
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I hope we'll get a dedicated thred for achievement proposals later on :)

My current proposals:
No longer pagan - convert the county of Pagan to a non-pagan religion

Gotta catch them all - get all (dynasties of) Paradox staff vanity characters into your domain
 
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True, but they took so long that they'd ruined the language by the time they were done
Baht thene Englush wouldnot be a hilareous mongril ov a languij that Anglish-speackers coud blaem everi tyme they misspeled somthing!


The Smålandic noble family Trolle has a headless troll as their coat of arms
If that was in a fantasy novel I'd roll my eyes and start counting down to when the head of the family got murdered.


"The brothers were called Rahurikkuja (Troublemaker), Siniuss (Blue snake) and Truuvaar (Loyal man) (estonianized names for Rurik and his brothers Sineus and Truvor), names given to them by their childhood friend, a blue snake." (emphasis added)
(emphasis changed)
I see one of them was the snake's favorite.


Gotta catch them all - get all (dynasties of) Paradox staff vanity characters into your domain
Practically speaking, this would require:
1. Paradox to willingly draw attention to the vanity characters instead of just leaving them lying around as easter eggs. (I wanted to link an askagamedev response on this topic, even if it probably wasn't directly applicable to this example, but I couldn't find it.) (EDIT: Oh, I didn't check all the mailbag posts I opened, oops.)
2. A start date when all Paradox vanity dynasties were alive. (Most are minor nobles, so god luck with that.)
3. Some practical way of finding all those dynasties without looking up a list online. It's no fun if an achievement requires you to look up a guide just to understand the parameters.

Now, an achievement where you have to get all the major houses/dynasties of Europe into your family tree could be interesting! You'd need to specifically define which ones count, of course, but it should be easy to find a decent set that's all alive and prominent at the same start date.
 
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Baht thene Englush wouldnot be a hilareous mongril ov a languij that Anglish-speackers coud blaem everi tyme they misspeled somthing!



If that was in a fantasy novel I'd roll my eyes and start counting down to when the head of the family got murdered.



(emphasis changed)
I see one of them was the snake's favorite.



Practically speaking, this would require:
1. Paradox to willingly draw attention to the vanity characters instead of just leaving them lying around as easter eggs. (I wanted to link an askagamedev response on this topic, even if it probably wasn't directly applicable to this example, but I couldn't find it.) (EDIT: Oh, I didn't check all the mailbag posts I opened, oops.)
2. A start date when all Paradox vanity dynasties were alive. (Most are minor nobles, so god luck with that.)
3. Some practical way of finding all those dynasties without looking up a list online. It's no fun if an achievement requires you to look up a guide just to understand the parameters.

Now, an achievement where you have to get all the major houses/dynasties of Europe into your family tree could be interesting! You'd need to specifically define which ones count, of course, but it should be easy to find a decent set that's all alive and prominent at the same start date.
Gotta catch em all might be better as "have one of each cultural group" or "have one of each living religion" in your court
 
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With very little exception, all of these achievements are shockingly trivial. What's the point of having achievements, if every one can get them, save for the very bottom tier...
 
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With very little exception, all of these achievements are shockingly trivial. What's the point of having achievements, if every one can get them, save for the very bottom tier...
Suggest some new achievements then - maybe they will be inspired. :)
 
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Suggest some new achievements then - maybe they will be inspired. :)
I'm not the game developer. That's not my job. I find the attitude of, "Did you make this game? No? Then don't you dare suggest improvements." Such hubris is the downfall of many games and mods. Of course I could make up many achievements easily, as could anyone, but that wouldn't satisfy people making this snarky remark anyways. For the sake of it though, I will make one.
The Godly Gotlander Empire - From "so and so" count of Gotland (or just any count), become Emperor of The Holy Roman Empire (achieving this could unlock a tag that changes the name of the title).
 
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With very little exception, all of these achievements are shockingly trivial. What's the point of having achievements, if every one can get them, save for the very bottom tier...
Becuase the "easy" ones give new players some goals to try whilst they get their bearings.
 
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Gotta catch em all might be better as "have one of each cultural group" or "have one of each living religion" in your court
That could be neat. Might be tricky, though, considering that the map extends at least as far east as it did in CK2...


With very little exception, all of these achievements are shockingly trivial. What's the point of having achievements, if every one can get them, save for the very bottom tier...
Um, WTF?
Achievements said:
A Legacy to Last the Ages: complete an entire dynasty legacy path.
A Name Known Throughout the World: have your dynasty reach the highest possible level of renown.
A Perfect Circle: have only two distinct parents, grandparents, and great grandparents, counting absent ancestors as individual characters.
Above God: have a strong hook on your head of faith.
Al-Andalus: starting as an Iberian Muslim, control all of Iberia and take the Avenge the Battle of Tours decision.
Beacon of Progress: have your culture unlock all innovations, excluding regional and culture-specific innovations.
Blood Eagle: starting as any child of Ragnarr Lothbrok, conquer all of the British Isles.
Celebrity: reach the highest possible level of fame.
Dreadful Ruler: have the maximum amount of dread.
Followed by Shadows: know ten secrets simultaneously.
Frankokratia: as a French Catholic, hold and completely control the Kingdom of Thessalonika without holding or being vassalised to the Byzantine Empire.
From Rags to Riches: starting as a count, lead your line to rule an empire.
Give a Dog a Bone: starting as Matilda of Tuscany, lead your dynasty to rule the Kingdom of Italy, have at least fifty living dynasty members, and found a Holy Order.
Kings to the Seventh Generation: starting as Count Eudes of Anjou in 867, lead your dynasty to rule the Kingdom of France.
Land of the Rus: starting as Rurik the Troublemaker in 867, lead your dynasty to rule the Empire of Russia.
Monumental: fully upgrade a duchy building anywhere in your personal domain.
Mother of Us All: starting as Magajiva Daura, reform an African pagan faith, and convert all counties in Africa to it.
Prolific: have one hundred living dynasty members.
(Seriously, did you try Shajar's Monarch's Journey challenges? Getting dozens of dynasty members isn't easy! And hers didn't even all need to be alive at the same time!)
...moving on said:
Reconquista: starting as an Iberian Christian, convert all of Iberia to Christianity.
Rise from the Ashes: restore the Roman Empire.
Royal Dignity: starting as Vratislav Premyslid in 1066, lead your dynasty to rule the Kingdom of Bohemia & the Holy Roman Empire simultaneously.
Saint: reach the highest possible level of devotion.
Seductive: as any one character, successfully seduce ten people.
Seven Holy Cities: as a Hindu ruler, hold all seven Hindu holy sites at the same time.
Sibling Rivalry: starting as any of the Jimena siblings in 1066, become Emperor of Spain.
The Succession is Safe: have ten living children.
Trapped in the Web: have strong hooks on three direct vassals.
Turning to Diamonds: reach the highest possible stress level.
Way of Life: obtain every perk in a lifestyle.
What Nepotism?: have your dynasty rule ten independent realms of at least kingdom tier simultaneously.
Wily as the Fox: starting as Robert the Fox in 1066, rule the Kingdom of Sicily, hold either the Kingdom of Epirus, Hellas, or Thessalonika, and convert all of its original counties to Catholicism. (Also the other stuff to some extent, but there's nothing punchy to bold.)
I can see people say that there are too many trivial achievements. But saying that every achievement is trivial? You're delusional.
Achieving the maximum possible level in some gameplay mechanic? (Even Stress—I imagine that hitting maximum stress without breaking down along the way requires some doing, even if it's not as difficult or impressive as maximizing something useful.) Taking weak nobles and bringing them to multi-kingdom levels? Converting entire subcontinents? REFORMING THE FUCKING ROMAN EMPIRE?!?
(Saying that the ones about maximizing X are "trivial" is especially moronic, given how little we know about them and that what little we do makes most of them sound like substantial achievements.)

Yes, taking a tiny chief ruling one county in the middle of Siberia and blobbing them into a horde to rival Temujin is pretty standard fare for experienced CK2 players, if they play right and know what they're doing. But if you're dividing players into "can trivially restore the goddamn Roman Empire" and "the bottom tier," your tier system is fragging terrible.
 
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With very little exception, all of these achievements are shockingly trivial. What's the point of having achievements, if every one can get them, save for the very bottom tier...

I don't think so. If by "Shockingly Trivial" you mean "doesn't take a boatload of luck and/or having to fight several uncertain wars" I can see that. (though IMO only about two or three of the first batch of CKII achievements were in that category as well) but most players probably don't have the time or patience to, say, collect 10 kingdom titles to dole out to family for What is Nepotism?, or bother reforming a faith from a position of power to have Divine Marriage for Perfect Circle, even if both are relatively simple in execution.
 
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I'm not the game developer. That's not my job. I find the attitude of, "Did you make this game? No? Then don't you dare suggest improvements." Such hubris is the downfall of many games and mods. Of course I could make up many achievements easily, as could anyone, but that wouldn't satisfy people making this snarky remark anyways. For the sake of it though, I will make one.
The Godly Gotlander Empire - From "so and so" count of Gotland (or just any count), become Emperor of The Holy Roman Empire (achieving this could unlock a tag that changes the name of the title).
How can it be hubris when I'm in no way connected to the game developer? :D

There's an entire thread dedicated to achievement suggestions so you're dead wrong on that one.

I don't know what got to you, or if you just woke up on the wrong side of bed this morning, but lighten up man.
 
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