Converting holdings to convert AI castle building spam

[Dahoota]

Seriously, why is this not a thing?

At the moment, the AI only builds holdings that a correspond to their government type. When you conquer good lands from the AI or join a MP game in progress you inevitably get stuck with lands containing nothing but castles...

Medieval 2 Total War had a system like this to convert between the castle and city holding types. As the period progressed to the late middle ages, you could no longer convert to castles as they became less useful/viable (gunpowder).

I imagine it happening one of 2 ways:

Option 1: Have the option to simply destroy the holding and rebuilding from scratch. Not at all historical but in-game execution would be very simple. You can only do this if you personally control the holding.

Option 2: Conversion

• The holding goes completely offline for 2-3 years like a newly constructed holding. You pay a large amount of gold and get no income from it for that period.
• Any buildings that have a direct equivalent in the new holding type get converted.
• Any buildings that don't have an equivalent are simply destroyed.
• The character type of the baron-rank owner is converted. In the case of a feudal holding being converted, you personally need to hold the title first.

Thoughts?

Edit: Title was supposed to read "Converting holdings to combat AI castle building spam". Oops.

 

[Battle bunny]

Option 3: Have the AI build stuff other than castles.

Option 1 is good though (if the AI doesn't do it) because it is guaranteed not to make the game worse, while the other suggestion might break balance or be useless depending on how it's implemented.

 

[TL_]

It would be nice for the AI build with a little more variety, but I still think feudal governments should be weighted to pick castles most of the time.

I mean, ideally the AI would consider its budget and its troop count (versus those of neighbors) and decide on the best choice, or pick temples if they have pious traits, but that's a lot to ask.

 

[Arsonik]

I like stacking castles in my primary duchy. 8-12 fully upgraded castles getting 25-50% levy size increase = a lot of levy.

 

[CannotresistDLC]

On the topic, a feudal AI ruler will build a city and a temple if those are his only options before he can start stacking up more castles, right? I've never paid much attention to this but it could be important to my nomads. I don't care for castles much, and temples are so-so, but I do like to leave at least the cities unrazed - particularly along the silk road.

 

[Arsonik]

On the topic, a feudal AI ruler will build a city and a temple if those are his only options before he can start stacking up more castles, right? I've never paid much attention to this but it could be important to my nomads. I don't care for castles much, and temples are so-so, but I do like to leave at least the cities unrazed - particularly along the silk road.

There are the occasional holdings which only have 1 slot occupied... Can't think of any of them on the top of my head, but you are usually restricted from building a 2nd or 3rd castle for instance until you have one church and one city. I wonder if you could get the AI to bypass that requirement in these counties.