Cultures other than Scandanavian in the Varangian Guard

[Yes_Aranovich]

Is there a way to make Russians, Anglo-Saxons, Serbs and Bulgarians randomly spawn as members of the Varangian Guard? Also include Russian, Anglo-Saxon, Serbian and Bulgarian aristocrats to join just as Norse, Swedish, Danish and Norwegian ones do currently.

 

[Rascar Capac]

And Saxons!

 

[Ciniod]

Why not Estonian and Finnish, pretty sure they were also in the varangian guard.

 

[Yes_Aranovich]

Absolutely. It doesn't really matter what cultures. I just want to know what I have to edit in the files in order for this to happen.

 

[RhaegarTelcontarTargaryen]

I support this. It is said that in the latter stages (of the game timeframe) Varangian guard had more AngloSaxon, Norman, Frank and German members than Norse.

 

[queermobile]

I'm pretty sure you can just go to your steam -> crusader kings ii/common folder, open up the landed_tiles.txt file, find d_varangian_guard and where it says culture = norse just add whatever other cultures you want.
ex:

# Parent Religion
religion = orthodox

culture = norse
culture = russian
culture = estonian
culture = saxon

etc, etc. I'm not 100% positive because I've never tried to add cultures to a title but I think if anything works it'll be this. The wiki states that it uses the culture = section for randomly generated title holders. Naturally you also won't be able to get iron man achievements with this edited, if you care.

 

[es333]

Just saying that there were even more Estonians in the Varangian guard than Anglo-Saxons or Franks. The start of the route from Scandinavia to Eastern-Europe, the Black Sea and the Arabs lands was completely under Estonian control for the entire viking age and they paid tribute to the Estonians to pass through as they couldn't conquer their next-door neighbour. At one point many Estonians decided to sail with them southwards through the rivers of Eastern-Europe. Back then people on both sides of the Baltic sea were bilingual anyway.

 

[Yes_Aranovich]

I'm pretty sure you can just go to your steam -> crusader kings ii/common folder, open up the landed_tiles.txt file, find d_varangian_guard and where it says culture = norse just add whatever other cultures you want.
ex:

# Parent Religion
religion = orthodox

culture = norse
culture = russian
culture = estonian
culture = saxon

etc, etc. I'm not 100% positive because I've never tried to add cultures to a title but I think if anything works it'll be this. The wiki states that it uses the culture = section for randomly generated title holders. Naturally you also won't be able to get iron man achievements with this edited, if you care.

Will characters from landed families of those cultures join the Varangian Guard as they do now? It would be cool to have Rurikids with the Varangian trait.

 

[queermobile]

Will characters from landed families of those cultures join the Varangian Guard as they do now? It would be cool to have Rurikids with the Varangian trait.

I'm not positive, but I don't see why not. Have you ever seen them join in the Old Gods bookmark where they start Norse and Germanic pagan?

 

[Yes_Aranovich]

I'm not positive, but I don't see why not. Have you ever seen them join in the Old Gods bookmark where they start Norse and Germanic pagan?

I've tried a few different combinations. When I added:

culture = norse
culture = russian
culture = estonian
culture = saxon

Only norse appeared. I killed a Captains and all the replacements were Norse.

I then tried:

culture = norse
culture = russian

It was only norse.

I then tried:

culture = norse
culture = greek

This was split half Norse/half Greek.

I then tried:

culture = russian
culture = saxon

This was solely Saxon. I couldn't get any Russians to spawn at all.

 

[queermobile]

Does Russian exist as a culture yet in the bookmark you're trying? You could also try culture = east_slavic and I'm pretty certain any cultures that fall beneath that that exist should spawn (ie severnian and volhynian)

 

[Yes_Aranovich]

Does Russian exist as a culture yet in the bookmark you're trying? You could also try culture = east_slavic and I'm pretty certain any cultures that fall beneath that that exist should spawn (ie severnian and volhynian)

It does. d_rus_band is culture = russian. There must be other triggers for it.

 

[Mackus]

You can't make randomly spawned courtiers to be non-Scandinavian, since they are always same culture as their direct liege - that is captain of Varangian guard, which is Scandinavian.
What you can do, is to make more pre-existing characters able to join varangian guard.
find event: TOG.3109 (its in old_golds_various_events.txt)
in trigger = { } scope, find both instances of
culture_group = north_germanic
and replace them with
OR = {
culture_group = north_germanic
culture = saxon
culture = old_saxon
culture = russian
culture = finnish
culture = ugricbaltic
}

 

[Dahoota]

Are there many randomly spawned courtiers in the VG though? I thought that the majority of them are sons from Germanic houses just like holy orders. I guess there would need to be in later starts.

You see other cultures appear if Germanic reforms/spreads, particularly in the 867 start if the Rurikids stay Germanic.

 

[Ribbon]

Are there many randomly spawned courtiers in the VG though? I thought that the majority of them are sons from Germanic houses just like holy orders. I guess there would need to be in later starts.

You see other cultures appear if Germanic reforms/spreads, particularly in the 867 start if the Rurikids stay Germanic.

(North) Germanic culture, not religion, though, correct? Or are there multiple possible triggers? This is an older game, but my Caliphate was getting quite a few Varangians filtering back.

 

[Yes_Aranovich]

Scandinavian caliphate. Well memed, sir.

It based North Germanic culture, not religion that fires the events.

 

[Dahoota]

(North) Germanic culture, not religion, though, correct? Or are there multiple possible triggers? This is an older game, but my Caliphate was getting quite a few Varangians filtering back.

Well I guess my experience has been that when the AI Germanic religion spreads, so do the cultures.

I don't have any screenshots, but I do specifically remember at least one instance of a Rurikid varangian running off with my daughter. I remember it because It got super difficult as a series of unfortunate events with my sons lead to her becoming my character's heir.

 

[es333]

You can't make randomly spawned courtiers to be non-Scandinavian, since they are always same culture as their direct liege - that is captain of Varangian guard, which is Scandinavian.
What you can do, is to make more pre-existing characters able to join varangian guard.
find event: TOG.3109 (its in old_golds_various_events.txt)
in trigger = { } scope, find both instances of
culture_group = north_germanic
and replace them with
OR = {
culture_group = north_germanic
culture = saxon
culture = old_saxon
culture = russian
culture = finnish
culture = ugricbaltic
}

When browsing CK 2 text files I always find the classification of Estonian culture extremely odd as it is not ugric nor baltic. Ugric to the Finno part is like Indians to the English in the Indo-European family.

 

[Ciniod]

When browsing CK 2 text files I always find the classification of Estonian culture extremely odd as it is not ugric nor baltic. Ugric to the Finno part is like Indians to the English in the Indo-European family.

How is Estonian not baltic though? Its been in the baltic region for a long time, I think even before Sweden and all that hot settled.

 

[StarSword]

Scandinavian caliphate. Well memed, sir.

And Shi'ite to boot.