What are the keys to successful assassination?

[Sgian Dubh]

Okay,

My Intrigue is 33 (total), of which my spy master has 21. Yet I cannot seem to assainate anyone or if I do rarely succeed, I am discovered.

What role does the loyalty of an advisor play in all of this. My Spy Master's loyalty is a bit low, well it is 30 ish.... Okay, it is in the mid-twenties.

 

[Avalanchemike]

Well, I can't really answer your question, though I know assassinating the enemy's spymaster usually helps.

However, having such a low loyal courtier, especially one in a position of spymaster (Or for that matter any court position) is horrible. It can trigger events than can hurt or even kill your character. In the case of a disloyal steward, they can steal money, and a lot of it too.

First thing, you should do is put in a more loyal courtier. It's better to have a spymaster with only a 12 int and loyalty of 100, rather than one with 25 int and a loyalty of 20.

 

[DarthJF]

First thing, you should do is put in a more loyal courtier. It's better to have a spymaster with only a 12 int and loyalty of 100, rather than one with 25 int and a loyalty of 20.

Yeah, when you're the target of that one assasination your spymaster happens to execute perfectly, you're going to hope that maybe you should have had spymaster who wasn't that good in his job.

 

[unmerged(135995)]

...Because an unloyal spymaster might turn on you...

 

[Nick B II]

Assassinating is flaky. Sometimes you have a lucky streak, sometimes you have an unlucky streak. Succeeding but getting caught counts as lucky. Have you been pausing the game, and assassinating the spy-master (you will get caught) before you try to kill the true target? I've never heard of a player having significant success assasinating without doing the cheesy pause, murder enemy spymaster, etc. routine.

Loyalty is very important in your courtiers. Believe me. I spent half my current game excommunicated, with very disloyal Courtiers. My Chancellors hated me, but didn't betray me. My Stewards constantly stole cash. And one of my spymasters tried to murder me.

So I started using Spymaster as a sinecure for useless whiny sons. My current spymaster has 0-intrigue. But he's loyal 'cause he's my son and second-in-line to inherit. And he stopped demanding his 20-Stewardship Stepmom's job.

I'll suffer no ill effects as long as I don't start an assasination war with the AI. And actually come out ahead -- my competent spymasters tend to come up with hare-brained schemes to bankrupt me.

Nick

 

[OutsiderSubtype]

In my opinion, the cost in gold and BB of assassinations is way too high to justify the very limited success rate. I only have success killing "inconvenient" people in my own court (amazing how often my neighbors' fosterling sons have accidents) and sometimes lords who forget to appoint spymasters.

 

[MistMage]

Assassinating rulers is far more difficult then killing lesser people, I believe. It's still something I try to avoid though, since it's a bit risky and hard to get done properly.

 

[unmerged(70421)]

disloyal spymasters are very bad, you may get an event that kills you!