Crusader Kings 2!

[Seperallis]

A mini-AAR of my latest exploits?

So I took up my good ol' Venice game again, just because I want to finish out something. It's not hard, but I really want to see how far and how close to world conquest I can get, especially since I didn't decide to go hard into it until more than mid way through the game. I also didn't learn limitations on that goal until very recently...but we'll get into that.

Starting where I left off, more or less, I had a few more DLC installed, and so I got to play with them. Most notably the Reaper's Due, which gave me the Black Death less than a year after I started playing again, so no one had any hospitals anywhere. The plague spread across the entire continent like wildfire; using my vast wealth I was able to scramble and get some okay ones in my lands, so at least my home wasn't so depopulated as the rest of the continent, but...geez.


This isn't a thumbnail, I just wanted to show the spread of the plague over about 4 or 5 years or so.

Some time ago, just for an achievement, I set up an antipope. Sadly, eventually, my vassal Italy took Rome from the pope in a war. Not wanting my vassal to get any stronger (and also because the pope was being all mean about it), I declared war on the pope, and made my pope the best and only pope, despite the efforts of the entire world. I then laughed at my vassal and gave Rome back to the pope, because I could. Suck it, world, this is my pope now.


Too bad he's a bad guy and probably a satanist, but I'm a cynic, so what do I care?

I declared some more wars...or tried to, but somehow some time ago, Paradox patched out the ability to declare war on multiple coalition members before the coalition was called in (now they're called automatically upon declaration, like all allies), which is both stupid and understandable. Instead, I only declared war on Pannonia, and some independed guy who wasn't in a coalition for some reason, and joined some other war for some guy's claim on Burgundy...which gave me all three, because the claimant was a vassal somewhere in my realm; I don't know, I barely keep track of them all after I snag 'em and land 'em. :tehe:

Somewhere along the way I called in some favors and abolished the council. I don't need some lame pansies who don't appreciate my grand and glorious vision telling me what I can or cannot do with my realm. Dumbies.

I got bored, not wanting another major war with the world. Also, I ran out of claimants for anything other than counties and other icky stuff, SAD. So instead I amused myself for a minute by murdering away all the other patrician families and netting myself a few more trade posts, because how else am I supposed to get more than 40?


What, you want me to have unlanded males in my household? LOL no, what kind of idiot do you take me for?

Fortunately, somewhere along the way Grand Prince Ezio "The Black" Galbaio died from the stress of chasing the almighty florin, bringing his cool son Michaelangelo to the fore.


Horray! Time to declare ALL the wars before the coalitions get re-formed.

I immediately declared just about as many wars as I thought I could handle, bringing in several more realms and further shattering the pitiful remains of the Muslim world. Sadly the Roman emperor is pretty strong and good, and has been building his power by crushing rebels and expanding east with me. I've started picking away as best I can at his ugly purple lands by sniping rebel lands with my claimant bait, but he's a bit stronger than I want to deal with directly. I will have to crush him eventually and claim my rightful place in Constantinople, but I have another problem.


I had lots of titles to give away after so much conquests.

I expanded too quickly, and have too many vassals (my limit is 28, and I have, what, 34? 35? My main problem is my reckless distribution of top-tier titles earlier on, but my constant subsuming of additional top-tier king vassals with my Claimant Catfishing has left me with some internal cleaning to do, as I'm hemorrhaging both funds and troop levies to the "over vassal limit" penalty.

That led to problem number 2: I just discovered in my last sessions that republics can't have an imperial administration, which would almost double my vassal limit. Something something viceroys and inheritable titles, but I call B.S., as Paradox could simply, you know, make it so republics with imperial administration don't get the option to sort around titles. Yes yes, I know that would make republics even more broken and overpowered, but it's still WEAK. >:U

Oh well, nothing for it but to tighten my belt and bait some fools into becoming traitors, so I can consolidate some vassals.



That's pretty much it. I'm really looking to add even more realms to my collection, but I know that would be far too greedy at this stage...which is sad because I have prime opportunity to really jump my borders further (and clean up the Poland Hole). More important to me, though, is to keep stealing the Byzantine duchies when they rebel, as many of them as I can get, since I have no other opportunity to break it up. I've started on it, but I have a long way to go.

Also, what is up with the pope and always declaring holy wars for the "christian souls" of the inner steppes, or the heart of India? I'm sure all one of them are fine...

Anyway, that's about it. There's the map. It's ugly. That purple is ugly. I also added the basic map to make it easier to see everything.