Or, if you already own the DLC that lets you design your own ruler, create a new Jewish character that way too. Jewish characters will pop up in the courts of other characters too, so I presume it would be possible to have a young heir tutored in the ways of the Jewish faith and approach the Israel situation from somewhere other than Khazar. Handily enough, being able to celebrate Passover (another added event) provides a regular boost to prestige.īest of all, nobody tried to stab me during Passover. Israel is still a distant dream, but at least two of the three areas that make up Khazar now accept Judaism as the one true faith.
I did the best I could and just took hits to prestige by marrying common courtiers, on the basis that keeping the Jewish dynasty alive was more important than keeping up my royal appearances. You’re an “infidel” to pretty much everybody and a “foreigner” to boot, which are sizeable hits to your relationships and makes it basically impossible to find a high-ranking lady to marry. Since the natural inclination is to aim for the reformation of Israel and the short-term goal is simply to remain in existence, it’s a bit of a tricky one to master. In fact, there’s only one lonely Duke hanging on to the rather historically important realm of Khazaria. By the default Crusader Kings II start date of 1066, the Jewish faith is not doing too well for rulers. Out of all the Abrahamic religions, it’s really Christianity that’s seen most attention in this DLC but over in the East, it’s Judaism that has the most direct, challenging scenario to play. Heresies have been spruced up too, so if you want to lead the Fraticellis to greatness and have them become the new norm with their own Pope and everything, that’s something you can do. As a player you can use these mechanics to try to get a friendly face in the Vatican, who in turn should be happy to stick a big CRUSADE HERE sign on someone for you or grant you a juicy title claim. The Pope chooses his nine favourite cardinals (based, as far as I can tell, on how Italian they are and how much money they’ve given him) and whenever a Pope dies, those cardinals select a new one. Though the latter might have wanted something in return, like a nice plot of land to build something on.Īnd though I wasn’t actively taking part in it, the whole process of electing a Pope has been expanded. Had I required additional gold, I could’ve borrowed it from some accommodating Jewish merchants or a Holy Order. It reflects more kindly on the disposition of a ruler than a brutal beheading. Thanks to the added ability to force unmarried courtiers to take the vows of a monk or nun, I was also able to get rid of a couple of the assassination plotters in this fashion. He opted to go to Santiago, was thoroughly unimpressed by the quality of the totally real religious relics on show there and picked up the ‘Cynical” trait. As a moderately powerful Catholic who wasn’t really in a position to manipulate the Pope, the religious aspects added by this new DLC only affected the peripheries of that particular playthrough.īut while nothing dramatic happened, I was able to partake in a few new things like sending my ruler on a pilgrimage. So far, so Crusader Kings II, but you could do all of that before Sons of Abraham was released. Making me your heir was your first mistake, cousin. In other words, I’m just a well-placed knife or two away from power.
He currently flips back and forth over whether the heir to the Kingdom of England should be (a now adult) me, or his young son. Then the King caught tuberculosis and died (hurrah!) leaving my cousin in charge. Luckily, I discovered this plot and forced most of the conspirators to knock it off. He didn’t get a Christmas card that year. A bit harsh, considering the fact that at this point the (new) Duke of York was six years old. By way of thanking me for helping him take the throne, my uncle then started a plot to have me assassinated. After waiting out the initial Viking invasion, the country rose in rebellion (led by my uncle) to see off William the Conqueror. I started off as the Duke of York, because he’s a fairly powerful character and well-positioned in England though contrary to media reports he does not have ten thousand men.
It’s been a tremendous excuse to re-visit the game. I’ve had plenty of my own medieval fun with Sons of Abraham, but it’s been in a more traditional Crusader Kings II style.