Wondering how to raise levies in CK3? In case you’re new to Crusader Kings 3, levies are an essential part of any war plans. Levies are, to put it simply, conscripted soldiers from your kingdom or holdings. Just as all parts of your realm raise taxes for you, any holdings you or your vassals have also contribute a set amount of levies that you can call upon in times of war.
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Sep 01, 2020 Crusader Kings 3 has a decent tutorial, but it doesn’t do a great job of giving you the big picture. Here’s three tips that will have you playing for keeps. By which I mean castles. Crusader Kings III is a game that focuses almost entirely on characters and dynasties. Paradox revamped many of the systems, slapped on a new user interface, added high0resolution graphics,.
Levies themselves are not particularly strong and are the most basic soldier you can get in Crusader Kings 3, boasting just ten damage and ten toughness. However, considering you can amass a few thousand of these from your holdings in a matter of days, they’re a vital resource for attacking and defending.
Any of your personal holdings will always produce the maximum number of levies, while the number of levies drummed up by your vassals depends on the feudal contract you hold with them. In this guide, we’ll break down the very basics of how to raise levies, and how to increase the number of levy soldiers that you are able to raise at any given moment.
How to raise levies in CK3
If you’re just looking for how to ‘activate’ your levies and turn all of those random villagers into an army then there are a couple of means depending on the situation. If you’re at war with someone or have recently had war declared on you, then the simplest way is to simply select the “raise all armies” button that should pop up at the bottom of your screen as soon as the proverbial hits the fan. This will prompt all of your available levies and other armed forces to move toward wherever your rally point is set.
Unlike CK2, your levies in Crusader Kings 3 will appear wherever you’ve set your rally points. Depending on how big your realm is, it may take them several days (or even weeks) to all arrive there, but you won’t be watching them all make their way from across your territory. If you have more than one rally point, your levies will try to divide themselves up roughly equally among them.
You can also do this at any time, including peace time, by heading to the military tab and clicking the same “raise all armies” button. However, you can’t declare war with your army raised – that’s simply unsporting.
How to increase your levies in CK3
So you know how to get all your levies together and wage war with them, but how do you get more levies?
There are plenty of ways to increase your levies in Crusader Kings 3. The bulk of your levies come from either your holdings or the holdings of your vassals.
Vassals all have different strengths, weaknesses, and values that determine how much money and how many levies they can raise in their holding. You also have a feudal contract with each of your vassals that will determine roughly what pressure you’re placing in them in terms of providing taxes or levies. Therefore, picking the best vassals for raising levies, increasing the number of vassals in your kingdom, and making sure your feudal contracts with them are providing as many levies as they’re happy with is key to raising that number.
More help? Read our Crusader Kings 3 beginner’s guide
As levies also come from your personal holdings, improving these with buildings and upgrading them will also net you more levies. Any levies coming from personal holdings are also loyal to you, so it’s great to have a good stock of these to quell any rebellions.
Reinforcing levies
Some players have reported difficulties replenishing or reinforcing their levies. Whether it’s a bug or not is currently unknown, but you can easily replenish your levies by selecting the ‘raise all armies’ option again.
We’ve also got a quick primer showing you how to raid in CK3, not to mention a full Crusader Kings 3 review to read if you’re looking for some verdict validation. There’s even a buzzing CK3 mods scene if you’re that way inclined. For more like this, check out the best strategy games on PC, and the best 4X games for a slightly different type of scheming.
With over two thousand mods on Steam Workshop alone, the Crusader Kings II modding community have recently passed a milestone in user-generated content. This impressive feat is a blessing for players but also a cause for paralysis: Which of these mods should one choose?
After all, even if one focuses on just the popular choices, so many other excellent mods might be overlooked.
What are the best CK2 Mods?
- After The End Fan Fork (Essential)
- CK2+ (Essential)
- A Game of Thrones Mod (Essential)
- When The World Stopped Making Sense (Essential)
- Elder Kings (Essential)
- Ruler Designer Unlocked (Character)
- Rich Childhood (Character)
- Sketchy Traits (Character)
- Your Personal Castle (Mechanics)
- No Inter-religious Defensive Pacts (Mechanics)
- Improved Genetics (Mechanics)
- Patrum Scuta (Cosmetic)
- In heavens Cartographic Map (Cosmetic)
- Anime Portraits (Cosmetic)
- Medieval Music Complete (Cosmetic)
HOW TO MOD CK2
For first timers wanting to modify their game, Steam Workshop has thankfully made the whole process as easy as clicking the subscribe button on the mod you want and Crusader Kings II will automatically download it and add it to its launcher. From there, the player can choose to enable or disable any mod of their choice.
As outlined in previous guides, here are some essential tips for modding a Paradox title via Steam for the first time:
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- Check if the mod is up to date with the most recent patch for Crusader Kings II. Once a new expansion comes out you may have to wait a few days, weeks, or even months for bigger mods, until the mod is updated. Thankfully, CKII will give you a warning if you're about to load a mod that isn't up to date. Also, each mod will tell you on the side menu if it requires certain DLC.
- Hey, still want to play that favourite mod of yours but CKII's latest update ruins your save game? You can always roll back your CKII version to continue your campaign. Check the mod pages on Steam or the Paradox forums on how to do this since it might be different for each mod and version of the game. If all else fails, ask in the comments threads for instructions!
- Check if the mods you've selected are compatible with the other mods you've downloaded. This information is usually found on each mod's page as they usually list which mods they are able to run with.
- Remember that most mods are Ironman incompatible as they necessarily change balance. If you're achievement hunting, you'll need to find those mods that will tell you on their descriptions that they're Ironman compatible.
- Finally, sometimes it takes a while for the CKII interface to properly load the mod's latest version. Check if you have auto-updates enabled for mods and then, if you're unsure, simply relaunch the CKII launcher to check if all of the mods are present and up to date.
For mods too large for Steam, you can usually hunt for their pages on the Paradox Forums and find the instructions on how to install from there. You can also google search large mod Wikipedia’s in order to find instructions for installation.
The Best CK2 Total Conversion Mods
Mods that change almost everything with a singular guiding hand. Microsoft express service code. A total suite is presented to the player to try. Thankfully, CKII has some of the best Total Conversion Mods in the Paradox Stable.
After the End Fan Fork
This is a 'fan continuation' of the original 'After the End' CK2 mod set in a post-apocalyptic USA. The year is 2666, and centuries have passed since a cataclysmic event knocked human civilisation back to the medieval period. You can play anywhere in North America, the Caribbean, or the northern coast of South America with over a thousand provinces, 47 different religions, and 31 different culture groups.
Our resident Paradox mod expert, Timothy, commented that he hadn't seen a mod get as fervent a fanbase since Hearts of Iron 4's Kaiserreich mod. Just the setting alone makes this worth checking out, not to mention all of the work that's gone into setting up this post-apocalyptic North America. Well worth checking out if you want something completely different. Compatible up to the latest patch & with Holy Fury.
CK2+
One example of a mod not on the Steam Workshop, CK2+ is a massive overhaul that changes every aspect of the game from the map to core mechanics to events. Aimed at giving more content for the player to explore whether it's new provinces, new interactions with other characters, or new mechanics such as a factions overhaul, there is a reason it is titled CK2+.
This mod is so venerable and respectable as a total upgrade for the game that individual mods on the Steam Workshop make CK2+ compatible versions of their mods specifically to be included in this grander Crusader Kings II experience.
Follow the link above and follow the instructions on the forum to find how to install this amazing piece of work! If you like this mod, also check out the Historical Immersion Project located in the same modding sub-forum as CK2+. It's wort noting that since mid-2019 the team have been working on trying to rebuild this mod from the ground up, as it was proving too difficult to maintain in its current state.
As such, the mod hasn't been updated since mid-2019.
A Game of Thrones Mod
Crusader Kings II is probably the best game in all of PC gaming to represent the intense political action of George R.R. Martin's world. This mod seeks to do the universe of A Song of Ice and Fire justice with its impressively researched bookmarks and hefty focus on character interactions. It is not only a complete overhaul of the game mechanics to match the books, but the addition of other interactions such as magic and a complex system to handle massive civil wars with multiple claimants expands the CKII experience to new heights.
Compatible up to Version 3.2.1
When The World Stopped Making Sense
Delve into the “dark” ages of late antiquity and the Early Middle Ages when the collapse of the Roman Empire in the West brought about a chaos that shook the very core of European Civilization. Pushing back the start date to 476, a whole new world of content is available to the player and a rich time extension is populated by meticulously researched settings, bookmarks, and historical persons. New decisions and mechanics bring this unique part of world history to life in stunning detail.
Compatible up to Version 3.2.2.
Elder Kings
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Not to be outdone, the Elder Scrolls fandom has its own gorgeous and deeply detailed mod. Replete with custom events and custom mechanics, this puts the TOTAL in Total Conversion. You don't even need to be a fan of the Elder Scrolls to appreciate a dive into this dense and fully fleshed out world.
One of their most clever converted mechanics is the transformation of the Chinese Empire console from the base game into whole realms you can interact with ruled by their respective diety. One of the most polished mods out there.
Compatible with Holy Fury.
The Best CK2 Character Mods
CKII is the Paradox game that focuses on characters and historical figures more than simply abstract nations or empires. A whole treatment of mods just for this central focus is a big part of modding CKII.
Ruler Designer Unlocked
Finally, creating your perfect starting character has never been easier. The mod's title is self explanatory as traits are available for your custom character without any restrictions (unless you yourself place those restrictions!). Unique playthroughs and unique dynasties are finally available to the player. A simple yet incredibly rewarding mod, this is a must for anyone who wants full control over the progenitor of their dynasty.
Rich Childhood
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Rich is the right word for it. This mod brings to life the interim years of a young man or woman's rise to adulthood. Instead of a tiny whelp that eventually becomes a “real” character, this mod seeks to make the experience of growing up as exciting as adult life. There is no downside to this mod. The events offer a playful and intriguing encounter for the player for those (hopefully) rare times where regencies must be in charge of a young prince or princess.
Sketchy Traits
Another simple mod that adds a plethora of interesting and necessary traits available for characters to have. Physical traits such as fluency and fertility as well as personality traits such as psychopathy and creativity are some of the additions that puts another dimension to the already character-oriented nature of CKII. Whether it's seeking extra bonuses or looking to generate a compelling narrative, this mod helps to add texture to the character trait system.
Trait Softcap Exterminated
All that hard work making all the “right” decisions to develop the character and personality you've always wanted is now finally preserved! CKII intrinsically has a hidden limit for character traits and this mod simply eliminates this cap. With this mod, a player's actions finally stick and personalities culminate in grandiose and memorable characters. Available here.
The Best CK2 Mechanical Mods
Modding can be as simple as changing game mechanics to suit one's needs or elevate gameplay. Here are some of the best in the genre.
Your Personal Castle
Isn't it strange that your capital holding is almost completely indistinguishable from anyone else's? Your Personal Castle addresses this issue by allowing the player to build bonus-creating additions to their home holding. Whether it's secret passages or studious libraries, not only are these great for customizing one's capital experience, but the mod also provides associated events to each addition to the castle that immerses the player in what it means to build a grand stronghold. By far one of the most popular mods out there!
No Inter-religious Defensive Pacts
A lesser known and small mod, but one I believe that truly makes sense. This mod disallows defensive pacts to form between different religions. There has been plenty of discussion about the game-mechanic known as defensive pacts while some saying it artificially hampers gameplay by gaming the system to resist the player. While other mods do away with defensive pacts in totality, I believe this small mod finds the better middle ground. Defensive pacts will form, but at least you won't have to worry about Richard the Lionheart and Saladin somehow joining forces to stop you. While some players might want that challenge, this mod is for those who want a slightly more historical treatment of expansion.
Improved Genetics
Using scientific data to bring more realism to CKII's genetics is the stated purpose of this mod and while it's a subtle change (since CKII's genetics system is not that far from 'reality'), this mod actually helps to make heredity in the game more reliable, stable, and predictable (thank you, science). The creator is not just versed in Mendelian genetics, but has factored in polygene inheritance for a truly fascinating if not invisible experience of heredity.
The Best CK2 Cosmetic Mods
What would be a mod list without some gorgeous aesthetic options to choose from? Here are some of the most pleasing offerings available.
Patrum Scuta
What would the Middle Ages be without the glorious beauty of heraldry? This mod takes this basic premise and turns it into a rich aesthetic experience. This is not simply a graphic pack that adds hundreds of new heraldic styles as well as enriching the present options, but this mod also implements them in a historically researched way.
True to history coats of arms are restored as well as dynamically generated crests are in line with researched records. This also presents a plethora of different options for custom dynasties that the only drawback is that it makes the selection menu for a heraldic shield over a thousand clicks long!
In heavens Cartographic Map
While Paradox's choice to present an abstracted three dimensional contour map is beautiful enough as it is, this mod brings the player back to a cartographical setting. It is as if the player is pulled into a map room with his or her closest advisers reviewing the state of the world on a map worthy of the timeframe. Let this graphical upgrade help to immerse you into the world of CKII!
Anime Portraits
I was surprised to discover it years ago and I was ashamed to admit that I loved it. Who knew that Crusader Kings II could be a unique anime experience? Oddly perfect portraits for every type of character and character condition make this mod both dazzling and frightening. Even if one is not a fan of the style, it stands as a testament to an impressive graphical upgrade. While not everyone's cup of tea, it also serves as an indication that there are plenty of mods out there that modify and improve character portraits to suit the player.
Medieval Music Complete
We can never overlook the rich musical history of the Middle Ages. From chants to poetry, this mod is one example of the plethora of auditory enhancements that reintroduces a bit of history to the game. While Paradox provides impressive music for its games, it commits a crime by not including period songs like it used to do for games like Europa Universalis II. Mods like this fix this disparity.
What are your favourite CK2 Mods? Let us know in the comments!