Hi folks!

Tomorrow is the release day for Monks and Mystics and, of course, the 2.7 patch - exciting times! Now, we've already covered the new features pretty well, so... how about a Q&A? Unleash your questions about everything CK!

(Oh, and don't miss the livestreams later today, 16:00 CET as usual!)

 

[Archinorf]

What would you really like to do but is prevented by the engine or the basic structures of the game?

 

[Doomdark]

Societies seem perfect to model nobles being members of holy orders. Was it considered in the making of the expansion ?

Yes, it was, but, unfortunately didn't make the final cut.

 

[[Arthur-PDX]]

I currently ponder which game to focus on for the next weeks. CK2 with Monks and Mystics is a candidate. The relics / artifacts feature could have the biggest appeal for me, but I can't judge if it just a showcase for some random items with barely any influence on the game or if it's really enriching the game experience. Can you share any information about this feature that wasn't covered in its dev diary?

Artifacts will vary in types, value and methods of getting your hands on it. Thus, you'll be able to have a blacksmith forge you a common axe, if you're tight on money, or craft an awesome sword boosting your stats and prestige if you've got the gold for it.
You'll also be able to get regal attire : crowns, scepters and various jewels to improve your prestige and make your vassals respect you more thanks to all your bling.
Of course, religious relics affecting your troops morale, health and standing within your realm will also be numerous.
Or you can just decide that your neighbour doesn't really deserve everything in his treasury and just go ahead and plunder his demesne in the hopes you'll actually get one of his items.

What are the Islamic monastic orders, if any?

As of now, there are no Muslim Monastic Orders in the game.

Are secret religion cults mechanically identical to societies? Or do they work differently, being created on the fly as needed?

Secret Cults function 95% like Societies, except that they don't "exist" from game start and one has to create them through decisions before you can interact with them.

"How long do cults last? Until the last member or does the cult leader have to be forced to dissolve it?"​

Until the last member.

 

[Me_]

I'll return to this subject in an upcoming dev diary.

When? Is there going to be a DD next week?

 

[Moah]

• Q1: Will there be any multiplayer-related balance and stability fixes? Large campaigns(20+ players) suffer from constant OOS.
• Q2: How about playable theocracies? Playing a corrupt clerical dynasty and fighting for the Papal tiara sounds so good to me.
• Q3: Will there be any naval improvements? At least basic naval combat would be an awesome addition.
• Q4: How about map improvements? Some ppl may recognize me from EU4 forum where I advocated (sometimes in harsh manner) changes for Eastern Europe and Caucasus. In CK2 those regions also seem to be lacking.

Q1: as @Meneth pointed out, we have fixed a couple of OOS, some of them plaguing us for a long time. MP is always being worked on and improved, and we have regular sessions with 15+ players to catch them. If we find them, we fix them.
Q2: No playable theocracies.
Q3: Naval combat changes are not planned at this time, and naval combat is unlikely to ever happen.
Q4: I can't comment on those, they are outside my purview

I meant military holy order, sorry.
I don't know how that would interact with their "mercenary" aspect.

There were plans to be able to join holy orders as lay members, in the same way you can join monastic orders, but alas...

 

[Mamluk]

I don't know if this has been touched on before but to what extent can you as a player influence the direction of a religious cult? Are their purposes and ideas set in stone?

 

[Zak Preston]

There was a dev diary about some map improvements coming in 1.7: https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/foru...ev-diary-40-visiting-the-cartographer.998368/

I meant more provinces =)

 

[Archinorf]

Secret Cults function 95% like Societies, except that they don't "exist" from game start and one has to create them through decisions before you can interact with them.

If they are dynamic, what prevent them from being accessible to heresies? (If I understood correctly the fact that heresies weren't concerned)

 

[Moah]

If they are dynamic, what prevent them from being accessible to heresies? (If I understood correctly the fact that heresies weren't concerned)

They are dynamic in the fact they are created when people join them, but they have to exist as a game entity. As often, time and scope are the main culprits here.

 

[[Arthur-PDX]]

I didn't read anything about toning down elective factions and fixing claimant faction you guys mentioned in a dev stream.​

It's in the works. I don't think it's going to be in the 2.7.0 but it should be better soon after.

It says that there will be new clothes/outfits for those in the orders, and I have seen a screenshot of a cultist of some demonic sort - will we be able to see who is in a society, just from their clothes - I mean, it seems easy to spot the one vassal with a goat-mask!
How does these new outfits work? Will it only be vissible, if you share society?

You'll only be able to see a character's Secret Society clothing if you also are in that Secret Society, otherwise they'll appear with their regular clothes.
Secret Society Club rule number 1 : don't talk about Secret Society Club.
Secret Society Club rule number 2 : don't wear your Secret Society Club outfit in the open, I mean, come on...

However, Society Clothing of members of an open society (monastic orders for example) will be visible to all.

 

[Doomdark]

What about counties and base titles not having a ruler on later bookmarks? E.g. India have a lot of issues with this.

I can make you a detailed list if you want.

Sure!

 

[Moarice]

Have you ever considered going back to something that was already covered by an old DLC and remaking the stuff in there? E.g. doing a rework of Muslim or Nomad mechanics?

 

[Doomdark]

A answer for my question in the patch thread would be welcome.

I know it's not a question per definition but still something I am curious of.

Do you plan any measures to tighten the difficulty of the game for experienced players? Because conclave opinion maluses got nerfed with NAPs and many difficult situations don't even appear when you know how to avoid it in the beginning. The simple difficulty setting only effects battle outcomes and game rules also nerf the AI. Often so much that harder game rules make the game more difficult for the AI than for the player (half demesne/VL).

AI Faction joining has been heavily tweaked and a serious bug with Claimant Factions fixed - in a later patch level. You should get those fixes soon, but not tomorrow. Making the game harder for experienced players is a goal, but we have to do it without destroying the fun of blobbing.

 

[sreckom92]

Secret Society Club rule number 1 : don't talk about Secret Society Club.
Secret Society Club rule number 2 : don't wear your Secret Society Club outfit in the open, I mean, come on...

Can I put this in my signature?

 

[Magmus]

Can secret religions be passed down through children? As in will a catholic crypto-muslim's heirs also be catholic crypto-muslims?

 

[Mamluk]

Can secret religions be passed down through children? As in will a catholic crypto-muslim's heirs also be catholic crypto-muslims?

And can a Catholic crypto-Muslim become a "formal" Muslim if his Catholic liege is replaced with a Muslim? Without the negative consequences that would otherwise be incurred when converting that is.

 

[[Arthur-PDX]]

Can I put this in my signature?

Rule number 3...

Can secret religions be passed down through children? As in will a catholic crypto-muslim's heirs also be catholic crypto-muslims?

When you have a secret religion, you'll have the possibility of educating your children in your secret faith's ways, so yes.

And can a Catholic crypto-Muslim become a "formal" Muslim if his Catholic liege is replaced with a Muslim?

When you have a secret faith, you can at any time use a decision to openly adopt it.

 

[Federalist girl]

Q: Somebody asked earlier about Slavic portraits, and I have a similar Q: are there plans to add more early and (especially) late clothing packs?

Obviously core game mechanics are the base of CK2, without which we wouldn't be here. But the sheer variety of portraits and hats is what makes the character-based map come alive from me, and what keeps me playing CK2 much longer than all my other games. The early/late portrait system is a great addition given the changes in the game's time span and it'll be great to see more of those in use, since the Byzantines (my favs) are the only ones with a full set of clothes in all eras.

Of course, the Slavs, French, etc could still use portraits too...

 

[VoodooEconomist]

What is your stance on slavery? Specifically, the Mamluks, Ghilman and Saqaliba, and how they influenced the era, would you like to go beyond the "vassalised mercenary" route? Do you think generals making bids for palace coups could help breaking up blobs late game, a la ERE?

 

[Xwedidit]

Any word on if the mamluks or ghilman will ever be able to be vassalized? I like playing Muslim a lot and it always bothers me how taking their parent titles doesn't transfer control