• We have updated our Community Code of Conduct. Please read through the new rules for the forum that are an integral part of Paradox Interactive’s User Agreement.

CK2 Dev Diary #84 - Renovating Russia

Greetings!

Today we’re going back into the cartographer’s office to view the latest maps of the vast lands that lie just before the eternal steppes, where the Volga flows - the land of the proud Rus’. The Russian lands have always felt rather underdeveloped in CK2 compared to their size, even very important sites such as Kiev or Novgorod have been occupied by massive Counties that hardly give the area justice. As the area is one which lies in between the lords of feudal western europe, the Roman remnants in Byzantium and the relentless nomads of the steppes we thought it much too interesting to not develop further.

As Russia is quite big, we’ve broken the images up into three parts. These pictures are all from the year 769, so if something isn’t named as you expect it to be (i.e. Novgorod being named Ilmen) that’s the reason why.

Starting off with the north:
RussiaDD_North.png

As you can see, the definition has increased rather significantly. Historicity has also been improved, as the new borders are all based on sources from between the years ~600 to ~1300 (From proto-slavic tribes migrating in the area to the dissolution of the Kievan Rus' by internal strife and the Mongol hordes) with a focus on the 700-1100 timespan.

Now the south:
RussiaDD_South.png

Of primary note is that Kiev is now split up, and no longer one single humongous County. Those of you with sharp eyes might also notice that there is a new nomadic nation up by Radimichia and Severia - the Burtas clan, which is Turkic.

And as a bonus, Wallachia:
RussiaDD_Wallachia.png

As Bessarabia was so interconnected with the Kievan and Crimean lands, it felt right to also give the kingdom of Wallachia a facelift.

And now for the De Jure maps, as they have been requested in every previous map Dev Diary so far!

Duchies:
RussiaDD_769DeJureDuchies.png


Kingdoms:
RussiaDD_769DeJureKingdoms.png


You may notice that the old Rus’ kingdom is gone, replaced with the much more historical kingdoms of Novgorod and Vladimir. There are also several new smaller kingdoms, such as Galicia-Volhynia and Chernigov which both provide new opportunities and new risks, depending on if you’re playing in the Tribal era or Feudal era.

Empires:
RussiaDD_769DeJureEmpires.png

There was no doubt that the Tartarian empire was too big, that’s why when we had to add to it (the Kingdom of Perm is now part of it instead of Russia) we felt the need to break it up. In the south you can now see an empire of the Pontic Steppe - closely representing the Khazarian sphere of influence at its height.

Here’s a screenshot of how the 867 setup will look:
RussiaDD_867.png

And here’s 1066:
RussiaDD_1066.png

The major thing in this date is that after Yaroslav the Wise's death in 1054, his land in the Kievan Rus was divided between his 5 sons. Internal strife erupted quickly after between the sons and other relatives (like the prince of Polotsk), hurting the stability of the state.

That's why although the Kievan Rus' still existed as somewhat centralized around the Grand Prince of Kiev, at least for a while, unity wasn't the key word to describe the state. We've reflected that by keeping the different duchies independent but still tributaries to Kiev - until civil war starts again when brothers, sons, and cousins start pushing for their claims...

Changelog:
Code:
- Map Update to Russia
   - Major overhaul of the whole russian sphere
    - All major & minor rivers reshaped
    - e_russia is now created through 5 kingdoms (Ruthenia, Novgorod, Vladimir, Chernigov & Galicia-Volhynia)
    - 3 new kingdoms : Vladimir, Chernigov, Galicia-Volhynia
    - k_rus renamed from "Rus" to "Novgorod"
    - 4 new duchies (Cherven Cities, Karachev, Novosil, Murom)
    - 37 new provinces added to the general area
    - A few titular russian-tribes-themed duchies added for earlier startdates

Note that from now on, CK2 Dev Diaries will take place on Fridays rather than Mondays!
 
Needs a system similar to ‘Petty Kingdoms’ on the British Isles, only in reverse. The entity gets a kingdom tier title, but with a different name, like Principality. This would help prevent things like forming the ‘Kingdom’ of Wales.
Yeah I have been thinking along these lines too grand duchies like Aquitaine, Lithuania and perhaps Carinthia.
 
Needs a system similar to ‘Petty Kingdoms’ on the British Isles, only in reverse. The entity gets a kingdom tier title, but with a different name, like Principality. This would help prevent things like forming the ‘Kingdom’ of Wales.

Wales was absolutely a kingdom. Multiple people claimed the title of "King of Wales". The only reason we now have a Prince of Wales instead is because the English King wanted to appoint a ruler of Wales who was subordinate to him, and a king isn't subordinate to another king. I.e., in game terms, it's not called a kingdom any more because it's not a kingdom-rank title.
 
Boy: Ma when's DD coming?
Mother: Soon son, he will come soon.
Boy: But we've been waiting for ages! Are you sure he's not lost in the internet?
Mother: Son DD never gets lost to the internet.
Boy: But what if he's not coming ma?
Mother: Don't be ridiculous, go finish your Imperator.
Boy: But I wanted Vicky for lunch.
Mother: Son FFS don't make me call for a Swedish holiday.
 
Last edited:
Will there be a new Dev Diary today?
If not, please at least tell us that there won't be a new DD.
 
Will there be a new Dev Diary today?
If not, please at least tell us that there won't be a new DD.

Will be, just need to wait more, sometimes they post it late.
 
New green kingdom in Italy?

hrpcVVF.png
Oooooooooooooh
So if that's a new kingdom in Italy, what whould its name and the previous kingdom's name be?
Lombardy?
Romagna/Tuscany?
 
Can you add "Wildfields" a Hungarian name "Etelköz"?