Game Expecation Questions

[unmerged(203645)]

Time for some good noob questions about what is a NORMAL expected game of CK.


Now that I've been playing CK for a bit what can I expect as being a "victory?" What can an average or GOOD player realistically expect to accomplish?

Control ½ or 1/3 of the world or maybe just a region like France or Germany?

Or should I expect to be King of a vast majority of the map?

Does it all depend on where you start? If I start in northern Sweden are my chances any better or worse than if I started in central Germany, southern Italy or Ireland at games end?

Will I control the same area I start with by the end of the game or assume I'll lose it in the long haul and end up controlling a completely different area?

How many games actually go the entire 400 years?

Is there a victory screen by chance & if so what does it look like?

It's probably a "victory" if you can just keep your dynasty going till the end for the game.

I'm sure the CK vets have some good answers for my pondering mind.

 

[unmerged(82381)]

Victory is what you decide it will be. Probably the closest thing to predefined victory is keeping your dynasty alive and ruling somewhere to the end of the game.

I imagine there must be a "you survived" screen for those who make it to 1453. I've never gone past the middle 13th cent due to lag issues (and only even got that far in a couple games I was exceptionally interested in).

 

[TempestDK]

As Hilficker said .... there is no established goal in CK. It is all about having fun. If that, to you, means owning every single province on the map, then that is your goal. If it is restoring one dynasty, then save and reload as another failing dynasty to restore .. then that is your goal.

I have never played all 400 years, but I know that the game's victory screen, is based on the amount of prestige your final ruler has. Which doesn't make much sense.

A better way to judge your entire dynasty is to use this excellent tool: DynasticGlory

Gives you a different goal .. to keep your dynasty on top at the expense of the other big dynasties. This tool keeps tabs on ALL your family members, past and present, and calculates a score depending on their accomplishments (or lack thereof).

 

[Veldmaarschalk]

Is there a victory screen by chance & if so what does it look like?

Hit F2 and you will see the 'victory' screen.

 

[Snaake]

Now that I've been playing CK for a bit what can I expect as being a "victory?" What can an average or GOOD player realistically expect to accomplish?

Control ½ or 1/3 of the world or maybe just a region like France or Germany?

Or should I expect to be King of a vast majority of the map?

Does it all depend on where you start? If I start in northern Sweden are my chances any better or worse than if I started in central Germany, southern Italy or Ireland at games end?

Will I control the same area I start with by the end of the game or assume I'll lose it in the long haul and end up controlling a completely different area?

How many games actually go the entire 400 years?

Is there a victory screen by chance & if so what does it look like?

It's probably a "victory" if you can just keep your dynasty going till the end for the game.

I'm sure the CK vets have some good answers for my pondering mind.

I've stated some of these before, but here goes:

I'm not really a vet, but I did a full GC (owned every province on the map (through vassals of course, not directly)) in less than 150 years of the 400 the game offers (on normal/normal). This was starting with the Duke of Aquitaine (one of the largest duchies in the game, although a vassal of France in 1066), then did my own little Reconquista, after which I conquered the Iberian Christian Kings and went from there (crusading, then the rest).

The hard part really isn't conquering, it's keeping control of such a vast area with the feudal system. Some uppity count in Northern Rus or the shore of the Aral Sea is going to get uppity and think he can go toe-to-toe with the Lord of Europe. PLUS I actually did have quite a bit of trouble keeping the dynasty alive. All legitimate Salic branches had gone extinct in 60-80 years or something, and thereafter it was always elective law and bastards or their descendants.

It really doesn't matter where you start for the games end, the biggest difference is how long the buildup from Count to King will take, and how touch-and-go/frustrating/risky the initial Count phase (mostly, also for some duchies) is. For most players, the buildup from Count to King and then maybe to 5 kingdoms and trying to become Emperor (gain the trait) is probably the most interesting bit, just maintaining that empire can get boring.

So a victory is keeping your dynasty alive and numerous (and powerful and not inbred/crazy etc.) until the end. Stuff like establishing secondary lines (eg. after conquering a Kingdom, why not make your brother the King there) to spread your dynasty probably also helps for Dynastic Glory scoring

 

[AllmyJames]

I agree that the Dynastic Glory tool is excellent for measuring score. The main game only records the score for your current monarch which can be a teensy bit disappointing if you end up with a three year old king in 1452 with a score of 10.

I've only finished one grand campaign, with Vladimir/Russia. So perhaps just making it 400 years is an achievement

Personally, I like to see my family survive and flourish - to see my dynasty on as many thrones of Europe as possible. Trying to create all the kingdoms in Africa and the Middle East can be fun too.

 

[unmerged(203645)]

More great answers again- thanks gentlemen!

Got the "Dynasticglory" looks great!

"F2" victory screen- ahhh so that's it. I see "Tribes" can be on the list, thats pretty cool and that you can jump to them by clicking on the CoA.

I'll have to DL the Play as a "pagan/muslim" file, they could be fun to play.