Crusader Kings II

Let’s Talk About Sects. Monks & Mystics Coming to CK2

The bells of the abbey summon monks to prayer while, a continent away, the faithful are summoned by a muezzin’s call. Religious practice imposes a schedule on the chaos of medieval life, and the routine adds harmony to a divided realm.

Routine and harmony. We can’t have that, can we?

Monks & Mystics is the latest expansion to Crusader Kings II, the hit medieval grand strategy role-playing game from Paradox Development Studio. In Monks & Mystics, the religious aspect of the game is further explored with new mechanics and character associations that can tie a faith closer together or render it asunder.

The major feature of Monks & Mystics is the addition of Societies – secret and otherwise. Characters can join monastic orders, secret cults and Gnostic heresies. As the society gains members, it gains power and prestige for its leaders. Societies open new actions for characters and can lead to new event paths.

Monks & Mystics includes:

• Monastic Orders: With lay offices available to non-clerical characters, monastic orders will increase your character’s piety – but they have expectations.
• Cults: Gnostic heresies may flourish and its is rumored that the worship of Satan continues in the darkened fringes of the world
• Climb the Ranks: Characters work their way up the ladder of Societies, unlocking new abilities and triggering new event chains
• Hunt for Heretics: Send your chaplain out to find secret societies that undermine the holy church and your realm. But what if the hunter is guilty himself?
• Other New Councillor Actions: Your Councillors have a fourth action that will make them more powerful and integral to sound rulership
• And much more: Assassins, archaeological expeditions, holy relics, great treasures and more

Watch the announcement trailer here.

Crusader Kings II: Monks & Mystics is coming soon to major digital retailers, including the Paradox Store.

“The Reaper’s Due” Kills Your Free Time (and half of Europe) 

Few things are more contagious than the stories people tell about Crusader Kings II. Tales of intrigue, piety, conquest and murderous sibling rivalry have circled the internet for over four years. Today, Paradox Development Studio adds the world’s greatest pandemic to the mix in The Reaper’s Due, the latest expansion to its best-selling medieval grand strategy-roleplaying game. Watch the release trailer here.

The Reaper’s Due adds a host of new mechanics centered on the Black Death and other world shaping epidemics. Lock your gates to keep the plague from infecting your court, even if it means cutting yourself off from your suffering citizens. Peace and good management will see your provinces reward you with greater wealth and manpower, but rampant disease may depopulate your countryside.

The Reaper’s Due introduces many new systems and features to what is already the richest medieval tapestry in gaming:

• The Black Death: New additions to epidemic system include this super destructive disease and a new map mode that track the expansion of deadly illnesses.
• Court Physicians: This new position for learned courtiers opens up a series of events tied to the diagnosis and treatment of diseases with medieval tech.
• Hospitals: Slow down the spread of epidemics by investing in these outposts that care for the sick and infirm.
• Prosperity and Depopulation: Watch your provinces thrive under your careful attention and degrade under the pressures of diseases run amok.
• Seclusion: Take a page from the Masque of the Red Death and hide yourself away with your court as plagues ravage the countryside.
• And even more: New physical traits, new events chain and a host of smaller changes.

And, as always, The Reaper’s Due will be accompanied by a major free update for everyone who owns Crusader Kings II, whether they buy the new expansion or not.

Are you a clever enough ruler to make it through one of humanity’s darkest moments? Invest wisely and avoid the plague, or shut yourself off and take advantage of the destruction later. The choice, as always, is yours.

For more information about Crusader Kings II, visit the games official website.

Pre-orders Now Available at the Paradox Store

Paradox Interactive and Paradox Development Studio today announced that death can come early for those eager for new ways to die in Crusader Kings 2 as pre-orders for The Reaper’s Due are now available on the Paradox Store. Featuring new disease and medicine mechanics and a whole host of deadly new challenges for players’ in-game nobles, The Reaper’s Due will be available on Windows, Mac and Linux PCs on August 25, 2016.

For those eager to know why they should fear the reaper in the upcoming expansion, Game Director Henrik Fåhraeus details what kind of grisly demises you can expect from horrendous world events such as the Black Plague in this video developer diary.

Those who duly wish to pre-purchase Crusader Kings 2: The Reaper’s Due before it’s due for release can pre-order on the Paradox Store right now.

For more information about Crusader Kings II, visit the games official website.

Deadly New Expansion to Launch on August 25 with New Patch

Paradox Interactive, a publisher and developer whose games have serious reaper-cussions, today announced the release date for “The Reaper’s Due,” the upcoming expansion for the medieval grand strategy game Crusader Kings II. Featuring new disease and medicine mechanics and a whole host of deadly new challenges for players’ in-game nobles, The Reaper’s Due will be available on Windows, Mac, and Linux PCs on August 25, 2016.

This expansion will return the Black Death to its rightful place in the center of medieval history, and add new systems that reward sound realm management and planning. But, as with all expansions from Paradox, The Reaper’s Due will launch with a new content patch for Crusader Kings II, updating the game for all players, whether they purchase The Reaper’s Due or not.

Among the changes coming in the new patch will be:

• New custom rules options at start up for epidemics, invasions, legal changes and so on,so you get the Middle Ages that you want.
• New options to auto-save the game at different time intervals
• A new interface for better understanding the death and succession of rulers
• Adjustments to how alliances work, including AI attitudes to disloyal allies
• Major improvements to game optimization
• “Continue” button on game launcher to get you to your map even faster
• New mod triggers to account for The Reaper’s Due content
• Tons and tons of balance and gameplay tweaks, plus new events
• The new patch will also be available with the release of The Reaper’s Due on August 25, 2016.

For those who want more details on The Reapers Due Paradox Development Studio releases regular developer diaries on their forums.

For more information about Crusader Kings II, visit the games official website.

“The Reaper’s Due” Expansion Announced for CK2; Gamebook Available Now

Little remains of those settlements where the Black Death has passed through. Hasty burials make a mockery of the sacraments and set a feast for the crows. Once prosperous provinces have been laid waste, and the lord of the land hides away – secluded in his hilltop fortress, hoping the plague will pass him by. Wiser princes took precautions, and didn’t waste the revenues from more prosperous years.

But, in time, all must pay The Reaper’s Due.

The Reaper’s Due is the newest expansion for Crusader Kings II, the best-selling medieval strategy simulator from Paradox Development Studio. This expansion highlights the historic importance of epidemics and disease in the Middle Ages, especially the Black Death – an outbreak of the bubonic plague that may have killed a third of the population of Europe.

The Reaper’s Due introduces many new systems and features to what is already the richest medieval tapestry in gaming:

• Epidemics Boosted: As diseases may spread from province to province along trade and sea lanes, they lower your manpower and sap your wealth
• Hospitals and Royal Physicians: Prevent the outbreak of disease in your kingdom, and make sure your courtiers have access to the latest in Dark Ages Medical Science
• Prosperity and Royal Focus: Well managed provinces in peaceful kingdoms will pay huge dividends in gold and levies
• Seclusion: Shield yourself from the diseases tearing your kingdom apart, even if it means ignoring the plight of your people
• New Event Chains: Is the new epidemic the End of Days? Is there someone else to blame for these horrors? Are there supernatural origins or solutions to the world’s problems?

Watch the Crusader Kings II: The Reaper’s Due – Announcement Trailer here.

To help you pass the time until release, Paradox is happy to announce the release of a Crusader Kings II gamebook. Crusader Kings: Chronicles is a mobile interactive adventure from M. Harold Page set in the tumult of the Black Death as it ravages England. Read more about the game book here.

For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.

The Meeting is Called to Order: Conclave Has Arrived

Once upon a time there was a king. He had amassed a large kingdom through the assistance and guidance of his wise councilors. Their skill, martial prowess and intelligence were guided by total loyalty to the king’s royal will. But these men, all drawn from the most powerful nobles in the realm, were not immortal. Now their equally powerful children hold their fathers’ seats, and they seem to have ideas of their own.

Crusader Kings II: Conclave, the newest expansion to Paradox Development Studio’s critically acclaimed medieval grand-strategy game, is now available at major digital retailers and the Paradox store. This expansion focuses on the internal dynamics of managing a realm with powerful vassals demanding to be heard on the royal council.

Watch the Crusader Kings 2: Conclave release trailer here.

How much power can you give to your advisers before you stop feeling like a king?

Conclave also includes:

• new realm laws to fine tune the future and culture of your country (including female inheritance)
• fine tuning of how much money or gold you expect from your vassals
• new diplomatic system returns royal marriages to the center of medieval politics
• changes to the military game, including renting your soldiers out as mercenaries

And, we’re releasing a new content pack – the cleverly named Crusader Kings II: Conclave Content Pack, to bring you new cosmetic changes to your game including world wonders, new portraits for some nations, and some new unit designs. It is sold separately.

And, as usual, whether you buy Conclave or not, the release is accompanied by a free, major patch that will improve Crusader Kings II for everyone.

So raise your banners. The council is in session.

For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.

New Expansion Will Hit Stores February 2, New Screens

Your chancellor wants you to press his claim on a neighboring county. Your marshal is a bit of an incompetent. And no one thinks you should execute your uncle, like you had planned to – even though he’s a nasty rebel. Difficult problems with easy solutions? Not quite.

Crusader Kings II: Conclave, the newest expansion for Paradox Development Studio’s celebrated medieval grand-strategy game, will bring out the politician, diplomat or tyrant in you as your royal council demands to be heard – and the loudest voices demand a seat at the table. Paradox is happy to announce that this new expansion will be on February 2, 2016.

Conclave adds greater depth to ruling your realm with a host of new laws and council interactions. Will you placate your vassals by giving them a say in matters of war and peace? Will you raise the status of women in your kingdom by recognizing their right to inherit lands and title? Can you find a place on council for that one duke who has too many armies to ignore, but no talent for anything?

This expansion will also increase the importance of marriage alliances, introduce systems to block rapid overexpansion, and allow you to rent out some of your soldiers as mercenaries – just because you’re not at war doesn’t mean you can’t make a ducat or two off someone else’s aggression.

So mark the date on your calendar – February 2, 2016: the day that Crusader Kings II challenges you to up your king game. Be ready for Conclave. It will be available from major digital retailers and the Paradox store for $14.99, 10.99 GBP or 14.99 Euros.

For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.

Your Council Would Like a Word With You

The new year will bring new goodies from Paradox Development Studio and the team behind Crusader Kings II, Paradox’s best-selling and critically beloved medieval grand strategy game.

Conclave, the newest expansion for the game, will give your vassals some bite to go along with your bark, as the council that governs your realm will now demand some say in how you rule. Powerful dukes, regardless of competence, will require a seat at the table, and those left on the outside will be more likely to plot against you.

Keep your council happy, and the mighty vassals will resist the pull of faction and civil war. Dismiss their interests, though, and you may find yourself trying to hold together a council at war with itself.

Balance councillor skill and power to keep your dynasty safe and strong. Ignore powerful underlings at your peril, or simply buy their loyalty with favors. Conclave makes the royal council a force unto itself.

Other features of Conclave will include:

• Councils can now vote on changes to realm laws – or you can try to limit their power and influence
• Revised education system for royal children, with new traits and events designed for childhood
• New diplomatic system that prioritizes marital alliances and non-aggression pacts, as well as the possibility of coalitions
• Improved military combat model with a greater emphasis on morale, as well as new rules for mercenary companies
• And many more smaller changes including the usual tweaks to how the AI prioritizes its decisions.
• So the choice will be yours; do you dare to challenge your vassals on their council at the risk of challenging them on the battlefield? Can you move your nation towards greater centralization and power without your advisors realizing how much they are losing in the deal?

Crusader Kings II appreciates the subtlety of court intrigue. Conclave will give you new avenues to test that skill. You can watch the Crusader Kings II: Conclave Reveal Trailer here.

Conclave will be available in early 2016. For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.

The kurultai has concluded and good news, my lord! You have been chosen the Great Khan! Paradox Development Studio arms you with new territories, new armies and new ways of ruling the restless hordes at your disposal in Horse Lords, the newest expansion to Crusader Kings II, our best-selling medieval strategy simulation.

Lead grand armies to victories on the steppes of Asia as you cut new paths towards the wealth of the Silk Road, India and Europe. Force mighty foreign potentates to become your tributaries and manage the cutthroat rivalries and feuds of nomadic society as only a Great Khan can.

Horse Lords introduces a wide range of new tools and mechanics to add even greater variety to what is already one of the most diverse titles in strategy gaming history.

• Larger Map: The steppes of Central Asia are now open for you to conquer or develop.
• New rules for nomads: Now distinct from other pagan tribes, the Mongol and Turkic nomads draw strength from open pastures and large populations.
• Clan management: Struggle alongside rival clans within your nomadic nation, even launching civil wars to keep your khan on top.
• Tributaries: Vassals are often a lot of trouble, so why not simply force a conquered enemy to send u a load of gold every now and then?
• The Silk Road: This great historical trading route linked the Mediterranean and the Far East. Exploit its wealth or pillage its trade posts.
• Forts: New temporary structures you can build to hold enemy territory while your army marches onward.

And more! Crusader Kings II: Horse Lords is available now from major digital retailers.

For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.

Lead Designer Outlines How Crusader Kings II Will Change

With the newest expansion for Paradox’s hit medieval history game only a week away, Crusader Kings II lead designer Henrik Fåhraeus has taken time out of his busy schedule to shoot a short video outlining some of the major changes that Horse Lords will bring.

From the peculiar succession rules of the nomadic tribes to the trade wealth that passes through the Silk Road, Fahrëus takes you on a tour of the coming attractions in what we think will be an expansion with exciting new ways to plot, marry and fight your way to power in the Middle Ages.

For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.