Strategy Guide

Strategy Guide: Tips and Tricks

Traits

You should probably pick a style of play at the beginning of the game, and then stick to it. Pick a trait, like dread or subtlety, and only do things that will positively affect that trait. Any trait can be valuable, but your political actions should have a coordinated purpose.

Using Pawn Houses: If your goal trait is something like "Honor", there will be times when it is politically advantageous to do dreadful things. Since you don't want these actions to blow back on you, you can act through an intermediary. Use a loyal vassal whenever you need to obliterate a House or raze a region. This vassal will become feared, but your own honor will not be affected.

Granting Titles

Titles cost you nothing, and keep your vassals loyal. Whenever a House swears allegiance to you, you should immediately grant them titles to all the lands they already hold.

Proposing Alliances

The political climate changes very rapidly. Just because a rival House declined an offer with you a year ago does not mean they would do the same thing again.

Weak commanders are much more inclined to make alliances than strong commanders. If your spies tell you the leader of a rival House is a weak commander, propose an alliance as soon as possible.

Unassailable Positions

There are certain unassailable positions (for example Arion and Demon Isle together). When both regions are held simultaneously by the same color, they cannot be taken via conventional warfare, only though trickery or betrayal. Be very careful about letting a rival House acquire one of these positions.

The Bribe/Invade Combo

As long as you can pay enough, bribes will rarely be turned down. Once you have offered a bribe, move one of your armies (not one of your vassals) into the region on the same turn.

If the bribe goes through, the castle will defect to your banner and then lend it's support to your invasion. With one army, you will be able to immediately capture the region.