Oy rulers!
Today, we delve into the intricate art of war, linked with diplomacy and economy, in Great Houses of Calderia. War is motivated by the influence of feudal politics and the pursuit of nobility ranks in Calderia. Let's explore the key features of how war works.
There are specific steps and thresholds to meet the conditions for wars to be declared, they are shown at the war tooltip in military delegation view. You must have negative relations with the House you want to attack.
Here are the current war types and their requirements:
- Humiliation war: You must have House relations lower than -40. Winning this war allows you to either have a claim on their title or vassalize them.
- Vassalization war: You must have House relations lower than -60, have the right to vassalize and have a higher rank than the opposing House. Winning this war allows you to vassalize this House, which will then pledge allegiance and pay taxes to you.
- Title war: You must have House relations lower than -85, have the right to claim the title of the opposing House. Winning this war grants you the title of the defeated House, which will then go down to your previous title. For instance, you had the Baron rank before winning the Title War. The House you attacked had the Count rank, you then become a Count and they become a Baron.
- Tax war: This war can only be declared to vassals who are refusing to pay taxes they owe you. Winning this war will resume the tax payments the House owes you.
Units and warfare
Developing your fiefdom and making new buildings allows you to unlock new military units, each with its own unique strengths and roles on the battlefield. Units come with both a raise cost and an upkeep cost, requiring you to balance your military might with your resources. All units have attack, defense, health and attack speed variables. Some units can have special abilities that may be automatic, like ranged abilities, while others need to be activated. Defense reduces attack damage input and the attacker also takes some damage. Military units, once engaged, are caught up in the battle and require time to retreat before they can escape the fight. This adds dynamics to the ebb and flow of battles. Wounded units who managed to retreat in time join the reserve, where they can slowly heal so you can redeploy them again. On the other hand, units who died during the fight cannot be used again for future battles during the ongoing war. With this game mechanic, we wanted to encourage a thoughtful rotation of troops to optimize your strategy.
Rising in the nobility ranks
You must first successfully make a claim to a higher title to advance in nobility. Wars are an effective way to rise in the nobility ranks. They allow you to take over the title of the House ruling over you. But first, you must declare and win a Humiliation War, then a Title War to obtain a new title. You can progress through nobility ranks one level at a time, from Baron to Count, Count to Duke, and from Duke to Viceroy. Marriage is a powerful asset for forging alliances between the families tied by the union. These allies can then be called to join wars, strengthening your military power. Growing your influence and military power starts at the court, the relationships you build are essential to your success.
Peace negotiations and war weariness
Wars cannot last forever. Every war concludes with peace negotiations. The possible outcomes are determined by various elements based on how the war ended. It affects the terms that you can focus on during negotiations. However, total wins and total losses have automatic outcomes. Engaging in war leads to war weariness that accumulates at varying levels, each with its own cumulative impacts. Successive wars also increase your war weariness. War weariness takes time to wear off during peace, and peace treaties come with a truce period that prevents new wars from being declared right after a war ends. Winning a war grants you an advantage in peace negotiations, as the losing party will have fewer companions to bargain with. Be aware that refusing ally calls to aid them in war degrades your reputation and strains relations with all the other Houses. You have to balance your own interests with your reputation and relations with other Houses.
Resource management and war impact
Because resources like crops, livestock, materials, metal ore, horses, and grapes are produced outside the city, they are easy targets during war. Blockades on roads to the city from resource locations disrupt the resource supply chain and prevent the fiefdom from receiving the resources. On top of the blockades that can affect your resources and economic sustainability, enemy armies can burn down your production buildings that won’t produce resources until they are repaired. Defending and repairing your production buildings is crucial to maintaining your ability to upkeep your armies.
Siege and warscore
Losing a battle will have the remains of the army retreat automatically on the map for a while, giving a head start for the pursuing army. For now, siege has a static time period during which walls can be broken. Conquering a castle grants a significant amount of points in the warscore, and maintaining a siege also accumulates additional points over time, which greatly contribute to victory. All wars can end in five ways, from neutral peace to total victory or defeat, allowing for varied approaches depending on the most interesting outcomes for you. Reaching neutral peace negotiations will result in both Houses seeking to earn something from the deal. Battlefields provide temporary effects for battles. The warscore to aim for depends on the war type. Your tactical decisions should favor short and effective war resolutions rather than lengthy military conflicts.
Now that we have tackled these features, giving you a better look at the way war works in the game, may you increase your chances of success and prevail with this knowledge. The complex art of military strategy, diplomatic and economic acuteness will shape the fate of your fiefdom.
May your banners fly high and your influence leave a lasting mark in the tapestry of power as you rise in the ranks of Calderia!
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