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War Lords

Updated for CK3 v1.17

In vanilla Crusader Kings III, neither the player nor the AI have much reason to lead their own armies or to put important characters in command. After all, what's the point when some lowborn nobody with 30 martial can do the job better? This is contrary to the historical phenomenon of rulers leading their own armies. Taking command and leading all of a ruler's men off to war was a big deal, and it was important that the ruler could trust that those troops were being led in their name.

This mod introduces changes to the commander system by adding rules that limit who can lead and by widening the advantage gap for commanders who lead armies which are not their own. More important characters will be placed in command by both the player and the AI. A greater number of highborn characters and their families / important vassals will be meeting on the battlefield, leading to more consequential and memorable conflicts. Prominent figures being skilled in the art of war is of greater significance than before.

Inspired by the changes in AGOT: Immersion.

Chinese localization: 集成汉化 · | 收复失地 |
Russian localization: War Lords [RUS]
Korean localization: War Lords 한글패치
German localization: Ultimate German Translation Mod




NOTE: Most features can be tweaked via game rules.

• Rulers can participate in war at a younger age.
  
  
• Players can now lead their AI liege's armies if they're a trusted commander.
  
  
• Commanders are limited to an army's owner, their regent/diarch, close family, and vassalic marshal by default for both the player and the AI. The AI will almost always lead their armies themselves now or put a trusted family member in charge, even if a more competent but lowborn character is available. Note that realms with bureaucratic government types (such as administrative, republican, and theocratic realms) largely ignore commander limitations.
  
  
• The advantage difference between armies that are led by their owner and armies that are not has been increased. The AI will take this into account when deciding who to put in command. The player will also need to lead more often in order to compensate and will have to plan wars accordingly. You should now think twice before declaring war while you're bedridden or away at a feast unless you have a trusted commander at the ready to lead your men.
  
  
• Vassals will no longer be pulled away to serve as a knight or commander in their liege's army if that vassal is in their own war (unless they are their liege's regent/diarch). They must stand ready to lead their own armies.
  
  
• The Marshal can be called upon to lead their liege's armies, and the position comes with a commander advantage bonus that scales with their liege's tier (like the vanilla prowess bonus). This makes the Marshal an important role come wartime and adds nuance to accepting the position, especially since players can now command their liege's armies if they're eligible to lead.
  
  
• Regents and diarchs are considered "rulers" entrusted to lead the realm's armies, adding some more nuance to power sharing.
  
  
• Female rulers that could already lead their own armies can now lead other armies if they are a trusted commander.

Compatible with just about everything. The mods below that also make changes to commander / warrior / knight eligibility have been made explicitly compatible:

• Compatible with A Game Of Thrones.
  
• Compatible with Prisoners of War.
  
• Compatible with Knight Manager.
  
• Compatible with More Single Combats.

This mod does not overwrite any files, so it can be loaded in any order.

Save-game compatible.


I highly recommend Battleground Commanders. It's what got me to start caring about who's leading armies in the first place.

Battle Events for more consequential battles for commanders and knights.

House CoA as Title CoA for more immersion as armies carry their house banners into war.

For a unique experience I recommend using this mod alongside More Interactive Vassals with the Direct Vassals, Reduced Levies, and Reduced Levy Contribution rules enabled. This overhauls the vassal-liege mechanic into a more interesting/accurate system in which vassals fulfill their military obligation by raising their personal armies to fight in their liege's wars, rather than just giving their liege a percentage of their levies. It works well with this mod, especially since vassals will lead their own armies and take over as commander in battles if you do not have one assigned.