CK2: How to play Republic

[MetalCraze]

OK bros I'm having a certain trouble not sucking completely.

I was playing as Venice and was somewhat sucking it up to Pisa but still doing rather fine - had a lot of trading outposts around the mediterranean. The problem is that I never managed to get enough money - every outpost had very minor impact on the income (like 0.5 gold per outpost). I did some upgrades (but didn't do many) to them but they didn't seem to change anything.

The problem is that Pisa was doing rather well on all fronts. Even on army front being able to gather ~12K forces compared to my 3k tops (that's including vassals). Yeah they may have used mercs but where would they get money for that many?

This plays really differently from the usual Paradox-EU/CK country... so help me suck less.

 

[Kattze]

- Connect your family tradezones to each other and connect it to your capital as much as possible
- Don't bother upgrading TPs until almost every coastal area has already been taken by a republic
- Butter up the HRE/Byzantines and try to have them embargo Pisa (if they had many TPs in that particular empire)
- Sometimes it would be better not building TPs. Instead use plots to grab another family's TP (have a high intrigue leader and/or at least 300 gold).
- Abuse holy war/seize city CB and take much of North Africa if you can

 

[Steve]

Spam seize tradepost plots, if they outbribe you, cancel the plot and try again.

 

[Mortmal]

Its very simple, only the beggining is a bit slow. I would disagree with kattze on not upgrading tradeports, they are worth upgrading in counties you completely control in the same tradezones, in fact its better to have only a few completely upgraded tradeports as when you have doge title you can expropriate other families that own more tradeports than you , so you will get all of them for free plus your core very optimized ones.
You want to completely avoid embargo wars ? swear fealty to a huge empire, its worth it , no one will dare to attack you. Now you can build up your powerhouse , pick a few coastal town belonging to a small independant duchy, then pick the county, form the duchy or why not even a small kingdom, upgrade your palace and duchy to full, before launching independance war later if you want to , not that theres any need.

Family is a big advantge as republic, unlike feudal lord, give them the extra land you cant keep , and arrange weddings with very high intrigue characters, so your sons and grandons are likely to be good in intrigue too, that with plenty of gold stored when their turn come. Now you have a ruler with absurd intrigue stat, be the spymaster for your liege youll get wooping 400% each time you start a plot, wich will allow you to plot , steal, and destroy his empire from the inside, i made a dynasty extinct just with a single spymaster character, and the holy roman empire exploded

 

[MetalCraze]

Sounds cool bros. Why can't PDox add tutorial missions for new stuff?

 

[RedScum]

lol tutorials is for popamole consoletards r00fles.

 

[Average Manatee]

Skyway can't even play as a republic in CK2, the babymode of babymodes in the babygame of babygames?

Spam seize tradepost plots, if they outbribe you, cancel the plot and try again.

It depends on plot power. Get to 150% plot power and they can't outbid you. Sure, you can do 100% if you want them to throw away 200 ducats, but why bother when they could be using those 200 ducats to make another trade post for you to sieze?

Also one of your first moves as any republic should be to seize any and all one province count's coastal cities for MOAR trade post spammage. Preferably in nice places with no competition and lots of provinces, like the British isles.

 

[MasterSmithFandango]

Spam tradeposts, get in good with Byz Empire for cheap tradeposts and embargo wars if necessary (same with Fatamid Sultanate). Eventually, you'll have more money than you know what to do with, and a retinue that can take most nations armies, with the ability to buy a ton of mercs. The only war that gave me trouble was a 1v1 against the Byzantine Empire, where I had to settle for a white peace in an embargo war they started. Republics are easy mode.