Need advises on how to maintain my independence

[Emogma]

I'm currently on day 900, decided to play the slow game and build up my CKO, gather enough relations and such as Sarleon. But that plan backstabbed me, D'shar for some dang reason has a mercenary company with 5000 men on it and the Empire was ready to attack us. The Ravenstern declares war against us, King Ulric was busy having a butter feast in Poinsbruk because Sarleon now belongs to me due to some previous war. Now Sarleon was a recent addition to my lands so it had only 400 garrisoned. The damn D'shars attacked Sarleon with that 5000 men super army, they proceeded to take every single land away from Sarleon until Poinsbruk (Ulric's new capital) was the only one left. Now here I am, stuck in Seven Cross Keep, smacked right in the middle of hell. My CKO is in it so there was no way I'm just going to hand it to them since I had a tweak that made it so lords can recruit knighthood order units.

Anyways they took Seven Cross Keep, I took as many of my CKO out of my garrison as possible. The damn D'shar now started to field my CKO and one by one, I watch every single Sarleon lord get wrecked. I had enough, I renounce my oath to King Ulric, joined the D'shar and took Seven Cross Keep back with the remaining units of my CKO. The ****ing Kadan Bahadur Khan didn't want me to have it so I decided, "**** IT" and secede from the D'shar with Seven Cross Keep and Yaragar(the village). Now I have a few friends in Sarleon who I have good relations with so I fought against them, took them prisoners and recruited them as my lords. I then turn Alistair into a lord and gave him Yaragar.

Since most other lords are rather displeased with me, I don't really have a way to continue doing the prisoner recruitment thing and we're talking about me being locked up in the middle of Pendor, all the other fortresses have a **** ton of people in them and I don't feel like declaring war against someone with a 5000 men mercenary army.

Help me.

 

[krisvk]

I recommend either swearing allegiance to another faction (though that will lose you Alistair to that faction when you later decide to break free) or stocking up with troops in Seven Cross Keep, about some good ones on top, and then as many as possible below. Should be affordable if you have production in various towns, and then expand slowly from there. If your castle has a lot of troops, the AI will avoid it if there are weaker castles somewhere else.

 

[Daeghen]

I don't have advice about your 5000 merc problem.

The key to maintaining independence in every early game (for me) is the ability to take centers faster than you lose them. That means Engineering 10+, which allows you to build ladders in 3 hours, down to 1 hour at about Eng 12. Simply don't take centers that require siege towers to be built. Attacking with elite archers allows you to decimate defenders on the wall, take out 30-50 troops yourself, get knocked out, then repeat a few hours later. You should be able to claim two castles in the time it takes a great host of enemies to reclaim one, and with negligible losses. Pendor Black Archers are great and fast to train. Ravenstern Rangers are also good. Put cheap trash infantry with shields up front to soak archer fire.

 

[eternalflame]

That 5000 man mercenary party is slow. Get Kadan separated from it, and imprison him. Never let him out. As long as he remains in your prison, the mercenary party will do nothing. Except possibly engage enemies who wander close, though they will see that doomstack from far away and not get close enough.

A 5000 party is pretty mean for battle advantage, but it won't have many top tier troops, as those cannot be recruited from resqued prisoners. Though admittedly, some lower tier troops can be deadly. Stack as many CKO knights and sergeants as you can, bring a campaign army and a mercenary company, if you have a CKO war party, all the better. I am not sure if you have 500+ CKO troops garrisoned somewhere for just an occasion like this, but you can stall for time by locking up Kadan.

Sadly, dragging that doomstack to a Noldor lord is nigh impossible, even they likely run away.

Imprison the D'shar marshall if you can. New one will not be appointed till Kadan is free.

Having been on the receiving end of 3000+ Syla Uzas mercenary party, I feel your pain.

 

[Ralyks18]

That 5000 man mercenary party is slow. Get Kadan separated from it, and imprison him. Never let him out. As long as he remains in your prison, the mercenary party will do nothing. Except possibly engage enemies who wander close, though they will see that doomstack from far away and not get close enough.

I was going to suggest this too, its the best i can think of.

A 5000 party is pretty mean for battle advantage, but it won't have many top tier troops, as those cannot be recruited from resqued prisoners. Though admittedly, some lower tier troops can be deadly. Stack as many CKO knights and sergeants as you can, bring a campaign army and a mercenary company, if you have a CKO war party, all the better. I am not sure if you have 500+ CKO troops garrisoned somewhere for just an occasion like this, but you can stall for time by locking up Kadan.

If a castle/city with an KHO chapter has over (I did test this out ~February, so im not 100% sure in the numbers, but they're approximate) 67 sergeants of that same order or 33 knights, it will automatically stop producing over time more until those are killed/moved out. But anyways, holding over 500 ckho soldiers ain't cheap. If you're having huge amounts of money, get a merc company and start filling it with your troops. They will follow you and help out in your battles without any party size limit (like the one payers have), but remember the first quote, they will be way slower than you.

Little trick, for this, pick a merc company that has its leader with high pathfinding (Chosen of Indar is the best, with Shiruzah of the Hallowed Arrow having 7 pathfinding).

 

[Emogma]

So I followed the hit and run tactic and by the end of the war I managed to get three fiefs. RNG also helped me and quite a few lords defected to my new kingdom.

 

[aimlessgun]

If you're having huge amounts of money, get a merc company and start filling it with your troops. They will follow you and help out in your battles without any party size limit (like the one payers have), but remember the first quote, they will be way slower than you.

Little trick, for this, pick a merc company that has its leader with high pathfinding (Chosen of Indar is the best, with Shiruzah of the Hallowed Arrow having 7 pathfinding).

So you pay all the wages as normal doing this?

 

[Ralyks18]

So you pay all the wages as normal doing this?

You pay the wages of those troops (with a discount depending on the leadership of the leader). To avoid this, either:

• Give them to a lord you own (and preferably with good relation towards you and good personality) that will follow you. Drawback: even tho the lord will slowly be disbanding troops as he cant afford to pay those extra troops)
• Give them to a patrol, if none, build a sheriff in a village you own. This patrol will never disband the extra troops like a lord would, but they act freely (normally around their village)

 

[aimlessgun]

Give them to a patrol, if none, build a sheriff in a village you own. This patrol will never disband the extra troops like a lord would, but they act freely (normally around their village)

Oh man super sheriffs sound fun.

EDIT: Looks like once they get past 99 troops you can't give them troops anymore, so it's limited by my party size, but still, have a 700 man sheriff patrol    Though the question is, will they be too slow to actually be useful at killing bandit spawns....

 

[krisvk]

Probably, but they will scare the **** out of everyone, and join in battles that take longer than a few hours.