Tips on going independent?

[rowyerboat]

Just hit Clan level 3 and got the 100 men in my force. Found a castle with a weak garrison in the Northern Empire who is getting beat down pretty hard. Nonetheless, in the middle of the siege, up walks an army of 300+. I pretty much expected this, but was hoping I might have enough time to get the castle and fortify it a little before getting attacked. Is there some way to get a higher troop limit without just grinding clan level? I could add extra parties, but from what I've heard you have no control over them until you have your own kingdom, so I don't see how that would help except to add +15 to my troop limit. Do you just have to wait for a faction to be at war on multiple fronts, so they just can't afford to come after you? It's a bit hard to imagine starting up a new kingdom with 100 troops. I guess I did it back in the day in Prophesy of Pendor, but I can't remember how

I'll also add that I'm hesitant to become someone's vassal for awhile and then leave, which seems like the easiest way to gain clan level, because quitting your oath as a vassal gives you massive negative rep with everyone in that faction. Granted, the whole reputation system seems kinda broken atm, but it still sounds like a bad idea.

Finally, the old trick of being someone's vassal, gathering fiefs and getting them garrisoned, and then demanding every fief as a marshal until the king refused you and you could just leave with all your fiefs does not seem to be a possibility here. Or is it?

Tips?

 

[COOMER]

You've gotta get a job, leave your parents house, settle down somewhere cheap and have clear goals about what you're gonna do from there on.

 

[Heratik]

Got a bunch of fiefs as SE, stomped NE and Sturgia already, then quit kingdom as she stopped putting my name up.
Was automatically at war, but weirdly after a few days we were at peace with no notifications.

Then in a short space “my” kingdom randomly declared war on Sturgia, NE, Vlandia and then WE....

 

[LordKaien]

Is there some way to get a higher troop limit without just grinding clan level?

You should try to check politics from your kingdom. There is some of it that increase the limit for the king.
When you start a kingdom, you are the only lord. So you can decide alone the politic.

You should raise your army to 300 by this way.

 

[rowyerboat]

Got a bunch of fiefs as SE, stomped NE and Sturgia already, then quit kingdom as she stopped putting my name up.
Was automatically at war, but weirdly after a few days we were at peace with no notifications.

Then in a short space “my” kingdom randomly declared war on Sturgia, NE, Vlandia and then WE....

How did you keep your fiefs when you left? When I did that I lost my castle.

 

[rowyerboat]

You should try to check politics from your kingdom. There is some of it that increase the limit for the king.
When you start a kingdom, you are the only lord. So you can decide alone the politic.

You should raise your army to 300 by this way.

But you can't do that before taking a settlement, right?

 

[Heratik]

How did you keep your fiefs when you left? When I did that I lost my castle.

You have a choice, forfeit your possessions and no war, or keep them and automatically at war. It gives you an option when you leave.

 

[Askorti]

I would say don't bother. I tried it and it's extremely unfun if you don't have at least a few vassals. The AI constantly declares war on you and you don't get any respite. You either have to constantly beat them off if you're strong, or you just get worn down if you're weak.
Also, if you don't have the manpower to take a castle and keep it, you stand little chance to survive as a new faction. Basically, you're not ready for it.

 

[Nokturnel]

What I did is work for a Kingdom for a long ass time as a Vassal, while doing so I executed every enemy Lord I captured. Once the Kingdom I worked for ruled the world. I finished the main quest and started my own Kingdom, but not before inviting all the Clan Leader Vassals into my army to follow me to where I'd turn in the quest. Once I started my new Kingdom taking my fiefs with me, I then proceeded to convince as many Vassals from my previous Kingdom to join me. Yes, it's still possible to convince people to join you if they're at -100 Reputation, but keep in mind, there's nothing stopping them from leaving your Kingdom, reputation, traits, giving them Fiefs or not has no effect on whether they'll stay with you.

So now I'm just murdering everyone left in my previous Kingdom as well as any traitors that feel like switching sides on me. Keep every fief you can for yourself (Pull a Derphart) because nothing is going to stop Vassals from leaving you, so don't bother trying to appease them.

A trick you can also do, is invite all the Leaders of each clan into your army. Then barter to take their fiefs once you give them to them (sometimes you're not a choice when giving fiefs out), this also helps keep them in line if they try to betray you, you don't have to chase them down and you can instantly behead them.

 

[luisedgm]

Keep working as a merc until you have clan lv5 and at least 120 elite units
i recommend always working for the weakest nation or whoever is fighting the strongest one, to make sure that when you make your own kingdom there won't be a single faction controlling half of the map, also always release lords, you gain a lot of rep doing it and prisoner lords escape in a blink anyways.
Also make sure you have at least 2 million to keep your finances up until you are a stable kingdom (easy to get selling gear after battles) and start with a good city instead of a weak castle, you want your first fief to give you some extra money.

 

[rowyerboat]

You have a choice, forfeit your possessions and no war, or keep them and automatically at war. It gives you an option when you leave.

Huh, I definitely did not get that option. It was the exact same dialogue as when leaving as a merc, and then I was just out of the faction with no castle.

 

[rowyerboat]

Thanks for the suggestions. Very different approaches by Nokturnel and luisedgm, haha. I'll keep working on it. IT does seem that this is not fully fleshed out/balanced, as to be expected in EA. It is odd that others were able to leave and keep their fiefs; I'm quite sure I did not get offered that option.

 

[eternalflame]

Huh, I definitely did not get that option. It was the exact same dialogue as when leaving as a merc, and then I was just out of the faction with no castle.

Use the kingdom panel and leave the kingdom. It prompts whether to keep your lands or not. Bonus points for not having to be out of position in the war to come because king is hanging out in an inconvenient location.

 

[LordKaien]

But you can't do that before taking a settlement, right?

There is some politics for vassal for increase your limit. But far less than for the king. And I never try to go independant. And no politics for independants.
You can also try to increase one characteristic from your charactere (forget witch one) and take some specific perks.
But the increase is not huge. If you want increase your power, focus on high lvl troups. 150 tier 6 troups can win against pretty much anything for the game.

When you start a kingdom, you should go from 150 mans to 300 from your party with centralized politics and 150 more mans with 2 groups from your clan and ask them to follow you for free.
With that, you can win anything. But you will face endless waves of ennemy.

 

[pyerr]

Continue to play as vassal until you have 4, maybe 5 fiefs. Then when you decide to leave , make sure other vassal of kingdom you are leaving is right next to you on the map. Leave, take all your fiefs with you, and then charge into him, and immediately sign peace . You will need around 100k.

 

[badman]

gotta be patient with first castle. The army will always come unless it's busy with another war, if it comes, just run away and you should outspeed them, then try again later. Your engineer skill will level as you do this.

 

[rowyerboat]

Use the kingdom panel and leave the kingdom. It prompts whether to keep your lands or not. Bonus points for not having to be out of position in the war to come because king is hanging out in an inconvenient location.

Wow, I did not even know you could do that...I was riding around searching for the faction leader to deliver the message personally ha. In any case they should fix it so you get the same option if you leave in person.

 

[Watergun]

:
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Tips?

Maybe this helps?

 

[rowyerboat]

Maybe this helps?

It probably does, although I have a visceral bad reaction to video guides, haha. I may check it out anyway. Thanks! I've heard of that guy from Total War.