Crusader Kings 3divides its map into several layers: empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties, and baronies. Each barony is an independent town or city (called a holding), but it also belongs to the county, the duchy, the kingdom,and the empire above it.
However, while the de jure borders of kingdoms and empires can fluctuate as the game unfolds, duchy borders will always stay the same. This is largely due to how the game mechanics work, butCrusader Kings 3also uses this as a reason to give each duchy access to a single powerful building. But not every player will be able to access duchy buildings right away.
How to Unlock Duchy Buildings
If players choose the 867 starting date, duchy buildings will be out of reach for some time. The player ruler’s culture needs one of two innovations to construct duchy buildings, and these innovationsare in the Early Medieval Era. This era only becomes available in 900, and to unlock it, a culture needs half the Tribal Era innovations and then still has to wait several years to get access.
Once all that is done,the player ruler’s cultureneeds to discover the Burhs innovation for military buildings and the Manorialism innovation for economic buildings. Each duchy building has three upgrade levels, and the upgrades unlock during the next two eras. Specifically, players will need Castle Baileys and Royal Armory for military buildings and Windmills and Cranes for economic buildings.
How to Build Duchy Buildings
Each duchy has a capital county, and the capital of this county has a special building slot for duchy buildings. Players can move a county capital to any barony they directly control, but the duchy building slot won’t move with it.
Players can identify duchy building slots by the arrows that point in from the four corners of the box. This is different from the special building slot, which has two leaves in the corners instead.
To construct a duchy building, players need several things. First, the county owner must have the duchy title. For instance, if the Duke of Berry owns three of the Berry Duchy’s counties, but another duke owns Berry County itself, neither of them can build the duchy building in Déols, nor can the King of France build it for them. The King of France also can’t choose a duchy building for Paris unless he also holds the title Duke of Valois.
Aside from that, the culture of the county must have the right innovations to access the duchy buildings. Finally, players must have around 500-600 gold, which is a lot more than what a normal building costs. However, the benefits are worth the extra payment. Here’s a summary of what they each do:
There are also two unique duchy buildings:the Aurelian Walls in Rome and the Theodosian Walls in Constantinople. Players who own the right county and duchy can replace these buildings, but the benefits they provide are at least as good as a level 3 duchy building and are completely unique.
Crusader Kings 3is available now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
Crusader Kings 3
WHERE TO PLAY
Your legacy awaits. Choose your noble house and lead your dynasty to greatness in a Middle Ages epic that spans generations. War is but one of many tools to establish your reign, as real strategy requires expert diplomatic skill, mastery of your realm, and truecunning.Crusader Kings IIIcontinues the popular series made by Paradox Development Studio, featuring the widely acclaimed marriage of immersive grand strategy and deep, dramatic medieval roleplaying.Take command of your house and expand your dynasty through a meticulously researched Middle Ages. Begin in 867 or 1066 and claim lands, titles, and vassals to secure a realm worthy of your royal blood. Your death is only a footnote as your lineage continues with new playable heirs, either planned… or not.Discover a sprawling simulated world teeming with peasants and knights, courtiers, spies, knaves and jesters, and secret love affairs. An extensive cast of historical characters can be romanced, betrayed, executed, or subtly influenced.Explore a vast medieval map stretching from the snowswept Nordic lands to the Horn of Africa, and the British Isles in the west to the exotic riches of Burma in the east. Claim, conquer, and rule thousands of unique counties, duchies, kingdoms, and empires.
