Welcome to the spiritual successor to my Civilization V actual play column, set in Paradox Interactive's grand medieval strategy game Crusader Kings II. If you followed along for the Celtic Chronicle ( Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 ) and the Swedish Saga ( Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 , Part 4 , Part 5 , Part 6 ), here's what to expect:



Smaller historical scope. This game only covers the years between 1066 and 1490, as opposed to the typical, millennia-spanning game of Civilzation.



More depth. Almost every noble in Europe is an individual character with a sheet of traits, family ties, lieges and vassals, etc. Troops are tracked down to the individual man, and armies can be split and sent in different directions.



Real-time. CK2 uses a pausable, real-time mechanic where troop movements are tracked realistically, characters actually age, grow sick, and die, heirs become old enough to marry, and so on. There is no "Next Turn" button.

Got it? Good! On to the story...