Characters
In addition to and separate from pops, Imperator: Rome defines individual characters. The characters in Imperator are deeply detailed, and together with the pops and the politics are part of what makes a vibrant living world. They have portraits that age gradually, with lots of different ethnicities covering the world. Characters occupy 
positions and serve as the rulers, advisors, governors, generals, and more who run the country and its administration, but also have fickle 
loyalty and must be kept either loyal or in check lest they become discontent and use their considerable resources to start a 
civil war.
Contents
Name[edit]
Every character has a name by which they are normally identified, partly assigned at birth, partly inherited from the character's parents, and partly given over the course of a character's life. A character's name can be divided into 4 distinct parts, usually arranged in the following structure:
[Given name] [Regnal Number] [Nickname] [Family name]
Italic characters have a special naming system that reflects Roman naming conventions, with the cognomen (nickname) coming last and simplified names for females. Male Italic characters then use following naming structure:
[Given name] [Regnal Number] [Family name] [Nickname]
Female Italic characters use following naming structure:
[Family name] [Given name (Number)] [Regnal Number] [Nickname]
Given name[edit]
A character's primary name is their given name, or praenomen, which is assigned at birth (or when created) and is usually randomly chosen from a list of names determined by the character's culture group, but can also be manually set or changed for children born to the current 
ruler. This is the main name that characters are usually referred to by.
Italic female characters are not assigned a usual praenomen. Instead, they are given a Latin number based on their order of birth, with the first daughter being "Prima", the second being "Secunda", the third being "Tertia", and so forth. Their given name is also placed after the family name, unlike with Italic male characters.
Family name[edit]
When a character is born, he or she will typically take on the family name of his or her father, identifying the family that the character comes fsrom. Depending on the culture, the family name may differ slightly between male and female forms. Children of minor characters will not receive a family name, and are known only by their given names.
Randomly generated minor characters will instead take a random name from the family name list of their culture group. Due to the relatively small number of possible family names for many culture groups, it is common to see unrelated characters with the same family name.
Nickname[edit]
- Main article: Cognomen
Characters may gain a nickname or cognomen (for Italic-cultured characters) that references one of the characteristics or accomplishments, typically given to victorious generals after a triumph or granted to a governor, as well as through certain events. Characters of the Italic culture group have a more sophisticated system where cognomen can be gained when reaching adulthood and inherited from father to son, as well as being placed at the end of the name.
A character can only have one nickname at a time; if a character acquires a new nickname, the old one will be removed.
Regnal Number[edit]
Rulers of monarchies have a regnal number that distinguishes them from previous (and future) monarchs with the same name. Regnal numbers are in Roman numerals and usually counted starting from the beginning of the game, with the starting ruler receiving the regnal number I, though certain countries start with with a list of already used regnal names and numbers to ensure a historical naming scheme.
Stats[edit]
Every character has a large range of stats that determine their skills and standing across all sorts of different fields, each with a different effect.
Primary[edit]
- Main article: Attributes
The 4 main stats, or attributes, represent the character's skills and ability in some of the most important facets of serving an office and ruling a country. Attributes are mostly fixed and generally will not vary much over the course of the game after a character reaches adulthood, unless they are seriously injured.
Martial represents a character's ability to fight and lead troops. Characters with high martial skills make excellent generals.
Finesse represents a character's skill in disciplines requiring a high attention to detail. High finesse characters make excellent governors.
Charisma is a character’s ability to charm and persuade others.
Zeal is a character's ability to inspire faith in other characters, and also in calling upon the favour of the gods.
Secondary[edit]
Secondary stats are more diverse and represent everything about a character from how well known or liked they are to their current health or loyalty to the state. Most of these are generally less important than a character's primary attributes, but should still be taken into consideration when appointing a character to an office or deciding whether or not they might become a threat.
Age is a requirement for many parts of public life, from education to taking office. A character reaches adulthood at 16, though many types of republic have age requirements significantly above that for their rulerships, and older characters will become increasingly susceptible to terminal illnesses.
The Health stat of a character ranges from 0 to 100, and is increased or decreased by various traits. If the health of a character reaches 0, that character will die. Using the Seek Treatment character interaction will increase the health of the character with a chance of permanently injuring the character.
Statesmanship represents how experienced the character is in the matters of government. It is accumulated over time by holding jobs and offices as well as the finesse attribute and some traits, and determines how effectively attributes are applied towards 
government offices.
Prominence represents the fame of the character. Jobs and titles help bring characters to public attention, and make it more likely that they will be elected in republics.
Popularity is a measure of how the people see the character. In republics high popularity characters are more likely to be elected leader of the republic and will have higher 
senate influence. However even monarchies cannot ignore popular people - and monarchs must be mindful of their own popularity.- Loyalty is a measure of a character's loyalty to the state. Disloyal characters are more likely to cause problems to a ruler than loyal ones, will refuse to listen to orders, and can even drive a realm towards civil war. However even the most loyal of characters has their limit.
Corruption is a measurement of this character’s willingness to engage in underhanded practices. Greed, bribery and the bending of rules come hand-in-hand with high corruption. Corrupt characters will take more than their 
wage would normally be and are likely to anger provinces under their control.
Holdings provide 
income and 
power base to a character, and are usually concentrated among the family heads. However characters may also invest in territories they have a personal connection to.- Wealth: Every character can accumulate money based on their jobs and holdings, which can be used to further their personal ambitions.
- Power Base represents how much influence a character has in a country, and is accumulated from many different sources, such as jobs and offices, holdings,
commanded and loyal cohorts, governorships, 
family prestige (applied to family heads only), and more. 
Succession Support determines who will become ruler when the current ruler dies or finishes their term. How this is calculated depends on the ruler type: monarchies determine this entirely by familial relationships, republics by popularity, prominence, family prestige, and faction support, and tribes by the value of the character's attributes.
Faction Conviction: In a republic, every adult character has a predilection for each of the 3 senatorial factions, with the current value the sum of the total accumulated predilection so far. The amount gained (or lost) per month depends largely on the character's traits, attributes, and other characteristics, and they will join whichever faction they have the highest conviction for.- Senatorial Influence: The number of seats that a faction controls is determined by the total senatorial influence of its members. Senatorial influence is largely determined by a character's power base, but can also be increased by popularity and a number of traits, while governors and generals will find it hard to effectively exert their influence far away from the capital.
Relationships[edit]
Most characters will have different relationships with various other characters, whether inherited through blood and marriage or developed through interactions. These relationships are important in determining how characters interact with each other, and the ruler's relationships are particularly important for loyalty and the functioning of the realm.
Spouse[edit]
- See also: Consort
Every adult character can have one spouse of the opposite gender. Characters will generally only marry within their own country, although it is possible for a marriage to be arranged between the ruling families of two different monarchies. A character will usually only have children with their spouse and will not reproduce if unmarried, although there are some events where bastards can appear, mostly firing for the ruler. Marriage of the ruling character and close relatives in a player-controlled realm is handled through the Arrange Marriage interaction. Incestuous marriages between close family members (parents, siblings, children, and grandchildren) are forbidden unless the 
Familial Marriage monarchy law is enabled.
In monarchies, the choice of spouse is particularly important as the consort is an official position that can contribute their attributes over that of the ruler if they are higher.
Relatives[edit]
Characters have relatives as determined by their familial relations, with the parents, siblings, and children displayed directly in the interface. The main importance of relatives are in monarchies, where succession is determined by family relations with the exact rules depending on the Succession Law. Close family members of the ruler - parents, siblings, children, and grandchildren, even if not of the ruler's family - can be married off with the Arrange Marriage interaction. Bloodline traits can also only be passed down from parent to child, with the exact rules depending on the trait. If they are currently minor characters, it is also significantly cheaper to adopt certain close relatives - children and siblings - into the ruling family.
Friends[edit]
Every character can have a certain number of friends, controlled by the 
max friends modifier. Friends tend to be loyal and supportive of each other, such as supporting the government if friendly with the ruler and moving to support the other side in a civil war if one of their friends goes into rebellion.
Friends of the ruler get the following modifiers:
- +15 Loyalty
- +0.01 Monthly Family Prestige
+50 Primary Heir Attraction- Monthly Optimates Conviction: +0.01
- Monthly Oligarchic Conviction: +0.01
- Monthly Conviction for Ruler Faction: +0.10
It is generally useful for the ruler to make friends with other powerful characters in the realm, such as family heads and strong generals and governors, especially those with a somewhat lower loyalty who could use the buffer. In particular, making friends with family heads may give you opportunities to revoke their most populous holdings, reducing their income and power base.
Friendships between the rulers of two different countries will increase mutual relations by 
25 opinion, making it useful for increasing opinion a little higher for diplomatic action approval if relations have already been fully improved and gifts sent. Foreign characters can also be recruited to join a country's court if they are friends with the ruler, at the cost of 
aggressive expansion.
The ruler can make friends using the Make Friends character interaction, as long as they have friend slots remaining. When you start befriending someone, you will be presented with several events, where each option provides different amounts of progress. You need to choose either:
- 2 large options
- 3 moderate
- 1 large, 1 moderate, 1 small
This process might cost you up to 100 gold or 5000 manpower or increase tyranny by 5.
Friendships can be ended at any time with the Remove Friend character interaction.
Rivals[edit]
Every character can have a certain number of rivals, controlled by the 
max rivals modifier. Rivals dislike each other and will tend to take aggressive actions and schemes against each other, up to and including assassinations.
Rivals of the ruler get the following modifiers:
- -10 Loyalty
- -0.10 Monthly Family Prestige
- -25 Primary Heir Attraction
-10% Monthly Wage- Monthly Conviction for Ruler Faction: -0.10
Rivalry does not have as strong a loyalty impact as friendship does, but it is nonetheless recommended to generally avoid rivalries with powerful characters.
If two country rulers are rivals, each country will get -50 opinion of each other, significantly impairing relations.
In addition to as an effect of various events, rivalries can be started at any time with the Make Rival interaction as long as there are rivalry spots remaining. Making a domestic rival costs 5 popularity, while making a rival of a foreign ruler requires the relations be below 0. A domestic rival can be removed at any time with the Remove Rival interaction at the cost of 
30 political influence, and a foreign rival if relations are above 0.
Family[edit]
Most characters in a country are part of a major family. Members of a family are usually related to each other and children will inherit the family of their primary parent (usually the father), but it is also possible for characters to join a major family through adoption.
Characters in a major family will automatically marry shortly after they reach adulthood, with the main exception of the ruling family of a player-controlled country. Members of the ruling family will never marry except through the Arrange Marriage interaction; as only close relatives of the ruler can marry using this interaction, this means that more distantly related family members will generally not marry. This is generally most problematic in monarchies as the ruling family rotates in republics and tribes, and means that without intervention, the ruling family will typically shrink to become much smaller than the other families, limiting the talent pool that can be drawn from when giving out positions to appease the ruling family. This can be dealt with either by constantly adopting promising minor characters or marrying close relatives, particularly sisters, daughters, or granddaughters to more distantly related members of the family to ensure they reproduce.
Characters that are part of the ruling family get +0.01 monthly prominence and 
+10 primary heir attraction.
Expected number of positions[edit]
- Main article: Position#Mechanics
Major families expect to have their members hold a certain proportion of all currently held assignable positions in order to be content. Any family that does not hold its expected number of positions is considered 
scorned, which gives a significant loyalty malus, while a family that instead holds at least double the number of expected positions is 
grateful, which gives a number of bonuses. Ensuring that all families are content, even if this requires appointing less-skilled but more politically connected characters to important positions, is an important part of character and family management.
Family prestige[edit]
Every family has an associated prestige value, which represents how prominent the family has been throughout the country's history. Prestige is accumulated passively from all the positions, wealth and cohorts controlled by the family's members; prestige can also be increased from various events. The primary effect of prestige is to increase the modifiers given to the head of the family based on how much prestige the family has compared to all the other families, with the most important modifier being power base. 
Apotheosis with the 
Magna Graecia DLC also requires the family of the deified ruler to have at least 800 prestige.
Head of family[edit]
Each major family has a head, usually the oldest member of the family; the main exception is the ruling family of monarchies, which is always helmed by the ruler. The head of each major family gets the following modifiers for each percentage of the total family prestige in the country that the family has:
- +0.25 Prominence
- +1.2 Power Base
- +0.001% Monthly Statesmanship
- +0.005% Loyalty Gain Chance
- -0.75% Senate Influence
- Monthly Optimates Conviction: +0.0015
- Monthly Oligarchic Conviction: +0.0015
Clan chiefs in tribal nations have a somewhat different set of modifiers.
Additionally, all holdings pass to the head of the family when a character dies, which means that heads of families tend to have the highest 
wealth and power base in the country, even before considering positions. It is therefore dangerous to appoint them as governors or generals, as the loyalty impact of their very high power base means that it will be difficult to keep them consistently loyal. Appointing them as a researcher or to a government office is recommended if they need to be given a position, as those do not increase power base and matter less if they become disloyal.
When a country is conquered or annexed, three family heads from the conquered state can be invited to join the conqueror's court as minor characters, along with a few of their family members. All other characters will be executed or disappear into obscurity.
Number of families[edit]
The maximum number of major families in a country depends on its rank, ranging from 3 for 
City States and 
Local Powers to 5 for 
Great Powers. In tribes, the number of families is instead the number of clan chiefs, which is generally the same as the number of families for other government forms, except for 
Major Powers.
If the number of major families is less than the maximum - usually after rising in rank - then an event will trigger creating a new family from one of the 3 most powerful minor characters in the country. Similarly, if the number of major families is higher than the maximum, then one of them will fall from grace and all of its members will be demoted to minor characters.
Minor characters[edit]
Characters that are not part of a major family are considered minor characters. Minor characters do not have a family head and do not benefit from the effects of family prestige, which generally means that they are unlikely to accumulate a large unless granted a particularly large army or region to govern. They will also not marry automatically and usually do not have a family, although it is possible to manually marry relatives of the ruler to them like with any other unmarried adult character.
Minor characters will automatically appear in the court from time to time and might be of any existing culture or religion in the country, though they will still generally be of the primary culture and religion. In tribes and monarchies they can be adopted into the ruling family at any time with a base cost of 10% of the family's current prestige and 
10 legitimacy (more if the character has a high power base); other families may also adopt minor characters if their size becomes too small.
Positions[edit]
- Main article: Position
One of the main roles of characters are to be assigned to various positions in a country. Besides being the ruler of a country, they could be assigned to govern a province, command an army, handle research, or be given a role in the government, providing various bonuses depending on their traits and attributes and the position they are assigned to in exchange for pay, prominence, and increased power base. Major families will always expect to hold a certain percentage of all positions in the realm, and can become grateful if they are given much more than expected. Managing the family composition, loyalty, and competence of position holders is an important part of internal management and ensuring a stable, prosperous realm.
Positions in the government include:
- Ruler
- Co-Ruler and Consort
- Government Offices
- Researcher
- Governor
- General
- Admiral
Power Base[edit]
A character's power base represents the weight of influence a character has, though his/her wealth, connections, commanded and loyal soldiers, and level of authority. Every unit of power base decreases a character's loyalty by 0.5, making power base one of the most important factors decreasing character loyalty, and if the proportion of 
disloyal power base is higher than the 
civil war threshold, the country will progress towards a civil war. In republics, a character's power base is also the base from which senatorial influence is calculated. Generally, a close eye should always be kept on characters with a high power base, keeping them as loyal as is feasible (or at least above the disloyalty threshold with some buffer to spare) while being sure not to give them any positions that would result in even higher power base (as that can bring the loyalty penalty from high power base up to unmanageable levels).
The main sources of power base are:
- +2 from all positions (including rulers, co-rulers, consorts, primary heirs, offices, researchers, governors, generals, admirals, and party leaders)
- +1.2 to heads of family for each percentage of the total family prestige in the country their family has
- +0.2 to the ruler for each percentage of the country's
population in the 
capital region - +1 to governors for each percentage of the country's population in their governorship
- +1 to generals for each percentage of the country's
army under their command, not including any cohorts loyal to the commander, up to a maximum of +4 per commanded cohort - +1 to for each percentage of the country's army that are cohorts loyal to the character, even if under the command of another character (does not apply for the cohorts loyal to the ruler), up to a maximum of +4 per loyal cohort
- +1 for the character's number of loyal veteran cohorts as a percentage of the country's army size, up to a maximum of +4 per loyal veteran cohort
- +0.1 for each percentage of the country's
ships commanded by an admiral, up to a maximum of +1 per commanded ship - +0.5 for each percentage of the country's
territories held as holdings
Traits[edit]
Traits represent different facets of a character's personality, lifestyle, abilities, conditions, and more, and have a significant effect on a character's attributes and ability to perform in positions, as well as affecting how they respond to events (particularly for the AI).
Most traits have base effects on character attributes and stats that are always active, but some also give modifiers that are only active when the character holds a position like being the ruler or a general. These position-specific modifiers affect the target of the position - the army or navy for generals and admirals, the region for governors, and the entire country for rulers.
Traits can be categorized into one of four categories:
- Personality
- Military
- Health
- Status
Some traits, particularly personality traits, have opposites that they are mutually exclusive with. A character will never have two traits that are opposite with each other at the same time; if a character gets a new trait whose opposite it currently has, the opposite trait will be immediately removed.
Personality traits[edit]
The most general type of trait that describes the character's personality, such as being Brave or Coward(ly), or Cruel or Merciful. Personality traits typically have the widest variety of effects, and almost all characters have at least one or two of these.
| Trait | Personal | Ruler | Governor | General | Opposites | Description & Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Abrasive |
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 Good Natured
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Some people just can't get along with anyone. | |||
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Ambitious |
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 Content
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Whereas some view the ladder to the top as a challenge, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] prefers to see it as firewood.
Characters with this trait will be more likely to murder their way to the top. | ||||
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Arbitrary |
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 Just
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When it really comes down to it, does anyone really care what is right or wrong? | |||
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Arrogant |
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 Modest
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] is quite simply the best at everything [CHARACTER.GetSheHe] puts [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] hand to. | |||
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Assertive |
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 Submissive
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Quick in thought, word and deed, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] knows the best way to navigate most situations. | ||
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Benefactor |
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 Harsh
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Whilst there may be no such thing as true altruism, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] comes awfully close. | ||
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Blunt |
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 Silver Tongued
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Sometimes, facts are just facts. | |||
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Cautious |
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 Reckless
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Even the best laid plans can fail without due diligence. | |||
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Chaste |
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 Lustful
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] considers [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] body an unassailable temple of virtue and honor. So does everyone else. | ||||
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Cold |
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 Loving
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One could liken the heart of [CHARACTER.GetName] to the icy rocks upon which Prometheus was bound, and yet still be considered generous. | |||
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Content |
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Ambitious
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Ambition just doesn't come naturally to some. [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] is all the happier for it. | ||||
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Corrupt |
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 Righteous
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One can go about things in the right way, or the profitable one. [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] knows the truth of the matter.
Characters with this trait will be more likely to engage in theft. | ||
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Crafty |
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 Guileless
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Wheedling, conniving, and cunning, may not be attractive qualities, but they're never unhelpful ones. | |||
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Cruel |
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 Merciful
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Suffering and productivity come hand in hand. That is, according to [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] at least.
Characters with this trait are more likely to murder their way to the top. | |
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Deceitful |
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 Honest
|
The truth may be honorable, but, at least according to [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], it doesn't get you very far.
Characters with this trait will be more likely to engage in theft. | ||||
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Devout |
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 Lapsed
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Prayer can be a source of hope in dark times. Luckily for [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], it is often dark. | |||
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Dumb |
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 Intelligent
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] was never one for the intellectual pursuits. | ||||
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Energetic |
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 Lazy
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] always puts in double the effort - even when sleeping.
Characters with this trait will be able to commit certain acts like theft, gambling, and murder, more frequently. | ||||
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Foolish |
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 Shrewd
|
The only person unaware of just how gullible [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] is, seems to be [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] [CHARACTER.GetHerselfHimself].
Characters with this trait will be more likely to engage in pit-fighting. | ||||
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Forgiving |
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 Vengeful
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No crime, no barbed insult, or any manner of offense, is too great for the clemency of [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. | |||
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Founder |
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 Incapable
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] has vision the likes of which has not been seen since the days of Solomon, Romulus, or the great Pharaohs of old. | ||
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Generous |
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The simple act of aiding others, is often reward enough for [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. | ||
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Good Natured |
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Abrasive
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A pleasant demeanor and polite acknowledgments go a long way towards making friends.
| |||
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Greedy |
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 Self-controlled
|
Nobody would ever dare accuse [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] of moderation or self-control.
Referred to in game code as | |||
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Guileless |
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Crafty
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It's worrying when even the sheep can pull wool over one's eyes. | ||||
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Harsh |
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Benefactor
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While many would employ a mild punishment to fit a mild crime, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] considers mild punishment a crime in itself.
Characters with this trait will be more likely to murder their way to the top. | ||
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Honest |
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Deceitful
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Even the thought of deception is enough to confuse [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen].
Characters with this trait will never accept a bribe. | |||
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Humble |
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 Proud
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A healthy respect for one's own place in the grand scheme of things, is what keeps [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] going. | ||
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Incapable |
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Founder
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Some people, you just can't trust to do anything right. | ||
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Intelligent |
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Dumb
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A mind like no other can solve problems beyond our understanding. A mind like no other, can also create them. | |||
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Jealous |
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 Secure
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Never quite happy with [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] lot in life, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] takes more than a little pleasure in coveting the possessions of others. | |||
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Just |
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Arbitrary
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] has become almost legendary for [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] calm, unbiased opinions. | ||
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Kindly |
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 Uncaring
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A truer soul there never was, than [CHARACTER.GetName]. | ||
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Lapsed |
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Devout
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Once a fervent believer, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] abandoned [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] faith long ago. | |||
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Lazy |
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Energetic
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If a job is worth doing, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] will not be the one to do it. | ||||
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Loving |
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Cold
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A warm heart and kind gaze can always be found with [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. | |||
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Lustful |
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Chaste
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An amorous lifestyle has many benefits, and many drawbacks. [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] recognizes only the former. | ||||
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Merciful |
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Cruel
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Mercy can take many forms, and [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] knows them all. | |
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Miserly |
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Generous
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To [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], wealth is there to be owned; there just always seems to be more to collect. | ||
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Modest |
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Arrogant
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The self-effacing attitude of [CHARACTER.GetName] has become a thing of local legend. | ||||
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Monotonous |
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The harsh, grating sounds that occur whenever [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] opens [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] mouth, have been known to cause crowded rooms to become mysteriously empty. | ||||
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Narrow-minded |
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 Scholar
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] has spent so long remembering the good old days, that any mention of progress causes instant suspicion.
| |||
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Obsessive |
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 Polymath
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When [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] puts [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] mind to a task, [CHARACTER.GetSheHe] could quite forget about anything as trivial as eating, sleeping or at times, breathing. | ||
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Pious |
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 Skeptical
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The very gods above would struggle to find anything to complain about, looking at [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. | |||
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Plain-speaking |
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 Sarcastic
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There are times when matters are just exactly what they seem. For [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], that is all the time. | ||||
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Polymath |
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Obsessive
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There are few subjects upon which [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] could not wax lyrical. | ||
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Prominent |
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 Unnoticeable
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When [CHARACTER.GetName] speaks - people listen. | |||
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Proud |
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Humble
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Hubris is warned of, in the Greek tales of old. It would seem that [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] never much cared for the theater. | ||
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Rash |
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 Wise
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Choices become a lot less complicated if one rushes blindly past them.
Characters with this trait will be more likely to engage in pit-fighting. | |||
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Reckless |
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Cautious
|
[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] always has a plan. Curiously, it always seems to be the same one.
Characters with this trait will be more likely to engage in theft or pit-fighting. | |||
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Righteous |
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Corrupt
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A singular purpose brooks no worldly distraction.
Characters with this trait will never accept a bribe. | |||
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Sarcastic |
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Plain-speaking
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Literally everyone loves [CHARACTER.GetName]. | ||||
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Scholar |
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Narrow-minded
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] simply devours knowledge as it were a hearty meal. It seems to sustain [CHARACTER.GetHerHim] about as much, too. | ||
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Secure |
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Jealous
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If [CHARACTER.GetName] had feathers, not even a divine thunderbolt could ruffle them.
| |||
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Self-controlled |
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Greedy
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A life of fulfillment, seems to [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] to lack all sense of purpose. | |||
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Selfish |
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Generous
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The most important thing in the world of [CHARACTER.GetName], is [CHARACTER.GetName].
Characters with this trait will be more likely to engage in theft. | |||
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Shrewd |
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Foolish
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Nobody fools [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] twice - if there's a path to a bargain, [CHARACTER.GetSheHe] will be the one to find it. | |||
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Silver Tongued |
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Blunt
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Even the most skilled of diplomats would struggle to compare to [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen].
Rulers with this trait will have access to the Persuade character interaction. | |||
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Skeptical |
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Pious
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Questioning everything can get tiring, don't you think? | |||
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Stubborn |
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 Weak-willed
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The very wrath of the powers that be couldn't budge [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] after [CHARACTER.GetSheHe] has made up [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] mind. | |||
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Submissive |
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Assertive
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The meek aren't really due to inherit anything, just yet. | ||
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Suspicious |
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 Trusting
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] knows exactly who's out to get [CHARACTER.GetHerHim]. Everyone that isn't called [CHARACTER.GetName]. | |||
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Tolerant |
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 Zealous
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People from all walks of life can find an unbiased listener, in [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. | |||
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Trusting |
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Suspicious
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To give others the benefit of the doubt, one first must doubt them. [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] never quite reaches that first step. | |||
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Uncaring |
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Kindly
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The world could fold in on itself tomorrow, for all [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] cares. | ||
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Unnoticeable |
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 Province Commerce: −10%
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Prominent
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When [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] speaks - who is [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] anyway? | |||
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Vengeful |
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Forgiving
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Nothing can stand between [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] and those that have wronged [CHARACTER.GetHerHim].
Characters with this trait will be more likely to murder their way to the top. | |||
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Weak-willed |
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Stubborn
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The only thing stopping [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] from simply laying down to die, is indecision. | |||
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Wise |
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Rash
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Simply having knowledge is not enough; understanding how to apply it, shows true wisdom. | |||
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Zealous |
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Tolerant
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A raging fire burns in the heart of [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], fueled by the spirit of religious mystery. |
Military traits[edit]
Typically given to generals and admirals during battle events and give often give various combat modifiers. Usually a character has a maximum of one of those, that may give a bonus or penalty.
| Trait | Personal | General | Opposites | Description & Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Aggressive |
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Tempered by war, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] sees [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] formations as a shining sword to thrust into the very heart of the enemy. | ||
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Brave |
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 Coward
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] stares danger in the face, and knows victory.
Characters with this trait will be more likely to engage in pit-fighting. | |
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Coastal Raider |
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Shows superlative skill in knowing the ebb and flow of the tide. Such a skill comes in handy when taking advantage of certain underhanded business opportunities. | ||
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Confident |
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Trusting one's instincts is the first step towards mastery. | ||
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Coward |
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Brave
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To [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], living to fight another day is vastly preferable to death, honorable or otherwise. | |
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Daring |
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Captains the world over are said to scan the horizon for any sight of [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. The sea is scattered with debris from [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] naval victories. | ||
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Disciplined |
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Nothing is more important to [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] than holding the line. | ||
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Fleet Commander |
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An inherent knowledge of fleet coordination puts [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] a step ahead of [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] peers.
Referred to in game code as | ||
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Improviser |
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] seems able to fix just about anything, using only materials close to hand. [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] crew are said to hide their personal belongings for fear they may end up part of the hull. | ||
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Oarmaster |
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Knows just how to squeeze every last ounce of energy out of a rowdy team of oarsmen. | ||
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Original Thinker |
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The logistics of warfare require a certain innovativeness which [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] seems to possess. | ||
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Princeps |
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Longs to display the mastery of man over nature. Has a natural flair for the logistics and command associated with keeping things ship-shape. | ||
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Sea Dog |
|
|
A life at sea is all [character] longs for. Others may call [him/her] a buccaneer - but well; they're not far wrong. | ||
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Steadfast |
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The resolve of [CHARACTER.GetName] has become so renowned, that it permeates the very forces [CHARACTER.GetSheHe] commands. | ||
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Tactically Inflexible |
|
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Supply lines, routes of retreat, and all-round good planning, mean nothing to [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. | ||
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Tactician |
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Whereas some just see a whirling melee, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] sees patterns, weaknesses, and ultimately - victory. | ||
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Tough |
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The sailors commanded by [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] are said to be the happiest in the world. Said to be blessed by the divine, fleets commanded by [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] seems to have an unnatural ability to survive. |
Health traits[edit]
Represents a medical condition that a character has, such as Stressed, Maimed, Lunatic, etc. Not beneficial to the character in most cases, usually reduces a character's attributes and often has an impact on health as well, sometimes being fatal. Many of these traits can be treated (except for congenital traits), but as characters get older it will be increasingly difficult to avoid.
| Trait | Personal | Ruler | Congenital | Description & Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Arthritis |
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Often dismissed as the natural decline of the body, arthritis was prevalent throughout the world. Stiffness, joint damage, and pain, were among the common symptoms. | ||
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Barren |
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The loss of ability to conceive was a terrible affliction for a woman of childbearing age. | ||
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Blind |
|
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Blindness could be inherent at birth, or caused by a number of virulent diseases. In certain cultures, the blind were revered as holy. | ||
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Bloody Flux |
|
|
Hemorrhagic fever ravaged the Mediterranean empires and beyond, at various points in history. Often fatal, it was accompanied by vomiting, necrosis, and often fatal internal hemorrhaging.
Called | ||
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Brain Damaged |
|
|
Brain damage is a terrible affliction that can render the victim a shell of their former self. Resulting from many inflammatory or physical injuries, the bearer will require usually require constant care during the time they have left. | ||
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Cancer |
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Cancer comes in many forms, and is a death sentence to those who acquire it. | ||
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Castrated |
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Performed as a punishment, extreme treatment, and even as a method of altering the class of a slave, castration removed or suppressed the ability for a male to conceive. | ||
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Dementia |
|
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Dementia eats away at the mind, rendering the sufferer a shadow of their former self.
| ||
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Depressed |
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Depression looms like a dark cloud over [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], even sadness seems to be out of reach. Every action is mechanical; every word uttered, is an act. All [CHARACTER.GetSheHe] recognizes, is the emotionless caricature of what it is to live. | ||
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Diphtheria |
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A horrible infection, presenting unusual lesions, throat symptoms, and malaise. | ||
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Dysentery |
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An intestinal complaint, dysentery when treated properly, was often manageable. Dehydration however, would often cause serious complications, and could result in death, especially around sources of contaminated water. | ||
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Epileptic |
|
 Diplomatic Reputation: −1
|
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The sacred disease is bound to shorten the life of [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], but [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] faith is bolstered by it.
| |
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Fair |
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Blessed with Olympian beauty, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] has grown used to turning heads. | ||
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Frail |
|
|
Frailty could be caused by any number of inherited ailments, and would often affect an individual throughout their life, rendering them weaker than their peers, and often more likely to contract further illnesses. | ||
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Gangrene |
|
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A necrotic infection of tissue without adequate blood supply, gangrene can set in after grievous injuries, exposure to extreme cold, and internal complications. | ||
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Gout |
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Gout, often associated with those of lavish lifestyle, causes chronic pain, amongst more serious complications. | ||
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Hunchback |
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Physical deformities prevent [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] from enjoying some pleasures in life. | ||
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Inbred |
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Generations of inbreeding can have... unexpected results. | ||
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Invalid |
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Incapable of more than the most basic movement, [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] has to rely on [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] mind for adventure. | ||
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Infection |
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The early stages of an ailment are the hardest to recognize. Whilst it may prove to be minor, it could also develop into something much more serious. | ||
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Inflammation |
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|
Swelling and inflammation were common complaints. Often symptomatic of future health problems, tenderness and pain were the primary complaints. | ||
|
Leper |
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Lepers are shunned by society at large; the horrific disease slowly eats away at flesh until little remains. | ||
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Limp |
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An old pain prevents [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] from enjoying full mobility. | ||
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Lisp |
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A minor speech impediment can sometimes cause [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] a great deal of stress. | ||
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Lunatic |
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[CHARACTER.GetName] is, in no uncertain terms, stark raving bonkers. | ||
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Maimed |
|
|
Horrifying injuries scar [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] from head to toe. | ||
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Maniac |
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Unbridled fury leads to moments of utter calm; [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] is about as predictable as the ocean.
Called | ||
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Mentagra |
|
|
A mysterious disease, thought to have been spread by kissing and bodily contact, Mentagra displayed a facial rash, with sores and severe discomfort. | ||
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Mourning |
|
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The loss of a loved one can cut deeper than any physical wound. | ||
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One-Eyed |
|
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Losing sight in one eye could radically alter depth perception. Antigonus, founder of the Antigonid dynasty, acquired the moniker 'Monopthalmus' after losing an eye in battle. | ||
|
Paralysis |
|
|
Partial paralysis could result from a variety of sources, including nerve or brain damage. | ||
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Plague |
|
|
Plague is spoken of only in whispers; even the suspicion of it is often a death sentence. | ||
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Lung Disease |
|
|
Lung diseases were commonplace, due in part, to the quality of air in built up areas. Whilst many cases would come and go, the propensity for them to develop into life threatening conditions, made lung disease a subversive killer.
Called | ||
|
Pox |
|
|
Venereal diseases were common in the ancient world. Whilst some had not yet fully developed, others were well documented, and curiously, often thought to be curable by increased sexual activity. | ||
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Seeking Treatment |
|
|
Medicine is a mysterious art, but surely anything is better than suffering. | ||
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Stressed |
|
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Sometimes enough is enough; for [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen], that time came about nine months after conception. | ||
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Stutter |
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Public speaking is particularly challenging for [CHARACTER.GetPraenomen]. | ||
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Ugly |
|
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] has never had much luck with love. | ||
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Wounded |
|
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[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] bears a grievous injury from times past. |
Status traits[edit]
Status traits represent a character's current activities, lifestyle, reputation, or heritage. They include bloodline traits as well as those given for more personal military or oratory successes.
| Trait | Personal | Ruler | General | Description & Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Blood of Aiakos |
|
|
Aiakos was the grandfather of the greatest Greek hero, Achilles, and king of the island of Aifina in the Saronic Gulf. Neoptolemos, son of Achilles, came to be king of the Molossian Epirotes after he returned from the Trojan War, and his descendants have ruled every since, untiling Epirus and contributing to the legacy of Alexander the Great through his mother Olympias.
This trait can be passed on patrilineally. Given to members of the | ||
|
Blood of Antigonos |
|
|
Antigonos Monopthalmus was a loyal Satrap of Alexander, who rose to power after defeating Perdikkas, soon after Alexander's death. The very first of the Diadochi to proclaim himself King, he was supported by his loyal family, and established a good reputation amongst smaller, less capable Greek nations.
This trait can be passed on patrilineally. Given to members of the | ||
|
Blood of Antipatros |
|
|
A great friend of Alexander, Antipatros was responsible for safeguarding Macedonia during Alexander's great campaigns. His loyalty to Alexander, and domineering attitude towards the lesser Greek states was tempered by his son, Kassandros, whose contempt of Alexander was no secret, and whose legacy included the founding and restoration of many great cities.
This trait can be passed on patrilineally. Given to members of the | ||
|
Blood of the Argeads |
|
|
Alexander wept when he heard from Anaxarchus that there was an infinite number of worlds; and when his friends asked him if any accident had befallen him, returned this answer: "Do you not think it a matter worthy of lamentation that when there is such a vast multitude of them, we have not yet conquered one?"
This trait can be passed on matrilineally or patrilineally. Given to all descendants of Phillippos II Argead, including Thessalonike Argead (wife of Basileus Kassandros of | ||
|
Blood of the Lagidae |
|
|
Having grown up alongside Alexander, Ptolemaios Soter of the Lagidae, was amongst the first of the seven Somatophylakes. After the partition of Babylon, he settled in Egypt, ruling with a fair hand; despite the vast population of differing cultures. His long-standing dynasty was regarded as highly influential in the patronage of art, philosophy, and science.
This trait can be passed on patrilineally. Given to members of the | ||
|
Blood of Lysimachus |
|
|
Once a close friend of Alexander, and one of the legendary Somatophylakes; Lysimachos was a brutal yet cunning general, whose grasp of the tense diplomatic situation between the Diadochi was second to none.
This trait can be passed on patrilineally. Given to members of the | ||
|
Blood of Seleukos |
|
|
Unlike the other Diadochi, Seleukos was a person of only mediocre importance during Alexander's campaigns. After a string of victories and defeats, Seleukos finally established his domain with the help of Ptolemaios Soter, and embarked on a campaign to regain control of the eastern parts of Alexander's empire. Surrounded on every side by titanic powers, Seleucus was, by necessity, a ruthless and cunning leader.
This trait can be passed on patrilineally. Given to members of the | ||
|
Conqueror |
|
|
|
Like so many before [CHARACTER.GetHerHim], [CHARACTER.GetName] bears the title of Conqueror - and the responsibility that lies with it.
Random chance to be granted to a general after victory in battle. | |
|
Orator |
|
|
The mere timbre of the silken words that [CHARACTER.GetName] speaks, can stop others in their tracks. | ||
|
Olympic Competitor |
|
[CHARACTER.GetName] is here to compete in the Olympics, and is focusing all his energy on sporting events.
Given to all characters who are chosen to participate in the Olympics and are temporarily in the host country. | |||
|
Poet |
|
|
The mere timbre of the silken words that [CHARACTER.GetName] speaks, can stop others in their tracks. | ||
|
Victorious |
|
|
[CHARACTER.GetPraenomen] has become a byword for glory - long may [CHARACTER.GetSheHe] vanquish [CHARACTER.GetHerHis] foes!
Random chance to be granted to a general after victory in battle. |
Schemes[edit]
Every character has an ongoing scheme, or ambition, at any time that represents their current objectives and activities apart from any currently held positions. These schemes vary widely, from learning and growing up or investing in existing holdings to increasing political influence and plotting against other characters. Schemes are generally the main mechanic by which non-ruler characters have agency and interact with other characters and their holdings. While the schemes of most characters are fairly unimportant and can for the most part be ignored, some, particularly those of powerful characters or those otherwise important to the ruler, can matter significantly, whether positively or negatively. Most schemes can be stopped by using the 
Persuade to Drop Scheme interaction, which costs 10 political influence.
Basic schemes[edit]
These schemes have no effect and characters will generally default to this if they are ineligible for any other scheme or simply have nothing better to do. Cannot be dropped.
- Grow Up! - Used by all children under 12, small chance to increase one of the child's attributes (up to 8) each month
- Content In Life - Default scheme for adults
Ruler schemes[edit]
These schemes are available only to the ruler and usually involve spending a personal attribute to gain a countrywide bonus.
- Scheme: Influence - Gain political power generation in exchange for ruler popularity, can be started using the associated interaction on the ruler
- Researching Lineage - Gain
legitimacy in exchange for ruler wealth with a small chance of gaining bloodline trait if the ruler is in the Hellenistic culture group and does not already have one, can be started using the associated interaction on the ruler - Siphon Funds - Gain ruler wealth and corruption
Education schemes[edit]
Every child selects one of these when they turn 12, and the education that is chosen will determine the attributes they gain (and lose) during their adolesence and gives a trait and faction conviction when they reach adulthood. The education of the ruler's child can be changed using the Tutor Heir interaction on the Royal Tutor in monarchies.
- Become Great Warrior - Focuses on martial at the expense of other attributes, gain a military trait and democrats or populares conviction on reaching adulthood
- Become Tyrant - Focuses on martial and finesse at the expense of other attributes while gaining corruption, gain a sociopathic trait and oligarchs or optimates conviction on reaching adulthood
- Become Bureaucrat - Focuses on finesse at the expense of other attributes, gain a rulership trait and traditionalists or boni conviction on reaching adulthood
- Become Rich - Focuses on finesse at the expense of other attributes while gaining corruption, gain a greed-related trait and oligarchs or optimates conviction on reaching adulthood
- Become Politician - Focuses on charisma at the expense of other attributes while gaining corruption, gain a oratory trait and oligarchs or optimates conviction on reaching adulthood
- Become Demagogue - Focuses on charisma at the expense of other attributes while losing loyalty, gain a modifier to corruption and democrats or populares conviction on reaching adulthood
- Become Zealous - Focuses on zeal at the expense of other attributes while losing loyalty, gain a religion-focused trait and traditionalists or boni conviction conviction on reaching adulthood
Plot schemes[edit]
These schemes target another character, possibly even the ruler. Many of these schemes can 
assisted or 
interfered with to either increase (at the cost of ruler popularity) or decrease (at the cost of ) the scheme's probability of success, in addition to being persuading to drop the plot altogether.
- Assassinate! - Attempts to kill a rival
- Theft! - Attempts to steal from a wealthy rival
- Claim Holding - Attempts to take a holding from another character, costs popularity
Relationship schemes[edit]
These schemes involve trying to create a new relationship with another character, whether friendly or hostile.
- Provoke - Attempts to make another character into a rival
- Befriend - Attempts to make another character into a friend
- A Royal Proposal - Spends gold to try to arrange a marriage with the ruler, used only in monarchies if the ruler is adult and unmarried
- Seeking Spouse - Spends gold to try to arrange a marriage with a member of another major family, used only by unmarried adult characters that are notable in some way and can be triggered for the ruler with the associated character interaction (Scheme: Political Marriage)
Investment schemes[edit]
These schemes usually involve the character either enriching themselves or spending their personal wealth to improve their position in some way.
- Sponsoring Games - Spends personal wealth to gain popularity
- Prepare a Grand Festival - Spend a large amount of gold to give
+5% Integrated Culture Happiness, used only by the High Priest - Investing in Opportunities - Gain personal wealth
- Seek Patron - Attempts to convince another character to help gain prominence
- Buy Holding - Spend wealth and popularity to gain a new holding in a territory with an empty slot, used only by heads of family and will prefer to target territories neighbouring existing holdings
- Expand Estate - Spend wealth to increase the
population output of held holdings but make them unrevokable, used only by heads of family - Latifundia - Spend a large amount of gold and gain corruption to build a
farming settlement in an owned holding, used only by heads of family - Expanding Mines - Spend a large amount of gold and gain corruption to build a
mine in an owned holding, used only by heads of family - Extort Territory - Increases wealth and corruption while decreasing region output and
loyalty, used only by governors
Political schemes[edit]
These schemes involve trying to increase the character's power and potting against the ruler.
- Buying Troop Loyalty - Spends gold to gain the loyalty of commanded cohorts, can be used by generals
- Demand Office - Increases and when finished fires an event for the ruler to demand an office, potentially displacing the current holder; only used by characters with high prominence and popularity
- Hire Private Army - Spends a large amount of gold to gain the loyal veteran cohorts, costs gold to abort
- Plotting Quietly - Spends gold and lowers character loyalty by 10, cannot be forced to abort
- Inspiring Disloyalty - Spends a large amount of gold to reduce the loyalty of a more powerful character by 10, costs gold to abort
Vice schemes[edit]
These schemes do not do anything particularly productive, but represent characters getting involved in more questionable or problematic behaviours that can be rather costly.
- Gambling - Costs gold, and has a chance of gaining it back with some return or losing even more once the scheme finishes
- Fighting in the Arena - Decreases health and popularity, with a chance of gaining prominence and popularity if successful or losing more health if not
Other schemes[edit]
These schemes are used only in certain specific situations.
- Seeking Treatment - Increases health and attempts to heal an healable illness or injury. Can be selected for any eligible character in the country's court through the Seek Treatment interaction at the cost of 200 gold, which comes of personal wealth if selected for the ruler or the
treasury for all other characters - Escape Prison! - Attempts to escape imprisonment, costing health if unsuccessful, and will be frequently taken by prisoners
Interactions[edit]
Most actions on characters can be performed through character interactions, available either on the right of the character screen or by right clicking the character's portrait. In a republic, many of these interactions will require 
Senate approval.
General interactions[edit]
These interactions are generally available on most characters within the country.
| Interaction | Description |
|---|---|
| Adopt | Adopt a minor character into the ruling family, at a base cost of 10% of the family's current prestige and 10 legitimacy. Available only to monarchies and tribes.
|
| Make Friends | Begins an event chain to try the befriend the character, with various gold, political power, and  tyranny costs. Required for recruiting them (if foreign). Each character has a limited number of friends; non-foreign friends of rulers have increased loyalty. Unlike most interactions, can be done on almost any character, including those outside the country.
|
| Bribe | Increases the character's loyalty by 15 for 2 years for 5 political influence and 200 of the ruler's personal wealth. Increases the ruler's by 1 and the bribed character's corruption by 5. A character can only be bribed again after the previous bribe's effects have worn off.
|
| Persuade | Replaces the Bribe interaction if the ruler has the orator or silver-tongued trait, and increases the character's loyalty by 15 for 2 years of 5 political influence, without the ruler wealth or corruption costs.
|
| Force Conversion | Force a character to convert to the state religion at the cost of 5 tyranny and 30 loyalty. Requires at least at least 60 loyalty, and can even be done on the ruler.
|
| Grant Citizenship Status | Removes the Foreign Citizenship modifier from a character, allowing them to hold positions. Costs 5 ruler popularity.
|
| Impose Corruption Sanctions | Removes up to 50 corruption from a character, costing and 20 loyalty. Requires the character to have at least 5 corruption and cannot be used on the ruler, or on characters with the crafty trait, trait, or Nefarious Tendencies modifier.
|
| Imprison | Imprisons a character at the cost of 5 popularity and possibly if the character has at least 2 power base. Cannot be used on characters with any position or status; the Bring to Trial interaction must be used on these characters instead. Will cause a diplomatic incident if used on an Olympic competitor.
|
| Ostracize | Replaces the Banish interaction for  Athens or countries that were formed from Athens. Unlike with banishing, can be used on any character except the ruler or co-ruler - even if not imprisoned - but costs  5 stability and tyranny based on the character's power base, and can only be used once every year.
|
| Make Rival | Makes another character into a rival of the current ruler. Can be used as long as the ruler has rival slots remaining on any character in the country, or on foreign rulers if their country's opinion of the current country is less than 0. Costs 5 popularity if used on characters within the country.
|
| Remove Rival | Stops the ruler from seeing the character as a rival. Costs 30 political influence for characters within the country, and requires that the other country has at least 0 opinion of the current country if to end rivalries with foreign rulers.
|
| Scheme: Seek Treatment | Starts treatment for a healable illness or injury, increasing the health of the character. Chance of successfully treating and removing the trait, or failing disastrously and causing an additional permanent injury. Costs 200 to use on most characters except for the ruler, who will cover the expenses from his/her personal wealth.
|
| Smear Reputation | Reduces character popularity by 25 at the cost of 2 tyranny. Can be used on the if the ruler is a dictator.
|
| Demand Support for Heir | Gives 50 Primary Heir Attraction at the cost of 2 tyranny, making the character more likely to support the primary heir. Can only be used by monarchies on characters with at least 50 loyalty that are not already supporting the primary heir.
|
Ruler interactions[edit]
The following interactions are available only on the ruler, or in some cases close relatives of the ruler.
| Interaction | Description |
|---|---|
| Arrange Adoption | Finds a minor character to adopt into the ruling family, analogous to the Adopt interaction. Available only to monarchies and tribes. |
| Appoint Dictator | Extends the ruler's term and gives a  army morale bonus and allows bypassing the Senate in diplomatic and character interactions until the end of the war (or possibly longer) at the cost of 10 tyranny. Can be used in a republic when at  war or during a civil war, if there is at least 75 Senate approval.
|
| Return Dictatorship | Forces a ruling dictator to stand down, can be used if their popularity is low enough, or the country's stability is high enough.
|
| Arrange Marriage | Arranges a marriage between the current character and an eligible spouse in the same country. The other party may ask for gifts in order for the marriage to proceed. Can be used on unmarried adults that are close relatives of the , or the him/herself, in monarchies and tribes.
|
| Assassinate | Kills an unwanted dictator, costs 7 tyranny, 7 aggressive expansion, and 30 stability.
|
| Plan Assassination! | Starts the Assassinate! scheme to kill a rival within the country. Costs 7 tyranny and 7 aggressive expansion.
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| Scheme: Hold Games | Starts the Sponsoring Games scheme, spending personal wealth to gain popularity. Can select a  province capital to hold the games in, which increases  population happiness for 1 year.
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| End Inspiring Foreign Disloyalty | Stops inspiring loyalty on foreign characters, analogous to the Stop Inspiring Disloyalty interaction. |
| Scheme: Influence | Starts the Influence scheme, spending personal ruler popularity to increase political power generation. Chance of events to gain extra political power at the expense of gold,  manpower, stability, or ruler corruption.
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| Scheme: Prove Legitimacy | Starts the Researching Lineage scheme, spending personal wealth to increase legitimacy. Small chance of gaining a bloodline trait if the ruler is in the Hellenistic culture group and does not already have a bloodline.
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| Scheme: Siphon Funds | Starts the Siphon Funds scheme, gaining personal wealth at the cost of ruler corruption.
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| Scheme: Political Marriage | Seeks a marriage between the character and a member of a particular major family. Costs 10 political influence and personal wealth while progressing, and creates a new character to marry once the scheme is finished. Can be used on unmarried adults that are close relatives of the , or the him/herself, in monarchies and tribes.
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Position holder interactions[edit]
These interactions are generally available only to characters with a certain position or status, such as generals, office holders, or heads of family.
| Interaction | Description |
|---|---|
| Send Adventuring | Send a general of the ruling family off as a  mercenary. Might return after 5 years with gold, a personal army, or increased martial or finesse.
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| Exalt Clan Chief | Increases a clan chief's loyalty by 20 at the cost of gold and angering the other clan chiefs.
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| Give Free Hands | Increases loyalty by 20 at the cost of monthly corruption gain. Can be used if the character is a governor, researcher, clan chief, or holds a government office.
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| Revoke Free Hands | Revokes the free hands privileges given by the Give Free Hands interaction. Decreases loyalty by 15 on top of losing the +20 modifier, and can only be done 2 years after giving free hands.
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| Grant Regional Cognomen | Gives a regional nickname and to a governor. Costs 10 ruler popularity.
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| Grant Clan Autonomy | Releases a disloyal clan chief and the province his/her  retinue is currently in as a  tributary. Gives 30 loyalty to all remaining clan chiefs.
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| Grant Holding | Grants a in an unheld territory to a head of family, increasing loyalty by 5. Costs 40 gold and gives 5 ruler corruption if used on the ruler.
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| Grant Capitulatory Honors | Gives 60 loyalty, 20 prominence, and 20 popularity to a general at the cost of gold and 20 stability. Can be used by republics on generals with 40 loyalty or less.
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| Grant Stipends | Gives 20 loyalty for all members of a family in return for increasing their wage by 50%. Can be used on any head of family, except for that of the ruler, and lasts for 5 years.
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| Hold Triumph | Holds a triumph for a character that won a battle as a general less than 2 years ago, increasing loyalty by 20 and removing then from command if still a general - even if they are disloyal. Costs 30 political influence and gives family prestige, popularity, and a victory trait to the character, as well as possibly a cognomen, and requires they have at least 20 loyalty.
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| Bring to Trial | Attempts to imprison a character that holds an office or otherwise has high status, replaces the Imprison interaction. The chances of success is increased by the character's corruption and decreased by their power base, and can be changed by the events and options during the trial. Failure to convict the character will significantly decrease loyalty and may trigger a civil war. A trial costs 5 tyranny to start and can only be used on the same character once every 5 years.
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| Reward Veterans | Spends wealth to remove cohort loyalty from up to 4 cohorts currently loyal to the character. Can be used once every 2 years.
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| Revoke Holding | Revokes a holding from a head of family, at a cost of 5 loyalty. Can only be used on holdings that do not have the Family Estate modifier.
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| Tutor Heir | Changes the education scheme of one of the ruler's children that is at least 12, but not yet an adult. Can only be used on the Royal Tutor, if he/she has at least 40 loyalty.
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Prisoner interactions[edit]
The following interactions are available only on imprisoned characters.
| Interaction | Description |
|---|---|
| Banish | Force an imprisoned character to leave the country, with a base cost of 1 tyranny.
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| Execute | Kills an imprisoned character with a base cost of 3 tyranny.
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| Arrange Gladiatorial Debut | Forces an imprisoned character to fight another imprisoned character in the arena, with the loser dying and the winner going free. Costs 4 tyranny and increases ruler popularity.
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| Flog | Reduces the health of an imprisoned character by 10. Costs 2 popularity and gives -10 loyalty to the character being flogged and +2 loyalty to his/her rivals each time, as well as 3 tyranny if the loss of health would kill the character.
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| Ransom Prisoner | Attempt to ransom a character imprisoned in another country. The price needed depends largely on relations between the two countries and the martial skill of the character.
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| Release Prisoner | Releases a character from imprisonment, returning them to their home country if imprisoned from abroad. If the character was imprisoned using the Imprison interaction, reduces tyranny by 1.
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| Sacrifice | Kills a prisoner to increase  tribesman output and  happiness and reduce  centralization based on the target's martial. Costs {[red|5}} stability, requires the  Adopt Human Sacrifices law, and can only be used on characters of a different culture.
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| Proscribe | Kills the character, seizes all holdings back to the state, transfers most of the character's wealth to the ruler, and demotes the entire major family to minor character status with a loyalty penalty of -40. Costs a base of 30 tyranny and gives 200 wealth to the state, requires that the character be a head of family and that the country has more than 40 tyranny.
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| Sell into Slavery | Sells a character into slavery, either eventually moving to another country or disappearing into obscurity (and effectively dying), for wealth (depending on their attributes at the cost of 0.5 tyranny. Selling a member of family head will give -10 loyalty to all family members, increasing to -30 if the family heads is sold off.
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Foreign interactions[edit]
These interactions are available only on characters outside the country.
| Interaction | Description |
|---|---|
| Plan Assassination! | Attempt to kill a character in another country. Costs 15 aggressive expansion and requires having a friend in their court.
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| Inspire Disloyalty | Reduces the loyalty of a foreign character by 20 and increases their monthly personal wealth gain, at a cost of 5 Aggressive Expansion. Can only inspire disloyalty in one foreign character at a time
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| Stop Inspiring Disloyalty | Stops inspiring loyalty on a foreign character, removes both the loyalty malus and monthly personal wealth modifier and allows inspiring disloyalty in another character. Can only be done at least 2 years after inspiring disloyalty was started.
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| Attempt to Buy Off Mercenary | Attempts to buy the loyalty of mercenaries employed by an enemy in a . If the other country refuses to match the offer, the mercenaries will defect. Can be used on mercenary generals, only if they have not been enticed in the last year.
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| Elect New Leader | Appoints the ruler of a subject mercenary state as the new ruler of the country, at the cost of 15 stability and 10 legitimacy. Can only be performed by  Syracusae or countries that were formed from Syracusae, once every 5 years.
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| Arrange Marriage | Arrange a marriage with a royal marriage with a foreign character, improving relations between the two countries. The female will always move to the male partner's country, even if she is currently the ruler. Can only be used if both countries are monarchies and the two characters are adult, unmarried members of the ruling family, and cannot be used against the ruler of another country (however, it is possible to marry a foreign character to the ruler of the current country).
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| Recruit | Gets a foreign character to leave their nation and join the current country, possibly bringing their spouse and children along. Costs 2 aggressive expansion and requires that the character be a friend of the current ruler and not hold an important position or title, and may have loyalty requirements if they or their spouse have some sort of status.
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| Recruit General | Gets a foreign general to leave their nation with their army and join the current country. Costs 10 aggressive expansion and requires that the general have 25 loyalty or less.
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| Entice Governor | Convinces a foreign governor to join the current country, taking neighbouring provinces in their governorship with them and significantly angering their former owner. Costs 20 aggressive expansion, and can only be used if the governor has less than 40 loyalty, is a friend of the ruler, and a neighbouring province in their governorship has 50 province loyalty or less.
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Successsion crisis interactions[edit]
These interactions are available only on disloyal pretenders that have raised their armies during a succession crisis.
| Interaction | Description |
|---|---|
| Entice to Become Mercenary | Sends away a disloyal pretender general to form a new mercenary company with their pretender army at the cost of gold, removing them from the country. If they are hired back they may return to the court and again become a serious problem. Can be used as long as the pretender does not have more than 1000 gold.
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| Encourage Deserters | Disbands up to 6 cohorts from a disloyal pretender's army, at the cost of 25 political influence. Can be used as long as the pretender does not have more than 40 popularity and has an army of at least 11 cohorts.
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| Support Pretender | Adds 10 cohorts to the pretender's army and makes the pretender a friend of the , at the cost of 500 wealth and 50 political influence. Can be used on disloyal pretenders in another country once every 2 years for each pretender.
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| Seize Assets | Seizes 300 gold from the pretender's personal wealth, with 100 gold going to the country and 200 gold going to the at the cost of 5 ruler corruption and -10 loyalty. Can be used as long as the pretender has at least 800 gold.
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How to recruit foreign characters[edit]
- Open the diplomacy view of another country and click View Characters on the right.
- If the character's loyalty is above 70, use Inspire Disloyalty to lower it.
- Befriend them using the Make Friend interaction.
- Recruit them and Grant Citizenship so you can assign them to a job.
You can only recruit a character who is:
- below 70 loyalty
- your friend
- not a ruler or the primary heir
- not a governor, general or admiral
Recruit General is a separate interaction, which requires their loyalty to be below 25.
There is also a Character Finder mod that does all the searching for you. Not compatible with ironman.
| Domestic policy | State • Attributes • Characters • Culture • Government • Heritages • Laws • National ideas • Position • Rebellion • Religion • Technology |
| Economic policy | Buildings and Infrastructure • Economy • Food • Population • Trade • Trade goods |
| Provinces | Region • Province • Territories • Colonization |
| Military | Military traditions • Army • Siege • Assault • Land units • Land warfare • Naval warfare |
| Foreign policy | Treaties • Warfare • Casus belli • Claim • Diplomacy • Subject nations • Barbarians |
| Script | Events • Decisions • Missions |
| Other | Achievements • Antagonist • Difficulty |
