Crusader Kings 3’s Game of Thrones mod already created some amazing stories on its first weekend
The highly-anticipated Game of Thrones mod for Crusader Kings 3 is finally out and the level of detail the developers put into their creation is truly impressive – as are the stories that are being generated for players. Just like Paradox Interactive’s grand strategy titles are great for producing some cool alternate history timelines of our own past, this mod is fantastic at making what-if scenarios in the A Song of Ice and Fire world happen.
Players have already posted some fantastic runs and events on the mod’s subreddit, such as an Intrigue-focused run with Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish by HomemPassaro, who made use of the character’s fantastic Intrigue stat to murder his way to the Iron Throne with Catelyn Tully by his side.
IFellIntoASnowdrift, who played as Robert Baratheon, got a letter during his rebellion against the Mad King containing details about a recent battle. It revealed that his great rival, Prince Rhaegar, was slain by none other than everyone’s favorite giant, Hodor – knowing Bobby B, he’d likely laugh himself half to death upon hearing that Rhaegar was felled by a witless stable boy.
The level of detail in CK3 AGOT is deep, as user gamehiker’s discovery of a funny event shows: Remember Robert and Ned’s conversation about their amorous conquests during the war on the show? Well, Bessie with the blessed breasts is a character in the game and can be recruited into your court. If you do so as Robert, you can get an event to rename a location called The Teats to Bessie’s Teats, which is indeed a very Robert thing to do.
Then there is the story of MrElephant, who as Robert not only had to deal with an incestious affair between Cersei and Jaime, but also between his bastard son on the Kingsguard and bastard daughter – there is an option to “invite them for some family time” because Robert has Lustful as a trait. Yes, Crusader Kings and Game of Thrones really are made for each other.
My personal playthrough as Tywin Lannister started very differently from what author George R. R. Martin wrote as well: The Mad King crushed Robert’s uprising and executed him, Eddard Stark, and their families, giving the Stormlands and the North to other houses, before I could even bring the Westerlands into the war. It didn’t help that Jaime died in a duel with Howland Reed, reducing my sympathies with the North greatly.
At least Rhaegar died in battle in this timeline as well, opening the way for some interesting succession shenanigans – murdering Aerys was simple enough, since basically everyone in the realm wanted him dead and Tywin has a hook on Grand Maester Pycelle, and so the Mad King found a fitting end being torn apart by the mob of King’s Landing.
Aegon, Rhaegar’s eldest son, took over as a child ruler, but my plan to murder him (and marry his sister to Tyrion) failed at the last moment, when his clothing stopped him from “accidently” falling out of a window. My agent gave up my name, putting me on the king’s hitlist. Fortunately, I was able to rally most of the Lords Paramount to my side in the two wars that followed after I declined being imprisoned and executed – the last one ended in Aegon being deposed in favor of his disfigured and maimed sister-wife, Rhaenys, who had paid the price for fancying herself a warrior queen. Rhaenys didn’t have any children and the chances of that remaining so were good due to her injuries. Tywin then got friendly with Viserys and Daenerys, who had settled at Storm’s End after the Baratheon boys’ execution, marrying relatives into their line – just in case the crown would pass over to them.
Tyrion Lannister packs some impressive stats.
Paradox / CK3 AGOT Team
However, Tywin would not see the project of taking over the Iron Throne through. Taking the reins from his father, Tyrion Lannister did not have a bad history with the deposed Aegon, who had remarried in the meantime. Desperate for an ally after becoming a mere landed knight, Aegon agreed to a matrilineal marriage of his only son and heir, Aenor, to Tyrion’s daughter, after which he thankfully died in a battle. Once Aenor took the throne as Rhaenys’ heir, reached adulthood, and fathered some children, the Lannister takeover was complete – safeguarded by Tyrion and later his son Gerion’s lifelong tenures as Hands of the King.
Ambitions were finally realized when Marq Lannister took the Iron Throne.
Paradox / CK3 AGOT Team
CK3 AGOT got its first patch after release on April 17, 2023, and you can find all the changes here.
