Crusader Kings 3 allows players to roleplay one of the most interesting stretches of history, putting them in the shoes of any land-owning noble in the middle ages, with a map that stretches from the British Isles all the way to Somalia, and now even most of the Asian continent, accurately portraying all of this territory down to the county level. Much like real life, not all of these historic rulers were on equal footing, and some of the options players have to start the game are objectively far worse than others. While these starting dates and locations may provide you with an interesting challenge, they are considered by many players to be objectively bad, making them some of the hardest game starts in Crusader Kings 3.
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1) Ras Dawit of Dambiya (867 AD)
One of the more historically unique on this list, Ras Dawait originally hails from Beta Israel, said to be one of the original twelve tribes that fled the Levant after the destruction of the first temple. Head of the Gideon dynasty and beginning the game as one of the sole Jewish faith leaders in Africa, Ras Dawit finds himself immediately surrounded by Coptic Christians and Kushite leaders, putting him at risk of constant holy wars or having titles revoked by his feudal liege, the Prince of Abyssinia.
While this character comes from one of the most interesting dynasties in the game, your single heir won’t be enough to revive it. This character and his dynasty comes with some interesting interactions in the Levant, but starts far away and in a precarious situation of his own, so getting there might be a challenge.
2) Countess Katalin of Pozsony (1066 AD)
37 years old and trapped in a patriarchal marriage, Katalin of Pozsony presents one of the more uniquely challenging starts in the game. This is due to how Crusader Kings 3 handles marriage and succession. A player only continues to play the children of their current character if those children are of the same dynasty, and both of Katalin’s children are of the dynasty of their father. This leaves players who pick this start date with no heirs and only three years to create them.
To make matters worse, Katalin begins the game with no faith to divorce her husband, nor the approval of the pope. Players hoping to make this start work need a great understanding of both intrigue and seduction to survive this character’s ticking clock.
3) Infante Fruella Ordonniz of Asturias (867 AD
In previous versions of Crusader Kings 3, this leader had the unfortunate case of starting the game blind and in his teens. Though this has since changed as part of the updates to the Iberian Peninsula, Infante still finds himself in trouble. With Al-Andalus to the South, France to the east, and even Vikings to the north, this singular-county member of Asturias is prone to invasion.
While this leader does begin the game with several claims, his measly army of 200 levies can’t do much to stop it, and any action taken to strengthen your power within the state will likely weaken it, opening it up to attack from those very big, very scary nations around you.
4) Count Smbat of Suenik (1066 AD)
This unfortunate ruler starts the game with the Incapable trait, which prevents him from having children, as well as poor health, a buff from previous versions of the game where this leader literally began the game on death’s door. While he does begin with a player heir, it’s actually his half-brother; and does that really count in CK3 terms?
To make things worse, you share a border with the Seljeks, who have over 25,000 levies compared to your roughly 300 troops.
5) Emir Sawdan of the Sawdanid Emirate (867 AD)
This Sunni ruler in what is now modern-day Sicily has the distinct disadvantage of beginning at war with the Kingdom of Italy, which fields about two or three times more soldiers than him. If that wasn’t bad enough, the other rulers of Europe, other massive military nations, have a tendency to join in and make your CK3 start a short one.
6) Chieftain Atrak of Guzkol (1066 AD)
This six-year-old ruler begins the game with a religion that’s hostile to his liege, inherits land with no development, and has a 0 in almost all of his stats. Not to worry, though; being in Siberia, almost all of the land around you is also at 0 development, and the neighboring empires will quickly gobble you up, that is, if they get you before Genghis Khan himself arrives.
7) Petty King Aella of Northumbria (867 AD)
Imagine starting the game with two massive Viking armies already spawned in, ready to attack you directly as soon as you unpause the game. Survive that, and you can look forward to future Viking raids and incompetent allies in your Petty King Aella start, which usually lasts no longer than two years.
Should you manage to survive this character’s doomed circumstances, you’ll be gifted with an above-average stat spread and a Kingdom-tier title to get you started uniting the British Isles.
8) Countess Gyda Torgilsdatter of Devon (1066 AD)
Beginning the game at age 66 and with no living heirs, this leader is one of the absolute hardest starts in CK3, with it being functionally impossible for her to have children and thus continue the game. However, one Reddit user managed to devise a strategy that, with the help of a bit of RNG, helped this unwinnable character do the impossible: not immediately reach a game-over state one year into the game’s start.
