Crusader Kings 3 has finally arrived, giving players another chance to their hand at surviving medieval court intrigue and ruling (some part of) the world. Many players see mods as an integral part of the experience and the third entry in the series does not disappoint.
Crusader Kings 3 mods have been available since day one, meaning that players didn't have to wait before they could drastically change their game using total conversions or add smaller UI elements that were somehow missing by default. Our list of the best CK3 mods aims to highlight both the large, more ambitious mods and the smaller ones that are worth trying out. Read on below for our list of the best Crusader Kings 3 mods.
The Best CK3 Mods
The inclusion of Steam Workshop support means that installing them particularly easy, simply requiring players who own CK3 to subscribe to whichever ones strike catch their eye.
Some of the mods featured below are works-in-progress that will receive more features as time passes, while others are "full" versions that will be tweaked and updated to be playable under new patches. Sometimes modders decide to drop projects or take longer to update them.
Should that happen, older versions of the game are available on separate beta branches, allowing you to continue playing modded games. To access them, right-click on the game in your Steam library, select Properties, go to Betas, and pick your preferred version from the drop-down menu. Here are the best CK3 mods:
- The Bronze Age: Maryannu
- Princes of Darkness
- Sunset Invasion
- Primogeniture Without Requirements
- More Building Slots
- More Game Rules
- Rhomaioi - A Byzantine Empire Mod
- Pantheon of the Gods
- VIET Events - A Flavor and Immersion Event Mod
- Cities of Wonders 2
- Community Flavor Pack
- Clear Notifications
- LotR: Realms in Exile
- Regional Immersion and Cultural Enrichment (RICE)
- Godherja: The Dying World
- The Fallen Eagle: The Dawn of the Dark Ages
- Tales of Ireland
- Sinews of War
- Succession Expanded
The Bronze Age: Maryannu
The Bronze Age: Maryannu is a Crusader Kings 3 total conversion mod that moves the action further into the past while introducing its own map that includes the Near East and Aegean "in extreme detail". Starting in either 2115 or 1590 BCE and playing as the Mycenaeans, Sumerians, Hittites, and more, you still take control of a single ruler but find yourself facing the challenges of a different age. The mod includes new religious Tenets and Innovations that fit the period, overhauls buildings to add a focus on urbanization while also adding the option of infanticide. Grab it from the Steam Workshop.
Princes of Darkness
Inspired by the World of Darkness IP, CK3's Princes of Darkness mod puts you in the shoes of an immortal vampire which, it turns out, needs to look out for other things than your regular medieval ruler. Old age and disease no longer kill you, that privilege being now reserved for good old burning and decapitation. Marriages no longer produce offspring, turning them into purely political tools, while the Tenets of your Faith have been repurposed to define your character's own philosophy. As a vampire, you also need to watch out for your Hunger stat, indicating your need for blood. At the same time, falling prey to the Stress mechanic unleashes your inner monstrosity, forcing your character to abdicate. Subscribe to it on the Steam Workshop.
Sunset Invasion
Building on the foundation of one of CK2's more divisive pieces of DLC, Crusader Kings III's Sunset Invasion mod adds threatening Aztecs to the game's map while allowing players – as either independent or vassalized rulers – to define their relationship with the invaders. Mod creator KeizerHarm describes this mechanic as "half-way between the Grace mechanic from CK2: Jade Dragon, and the morality system from Bioware games". Your interactions with the Aztecs will result in either Amity or Respect which, over time, unlock new options. Find it on the Steam Workshop.
Primogeniture Without Requirements
Dealing with Partition – formerly known as Gavelkind – is one of the greatest early-game challenges in Crusader Kings III but it can also be a major nuisance. If you're well past your first playthrough or simply want succession to be clearer right off the bat, the Primogeniture Without Requirements mod lets you switch to Primogeniture, Ultimogeniture, or House Seniority without first meeting the vanilla requirements. The same, however, does not apply to the AI, as it still needs to meet all the requirements. Grab it from the Steam Workshop.
More Building Slots
The first version of CKIII's More Building Slots mod increases the number of regular buildings that can be built in baronies to 6 and in counties to 9, essentially opening up the way to gaining more bonuses, provided you have the gold for the additional buildings. Subscribe to it on the Steam Workshop.
More Game Rules
The More Game Rules mod increases the amount of customization that players have access to when starting new games. Some of the new additions include options to disable Pagan reformations, change the Man-at-Arms limits and cap, and set how often the AI chooses the Temptation lifestyle. Grab it from the Steam Workshop.
Rhomaioi - A Byzantine Empire Mod
The Rhomaioi - A Byzantine Empire Mod aims to make the experience of leading everyone's favorite purple blob more unique in CK3. To this effect, the Byzantine Empire gets the Imperial Autocracy government form that adds emphasis on the fact that all the land in the realm belongs to the empire. Players can assign Exarchs to govern large swathes of the realm, granting major military bonuses while Themes can be used to call vassals to external defensive wars. The Emperor can also seize domains without being seen as a tyrant, adopt sons-in-law and assign a co-emperor. Grab it from the Steam Workshop.
Pantheon of the Gods
Being a medieval ruler has its perks but what if you could also be a god? The Pantheon of the Gods mod lets you ascend from your simple human form and become a deity through a newly added decision. New traits, religions and cultures are also added, apotheosis lets you grant godly powers to other characters, and, with a bit of luck, offspring can inherit your godly blood. Subscribe to it on the Steam Workshop.
VIET Events - A Flavor and Immersion Event Mod
The VIET Events - A Flavor and Immersion Event mod adds more than 180 flavor events that aim to fill the gaps between Crusader Kings 3's wars and existing event chains. These new additions tackle anything from small talk to philosophy and love. Creator cybrxkhan aims to add more events as time goes by, in an effort of reducing repetition, while adapting some from CK2's version of the mod. You can spice up your medieval ruler's life by grabbing the mod from the Steam Workshop.
Cities of Wonders 2
Given time, you can build some fairly impressive holdings in Crusader Kings III, however, the Cities of Wonders 2 mod blows them all out of the water by introducing metropolises. This new holding type is as fortified as any castle while yielding more gold and levies than both castles and cities, making them powerful additions to your realm. While they're very expensive to build unless you're an Emperor with the right decision, they also offer a set of buildings unique to them, further cementing their value. Subscribe to the mod on the Steam Workshop. An unofficial update was released, to make the mod compatible with the 1.3 Corvus update, followed by another that should get it working under Patch 1.4.
Community Flavor Pack
The Community Flavor Pack is a cosmetic mod that adds historical portrait accessories to flesh out Crusader Kings III's different cultures. Among the items included count the gambeson armor, frankish helmet, Crown of Zvonimir, the Viking round shield, and many more. Find it on the Steam Workshop.
Clear Notifications
Regardless of the size of your realm, life as a medieval ruler eventually gets busy. This also means you'll start receiving a neverending stream of notifications. While helpful, they can sometimes get in the way of more important things, which is where CK 3's Clear Notifications mod comes into play. It adds two new and very handy actions. One lets you get rid of all notifications at the press of the button, while the other lets you pin them in place, stopping them from moving to the center when popping up. Find it on the Steam Workshop.
LotR: Realms in Exile
CK3's LotR: Realms in Exile mod is the first bit of fulfillment for those players wishing for a total conversion mod set in J.R.R. Tolkien’s universe. Set to receive gradual updates that introduce new factions and scenarios over time, Realms in Exile currently lets you decide the fate of the Riders of Rohan as they're attacked on three fronts. You can choose to play as three characters, the first of which is Théoden, gaining access to special buildings in Helm's Deep, Aldburg and Edoras. As Saruman, you can choose whether or not to betray the light, while Dunland's Wulfgar Brynjarsson can ally with either of the two mentioned before but not without incurring the other's wrath. Get it from the Steam Workshop.
Regional Immersion and Cultural Enrichment (RICE)
The Regional Immersion and Cultural Enrichment (RICE) mod acts as a "collection of themed flavor 'packs'" that adds simple mechanics, events, and various other additions to flesh out lesser known cultures and places on the map. At the time of writing, its features target Chios, Siberia, and Siwa. Thus, you can build Mastic Villages in Chios to bolster economy, sacrifice reindeer as a Turumic ruler to get a better grasp of yourself and the cosmos, restore the Oracle of Amun in Siwa, and more. Find it on the Steam Workshop.
Godherja: The Dying World
Godherja: The Dying World trades medieval times for a dark fantasy world that fared slightly better prior to humanity's use of "world-shattering magics." Taking the helm of one of its distinct factions, players get to fight for survival while dealing with invasions, migrations, and greedy neighbors. The mod also introduces new artifacts, duel, coronation, and magic systems to further spice up the experience. A work in progress at the moment, the team behind it plans on expanding bot the setting, map, and mechanics in the future. Nevertheless, it's a good pick if you're aching for some dark fantasy in your CK3 playthrough. Grab it from the Steam Workshop.
The Fallen Eagle: The Dawn of the Dark Ages
The Fallen Eagle: The Dawn of the Dark Ages mod focuses on the period just before vanilla CK3's start, spanning the years between 395 - 867. Boasting five different start dates, players can lead the Western and Eastern Roman Empire – both of which have a new government system –, expand Islam's influence well beyond Arabia, take on the role of Charlemange and see his Frankish kingdom prosper, and more. The mod also adds a migration mechanic for Germanic Tribes alongside new music. You'll also encounter and can play as other famous historical figures like Attila the Hun. Find the mod on the Steam Workshop.
Tales of Ireland
Inspired by the Lebor Gabála Érenn, also known as the Book of Invasions, Tales of Ireland is a total conversion mod that focuses on and significantly expands CK3's "noob island." Its territory grows to over 1000 counties, that are part of 32 kingdoms, while development is renamed to Cattle and is thrice as potent as in the base game. The mod's "robust event system and new Casus Belli" contribute to a balance of power that fluctuates more easily, while Ancient Partition lets you designate a single heir for your realm, provided you've enough prestige and all your sons are landed. Find it on the Steam Workshop.
Sinews of War
Sinews of War reworks Crusader Kings 3's economy, making it population-based. Currently in open beta, the developers are aiming for a system that tracks births, deaths, and migration as well as a "detailed fertility model" that takes into account the terrain in your realm, available water sources, and other similar things. If that's not enough added complexity for you, plagues and natural disasters also ravage the land. Grab it from the Steam Workshop.
Succession Expanded
Succession Expanded introduces multiple new succession types, having the goal of giving players a more historically authentic experience. Among the new additions count Imperial Elective – available to the Byzantine and Roman Empires –, Outremer Elective – unique to the culture with the same name –, and Royal Elective. The mod also adds a "Historical" rule that sets in motion events resulting in the division of Louis the German's territory between his sons. Find it on the Steam Workshop.
Non-essential CK3 Mods
- Bigger Font
- Better UI Scaling
- Fullscreen Barbershop
- CK2 Style Colorful Education Traits
- Nameplates
- Expanded Alerts
- More Traits
- 99 Immersive Loading Screens
- Title-Ranked Portrait Borders
- Ethnicities & Portraits Expanded
- Displayed Birth and Death Dates
- More Holding Graphics
- Knight Manager
- More Faith Icons Updated
- Improved Dynasty Legacies
- Silk Road
- Dynamic Crusader States
- In My Humble Opinion
- Governments+
For our full thoughts on Crusader Kings III, check out our review. In addition, you can search GameWatcher for guides on topics like culture and innovations, succession but also faith and fervor.
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