What is your favorite religion in game and why?

[Vance Xentan]

The title really says it all. I'm curious as to what people like and why they like it. Personally I'm partial to Zoastrianism (spelling?) due to their vast challenge (I have to use ruler designer since I'm average at this game at best) and because they have their own unique things to do that don't require me rowing boats all along norway until the vikings get sea sick.

[Vance Xentan]

Even though I cheated slightly to get enough money to make the title of Wendish Empire and get piety to hire the Followers of Perkanas to survive a crusade I did do a relatively decent Romuvan Lithuania run. I had an insanely talented Russian on my council he's in my picture box somewhere if you feel like looking.

[Qwar]

Cathar, because everybody gets mad at you for not being a ♥♥♥♥.

[Dr. Cessa]

Originally posted by Qwar:

Cathar, because everybody gets mad at you for not being a ♥♥♥♥.

Cathar, when you have the five catholic sacred points and see them lost their moral authority in seconds.
Also, I think the most crazy religion in the game is the zoroastrian. In a game where the family is so important, they get you a lot of "familiar love" and do the most crazy things. And they are really powerful... if you get to survive and to get a kingdom or two, of course.

[Langkard]

I'm partial to Slavic and Romuva because they are difficult at the beginning, but not as difficult as Zoroastrian or Jewish or one of the smaller "heresy" religions.

For those interested, one of the so-called heresies in game, the Yazidi, are in the news recently. A community of Yazidi in Iraq has been driven out of their town by ISIS and it is turning into a humanitarian disaster, because they took refuge in the mountains with no food or water in the middle of the Summer.

[Wraith_Magus]

Honestly, they're overpowered as anything, but I can't help but love Norse. I mean, that river boat travel thing is just SOOOO fantastically useful. I'm spoiled, I don't think I'll be able to conquer the world as the Mongols after conquering it as the Norse, since cheap ship upkeep and river ship travel are so fantastically useful and powerful that no easy kingdom conquering CB is going to really make up for it.

For when I'm playing a non-conquer-the-world game, Basque Fratecelli is a fun one. You get to keep most of your Catholic mechanics, but also keep the you-against-the-world dynamic in play, and even play around with female characters.

Zoroastrianism, as well, for the same reasons listed by others.

Another fun one is Mande West African for the challenge of basically being forced to take the Muslims on head-on.

I haven't played an Indian/Raja game yet, but looking things over, Buddhism looks fun. I would play early game as Hindu for the holy wars I could wage against the muslims until I could carve out enough of Persia that I wouldn't need to worry, and then switch to Buddhism. Jainism has all those "you will never have a civil war again" bonuses, but they also have a lot more special events for them, supposedly, so maybe that would be fun for the events.

[Corrupted Sanity (Vex)]

Norse is great. I love sailing inland to raid.

Religions that don't really have multiple rulers (Zoroastrian/Jewish are what come to mind) are fun. Awesome challenge at the start, and if you survive it's really easy to conquer the world by holy warring everything. Which I also enjoy.


The major intrigue kind of stuff only seems to really happen as Catholics, which makes for a very interesting game too. Gonna have to play as them again sometime.

[Yami]

Tengri was fun for a while esp with the greater holy war being op in the past.( took the entire kd of greece in one war)

Otherwise i m having fun as Zoroastrianism though the only issue i have with it is that when u marry/make ur daughter into a cocubine and she gives birth to ur only male child, somehow she have pirority to inherintance over the male child when you have primogeniture

[Return of Queens]

Suomenusko! I always play as Finno-Ugric people, and try to refom the faith. Plus, good defensive bonuses so you aren't always rushing to defend your borders when you declare wars.

[la_wyr]

Originally posted by Leroy:

Catholicism because I'm more familiar with its history and characters. This, the Pope and the Crusades offer all kinds of interesting roleplaying scenarios.

Nestorians for the challenge.

Originally posted by Langkard:

I'm partial to Slavic and Romuva because they are difficult at the beginning, but not as difficult as Zoroastrian or Jewish or one of the smaller "heresy" religions.

For those interested, one of the so-called heresies in game, the Yazidi, are in the news recently. A community of Yazidi in Iraq has been driven out of their town by ISIS and it is turning into a humanitarian disaster, because they took refuge in the mountains with no food or water in the middle of the Summer.

Iraq also has one of the most ancient Christian communities. ISIS just this week occupied the biggest Christian city and is currently demolishing its churches.

Christians and other minorities actually had it better under Saddam (and currently also under Assad in Syria). Arab nations are historically the most stable and safe under dictators and absolute monarchs. Every time they are removed, Islamic extremists take their place.

It's not the arabs' fault, or just them. Democracy only works for an educated liberal society (or else the populace will rationally just support a dispot for stability), islamic liberalism died when the saudis formed their kingdom 60 years ago and started funding/pushing their fundamentalist schools/mosques/missionaries everywhere. Btw, christian dominated states were also like this until the enlightenment (and are returning to this as their own brands of fundamentalism spread). I'd hardly call trading one abusive tyrant for another "better", both are horrible. What does it matter who is persecuting you, if you're still geting persecuted? ("I'sa' like my old massa' betta', 'cuz he only beat me ev'e' otta' day. My new massa' beat me ev'e' day, and twice on sunday!")
The only solution is to kill them all (and given the prevailing views on genocide in the west, this is not likely), or destroy and dismantle every fundamentalist state/state like institution in the area (just as unlikely as america/europe won't attack their so-called "allies" in the region).

As for the game: All the religions have their challenges but my current dream/attempt is to legitimately (without cheats/mods/rulerdesigner) create a generic pagan restored roman empire ruled by a witch and destroy all the abrahamic states.

[zirize]

My favorite is Buddhism.

It has +4 learning. You can easily find over 25 learning characters including rulers.
You get huge technology advantages.

Concubinage, no penalty for female rulers/heirs, no short reign penalty(only to Buddhist. )

Most of all, you can designate heir.

With Ultimogeniture succession. THIS IS CRAZY.

You can have ambitions removing bad traits.

Holy war (targets single county) against non-Indian cultures.

Only downside is that you can not raid.

[Boo]

Mine is Sunni since- (Also this can be attributed to the entire religious group)

1. The Decadence mechanic, since if you can get it down to 0% you get +49.9% to morale, and +19% to income.

2. Caliph's, (Kind of self explanatory why it is good) when you become or choose from the start to become a caliph you can subjugate fellow (Whatever your sect of islam is) Sunni and when the Age of Jihad event comes along you can Jihad for kingdom level titles against infidels.

3. Casus belli, lets say you are not the religious head, its still good to be muslim since you get the conquest cb, which you can press against anyone. (And its better then the pagan conquest cb since if your a pagan you cant conquest against people of your religion)

4. 4 wives, which is good since you can have a lot of kids, and when your vassals are in a faction you can just marry one of your children off to them for a non-agression pact.

5. The Hajj event, you can get some piety, get rid of some bad traits/get a plus one in a random stat if you listen to the old man, and more that i cant think of invloving that event.

6. The invasion cb since you can just (If you have enough piety.) invade for a kingdom tier title.

7. Jizya, its nice since when you expand outside of Muslim land you get rewarded with a 25% income boost to all the holding's in that province.

[Tactically irrelevant]

u say Sunni but clearly your favorite religion is necromancy for necromancing??!!! is this even a word?... this post.

[kazaddum]

Originally posted by dangmermaid:

u say Sunni but clearly your favorite religion is necromancy for necromancing??!!! is this even a word?... this post.

priests of Tragoul are best priests

[Merkatz]

Buddhism best in-game religion.

[T.TV/holgomvan]

i really like the zunist cuz i find it funny that they workship the sun...
i was able to survive after 20 tries or something and take down the sunni emperor and i got some nice achievments with that.
Also like the idea of the religion.