Best Ruler To Start Out As

[NeonRays]

Been trying to decide for a while now who I really want to commit to(Ruler I mean). I've been playing around a lot and I've notice a good amount of them have way too many issues, such as vassls who just hate them and constant plots to kill you. I'm relatively new to Grand Strargy games though, so I'm still learning the ropes I guess. Basically I just want to find out who are the easiest rulers to play with for someone new for Dukes, Counts, and Kings.

[ℳɑℵƐɳƮɨɳʊᎦ]

i would recomend anyone in ireland. i love this one guy...start at the date 1100 and pick the count of dublin, your father is the duke of munsterand you are the heir to it. kill him and win.

[Worstluck]

Yeah easiest start for me is the Earl of Dublin at 1066. You will inherit Leinster from your father when he kicks the bucket giving you two counties. From there just start fabricating claims and creating duchies for the rest until you can become king. Once you become king, you can use your de jure claims for the rest of the counties. From there you can try taking over Scotland or Wales if England doesn't get there first. You can pretty much go where ever you want at this point. If you have trouble taking over counties in the beginning, I find that some mercenaries will do the trick.

Personally I like finding someone in this list:

http://ckiiwiki.com/Interesting_Characters_Guide

I have also found that the Duke of Brittany can be pretty easy as well.

[NeonRays]

I've been hearing from some peopel that playing as the king of Hungary and Poland are pretty easy routes as well. Any truth to that?

[Worstluck]

No not at all. Hungary is very volatile throughout the whole time period. Hungary IMO is one of the harder kingdoms to start out as there was historically a lot of infighting and then the Mongols can come mess your stuff up. Poland is a bit better, but it's still not near as easy as Ireland. If you want to try being a king right away, one of the brothers from Spain is not a bad route, just don't iritate too many muslims in the area.

Denmark can be relatively easy as well, as long as you don't piss off the Holy Roman Empire.

[Halin]

Or the Duke of Munster in Ireland. I think PC Gamer did a video of a player starting off as him and going through the years. Good introduction for the game, and Ireland seems like it is a gateway to everything.

[TurksTeeTime]

I am a big fan of the Duke of Barcelona as a starting zone. Its not about owning it up your first time through. Its about learning how to establish a Casus Belli. The rest of the game is easy after you learn that mechanic.
Barcelona gives you many different exposures. And if you are doing well the Muslims may reward you with a Jihad

[Ayatollah of Rock 'n Rolla]

when I first got CK2, before I bought it on Steam, I would've said go for someone in Spain because it was way too easy to form, but now I'd recommend Scotland. I conquered Ireland and Wales before 1130, which is actually really really really slow but I don't like to fight vassals a lot, and then inherited the Byzantine Empire and it was a cake-walk from then on. It's fairly easily done and you become almost unstoppable because by this time either the HRE has conquered a lot and will break apart or they've already broken apart and you can pick up Italy quite easily. although most of this is entirely situational, I've done it twice now and it's SO easy.

[Kalku]

I'm going to second Earl of Dublin as a nice startinf point. His dynasty took over most of the known world in my first playthrough :D.

[FEAR]

Depends what you are trying to get out of the game because let's put it this way if your trying to bring back to a time when a single power controlled everything your looking to play as the byzantine empire or if you wish to spread a religion from nothing it's Matilda de'Toscona as one of the heretical faith like Fraticelli or Cathar & if your trying to play as a count to emperor then it has to be for now Irish count.or if you just want to play as a count or duke then play as one of the rurikovich dynastic members that is the russian principalities like Kiev, Rostov or Novgorod or polotsk anyone of them.But I'm just waiting for the Pagans DLC so I can play as one of them & I literally mean the Rurikovich they are in the male Line if you look all the way their tree their Members are of the Norse Faith in 8 hundred & 60 odd years or so.

[mastercgo]

1066 england was my first ever 1066 to end date (and controlled the whole map) and i was new so i would recomend that. Just chose some place that looks intresting to you

[The Sodoknight]

i made my oldest and most succesfull character as scotland after you have dealt with mael-schnetai once you imprison him nothing is very challenging asides the odd conquest by england and norway. easily my favourite person to play as is king malcolm dunkeld if you are lucky you can live to around 75 and get a lot of stuff done

[angel of derp]

The benefit of Ireland is that it's isolated & not many people care about invading you. That's the issue with the Spanish Jimenas in 1066... you've got a bunch of Muslims who don't like you, you've got brothers who may want to kill you - it's harder to get started.

Any one of the Counties of Ireland is good because you start as a Count. You don't have as many political issues until you instigate them yourself, unlike a Duke or a King who has a lot more powerful vassals to appease.

Ireland just lets you ramp up & learn the mechanics in a nice, safe enviroment compared to the Continent.

Except the Jimenas in Spain in 1066, I don't think I'd recommend any Kings because they require a lot of tactical moves that you just don't know when you start.

[allanmacauley]

My first playthrough was as the Duke of Gwynedd (the bottom left county in Wales). The turmoil in England leaves you time to unite Wales, and you might be able to pick off a few English counties as you go. Create the Kingdom of Wales then start rolling up Ireland, at the same time interfering just enough in England to keep that kingdom weak and fractured. Once the Kingdom of Ireland you is yours you've enough levies to make a bid for England or Scotland. Empire of Britannia is yours for the taking.

[Ditchgnome]

I always like starting out in Sweden. After the initial civil war with Eriki the Heathen (if you don't use your own ruler) then it is easy to take over Finland and begin fabricating claims on Denmark; there land is much better than Norways. Another bonus is that when the Mongols invade from the East or the Aztecs from the west ( if you run Sunset Invasion) you have a buffer no matter what.

[DemonicSquid]

Nubia.