TABLE OF CONTENTS
This article was written under Crusader Kings 3 Game Version: Peacock (1.11.5)
Please note that much of the information in this article is based on anecdotal evidence and a lot of trial and error. I have not had the opportunity to delve into the actual source code, but I am happy to make any corrections if more accurate information is discovered. If you have any comments, you can either post here or e-mail me at: [email protected]
1. INTRODUCTION
Grand Tournaments (introduced by the Tours and Tournaments DLC) are exciting activities with a plethora of experiences for competitors and spectators alike.
While the various contests may be the primary event, there are some useful opportunities even for those who are visiting or spectating.
Around 3 months after you decide to host a tournament, the venue opens up (in my latest tournament this was 2 months before the first contest started). There are 6 different locales you can visit that offer a variety of different random events. If you host a Grand Tournament in your capital, then you can start visiting these locales as soon as the venue opens. If you are traveling to a Grand Tournament, then it is advantageous to arrive early so that you can get some random events in.
After you visit a locale, you have to wait 20 days before visiting a different locale (or 30 days if you want to re-visit the same one consecutively). So with 2 months and alternating locations you can get 3 different events before the first contest begins (you can repeat the same locale, just make sure you visit a different locale in between to be time efficient).
In between contests, there's usually around 30 days - enough time to visit 2 different locales. And then after the final contest, there's usually a single day before the closing ceremony, so you can visit one last locale.
This guide is going to present the best random events you can get during a Grand Tournament and reveal where you can find those events.
2. HASTILUDER FOR EVERYONE
Location: Tourney Grounds
IMHO, this is easily the best event you can get. It gives a small amount of Hastiluder XP to your knights but more importantly, it gives the Hastiluder trait to all of your knights. Since you can manually reassign your knights before making a choice, this event essentially lets me give Hastiluder to 20+ courtiers and vassals of my choice. I mostly pick dynasty members and other important characters (like two Pure-Blooded young men that I have matrilineally married into my dynasty).
The other options from this event involve improving the score for you and your knights, gaining glory for your accolades, or gaining different types of Hastiluder experience for you and your knights.
If you want to learn more about taking full advantage of this exploit then please check out this article I wrote:
@byzantinekitty/ck3-making-your-dynasty-members-into-hastiluders
3. RENOWN
Location: Temple
Note that this event is a chance for 150 Renown. It is not guaranteed - it is also possible that you will lose 75 Prestige instead.
However, Renown is one of the scarcest currencies in the game. Prestige and Piety are much more plentiful and can rapidly reach a point of diminishing marginal returns. Once your character has reached the maximum level of fame (Living Legend) and the maximum level of devotion (Religious Icon), more Prestige and Piety becomes less useful.
4. ARTIFACT UPGRADES
Location: Artisan Quarters
There are several different events that can occur here. The most valuable ones are those that permanent upgrade your artifacts.
Here is an event that lets you spend gold to upgrade your armor by giving it a Prestige modifier or a Prowess modifier. I went with the Prowess bonus. I included before and after images of the armor stats.
Here is a different event that lets you upgrade your armor.
Here is an event that lets you spend a small amount of gold to upgrade your weapon by adding a temporary modifier that significantly increases prowess for the duration of the tournament, a permanent modifier that adds a moderate amount of Piety/month, or a permanent modifier that adds a small amount of Prestige/month.
In this case, my Kitty Mace had already been modified by this event with the Piety modifier in a prior Grand Tournament. So I chose to get the Prestige improvement so now it has both.
It is possible to stack the same type of upgrade though:
There is also a different event which can give you a permanent prowess bonus to your weapon.
Besides upgrades to your weapon and armor, there is also an event that lets you spend gold to give a small prestige bonus to court artifacts.
Here you can also see the Throne of the Kitty Emperor and Joyeuse, which have previously received a similar ribbon that increases their Prestige bonus.
In the previous section I mentioned that Prestige and Piety have diminishing marginal returns for a given character, which is true. But because these upgrades are permanent modifications to artifacts that can be passed down to future generations, think of this as investing in Prestige and Piety for your future heirs.
5. DEVELOPMENT
Location: Village
20 Development (and probably for your capital) is nothing to sneeze at. In a highly developing county, it is several months worth of development. In a slowly developing county, it could represent years or decades worth of progress.
The development option only seems to be available if you are hosting the Grand Tournament. If you get this event while attending someone else's Grand Tournament, you only have the other options available (greatly increase your score and gain 150 Prestige if you have high Learning, or get a Common Prestige gaining trinket artifact). It seems like you get the artifact even if you choose the development option, which I suspect is a bug.
6. FALCONRY XP
Location: Tourney Grounds
Falconry hunts have a very high chance of failure. I regularly fail and get a measly 3 XP, which makes it a grind to max out the Falconer track to unlock the "Fly, My Pretty!" achievement.
I love this event because it provides a much needed 5 XP for Falconer.
7. HONORABLE MENTIONS
Location: Village
There are several events (including ones in other locations) which grant Glory to your accolades.
Location: Tourney Grounds
There are several events (in various locations) that grant Hastiluder XP to you and/or your knights. This one was nice because it helped my son and heir, who I will be playing in the future.
Location: Village
This is a useful event that can grant a modifier that gives +5 Popular Opinion which is helpful if the local rabble is threatening to revolt, or +20% holding taxes and -10 Popular Opinion if you are greedy or your peasants are happy enough that you can afford the opinion hit.
8. BEST LOCALES
Tourney Grounds: The best event (Hastiluder), some useful events (Falconry or Training) and a bunch of average events.
Artisan Quarters: Multiple good events if you have gold and artifacts you want to improve. Several average events.
Village: Several useful events (for Development, Glory, Popular Opinion or Gold). Several average events.
Temple: One good event (Renown). Some okay events which could be really useful if you need the Piety.
I find the Tavern and Tent Camp locales to be extremely weak. They might be okay if you want to focus on increasing your score and improving your chance to win, but the Tourney Grounds can do that too. A lot of the events at these two locations deal with increasing your score, sabotaging your competitors, losing stress, or gaining/losing opinion with other characters.
