开局时间

The starting era selection screen

本游戏开始时需要选择开始时间，也就是模拟器开始变动历史的时间点。

你可以选择下面列出的某个剧本作为开始时间，也可以在1066至1337年之间选择一个自定义开始时间。

选择开局日期

随着科技发展进步，庞大的国家将会更加稳定，各商业共和国也会成为经济强国。在后期的开始时间，更大的战争将会爆发，因为十字军、吉哈德和大圣战将能够被召唤，同时还有地图外的游牧部族入侵。

在后期的开始时间，由于建筑数量增加，游牧制统治者将会更难通过劫掠来摧毁地产；反抗劫掠的叛乱也会生成更多的部队。同时，部落制国家在地图上的一些地区也越来越少见。

你可以立即选择一个角色开始游玩，或者使用“观察者模式”在游玩之前先来搅搅局。

剧本

每个剧本都有各自的主要强权和地区霸主。了解一下这些史实国家将会怎样表现吧，这会帮助你形成你自己的目标和战略。

中世纪早期 (769)

需要拥有 [[查理曼]] DLC

	卡尔和卡洛曼 兄弟二人分别统治着法兰克帝国的一部分。如果卡尔能像历史上一样重新统一法兰克, 他就会被称为 "卡尔 【伟大者】" 或 "查理曼"。之后他就能以 建立神圣罗马帝国为目标。
	在拜占庭帝国, 关于宗教圣像使用的论战 如火如荼。皇帝和普世牧首都信仰圣像破坏派，但是仍能通过决议转信东正教。
	阿巴斯帝国正值实力巅峰。然而，那些强力的封臣们正在蛰伏，等待时机准备脱离帝国的控制。
	安达卢西亚的倭马亚苏丹国控制了西班牙的大片领土，这也算是大约20年前被阿巴斯夺取阿拉伯帝国后的某种补偿吧。在北方，阿斯图里亚斯危若累卵，即将陷于穆斯林之手。如果能成功入侵阿基坦王国的图卢兹或者勃艮第王国的普罗旺斯，倭马亚苏丹国很可能触发早期的十字军。然而，和867剧本不同，倭马亚苏丹国将有更多的时间巩固自己。通过建立一个帝国，他们也许能重拾旧时的荣耀。
	在东方，吐蕃帝国对周边近邻虎视眈眈，统治着大片仍然信奉原始宗教的地区；与此同时西域都护府力量处于最低谷，因为唐朝尚未从大约10年前爆发的安史之乱中恢复。

维京时代 (867)

需要 逝往神灵DLC

	在斯堪的纳维亚，小部落之间正忙于互相征战，希望能够建立挪威、瑞典和成为英雄王。 The 郎格纳·洛德布罗克之子们正准备在英格兰大开杀戒，为自己的父亲报仇雪恨。再往东，留里克即将开始建立罗斯的大业。 虽然诺斯此时异常强大，均分继承法和对传教士的屈服也是他们的弱点。
	马扎尔的阿帕德国王即将开始一系列征服，希望在匈牙利定居。虽然拥有大量事件部队，并且能够使用部落入侵宣战理由，匈牙利人通常还是会在匈牙利王国法理内定居下来。
	六个加洛林王国统治着西欧。通过宣称战争或者继承，加洛林王国们能不能重新统一，创建一个新的帝国呢？
	安达卢西亚的倭马亚苏丹国控制了西班牙66%的土地，但是阿斯图里亚斯已然升级了建筑，所以阿斯图里亚斯可比看上去要强大。就像769剧本，如果能成功入侵阿基坦王国的图卢兹，倭马亚苏丹国可能 触发早期十字军；但现在他们可没那么多时间准备应对反击了。
	阿巴斯王朝哈里发——穆塔兹，统治着业已衰败的阿拉伯帝国。之前的封臣们已经纷纷取得了事实上的独立。哈里发的同父异母兄弟们正在谋划宣称帝国，同时耶路撒冷的突厥公爵们也在吵着要独立。与此同时，统治波斯的萨法尔王朝只有不到90年的时间来准备面对塞尔柱入侵.

中世纪盛期 (1066)

	The descendants of Rurik have converted to Orthodox Christianity. The continued practice of gavelkind has left Ruthenia and Rus a mess of independent duchies, but anyone who dares to attack one is likely to draw the ire of all Rurikid rulers.
	The Holy Roman Empire and France are major powers. The Karling dynasty rules neither: they have been reduced to a single county, Vermandois in France. Hungary, Poland, and much of Scandinavia have converted to Catholicism. Although Catholic and feudal, the Hungarians have not forgotten the raiding ways of their forefathers.
	King Harold of England is being invaded by two claimants: Duke William "the Bastard" of Normandy, and King Harald "the hard-ruler" of Norway. (This describes 15 September 1066, before the battle of Stamford Bridge. If you wish to start with William the Conqueror, select 26 December 1066 instead.)
	The Sunni Andalusians rule small duchies in the wake of the disintegration of Al-Andalus. The Catholic Castilians in northwest Hispania have also split into multiple kingdoms, ruled by three brothers. How long will Hispania remain a fierce battleground of holy wars and Castilian infighting?
	The Seljuk horde has swept through Persia and Mesopotamia, reducing the Abbasid Caliphate to a mere vassal duchy. But can they survive their rebellious vassals? Meanwhile, the decadent Fatimid dynasty controls Egypt and large swaths of the former Arabian Empire. However, the Caliph is bankrupt and the impending First Crusade seems poised to take back Jerusalem...

征服者威廉 (1066)

This minor bookmark can be selected using a custom game.

	After a long campaign, William of Normandy has conquered England and sits on the throne he hardly fought for. However unrest grows in his realm, as his unruly Anglo-Saxon vassals grumble about the Norman conqueror and the new ways he brought from the south.
	The fate of Asia Minor shall be decided in the upcoming days, as Alp Arslan of the great Seljuk Empire prepares a massive invasion of Anatolia - will Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV be able to withstand the Turkic storm?

阿莱克修斯传 (1081)

This minor bookmark can be selected using a custom game.

	After failing to usurp Persia, Suleyman Seljuk conquered Anatolia and created an independent Sultanate of Rum, claiming to be the rightful successor of the old Roman Empire.
	Constantinople is in danger from the rising Turks, but Alexios Komnenos has the potential to be a strong Byzantine Emperor and revert the setbacks of previous centuries.

第三次十字军远征 (1187)

This minor bookmark can be selected using a custom game.

	The great sultan Saladin of Egypt has recaptured Jerusalem from infidel hands. With the Kingdom of Jerusalem in danger, the great leaders of Europe - Richard the Lionheart, Philippe Augustus and Frederick Barbarossa - prepare to embark to the Holy Land on the largest crusade ever.
	The Christian kingdoms of Iberia reach a stalemate in the Reconquista, as the powerful Almohad Caliphate rises from beyond Gibraltar with the declared intent of halting the Christian invasion and returning Al-Andalus to its former glory.

拉丁帝国 (1204)

This minor bookmark can be selected using a custom game.

	The Fourth Crusade sacked the great city of Constantinople, and a new Latin Empire has risen from its ashes. However the remains of Byzantium - the Nicene Empire - may be able to retake the Imperial City and stop the empire's decline.
	The Khwarazmian Empire rules Persia and Transoxiana with an iron hand, its eyes set on retaking lost territory. Meanwhile in distant Mongolia, a Mongol warrior plans to unite the divided tribes and forge an empire of his own.

蒙古时代 (1220)

The legendary Mongol leader Genghis Khan leads a vast horde, with the declared intent of uniting the whole world under the Mongol banner and the might of its armies.

汉萨同盟的崛起 (1241)

This minor bookmark can be selected using a custom game.

	The Golden Horde controls Tartaria. The Ilkhanate controls Persia. The steppe nomads' attentions are likely to be focused towards Eastern Europe.
	A new merchant republic known as the Hansa has formed on the northern coast of the Holy Roman Empire. Venice and Genoa control large trade zones in the Mediterranean.

中世纪晚期 (1337)

	The Hundred Years War between England and France is about to start.
	The small Ottoman state in northwest Anatolia begins its rise to greatness as Byzantium declines.
	The feared Tughluq empire is expanding across India, but internal dissent fueled by religious turmoil may create a power vacuum waiting to be filled.

其他关键年份

There are some features that become enabled, disabled or change functionality at certain years in the game. As most of those are not directly visible in the user interface, this section will attempt to list those that are either a possible cause for player confusion or important in general.

Year	Short description	Explanation or details
769	Early Middle Ages start date	Requires Charlemagne DLC.
800	Start of the Viking Age	Norse rulers get free shipyards and Shipbuilding technology. Coastal county conquest and Prepared Invasion CBs unlocked for Germanic pagans. "Settle Iceland" decision unlocked (for North Germanic culture or Germanic religion rulers). "Found Varangian Guard" decision unlocked (for Byzantium).
867	Viking Age start date	Requires The Old Gods DLC.
900	Earliest great holy wars	Crusades and Jihads can be unlocked if Christianity or Islam loses control of key provinces.
920	Jomsvikings can be founded	Requires that one of the possible provinces be held by a Norse ruler
950	Start of Norse culture breakup
	Middle graphics era	Switch from early era clothing and unit graphics to middle era
1000	Investiture controversy intensifies	Realms with Free Investiture can now switch back to Papal Investiture. Pope dislikes rulers with Free Investiture (-30 opinion) and may demand Papal Investiture.
1066	Default start date	High Middle Ages and William the Conqueror bookmarks.
	Chance for some adventurer hosts decreased	Hungarian characters stop using the "duchy adventure" CB, and North Germanic characters use it less. Claimant adventures are unaffected.
	Naval mercenary bands enabled	This makes ships much more easily available to Christian rulers.
1081	The Alexiad
1089	Assassins (Shia holy order) can be founded
1090	Time based unlock point for Crusades	Unless Jerusalem is already in Christian hands. Crusades can also be triggered by other conditions.
1100	English Melting Pot begins	Anglo-Saxon provinces with Norman rulers can flip to English culture.
	Easier Holy Wars	From now on, you can Holy War into Kingdoms 2 sea zones away instead of just ones you have land in or directly bordering you. (Holy Wars launched at or by Muslims or by reformed Pagans already could do this before)
	Easier to create Dharmic holy orders	Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain rulers can now create their respective holy orders with fewer restrictions.
1150	End of Norse culture breakup	Provinces can flip back to Norse now, if Norse rulers still exist
	Runestones disabled
1170	Hansa can form	If the HRE exists, a non-player province along Germany's northern coast can become a new kingdom-level merchant republic
1187	The Third Crusade
	Time based unlock point for Jihads	Unless no Caliph exists anymore. Jihads can also be triggered by other conditions.
1200	Late graphics era	Switch from middle era clothing and unit graphics to late era
1201	Assassins can be destroyed	If the Hashshashin have no holdings, they can be scattered after 1200 (harmless unless they resurface) or completely destroyed after 1201.
1204	The Latin Empire
1220	Age of the Mongols
1241	Rise of the Hansa
1300	The bubonic plague may appear	The deadliest of diseases.
1337	The Hundred Years War	Last possible start date.
1350	Non-pagans can send missionaries to Aztecs
	Factions fully enabled for Hordes	Vassals of Mongol/Aztec hordes do not join most factions until this year. Exceptions include vassals of a different religion or culture than their liege. Factions can also be enabled by the horde ruler merging their special "tribal title" into another empire title.
1453	End date

游牧部族入侵

主条目：游牧部族

年份 (游戏规则选择历史/随意)	部族名称
965-985/809-1200	塞尔柱
965-1010/809-1200	伽色尼
1218/1000-1452	蒙古帝国
1216-1224	伊尔汗国（已被废弃）
1224-1250	金帐汗国（已被废弃）
1250-1350	阿兹特克帝国（仅当日落入侵DLC激活时）
1350-1370/1200-1452	帖木儿

趣闻琐事

• 自发售以来某些剧本已被重新命名，比如中世纪早期（之前叫“查理曼”），维京时代（之前叫“逝往神灵”），中世纪盛期（之前叫“斯坦福桥战役”）以及汉萨同盟的崛起（之前叫“蒙古帝国”）。