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Some of the most fun you can have inCrusader Kings 3is achievingan ahistorical success.Instead of letting the Byzantine Empire rot and fall, you can help it reclaim the entire Mediterranean. Instead of watching the Karling dynasty fall to ruin, you canreforge the Holy Roman Empireand reunite all of Western Europe.
In both those specific cases, you may also reclaim the legacy of Rome by enacting the"Restore the Roman Empire"decision. This decision is one of the most powerful in all ofCrusader Kings 3, and it comes with some long-lasting benefits, but you’ll need to meet some tricky requirements to achieve it.
The Requirements for Restoring the Roman Empire
Control the Ancient Territories
The first requirement for the “Restore the Roman Empire” decision is that you must control the Byzantine Empire title, the Holy Roman Empire title, or both. The Roman Empire decision won’t show up in your Decisions menu unless you own at least one.
However, these empires don’t have to be your primary title. This means you’re able to invade the Mediterranean from the outside, create one of the titles by controlling enough of its territory, and then Restore the Roman Empire on the same day (assuming you meet the decision’s other requirements). Keep in mind that the Holy Roman Empire doesn’t exist during the 867 starting date, and it doesn’t always form on its own, so you may need to focus on the Byzantine Empire if this is your approach.
Once the decision appears in your menu, you must meet the listed requirements:
Aside from that,you don’t need to pay any Gold, Piety, or Prestige to enact this decision. However, there are a few extra requirements thatCrusader Kings 3doesn’t tell you about. If you don’t meet them, “Restore the Roman Empire” will stay gray no matter how much of the Mediterranean you own.
Note that the Roman culture and the Greco-Roman faith don’t normally appear in the game during the earlier or later starting dates. Unless you create a ruler with these conditions, your best bet for restoring the Roman Empire is to start as a Christian or convert to Christianity (at least temporarily).
Tips for Restoring the Roman Empire
It’s easier to restore the Roman Empire as the Byzantines than as the Holy Romans, because the Byzantines start out with many of the needed duchies and de-jure claims on three of the others. They’re also closer to the Islamic empires of the Middle East (for better and worse).
The easiest way to get much of the needed land as the Holy Roman Emperor (or a Karling king who quickly forms the Holy Roman Empire) is to marry into the Byzantine Empire’s ruling family. This should give your heir the claims they need to conquer and combine the two empires.
You can also find a claimant to the Byzantine throne, marry them to your current ruler, and then fight a war to put them on the throne. With luck,your primary heir will inherit both titles, and if they don’t, they’ll get a strong claim to both.
Christian heresies (any Christian faith without Ecumenism) can freely declare holy wars against other Christian rulers. If your empire is stable and safe,converting to or creating a heresymay make it easier to conquer the north Mediterranean duchies without disqualifying you for the “Restore the Roman Empire” decision.
The duchies needed to restore the Roman Empire overlap with the duchies needed for the “Mend the Great Schism” decision. Doing this will remove Ecumenism from all other Christian Faiths, making them fair game for holy wars, but much of the Christian world will convert to your Faith at the same time. This makes peaceful relations easier, but conquest harder.
You don’t need to dismantle the Greek or German pretenders to restore the Roman Empire.
The Benefits of Restoring the Roman Empire
Once you enact the “Restore the Roman Empire” decision, you get several immediate benefits:
Additional Benefits of Restoring Rome
You also get several lingering benefits you’re able to take advantage of as you continue to rule the Roman Empire:
If only for the merged Empire titles and the free casus belli, plenty of rulers have a good reason to restore the Roman Empire, even if they don’t normally rule a Christian empire. It may take a little extra effort, but even an Islamic or pagan emperor can benefit from claiming the legacy of Rome.
