CK2 (Crusader Kings II): Pagan Reformation Guide – Tier List

You finally conquered all the holy sites and can reform your pagan religion in Crusader Kings II (CK2), but there are so many choices now that you just need to look up what everything means. Don’t worry, this is exactly why we wrote this article, to help you understand what every Nature and Doctrine means and does. Here is an extensive CK2 guide about Pagan Reformation, where we explain all Natures, Doctrines, and Leadership options.

What is the Pagan Reformation in CK2

When you choose to play as a pagan ruler in CK2, you accept that there might be some problems (succession, levies, conversions) along the way that come with the advantages. By doing a Pagan Reformation, the player decides to change the way their religion works for their CK2 playthrough.

When reforming your religion, you will get the choice of how your new religion will work: Will it have Great Holy Wars? Will it have a religious leader, like the Pope? By choosing to reform your pagan religion, you will lose all the old advantages such as attrition for enemies and subjugation wars, but gain all the bonuses of a civilized nation.

To even start thinking about CK2’s Pagan Reformation, you will first need to conquer three of the holy sites of your religion. Once that is done, you will also need 750 piety and 50% moral authority to start the process. When you finally select to reform the religion, you will have to choose from many Natures and Doctrines which ones will represent you.

CK2 Pagan Reformation – Natures

The first thing you will choose is one Nature. There are 6 Natures you can choose from, all with their advantages and disadvantages:

Peaceful

• Bonuses
  • +3 Demesne limit.
  • +15 vassal opinion.
  • +1 piety per month while at peace.
  • No Revolt Risk for different religion in county.
• Penalties
  • Raiding unavailable if culture doesn’t allow raiding.
  • Hunting focus is unavailable.
  • Holy wars and great holy wars are unavailable, but County Conquest CB is available.
  • Dueling comes with a Piety cost.
  • Cannot create Warrior Lodge if it does not already exist.
• AI Behavior
  • AI rulers will not convert provinces.
  • AI rulers are less likely to start wars, plots and factions.
• Similar to:
  • Jainism.

Warmongering

• Bonuses
  • Ruler does not receive opinion penalties for raised vassal levies.
• Penalties
  • Rulers lose prestige when at peace for too long.
• AI Behavior
  • AI rulers are more aggressive.
  • AI rulers only convert same-group provinces and only when zealous.
• Similar to:
  • Unreformed offensive paganism.

Unyielding

• Bonuses
  • +20% levy size. +30% garrison size.
  • +80% Defense and +80% morale for all units if fighting in county of this religion.
  • +40% garrison size in county of this religion.
  • Religion is resistant to proselytizing.
  • Unlocks Raiding if unavailable (e.g. Hellenic).
• Penalties
  • If there is levy size & attack bonus from unreformed religion, it is lost.
• AI Behavior
  • AI rulers only try to convert provinces if zealous.
• Similar to:
  • Unreformed defensive paganism.

Proselytizing

• Bonuses
  • Bonus to mission.
  • AI rulers will try to convert their provinces.
  • Can proselytize in pagan capital even when tribal or nomad.
• Penalties
  • Lose piety when at war against faithful.
• AI Behavior
  • –
• Similar to:
  • Christianity.

Dogmatic

• Bonuses
  • Bonus to moral authority (+15%).
• Penalties
  • Interfaith marriage is unavailable.
  • Lose piety when at war against faithful.
  • Penalty to Spymaster steal technology.
• AI Behavior
  • AI rulers will only convert same-group provinces.
• Similar to:
  • Islam.

Cosmopolitan

• Bonuses
  • Interfaith marriage is available.
• Penalties
  • Penalty to moral authority (-15%) and to mission.
  • Religious Control Mandate law is unavailable.
• AI Behavior
  • AI rulers will not convert provinces.
• Similar to:
  • Eastern religions.

Natures Tier List

Nature	Rating
Unyielding	S
Proselytizing	A
Warmongering	B
Peaceful	B
Cosmopolitan	C
Dogmatic	D

CK2 Pagan Reformation – Doctrines

Now you have to choose from many CK2 Doctrines two that you think will fit most with your Pagan Reformation. For every pagan religion there is a special Doctrine, unique only to them, that is most often than not more powerful than normal Doctrines. Most of them have the same attributes as normal Doctrines, plus some features:

Agnatic Clans

• Features:
  • Agnatic law is enforced, open succession law is unlocked.
  • No females in the council. Matrilineal marriages are disabled.

Animistic

• Features:
  • +5% Morale of armies. If there is levy size & attack bonus from unreformed religion, levy & garrison bonus from Unyielding nature or offensive bonus of Unrelenting doctrine in the first doctrine slot, it is lost.
  • Characters get a Rite of Passage when reaching adulthood.

Ancestor Veneration

• Features:
  • The religious head can decide upon death to venerate a given ancestor, in a process similar to sainthood.
  • Eldership succession law is allowed. Ancestor Worship decision available.

Astrology

• Features:
  • Characters are assigned Zodiac traits on birth and by decision.
  • Access to Hermetic society (but Hermetics still suffer -10 temple opinion).
  • Allows building of Grand University.

Bloodthirsty Gods

• Features:
  • Prisoners of different religions can be sacrificed for Piety.
  • Sacrificing prisoners unlocks special traits, actions, and a bloodline that grants Prestige for sacrifices as well.
  • Allows building the Sacrificial Altar feature of Great Temple, Great Stone Circle, Aztec Pyramid and Stonehenge, as well as the Grand Amphitheater. Holding the Blood Games in the Grand Amphitheater grants an additional 200 Prestige.

Daring

• Features:
  • Prepared invasions are available.

Divine Marriage

• Features:
  • Unlocks divine marriage, allowing and encouraging incestuous marriages.

Enatic Clans

• Features:
  • Enatic law is enforced, open succession law is unlocked.
  • Enatic-cognatic law is available. Agnatic, agnatic-cognatic, cognatic laws are restricted. No penalty for female rulers. No male in the council. Women can take up to 3 consorts.

Equality

• Features:
  • Absolute cognatic succession is enforced.
  • Full status of woman law is enforced. Women can take up to 3 consorts.

Haruspicy

• Features:
  • Diviner read signs before a war to try to improve troop morale.

Meritocracy

• Features:
  • Heir Designation is allowed (if at least one of Rajas of India or Jade Dragon is enabled).

Monasticism

• Features:
  • Rulers can order subject to “Take the Vows”, disqualifying them from succession. Priests cannot marry and cannot inherit.
  • +2 Learning.

Polygamy

• Features:
  • Polygamy is allowed.
  • Possibility for a woman to take consorts is disallowed even if other traits should unlock it.

Pyramid Creation

• Features:
  • Independent lieges of this religion can construct pyramids.

Religious Tax

• Features:
  • Tax on subjects of different religious groups is allowed.

Sea-Bound

• Features:
  • Fleet can navigate through major rivers.
  • Ship maintenance reduced to 10%. AI looters prefer coastal counties.

Stability

• Features:
  • Short Reign penalty is disabled.
  • Rulers can spend 500 Prestige and 150 Piety to increase courtier or own attributes. Two mutually exclusive bloodlines can be created by this process.

Syncretism

• Features:
  • Rulers can choose to gain sympathy with another faith by decisions.

Unrelenting

• Features:
  • Ignore defensive attrition.
  • +10% Attack for all units. If there is levy size & attack bonus from unreformed religion or morale bonus from Animistic doctrine in the first doctrine slot, it is lost.

Survivor of Ukko (Suomenusko)

• Features:
  • Religion is resistant to proselytizing
  • + Stability

Children of Perun (Slavic)

• Features:
  • Fleet can navigate through major rivers, but maintenance cost remains full.
  • + Stability

Eternal Riders (Tengri)

• Features:
  • Levy size & attack bonus from unreformed Tengri faith will be lost.
  • + Unrelenting, Polygamy

Defenders of Dievas (Romuva)

• Features:
  • Religion is resistant to proselytizing.
  • Eldership Succession law is available.

Sons of Ragnarok (Norse)

• Features:
  • + Daring, Sea-Bound

Totem-Guardians (West African)

• Features:
  • Rulers can order subject to “Take the Vows”. Priests cannot marry and cannot inherit.
  • Eldership Succession law is available
  • + Religious Tax

Dawnbreakers (Zunist)

• Features:
  • + Divine Marriage, Polygamy

Harmonious (Bon)

• Features:
  • Disallow avuncular marriage and cousin marriage.
  • + Meritocracy, Equality

Invaders (Aztec)

• Features:
  • Levy size bonus from unreformed Aztec faith will be lost.
  • + Bloodthirsty Gods, Seabound, Unrelenting

Civilized (Hellenic)

• Features:
  • Rulers do not receive opinion penalties for raised vassal levies.
  • + Syncretism, Meritocracy

Doctrines Tier List

Doctrine	Rating
Stability	S
Ancestor Veneration	S
Totem-Guardians (West African)	S
Civilized (Hellenic)	S
Meritocracy	A
Enatic Clans	A
Equality	A
Haruspicy	A
Daring	A
Harmonious (Bon)	A
Sons of Ragnarok (Norse)	A
Astrology	B
Polygamy	B
Divine Marriage	B
Unrelenting	B
Bloodthirsty Gods	B
Children of Perun (Slavic)	B
Dawnbreakers (Zunist)	B
Syncretism	C
Monasticism	C
Religious Tax	C
Animistic	C
Sea-Bound	C
Survivor of Ukko (Suomenusko)	C
Eternal Riders (Tengri)	D
Defenders of Dievas (Romuva)	D
Invaders (Aztec)	D
Agnatic Clans	F
Pyramid Creation	F

CK2 Pagan Reformation – Leadership

This part will decide how the religious head of the reformed pagan religion will work:

Temporal – S Tier

• Features:
  • Religion has secular leader.
  • Reformer gets a powerful artifact.
  • Reformer becomes the first religious head
• Similar to:
  • Islam.

Hierocratic – A Tier

• Features:
  • Duke-tier religious heads common for all realms.
  • Excommunication.
  • Request claims.
• Similar to:
  • Catholicism.

Autocephalous – C Tier

• Features:
  • Each realm has its own religious head.
  • Excommunication.
  • Request claims.
• Similar to:
  • Orthodoxy.

Autonomous – A Tier

• Features:
  • No religious head.
  • Attribute bonus.
  • Four branches.
  • No Great Holy Wars.
• Similar to:
  • Dharmic religions.

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And that is all you need to know about pagan reformation in CK2. Check out other interesting CK2 guides and articles:

CK2 (Crusader Kings II): Immortality Event ID and Guide | CK2 (Crusader Kings II): Strange Chest Item and Event Results | CK2 (Crusader Kings II): Retinues Guide

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