Crusader Kings 3added a few new mechanics with the “Scythe” update, which came out alongside theLegends of the DeadDLC. One of them isLegitimacy, which measures how much a ruler’s subjects respect their right to rule.
In general, successful wars and social activities improve a ruler’s Legitimacy, while failed wars and diseases reduce Legitimacy. More important rulers need more Legitimacy, while counts and dukes only need a little. Many actions become harder when your Legitimacy is too low inCrusader Kings 3, but extra Legitimacy can be surprisingly powerful.
Legitimacy Values and Thresholds
you’re able to check your ruler’s current Legitimacy at any time by checking the crowned head icon in the lower-left corner of your screen. This icon doesn’t open up a menu, but you can see your current Legitimacy level by hovering your cursor over it.
The Legitimacy bar always has five levels, and the names of each level are always the same. However, the Legitimacy level your ruler needs and the amount of Legitimacy you need to reach each level depend on a few factors:
Regardless of your rank or vassal demands, the highest Legitimacy level any ruler needs to meet is 4, “True.” This means that every ruler can get the extra benefits that come from reaching level 5, “Ordained.”
Crusader Kings 3applies several bonuses or penalties depending on whether your ruler is above or below their expected Legitimacy level. Some of these bonuses are the same no matter how close you are to your expected Legitimacy, while others scale based on how close you are to the expected number.
High-rank rulers also get a bonus to their Vassalization attempts if they exceed their expected Legitimacy level.
If your expected Legitimacy level is 1, and your current level is 0, your penalties will look like you’re two levels away instead of one. Likewise, reaching level 5 when your expected level is 4 will give you something between the one and two-level bonuses. This means a count can benefit more from high Legitimacy, and an emperor may suffer more from low Legitimacy.
How to Gain and Lose Legitimacy
The moment a new ruler takes power, they get a set amount of Legitimacy based on a few factors.
This number can then go up or down, depending on your actions and certain random events. Actions and events that make Legitimacy go up include:
Actions and events that make Legitimacy go down include:
The amount of Legitimacy you gain or lose for each action doesn’t change, but the amount of Legitimacy you need to change levels goes up as you gain ranks and enter new eras. This means that it takes more Legitimacy actions to improve your standing late in the game, but it also takes more disasters and tyrannical actions to reduce your standing. This effectively means that Legitimacy swings wildly in tribal nations, but tends to be more stable in large, late-Medieval empires.
