When to raise men-at-arms

Raise for a war, and send them home at the peace

Men-at-arms take gold every month, and the bill is higher while the regiment is raised. The realm balance on the budget screen is the figure for this month. It moves with your domain, so that screen is where you read it.

A small war beside your land is a local raise: the men-at-arms at the rally, with the far levies left at home. A war that needs the whole realm uses Raise All. The army tooltip shows the muster time for this raise, on this map. Distance and the rally both change it.

Disband when the peace screen closes the war. A raised army keeps the wartime upkeep on the budget. Mercenaries follow the same rhythm. Hire them for the siege in front of you, and end the contract when that siege is done. The hire screen shows the price.

• Warfare basics

Station the regiment on a matching county

When the regiment panel offers a station slot, place the regiment in a domain county. Open the regiment and read which buildings in that county help it. Barracks lines sit with heavy infantry and spearmen. Stables sit with cavalry. Siege works sit with siege weapons. The regiment card prints the bonus for the county you picked.

A siege regiment earns an early slot. Counties fall by siege, and levies waiting on a wall are a supply bill. Add another combat regiment once the first one, stationed, is winning the battles you take.

Counters are on the unit card. Before the war, open the enemy ruler and read their men-at-arms. Station a type the card treats kindly against what they field.

An army you just dismissed spends time walking back to the rally if you raise it again at once. Fight the war you raised for, then send them home. Casus belli and the three peace buttons live on the warfare page.

• Survive a partition
• The first 100 years
• Domain and economy

Who the regiment counters

Each men-at-arms type counters at least one other type. The countered side deals less damage, and the cut is deeper when the countering regiments are the larger stack. In the battle view a countered regiment is marked red, a countering regiment green, and a regiment that is doing both yellow.

The common circle is short. Skirmishers counter heavy infantry. Heavy infantry counter spearmen. Spearmen counter cavalry. Cavalry counter archers. Archers counter skirmishers. Pikemen are the usual spear regiment, and they are the regiment to bring against cavalry.

Archer cavalry, camel cavalry, and elephant cavalry sit outside that circle. Open the regiment. The type line names who it counters. The terrain icons name ground it likes and ground it hates. Hills are the diary's case for archers.

Open the enemy ruler's military view before you declare. Recruit and station the type that answers what they field. Domain and economy is the holding whose buildings name that type. Warfare basics is the cause you march for.

• Domain and economy
• Warfare basics

One regiment, one holding

Station from the regiment on the military view. The control lists domain holdings and the bonus each holding would give this regiment. A holding that already has a regiment is marked, so the swap is visible before you confirm.

One holding takes one regiment. Stationing can be skipped. Lose the holding to a grant, a war, or a succession and the regiment stays in the army. It becomes unstationed, and the bonus leaves with the holding.

The buildings in the holding are the bonus. Barracks lines name heavy infantry and spearmen. Stables name cavalry. The regiment card prints the result for the holding you picked. Domain and economy is the building list.

• Domain and economy
• Warfare basics

The raised month costs more

Unraised upkeep is the small bill. Raising the regiment is the expensive month. Growing the regiment raises both bills. The realm balance is the number for this month.

Raised maintenance is three times the unraised cost, except for elephants and House Guard. House Guard is the regiment from a finished Warfare legacy. Dynasty and renown is that track.

Feudal and clan rulers pay gold. A tribal ruler pays prestige to create the regiment. Wanua maintenance is barter goods. A nomad pays herd for a regiment drawn from the horde, and gold when the regiment is a different buy. The button names the currency and the amount.

Mercenary price follows your primary title, the size of the realm, and the innovation era. The hire screen is still the price you pay. Hire for the siege in front of you, and end the contract when that siege is done.

• Dynasty and renown
• Feudal, clan, and tribal

Disband where the land is yours

During a war, disband on friendly land. An enemy army in the next county, or in an adjacent sea zone, blocks the disband. A raise is also blocked in a barony where an enemy army is already standing.

Men-at-arms and knights gather by the distance from the rally point to the capital. Levies gather from the holdings they come from. When that walk is too long, Raise Local Armies takes the troops already near the rally. Raise All is the whole realm.

A raise that is still forming fights with less advantage if it is attacked. Disband far from home and the troops need time to walk back before they will raise again. Close the war on the peace screen, then send them home. Warfare basics is that screen.

The capital starts with a rally point. More rally points go on holdings in the realm, up to ten.

• Warfare basics
• The first 100 years