The Kingdom is the core feature of Pathfinder: Kingmaker, as you carve out a state out of the Stolen Lands. Technically, you start with a barony, but building a kingdom and claiming the crown is what this game is all about, after all. Says so right there in the title!
The differences are more than cosmetic: A barony pays tax to Brevoy on all income received and is limited rank 6 stats for the realm. However, it also receives financial support. A kingdom retains all income and can increase ranks beyond 6, but no longer receives any support. See build points for details.
Overview
- 14 regions to incorporate, 300 kingdom events, and 100 kingdom projects. The scope of the game and options available to you increase with its size and status, from a small barony to a full-fledged kingdom. You can also assign companions and other characters to specific roles in your court and across the kingdom. The choices were streamlined compared to the tabletop, to eliminate redundancies and improve the game's feel. Recruits include artisans to manufacture items for you. Including artifacts. And yes, that includes troll recruits making giant clubs for you.
- Diplomacy is included, allowing you to form alliances with the various factions in and near the Stolen Lands, with a total of 9 potential allies at the present (one per alignment). And you know what that means: Politics, politics, politics. Your court will be filled with people who have their own agendas, desires, and will try to affect the course of events - not always for your benefit. Of course, you will also have to take care of your vassals and the various opinions they can have of you.
- The Kingdom reflects your choices and alignment. This will also affect gameplay, not merely cosmetic appearance. Some buildings are limited to alignment of the Kingdom, Noticeboard for Lawful, orphanage for Good.
Statistics
The realm has ten basic stats, each supervised by an advisor. They are as follows:
- Community (Regent)
- Loyalty (Councilor)
- Military (General)
- Economy (Treasurer)
- Divine (High Priest)
- Relations (Grand Diplomat)
- Stability (Warden)
- Arcane (Magister)
- Culture (Curator)
- Espionage (Minister)
Stats increase if your governance is successful and decrease if events don't end well or other negative factors are placed in your way. Stats can also be increased by constructing buildings in each settlement. Don't let your realm stats drop to zero or lower — this will cause your subjects to riot, and your state will begin to crumble.
Each stat has certain milestones or ranks within them. Every 20 points in a stat unlocks a project to upgrade your rank. Except for the first 5 stats, Rank 1 and the corresponding advisor position for that stat are unlocked by reaching 60 points in another stat. Further development of the stat and upgrades to its ranks will be possible only if you have an advisor in the relevant position.
Ranking up
Once one of your realm stats has reached 20 points, it's time for you to increase its rank. First, meet with your advisor and discuss the future of the state. To do so, return to your capital and click the button on the appropriate event card in the throne room. Whatever choices you make, remember: your advisors may disapprove. If the current advisor decides that you argue too much, they will quit forever.
After you talk to an advisor and make a decision, a new kingdom project will become available that will increase a stat rank. You can find it at the bottom-center of the screen on the Projects tab. It will take you and your advisor 14 days to complete the project. Time will be automatically sped up until the project is completed.
Stability
When your subjects are unhappy, they may become concerned or even start a riot. The Unrest parameter reflects the level of stability of the community and the state of your {mf|barony|barony|kingdom|kingdom}. It is Stable by default, but your actions as well as independent events may affect it.
There are 7 statuses of Unrest your realm can have. If your kingdom prospers and your subjects are happy, your advisors will receive a bonus to the outcomes of events. If the kingdom's stability is low, advisors will find it hard to deal with problems and take advantage of opportunities.
If the Unrest parameter drops below "Crumbling," your realm will be destroyed.