This guide will help you unlock the “A.E.I.O.U. and Me” achievement in Crusader Kings III, which requires you to start as the Habsburgs, rule the Archduchy of Austria, plan 5+ Grand Weddings, and never wage war.
Achievement Details
De “A.E.I.O.U. and Me” achievement is one of the most unique achievements in Crusader Kings III. In deze gids, I will show you how to obtain this achievement with just a little bit of RNG and save scumming.
The details of the achievement are pretty simple: Start as the Count of Aargau in 1066, work your way up to the Archduchy of Austria, organize 5 Grand Weddings, and refrain from waging war.
The Strategy
Count Werner of Aargau in 1066 faces a somewhat challenging position within the HRE at the start of the game. You begin with an unpressed claim on the Duchy of Upper Lorraine, along with a 6-year-old son and a 2-year-old daughter. If you can’t locate Aargau on the map, it’s situated in the northeast of the Kingdom of Burgundy.
Despite the initial difficulty, there are a few factors that make this achievement easier than it appears. Ten eerste, while you are not allowed to initiate an offensive war as the primary attacker, there are plenty of valid wars available. Revoking titles, engaging in defensive faction wars, participating in a crusade, and joining an ally’s offensive war as a secondary attacker are all permissible, and you can utilize them as you see fit. I personally fought in each of these wars and still managed to obtain the achievement.
There are multiple paths to becoming the Archduke of Austria, but the strategy I have found most effective revolves around utilizing the “Petition Liege” decision and the “Befriend” scheme.
Beginnen, select the Diplomacy -> Foreign Affairs lifestyle focus and invest in the Befriend scheme, optionally followed by Benevolent Intent. Count Werner starts with a level 2 martial education, which we can safely disregard.
Eerst, modify your vassal contract with Kaiser Heinrich IV to change “No Levies” tot “Low Levies,” while ensuring Council Rights are guaranteed. Choosing the Chancellor position will make arranging marriages much easier, but this decision is based on personal preference.
Immediately initiate the sway scheme against Kaiser Heinrich IV, and once the success rate for the befriending scheme is high enough, commence it. Betroth your son and daughter to the most influential Dukes or Allies you can find. Instruct your Realm Priest to fabricate a claim on the county of Wien, but wait until you obtain a claim for the entire duchy. alternatief, after befriending Heinrich, sway the Pope and persuade him to grant you a claim on either the Duchy of Austria or Steyermark.
After successfully befriending Heinrich, wait for him to increase Crown Authority to level 2. This usually occurs within the first few years of his reign, but if you encounter a weak Heinrich, you may need to restart or rely on luck.
Select the Petition Liege decision, followed by the Transfer Claim option. Transfer Claim should automatically grant you the largest duchy claim you currently possess (in your case, the Duchy of Upper Lorraine), but we will use this to acquire the remaining necessary duchies as well.
If Heinrich rejects your request, either wait for the cooldown period or force quit the game (using Task Manager) and reload your saved game to try again.
Optioneel, you can retract your vassals’ titles to establish a comfortable domain for yourself. When they revolt, call upon your allies and crush them in battle.
Once you have acquired a claim on the Duchy of Austria or Steyermark, repeat the Petition Liege -> Transfer Claim request. This will grant you the duchy, and Heinrich will provide you with the required vassals. If you need a county that is located within another duchy, include that duchy in the list of targets and repeat the process.
Now that you have become the Duke of Austria and Steyermark, the challenging part is behind you. Your focus should now shift towards accumulating the necessary funds to create the Archduchy. In mijn ervaring, I chose to revoke Wien in order to take advantage of the productive farmlands there.
When you are close to fulfilling the requirements for the decision, resign from the council and assume the position of Spymaster. Select the Intrigue -> Skulduggery lifestyle focus and specialize in the “Truth is Relative” perk. Proceed to fabricate a hook on your liege and save scum the scheme success event until you acquire a strong hook.
Op dit punt, all that remains is to marry and divorce a few less affluent women, and you will have successfully obtained the achievement.
Caveats and Considerations
There is a particularly useful scenario where, if you manage to become the Holy Roman Emperor, you can revoke the duchies of Austria and Steyermark. By engaging in battles, imprisoning characters, and revoking their titles during their revolts, you can assert your control. Eindelijk, you can abdicate by surrendering to the tyranny revolt.
For those who are curious, here is the code for achieving this specific accomplishment:
# 19. A.E.I.O.U & Me ep2_19_a_e_i_o_u_and_me_achievement = { possible = { exists = global_var:started_a_e_i_o_u_and_me_achievement has_ep2_dlc_trigger = yes } happened = { custom_description = { text = a_e_i_o_u_and_me_achievement_trigger NOT = { exists = global_var:player_declared_war } has_title = title:k_austria dynasty ?= { has_variable = a_e_i_o_u_and_me_achievement_grand_wedding_tally var:a_e_i_o_u_and_me_achievement_grand_wedding_tally >= 5 } } } } And here's the code that defines "starting a war": on_war_started = { effect = { scope:attacker = { ... # Prestaties. ## Track whether the player has ever started a war — for various pacifist achievements. if = { limit = { is_ai = no } set_global_variable = { name = player_declared_war value = yes } } } ... } }
