Crusader Kings III 1.20.0.3
Casus belli
Every reason for war in the game — 124 casus belli. Each page says what victory, white peace and defeat do (the game's own text), what the war targets, how war score works and who may declare it.
Crusader Kings III has 124 casus belli in 18 groups; 6 are holy wars and 9 need a DLC. Patch 1.20.0.3, from game/common/casus_belli_types and game/common/casus_belli_groups.
This section as JSON: /raw/casus-belli.json
Claims
…… Ancestral Claim on …targets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title, and all occupied counties outside it.
Claimcosts piety and prestigeVictory: The claimant gains the contested Title.
Unify The Housecosts prestigeVictory: All of the defender's Vassals under the … House becomes the attacker's Vassals.
De jure
De Jurecosts piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested titles.
Expand Dominancetargets all · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested titles.
Individual De Jure Countytargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested County.- Individual De Jure Duchytargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested titles.
Dismantle Pretendertargets all · no declaration costVictory: The Holy Roman Empire is destroyed. All De Jure Holy Roman vassal titles become a de jure part of the Roman Empire instead.- Dismantle Pretendertargets all · no declaration costVictory: The Byzantine Empire is destroyed. All De Jure Byzantine vassal titles become a de jure part of the Roman Empire instead.
- Imperial Reconquesttargets all · no declaration costVictory: The attacker gains the contested titles.
- Imperial Reconquest of Japan (De Jure)targets all · costs prestigeVictory: … seizes the contested Titles.
Rescue House Memberscosts prestigeVictory: Every … House member Imprisoned by the defender is released.
Conquest
Seize Imperial Duchytargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
Iberian Reclamationtargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: You vassalize the defender- Demand Fealtycosts piety and prestigeVictory: The defender becomes the attacker's Vassal
- Duchy Expansiontargets duchies · costs influence and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
County Expansiontargets counties · costs influence and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
Naval Duchy Expansiontargets duchies · costs influence and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
Naval County Expansiontargets counties · costs influence and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.- Imperial County Pacificationtargets counties · costs prestigeVictory: The contested Title will be seized by the ….
Laudabiliter Conquesttargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker takes all titles the defender holds in Ireland.
Sōryō Conquesttargets counties · costs prestige · All Under HeavenVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.- County Conquesttargets counties · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Ducal Conquesttargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Titles.
Duchy Conquesttargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.- Imperial Expeditiontargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Titles, and must then decide whether to turn them over to their Liege for Influence or keep them for …
- Legendary Adventuretargets kingdoms · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
Mediterranean Conquesttargets counties · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
Pillaging Foraytargets counties · costs influenceVictory: You gain Gold in proportion to the Development of the target County, which will decrease.
A Building may also be destroyed.
No Titles will change hands.- Seize Peripheral Duchytargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Sōryō Conquesttargets counties · costs prestige · All Under HeavenVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Varangian Adventurertargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Nomadic Duchy Quarreltargets duchies · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Nomadic County Quarreltargets counties · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
Holy wars
Great Holy Wartargets all · no declaration costVictory: The main contributor gets the target kingdom. Titles in the target kingdom are handed out to the beneficiaries
Excommunicationno declaration costVictory: The defender is Deposed.
Holytargets all · costs pietyVictory: Within the target Title, all titles held by … rulers are seized, and any … rulers are vassalized by the attacker.
Major Holytargets all · costs pietyVictory: Within the target Title, all titles held by … rulers are seized, and any … rulers are vassalized by the attacker.- Minor Holytargets all · costs pietyVictory: Within the target Title, all titles held by … rulers are seized, and any … rulers are vassalized by the attacker.
Humiliation Warcosts pietyVictory: The attacker humiliates the defender.
Challenge Head of Faithcosts pietyVictory: The Challenger Head of Faith becomes Head of Faith.
Depose Challenger Head of Faithcosts pietyVictory: The Challenger Head of Faith is deposed.
Investiture Conflictcosts pietyVictory: The attacker prevails, forcing the defender and their side to accept the attacker's stance on the appointment of the clergy.- Dissolve Empirecosts pietyVictory: The Excommunicated Emperor is stripped of their Empire Title, which is destroyed.
Faith wars without a head of faith
Holy wars started by events · started only by events and decisions
Vassalization
Subjugation
Bloc Expansiontargets counties · costs prestige · All Under HeavenVictory: The attacker will seize the contested Titles for the …, and decide how to distribute them.
Sovereignty Warcosts prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested tributaries.- …-… Bloc Supremacy Warcosts prestige · All Under HeavenVictory: The defender … forced to recognize the superiority of the ….
Enforce Administrative Integrationcosts prestigeVictory: All of the defender's lands will be confiscated and returned to the ….
Eradicate Rival Housecosts prestigeVictory: The defender's House will be eradicated by the attacker's hand!- Establish Sōryō Administrationno declaration cost · All Under HeavenVictory: The attacker will replace the defender as ruler of … and imprison all defenders.
Bring Under Tributecosts prestige and pietyVictory: The defender becomes the attacker's Tributary.
Subjugationcosts prestige and pietyVictory: The defender becomes the attacker's Vassal.
Invasions
Greatest of Khans' Onslaughtcosts piety and prestige · Khans of the SteppeVictory: The attacker takes all of the defender's lands, as well as titles belonging to them and their stronger vassals.- Clan Invasiontargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker vassalizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title.
- Invasiontargets kingdoms · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title, and all occupied counties outside it.
- Migrate to Pannoniatargets kingdoms · no declaration costVictory: Seizes all titles within the defender's realm in the Pannonian Basin. All lands outside of this will be abandoned.
- Mongol Invasiontargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title.
- Mongol Realm Invasiontargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title, and all occupied counties outside it.
- Overrun Kingdomtargets kingdoms · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title. One County becomes their Capital, a number convert to their Culture and Faith, and they becomes
- Overrun Kingdomtargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title. One County becomes their Capital, and they becomes
- Pax Romanatargets all · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title.
- Peasant Uprisingno declaration costVictory: You gain the contested Titles.
- Raid for Captives Contractno declaration costVictory: You imprison more characters and gain gold from captured prisoners
- Adventurer Invasiontargets counties · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Adventurer Invasiontargets duchies · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Adventurer Invasiontargets kingdoms · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Adventurer Invasiontargets empires · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Border Raid against the Roman Empiretargets counties · costs prestigeVictory: You gain Gold in proportion to the Development of the target County, which will decrease.
A Building may also be destroyed.
No Titles will change hands.
Civil wars and factions · started only by events and decisions
- Dissolution Factionno declaration costVictory: … is destroyed and the defender's Vassals become Independent.
- Ceremonial Claimant Factionno declaration costVictory: The Claimant becomes the Ceremonial Monarch.
- Claimant Factionno declaration costVictory: The Claimant takes control of the contested Title.
- Deposeno declaration costVictory: Your Radiance is severely tarnished.
- Imperial Policy Factionno declaration costVictory: The attacker will select a new Imperial Policy
Independence Factionno declaration costVictory: All rebellious vassals of the defender become independent.- Install Ruling Regentno declaration costVictory: The defender will be Imprisoned and have all land confiscated by the attacker.
- Japan refused ritsuryono declaration costVictory: The attacker becomes Ruling Regent.
- Liberty Factionno declaration costVictory: The … of the … is reduced one step, and the defender will owe every Liberty Faction member a Favor.
Nomadic Uprisingno declaration costVictory: Rebelling Counties become independent Nomad Government Realms.
Peasant Warno declaration costVictory: All rebellious Counties lose … Control.- Rebellionno declaration costVictory: Rebelling Counties will take De Jure Duchies and become independent realms with each attacker as its ruler.
- Rebellionno declaration costVictory: Your Radiance is severely tarnished.
- Restore Ceremonial Monarchno declaration costVictory: The defender will lose all Titles, be Imprisoned, and be deposed.
Independence
Struggles
- Struggle Clashtargets counties · costs piety and prestigeVictory: … gains the contested Title.
- Border Raidtargets counties · costs piety and prestigeVictory: You gain Gold in proportion to the Development of the target County, which will decrease.
A Building may also be destroyed.
No Titles will change hands.
Install Loyalistcosts pietyVictory: The Ruler of … is deposed and replaced with a Fp3 Struggle Supporter of the Caliph.
Humiliation
Artifacts
Migration · started only by events and decisions
Mandala
Celestial
Chinese Consolidation Warcosts piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker vassalizes the defender or take all of their Titles that are part of the H China of the same or higher Tier than the attacker's Primary Title.- Chinese Consolidation Wartargets kingdoms · costs piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title, and all occupied counties outside it.
- Seize the Mandate of Heavencosts piety and prestigeVictory: The attacker takes the defender's Primary Title and makes the defender a Vassal.
- … H China Grand Campaigncosts prestigeVictory: … gains the contested Title.
- Seize Hegemonic Countytargets counties · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Seize Hegemonic Countytargets counties · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Seize Hegemonic Duchytargets duchies · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Seize Hegemonic Duchytargets duchies · costs prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
Event wars · started only by events and decisions
- Assassin Dissolutionno declaration costVictory: … is destroyed and the defender's Vassals become Independent.
- Azariqa Rebelliontargets kingdoms · no declaration costVictory: The attacker seizes all titles within the defender's realm belonging De Jure to the target title, and all occupied counties outside it.
- Raiktor's "Claim"targets all · no declaration costVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Raiktor's Claimtargets all · no declaration costVictory: The claimant gains the contested Title.
- Sponsored Administrative Warno declaration costVictory: … gains the contested Title.
Resist Captureno declaration costVictory: The attacker will depose the defender- Invasiontargets all · no declaration costVictory: The attacker seizes all of the defender's titles within the target kingdom.
- Remove Regentno declaration costVictory: The defender is removed as Regent
- Viking Adventurertargets duchies · no declaration costVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Zanj Rebelliontargets duchies · no declaration costVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Domination Warcosts prestigeVictory: The attacker gains the contested Title.
- Great War of Defiancetargets all · no declaration costVictory: The defender is imprisoned by the attacker, humiliated, impoverished, and loses all Landed Titles. Their Vassals, Counties and Tributaries become independent.
- Invasionno declaration costVictory: The attacker seizes the Kingdom of England and personally takes all titles in southern England.
- Invasionno declaration costVictory: The attacker seizes the Kingdom of England and personally takes all titles in northern England.
- Diarch Seizureno declaration costVictory: The defender surrenders all Titles and Vassals that De Jure belong to the attacker
- Nomadic Invasionno declaration costVictory: The Seljuk Nomads take the contested Titles by force.
Sponsored Conquesttargets duchies · no declaration costVictory: The beneficiary gains the contested Titles.
Source: game/common/casus_belli_types, common/casus_belli_groups and the English localisation, Crusader Kings III 1.20.0.3. Outcome texts name the sides by role (“the attacker”) where the game names the character. The group headings are ours; a debug-only group is left out.