Crusader Kings 3: How To Create A Hybrid Or Divergent Culture (2024)

The period depicted in Crusader Kings 3 is a time of conquest, and it takes place over such a long period of time that you can see the gradual shifts in how people live as a result of the nobility's squabbles. The game simulates the blending and changing of cultures by allowing players to create Hybrid and Divergent societies.

Creating a new Culture isn't something you'll do often - usually once per campaign, if at all - but doing so can make your realm's growth much smoother. Here's how to do it.

How To Diverge Your Culture In Crusader Kings 3

You can diverge your Culture, creating a new one that's similar but distinct, at almost any point in the game. To do so, click on the candle icon in the lower left to bring up the Culture window. From there, click Diverge Culture near the bottom.

While only a Culture's head - the character who belongs to that Culture and holds the most land within it - can reform a Culture, anyone can diverge it. Usually, diverging a Culture will make you the leader of the new society. Like reformation, diverging a Culture costs Prestige for each change you make from your original Culture; the more differences there are, the more it will cost.

Your vassals and counties may not convert to the new Culture right away, but your Steward will get a bonus to the Promote Culture task for the next fifty years when converting counties from your former Culture.

When Should You Diverge Your Culture?

It's best to diverge your Culture if you rule an independent realm but aren't the Cultural Head, or if you're a powerful vassal hoping to distance yourself from your liege. In either case, creating a new Culture gives you more control over the discovery of Innovations for your Realm.

How To Create A Hybrid Culture In Crusader Kings 3

Hybrid Cultures are a great tool for promoting unity within your realm. Creating one effectively merges two existing Cultures, letting you take the best elements of each. This is commonly done when playing as Norse or Norman invaders in England, but the option is available anywhere.

To create a Hybrid Culture, you'll need to have a high level of Cultural Acceptance between the two societies that you're trying to merge. The best way to make this happen is to have your Steward use the Promote Cultural Acceptance task and avoid waging war on any characters of the Culture you're trying to hybridize with.

Once two Cultures within your realm can be hybridized, you'll be able to make a Decision at a high Prestige cost. It's worth it to wait until Acceptance is as high as you can get it, as this reduces the cost and makes it more likely that counties will convert to the Hybrid.

When creating a Hybrid Culture, you must include at least one Tradition from each of the merged Cultures.

When Should You Create A Hybrid Culture?

Hybrid Cultures are best for integrating a conquered population, especially if they make up a large portion of your realm. Counties have a much higher tolerance for rulers of the same Culture as the common folk, so merging your Culture with theirs reduces the risk of factions rising up against you.