Creative Assembly shipped Medieval II in November 2006 and folded the Kingdoms expansion plus every later patch into the free Definitive Edition on 20 November 2018. The Grand Campaign covers 1080 to 1530 across 112 regions and roughly 225 turns, with 21 factions of which only England, France, Spain, the Holy Roman Empire and Venice are playable on turn one. Kingdoms bolts on four more campaigns: Britannia, Teutonic, Crusades and Americas.
This walkthrough takes you from your first session to endgame content. Each phase has specific goals, priorities, and milestones. New to the game? Start with our beginner's guide first.
Quick Progression Summary
| Phase | Area | Focus | Build | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Start | British Isles | Castle and city settlement split basics | France | 1-2 hours |
| 2. Early | France and the Low Countries | Papal favour and excommunication mastery | France | 3-5 hours |
| 3. Mid | Iberia | Chivalry and dread general traits + gear | England or France | 5-10 hours |
| 4. Late | Italy and the Papal States | Build optimization | England | 5-10 hours |
| 5. Endgame | Anatolia and the Levant | Min-max | England or Venice | Ongoing |
See our maps guide for detailed area breakdowns.
Phase 1: Getting Started (British Isles)
England, Scotland and the Welsh and Irish rebels share a small island chain. Once Scotland falls there is no land border to defend, which is why England is the standard first campaign recommendation.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 1 to 40 Key Rewards: London trade income, Scottish and Irish settlements, an uncontested home fleet
What to Do in British Isles
- Learn Castle and city settlement split. Castles train knights, spearmen and archers, while cities generate trade income and cheap militia. Spend your first session getting comfortable with this.
- Pick France as your starting build. See our builds guide for why.
- Decide your castle to city ratio before turn 30. Castles are the only settlements that train real professional units, cities pay for them. Two cities per castle keeps a 20 unit stack funded without going into deficit around turn 60.
- Acquire your first equipment upgrade: Feudal Knights or whatever's available.
- Clear all main content before moving on.
Phase 1 Checklist
- Understand Castle and city settlement split fundamentals
- France selected and functional
- British Isles main content cleared
- Ready for France and the Low Countries
Phase 2: Early Game (France and the Low Countries)
Dense, wealthy and crowded. Paris anchors the region while Bruges and Antwerp carry the wool and cloth trade that funds a knight army.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 1 to 60 Key Rewards: Paris, Bruges and Antwerp, high farm income, short internal marching distances
What to Do in France and the Low Countries
- Work on Papal favour and excommunication. The Pope keeps a favour rating on every Catholic faction and attacking a fellow Catholic drains it fast. This system becomes critical from here on.
- Farm for Feudal Knights if you haven't already. It's the key upgrade for this phase.
- Send four to six merchants to the resource clusters at the far ends of the map. Silk in the east and gold in West Africa produce far more income per merchant than anything inside Europe, and a merchant with high finance skill can take over a rival merchant and steal his trade post.
- Complete all objectives before pushing to Iberia.
- Consider whether England might suit your playstyle better than France.
Phase 2 Checklist
- Papal favour and excommunication integrated into gameplay
- Feudal Knights acquired
- France and the Low Countries fully cleared
- Ready for Iberia
Phase 3: Mid Game (Iberia)
Three-way pressure between Spain, Portugal and the Moors, with a sea crossing to North Africa that decides who wins it. The peninsula is poor early and rich once the mines come online.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 10 to 90 Key Rewards: Toledo, Zaragoza and Lisbon, plus the crossing to Moorish Africa
What to Do in Iberia
- Master Chivalry and dread general traits. Generals drift toward Chivalry or Dread based on whether you accept surrenders, exterminate captured populations or execute prisoners. This unlocks a new layer of gameplay.
- Start working toward Longbowmen. It's the best equipment and becomes accessible around now.
- Longbow stakes only work if the unit is stationary and facing the charge. Deploy them, do not move them again, and let the enemy come to you. Moving a stake unit forward removes the stakes permanently for that battle.
- This area is the main skill check. If you can clear it, you're ready for late game.
- Start investing in Crusades and Jihads for the tactical depth you'll need going forward.
Phase 3 Checklist
- Chivalry and dread general traits mastered
- Longbowmen acquired or in progress
- Iberia fully cleared
- Ready for Italy and the Papal States
Phase 4: Late Game (Italy and the Papal States)
The richest square of the map and the most politically dangerous, because every war here is a war next to the Pope. Milan, Venice, Sicily and the Papacy fight over a handful of provinces.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 1 to 120 Key Rewards: Rome, Florence and Milan, cardinal appointments, the shortest road to Papal favour
What to Do in Italy and the Papal States
- Finalize your build. You should be running England or France with optimized gear.
- Longbowmen should be your primary. If you don't have it yet, prioritize getting it.
- Read the Pope's favour meter every turn you are at war with a Catholic. Two ignored warnings equals excommunication, and the cure is a large donation to the Papacy plus a ceasefire, both of which cost more than simply picking a Muslim or Orthodox target instead.
- Gunpowder arriving mid campaign optimization starts here. Small improvements compound into massive advantages.
- Farm this area for the resources needed to push into Anatolia and the Levant.
Phase 4 Checklist
- Build fully optimized
- Longbowmen upgraded to max
- Italy and the Papal States fully cleared
- Ready for Anatolia and the Levant
Phase 5: Endgame (Anatolia and the Levant)
Where the Crusades land and where the Mongols and Timurids arrive later with gunpowder and elephants. Byzantium, the Turks and Egypt all want the same handful of cities.
Level/Difficulty: Turns 20 to 225 Key Rewards: Constantinople, Antioch and Jerusalem, Crusade targets, eastern trade goods
What to Do in Anatolia and the Levant
- Anatolia and the Levant tests everything. Come prepared with your best build and gear.
- Assign your worst general to sit in a rebellious city and let him grow Dread. Public order from fear scales with the garrison and does not need a cathedral, which frees the building queue for economy.
- The endgame loop: run Anatolia and the Levant, optimize gear, push harder content.
- Experiment with Venice for a fresh take once you've mastered the standard builds.
- This is where Gunpowder arriving mid campaign mastery separates good players from great ones. See our tips guide for advanced strategies.
Phase 5 Checklist
- Endgame content on farm
- Best-in-slot gear acquired
- Anatolia and the Levant fully cleared
- Ready for challenge content
Common Progression Mistakes
- Converting a castle to a city because the income looks better, then discovering you have no way to train knights anywhere near the front.
- Ignoring the Pope while grinding Milan or Venice, getting excommunicated, and losing three provinces to a Crusade in the following ten turns.
- Marching a Crusade army in circles or parking it for a few turns, which triggers mass desertion and turns 20 units into 6.
- Recruiting stacks of peasants because they are cheap. They rout early, drag the whole line with them, and still cost upkeep every turn.
- Leaving conquered cities with tiny garrisons and no priest, then losing them to a revolt while the field army is 15 turns away.
Key Tips for Smooth Progression
- Decide your castle to city ratio before turn 30. Castles are the only settlements that train real professional units, cities pay for them. Two cities per castle keeps a 20 unit stack funded without going into deficit around turn 60.
- Send four to six merchants to the resource clusters at the far ends of the map. Silk in the east and gold in West Africa produce far more income per merchant than anything inside Europe, and a merchant with high finance skill can take over a rival merchant and steal his trade post.
- Longbow stakes only work if the unit is stationary and facing the charge. Deploy them, do not move them again, and let the enemy come to you. Moving a stake unit forward removes the stakes permanently for that battle.
- Read the Pope's favour meter every turn you are at war with a Catholic. Two ignored warnings equals excommunication, and the cure is a large donation to the Papacy plus a ceasefire, both of which cost more than simply picking a Muslim or Orthodox target instead.
- Assign your worst general to sit in a rebellious city and let him grow Dread. Public order from fear scales with the garrison and does not need a cathedral, which frees the building queue for economy.
For more advanced strategies, see our tips & tricks guide.
More Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Guides
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Overview
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Best Builds
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Tier List
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Beginner's Guide
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Tips & Tricks
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Weapons Guide
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Combat Guide
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Boss Guide
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Maps & Locations
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Crafting Guide
- Total War: MEDIEVAL II Definitive Edition Classes & Characters
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