CK3 All Under Heaven – How to earn Merit

Whether you’re a scheming scoundrel or a virtuous bureaucrat, climbing the high ladder of the Celestial Government in Crusader Kings 3: All Under Heaven requires Merit. Playing in China (or other Meritocratic realms, such as Korea), you’ll find that Merit is the number one resource for anyone hoping to rise through the ranks in this society dominated by Confucian teachings and ideals.

Accumulating Merit is vital, as it improves your Merit Rank from 9th all the way up to 1st (or 5th outside of China). Merit Rank is the most critical factor the Son of Heaven is considering when he’s appointing men as governors or ministers, even trumping a high Candidacy Score. If you want to land a lucrative Circuit governorship – equivalent to being the ruler of an entire kingdom outside of China – or have ambitions at the imperial court, then a high Merit Rank is mandatory.

Learn how to earn Merit and increase your Merit Rank in Crusader Kings 3: All Under Heaven below.

How to earn Merit in CK3

Similar to other resources, Merit can be earned through various means. Events, naturally, give Merit as a reward for certain choices and outcomes. A relatively steady source of Merit are the requests from fellow vassals to give them some Gold. If you pay up, they’ll sing your praises.

Merit can also be accrued through buildings in your Estate, giving you a steady, passive income of the resource. Some buildings even provide percentage-based modifiers to your Merit income, which is useful.

When you’re a governor, constructing buildings, solving governance issues, and contributing to Great Projects also awards Merit. By far the greatest Merit generator are the taxes you send to your liege, so landing lucrative governorships and managing them well is great fuel for your political advancement. Yes, doing your job actually pays off.

The best way to earn Merit as a private citizen is to participate in the new Examination Activity. These are a major aspect of playing in China, as they not only provide Merit and Piety, but help you progress through the valuable Confucian Education trait.

How to increase Merit Rank in CK3

What’s more, participating in and successfully passing Examinations increases your maximum Merit Rank. In total, there are four Examinations you can take and pass:

• Childhood Examination
• Provincial Examination
• Metropolitan Examination
• Palace Examination

As the name implies, the Childhood Examination is taken as characters grow up. As a parent, you can send your children to participate in this test, setting them up for a successful career — but it’s alright if they don’t pass it: You can skip lower-level Examinations by succeeding in the higher-level ones without issue. Be warned, though: Repeated failures during childhood may have some negative effects on the kid. Yes, Paradox basically built a mechanic around the disappointed Asian parents stereotype, which is very funny.

Here’s the trade-off: While you can assist in Examinations to earn Merit any time, participating as an actual test taker requires you to lay down any office you’re currently holding. So if you’re unsure about your ability to pass the high-level Palace Examination, it might be useful to wait for the next chance (it’s held regularly) and continue governing a province in the meantime, earning Merit and bolstering your stats to increase your odds.

Learning is generally the most critical stat when it comes to passing these tests, but traits like Poet, Governor, and Confucian Education provide useful bonuses as well.

You can also strive to support relatives (or even manipulate things if you’re the host) at tests, increasing their chances of passing and therefore of reaching higher offices, which will boost your family’s overall power in the realm.

Taking an Examination to uncap your Merit Rank is only strictly necessary if you’re close to reaching your current maximum Merit Rank, although passing them provides a substantial amount of Merit and can therefore be a good way to earn the resource as well.

A higher Merit Rank enables you to be appointed to higher-tier offices, increases your salary, and raises the amount of power you bring to your current political movement in the Dynastic Cycle, which is useful if you want to actively shape the empire’s future.