The upcoming event pack for Crusader Kings 3 puts the fearsome little goblins in the spotlight. Of course, we're talking about the most fearsome monsters of all: children. No, we haven't forgiven my nephew for attacking me with a lightsaber. Selected by the community, the Wards & Wardens pack focuses on "the dangers and possibilities of being a child's ruler," educating the little rascals and continuing that education into adulthood.

In Paradox's medieval grand strategy RPG, children are an important resource, both as candidates for succession and for marriage. Raise them to rule, marry them to forge alliances, or be tremendously disappointed in them as they squander their days tormenting peasants and pestering you incessantly with dumb questions. Sometimes they feed you to the wolves and bears.

This pack basically fleshes out the little horrors and gives you plenty of narrative events such as:

This is a smaller, more focused list of features you get in a full-fledged expansion, the last of which is the best expansion Paradox has ever developed Tour & Tournaments, which became one of the first of its kind.

At the time, I called it "my favorite of the CK3 expansions and the high point of the entire series, bringing to the forefront many of the best aspects of grand strategy. However, because there was so much going on, I found myself playing the game almost exclusively at low speed throughout; even before Tours & Tournaments, I was already enthusiastic about CK3, but there were large gaps where not much was happening, and as a result, I would speed up the game while I was looking at the menus and Sometimes I would end up doing that. Now I am hooked more often and for longer periods of time."

Wards & Wardens may be slimmer, but it still hopes to be compelling. Priced at $4.99 / £4.29, it will be available on August 22, but if you want to save your pennies, there are a few freebies for all CK3 players. A new hostage system, eccentric character traits, new event art, and new animations are included in the free update for everyone.