Crusader Kings 3's Pope DLC Won't Let You Use Blood Boys to Extend Your Life

Crusader Kings 3 is adding papal gameplay with the By God Alone expansion, launching September 30. The expansion lets players rule as the pope, complete with historical authenticity and mechanical depth.

One historical oddity raised the question of whether players could employ a gruesome medieval remedy. The legend of Pope Innocent VIII describes how, in 1492, three boys were hired to restore the ailing pope's health through blood transfusion. The story is apocryphal, likely propaganda, but it has persisted as a dark footnote in medical history. Modern versions sometimes describe the pope drinking directly from the boys. All three died, as did the pope.

The tale has gained new cultural resonance in recent years as a metaphor for extreme longevity treatments pursued by wealthy individuals. As The Guardian noted in 2024, "What history can teach us is that finding a miracle cure for ageing has long been one of humankind's most cherished dreams. And wealthy, white men have often been at the forefront of this quest, despite the dubiousness of the effectiveness or safety of anti-ageing treatments."

When asked whether Crusader Kings 3 would let players replicate this dark chapter, Paradox Interactive developers confirmed the feature is not included in By God Alone. "Innocent VIII is at or past the end of the CK3 timeline, so they wouldn't be appropriate anyway," Paradox explained. PR manager Jesse Henning added dryly that the omission was "inappropriate due to realism, not due to atrocity."

Crusader Kings 3 is no stranger to dark historical mechanics. Players can cannibalize enemies, and with papal control now possible, theoretically a cannibal pope becomes feasible. Blood boys simply don't make the cut for this expansion.