Crusader Kings help

[Despot of the English]

1. If I where you, I'd start with a fairly easy duke (there are several quite interesting and easy Russian dukes to play around with, but you'll have the horde knocking on your door soon enough, so consider better Apulia or one of the strong Byzantine princes like Komnenos) and find out how to play the game first, and then try the challenge of a sole count.

Sounds like a good idea.

2. There are certain ingame mechanics that give you a claim on some other province. Lacking a claim, you can't wage war against a particular target. To ammass the needed prestige value to place a claim yourself, as a count, is highly unlikely to happen for the first generation of your leader.

That's the major problem I've been encountering as a lowly count: I rarely have enough prestige to wage war in the first place. When I do I get my arse re-arranged.

3. Your opening strategy and early expansion depends greatly upon your starting provinces-era-neighbours-luck. Meaning, it's a completely different strategy altogether if you start with the rich and large Apulia and a completely different strategy if you start in a backwater county in Ireland or in proximity to the heathens or in the strong arms of Byzantium. What are the counties (again: I suggest duchies/principalities for your first games) you wish to play with?

I started an interesting game as a Spanish Count on the border with Islam. Then I found out that one of my sons was heir to a dukedom, so I was naturally excited. However, the Muslims invaded and put paid to any claims I had by removing my head and putting the kingdom to the sword :(

To write anything more, you'll have to ask a more specific question. What county are you playing/do you want to play? What's your economic condition and your military size? What are your neighbours? Got any claims on them? etc. etc.

Currently I am the Count of Brabant and appear to be quite rich and have a good military but I cannot construct any more buildings and I don't think I have enough prestige to wage war.

play some of the southern italian counts. You are a vassal of Byzantium, and have easy access to muslim lands which are easy prey for you (Sicily) and the Byz can keep their muslim allies occupied long enough as for you to entertain yourself in short campaigns.

I'm liking the sound of that. A southern Italian count waging war on the Siculio-Muslims!

Rosacrux's advice is better than mine in that its much easier to start as a duchy or king. but i also wanted to start my first game as a count with just one county, which i'm still on. what i had to do was become a vassal. in my case i was a vassal of the king of germany. and then once i had a claim, i attacked somebody outside of germany, say a french county. then i let france and germany duke it out while i conquered that county and then quickly made peace with france while they were still fighting germany. its very finicky and with bad luck and a mistep can backfire in an instant. but i got enough counties that way to become a duchy, and then i invaded some muslim lands again backed by my overlord the king of germany. that german king was like a second father to me. always backing me up when i got in way over my head, losing thousands of troops and money just so i could gain a measly little county with a couple of hundred men. i wept when the mongols killed him. but thats another story.

Perhaps that's something I could try as the Count of Brabant? I think I have enough prestige to stake a claim on a backwater French county.

Excellent advice guys! I will be back!