Naval Expansion Mod

[mdlusk]

Welcome to the Naval Expansion Mod. After several years of starting and stopping (mostly stopping), I am ready to send this out there into the wild blue yonder. There are or may be still some issues with AI, and if someone wants to help by creating counters that would be wonderful. However, this is completely playable now.

************************UPDATE: 1.02 version of mod is available for download from below links. It fixes a handful bugs and errors.************************
1.05.1 is as fully integrated as I have been able to get it. It includes more than just changing the misc file or adding the darkest hour csv file. There were other niggling things like minister and leader issues, and silly stuff like Nationalist China claiming Lake Huron as a national province that all were legacies of DH 1.04.

I also removed the BCL Hybrid from becoming active, as there is a bug in DH that will be patched in DH's next patch per Martin. When fixed it will be added back in.

And a few other minor things here and there.

1.3 Changelog:
Just a small update:

1. Included the 4 extra mining and oil extraction techs from 1.05.1 I missed before.
2. Removed the class name for Japan for 1918 BC that mistakenly put in. It is now only on the 1920 BC.
3. Also, since the 1.02 update before, all 3 scenarios have had their end dates extended to 1999. I didn't add any extra events to cover that time period though. Just thought people might like to play longer than to 1921, or 1964, respectively.

1.4 Changelog:
Another small update:

1. Added the new units to minister personality traits. Thought I had already done so, but come to find out, it was missing.
2. Changed Hitler to make him the mega-BB-as prestige-project fanatic that he was. All BBs now take 3% less time for him to build, but cost 3% more. SHBBs will take 5% less time, but cost 5% more.

Please let me know of any bug issues.

This mod is now for ****DH 1.05.1****, checksum MZDI.

Download link here:
http://www.mediafire.com/file/2vhjvkjozvsc81a/Naval Expansion Mod 1.4 for DH 1.05.1.zip


To install:
Simply download, and unzip in your mods folder. It is the full folder and all you need for the mod.

Credits:
Two images of H-44 and H-41 were used by permission of Michael Emmerich from the website http://www.german-navy.de. Should not be further used without his permission.

DerStudti with the TRP Mod also helped me understand a few key points, so I want to acknowledge that contribution, as well.

and myself, mdlusk did the rest of the mod.

I do give permission to others to use this mod (indeed, part of my reason for doing this mod was to prove the concepts in it viable and doable). So I would love to see its concepts in the contexts of other mods. Just let me know when you do so, and credit. If you use the pics for H44 and H41, then give that credit as well as above.

Further descriptions of the mod in following post.

Please ask me any questions you might have. There's a lot in this, and I don't want people getting confused about it.

 

[mdlusk]

This mod focuses largely on capital ships and the design, upkeep, refitting, and converting of them.

One thing that I always found to be problematic in vanilla (and elsewhere), is that naval construction is largely simplified. Each nation faced it's own unique set of challenges and interests, and produced quite a range of different types of ships and had a great deal of diversity even in ships similar in both time and scope. Many chose different options to meet similar challenges. The attachment system does not completely satisfy on this count.

So I chose to jump on the opportunities presented by the upgrade system introduced in DH 1.03.

Capital ships: Carriers, Battleships, and Battlecruisers are now revamped and given a more realistic usage.

Historically, when building major warships, nations would make then the centers of their fleets, refitting them to incorporate advances in technology and ideas and time went on. Some of those refits were quite extensive and resulted in sometimes quite different capabilities afterward (and sometimes not so much).

Also, nations faced major questions in terms of armament, balancing cost and effectiveness. Those choices are presented here.

In game, you can choose three different main gun sizes for your capital ships. Pocket battleships (an individual type) are given two choices, that were historical for the Germans. Super heavy battleships are given a much more extensive tree, and you can research (in secret weapons) some bigger 20 inch guns, and even 22 inch guns, later, allowing you to build ships with guns of those sizes.

Nations also faced the aircraft age, and the massive changes it brought to naval warfare, with the advent, rise, and dominance of the aircraft carrier. Most carriers early were conversions from other ships, including capital ships. Almost all battleships and battlecruisers are given the option to possibly convert to aircraft carriers. Though, to be sure, they were not as capable as purpose-built carriers, and that is reflected here. Each has a rather unique carrier that it is converted to, reflecting its heritage in its prior form. Some are more successful than others, and are different from each other, and from the general line of purpose-built carriers.

Also, aircraft underwent a great deal of change, from light and short-ranged wooden aircraft that resembled kites, to metal monoplanes that were much heavier and faster, and much more effective. Finally aircraft reached it's pinnacle in jet aircraft, with even greater requirements is size, weight, and fuel, but a level of effectiveness that was even greater.

In game, this means CAGs are separated into 4 main types, early, regular (WW2 type monoplanes), and jet, there's also a later era jet CAG with even heavier and better armed aircraft..

Obviously carrier aircraft changed apace with these succeeding technological advances. Many changes required changes in the ships that would service and fly them. Runways had to be longer, fuel bunkers bigger, and weapons (and plane) storage had to be larger, among other things. So the ships changed over time. Some ships received refits to accommodate these changes, some other older ones were abandoned as too old or impractical to update.

In game, this means you will have to convert a carrier to carry a new type of CAG, you cannot simply interchange them, or upgrade the CAG if the carrier cannot handle the new type.

This quite complicated naval planning, which had to be done years in advance, due to long lead times in construction and research to be effective and get the new concepts in the water. You'll be faced with many different options, and several research paths in capital ship planning and construction.

Sometimes in emergency situations, naval planners came up with stopgap solutions, like a hybrid battleship/carrier. Many older ships can be converted to hybrids, with a unique CAG of their own. If you wish, you can then convert them to full carriers, too. Or you can convert straight to a carrier, if you think you have enough time and production space.

The scenarios for 1914, 1933, and 1936 are included, so that several different periods could be shown while also having time to make some decisions for yourself.

Looking back at the WW1 era, you will see a few interesting innovations, like the "light battlecruisers" of the Courageous class, that had little armor but high speed and big guns, including one with 2 one-gun turrets with 18 (!) inch guns. These were later converted to aircraft carriers, which is also in-game.

To clear one misunderstanding I want to clear up now: you cannot upgrade Schleswig-Holstein to a Bismarck-class battleship. Each ship has refits and conversions, if you wish to take the time to do them. Refits will happen automatically in port, unless you manually stop it from doing so. To convert, you will need to use the drop-down box to decide what to convert to.

Also, included is the possibility of up-converting the guns on your battleship or battlecruiser, it costs time and IC to do so, but it can be cheaper than building a new ship with those guns. Historically the Germans had thought to do this with Scharnhorst and Gneisnau from 11 inch to 15 inch guns, but never got around to it.

Once you do a conversion, though, it is a one-way trip, you cannot go back.

There are many concept ships included that never got off the drawing board from the WW1-era to post WW2. If you make it to the late Cold War-era ships, you will also see vertically-launched missile armed ships, the example of which is the Kirov, these have a long range, almost as long as their era's best carriers, and are intended to be a surface combatant capable of hitting carriers, and will destroy earlier carriers from outside their range.

In order to enable SHBBs, you will need to do the new decision to widen the ports and dockyards of your nation. As the US, you will have to take the decision to widen the Panama Canal before you can starting researching SHBBs, a very expensive proposition.

 

[mdlusk]

Notes:

This mod has 88 new division types, and 7 new brigade types to accommodate the whole web of ship conversion options correctly, and the set of CAGs, as well. This doesn't mean you will have 88 new division options in your build window, but that you will have a few more at a time, and you will see them in the drop down box for conversions/upgrades.

Light CAGs are also divided into early and WW2-era, but not jet, as those light carriers could not handle jets. There is also an ASW CAG for later on when you get the ability to build or convert to ASW carriers.

Early jet carriers are not that great at handling jets, in fact the first early conversion actually has negative numbers on its jet CAG. Jet CAGs truly come into their own when you can build, or convert to angled-deck carriers.

The mod does not change most of vanilla, only the naval research and construction system, and most everything that has to do with it.

I did change the number of ICs to 18 (from 20) to gain a new tech team, and the increased the max tech teams to 10, and max tech skill to 15. This is to give the nations that will research naval capital ships (the majors) a chance to get a bit more of that research done than they would otherwise. I may have overdone this a tad, but I really don't have much problem seeing the gaps between majors and minors as pretty big. Hungary should not be able to take down the Soviet Union, for instance. But I am open to toning it down a bit, depending on feedback.

I included "translations" for all the languages, but I am unilingual, so I am unable to actually translate. If anyone else is willing to take that on, be my guest. In the meantime, I apologize for the English intruding on whatever native language you are used to playing in.

Starting from the 1930s, battleship and battlecruiser research are linked. If you research one of a particular year, you'll open up the other for research. This is to show that they became blurred in nations' minds and we're also similar in design, like Dunquerque and Richelieu, Iowa and Alaska, Scharnhorst and Bismarck. In many cases they were purposefully similar to speed research and development which is the in game effect. You shouldn't have to research 1920s BC to build Alaska for instance.

 

[Tera Brandford]

Welcome to the Naval Expansion Mod. After several years of starting and stopping (mostly stopping), I am ready to send this out there into the wild blue yonder. There are or may be still some issues with AI, and if someone wants to help by creating counters that would be wonderful. However, this is completely playable now.

This mod is for DH 1.04, checksum FYED.

Download link here:
http://www.mediafire.com/file/4lk2yhab0t9spdg/Naval_Expansion_Mod.7z
Credits:
Two images of H-44 and H-41 were used by permission of Michael Emmerich from the website http://www.german-navy.de. Should not be furthered used without his permission.

and myself, mdlusk did the rest of the mod.

I do give permission to others to use this mod (indeed, part of my reason for doing this mod was to prove the concepts in it viable and doable). So I would love to see its concepts in the contexts of other mods.

Further descriptions of the mod in following post.

Looks interesting.

Might make Japan making peace in Washington D.C easier yes.

What does this mod include.

 

[mdlusk]

Looks interesting.

Might make Japan making peace in Washington D.C easier yes.

What does this mod include.

Sorry, I'm still working on describing it. There's many concepts implemented to better the realism of naval strategy and planning.

Thanks for the kind words as well.

Also, just FYI, it definitely won't make Japan easier, it will give Japan more choices, and everyone else, as well.

 

[Van der Gent]

I'll download and have a look at this.. Have you done any changes that effect naval battles or do carriers always rule supreme like before?

 

[mdlusk]

I'll download and have a look at this.. Have you done any changes that effect naval battles or do carriers always rule supreme like before?

BBs will have a bit more positioning than before, but still carriers are pretty much the goal. But they are expensive to research and build and keep up to date.


And thanks, please do give it a try.

 

[Ayeshteni]

Intriguing. Have downloaded and will give this a whirl.

Aye.

 

[mdlusk]

Thanks, let me know what you think.

 

[Tera Brandford]

It all looks nice.

Maybe there should be an Aircraft Mod for Darkest Hour as well. Just kidding.

On a more serious note, if I decide too, could I use this in my mod?

 

[mdlusk]

It all looks nice.

Maybe there should be an Aircraft Mod for Darkest Hour as well. Just kidding.

On a more serious note, if I decide too, could I use this in my mod?

Absolutely you can. I would love to see it in the context of other mods.

Thanks for the encouragement as well.

Lol on the aircraft mod. I do wish that research screens could be scrollable, though. I ran out of room or I would have extended the other tech trees, too. I also would have added other late Cold War small carriers, too. Just ran out of room.

 

[Tera Brandford]

Absolutely you can. I would love to see it in the context of other mods.

Thanks for the encouragement as well.

Lol on the aircraft mod. I do wish that research screens could be scrollable, though. I ran out of room or I would have extended the other tech trees, too. I also would have added other late Cold War small carriers, too. Just ran out of room.

Here's a solution. Make you tech buttons smaller.

I'd ask Imperial Eagle about it.

 

[pmac]

I am liking this mod Very much, and would love to see it included in either Peace without Victory or The Grand Campaign Mods as they would best work with a mod that plays over a Long time period.

 

[mdlusk]

Here's a solution. Make you tech buttons smaller.

I'd ask Imperial Eagle about it.

I know about that possibility, but decided against it for for two reasons.

First, is because it reduces the room for the title of the research, though that can be worked around.

Second, is because it would affect ALL tech boxes, and I wanted to try to have as little impact outside the naval world as possible so as to allow easier integration with other mods. But that may change later.

I am liking this mod Very much, and would love to see it included in either Peace without Victory or The Grand Campaign Mods as they would best work with a mod that plays over a Long time period.

I agree and perhaps I can come up with a version that works with them. Thank you for the kind words.

 

[mdlusk]

Updated broken basic link in first post. Hopefully it will give people what they need if they decide to add it to their own mods.

 

[Conquerer1234]

I agree and perhaps I can come up with a version that works with them. Thank you for the kind words.

Well, this is a very interesting submod, as long as it is constricted to Naval Affairs it really won't mess with the Grand Campaign that much as the only major change is to the secret weapons I believe from the vanilla CWTT mod. oh, I have kept a link to a version of the CWTT that is used in New World Order 2 as a seperate file in order to incorporate it into mods should people wish for it to be integrated into.

 

[mdlusk]

For any that would like to know, I am currently working to integrate this mod into the Day of Infamy mod led by Tera Brandford, and will later integrate it with the CWTT mod. Perhaps after that I can get it to work with The Grand Campaign Mod as well

 

[Quinto Fabio Massimo]

For any that would like to know, I am currently working to integrate this mod into the Day of Infamy mod led by Tera Brandford, and will later integrate it with the CWTT mod. Perhaps after that I can get it to work with The Grand Campaign Mod as well

Yes, we know.
https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/day-of-infamy-development.1000553/page-4
#64

 

[mdlusk]

Yes, we know.
https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/day-of-infamy-development.1000553/page-4
#64

Just letting those not working on that mod or following it know about it.

 

[Quinto Fabio Massimo]

Just letting those not working on that mod or following it know about it.