Okay, screw it, I have turned this into full blown vision of an alternate history mod for Victoria 3. I most probably won't have time, skills or team to ever do something like that, but I'm sure there will be some wild alt hist mods, so if anyone is seeking inspirations, you can take them from here
Victoria 3 will give us wonderful tools to play with the economic development. The problem is, in this era the entire world is dominated by very few major empires, even fewer of which are actually capable of playing the industrial game. The general purpose of this mod is to provide a coherent, cool alternate history context, in which you are capable of flourishing with those cultures that got unlucky in the real life setting of Vic3. The world is turned upside down. The name comes from Lakshmibai, Rani of Jhansi, who was very famous female anti - colonial queen of India - too serve as a parallel to Queen Victoria.
LAKSHMIBAI: ALTERNATE HISTORY FULL CONVERSION MOD
INTRODUCTION
Historians are going to spend centuries discussing the cases of Great Divergence - why of all regions of the world it was India that was the birthplace of scientific and industrial revolution. And why did other parts of the world fail to achieve that in time; especially Europe which seemed to flourish all the way until the early 17th century. What is to blame? The decline of once illustrious university network? Intengible economic and social processes? Great religious wars? Western philosophy turning away from natural science into religious mysticism? And why was it India - was it the blend of Islamic and Hindu philosophies that began a new scientific golden age from 13th century onwards? Was it because trade networks and urbanization? Nobody knows for sure, but the fact is, the era of industry has begun in South India in 18th century, and now great Indian colonial empires are on the verge of global domination. Their Asian neighbors struggle to keep up; backwards Europe is already collapsing under Indian onslaught; future of the world is uncertain, but it will be ruled by steam and steel. And queen Lakshmibai has just began her rule.
SOUTH ASIA
India is divided between several major powerhouses (to parallel five main powers of vic3 Europe), with several smaller nations in between. Hindu - Dravidan Chola Empire in the south has a long history of naval domination, and the birthplace of industrialism. Hindu Maratha Empire, Bengal Sultanate, Mughal Empire are its most dangerous rivals, and there are also Sikh states, Nepal, and many other nations competing for influence, with their dramatic history of competition and cooperation. Disastrous great wars of the early 19th century have made major powers, with their ancient rivalries, reluctant to go into the great open war... For now. Instead, they are eager to conquer 'uncivilized savages' across the seas. South East Asia has, through geographic and cultural proximity, tasted some fruits of the magnificent Indian civilization, but they are generally backwards in comparision (a parallel between the 'small divergence' of Western vs Eastern Europe), and Sumatra as well as Western Java is in control of Cholas, against whom local Muslim and Buddhist states wage guerilla warfare.
EAST ASIA
Woe has come to China. The collapse of Ming dynasty in the early 18th empire has left warring Era of Nine Kingoms in its wake. In north, Qing state of Manchu is in control of Beijing, with ambitions to reunite the country, but many obstacles stand on their way, the greatest of which is systematic encroachment of Indian trade companies on Chinese shore, and increasing preasure on Guangdong. There are signs of leading intellectuals starting to realize Indian threat, and there are many signs of ideological atttemps to answer it by different dynasties - from stern isolationism, through neo - Confucian attempts to reinvent civilization, to a great resurgence of Buddhist philosophy in some parts of the once great nation.
Meanwhile Japan is still suffering from the long aftermath of a repulsed but still disastrous Korean invasions, the country is divided between numerous shogunates once more, far too divided in feudal warfare to recognize Indian threat.
Korea itself, in contrast, is one of the world's most flourishing non - Indian civilizations, to the degree it is slightly above its neighbors in Indian hierarchies of 'degress of civilization'. Who knows, maybe this country will be even capable of embracing industrial revolution...
EUROPE
The decline of European civilization is blamed on many factors and disasters that befell the continent in 17th and 18th centuries; future historians will even see signs of the future woes with the rejection of 'heretic' printing press all the way into 15th. Whatever the causes may be, the new Dark Ages are well underway. The scientific development has been stagnat for a long time, and bickering feudal governments are incapable of uniting against common threat. The desire to control trade routes through Gibraltar, La Manche Channel and Danish straits have led Indian colonial empires to already control Iberia, British Isles, and Scandinavia. France has not fallen yet, but is in the process of collapse, its knights and musketers desperately trying to fight off sepoy line infantry and modern artillery. Holy Roman Empire is a shadow of a shadow, Austria not having any real power since the collapse of Habsburg house. Russia has barely survived till now, ravaged by Commonwealth and steppe gunpowder empires. Balkan nations enjoy their independence from the ruins of Ottoman Empire, Italian states display some energy, and Prussia is respected by Indians as a 'Nepal of Europe' for its fighting prowess. The only beacon of real power on the continent, however, is Polish - Lithuanian Commonwealth, who has received much praise from Indian colonial officials, as a slightly 'less savage race of white men'. However that may be not enough in the face of Indian onslaught.
AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST
The collapse of Ottoman Empire has left numerous successor states in its wake, the most succesful of which seems to be Egypt. Power vacuum was filled by Safavid Persia, one of the more respected 'uncivilized' states of the world, ruling Iraq and Caucasus with the open fist - although some say that this seemingly majestic country is a paper tiger, incapably of embracing modern institutions. African interior is largely unknown to the outside world, even if the entire eastern coast of a continent is already under control of Indian trade companies. Sikh South Africa is steadily progressing even in the face of heroic indigenous Xhosa Empire attempts to fight Khalsa regiments with spears and shields, and Indian trade outposts cover the coast of West Africa, worrying emperors of Songhai and kings of Kongo more and more. The fate of Africa seems to be bleak, with huge swathes of continent depopulated by Indian Ocean Slave Trade, African ancestors suffering on plantations of Malay archipelago and Australia.
AMERICAS
A mix of Iberian and indigenous empires cover Americas. The decline of European civilization (and lack of progress in firearms) has allowed indigenous resistance to establish their own states, such as Mayan Confederacy, Guarani Kingdom of God, and Tupacaria in Andes (named after the great leader Tupac Amaru). Still, Iberian colonies are all that currently remains of Iberian civilization in the face of their motherland falling to Indians; there is a lot of anxiety in the region, between local conflicts and menace on the hoizon.
But North America is even more divided. In the center, Amerindians still survive to this day. East Coast is covered by bickering feudal colonies of European refugess from French Quebec and Louisiana, through New England and Spanish Florida, to Dutch - dominated United Provinces of America with their capital of Manhattan. The future of the continent is very uncertain, especially as Bengali trade companies have recently taken interest in the West Coast...
The industrial era has begun.
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