Wei Dynasty

[siafu]

At start:

Owned & controlled: 1567, 656, 654, 655, 653

Just controlled: 689 (Taiwan); also population should be a bit higher, at least 5000-- Taiwan was inhabited before the arrival of the Chinese. There'll be an event to gain Taiwan as a core later. Taiwan should also start with "Indonesian" culture-- Taiwan is actually believed to be the source of the Austronesian language family, so culturally more resembled the pre-colonial Phillipines than mainland China until the mass influx of Chinese people.

Cultures: Han

Capital in 653, CoT in 653

Smallish army (~10K troops) strong navy (20-30 ships)

DP:
Aristocracy:3
Centralization:5
Innovativeness:6
Mercantilism:6
Offensive:5
Land:4
Quality:6
Serfdom:7

EDIT: Meant Wei in the following sentence, not Song.

Wei monarchs are all "BLANK Emperor" using era names rather than Temple names as I'm doing for Song. The first few are:

Name D A M
Anzhi 7 7 3 1400-1425 諳智
Daoshang 6 8 3 1425-1449 導謪
Qingle 8 6 2 1449-1472 清樂
Gongwen 7 6 4 1472-1505 恭文
Qianshen 7 4 5 1505-1547 虔神

So, for example, the first one should be "Anli Emperor" in-game. In events, they will always be "The BLANK Emperor", since they're really the emperor who is reigning during this particular "era". Also, Wei will be getting lots of good ministers who will raise the monarchs' admin. skill levels 2-3 points, so for balance purposes keep that in mind.

 

[siafu]

History:

With the continual decline of Song power in the South despite the peace with the Mongols and Zhu Yuanzhang's successful revolt and foundation of the Ming state to the north, many felt that Song had lost the mandate of heaven and was doomed to collapse. A revolt by the scholar-gentry and traditionalist generals in the east and led by Sima Min, called Sima Lue, or "Sima the Omitted" by his peers for his being passed over repeatedly by the Song bureaucracy in favor of nepotism and simple bribery, declared independence from Song and created the Wei Dynasty. Sima Min set his capital in Shanghai and ruled as the Xindao Emperor.

During the Xindao era Wei consolidated its position, forging strong diplomatic ties with the north and capturing the Nanchang region from the Song court. Sima Min's son, Sima Bu, became the Hongde Emperor in 1380. Recognizing his dynasty's weak position in a divided China, the Hongde Emperor built up the Wei navy and focused on foreign trade and discovery. The nearby island of Taiwan was brought under Wei control in 1390, though it remained something of a undeveloped backwater for half a century to come.

Strategy:

Wei is in a precarious position. Song, though weakened, is always present to the west and eager to reconquer the rich lands of Wei, Equally, the Ming to the north are likely to be busy fighting their own wars and might not be able to lend much support in the case of a war. Wei's best hope is to either forge strong diplomatic ties with Ming and either Goryeo or Japan to serve as a deterrent against invasion, or forge a new course of reconciliation with Song in the hopes of preventing Ming domination of the Middle Kingdom.

 

[siafu]

~1437
Event: "The role of the Yuanzhu"
With the continued contact on Taiwan between the Han settlers and the native Yuanzhu people in the early fifteenth century, there arose a need for official determination of their status. Though the Daoshang Emperor was known for his sponsorship of trade and commerce, some hardliners in the court felt that the Yuanzhu should simply be slowly overwhelmed and no effort should be wasted on assimilation.

A. Assimilate them.
+1 RR in Taiwan
+1 BVT in Taiwan
Gain core on Taiwan
+600 pop. in Taiwan
-1 Stab
-50D

B. These savages shall serve us as we please.
+2 RR in Taiwan
+2 BVT in Taiwan (influx of corvee labor)
+300 pop. in Taiwan
-1 Innovative
+10D

C. Leave them be.
-1 BVT in Taiwan
-100 pop. in Taiwan

 

[siafu]

~1448
Event: "The Imperial Examinations"
Late in his life, the Daoshang Emperor tried to implement reforms to ensure the safety of the state. The tribulations of the neighboring Song court made clear the need for a strong bureaucracy that could hold the state together during the reign of weak emperors. To that effect, he reformed the Imperial Examination system, allowing commoners and non-Han minorities like the Hakka, Hui, and Yuanzhu, to take the examinations and enter the official bureaucracy. These reforms were greatly resisted, and the Emperor was left to decide on his own whether stability or dynamism was more important. Though it was contentious at the time, the far-reaching effects of the Emperor's final decision went beyond any contemporary expectations.

A. Expand the examination system.
Innovative +1
Aristocracy -1
Gain several leaders and explorers to be detailed later
-2 Stability.
-30D

B. The system is fine as it is.
Aristocracy +1
+1 Stability

C. Eliminate the examinations and sell the offical positions.
+100D
-1 Stability
Innovative -1
Quality -1 (no official study of military strategy)
Sleep the parlimentarian/bureaucratic state event line

 

[siafu]

1489 (exactly)
Event: "The Wonders of Hua Sui"
Hua Sui, born across the Yangtze river in Jiangsu 1439, became a scholar only at the age of fifty. He first petitioned the local Ming officials for support for his work developing a movable type system for printing, but found them unreceptive to his ideas. In search of more open minds and coffers, he travelled to Wei in 1489. The official questioned was quite impressed with Hua's new invention, and brought him to the Imperial court for examination by the prime minister Kuang Li and the Son of Heaven. Many find his invention curious but impractically expensive, but Kuang Li advised the Son of Heaven to support this wayward scholar.

A. Support Kuang Li and Hua Sui; this is worth investing in.
-500 D
Gain fine arts academy in Shanghai
-1 Stab
+3 inflation
EDIT: +1 Innovative (I swear I meant to do this before)

B. This idea is simply foolish. We have scholars to do the writing!
+1 Stab
-1 Innovative

 

[siafu]

Triggered by A in wonders of Hua Sui event, plus maybe 2-3 years.

Event: "Ci and Shi Revitalized!"
With the advent of movable type printing, many otherwise unknown poets of the ci style, including Zu Du, Li Fu, and others are having their works printed and distributed. The free availability of written works has also helped increase literacy, and record numbers of applicants stood for the Imperial Examinations in the years 1491-1493.

A. Truly a wonderous time!
+100 infra investment
+1 BVT in Shanghai

 

[siafu]

May 1421
Event: "The Imperial Bureaucracy"
In the Wei government, the Confucian officials originally formed the primary power base of the government, to the opposition of military leaders and local nobility. This balance of power led to a somewhat unstable and dynamic system, as officials were chosen from the scholar-gentry who had passed the Imperial Examinations and were usually appointed and dismissed by their superiors (and ultimately the Emperor) based on merit. The highest post that scholar-bureaucrat could hope to attain was that of the Zongli, or prime minister who was chosen by the Emperor. With the death of the old Zongli, Zhuge Jun, two prime candidates were put forward, both with strong support in the court. The Minister of Trade, Hao Ji, whose policies have favored commerce and internal development, is supported by many, as is Foreign Minister, Ai He. Whom shall we appoint?

A. Appoint Ai He
Monarch's dip +3, mil +1

B. Appoint Hao Ji
Monarchs adm skill +3, dip +1

 

[siafu]

After the death of Zhuge Jun, either Ai He or Hao Ji is appointed prime minister, and some 20 years later there will be another choice, and some time after that, etc.

What I'm wondering right now is, how complicated would it make things, in terms of coding effort, to have separate death dates for each one, each time triggering a slightly different event (different in that the event description and date it fires will be different)?

For example:

In 1421, Player chooses A, Ai He. Ai He is set to die in, say, 1446, and the player gets a new event that says "With the death of the venerable Ai He..." &c. and is presented with two new options, ZZZZ or AAAA (to borrow a convention from Ahmed).

If, instead, the Player chose Hao Ji, he dies in 1436, and the event goes something like "The prime minister Hao Ji has departed to the underwold...." and presents the options for Ai He (who would still be alive) and ZZZZ.

Can this be done without killing ourselves with work using event flags, or am I getting too ambitious?

 

[Don_Quigleone]

not really as these events don't change rulers but just affect the diplo, admin and military rating, all you do is just give the previous effect and have appropriate events slept and woken up, though for simplicity I'd just have an event every 20 years and leave it at that, realism can go to hell, because the gameplay will remain the same, and it will take 10X less time to do the events that way

 

[siafu]

1440
Event: The Reforms of the Daoshang Emperor
"Recognizing that the territorial inferiority of the Wei compared to its neighbors required other sources for economic expansion, the Daoshang emperor instituted several reforms and efforts aimed at increasing foreign trade and strengthening diplomatic ties overseas.

A. We must institute these reforms.
-2 Mercantilism
-25D
Relation with Korea +75
Relation with Champa +75
Relation with each known Indonesian state +25 (since Don Q. hasn't delineated these yet...)
+3 merchants

B. This is too costly, we must focus on our own lands.
-3 Inflation
+1 Mercantilism
-1 Innovative

EDIT: Per Don Q.'s suggestion I increased the effects on this one.

 

[siafu]

not really as these events don't change rulers but just affect the diplo, admin and military rating, all you do is just give the previous effect and have appropriate events slept and woken up, though for simplicity I'd just have an event every 20 years and leave it at that, realism can go to hell, because the gameplay will remain the same, and it will take 10X less time to do the events that way

The problem is that throwing realism to hell makes things boring. Also, I was thinking that there may be specific events wherein a prime minister gets dismissed outright (or not, by event option) before he was scheduled to die, which would change the "schedule" of new prime ministers.

 

[siafu]

1446
Event: Death of Ai He
(Triggered by Ai He being prime minister)
With the death of the venerable Ai He, the Son of Heaven is called upon to appoint a new prime minister. The two most promising candidates are Zhao Ming, finance minister, and a Confucian scholar from Fujian named Zhuge Lu. Though without official appointment, Zhuge Lu has attracted a great deal of fame from his writings on Neo-Confucian doctrine; his appointment, however, is opposed by those who have worked their way up in the bureaucracy. Whom shall we appoint?

A. Appoint Zhao Ming
+2 ADM
+1 MIL
+1 DIP

B. Appoint Zhuge Lu
-1 Stab
+2 DIP
+3 ADM
+1 MIL

Alternately:
1436
Event: Death of Hao Ji
Triggered, obviously, by Hao Ji being prime minister
The prime minister Hao Ji has departed to the underworld, and with his passing the Son of Heaven must appoint a new prime minister. Though passed over before, the foreign minister Ai He has remained loyal to the Wei court and is a strong candidate. Alternately, there is support for a Confucian scholar from Fujian named Zhuge Lu. Though without official appointment, Zhuge Lu has attracted a great deal of fame from his writings on Neo-Confucian doctrine; his appointment, however, is opposed by those who have worked their way up in the bureaucracy. Whom shall we appoint?

A. Appoint Ai He
DIP +3
MIL +1

B. Appoint Zhuge Lu
-1 Stab
+2 DIP
+3 ADM
+1 MIL

#Now, I don't know if we need to have a separate text for the first event in this post if Zhuge is appointed after the death of Hao Ji, but the jist of it will be the same and there are, in the end, only two possibilities after both Ai He and Hao Ji are dead, so this keeps the tree from growing too many branches.

 

[Don_Quigleone]

You can have too much of a good thing (believe me, I've seen games with too much realism) and most players won't be able to distinguish one chinese minister from the next, so most will only pay attention to their affects except if it's a vital plot point (like the choice of ministers for the abbasids). Anyway look at it this way, you could spend 10 hours on this group, or you could take the simple way which provides a pretty similiar experience in the end, get it done in one hour and spend the next 9 hours on even more events.

Also don't shy away from your events having large effects, to take an example look at your last event, any enterprising player will take option b as inflation is near impossible to get rid of till 1600, however if you tie this and similiar events into a greater framework whereby it influences whether the country take a negative course (if you choos more b's) or a more positive one (if you choose a's) suddenly the player is given a very fun choice, which is what EU2 is all about really.

Other than that all your events are pretty good, historically they're great, but from a gameplay perspective, I just don't think they're very game changing.

 

[siafu]

Also don't shy away from your events having large effects, to take an example look at your last event, any enterprising player will take option b as inflation is near impossible to get rid of till 1600, however if you tie this and similiar events into a greater framework whereby it influences whether the country take a negative course (if you choos more b's) or a more positive one (if you choose a's) suddenly the player is given a very fun choice, which is what EU2 is all about really.

Is it possible to model/trigger events this way? Specifically, can a trigger be such that picking B at least X number of times is required, but not any particular set of B's? That is, say out of six events you need to pick B four times, but it doesn't matter WHICH ones you pick B on just as long as there are four?

 

[Don_Quigleone]

Well not really, you can do a complicated bunch of (and) and (or) gates but that might be too difficult, not to mention annoying. A better way, that's already used in this mod, is to simply tie stuff to DP sliders, to further take the example we have that one which purely influences the mercantilism slider, now a player could influence this himself directly but only every 10 years and he might have other sliders he wants to tweak so what you could do is have a large number of events which influence mercantilism and then say in 1550 have your consequence event triggered, then you just set thresholds and bang, bob's your uncle

 

[MattyG]

Is it possible to model/trigger events this way? Specifically, can a trigger be such that picking B at least X number of times is required, but not any particular set of B's? That is, say out of six events you need to pick B four times, but it doesn't matter WHICH ones you pick B on just as long as there are four?

The way to do it is with flags.

Each action_b would have its own flag. You could even use action_b_1 action_b_2 if you like, any character work for this purpose.

Each action be would set one of these flags, yet each is different.

Then we get to the final event, and its triggers would include something like the following (assuming you wanted them to have chosen as leat 4 action_b's, for example.

event = {
          id = 320918
          random = no
          country = u36
          trigger = {
                    OR = {
                              AND = {
                                        flag = action_b_1
                                        flag = action_b_2
                                        flag = action_b_3
                                        flag = action_b_4
                              }
                              AND = {
                                        flag = action_b_1
                                        flag = action_b_2
                                        flag = action_b_3
                                        flag = action_b_5
                              }
                              AND = {
                                        flag = action_b_1
                                        flag = action_b_2
                                        flag = action_b_3
                                        flag = action_b_6
                              }

and so on for all the iterations, plus whatever other triggers you might want.


Yeah, complication, but it's the easiest way to do it.

 

[MattyG]

After the death of Zhuge Jun, either Ai He or Hao Ji is appointed prime minister, and some 20 years later there will be another choice, and some time after that, etc.

What I'm wondering right now is, how complicated would it make things, in terms of coding effort, to have separate death dates for each one, each time triggering a slightly different event (different in that the event description and date it fires will be different)?

For example:

In 1421, Player chooses A, Ai He. Ai He is set to die in, say, 1446, and the player gets a new event that says "With the death of the venerable Ai He..." &c. and is presented with two new options, ZZZZ or AAAA (to borrow a convention from Ahmed).

If, instead, the Player chose Hao Ji, he dies in 1436, and the event goes something like "The prime minister Hao Ji has departed to the underwold...." and presents the options for Ai He (who would still be alive) and ZZZZ.

Can this be done without killing ourselves with work using event flags, or am I getting too ambitious?

No need to use flags. There is still a lot of work, but quality and richness do not come without work. I think this is a great touch. Each action (choice of prime minister) simply sleeps one of the two follow-up versions, as well as giving certain changes to monarch stats.

However, to keep things a little sane, the leaders need to even out in dates every second event, or else it becomes a crazy blossoming mandlebrot type thing.

So, for example, in the first event:

Event 1
Dude A: lasts 12 years, sleeps Event 3
Dude B: lasts 14 years, sleeps Event 2

Event 2: twelve years after Event 1
Dude A: lasts 14 years
Dude B: lasts 14 years

Event 3: fourteen years after Event 1
Dude A: lasts 12 years
Dude B: lasts 12 years

Event 4: Occurs no matter which primeminsters were chosen earlier
Dude A: lasts 8 years, sleeps Event 6
Dude B: lasts 15 years, sleeps Event 5

etc etc


However, you have given the primeministers good bonuses and the monarchs are already good. Rememeber that monarchs are assumed to be the amalgam of their advisors, themselves and any elected bodies, so the monarch stats will have to be downgraded to accomodate all these bonuses.

 

[siafu]

However, to keep things a little sane, the leaders need to even out in dates every second event, or else it becomes a crazy blossoming mandlebrot type thing.

Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of just having two candidates "alive" at all times, each with set death dates, at least in the planning. That way, there only needs to be one event for each person (his death or retirement) and the date of that death would indicate who the two candidates would be.

Note that I don't mean a fancy coding solution, just a fancy way of thinking about it. Code-wise it would still only be a series of events and triggers (i.e. hiring minister ZZZ AAA triggers his death event in year X, &c.).

 

[MattyG]

Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of just having two candidates "alive" at all times, each with set death dates, at least in the planning.

Sorry, this isn't making sense. Only monarchs and leaders have death dates. A Zongli would only be an abstraction through an event.

That way, there only needs to be one event for each person (his death or retirement) and the date of that death would indicate who the two candidates would be.

How does a death date indicate which of the two candidates?

Note that I don't mean a fancy coding solution, just a fancy way of thinking about it. Code-wise it would still only be a series of events and triggers (i.e. hiring minister ZZZ AAA triggers his death event in year X, &c.).

I don't see how this is different from the version I gave up above. Because you would have to be sleeping events, not triggering them. You cannot trigger an event to happen later. If you trigger it, it happens immediately. Otherwise, you are taling about using flags, ids or sleepevent commands to be selective about an event which will fire in the future.

 

[MattyG]

On a separate note, I have finished coding up all the existing Wei events and monarchs you have posted.