halfhalfharp
Prince
- Joined
- Nov 21, 2016
- Messages
- 517
Newest edit: Youngle Emperor
We have a lot of candidates from the long history of China. But this time I would like to avoid repeating the normal choices in western knowledge (Wu zetian, Mao, Qin Shi Huang, etc). Lets look at other possible monarchs who stood out in 5000 yrs of history.
Dowager Empress Lu Zhi (Han dynasty)
Music theme (gone with the leaves):
Leader trait: Ruthless Menace
Every unit she kills reduces nearby enemies’ damage by 30% for 3 turns. When she burns a city, she gains +50 influence to every known city states.
Unique building: Execution Ground
Replace arena, increases 5 influence per turn to city states that has a trade route with her.
Unique units: Qin Nu array
replace crossbowman, ignore landscape blocking of ranged attacks and have +15% when adjacent each other. (may stack)
Leader agenda: Loyalty in Blood
She likes civilization that has a lot of units dying in war and dislikes those who doesn’t. (In history, she killed the most loyal general Han Xin to menace all other officers from upsurping.)
Approval: Killing is the best way to silence usurpers. I see you acquire this wisdom.
殺一以儆百, 天下莫不順服. 君高膽遠目, 乃治亂世之才.
Disproval: Subjects are always ungrateful. Treasuring them is the act of a coward. You shall remember this, when they overthrow you one day.
寵溺朝臣, 大忌之所在. 君若以婦人之仁治國, 則毋怪他日奸臣篡位.
Pros:
Dowager Lu’s China focuses on city states influence through war and killing, thus gaining the city state bonus in any victory route she desires. Her unique unit, the Qin Nu array (crossbow array) should better be used in units killing rather than besieging, to maximize potential of her leader bonus. Anyway, who can stop your army’s march with their units killed? She is particularly a bane to Pericles's Greece.
How to fight against Dowager Lu Zhi:
Prevent engaging war with her when her unique units come by. If it is inevitable, prepare a large amount of cavalries to break the Qin Nu arrays from being adjacent to each other. To reduce her bonus from city states, take them yourself or conquer them (Germany does this very well), although it will likely anger her and ultimately lead to war. Pillage her trading routes to shut down her unique building.
Scythia is an exceptional bane to Lu Zhi, as Tomyris is cavalry focusing and her unique units have extra movement speed to avoid being hit after attacks.
Historical reference:
Chinese history and folklore told of an extremely brutal dowager that killed many generals and officers in horrible ways to terrify everyone in court and thus solidify her position. So feared were the officers that no one (even the emperor) dared to challenge her authority in her reign although her title was just dowager regent.
The tale about her creation of a “human swine” (a rival concubine that had her limbs chopped off, tongue cut, eyes stabbed blinded and thrown into pig husbandry) was her infamous signature of ruthlessness, and the will to eliminate whoever stepping in her way. That poor concubine was exhibited to the emperor. So scared and horrified that the emperor fell into sickness and permanently sniffed out any ideas in interfering his mother’s politics.
Despite all the cruelty she exerted in the dynasty, her reign allowed China to prosper and historians still praised her rule. The stability and growth in early Han Dynasty was mostly based on her 15 year reign.
China invented many insane penalty and torture method.
I suggest you can search those pictures by your own, for they are really uncomfortable if posted here
Examples are LingChi (also called thousand cut, as the executioner cuts off the victim’s flesh bit by bit)
Human Swine (said to be invented by Empress Lu, the victims were off with their limbs and fed in pig farms, like a real pig).
These public torture and execution were normally commoners’ entertainment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tang Tai Zong
Leader Trait: Prosperity of ZhenGuan
Buildings and units have 33% less maintenance cost. Cultural output of cities with university increases by 10% when national happiness is equal to 5 and increases additionally by 1% at every further decrease of happiness points.
Unique building: Elixir Furnace
Replace Shrine, +1 production per believers when a religion dominates the city, and 50% output of holy site prayers are added into science.
Agenda: Tortoise Gate Usurp
Tang Tai Zong likes civilizations that betray their allies and join his side. He dislikes those who hold a long-term alliance with other civilizations other than him.
Approval: Addicted to minor morality leads to loss of many. Your endeavor should stabilize your realm for decades, if not millennia.
堅持小節，必虧大猷. 今君逆取順守, 雖未及千秋萬代, 亦誠保三百年之延洪也.
Disapproval: Those who consolidates basis for his descendants are blamed for their immorality. But what will you prefer? A bad name, or a ruined court?
夫創業垂統之君，子孫之所儀刑也. 變故之興，間不容髮，方懼毀巢之禍，寧虞尺布之謠？
Pros:
Tang TaiZong is versatile in victory routes. Generally, he is good at science and cultural victory. To make good use of the bonus, a domestic religion and a larger defensive force are recommended but neither religious nor military victory receives any real bonus.
The reduction in maintenance, comes passively and instantly, allows production of more units and buildings. The production bonus from his unique building can support the cities’ building projects and also provide additional science. Although there is a reliance on religion, this doesn’t’ mean that he is particularly good at religious victory.
If happiness is balanced carefully, the growth in culture can also boost China in cultural victory on top of the Wonder race.
Historical Reference:
Tang Tai Zong (his emperor title), or Lei Shimin (his name), opened the golden era of Tang Dynasty in which ancient China reached its prime in military and cultural influence. He took the throne by killing his brothers (who allied with each other against him) in Tortoise Gate Usurp and ultimately forced his father emperor to retire. This was reflected in his agenda.
Although his accession to throne was bloody, his reign was called the (Prosperous) Rule of Zhen Guan as Chinese influence stretched to many foreign lands through trading and conquests. He reduced government expenses (reflected in the leader trait) and allowed officers to have open debates with him. The more problems the country faced, the more debates and civic solution he posed (reflected in another part of leader trait).
In his final years, he was obsessed with pursuit of immortal elixir. Taoists alchemists were risen to high status in court (this part is in the unique building) to produce “immortal elixir” for him, which actually poisoned him to death. Still, this tradition of pursuing immortality was followed by and killed many of his successors.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Youngle Emperor (Zhu Di)
Leader trait: Youngle’s Prosperity
City built at north of capital receives +20% in building construction and walls provide +50 defense. Units +6 strength (and +another 1 over each era) in fighting other units to the south of his capital.
Unique units: Eastern Depot
Spies that fail their missions are not discovered but suicide (die) immediately. Gaining sources has 100% success rate. If there are foreign spies in the districts they protect, they will be caught in 2 turns. Spy production is halved
Unique units: Grand Fleets
Replace caravan. Have +1 sight. May carry out a number of missions at other civilizations’ sea border. For each Grand Fleets, each of the following missions can only be carried out every 4 turns. However, grand fleets is +2 higher at maintenance cost.
1, Culture spread: immediately + 50 tourism to that civ.
2, Obtain a free luxury that you do not own for 25 turns
3, Trade mission: obtain money, obtain more when further from your capital.
Agenda: Jingnan Rebellion
Youngle Emperor likes civilizations who declare Casus Belli (just wars) but hates civilizations denouncing warmongers. Warmonger penalty to him is halved.
Approval:
清君側, 靖國難, 乃忠臣義士之責.
Clearing evil from emperor’s side and tranquilizing the country from its crisis, is a responsibility shouldered by the loyal ones.
Dispproval:
君此言差矣. 三軍既動, 何懼師之無名?
Your speech lacks wisdom. With the main forces engaging, who cares is there a proper reason?
Pros: In a proper position of his capital, he can develop his cities quickly and defend them well from early rushes. The civs at his south will be at his mercy, however, for the position grants him a direct military bonus in combat.
His power is even stronger when his two unique units come by. The spy units are more effective in operations while mission failure harms no diplomatic relationships. The Grant Fleets offer him gold, extra luxury to maintain his empire's happiness and even worst, provide tourism exports for cultural victory.
In my opinion, he is a all rounded leader and maybe a little bit overpowered?
How to fight against Youngle Emperor:
He is hard to spy on thanks to his unique units so spying on him will not be a good option (Shutting Catherine de Medici's spies). Try to build a strong navy to stop his Grand Fleets from getting near your border or even stop building cities near coastlines.
His combat bonus due to position is hard to overwhelm. If you are fighting patron war against him, prepare more long ranged units and maximize city defense for his bonus only works on units. If you are going to invade him, be sure to attack from the north. His cities at the north will be more developed and capturing them costs him more, although it will be harder due to the higher defense.
Try to bribe or ally with civs at his north to attack on both sides. He is a strong leader that needed to be eliminated before its too late
Historical reference:
Originally an outsider of the throne, ZhuDi (Youngle Emperor’s name) serviced for years as a military general for his father emperor and then his nephew. Then when his nephew, emperor Jianwen, decided to reduce his power from nobility, ZhuDi could not tolerate anymore. Accusing the young emperor’s advisors as usurpers, ZhuDi fought his way into the imperial palace in the Jingnan Rebellion (Jingnan means tranquillizing the countries’ crisis).
ZhuDi climbed his way to the throne and claimed himself emperor, titled as Youngle Emperor (literally emperor of perpetual joy). In his reign, he personally led a number of conquests, stabilizing and expanding the borders of China. In the north, he chased away the remanences of Mongolian empire and built defense against the nomads. In the south, the Ming army conquered Vietnam. The Forbidden City nowadays, famed for its former residence of the Qing Dynasty royal court, was actually built by the Youngle Emperor. It was at his order that Beijing developed into a capital city and remained its status for the rest of Chinese history.
With his nephew emperor disappeared, Youngle emperor constantly feared another usurping, for he actually did not have a proper claim to the throne. The East Depot, a spying and surveillance facility containing only eunuch members, was founded. He ordered the eunuch, Zheng He, to bring a grand fleet into the western seas and search for the disappeared emperor. Although Zheng He brought back no news of the former emperor, he brought back the New World and the abundance of it. Their trace was as far as the African coast.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(More to come)
We have a lot of candidates from the long history of China. But this time I would like to avoid repeating the normal choices in western knowledge (Wu zetian, Mao, Qin Shi Huang, etc). Lets look at other possible monarchs who stood out in 5000 yrs of history.
Dowager Empress Lu Zhi (Han dynasty)
Music theme (gone with the leaves):
Leader trait: Ruthless Menace
Every unit she kills reduces nearby enemies’ damage by 30% for 3 turns. When she burns a city, she gains +50 influence to every known city states.
Unique building: Execution Ground
Replace arena, increases 5 influence per turn to city states that has a trade route with her.
Unique units: Qin Nu array
replace crossbowman, ignore landscape blocking of ranged attacks and have +15% when adjacent each other. (may stack)
Leader agenda: Loyalty in Blood
She likes civilization that has a lot of units dying in war and dislikes those who doesn’t. (In history, she killed the most loyal general Han Xin to menace all other officers from upsurping.)
Approval: Killing is the best way to silence usurpers. I see you acquire this wisdom.
殺一以儆百, 天下莫不順服. 君高膽遠目, 乃治亂世之才.
Disproval: Subjects are always ungrateful. Treasuring them is the act of a coward. You shall remember this, when they overthrow you one day.
寵溺朝臣, 大忌之所在. 君若以婦人之仁治國, 則毋怪他日奸臣篡位.
Pros:
Dowager Lu’s China focuses on city states influence through war and killing, thus gaining the city state bonus in any victory route she desires. Her unique unit, the Qin Nu array (crossbow array) should better be used in units killing rather than besieging, to maximize potential of her leader bonus. Anyway, who can stop your army’s march with their units killed? She is particularly a bane to Pericles's Greece.
How to fight against Dowager Lu Zhi:
Prevent engaging war with her when her unique units come by. If it is inevitable, prepare a large amount of cavalries to break the Qin Nu arrays from being adjacent to each other. To reduce her bonus from city states, take them yourself or conquer them (Germany does this very well), although it will likely anger her and ultimately lead to war. Pillage her trading routes to shut down her unique building.
Scythia is an exceptional bane to Lu Zhi, as Tomyris is cavalry focusing and her unique units have extra movement speed to avoid being hit after attacks.
Historical reference:
Chinese history and folklore told of an extremely brutal dowager that killed many generals and officers in horrible ways to terrify everyone in court and thus solidify her position. So feared were the officers that no one (even the emperor) dared to challenge her authority in her reign although her title was just dowager regent.
The tale about her creation of a “human swine” (a rival concubine that had her limbs chopped off, tongue cut, eyes stabbed blinded and thrown into pig husbandry) was her infamous signature of ruthlessness, and the will to eliminate whoever stepping in her way. That poor concubine was exhibited to the emperor. So scared and horrified that the emperor fell into sickness and permanently sniffed out any ideas in interfering his mother’s politics.
Despite all the cruelty she exerted in the dynasty, her reign allowed China to prosper and historians still praised her rule. The stability and growth in early Han Dynasty was mostly based on her 15 year reign.
China invented many insane penalty and torture method.
I suggest you can search those pictures by your own, for they are really uncomfortable if posted here
Examples are LingChi (also called thousand cut, as the executioner cuts off the victim’s flesh bit by bit)
Human Swine (said to be invented by Empress Lu, the victims were off with their limbs and fed in pig farms, like a real pig).
These public torture and execution were normally commoners’ entertainment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tang Tai Zong
Leader Trait: Prosperity of ZhenGuan
Buildings and units have 33% less maintenance cost. Cultural output of cities with university increases by 10% when national happiness is equal to 5 and increases additionally by 1% at every further decrease of happiness points.
Unique building: Elixir Furnace
Replace Shrine, +1 production per believers when a religion dominates the city, and 50% output of holy site prayers are added into science.
Agenda: Tortoise Gate Usurp
Tang Tai Zong likes civilizations that betray their allies and join his side. He dislikes those who hold a long-term alliance with other civilizations other than him.
Approval: Addicted to minor morality leads to loss of many. Your endeavor should stabilize your realm for decades, if not millennia.
堅持小節，必虧大猷. 今君逆取順守, 雖未及千秋萬代, 亦誠保三百年之延洪也.
Disapproval: Those who consolidates basis for his descendants are blamed for their immorality. But what will you prefer? A bad name, or a ruined court?
夫創業垂統之君，子孫之所儀刑也. 變故之興，間不容髮，方懼毀巢之禍，寧虞尺布之謠？
Pros:
Tang TaiZong is versatile in victory routes. Generally, he is good at science and cultural victory. To make good use of the bonus, a domestic religion and a larger defensive force are recommended but neither religious nor military victory receives any real bonus.
The reduction in maintenance, comes passively and instantly, allows production of more units and buildings. The production bonus from his unique building can support the cities’ building projects and also provide additional science. Although there is a reliance on religion, this doesn’t’ mean that he is particularly good at religious victory.
If happiness is balanced carefully, the growth in culture can also boost China in cultural victory on top of the Wonder race.
Historical Reference:
Tang Tai Zong (his emperor title), or Lei Shimin (his name), opened the golden era of Tang Dynasty in which ancient China reached its prime in military and cultural influence. He took the throne by killing his brothers (who allied with each other against him) in Tortoise Gate Usurp and ultimately forced his father emperor to retire. This was reflected in his agenda.
Although his accession to throne was bloody, his reign was called the (Prosperous) Rule of Zhen Guan as Chinese influence stretched to many foreign lands through trading and conquests. He reduced government expenses (reflected in the leader trait) and allowed officers to have open debates with him. The more problems the country faced, the more debates and civic solution he posed (reflected in another part of leader trait).
In his final years, he was obsessed with pursuit of immortal elixir. Taoists alchemists were risen to high status in court (this part is in the unique building) to produce “immortal elixir” for him, which actually poisoned him to death. Still, this tradition of pursuing immortality was followed by and killed many of his successors.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Youngle Emperor (Zhu Di)
Leader trait: Youngle’s Prosperity
City built at north of capital receives +20% in building construction and walls provide +50 defense. Units +6 strength (and +another 1 over each era) in fighting other units to the south of his capital.
Unique units: Eastern Depot
Spies that fail their missions are not discovered but suicide (die) immediately. Gaining sources has 100% success rate. If there are foreign spies in the districts they protect, they will be caught in 2 turns. Spy production is halved
Unique units: Grand Fleets
Replace caravan. Have +1 sight. May carry out a number of missions at other civilizations’ sea border. For each Grand Fleets, each of the following missions can only be carried out every 4 turns. However, grand fleets is +2 higher at maintenance cost.
1, Culture spread: immediately + 50 tourism to that civ.
2, Obtain a free luxury that you do not own for 25 turns
3, Trade mission: obtain money, obtain more when further from your capital.
Agenda: Jingnan Rebellion
Youngle Emperor likes civilizations who declare Casus Belli (just wars) but hates civilizations denouncing warmongers. Warmonger penalty to him is halved.
Approval:
清君側, 靖國難, 乃忠臣義士之責.
Clearing evil from emperor’s side and tranquilizing the country from its crisis, is a responsibility shouldered by the loyal ones.
Dispproval:
君此言差矣. 三軍既動, 何懼師之無名?
Your speech lacks wisdom. With the main forces engaging, who cares is there a proper reason?
Pros: In a proper position of his capital, he can develop his cities quickly and defend them well from early rushes. The civs at his south will be at his mercy, however, for the position grants him a direct military bonus in combat.
His power is even stronger when his two unique units come by. The spy units are more effective in operations while mission failure harms no diplomatic relationships. The Grant Fleets offer him gold, extra luxury to maintain his empire's happiness and even worst, provide tourism exports for cultural victory.
In my opinion, he is a all rounded leader and maybe a little bit overpowered?
How to fight against Youngle Emperor:
He is hard to spy on thanks to his unique units so spying on him will not be a good option (Shutting Catherine de Medici's spies). Try to build a strong navy to stop his Grand Fleets from getting near your border or even stop building cities near coastlines.
His combat bonus due to position is hard to overwhelm. If you are fighting patron war against him, prepare more long ranged units and maximize city defense for his bonus only works on units. If you are going to invade him, be sure to attack from the north. His cities at the north will be more developed and capturing them costs him more, although it will be harder due to the higher defense.
Try to bribe or ally with civs at his north to attack on both sides. He is a strong leader that needed to be eliminated before its too late
Historical reference:
Originally an outsider of the throne, ZhuDi (Youngle Emperor’s name) serviced for years as a military general for his father emperor and then his nephew. Then when his nephew, emperor Jianwen, decided to reduce his power from nobility, ZhuDi could not tolerate anymore. Accusing the young emperor’s advisors as usurpers, ZhuDi fought his way into the imperial palace in the Jingnan Rebellion (Jingnan means tranquillizing the countries’ crisis).
ZhuDi climbed his way to the throne and claimed himself emperor, titled as Youngle Emperor (literally emperor of perpetual joy). In his reign, he personally led a number of conquests, stabilizing and expanding the borders of China. In the north, he chased away the remanences of Mongolian empire and built defense against the nomads. In the south, the Ming army conquered Vietnam. The Forbidden City nowadays, famed for its former residence of the Qing Dynasty royal court, was actually built by the Youngle Emperor. It was at his order that Beijing developed into a capital city and remained its status for the rest of Chinese history.
With his nephew emperor disappeared, Youngle emperor constantly feared another usurping, for he actually did not have a proper claim to the throne. The East Depot, a spying and surveillance facility containing only eunuch members, was founded. He ordered the eunuch, Zheng He, to bring a grand fleet into the western seas and search for the disappeared emperor. Although Zheng He brought back no news of the former emperor, he brought back the New World and the abundance of it. Their trace was as far as the African coast.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(More to come)
Last edited:
. I agree with all of your points. Lu Zhi was such a b***h for her b***hy allowed her to leave trace in history. I choose her in search of a new chinese female leader who had vivid character and legacy. Already got tired of Wu Ze Tian in civ V. Actually none of her real policies and leader traits (except the horribly high backstab rate, she was also b***h too, after all) were correctly made in the game. And I personally don't wanna see Cixi's old bulldog face in the civ, as she in fact hindered reformations and caused the downfall of China in opium war. Lu Zhi was b***h, but at least she created a lasting legacy for generations to come. Maybe can you suggest some female leaders for me to think about?
