Hello everyone! Happy New Year!!! Thank you again Pit2015 for making this amazing map!!!! Thank you again to the whole modding team as well for all of your amazing work on this mod. It's incredible what you've all done here. I know I've said it before, but really when playing C2C I feel like I am engaging with much more than a game. I have the feeling that I am also engaging with the real history of humanity and with something of the depth and variety of human experience with all of its twists and turns over thousands of years. I often feel a really moving sense of wonder and awe when playing the mod. C2C isn't only a mindblowingly incredible mod, it's also an incredibly beautiful work of art, and a great way to learn more about history. I feel this especially when playing UEM. The scale, the attention to detail and the realism of Pit2015's map makes everything happening in C2C feel that much larger and that much more real to me. There are likely as many ways to experience and enjoy C2C as there are people, but that at least is my experience. UEM really makes everything about C2C stand out and shine especially brightly for me.
I am reminded of the song or poem
Shudder Before The Beautiful by Nightwish, Lyrics:
Nightwish - Shudder Before The Beautiful Lyrics
I've continued work on my UEM variant, and since Pit2015 and Thunderbrd expressed interest in my previous version and post, I thought you might be interested in what I've done since with the variant. I've playtested the new version of my variant through the late Ancient era (although I used my Alternate options again).
Here is the upload:
Easyupload.io
This time I've uploaded the variant with Pit2015's original options as default based on your feedback.
Here is a list of differences between my variant and original UEM 5.1 for v41.2, (in addition to the differences listed in my previous post, which remain in this version as well).
Eastern United States and along the Canadian border:
-Modified Great Lakes: Lake Huron and Lake Erie are now separate. Lake Superior is slightly different. All of the Great Lakes have been connected by rivers in the locations that existed before modifications by the United States in the last few centuries. This now forms a partial natural boundary between the Iroquois and the United States in the game which has fun and interesting strategic implications for both.
I'm particularly happy with this since I think having to think about these rivers and lakes in the game, especially while playing as the Iroquois or Americans, is a great way to learn about the history of Canada and the United States. It's a great way to learn about the history of the Iroquois or Haudenosaunee Confederacy as well, which was caught between Loyalist Canada and the independence-minded American colonies during the American Revolutionary War, right along what would become the border between Canada and the U.S.
- Added the Tombigbee, Alabama, Mobile, Satilla, Alamaha, Oconee and Ocmulgee rivers to the Southern U.S. Also extended the Catawa river in North Carolina. Added the Susquehanna River, which should make any cities founded in the northern Midatlantic U.S. more identifiable and increase that region's historical role as a breadbasket for the U.S. and a major population center.
-Added Tobacco to Virginia and 2 Tobacco to Kentucky. Moved North Carolina Tobacco from Charlotte to Raleigh. Added Pig to Charlotte.
Canada, Alaska and North Dakota: Extended Lake Winnipeg. Added Lake Nipigon and the Nipigon River. Created Vancouver Island using a double-ended river design. Expanded Haida Gwaii. Created Baranof and Chichagof islands using the same double-ended river design. created the Kentai Peninsula in Alaska and added a few Alaskan hills. Added the Eastmain river, the English river system, and the Sogueney, St. John, Red, Assininboine, Red Deer and South Saskatchewan rivers. Expanded the Severn, Kazan, Dabawat, Athabasca, Porcupine, Peel, Anderson, Coppermine, Back and Fraser rivers. Extended the Ottawa River to more clearly define the Quebec/Ontario border, and added the St. Maurice and Matawin rivers.
Bahamas, Bermuda and Turks and Caicos: Expanded Andres Island, added Turks and Caicos, added Grand Bahama Island, Great Abaco Island and an island representing Great Exuma, Long and Acklins islands. Added a complex chain of coral reefs throughout this area, which could help out a would-be Pirate Republic... Arranged a few historical resources to make it more tempting to found either Nassau or the historical Lucayan settlements on Grand Bahama and Acklins. Added the barrier reef to Bermuda, showing the reef's historically crucial role in isolating Bermuda from devastating storms, and possibly isolating it a bit longer from American expansion...
Mexico: Expanded the Yucatan Peninsula by one plot. Added the Sabado, Conches, Sonoyta, Concepción, Sonora, Yaqui, Mayo, Fuerte, Sinaloa, Culiacán, San Pedro and Tecolutla rivers. Expanded the Lerma-Balsas river system and the Verde, San Fernando and Soto La Marina rivers. Switched Vanilla and Silver resource locations at the Sioux starting area in central Mexico to represent the historical origin of vanilla near Veracruz in the homeland of the Totonac people.
New Zealand: The major islands have been reshaped somewhat. Lush terrain has been added to the peninsula north of Auckland. The mountains of New Zealand have been reworked.
Tiny new region added! Explore Rekohu/Wharekauri/The Chatham Islands, a small land to the southeast of New Zealand which was first settled by the Moriori people, descendants of the Maori who left New Zealand starting around 1500 and likely became the last Polynesian nation to discover and settle a new island chain. This mysterious land of dense ancient forest, tundra, seals and shrimp is separated by a large sea from the main islands of New Zealand, so it will be a difficult challenge to settle, just as it was for the Moriori who switched from agriculture, daring and odds defying exploration and war to a new pacifist, isolationist and hunter-gatherer way of life as they adapted to a new life in the challenging and unique environment of their new homeland.
Japan: Added the Seto Inland Sea using a double-ended river design, allowing this "inland sea" to play its crucial historical role as the substitute for a major river system in the emergence and development of civilization in Japan throughout its history. Added the Chiguko River and a single plot of land to Japan to the East of Tokyo to increase this city's importance and define the coastline around Tokyo a bit more. Some minor reshaping of the land has also been done around the area of Kyushu and Shikoku islands. The freshwater Lake Biwa has been added at its historical location near Kyoto, next to the starting location of the Japanese Civ.
Central America: numerous changes to rivers and a few changes to mountains.
Finland: The huge lake system in Finland and along the Finnish/Russian border has been added. This partial natural boundary played a large role in both Finnish and Russian history, separating Finland from Russia, shaping Finnish culture and human geography throughout history, as well playing a large part in shaping Finland's unique role in World War II.
Some changes have been made to the shape of the Carpathian and the Caucasus mountain ranges.
Northern South America and Panama: Added the Darian marsh and swamps to Panama, added "Lake" Maracaibo, extended the Cauca River and redirected the Apure River.
Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma: Added the (Texas) Colorado river. Extended the Pecos and (Oklahoma) Canadian rivers into New Mexico.
Belize: Added the Belize River.
Argentina: Added the Salado/Salado Del Sur river to the south of Buenos Aires province.
Pyrenees: Slightly altered.
I added forest and jungle to Taiwan which are suggestive of its geography. I am forgetting whether I also kept my addition of the Iron resource to the island or not.
That should be everything ^_^
I hope you find the work I've done on this variant helpful. To anyone interested in playing the variant as it is, have fun and enjoy!
Wishing you all a good new year or a better one as well!
Cheers!