East Asia Overhaul

LikeNothing

LikeNothing

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Edit: Back to this after 3 years. I still like my old ideas but I think they are a bit extravagant. Instead (in addition?) I propose some simpler new UPs for China and Japan, inspired by Leoreth's new (1.18) Russian, American, and Indian UPs.

LikeNothing said:
China: The Power of Dynastic Cycles: When you enter a new era, your Great People thresholds reset, and you get a few turns of Anarchy (which can be avoided by a Golden Age).
Click to expand...

The Anarchy turns allows the player to put the Golden Ages required by the UHV to better use.

LikeNothing said:
Japan: The Power of Tradition/Renovation: When you switch to a newer Civic (lower down the list), you continue to benefit from the old Civic you switched from for a number of turns.
Click to expand...

For example, the player can somewhat simulate the Meiji Restoration by running, effectively simultaneously,
  1. Monarchy + State Party
  2. Citizenship + Centralism
  3. Regulated Trade + Free Enterprise
  4. Deification + Tolerance
  5. Colonialism + Nationhood
The player can then somewhat simulate the Japanese Economic Miracle by running, effectively simultaneously,
  1. State Party + Democracy
  2. Centralism + Constitution
  3. Free Enterprise + Public Welfare
  4. Tolerance + Secularism
  5. Nationhood + Multilateralism
This would be very fun!

===

Old post below:

Recently I have more ideas on this topic than a single post can contain, and the ones I had posted seem well-received. Thus, a thread. First (this) post is table of contents, organized (hopefully) by logical dependency.

What this thread will discuss:
Caveats:
  • All ideas are useful on the current map, but many benefit from the planned bigger map
  • I may not be able to answer all your questions, but I will complete this thread to my satisfaction
    • As of this writing, I am > 90% satisfied
  • If you ask me really good questions about East Asian history, I might send you primary sources
  • To my best knowledge, all ideas are feasible in the Civ4 engine, but I am no programmer
 
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New Game Mechanism: Mandate of Heaven (aka: Tian Ming; aka: Zhu Lu Zhong Yuan)
  • To simulate Chinese (re-)unifications, fascinating history which should be fun in game
  • Available for both China and its would-be conquerers (Mongolia, Japan, Manchu, etc.)
If your Capital is in China's Core and has at least 50% of your own Culture, you receive no (or reduced) Resistance in the cities you conquer in China's Core and Historical Areas.

(1) Optional: This can also work if your Capital is in China's Historical Area.
  • All the unifying dynasties had their original power base in China's Core (assuming a rational drawing of China's Core which includes Nanjing).
  • The conquest dynasties did not meaningfully conquer China Proper until they moved their capital to China's Core (Beijing).
  • Historically China was never threatened by invaders from the south, but this Option would give Tibet, Khmer, Thai, India, etc. a fun choice.
  • This would also give Korea a possibility of claiming the Mandate without moving Capital. Again, it stretches realism but could be fun.
(2) Optional: Your State Religion must be Confucian or Taoist.
  • Both the Yuan and Qing dynasty had to demonstrate their Confucian orthodoxy (and of course, move their capital to Beijing, in China's Core) before they could incorporate a meaningful portion of Chinese population under their administration.
  • Unless changed in the future, Confucianism and Taoism have no functional difference in DoC.
(3) Optional: You also lose fewer Buildings when conquering these cities.
(4) Optional: You also receive free defenders in these cities after conquering them.
(5) Optional: You also absorb more of the Culture in these cities after conquering them.
(6) Optional: You also receive a Stability boost (equivalent to Conquest Civic) from conquering these cities.

This idea is inspired by both RFCAsia and the Common Universalis Mod of EU4. In RFC Asia if you conquer half of China the other half auto-flips to you. I think a no Resistance bonus is more fun. Of course, you should still get the option to raze the cities, regardless.

Currently, this mechanism would give Mongolia, Japan, Korea, Tibet, Khmer, etc. more motivation and benefits to conquer China. In a future larger map, where I assume there will be more civs in the area like the Manchus, it'd be even more interesting.
 
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New Silk Road and Trade Company Mechanisms
  • To make these differ from modern Corporations, more realistic with more strategic depth
  • Corresponding adjustments to English and Dutch UPs
Silk Road - Unchanged Features
  • Spreads when certain tech (Compass?) is met, to Cities in the Silk Road's historical geographical area
Silk Road - New Features
  • Can now also spread to Independent and Barbarian Cities; whenever Silk Road has already spread to any major Civ
  • Yields a moderate amount of :food: only, no :gold:; utilizes somewhat different Resources (details later)
  • Enables a number of new Buildings, see below
Trade Company - Unchanged Features
  • Spreads when certain tech (Astronomy?) is met
Trade Company - New Features
  • Spreads to any coastal City whose owner either (1) has its Capital Overseas or (2) has the City as non-Historical
  • Higher Spread if the City is Overseas but Historical; giving Europeans a boost but no absolute exclusivity
  • Yields a moderate amount of :hammers: only, no :food: or :gold:; utilizes somewhat different Resources (details later)
  • Enables a number of new Buildings, see below
===

New Buildings (All Numbers Subject to Balance)

All the following Buildings, unless otherwise noted:
  • Requires either Silk Road or Trading Company;
  • Have relatively low cost;
  • Are automatically destroyed when either (1) City changes owner or (2) City owner changes Expansion Civic.
(1) Localized Administration
Recruit the administrators in this City from the local elite rather than sending our own.
  • -100%:culture:, -25%:science:, -25% City Maintenance, removes or reduces this City's Foreign Culture and Religion :) and Stability Costs
(2) Autonomous Administration
Give the administrators in this City a large degree of autonomy.
  • -50% :gold:, -25%:science:, -25% City Maintenance, removes or reduces this City's Civics, Expansion Stability and Tech :science: costs
(3) Penal Colony
Send the trouble-making elements from our homeland to this remote colony.
  • Cannot be built in your Core
  • Requires at least 75% of your own Culture in this City
  • +1:mad:, +3 Free Citizen Specialists
(4) Caravan
  • Requires Silk Road
  • +1 Trade Route, Bonus :hammers: and/or :food: to Camels, Horses
(5) Trade Post
  • Requires Trading Company
  • +1 Trade Route, Bonus :hammers: and/or :food: to Fishing Boat (and possibly Plantation) resources
(6) Silk Road Embassy
  • Does not require a Corporation, costs more to build, not destroyed by Civics changes
  • Requires 2 (or more on a bigger map) Caravans; can only build 1
  • Maintains your Civilization's trade contact with all foreign Cities with Silk Road (including Open Borders and any Resource deals)
(7) Trading Company Branch Office
  • Requires Trading Company, costs more to build, not destroyed by Civics changes
  • Requires 4 (or more on a bigger map) Trade Posts; can only build 1 per Continent
  • +:gold: from your cities with Trading Company on this Continent, possibly other bonuses
(8) Viceroy's Palace
  • Costs more to build, not destroyed by Civics changes
  • Requires 4 (or more on a bigger map) Autonomous Administrations
  • Provides the (perhaps reduced) bonuses of a Palace
===

English UP: Indirect Rule
Localized Administration and Autonomous Administration always available in all of your non-Core cities and provide less penalties.
Dutch UP: Free Trade Spirit
Reduced costs and requirements for Trade Posts and Trading Company Branch Offices; Trading Company Corporation yields more.
 
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New Chinese UP: Dynastic Cycles (aka: Gai Chao Huan Dai; aka: Xin Chao Ya Zheng)
  • To simulate China being a single civ representing multiple dynasties spanning millenia
  • A Chinese UP that is both fun and relatively easy to balance, solving a longstanding problem in DoC
When you enter a new Era, you receive a Stability bonus (Or penalty, depending on balance) for some turns, and your Great People and Great General Thresholds reduced (down to zero, or half, or some other balanced level).

(1) Optional: You also receive the "Rise of Civilization" tech cost discount for some turns.
(2) Optional: This only works for the first 4 new Eras you enter, to balance 3000BC vs 600AD China.
(3) Optional: Your non-Historical cities become Independents.
  • Historically very realistic
(4) Optional: Your non-Core cities become Independents.
  • Historically mostly realistic
  • May seem harsh, but may be fun with the Mandate of Heaven mechanism above and Optional (5) below
  • Allows China to not have a comically stunted Stability Map the way it does now
  • Obviates the need of a non-historical "South China" civ
(5) Optional: You also receive a small stack of free units (just like a newly-spawned civ would)
IRL China has collapsed multiple times and went through multiple cycles of reform and rebirth. This is not just part of China's national mythos (as stated in the opening sentence of Romance of Three Kingdoms) - it's a historical fact, and a very interesting one worthy of study.

But I think most agree it's impractical to represent each major Chinese dynasty as a separate civ in DoC. China will likely be the longest continuously running civ in a game like DoC, as it has always been. That should be what makes it unique and interesting to play, not a limit or a burden.

Put another way, if any civ in game should represent multiple IRL civs/states/regimes/dynasties, it's China. The question is how to simulate this. I've thought of a controlled voluntary collapse (hence, Optionals 3 and 4 above) but other players may hate it (though perhaps not too much, given Optional 5 and the Mandate of Heaven mechanism).

The current Chinese UP (food stored) has no effect on player or AI choices or tactics. It is functionally equivalent to a moderate boost to iModifierGrowthThreshold, which, even after the boost, still make China's pop growth rate slower than most civs'. Its one virtue is that it is easily balanced, but any UP of such simplicity would be.
 
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New Japanese UP: Eternal Dynasty (aka: Bansei Ichi; aka: Kokutai)
  • To more realistically represent Japan in all its Eras, not just one or some of them
  • Bonus Bushido UP ideas that can be used as effects for Himeji Castle instead
Always receive the bonuses of Monarchy regardless of what Civics you are running. Shinto is always available as a normal State Religion (even if running Secularism).

(1) Optional: You also receive the Stability bonuses (and perhaps also penalty) of Monarchy.
(2) Optional: Shinto gives no Stability penalty for Foreign Religions.
(3) Optional: Shinto gives no Stability bonus for Religious Unity.
(4) Optional: Shinto gives less Relations penalty based on Religion with other Civs.
(5) Optional: Shinto allows the building of Wonders requiring other State Religions.
(6) Optional: Shinto enables buildings (Wonders, e.g. Himeji Castle; Temples and Monasteries)

In stark contrast with China's Dynastic Cycles and Mandate of Heaven which any new dynasty can claim in theory, the Imperial House of Japan is the longest continuous imperial dynasty in the world, unbroken in recorded history, and the keystone of Japan's national ethos. The Emperor of Japan is now the only head of state who uses an imperial title.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_of_Japan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kokutai
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/万世一系

Even when the Emperor does not have real political power (as in now, or during the Shogunate Era, or even during the Meiji Restoration itself), his cultural and religious impact (as the religious head of Shinto) on Japan is immense. This is why the reformers of the Meiji Restoration claimed to be upholding the divine rights of the Emperor while actually establishing a constitutional monarchy:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonnō_jōi

This is also why maintaining the Emperor's symbolic reign (Kokutai) was the only condition considered by Japan during its surrender in 1945 (which the Allies wisely honored, even though it's not a formal condition of the surrender).

Here are some UP ideas related to Bushido, which can be used instead as effects of Himeji Castle (or other Shinto-related bonuses):
  • Bushido - Honor
    Your units do not suffer penalty to Attack for being wounded.
  • Bushido - Loyalty
    Your units receive a Defense bonus within your cultural borders.
  • Bushido - Sacrifice
    Your units dying in combat passes half of their XP to your other units nearby.
  • Bushido - Simplicity
    Your units always have heal rate and costs as if they are in a domestic city.
 
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Misc Futuristic Ideas
  • Dynamic Resource spawns and Silk Road/Columbian Exchange
  • UP ideas for future East Asian civs: Manchu, Vietnam
Dynamic Resource spawns and Silk Road/Columbian Exchange
Instead of pre-scripted Resource spawns, Silk, Spices (and other Silk Road resources) spawn randomly via Events on tiles near Cities with Silk Road Corporation; Corn, Tobacco (and other New World resources) spawn on tiles near Old World Cities whose owners have vision of the New World; Horse, Cow (and other Old World resources) spawn on tiles near New World Cities whose owners have vision of the Old World, etc.
  • Event requires: the City's owner to have certain Techs (Crop Rotation?), (relative) lack of access to the spawning Resource, and the tile to have certain Improvements (Farm? Cottage?) and certain Terrains (Grassland?).
  • In a large map in particular, this might be easier to code than presecripted Resource spawns.
  • Trading Company Corporation improves the chance of Columbian Exchange spawns.

Manchu UP: Assimilation
Capturing a City gives you extra :science:, :culture:, and :hammers: in your Capital. Defeating an enemy Unit (including Barbarians) gives a chance (~50%) of it defecting to you.
Manchu UU: Banner
Replaces Cuirassier. No City Strength penalty, +25% Hills Strength, receives Defensive Bonuses, build with :food:, upgrades to Cavalry
 
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LikeNothing said:
New Chinese UP: Dynastic Cycles (aka: Gai Chao Huan Dai; aka: Xin Chao Ya Zheng)
  • To simulate China being a single civ representing multiple dynasties spanning millenia
  • A Chinese UP that is both fun and relatively easy to balance, solving a longstanding problem in DoC
Click to expand...
  • Im curious what your five mega-suggestions will be.
I have already argued for a long time that there needs to be some mechanism that stops to treat China as a single isolated culture that emerged from nothing and that was merely threatened by Barbarians and Mongols. Historians like to point out that a single entity like "China" only is the result of Han conquest and colonization. Only after ~1500, during the Ming and Qing eras, China had amalgamized into the single geopolitical entity that it became today.

The Game starts with China as it emerges in the Xia-Shang era. This was (due to our lack of knowledge about those times) the last time that China was unchallenged by outside cultures. For much of the Zhou period, the Xiang "barony" (stylizing itself as a Kingdom) was already an equal power, that may be symbolized with an independent "Southern China" civ, and resisting the feudal government. Such a "South China" can be subjugated by China to serve as a vassal, but should in my opinion remain for a long time, and whenever subjugated and eliminated from the game, be ready to re-emerge. It's first Xiang and the Nanyue, later the southern dynasties, then Guangdong/Kanton with its own more mercantile culture compared to the warlike Northerners and in the 20th century we get the PRC/Taiwan shism.

Meanwhile the game treats China as its own single predetermined block, when there should actually be a division/duality like with Rome and Byzantium; Russia and Poland; France and England; Portugal and Spain; America and Canada; Austria and Prussia; or Arabia and Maghreb... All of these are pieces of the same cloth: Struggling, fiercely competing neighbors just like the Chinese states have been for most of their time; with the main difference being that history depicts them today not as "two sides of the same coin" but as "two different coins".

I'm not really arguing for a playable "South China" as Leoreth rightfully points out that there is no permanent "national identity" of such a nation (the same argument goes for "Han China" before the 1500ies, but ehhhh). Well, there should be an Independent Kingdom that serves as an adversary for Han-China similar to the Gauls vs. Rome. A formidable sparring partner that regularly re-emerges, declares independence, and also hinders a player-China from becoming a world power too soon; and that can have policies, trade relationships and alliances of its own.

Should my suggestion be tabled for later, until the new map gets incorporated and more civilizations are programmed? Yes, it should.
 
LikeNothing said:
(5) Optional: You also receive a small stack of free units (just like a newly-spawned civ would)
Click to expand...

Not entirely sure if I support the whole idea, but I may suggest that instead of the ROC "era," we represent Song dynasty by researching all Four Great Inventions (Compass, Paper, Gunpowder, Printing), regardless of whether the UHV is achieved or not (i.e., there's no need to be the first one to research).
 
h0spitall3rz said:
Not entirely sure if I support the whole idea, but I may suggest that instead of the ROC "era," we represent Song dynasty by researching all Four Great Inventions (Compass, Paper, Gunpowder, Printing), regardless of whether the UHV is achieved or not (i.e., there's no need to be the first one to research).
Click to expand...
Song is my favorite dynasty as well, but I don't think free units fits them. I also have reservations about the whole idea of free units, so I made it Optional. But one of the key features of a newly spawning Civ is a stack of free units.

This free units Optional can work well if the stack of free units is small but also ahead of time/what you normally can't get at that time. It'd be a bit like the free Legions that spawn with Byzantium. For example, Ming can spawn with a few Musketeers which it can't immediately build.

Moreover, when you finish the Four Great Inventions, you usually get a Golden Age (2/3 UHV), which nicely represents Song already, for me at least.

Finally, I welcome suggestions about Korea's UP. I have not come up with a better one than the existing UP, which IMO is very well-designed (more so than the existing Chinese and Japanese UPs).
 
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LikeNothing said:
Song is my favorite dynasty as well, but I don't think free units fits them. I also have reservations about the whole idea of free units, so I made it Optional. But one of the key features of a newly spawning Civ is a stack of free units.

This free units Optional can work well if the stack of free units is small but also ahead of time/what you normally can't get at that time. It'd be a bit like the free Legions that spawn with Byzantium. For example, Ming can spawn with a few Musketeers which it can't immediately build.

Moreover, when you finish the Four Great Inventions, you usually get a Golden Age (2/3 UHV), which nicely represents Song already, for me at least.

Finally, I welcome suggestions about Korea's UP. I have not come up with a better one than the existing UP, which IMO is very well-designed (more so than the existing Chinese and Japanese UPs).
Click to expand...

There can be free units for Song, albeit fewer. What if China fails UHV2? There would be no golden age in that case.

For Ming, do remember that there's a second UU, Firelancer, which is an early Arquebusier that requires Gunpowder instead of Firearms.

I think Korea's UP is already great, though I think we should add another Korean wonder. Gyeongbokgung or Changdeokgung, perhaps?
 
Edit: Back to this after 3 years. I still like my old ideas but I think they are a bit extravagant. Instead (in addition?) I propose some simpler new UPs for China and Japan, inspired by Leoreth's new (1.18) Russian, American, and Indian UPs, as well as 1.17's existing Chinese and Japanese UPs.

New Chinese UP: The Power of Myriads
  • Food is added to production when producing units and buildings; reduced cost (to population and gold) when rushing wonders.
Notes:
  1. The first, substantive half of this UP is a mixture of the current Chinese UP and RFC's original Chinese UP, a mixture of growth and production. Compared to its predecessors, it is more dynamic with more player agency over its predecessors which are equivalent to static tweaks in consts.py
    • This UP is self-balancing like the new Russian UP and the existing Chinese UP, since it only takes effect when the cities are food heavy and in growth mode, and not when the cities are mature and powerful.
    • For the same reason, it adds historical flavor, because China has historically gone through periods when rapid growth (in population and infrastructure) coincide with military expansion, followed by periods of stagnation.
  2. The second, optional flavor half of this UP is a historical nod to China's tendency (which continues to this day) to rush projects and wonders. Costs to rushing wonders is generally prohibitively high - this would allow the player to actually do it from time to time. The unhappiness cost is unaffected for balance and for flavor.
New Japanese UP: The Power of Learning
  • From your most advanced known rival that is not furious at you, you always get trade routes (regardless of open borders, civics, etc.) and reduced Steal Technology costs .
Notes:
  1. My biggest regret with the current Japanese UP is that it only simulates modern Japan, not earlier Japan. This new UP would allow to leverage its UP earlier, befitting from its location of being isolated in the world but with a powerful neighbor (China).
    • It also simulates how firearms and other technology spread more quickly from Europe to Japan than to China or Korea during the early modern era before the Meiji Restoration.
    • Unlike the existing UP, it benefits Japan even when it's not lagging behind many other players, and simulates its rapid modernization/growth in the 1950s and 1960s while benefiting from American patronage.
  2. It also adds flavor by allowing you to run Isolationism and denying all Open Borders.
 
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Imho the current China UP is the best designed UP in the entire mod. First - it's very simple. Second - it's fitting thematically. Third: it has a bit of downside (or rather restricting factor) of hitting Maltusian trap (probably it could be done more elegantly with some food bonus that scales weirdly and leads to sudden mass starvation); there is a strong theory that whole "Dynastic Cycles" thing reflects China, being ancient civilization with very powerful agriculture, repeadetly falling in such trap and moving from it via enormous population loses of civil wars, barbarian invasions and famines, only to start developing rapidly again when it's away from the Maltusian trap.

Regarding Japan - i find current UP pretty useless for both hikikomori Tokugawa and human player (i think current UHV "meta" is to settle a single city and get 2 GAs, this way you won't lag behind too much), but the one you offer is even less useful for AI and not very thematic (i doubt that Japanese were stealing techs from Americans in 1950's). Maybe something like "+X% income from vassals, domestic trade routes and trade routes to more advanced civilizations; -X% income from trade routes to non-vassal less advanced civilizations" to promote Isolationism and emphase on the GEACPS? (also current Japan is a bit too pacifist, shouldn't it go a bit insane in lategame?)
 
For Japan, while I really like the idea of an UP that boosts Isolationism, a possible perverse effect is that it encourages you to explore to meet as many civs as possible, which is a bit backwards flavor-wise (same problem as the current UP). An alternative could be: The Power of Exchange/something else - Free trade routes and reduced technology costs* from civilizations that discovered you first.

*In diplomacy, espionage and maybe even :science: costs in general.

For China, one issue is that (at least on the current map) it's already a :hammers: powerhouse. I typically find maintenance and :mad: to be the bigger problems. Which gives me an idea for an UP, actually: The Power of Export/Artisanry/something else - additional gold from selling luxury resources and building wealth. Allows China to benefits more from its rare resources (less rare once they spread across the world following colonization) and formidable industrial capacity across history.

But really, the Chinese UP could be a lot of things. Even the current one is fine even if it contributes to China's :) problems. It also can't be too strong, since China is already nerfed to hell and back with modifiers, to counteract its good terrain and long playtime.
 
I see the point about China's current UP being boring and not very flashy. But giving them a high impact UP makes them very volatile and you do not want China to be volatile. Mostly you do not want China to underperform but if it's both volatile and calibrated to avoid underperforming China then by consequence you will also often get overperforming China, and that is also bad for the game.

Note that China has a lot more territory available than in the current map, which is mostly to their advantage, but not exclusively so. It gives more space to the existence of independents and barbarians in the south that acts as a constraint on them until roughly the Middle Ages, unlike right now where you can basically settle there right away without many disadvantages. Maintenance is also much more of a concern. So there already is a more gradual growth experience to them.

That being said, I think a UP based on their cyclical history could be cool. I like the idea to have their GP thresholds reset every time they suffer a partial collapse. However, I am not sure how that would work out in practice. I neither like forcing a partial collapse on them, nor do I like gamey strategies that involve inducing a partial collapse deliberately while having units ready to quickly retake the lost cities.


As for Japan, I feel their current UP is too much of a crutch to address their unique historical technological catch up - especially because the tech diffusion the UP is relying on is nothing special to Japan, all the UP does is making it a lot more impactful. So I would not be opposed to a more interesting UP. However I don't think a UP that grants military bonuses is right for them.
 
Leoreth said:
I see the point about China's current UP being boring and not very flashy. But giving them a high impact UP makes them very volatile and you do not want China to be volatile. Mostly you do not want China to underperform but if it's both volatile and calibrated to avoid underperforming China then by consequence you will also often get overperforming China, and that is also bad for the game.

...

That being said, I think a UP based on their cyclical history could be cool. I like the idea to have their GP thresholds reset every time they suffer a partial collapse. However, I am not sure how that would work out in practice. I neither like forcing a partial collapse on them, nor do I like gamey strategies that involve inducing a partial collapse deliberately while having units ready to quickly retake the lost cities.
Click to expand...

How about simply: The Power of Dynastic Cycles: When you enter a new era, your Great People thresholds reset, and you get to switch Civics once without Anarchy.

Historically realistic/flavorful, not OP, and not gamey.

Leoreth said:
As for Japan, I feel their current UP is too much of a crutch to address their unique historical technological catch up - especially because the tech diffusion the UP is relying on is nothing special to Japan, all the UP does is making it a lot more impactful. So I would not be opposed to a more interesting UP. However I don't think a UP that grants military bonuses is right for them.
Click to expand...

How about: The Power of Tradition: Shinto is always available as a state religion (even with Secularism) and provide extra happiness, and cities in your home islands benefit from your religious civic (Clergy, Monasticism, Theocracy) regardless of their religions.
  • Himeji Castle and Itsukushima Shrine both require Shinto (and + Rice), since IRL the have little to do with Buddhism (Itsukushima Shrine is literally a Shinto shrine).
  • Adds some IMO important historical flavor to Japan. Now you can run a Shinto Theocracy in the 1930s like IRL!
 
An UP based on dynastic cycles for China is something that's been discussed before, and I agree it'd be pretty flavorful. Something collapse-based seems too situational, entering a new era works better. Golden Ages could also work (and fit with the current UHV). As a plus, GAs make you work for your UP and provide a tradeoff compared to using your :gp: for more permanent bonuses.
 
LikeNothing said:
How about simply: The Power of Dynastic Cycles: When you enter a new era, your Great People thresholds reset, and you get to switch Civics once without Anarchy.

Historically realistic/flavorful, not OP, and not gamey.
Click to expand...
I do think this is very powerful, and it also does not live up to the name - it only grants benefits and stability, instead of reflecting the periodic instability.
LikeNothing said:
How about: The Power of Tradition: Shinto is always available as a state religion (even with Secularism) and provide extra happiness, and cities in your home islands benefit from your religious civic (Clergy, Monasticism, Theocracy) regardless of their religions.
  • Himeji Castle and Itsukushima Shrine both require Shinto (and + Rice), since IRL the have little to do with Buddhism (Itsukushima Shrine is literally a Shinto shrine).
  • Adds some IMO important historical flavor to Japan. Now you can run a Shinto Theocracy in the 1930s like IRL!
Click to expand...
This is mechanically difficult and I don't care about Shinto special flavour. It's a very narrow UP in concept too.
 
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