The Machrek rework encompasses changes to three civilizations of the Levant : Arabia, Byzantium and Persia (renamed Iran, to better fit the local name)
New UA, taken from the base VP Byzantine kit
New Civ Icon, taken from Tarcisio's Abbasids => a matter of personal taste, since I dislike the fact that the Islam religion icon and Arabia's civ icon were basically interchangeable (I could do the same for Byzantium or Spain for example)
UA - Last Prophet
Can always found a Religion, receives 1 Additional Belief when founding, and may select Beliefs present in other Religions. -15% Faith purchase costs, and may purchase unlocked Great People starting in the Classical Era.
Bazaar renamed and replaced with a tall variant
UB1 - Great Sooq (unique BuildingClass)
Unlocked at Trade
Can only be built 3 times in the Empire
160
Production cost
+1
Culture
+1
Production
+1
Science
+1
Gold per
3 Citizens in the City
1 Merchant specialist
+2
Science /
Production to Merchants specialists worked in the City
Converts 15 % of the
Gold spent in the City for purchases into
Food
When built, spawn a free Market in the City
Grants a free copy of all Strategic Resources
UU1 Tweaked
UU1 - Camel Archer
Splash Damage I removed, replaced by
Quick Study
UB2 renamed and buffed
UB2 - Dar al-Shifa (replaces University)
Unlocked at Philosophy (instead of Education)
Gain +2 
Faith to base yields
New UA, taken from Arabia with Faith added (removed from Rome in the last update) and Historic Event triggers from the Bazaar put into the UA
UA - Encyclopaedism
When you complete a Historic Event, +1
Science and
Culture in your
Capital, and 15% towards the progress of a random
Great Person. Finishing a
Trade Route triggers a Historic Event.
Cataphracte replaced by the Varangian Guard, taken from JFD and Pouakai's Mercenary mod
UU1 - Varangian Guard (unique UnitClass)
Unlocked at Chivalry
Must be purchased with Gold
No movement or XP penalty when purchased with Gold
310
Gold cost (Standard speed)
Costs extra
Gold to maintain
23
CS
2
MP / 2 Vision
Cover I
Shock I
Can pillage without cost
Gains Gold from attacking Cities
Splinter - +20% CS when adjacent to a City ; when attacking, inflicts the Splintered plague for 4 turns
(
Splintered - Takes 5 more damage from all sources)
UB replaced by a unique Fort, taken from DuskJockey's Byzantium
UI - Aplekton (replaces Fort)
Unlocked at Engineering
Can be built in or adjacent to Byzantine territory, but not adjacent to another Aplekton
Reveals tiles within 3 tiles (can be blocked by rough terrain)
+1
Food
+1
Production
+2 Border Growth points
+1
Food from adjacent Villages
+1
Production from adjacent GPTIs
Receives the same bonus yields from techs and policies as the Fort
Civ name changed to Iran (to go away from the Greek toponym that stuck throughout history)
Immortals removed, replaced by the Grivpanvar (an early Cataphracte equivalent) => UnitIcon taken from JFD's Greater Armenia
UU1 - Grivpanvar (replaces Horseman)
Unlocked at Military Theory
120 Production cost (+30)
Requires Horse
16 CS
3 MP / 2 Vision
No Terrain Defense
Armor Plating I
Charge II
Removed - Can move after attacking
UU2 replaced by the Tortobak Toptshi => 3d model and UnitIcon taken from DJSHenninger's Afsharids, and UnitFlag taken from JFD's Greater Armenia
UU2 - Tortobak Toptshi (unique UnitClass)
Unlocked at Metallurgy
325
Production cost
22
CS / 30
RCS
2
MP / 2 Vision
Cannot Melee Attack
Pashtun Marksmanship - +1 Range and can enter Moutain tiles ; moves at half speed in hostile territory and suffers -30% CS when defending
Explanation :
- Arabia / Byzantium swap : although thematic, I've always found that Arabia's and Byzantium UA's would have been even more so if swapped, with the late but major historical religious even that was the birth of Islam on one hand, the importance of Byzantium in savekeeping knowledge from Antiquity for a millenia and role in exporting its alphabet towards the slavic people on the other
+ with the change to Rome, Byzantium fits neatly as a echo of its more war-focused cousin, and also gains a bonus to finishing trade routes, putting it on the path towards the bonuses used by the Ottomans
- Arabia UB1 and UU1 : the idea with this new kit was to make Arabia the "most reliable" civ, with economic bonuses early on, a powerful religion in all cases and access to a good amount of strategic resources to go towards any victory condition ; the change to the UU1 follows the same logic, favoring the reliable Quick Study that increases the combat experience gained throughout the game and synergizes nicely with the survialist style of bonuses already present on the Camel Archer
- Byzantium UU1 and UI : fitting the idea of a scaling, defensive civilization, the Varangian Guard and the Aplekton serve as ways for Byzantium to protect itself efficiently and reliably ; the Varangian Guard serves as a always accessible mercenary unit that can be both a supportive unit in open battle, a guardian near Byzantine cities or a frontline assault unit in hostile territory ; the Aplekton gains enough yields (especially near Villages and GPTIs) to be built into Byzantine territory without hurting its economy too much, allowing a better protectiong on the borders and within
- Iran UUs : following a long-standing idea by
@pineappledan , I decided to move the Cataphracte to Persia, where the slow-but-powerful combat style of the unit fits very well with the movement bonus offered by the Persian UA (it may be op right now, but the Horseman is such a letdown a soon as the Spearman is unlocked that I wanted to give the unit the tools to be noticeable) ; the new Persian ranged unit allows a better representation of eastern Iranian cultures and still fits post-Achaemenid representation like the Qizilbash
It was kinda confusing, since, main post had v7 and latest post had v8
"
Golden Age points, scaling with Era. +33% 
City Connections.
Tourism and +2 Great General point from World, National and Natural Wonders (+1 from Guilds). +3 
Unhappiness from Religious Unrest
Great Work of Art / Artifact slot (+6 
Supply
Happiness
![https://forums.civfanatics.com/images/smilies/civ5/food.png[/IMG]](https://forums.civfanatics.com/images/smilies/civ5/food.png[/IMG]){kind=link}
![https://forums.civfanatics.com/images/smilies/civ5/citizen.png[/IMG]](https://forums.civfanatics.com/images/smilies/civ5/citizen.png[/IMG]){kind=link}