Crusader Kings III News

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Crown-wearing kings and regalia-bearing queens,[/p][p][/p][p]As you read these very words, you might - by claim of blood or right of conquest - be happily nesting in a Crusader Kings III throne. Perhaps you’re just about to become king, just about to plop one of our lovingly rendered crowns on your most worthy head. Congratulations! That’s one heck of a moment to celebrate.[/p][p][/p][p]Enter: the Coronation Activity. This first, and very likely most iconic, sacral moment of kingship is the centerpiece of our laser-focused new event pack. Our fans have long yearned to see this ceremony realized in digital cathedrals and in virtual flesh. I, humble Brother Jason of the design scriptorium, am here to give you a sense of the kingly activity to come.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Spoilers, I guess?][/p][p][/p][h2]Vision[/h2][p]With this event pack, we tried something a little different from the formula employed in Wandering Nobles, Wards & Wardens and Friends & Foes: where these prior event packs scattered little tasty flavor treats throughout the game, Coronations is instead one single, discrete bundle of highly visible and mechanically impactful content. You will not have to search it out. This DLC presents itself to you, in fanfare and anticipation, the moment… you die. Or, well, the moment you graduate to kingship. Either one is good.[/p][p][/p][p]So, yes, this DLC is focused squarely on the beginning of a new reign, on your initial years as a sovereign. They’re often dramatic years, aren’t they? With factions, claimants, new friends, councillors and rivals, new goals to set, and new boundaries to gaze upon. Your ruler’s Coronation won’t take place in isolation from these fresh horrors and newfound delights, no: our intent is that the Activity helps them situate themselves in their new position. It should highlight your new foes and help you identify the sources of your new character’s strength. By holding a Coronation, you might hope to - without the strain of war - address the teething problems of new rule that we all know well (factions, claimants, etc). This might end, however, in your coronation being a venue for your humiliation and, even, deposition. Don’t fear, though. Such a debacle would require a few significant political miscalculations on your part.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[These vassals don’t seem to like me very much][/p][p][/p][p]Conversely, if your succession is smooth as butter on warm toast, then Coronations become a fine exercise in patting yourself on the back. A beloved, highly capable ruler has every right to pull through with fresh modifiers, currencies and incentives in hand![/p][p][/p][p]A soon-to-come developer diary will dig deeper into the mechanics of the Coronation Activity and the Oaths on offer. What I present to you now is a top-level overview.[/p][p][/p][h2]The Coronation Activity[/h2][p]Coronations are a new Activity type available to Kings and Emperors. They are accompanied by a new Realm Law, which states whether your ruler is Crowned or Uncrowned. While Uncrowned, you suffer Opinion and Legitimacy maluses; the only way to become Crowned is to host a Coronation. Both the Activity and the new laws are DLC-only content, and will not affect players who don’t own this event pack.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Soon, soon you will be crowned and these modifiers will be history…][/p][p][/p][p]You may only host a Coronation when first becoming a King or Emperor: thus, a Coronation host must either be a new heir succeeding to the throne, or a ruler who has just increased their title tier. The majority of CK sovereigns will only ever hold one Coronation, but this DLC strongly incentivizes everyone king-tier and above to host a Coronation.[/p][p][/p][p]The Coronation Activity brings together courtiers, vassals and neighboring rulers to witness the creation of a new sovereign, to socialize, and to politic frenetically in the shadows. Equipped with an array of Intents for hosts and attending characters, and with a wide range of events, Coronation is a relatively reliable source of Legitimacy, Opinion and Prestige (for the host), but can be employed towards many other ends as well.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Why thank you, pointy hat man][/p][p][/p][p]Mechanically, the Coronation Activity focuses on replayability, on reactivity to your current situation, and on agency for both the attendees and host. Through time and across space, coronation ceremonies tended to hit many of the same beats, to use many of the same ideas and phrases, but the context of their words were ever-changing, and we designed with that mutability in mind. These moments were never merely ceremonial. They were always also political.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Plenty of opportunities for the new sovereign to get to know their vassals][/p][p][/p][p]Our guiding principle for Coronation flavor was to create content that feels truly regal, truly historic, worthy of Charlemagne, Chinggis, and mighty Baldwin of the great and righteous Latin Empire (is it Splintered Crusade o’clock?). Indeed, because Coronations can only be held by king and emperor-tier rulers… if someone’s disrespecting a host at their own Coronation, that someone is going to have a damn good reason, and is very likely going to pay dearly for their poor manners.[/p][p][/p][p]The main regional flavor focuses of this DLC are Christian and Western European. Therein are found the most widely-recognized symbols of medieval coronation, and furthermore - the rites of coronation across Christendom, though varied in order and form, were honestly quite surprising to me in their relative uniformity. That’s not to say there aren't triggered events and flavor for different faiths and government types! These are just a little harder to spot than our orbus cruciger activity icon.[/p][p][/p][h2]Magnificence[/h2][p]As I mentioned, Coronations can either be an absolute cakewalk or a rough ride, based on the competence of your ruler, the wealth at your disposal, and the opinion of your attendees. Magnificence, the measure of a Coronation’s success, is the main metric we use to determine how troubled and unflattering your Coronation is becoming - or how majestic and glorious! It’s drawn from the Coronation’s setup, from the actions of the host, and the maneuvering of the most significant friendly and hostile attendees.[/p][p][/p][p]All I’ll say right now is… you probably don’t want to skimp on the Activity Options, unless you really have to.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Keep things feeling magnificent and you won’t be disappointed][/p][p][/p][h2]Host & Guest Interplay[/h2][p]A King is made by the assent of the church, of his nobles, and I guess the common people. Coronations aim to highlight all these relationships, and give both host and guest the means to explore them. To aid in this, we have added a widget to the Coronation Activity interface to help you track the most powerful Supporters (characters who like you, the Host) and Detractors (jerks) at your Coronation. These groupings don’t mean anything beyond the Activity, but have a significant impact on its outcomes.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Major Supporters and Detractors are shown on the right. These are the attendees best able to affect a Coronation’s successfulness][/p][p][/p][p]Attendees may use their Intents to support the new sovereign, to undermine the Coronation, or - most often - to push forward their own interests. Hosts, meanwhile, use Intents mainly to focus on one group of attendees over another, and manage the members of that group.[/p][p][/p][h2]Imperial Anointment[/h2][p]The Coronation Activity can be held as a regular old Coronation, or a more special type: Anointment.[/p][p][/p][p]Only available to emperor-tier rulers of appropriate faiths, Anointment is a grander ceremony that features your Head of Faith as crowning officiant. It must be held at a Holy Site, and has some additional requirements which weed out sinners and illegitimate sovereigns. Anointment offers additional bonuses, particularly where Legitimacy and the Opinion of others are concerned.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Behold: the Pope oiling you up][/p][p][/p][h2]Oaths[/h2][p]Though, as I’ve said earlier, the body of this DLC is firmly rooted in the early reign, its arms reach out across your ruler’s years on the throne. During Coronations, you will be called upon to select an Oath, a timed Decision that is in essence an objective for your rule. Sometimes, the transition from one PC to another can dull a player’s sense of purpose and stagger the momentum of their game. Committing your new ruler to an Oath sets you on a new path, and may serve to get things rolling again![/p][p][/p][p]More info to come on Oaths soon.[/p][p][/p][h2]Bye, For Now![/h2][p]I bid you farewell, friends, kings, queens, and gamers. Until next I may write of crowns and royal heads and downwards, placing-type motions of the hands.[/p][p][/p][p]If you have any thoughts or ideas about Coronations in Crusader Kings III, do sound off in the comments![/p]

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Welcome to another summer Dev Diary! As the Swedes are lazily shuffling in the door after vacations, we’ll be discussing the map visuals. My name is Petter Lundh. I’m the Art Director for Crusader Kings III for the last two years, previously 2D Lead (my work might be most familiar in the form of the Iberia, Tours, and Persia loading screens)[/p][p][/p][p]For All Under Heaven, we're undertaking our most ambitious expansion yet: extending the map to encompass all of Asia. This represents a big undertaking that goes beyond just extending the geography.[/p][p][/p][p]While the map has seen new assets trickle in since release, the overall look remains unchanged. During those five years we’ve filled a big bucket of visual ideas we’re eager to implement though, and this expansion proved the perfect opportunity to give the entire map a facelift.[/p][p][/p][p]This is mainly an artistic reimagining and a modernizing of our workflow. It doesn’t involve fancy new engine tech—we’re using the same features that have been available to the modding community already. This means you’ll be able to put your own spin on these changes, provided you’re up for tinkering with shader code (or coerce ChatGPT to do it for you).[/p][p][/p][p]We also plan to add additional documentation that will make it easier for new modders to get started, though this may come later. Moreover, we're adding optional settings for some of the larger changes that impact performance.[/p][p][/p][h2]Terrain Workflow[/h2][p]In the olden days (CK3 release), we painted heightmaps and terrain masks by hand. This took our team months to complete, and any increase in detail would exponentially increase the workload. This process leaves little room for iteration and course correction underway.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]The old mountains were created mostly from a tiling normal map. This technique results in visual noise in dense mountain regions—something especially apparent when extending the Himalayas eastward. We would rather have a more realistic appearance that mimics real erosion patterns. Mountains should feel more like real mountains.[/p][p][/p][p]We adopted the terrain generation software Gaea to solve this problem. It’s a tool that creates realistic heightmaps and material masks through simulating real erosion patterns. We can generate complex terrain far more efficiently than with manual painting, and we no longer have to start from scratch when iterating on the general look.[/p][p][/p][p]The scale of terrain features remains largely the same. There’s a few reasons for this:[/p]

• [p]We used the old heightmap as a base since the shape of the map also has gameplay implications.[/p]
• [p]We find that the stylized scale of mountains look best when zoomed in, even though a more realistic scale can feel better zoomed out. If we adopted a real world scaling, most mountains would appear as noise when zoomed in (at the level where you can actually inspect the terrain).[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Here’s what the process looks like:[/p]

1. [p]We divide the input heightmap ocean masks into tiles.[/p]
2. [p]Each tile gets processed through Gaea, which outputs a final heightmap, overlay colormap and masks for the individual tiling materials.[/p]
3. [p]All the output tiles are then stitched together, leaving us with large texture files that cover the entire map[/p]

[p][/p][p]As an extra complication we have divided the world into 7 biomes that each have their own set of tiling textures and material masks that define its character. The above steps are run individually for each biome, and stitched together at the very end to create the final map.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]For each biome, we’ll gather references and attempt to extract some unique color palette that makes it look different from other places.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]When we are iterating on the look, we work with a single tile. We'll pick a prototype tile that is representative of a particular biome and refine that particular tile - when we are happy with the result, we do a full build of the entire world, which can take up to 3 hours.[/p][p][/p][p]Here is an anatomical diagram of sorts of the CK3 map:[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Surface Polish[/h2][p]The improvements go beyond the heightmap and terrain textures. We have taken a careful look at the lighting and shaders for all map elements. Subtle tweaks are added to most elements to improve readability and make them aesthetically blend together in a nicer way.[/p][p][/p]

• [p]Map text now has a subtle texture and softer appearance - it should feel less digital and easier on the eyes.[/p]
• [p]The Political Map has a higher res texture with less apparent tiling.[/p]
• [p]The water now has more varied detail and color in different parts of the world. There are improved wave patterns along the shore, and overall the scale and wave texture has been balanced for a more realistic feel.[/p]
• [p]Effects blend more naturally between zoom levels, removing some long-standing pop-in and glitches that were noticeable in the transition between paper map, political and terrain map modes. Speaking of zoom, you can now zoom in closer than before![/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Lighting[/h2][p]Lastly, we have reworked the terrain lighting. Terrain and map objects now have separately adjustable parameters that let us tweak their values individually, allowing us an easier time making them both look great. The map is generally brighter and important interactable objects should pop more.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]We've added cloud shadows that creep across the landscape. To top it all off, we're adding a Terrain Map Mode that lets you view the entire world in this enhanced visual style.[/p][p][/p][p]We hope you’ll like it![/p][p][/p][p](If you don’t, you can disable cloud shadows and some of the other shader-based changes in the game settings)[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Iceland before-and-after][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Spain before-and-after][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Arabia before-and-after][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Britannia before-and-after][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[India before-and-after][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Italy before-and-after][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]\[Japan in All Under Heaven][/p][p][/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][h3]Paper Map[/h3][p]Hey, this is Lucas Ribeiro, 2D Art Lead. As some might’ve noticed from our previous dev diaries, we have a new illustrated paper map for All Under Heaven. This asian-folklore inspired map covers the entirety of the game world and will be used by default by most east asian cultures. Our original paper map has also been extended all the way to the east. Besides cultural triggers, players will also be able to pick which paper map style they’d rather use in the graphics tab of the settings menu.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Let’s have a look at some snapshots from the new illustrated map:[/p][p]Around Japan we can observe the Kappa, the Ushi-oni and the Baku (Or… is that the Bulgasari by the east coast of the Korean peninsula?).[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Between Korea and China, Cholima streaks across the sky. Surrounding China we can observe the Fenghuang bird and the first of our cardinal direction beasts, the Azure Dragon of the East. More of these beasties are appropriately positioned in the map…[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]…Such as the Vermillion Bird of the South, under India…[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]…the White Tiger of the West by the Iberian Peninsula …[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]…and finally, the Black Turtle of the North by Scandinavia.…[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]We have endeavored to represent the terrain features of the world in a style more reminiscent of Chinese paintings and Shan Shui, with bold paint strokes and intricate natural patterns. The leafy steep mountains should reflect this very clearly.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]For the original map extension, we kept the style inspired in the Olaus Magnus Carta Marina. The familiar mountain, forest, desert, etc. patterns have been extended all the way to the East as well.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p][/p][p]Hello, Cordelion here, one of the Game Designers currently working on All Under Heaven! The look of the map isn't the only thing that has been getting an update: borders and names have been, as well! The de jure structure of China has changed and evolved significantly over the summer as we've processed the tremendous outpouring of incredibly valuable feedback that we've received since the reveal, both internally (with many thanks to our fantastic beta testers) and externally (with many thanks to all of you!). So let's dive in![/p][p][/p][p]At the empire tier, the main change you may notice now is that the names were previously inspired by dynasties that once ruled these lands in ancient times, but are now significantly more regional than dynastic in flavor. Liang is now Zhongyuan, Wu has become Jingyang, Yue changed to Lingnan, Shu transformed into Liangyi, and Qin evolved into Yongliang.[/p][p][/p][p]These names are, to be clear, more for general reference and suitability as labels for unformed de jure empire tier: anyone who comes to rule one of these as an independent entity still may adopt one among a range of proper venerable dynastic names![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]The kingdom structure has undergone some changes, also - you may note the replacement of the phonetically repetitive Jingdongdong with Qingxu, while the previous northern de jure kingdom of Yanyun has been divided into Raole, Daibei, and Youji, allowing for more historical assignments and more piecemeal northern reclamation - or southward expansion, if you happen to be a nomadic dynasty![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]As the terrain map has been refined, so too has the distribution of impassable terrain - the Sichuan basin is ringed with strategically challenging peaks and ranges, reflecting its historically significant natural geographic barriers, while coastal Fujian also exhibits a significant mountain presence - eight parts mountain, one part water, one part fields, as at least one book I consulted put it.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]I’m also here with something else new: the county-tier map of China, which wasn’t quite ready to show off the last time we talked about this new part of the game world, but that I’m more than happy to give you a better look at today. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the obvious preponderance of -zhou, it’s a standard administrative suffix for this level of jurisdiction throughout Chinese history - one that remains an element of many major cities, such as Hangzhou and Suzhou, even up to the present day![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]That’s all that I have for you today - hopefully you’ve enjoyed this brief look at how this part of the map is coming along. I’d love to share even more of what I’ve been working on with you, but that information is reserved for dev diaries to come and I’ll not be the one to spoil them ahead of time: next week we’ll be back with something a bit more sizable for you to dig into! Thanks for stopping by, and I’m very much looking forward to seeing you explore and experience everything that All Under Heaven has to offer yourselves soon enough![/p]

[p]Hello and welcome! I am @Trin Tragula, one of the design leads at Studio Black. In this third regional feature diary for All Under Heaven, we will be covering Southeast Asia, with a special focus on the new Mandala and Wanua government types and how we will use them to highlight the unique aspects of the region itself. We will also cover the new Great Project feature, as well as how we deal with Tributaries in this expansion; while tributaries were introduced in Khans of the Steppe, they don’t work in quite the same way for these sedentary states.

[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p]In our timeline, this region was quite different compared to China in the north. It's extremely diverse, with a wide range of faiths and cultures within it.
[/p][p]\[Screenshot of Southeast Asia in the 867 start]

In large parts, Southeast Asia is home to a wide range of tribal polities. These are spread over a geographic area that is just as varied, featuring deep river valleys, jungles, and high mountain ranges. In such a place, waterways (seas as well as rivers) are what links peoples to each other, but despite skilled boat builders and sailors, the region presents many challenges in keeping a larger state together.

Realms in this region have, up until recently, tended to be much more transitory in nature than China, Europe, or even India. The norm here is a looser network of city-states bound together by personal loyalties to popular and powerful rulers; these then break apart after the death of the personality that brought them together.
[/p][p][/p][p]\[Screenshot of Borobudur]

In the Dharmic faiths of India (Buddhism and Hinduism), rulers have found the authority and unifying ideology needed to unite larger realms. They are still centered around great leaders, but with Brahman priests as their allies, they aspire to become living gods: Devarajas.

The Devaraja concept is built upon the Indian idea of an ideal ruler, someone who rules with the gods' favor. In Southeast Asia, this morphs into the idea that a popular king is actually a god personified himself. Religious ritual and kingship blend in enormous temple cities, where subjects and remote tributaries alike all come together to fund and construct great public works. Monuments can be both religious and expressions of royal power, as giant statues of Dharmic gods carry the face of the very ruler walking among his subjects. The capital temple complex becomes the center of a Mandala, with subservient villages, cities, and tributary kings surrounding it.

Nonetheless, even the Devaraja realms have a fleeting element. Smaller states may pay tribute to the god-king, but after one dies or a more persuasive one makes themselves known, they can reconsider their allegiance; on the periphery of the Mandala realm, loyalties change quickly.

Southeast Asia is, as mentioned, a diverse region. Alongside the states like the ones I have described here, there is also the Viet and the Kingdom of Nanzhao (later Dali) that operate quite differently. We covered these in a previous dev diary by @PDX_Chop so we will not talk about those again today, but this introduction would be incomplete without mentioning them.

I will now hand over to @Distantaziq, who will discuss how we have endeavored to portray the region. They’ll detail the mechanics we’ve developed to represent the Mandala realms and the surrounding non-Dharmic tribal realms in All Under Heaven.

[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p]Greetings! I'm Distantaziq, one of the designers working on All Under Heaven!

Today, we will be exploring the God-Kings and Queens of Southeast Asia -- Mandala! Historically, these governments heavily rely on religion and faith, revolving around the one Mandala ruler who stepped up with the claim to be a divine being.

[/p][p]\[Map of the Kingdom of Angkor in 1066 with tributaries and vassals]

From a balancing perspective, the design intent with Mandalas is to present the player with a new challenge. As we will discuss below, Mandalas start out weaker, especially compared to being consistently powerful Feudal or Clan government rulers of comparable size. However, if you overcome the initial difficulties, you work over generations to reach unseen heights of power – as long as you take care not to lose your divinity, and prepare your heir accordingly…

[/p][h3]Godmode?​[/h3][p]As mentioned, Mandala revolves around faith, and in line with this, Piety will be the Mandala’s main resource.

Building your first Mandala Capital Temple Complex? Use (mainly) Piety.
Designating your divine heir? Use Piety.
Convincing your immediate surroundings that you indeed are a divine being that they should devote their life and kingdoms to? …well. Accumulate Piety.

And Piety levels!
[/p][p][/p][p]\[The tooltip for Level of Devotion, featuring additional Piety levels]

The Mandala government, being so thoroughly intertwined with faith, religion, and divinity, has unique access to three additional Levels of Devotion: Divine, Demigod and Godlike.

Now, how do you become Godlike, you might ask? Well, it's simple: It is divinity proven over generations.
[/p][p]\[A truly Godlike Ruler of Angkor]

Or more practically put: if your character reaches one of the new Levels of Devotion, your successor gains a buff that allows them to progress to the next Level of Devotion, and so on. This can continue until you establish a lineage of godlike characters.

Oh, and make sure not to die the wrong way in relation to your Aspect. Did you ever hear about that Serenity-Aspect God king who died from a local epidemic? No? I didn't think so.
[/p][p]\[9 levels of devotion in a grid, ranking from Sinner to Godlike]

And yes, we do need to showcase some truly decadent art icon renders for this specific feature!
[/p][h2]A Matter of Temples​[/h2][p]So, what more might a mighty God-King Devaraja possibly need in this world, you might ask? Well, how about temples?

In All Under Heaven, we’re introducing an additional holding type: the Temple Citadel. This will be the main holding for Mandala rulers, and will also be valid as a capital for most other landed governments (alongside the Castle Holding) in order to ensure it remains viable if the area is conquered by a non-Mandala ruler.

The Temple Citadel of your capital is the main location for your Capital Temple Complex; a temple with additional defences and a fierce focus on Levels of Devotion, and the foundation for any self-respecting God-King. These Great Buildings are built using the new Great Projects feature, which are collaborative efforts between yourself and your subjects. More on them in a future dev diary!

The resulting Great Building, or Capital Temple Complex, supports your realm in expanding your domain limit and vassal limit within your Mandala realm, and by increasing your Radiance as a God-King (your ability to attract tributaries and vassals).
[/p][p][/p][p]\[The building breakdown for the Capital Temple Complex Great Building, complete with 5 levels]

Of course, only a Mandala may enjoy the effects of such a building. Should you stop being a Mandala or if the building should come under control of a feudal or tribal heathen, it won’t have much use other than possibly as a tourist attraction.
[/p][p][/p][p]\[One of the effects of completing the base tier Capital Temple Complex Great Project]

Did you just start off as a new Mandala and didn't get the Temple Citadel memo? Well, no Temple Citadel, no problem!

[/p][h2]What's Your Aspect?​[/h2][p]Before even starting the construction of a Capital Temple Complex, the Mandala ruler needs to pick one of four Mandala Aspects. Loosely based on the Hindu god aspects, these Aspects should heavily impact the way you choose to approach your Mandala playthrough.[/p]

• [p]Creation[/p]
  • [p]Unlocks bonuses to chaining construction and gains piety from child rearing[/p]
  • [p]Should primarily pass on through peaceful means[/p]
• [p]Serenity[/p]
  • [p]Unlocks bonuses to Befriending, as well as including Allies in the Request Contribution interaction[/p]
  • [p]Should primarily pass on through peaceful means[/p]
• [p]Destruction[/p]
  • [p]Unlocks additional Casus Belli and bonuses to Military Power[/p]
  • [p]May also pass on through combat or certain violent deaths[/p]
• [p]Trickery[/p]
  • [p]Unlocks additional schemes like Disbelieve Mandala and provided bonuses to certain Schemes (like using Coerce Tributary against someone of a higher tier)[/p]
  • [p]May also pass on through being murdered[/p]

[p]
As one may note in the breakdown, as well as mentioned in a previous paragraph, you don't just get to die in any way to have your heir be able to level up to the next level of devotion -- a God of Destruction may die on the battlefield and have their existence be canonized, but a God of Trickery dying from being a drunkard? Maybe not so venerable.

Each of the Aspects also come with their own set of requirements in order to achieve the next level of the aspect. This system, together with your Level of Devotion and Capital Temple Complex Tier feeds into…
[/p][h2]Mandala Radiance​[/h2][p]Multiple rulers in Southeast Asia claim to be the next Devaraja, asserting their own divinity? Well, how impressive is your Temple Complex?
Mandala Radiance, which indicates your attractiveness and helps you gauge your competition, is unlocked as soon as you have orchestrated the construction of your first tier Temple Complex.
[/p][p][/p][p]\[Work in Progress mapmode for Mandala, denoting who might accept a Tributarization offer]

This Radiance should heavily impact who the minor rulers of the area should want to pledge themselves to. They might even leave their current Suzerain if that ruler is perceived as impious to join a more attractive Devaraja.
[/p][h2]I Decree…​[/h2][p]Compared to Aspects, Decrees offer a more flexible way of ruling your realm. So, what do you decree, oh Divine Ruler?
[/p][p]\[Image of the Mandala Laws window, depicting the Decrees]

Choose your Decree to primarily affect the current focus of your devotees (or subjects, however you want to call them). Is your current focus Prosperity, Expansion, or Reverence right now? What do you aim to do next?
[/p][h2]Tributary Status​[/h2][p]A Mandala's main subject will be the tributary. With faith being more relevant than cemented relations via vassalization, this system is intended to give a fairly loose realm setup.

Mandalas hold less land directly, instead relying mainly on their tributaries. While vassals still exist in a Mandala realm, they are more limited here than in other governments. You can also integrate more tributaries as vassals as you expand your Capital Temple Complex. A tributary is unable to engage in factions, has less opinions about what you get up to, and can engage in Tribute Missions to their Devaraja. On the other hand, they also might break away if you turn out not to be as divine as you say or if you treat them badly.
[/p][p][/p][p]\[A grossly overstepped domain limit]

All of this is reflected in lower domain as well as vassal limit, and more tributaries on game start.
[/p][h3]War is Not the Answer?​[/h3][p]The emphasis in the Mandala realms is offering alternatives to simply going to war to claim new tributaries or expand your realm and divinity. Subjugation wars, for instance, will generate regular Tributaries instead of piety-granting Mandala Tributaries unless you go heavily into the Destruction Aspect.

One of these alternatives-to-war is the new scheme Coerce Tributary, which is one of the cornerstones for Mandala play. It is a Political Scheme that looks at your chosen Mandala Aspect and associated skill, then allows you to attempt coercing another ruler to become your Tributary -- that you're the divine ruler they've been waiting for.
[/p][p]\[The Mandala Ruler is anticipating the outcome of the successful Coerce Tributary scheme - events are still Work in Progress!]

Beware though; if the Tributary you're chatting up is already a Tributary, then their current Suzerain might incentivize them to stay, or you might even have to fight in order to defend that Tributary as they break away and join your fold.
[/p][p]\[The Suzerain of the targeted Tributary gets the option to intervene in the Coerce Tributary scheme - events are still Work in Progress!]

Or you don't help them, which severs their Tributary status and burns your bridge with that particular Tributary.
[/p][p]\[The target of Coerce Tributary was incentivized to stick around, costing the Suzerain a bunch of resources - events are still Work in Progress!]

Regardless, you may have gained a new Tributary, but you definitely meddled with their Suzerain's (presumably a competing Mandala ruler) plans.

[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p]The islands are a virtual petri dish of faiths and cultures. We have very few sources of documentation from the time before larger faiths and realms significantly influenced the cultures and beliefs of the islanders.
[/p][p]\[Screenshot of Maritime Southeast Asia in 1066]

In light of this, we have aimed to add the most prominent ones.
[/p][p][/p][p]\[Screenshots of the Philippines in 1066]

Including small bits of Papua, the lion's share of the maritime Southeast Asian archipelago is featured on the map.

[/p][h2]Wanua​[/h2][p]This is a heavily sea-based government form, which historically (as mentioned) came under the subject of larger realms and religions. They are still a tribal government type, however, and as such, live under its constraints. If you want to progress further and become more advanced in terms of innovations and development, then you will want to eventually adopt a different style of government.

As the Wanuas are in the islands of Southeast Asia, a couple of Mandala upstart kingdoms are already available (some which later morphed into more powerful historical kingdoms like Srivijaya or Majapahit after our end date). However, if one desires to embark on the journey from Wanua to a powerful Mandala God-King, then that is entirely possible.

As long as you either have adopted a Dharmic faith (or worked hard enough to reform your own faith), it is but a simple button press away, granting you access to islands that are ripe for the picking…
[/p][p][/p][p]\[A screenshot of the Adopt Mandala Rule Decision for the Wanua Rulers]

In addition to the cultural flavor, Wanua will be able to traverse the sea and raid, naturally. We are also looking into more ways of making the Wanua feel special and fun to play; for example, being more dependent on Legitimacy (which they would receive from being Mandala Tributaries).
[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p]Another addition with All Under Heaven is the Great Projects feature! This allows several rulers to come together and fund various parts of projects that would be very expensive or take ages to fund individually.
[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]The Mandala Great Project​[/h2][p]For Mandala, the Capital Temple Complex is such a project; a physical manifestation of your spiritual might where your followers may come to pay tribute or simply worship you. The temple comes in 5 tiers, and once you have completed the first tier you have officially started your path towards godhood (should you manage to defend it, of course).
[/p][h3]Mandatory Contributions​[/h3][p]Each tier requires a specific set of contributions that you or any of your subjects may fund; depending on who funds it, that specific ruler gains the spoils of such a benevolent act, as well as the appreciation of the founder (in this case you).
[/p][p][/p][p]\[Work In Progress Great Project window featuring the Contributions of a Mandala Capital Upgrade]
[/p][h3]Optional Contributions​[/h3][p]There are also optional contributions, for those who absolutely must have that golden dome, that yield additional rewards for the contributor.
[/p][h3]Request Contribution​[/h3][p]If you are just starting off on your Mandala journey or your subjects for one reason or the other needs an additional nudge in order to actually contribute those archways to your project, there's also the Request Contribution button.
Inside, you may be able to incentivize their request via hooks, bribes, forcing them with your oppressive pious spirit - whatever might convince them to make the right call.

Once you have completed the final tier -- an achievement likely spanning generations -- you will have proven yourself an established Devaraja ruler and will receive huge bonuses to your Mandala way of life.
[/p][h3]Chinese Great Projects​[/h3][p]In China, the great projects are more focused on large-scale infrastructure and other improvements that require several contributors; examples include building sections of the Great Wall or improving the Grand Canals.

These projects allow the Emperor to either contribute significantly on his own, displaying his might and benevolence as the Son of Heaven, or they present an opportunity for ambitious subjects vying for the imperial graces…
[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Another opportunity for benevolent actions that improve your own standing is provided by the Great Projects that spawn from Natural Disasters. While Natural Disasters may spawn in geographically turbulent areas all over the map, only those in China will affect the Dynastic Cycle and potentially impact the Emperor’s standing, depending on how they deal with it. More on Natural Disasters and their implications for the Dynastic Cycle will be covered in a future Dev Diary.

Needless to say, this feature opens up significant opportunities for modding and new additions; not only grand buildings, but great feats of humanity which can be showcased for generations to come!

[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p]Both Mandala and Hegemonic tributaries may go on Tribute Missions to their Suzerain, primarily to strengthen their own Legitimacy, but also to partake in the wealth and grandeur typically associated with their Suzerain.

[/p][h2]Mandala Tribute Missions​[/h2][p]Historically, the act of paying tribute was often both a matter for states and a very direct personal action, with one ruler acknowledging another as their better and bringing them a gift to prove this. The fact that one party considers the other their suzerain does not mean that there cannot be reciprocity however; in return for paying tribute, the tributary might gain benefits at home (they appear as a more rightful King due to being acknowledged by a more powerful Suzerain) or even receive gifts to bring back home (essentially a form of trade).

Since the passive payment of a resource over time does not quite cover the interpersonal aspects of a relationship like this, we have added what we call Tribute Missions to be used for tributaries of the more voluntary types that you see in East Asia. To preserve these relationships, at least one such tribute needs to be undertaken per Suzerain's lifetime.

The Pay Tribute missions start off with a Decision which allows you to determine what tribute you want to bring, and types vary depending on the Suzerain. For example, if they utilize Eunuchs (like the Chinese Admin government) you may gift a Eunuch. If they have concubines (again, like the Chinese Admin government) you may gift a concubine. Standard tributes of Gold or Herd (if you're a Nomad tributary) are always available.

[/p][p]\[Image of the Select Tribute character interaction for a Hegemonic Tributary]

Once you’ve decided what kind of tribute you’re offering, you set off on a journey towards your Suzerain's capital! Upon arrival, you are greeted by the Suzerain (if they have a Royal Court, you are received at the Court), where you exchange gifts. First, the Suzerain receives your gift, and you may attempt to influence what the reward will be - or you leave it up to the discretion of the Suzerain.

Similar to the type of tribute being offered, the type of reward the Suzerain may choose between vary depending on if you're a Mandala or the Emperor - a handful of options might be to:[/p]

• [p]Award them with additional Trade Posts that increases the development of the Tributary's capital[/p]
• [p]Award them with an artifact for them to bring back and display to their people[/p]
• [p]Award them with a monk, to mend their heathen ways (for Mandalas to give to their tribal tributaries who are still unreformed)[/p]

[p]
You start traveling back home once you’ve received your reward, eager to showcase the gift and enjoy the legitimacy you received from your tribute. Now I will hand the word over to @lachek, who implemented the Hegemonic / Celestial Tributary types.
[/p][h2]Hegemonic Tribute Missions​[/h2][p]Hello again! @lachek here, and I'm excited to once more discuss Tributaries with you! As mentioned above, tributaries were first introduced into Crusader Kings III to support nomadic gameplay with Khans of the Steppe, where they modeled the unique subject-overlord relationship between a tributary and their suzerain. On the vast expanse of Northern Asia, nomadic tributary relationships were mostly held together through military domination, either implied or by actual display of force. Nomadic rulers can demand that neighboring realms fall in line under them by building up a sizable horde, or simply go out and enforce it through warfare. Through a cascade of such relationships, enormous swathes of the plains can be held together under a single suzerain. However, they can collapse just as quickly due to migratory patterns or a foreign conqueror cutting off a key part of the chain.

We also implemented a Subjugated Tributary type available outside the steppe to represent rulers dominated by more powerful neighbors and made to pay tax to their overlord.

However, none of those types adequately represent how tributary relationships functioned in either Southeast Asia or China. Therefore, we are introducing both Mandala tributaries and the Hegemonic/Celestial types (more on the distinction later), where the relationship is more contingent on one-sided respect and a gift economy.

[/p][h3]Celestial Tributaries​[/h3][p]These are realms within China's sphere of influence that recognize the Emperor as the Son of Heaven and pay him a great deal of personal respect (not to speak of material wealth). In return, they are granted recognition and sovereignty by China. Unlike tributaries on the steppe, this is not primarily a military arrangement but rather a one-sided show of deference, ultimately serving both parties in the end.

This relationship can be established by either party through character interaction, but is typically initiated by the prospective tributary themselves. Once established, the tributary has few immediate obligations: a little bit of Prestige and perhaps some Gold, in exchange for which some of China's Legitimacy is conferred upon them. It's usually a beneficial arrangement for both parties, especially since any taxes paid by the tributary goes directly into the Emperor's personal coffers rather than into the treasury. This makes it one of the few sources of direct income the Emperor has available for his own discretionary projects. Over time, the Emperor may decide to impose further standing obligations on some of their tributaries. Any increase in taxation or prestige transfer also comes with closer ties to China, however, thereby increasing legitimacy for the subject.

However, Celestial Tributaries are also expected to Kowtow to the Son of Heaven on a regular basis, bringing immense riches and gifts with them to reaffirm their deference and respect. This is fundamentally the same kind of Tribute Mission as in Mandala realms, with a few modifications. Unlike in Mandala realms, the Chinese Emperor always has some minimum expectation regarding the size of tribute, depending on the esteem in which the tributary is already held. This is tracked by a metric we call Imperial Grace, which serves several purposes:[/p]

• [p]It acts as a timer on how frequently you are expected to pay tribute; if you're only able to bring the bare necessities and wait until the last moment to reaffirm your respect, the Emperor might start to demand more frequent visits. Highly successful missions give you a longer grace period until your presence is once again expected.[/p]
• [p]It gives you an opportunity to adjust your relationship depending on what kind of tributary you want to be. Do you pay only nominal respect when absolutely required, just so China will overlook you when assessing their borders? Or are you a devoted subject looking for a closer relationship?[/p]
• [p]The decay rate of Imperial Grace increases during unstable periods of the Dynastic Cycle, reflecting the uncertainty of these times. Will you contribute to sustaining the ruling dynasty of China's legitimacy during troubles times, or seize on this moment to break the agreement and try to claim a piece of the pie for yourself?[/p]
• [p]As a Celestial Tributary you can quite readily adjust your own tributary contract's obligations, but changing it in your favor costs an amount of Imperial Grace.[/p]

[p]
Finally, at very high levels of Imperial Grace, the Emperor might decide to make China's relationship with its subject more permanent through the granting of a Seal of Investiture. This is an enduring artifact (regalia type, which can be reforged into a court artifact if you wish) that gives access to special privileges not usually available to subjects of China.

Trade Access: This privilege grants the tributary access to the domestic markets of the Chinese capital, resulting in a gradual closing of the development gap between the two realms' capital provinces. A low-development tributary enjoying this privilege could potentially propel itself to wealth and power compared to their less privileged neighbors within a few generations.

Family Access: This privilege negates the usual high acceptance maluses for marrying into the Chinese imperial dynasty, and even grants a small bonus to such dynastic intermingling.

Palace Access: This privilege lets the tributary's representatives roam the palace grounds, rubbing shoulders with ministers, governors, and sages in the seat of power. Tributaries with this privilege become active participants in the Dynastic Cycle and can join political movements to shape the future of China.

Once you have gained a Seal of Investiture, these become available as new contract privileges that you can activate in exchange for a one-time cost of Imperial Grace. This doesn't make the tribute missions redundant, however. The size of the bonuses you get from these scales with the degree of Imperial Grace you currently possess, so sustained tribute will only make your relationship with China more powerful.

It is important to note that a Celestial Tributary contract is a formal agreement between a realm and the Chinese Emperor. The contract is inherited upon death of either the tributary or the suzerain, but if the Hegemony title is lost then the contract will break -- even if another claimant dynasty later restores it. As long as the dynastic line is unbroken, however, accumulated Imperial Grace and the privileges that the contract yields can be maintained for centuries.

You may have noted I’ve made a distinction between Hegemonic and Celestial Tributaries above. A Celestial Tributary is a type of Hegemonic Tributary, specific to China. However, other hegemony titles (e.g. India or restored Rome) can also maintain Hegemonic Tributaries that share many similarities with Celestial ones. Instead of Imperial Grace these contracts have Subject Standing. They do not use the Seal of Investiture mechanic with its tie-ins to China-specific mechanics like difficult dynastic intermarriage or the Dynastic Cycle situation, but most other aspects of the contract work in similar ways with the same dynamics. This allows Hegemony-tier titles to use the tributary mechanic not only to expand their own de facto tracts of land, but also to accept recognition and deference from select surrounding realms they find useful to their larger strategy.

[/p][h2]Moddability​[/h2][p]I'll conclude this with a final note to modders. The Hegemonic/Celestial variants of tributary types now marks five distinct types I've implemented in Crusader Kings II (with Mandala tributaries being a sixth variant in All Under Heaven's release). I'm continually amazed at how flexible this system truly is in allowing you to model different types of relationships between realms that look nothing like a feudal liege/vassal system.

Anything from simple non-aggression between two specific rulers to long-standing extractive domination is possible, with the one caveat that it must always have an implied power imbalance. With the addition of Subject Standing, which tracks relationship strength over time and can theoretically be applied to any subject contract (including your typical vassal contracts, if so desired), there's a lot of fertile ground to represent entirely novel types in your own mods, be they focused on more granular historical accuracy or total conversions. So go wild!

And here we are handing the microphone back to @Trin Tragula, who will have another look at the map.

[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p]As we did last time, we will conclude with a short overview of the map area relevant to this diary. Southeast Asia looks rather different in 867, 1066, and 1178, so for this I will be using a mix. If you are curious about anything in particular that I have not shown off feel free to ask us in the comments.
Like everything else shown in this diary, this is a work in progress, but we would love to hear your feedback on the things we’ve covered so far.

\[Faiths 867]

As was mentioned in the introduction, Southeast Asia has quite a complex mix of faiths and religions. We have tried to represent a reasonable amount of this variety, while also generalizing to avoid having overly small micro-faiths at the start.

Already by 867, Hinduism and Buddhism in various forms are dominant in large parts of this map, but older indigenous faiths are also present both on the mainland and the islands.
[/p][p]When it comes to cultures, the region is even more diverse in many ways. Notably, the Tai peoples are still found mostly in its northern parts. Historically, offshoots from this group would come to be politically dominant in many parts of the mainland, from modern Laos and Thailand, to Assam in northern India (the area labeled “Kamrupi” on this map).

Striking a balance between having too many or too few cultures from a gameplay point of view is never easy, but in this part of the world it is perhaps particularly hard. What we show here is both more simplified and more balkanized than we usually aim for.
[/p][p]This is a screenshot of the political situation in 1066, with the Song empire looming over the region in the north. The Srivijaya Empire (which was alive and well in the initial screenshot at the beginning of this diary) has been shattered by a relatively recent Chola invasion from India.
[/p][p]A quick overview of the Duchy mapmode. Many of these are not yet created on game start, as small realms prevail in Southeast Asia. Where other regions have a number of powerful dukes under their Kings, this region often sees duchies divided up between individual tributaries instead.
[/p][p]\[De jure kingdoms in 867.]

[/p][p]Last but not least, these are our de jure empires for the region! Nusantara may look big, but in terms of counties, it is not actually as enormous as it might seem. Not all parts of these islands are places with established states (i.e., counties) and the inland can often be impassable in places like Borneo or Papua.

[/p][hr][/hr][p]
That was all we had this time! This diary is also the last one before our summer break, but dev diaries will resume in early August. Until then we will of course still be attentive to the feedback you have provided to our diaries so far (including this one).[/p]

"Your kingdom, your call" announced the Crusader Kings 3 trumpets earlier this week when they put out a new player survey, which is a terrifyingly verbose achievement for brass instruments, but useful for anyone who wants to give Paradox their opinions on where the grand strategy game should head next, as well as get a few hints about the futures it might already be making plans for.

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