[MOD] Atlantis Arisen

[majortopio]

Welcome to ATLANTIS ARISEN: A CK2 MODIFICATION​

I know what you're thinking.

Lolwut?

At least it's probably something like that.

But what is it then?

Atlantis Arisen will be a modification for Crusader Kings 2, that while not being a total conversion, will be something very close. It's going to be a mixture of fantasy and alternative history, featuring large changes in the political makeup of Europe as well as many supernatural elements.

Around three hundred years before the Battle of Hastings should have happened, something incredible happened off the western coast of the Iberian peninsula. From the murky depths of the ocean surged a land that was long thought to be lost. Atlantis, the great superpower of ancient times, had returned from its great slumber under the waves to finish what it had started over 10,000 years ago: the conquering of all Europe. The people of Atlantis remembered their defeat at the hands of the Athenians and had for many millennia prepared for their inevitable return to the surface. Their warships hit the Eastern Roman Empire first, striking at the location of the old Greek city-states, quickly wresting those areas from the hands of the shocked Empire.
However, the people of Europe quickly gathered their wits. The greatest war in all memory was thus commenced. For nearly two decades the long lost sisters of Atlantis and Europe were at war, until finally a peace was forged. Both landmasses were forever changed. Many European warriors had gained footholds in the sprawling plains of Poseidonis, and Atlantean lords had succesfully gained control over large portions of Greece, Great Britain, Iberia and France. Over time, as these communities mixed and blended, Atlanteans, while still retaining their unique identity as those who had been lost beneath the sea, became a part of the Western World. In the year 1066 of Our Lord, that world is barely recognizable.

Very early map prototypes​

Cool!

Ah, but that's not all. See, the Atlanteans took something with them to the watery ocean deeps. A secret that the ancient world lost as Atlantis sank. Great powers that could not be explained by any rational means, great powers that struck fear into the hearts of Christian Europe, great powers that forever changed the way the people of earth looked at the world around them.

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So what exactly will this mod have?

• A magic system that permeates the whole game. It will be in your court, your wars and in your private chambers.
• A whole new continent, with new diverse cultures, (playable) religions and SO much more
• A completely different Europe than the one we know
• A deeper gameplay experience (many more events, ambitions, plots)
• And all of this with gratuitous amounts of flavor

I know this is a very ambitious project, and I will therefore not put any concrete dates on it. But know that I will be doing my utmost to get a playable version out as soon as possible. As I pretty much just came up with this idea (and got a working map - don't worry), more information is forthcoming!

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The All Powerful, All Knowing Creators of Atlantis
(a.k.a. A special thanks to the team working on this!)

mike the knight
Attalus
Otto of england

 

[majortopio]

- reserved -

 

[Jaol]

Lolwut?!

But seriously, this could be fun. I'll be watching it.

 

[Clophiroth]

Following this, of course

 

[Vessol]

Looks exciting, I love fantasy/alternative history mods!

 

[metalinvader665]

Reminds me of this cool EU3 AAR here.

Sure, I'm all up for this sort of mod for this game. Good luck!

 

[toluas]

Will be following this!

 

[majortopio]

Thanks everyone!

I spent all night redrawing the shoreline of the continent to make it look not so cartoony. I give you Atlantis 2.0:

 

[Aetherius]

Will Atlantis be an united empire ?

 

[majortopio]

Will Atlantis be an united empire ?

Nope. Atlantis arose with a large amount of independent realms, although all were allied against the common enemy of the time, Europe. And after 300 years of mingling with Europeans (with European footholds in Atlantis and vice versa), those realms became even more seperated by cultural, spiritual and political differences.

However, there is the option of uniting Atlantis of course. I would never rob players of that oppurtunity

 

[Aetherius]

Can't wait .

 

[Ivashanko]

Will the Islamic World have anything to do with Atlantis (aside from merely exisiting, of course)? Will some Alanteans be Christians, or mostly Greek pagans?

Either way reserved.

 

[majortopio]

Will the Islamic World have anything to do with Atlantis (aside from merely exisiting, of course)? Will some Alanteans be Christians, or mostly Greek pagans?

Either way reserved.

Those muslims who were in Iberia at the time of the Atlantean invasion (734-751) became directly involved in the war, and their religion split from the traditional Islam dogma, having witnessed the power that the Atlanteans had. More confrontations were had between the two in later years as both Atlanteans tried their hand in Northern Africa and muslims tried invading other Atlantean footholds.

Atlanteans will have their own religion(s), although large swathes of the eastern continent will be Christian due to the influence from the European realms in that area. There will also be many alternative versions of Christianity; whether it be a hybrid between Atlantean paganism and monotheism or a Christianity mutated by the discovery of magical powers.

I'm basically trying to introduce a lot of diversity into this mod's religion situation. There will be a lot of gameplay related features pertaining to the different religions, such as specific event cycles, decisions and flavour elements, and the ambitions of spreading of one's own religion will of course feature heavily.

 

[Joel M Bridge]

So relgion offer mystical path one must take to unclock magic?

 

[majortopio]

So relgion offer mystical path one must take to unclock magic?

I haven't quite figured out how it's going to work yet, but I'm thinking that it's primarily going to be something that you inherit, like in the form of a "Magical Blood" trait or something. Then you'll get boosts in combat and some skills and so forth. I'm still pondering it though, and it could definitely turn out to be something one has to train to, or both.

 

[henkalv]

Looks exciting, I love fantasy/alternative history mods!

hear hear!

By the looks of it this one will be a fine addition to the current ones

 

[majortopio]

WELCOME TO ATLANTIS!
Part I: Aeros / Gestea

Welcome, my friends, to the first part of the 'Welcome to Atlantis!' series, intended to (re)acquaint you with the beautiful lost continent of Atlantis! Today, we have the mysterious isle of Aeros, known in 1066 as Gestea.

Gestea's history from the Miracle (or simply the Return, depending on who you ask) to 1066 is a bloody one. After the Atlantean attack on the Roman Empire, the Anglo-Saxons on the British Isles, having heard of the incredible return of Atlantis, set to sea to find this lost land. When they came upon land that they had previously not known to exist, they of course assumed that it was their goal. However, they soon realized that they merely had stumbled across a lesser island of the continent, then named Aeros. Immediately upon landing, they met resistance from the native population. However, the Saxons quickly gained the upperhand as they had superior weaponry as well as larger numbers. Aeros had always been a peaceful island, and in the previous state that it had been in, it had not had contact with any other landmasses for thousands of years. The natives were therefore quick to be subdued. By the time the Great War had finished and the Saxons that longed for home had returned there, three quarters of the island had fallen into Saxon hands, and stayed there. Many Anglo-Saxon warlords decided to settle on the new island and keep their conquered territory for their own.

As the Saxons came in such great numbers and so aggressively conquered the island, the aboriginal culture was very nearly wholly displaced. However, those who had not give resistance had survived to live under the new Anglo-Saxon overlordship, and a strange amalgam of the Aerean and Saxon cultures was created in the next hundred years, simply called Aerean Saxon. As contact was upheld with the Saxons' motherland England, the two islands' cultures and languages stayed very nearly the same, however many Greek elements were introduced into the Aerean settlements. Names held a strange mixture of Old English and Aerean elements, and many loanwords were adopted in the Saxon language. Those new names that the Saxons had given the locations that they visited, however, stuck, and the island is therefore now called Gestea.

Three Aerean Saxon kingdoms were standing at the beginning of the 9th century:

• The Kingdom of Vyring in the north of the island, named for the people of Vaeros who submitted to the Anglo-Saxon conquerors
• The Kingdom of Eastrima on the eastern shores of the island
• The Kingdom of Dunner situated between the two

In the southwest corner of the island, the remaining independent Aereans, who previously had been split into many smaller realms, had together formed the Kingdom of Aeros. Over the years, the two cultures were in a near constant state of conflict, but the Aereans managed to fend off the Saxons, as many refugees from the conquered settlements had fled to the small remaining Atlantean enclave.

In the 10th century, the King of Vyring, Ælfon II, managed to subdue the other Saxon kingdoms and proclaimed himself the "True King of Gestea", stripping the other rulers of their kingships and making them dukes under his rule. In 964, he finally succeeded with the combined strength of all the Saxons in conquering the Atlantian Kingdom of Aeros, calling himself the "King of Gestea and Aeros", even though they technically designated the same area. Ælfon's hegemony did not last beyond his son's generation, however, and his united realm fell apart. In 1066, no ruler has achieved the same level of dominance over the island as Ælfon II did.

Gestea in 1066

The Aerean Saxons are Mageian Christians (named for the Atlantean word for their great power).

aerean_saxon = {
		graphical_culture = saxongfx
		
		color = { 0.75 0.25 0.25 }
		
		male_names = {
			Athrobald Athrofrith Athrohere Athromær Athræd Athric Athrostan Athroweard Athrowine Athroweald Athrowulf
			Ælaf_Ælaf Æthathros Æthelos Æthelon Æthelor Æthelokles Æthelric_Æthelric Aæthelwine_Æthelwine Ælfathros Ælfos Ælfon Ælfor Ælfokles 
			Balthros Baldos Baldon Baldor Baldokles Beorn_Beorn Beornos Beornon Beornor Beornwulf_Beornwulf
			Coenos Coenon Coenor Coenokles Coenathros Coenred_Coenred Eadathros Eados Eadon Eador Eadokles Eanathros Eanos Eanor Eanon Eanokles
			Ecgathros Ecgos Ecgon Ecgor Ecgokles Eoros Eoron Eoror Manathros Manos Manon Manor Manokles
			Leofathros Leofos Leafon Leafor Leafokles Osathros Osos Oson Osor Osokles Rikos Rikon Rikor Sæxathros Sæxos Sæxon Sæxor
			Sæxokles Sigathros Siges Sigen Siger Sigokles Wulfos Wulfor Wulfon Wulfokles Wulfathros
		}
		female_names = {
			Ælfa Ælfthea Ælfis Ælfene Æthela Æthelthea Æthelis Æthelene Cutha Cuthea Cuthis Cuthene Cuthela Eana Eanthea Eanis Eanene Eanela
			Fritha Frithea Frithis Frithene Frithela Herethea Herene Herela Heris Hildthea Hildene Hilda Hildela Hildis Leofa Leofthea Leofis Leofene
			Políflaed Polígyth Políswith
		}
		from_dynasty_prefix = "of "
		male_patronym = "son"
		prefix = no
		
		modifier = default_culture_modifier
	}

 

[majortopio]

I've made a quick sketch detailing very generally the military movements of the various peoples involved in "The Great War" between Atlantis and Europe. Note that this sketch only covers around the first decade or so of the war.



734

• The Atlantean Empire (which used to span the whole continent, now only half of the peninsula Poseidonis) attacks the Eastern Roman Empire where the ancient Greek city-states once thrived. They quickly overpower the forces there, who are already weakened by increasing raids by the Slavs.
• The Eastern Roman Empire quickly gathers its military forces from the remainder of its provinces (parts of Italy, Anatolia, etc.) and gathers them in order to meet the Atlantean forces.
• The Battle of Athens happens, the first real battle between Atlantean and Byzantine armies. Massive defeat for the Byzantines, they pull back deeper into the Balkans to regroup.
• The Atlantean Empire launches a second campaign in Al-Andalus, focused on regaining their lost European empire. However, they meet more resistance then expected.
• The Atlanteans discovered, as had been prophesied, that their powers did not yet work on the European continent.

735

• By this time, word of Atlantis has reached all of Europe. The Anglo-Saxons, who recently conquered large parts of Britain, take the oppurtunity to gain even more land and set off towards the lost continent. Instead, they land at Aeros, a small island, and begin subduing the peaceful native population.
• The ERE forces pull farther and farther into the Empire, suffering myriads of defeats at the hands of the Atlanteans, who mostly focus on the coastal area and garrison the Greek cities instead of plundering them.

737

• Francia, after two years of gathering its forces and planning, launch their warships and head for the southern coast of Poseidonis, where very few troops remained after the Empire's major invasion of the ERE. They are joined by their allies the Lombards, led by King Luitprand.
• The Atlantean invasion of the ERE begins slowing, as both sides have taken major losses.
• The Atlanteans in Iberia have taken some strongholds in western Iberia, and are holding out in them against Muslim counter attacks.

738

• The realms of the southern Atlantean peninsula Laukon and the island Medá begin aiding the Empire, and send reinforcements to both Iberia and the Balkans.

739

• In Northern Atlantis, the kingdoms of Vorraia, heartened by tales of Atlantean victory in Europe, invade western Britain, namely the Briton kingdoms in Wales and Cornwall.
• The Anglo-Saxons, having succesfully subdued the island of Aeros, launch their ships southwards once more and attack the region of Sílkedes, but quickly learn that they would not meet the same docileness they had encountered in Aeros.
• The Frankish and Lombardian invasion of the Atlantean Empire begins tilting in their favor, after some defeats in their first attempts at assaulting Atlantean holdings. They are victorious over a large Atlantean army led by one of the more powerful dukes in the Empire, greatly increasing morale, which had previously been at rock-bottom due to the discovery of the Atlanteans' powers (which did work on their own continent).
• In the Balkans, the Atlanteans, strengthened by the reinforcements from the south, make a large push northwards, moving the conflict deeper into Greece, steadily nearing Constantinople.

741

• After succesfully expelling the Anglo-Saxons from Sílkedes, the lords of that region launch their own incursion into Aquitaine in southern Francia, well knowing that a large portion of the Frankish army was in Poseidonis. Neustria and Burgundy quickly retaliate, sending in reinforcements to the scarce levies in Aquitaine.
• The Atlantean invasion of Iberia starts faring worse for the Atlanteans as Umayyad reinforcements from North Africa reach them, again driving them closer to the coast.

 

[majortopio]

Here's the history of the last decade of the Great War, just to introduce the flavor of the mod and set up the whole background. You guys have to keep in mind that this is all in good fun and isn't supposed to be wildly accurate or realistic, which it definitley isn't.



742

• The Great Powers of the Atlanteans extend to Iberia, washing slowly over the peninsula. The Atlanteans start to push the muslims back, meeting them in the field and winning.
• In the ERE, the Atlanteans move to the western coast of Anatolia, skipping Constantinople, as that was not one of their targets. The military power of the ERE is almost completely lost in the Balkans, with only small enclaves remaining in that area.
• The Sílkedean lords quickly subdue the western coast of Aquitaine. The Francian armies meet them in the field, and while the battle was close, they suffered a defeat and retreated further into the duchy.

743

• The Vorraians in Britain take all of the Briton realms in Cornwall, and forge an alliance with Wessex to attack Wales, after defeating them in battle.
• The Great Power spreads to Francia, though the Sílkedeans weren't as learned in the ways of mageia as the Empire.
• The Poseidonis, the Franks and Lombards continue their invasion, although no large changes in the situation happen. The Atlanteans, however, begin to fight back harder and the Europeans realize something drastic needs to be done in order to assure victory.

744

• Wales is obliterated by the Atlantean-Saxon alliance, and the realm is split between the two. The Vorraians establish petty kingdoms, split up amongst the most succesful warlords, and utilize local Celtic leaders in regions that prove hard to subjugate.
• Envoys are sent by the Europeans to the realms of Naimedis, who have long been enemies of the Empire. They agree to an alliance on the terms of many pieces of gold and promised holdings in the western Empire.
• The Atlanteans in Iberia steadily meet more and more resistance from the Umayyads, and their expansion grinds to a halt.
• Strange occurences keep happening to people all over Europe. Those who know of the Atlanteans' abilities suspect that something has been awoken in some chosen individuals.
• The Sílkedeans conquer nearly all of Aquitaine, but the Franks stage an ambush that shatters a main Atlantean force, and regain much of the northeastern holdings.
• In the ERE, the Atlanetans are struggling to keep all of their conquered cities and provinces under control. Small bands of Roman soldiers incite uprisings and strike at supply lines, fighting in guerrilla fashion. The Atlantean army is spread quite thin at this time, and expansion stops as they try to retain control of the area.

745

• Some European soldiers, through imitation of what they have seen on the battlefield, discover that they can wield the great powers. This drastically boosts the morale of all affected armies, and the Europeans are schooled by the Naimedians in how to properly use it.
• In Francia, Sílkedean forces are pushed back by some major Frankish victories, but continue winning minor skirmishes. In the desire to avoid more bloodshed, and because of the fact that both sides are evenly matched, a peace offer was sent to the Franks by the Sílkedeans. The Franks, whose biggest army was across the sea, accept this offer and cede half of Aquitaine to the Sílkedean lords, who establish their own realms in the area layed over previous adminstrative units.

746

• The Romans, having finally gained the upper hans with their guerilla warfare techniques, attempt to retake some cities on the Balkan coast. However, they suffer major losses and the western ERE forces are all but crushed. Meanwhile, the remaining ERE troops in Anatolia laid siege to the major Atlantean-held fortresses there.
• The Umayyads lay siege to most Atlantean holdings in Iberia, prepared to starve them out.
• The Empire (Atlantis) is forced to split its army to defend from the Naimedians in the southwest, making it easier for the Franks to expand westward.

747

• The Umayyads continue to regain more cities as the Atlanteans have all dispersed into their strongholds, hoping for reinforcements.
• The Roman and Atlantean forces meet in Anatolia, leading to a close Roman defeat.
• An Atlantean force from the coast takes a major Umayyad siege camp by surprise, breaking it and enlargening the Atlantean force.

748

• After 14 years of war, the ERE finally tries to make peace with the Atlanteans, devoid of any hope of regaining their lost land at that time. The Atlanteans demand all of the western coast of Anatolia as terms. With a few adjustments, the ERE accepts and cedes nearly all of its provinces on the Aegean.
• The Atlantean Empire, not being able to spare many troops from the newly conquered Greece, sends a small army to Poseidonis in hopes of taking the Franks by surprise, but are intercepted upon landing and destroyed by a Lombard force.
• The Empire can't fight off the European invasion as it is being hit from two sides. The Lombards expand eastwards to the coast while the Franks expand westward towards the Naimedian front, meaning to join with them. They meet little resistance on their path, as the Atlanteans decided to attempt an attack on the smaller Lombard force, which they lost. Meanwhile, the western Atlantean force is tied up fending off the Naimedians.

749

• The Franks have advanced along a good portion of the peninsula, taking holdings as they go (some submit to them out of unwillingness to sacrifice lives). Meanwhile the Naimedians suffer a close defeat in the field, retreating to a close fortress, where the Empire lays siege to them.
• The Iberian conquest turns into another stalemate, whith the Umayyads besieging a number of Atlantean holdings and vice versa.

750

• The Franks fall upon the rear of the depleted Atlantean force laying siege to the Naimedians, and crush them. A peace is finally reached, with the Atlanteans ceding their entire southern coast and half their eastern one to the Franks and Lombards. These areas become part of the greater Frankish and Lombard realms for now.
• The Empire sends what little levies they have left to assist in the failing Iberian conquest.

751

• A peace is finally achieved between the Umayyads and Atlanteans, with the Umayyads ceding half of the western Iberian coast and the Atlanteans paying a substantial tribute of gold.

Sidenote: The Atlantean Empire, in their conquest of the ERE, also encountered Slavic tribes along the Balkan coast and conquered them without much trouble, either by paying them off, promising them land or crushing them in battle.

 

[majortopio]

Now, I'm not sure what the policy is on quadruple-posting, but there's not much I can do about it. So, a small progress report! I've just been drawing provinces in Poseidonis and working on the history of the Balkans. I haven't got it concretely fleshed out yet, but I've created some new provinces to reflect the changes in administration that came about with the Atlanteans.

Basically, I've looked at a map of Homeric Greece and added some cities and regions from that map to the game, as well as restructure some of the existing provinces. Since this is all based on myth, I thought it appopriate (and fun!). The history I haven't got enough of to recount yet, but the Empire didn't last long on an international scale. The Balkan area revolted maybe a hundred years after the Great War, and the Empire, being surrounded by enemies new and old on Atlantis, didn't have the manpower to quell the rebellion. So the Atlantean states in Greece became a myriad of small petty kingdoms that began conquering much of the land around them, basically in a constant state of war against the Slavs at the borders and between themselves.

Here's what I've got for Poseidonis so far: