[MOD] Sons of the Lightning - An Alt-History Overhaul Mod for CK3

[Super7700]

Carthage has risen and fallen. The Pope and Walagoths bicker over her legacy, each claiming to be the empire’s legitimate successor. Eastwards, the Pontic rump state struggles for survival in the frozen steppes, her Anatolian heartlands long lost to the warriors of Mohammed.

As kingdoms crumbles and old ways die, opportunities emerge for crafting a new world. And, amidst the warring and uncertainties, an ancient city in Italy seeks a destiny unfulfilled...

Sons of the Lightning is an upcoming alt-history overhaul mod for CK3 that looks at how the medieval period might have taken shape in a world in which Rome never rose to its imperial heights. With no state gaining a hegemony over the Mediterranean, some ancient cultures and faiths have managed to survive well beyond their historical demise, but face challenges both familiar and new. Among other things, expect to see Punicised Goths, Amun-worshipping Makurians and Catholic Garamantes.

Although this mod diverges in a similar way to other alt histories in which Carthage wins the Punic wars, the focus is not so much on Carthage's empire as it is on the various cultures and faiths that could feasibly stick around or emerge in such a timeline. The world should feel plausible, authentic and engaging, and a lot of time and energy has already gone into research in order to establish a solid grounding on which we can start adding our own stories and ideas. I’m also very interested in representing local traditions and minority communities that are often overlooked in historical projects.

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• Massively overhauled map setup in Iberia and Africa, with several dozen new faiths and cultures both historical and fictional
• Additional bookmarks for 867 AD, highlighting memorable characters with fleshed-out backstories and relationships
• Revised Iberian Struggle and flavour pack content to better fit the mod's lore
• More tenets and traditions
• New Hierocracy government type for bridging the gap between temporal and spiritual authority
• Several major decisions to help guide your playthrough
• Lots of custom art for faiths, coats of arms, buildings and more!

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While I have already fleshed out some ideas for the world of SOTL, much of the map is a blank canvas and I'm very much interested in hearing suggestions and feedback from the community. Who knows, maybe you'll have a banger idea that will shape how we approach an entire region...

If you'd like to join the discussion, head on over to the Discord!

Thank you for your support!

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[Super7700]

Our first Development Diary is now up, delving into the world of Sons of the Lightning, its lore and its goals. Check it out here!

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[HistoryDude]

An alternate history mod? I will follow your (modding) career with great interest.

 

[Super7700]

Here's some faith icons I've been working on - any ideas as to what they might represent?

 

[Nagabhata]

Since your mod focus on the south mediterranean，i think its better to add more provinces to this area

 

[Nagabhata]

Here's some faith icons I've been working on - any ideas as to what they might represent?

View attachment 1053415

looks good！

 

[Super7700]

Since your mod focus on the south mediterranean，i think its better to add more provinces to this area

I've reassigned provinces to add more counties at the very least, I'm going to hold off on adding provinces for now just to reduce complications if/when Paradox makes their own map changes!

 

[Super7700]

Although it's technically only a cosmetic change, it's important to me that title names, from empires down to the barony level, make sense in SOTL's timeline. In Egypt, I've gone through and replaced the default Arabic with Greek, Coptic, and "old" Egyptian toponyms, which change dynamically with the culture of the province holder. A few of these are reconstructed/invented, but hopefully will feel convincing nonetheless!

 

[Elden]

This sounds like it should be interesting. I love alternate histories! Hopefully this ends up as brilliant as CK2's Lux Invicta or Vic2's Divergences. Can't wait to find out.

 

[Nagabhata]

Have you ever considered Manichaean Persia, as in eu4 mod Ante Bellum? Personally, I think it will be fun!

 

[Super7700]

Have you ever considered Manichaean Persia, as in eu4 mod Ante Bellum? Personally, I think it will be fun!

It's something we've talked about briefly in the Discord, personally I'm still very much undecided as to how I want to treat Persia. Manichaeism in its historical form might not exist, but of course that doesn't stop us from having another fictional or historical faith fulfilling a similar role.

 

[Nagabhata]

It's something we've talked about briefly in the Discord, personally I'm still very much undecided as to how I want to treat Persia. Manichaeism in its historical form might not exist, but of course that doesn't stop us from having another fictional or historical faith fulfilling a similar role.

Do you have any ideas for the vanilla Zoroastrianism?

 

[Twentyfists]

It's something we've talked about briefly in the Discord, personally I'm still very much undecided as to how I want to treat Persia. Manichaeism in its historical form might not exist, but of course that doesn't stop us from having another fictional or historical faith fulfilling a similar role.

Honestly, if you're already including Christianity and Islam despite not having the same political circumstances of the historical Second-Temple period, Manichaeism seems like a worthwhile inclusion as an influential movement, descended from the former and preceding the latter, that emerged from the same milieu.

 

[Super7700]

Do you have any ideas for the vanilla Zoroastrianism?

I haven't really thought about it at this stage, since it's beyond the scope of the first release. If you've got any ideas for how it could be approached I'd be interested in hearing them!

Honestly, if you're already including Christianity and Islam despite not having the same political circumstances of the historical Second-Temple period, Manichaeism seems like a worthwhile inclusion as an influential movement, descended from the former and preceding the latter, that emerged from the same milieu.

Well my reasoning for including Christianity, in addition to gameplay/modding considerations, is that I think it's possible that similar circumstances could still exist but with different state actors. Of course, it's not necessarily the most plausible outcome, but these religions provide an important bridge of familiarity into the alt-history world of the mod.

In the case of Manichaeism, it's a minor faith in vanilla and is effectively extinct in the modern day so replacing/renaming it wouldn't be nearly as impactful. And while I could definitely see a Manichaean-style religion emerging in this timeline, I'm leaning somewhat toward at least giving it a different name so it isn't so explicitly tied to Mani himself.

 

[Super7700]

Today I bring you a small showcase of special buildings, complete with some of MattTheLegoman's wonderful models from Holding Sprawl.

We have quite the mix of special buildings in SOTL, ranging from recognisable structures to the fictional and obscure, as a way to ease the transition from history to alt-history. Still, there's a common thread: regardless of origin, each of these landmarks carries with it some connection to the wider world and its lore.

For example, the Toleto Palace as an episcopal residence is closely tied to the the dynastic (and playable!) Archbishops of Toledo, and it's a helpful way of highlighting how these rulers have attained both spiritual and temporal authority. The Grand Monastery meanwhile is a Grand Cathedral equivalent available to the powerful hermetic monastic orders that I plan to have in the Egyptian deserts. And as for the Cothon - well, no Punic empire is complete without its port!

 

[Nagabhata]

Impressive！

Today I bring you a small showcase of special buildings, complete with some of MattTheLegoman's wonderful models from Holding Sprawl.

We have quite the mix of special buildings in SOTL, ranging from recognisable structures to the fictional and obscure, as a way to ease the transition from history to alt-history. Still, there's a common thread: regardless of origin, each of these landmarks carries with it some connection to the wider world and its lore.

For example, the Toleto Palace as an episcopal residence is closely tied to the the dynastic (and playable!) Archbishops of Toledo, and it's a helpful way of highlighting how these rulers have attained both spiritual and temporal authority. The Grand Monastery meanwhile is a Grand Cathedral equivalent available to the powerful hermetic monastic orders that I plan to have in the Egyptian deserts. And as for the Cothon - well, no Punic empire is complete without its port!

View attachment 1071034View attachment 1071033View attachment 1071032

 

[Super7700]

Following on from the previous teaser, here are are the other special buildings I've implemented so far - once again, there's a some mixing of history and fiction to keep things fresh.

(Credit to MattTheLegoman/Holding Sprawl for the Maghdacen and Deriba barrows models)

 

[Nagabhata]

Following on from the previous teaser, here are are the other special buildings I've implemented so far - once again, there's a some mixing of history and fiction to keep things fresh.

(Credit to MattTheLegoman/Holding Sprawl for the Maghdacen and Deriba barrows models)

View attachment 1076834View attachment 1076836View attachment 1076837

Can you tell us a little bit about the progress in North Africa (in map

 

[Super7700]

Can you tell us a little bit about the progress in North Africa (in map

I plan to do some dev diaries for the different regions once they're a bit more complete

 

[Lukeskywalker899]

This is a really interesting concept! What is the status of northwest Europe like Gaul and Britain lore wise?