[Mods] Cybrxkhan's Immersion Packs - a library of small, modular flavor mods

[cybrxkhan]

Hey all, it's been a while as I've been busy the past couple months and got distracted with other things, but I got some more previews for you for Dunhuang.

I've reduced the amount of stuff in the mod compared to what I originally planned so that I'll actually be able to finish this damn thing, but it's still going to be a lot of stuff. Hopefully will be out by Christmas; the main thing left to code would be some of the flavor and narrative events.

Anyways, previews...

The Dunhuang trade post has access to six exclusive new buildings. These are (names and bonuses subject to change):

• Rhubarb Industry
• Melon Industry
• Dunhuang Irrigation
• Confucian Academy
• Dunhuang Art Schools
• Nomad Caravan Guards

Spoiler: New Buildings in Dunhuang

Narrative story events won't be anywhere as extensive as, say, vanilla's Charlemagne and Iron Century narrative events, which was my original hope, but I added a couple simple ones which fire depending on which start date you choose. For example, Cao Yijin, who usurped Zhang rule in Dunhuang in 914, gets a bit of a boost in traits and stats when he comes of age to nudge him slightly in the direction to do so (there will be a later event to give him a claim on the Guiyi Circuit and Duchy of Jiuquan, if it's still around, and/or the Kingdom of Dunhuang, if it's been formed) - this only happens with the 867 start date as he's a kid then.

Spoiler: Cao Cao's Descendants

So, this is where you're hiding nowadays is it?

Whelp, you caught me. Also this is a late response, but as I mentioned on our PM I have a bad habit of disappearing awkwardly from time to time lol. Hope to see you around!

 

[VE34]

I love the idea of these and I especially love your approach to compatibility. From the feature docs it also sounds like you can experience some of the content even if you're not the direct owner of the affected provinces, which is greatly appreciated.

 

[cybrxkhan]

Hello everyone again, it's been a year since I started working on the Dunhuang Immersion Pack, but I'm finally in the home stretch after delays and procrastination - I'm finished coding all I wanted to implement, and it's a matter of bugtesting and tweaking right now. I should be able to release it sometime in a couple of weeks.

If you are interested, you can try out a "beta" of the Dunhuang Immmersion Pack on the Github page. Be careful as there are still a few outstanding bugs and kinks that need to be ironed out, but it's more or less stable atm.

Anyhow, here's the last round of previews for the last bit of stuff I implemented recently before I release it, again hopefully in a couple of weeks:

First, there's a small chance that courtiers of various East Asian cultures might spawn in your court. It's a simpler system than what I had for the previous Immersion packs - that stats are random, though there's an increasingly smaller chance you'll get higher tier courtiers. After all, it wasn't unheard of for adventurers, travelers, and pilgrims from East Asia to end up in this part of the Silk Road. The cultures in question are:

• Korean
• Japanese
• Vietnamese
• Mohe
• Bai
• Yi

Spoiler: Asian Courtiers

Related to this system are several new narrative events about important turning points in Asian history off the map if you start at the early start dates - for instance, about Vietnam's independence from China - though the timing is somewhat randomized so they won't happen exactly when they happened IRL. These events aren't just for flavor - they directly increase or decrease the frequency of or even prevent the events that cause the already rare Asian courtiers to spawn. For example, when the Kingdom of Balhae collapses in the 10th century, Mohe courtiers will no longer spawn, as the Mohe people will have assimilated/become the Jurchen.

This was originally a system I coded for a more general East Asian themed Immersion Pack, but seeing as I'll never get to that, I decided to add it to this mod.

Spoiler: Asian History Events

There are also two new, simple feast decisions and event chains. One is the Nadun Festival, available to Tuyuhun characters (if you recall, the mod will spawn a Tuyuhun Count on the eastern edge of the map at the early starts, if you want a semi-historical start). It is based on the Nadun festival of the modern-day Tu, who are possibly descendants of the Tuyuhun.

Spoiler: Nadun

The other is Nowruz, available to any characters who are Iranian, in the Zoroastrian religion group, control provinces of either, or those who control the Empire or Kingdom of Persia. The Nowruz in particular was something I coded all the way back for the original VIET, and never released, but now it'll be included. Though it's not directly related to Dunhuang, the region had a large population of Iranians, particularly Sogdians, in this time period so I thought it was appropriate.

Spoiler: Nowruz

Next, I've included four new minor titles to hand out if you own the Kingdom of Dunhuang, or the Duchies of Guiyi/Jiuquan if the Kingdom hasn't been formed yet. They are all based on actual official titles used during this period.

Spoiler: No idea what this minor title meant, it was just mentioned in a book, but I thought it sounded cool

Last of all, the mod will come with 32 (I think) flavor events for those owning territory in the Dunhuang region. They'll cover a range of topics, from local culture and legal happenings during this period, and even a few special ones for some of the playable families, such as the Cao family.

Spoiler: Cao Cao has a MILF fetish

Oh, and one other thing - I've done even more additions and changes to the character and title history (the latter via hidden event at game start for compatibility with other mods), so now almost every single title in Dunhuang/Guiyi, down to the baronies and temples, will be held by a historical or semi-historical character at the 769, 867, and 936 starts (particularly 867). Which is pretty cool, I think. Nothing to show for a preview, so instead I'll throw out one of the narrative events, this time what happens after Zhang Yichao dies if you do the 867 start date.

Spoiler: Cao Cao's descendants are ambitious

Finally, for anyone who's reached this far, no plans on wha tnext after I release Dunhuang - it's been a really big undertaking (particularly the research for the title and character history), far beyond my intended scope for these Packs - but I want to try to get at least one more Immersion Pack out before CK3 is released, hopefully one much humbler and smaller in scope so I'll actually finish it relatively quickly.

I do plan for some kind of Immersion Pack mods for CK3 (though not necessarily any of the ones I've done here), but in one modpack rather than several, to make it easier to keep up to date with any patches (the advantage of modding for CK2 now is I don't have to worry about any new updates screwing up my mods).

 

[Warial]

No idea what this minor title meant, it was just mentioned in a book, but I thought it sounded cool

It actually refers to the actual pouches high-ranking officials were supposed to attach to their attire. Purple was for Chancellors, Ministers and other court officals of high ranks, crimson for prefects among others.

 

[cybrxkhan]

It actually refers to the actual pouches high-ranking officials were supposed to attach to their attire. Purple was for Chancellors, Ministers and other court officals of high ranks, crimson for prefects among others.

Oh, you know what, now that you mention it, that does ring a bell somewhere in my mind (probably came across that somewhere in another academic book and/or a C-Drama). For some reason my source just randomly mentioned it but didn't provide a Chinese gloss or an explanation of what that meant. Thanks!

 

[Emperor5000]

how many chinese bloods exist in the mod?

 

[Elminister]

how many chinese bloods exist in the mod?

Probably as many as there are Chinese Crips.

 

[cybrxkhan]

how many chinese bloods exist in the mod?

Oh yeah, aren't you the one who liked collecting bloodlines? Anyways, originally I was going to have more (at least one for each of the major families), but realized it'd be kind of unbalanced so I decided to limit the number added to three:

• Blood of Cao Cao - for the Cao family, since they claimed descent from Cao Cao of Three Kingdoms fame (or at least one of his successors). Most feature-heavy one as they get the most special events associated with their family line (not much but more than the others).
• Blood of Li Guang and Laozi - for the Li family, both the Tang Emperors and the newly added Li clan in Dunhuang, who claimed descent from Laozi (legendary founder of Taoism) and Li Guang (famous general of the Han Dynasty).
• Blood of the Suo Clan - for the newly added Suo clan in Dunhuang, who were famous as calligraphers and cultured people

 

[Emperor5000]

Oh yeah, aren't you the one who liked collecting bloodlines? Anyways, originally I was going to have more (at least one for each of the major families), but realized it'd be kind of unbalanced so I decided to limit the number added to three:

• Blood of Cao Cao - for the Cao family, since they claimed descent from Cao Cao of Three Kingdoms fame (or at least one of his successors). Most feature-heavy one as they get the most special events associated with their family line (not much but more than the others).
• Blood of Li Guang and Laozi - for the Li family, both the Tang Emperors and the newly added Li clan in Dunhuang, who claimed descent from Laozi (legendary founder of Taoism) and Li Guang (famous general of the Han Dynasty).
• Blood of the Suo Clan - for the newly added Suo clan in Dunhuang, who were famous as calligraphers and cultured people

hahaha yeah you remember...add at least one more to be like the hunting for the persian ones xD I Found the 2...(one from the li and one from the emperors, i thought they were different but anyway.) i never found the suo clan, so i need at least a name for the 769 start and i still waiting for the blood of Plethon gemistos in peloponisian pack...although i will wait...i know modding is hard (i tried a lot to fix my character in to the game and i dont know how to add bloodline)

edit: i found it

 

[Emperor5000]

Oh yeah, aren't you the one who liked collecting bloodlines? Anyways, originally I was going to have more (at least one for each of the major families), but realized it'd be kind of unbalanced so I decided to limit the number added to three:

• Blood of Cao Cao - for the Cao family, since they claimed descent from Cao Cao of Three Kingdoms fame (or at least one of his successors). Most feature-heavy one as they get the most special events associated with their family line (not much but more than the others).
• Blood of Li Guang and Laozi - for the Li family, both the Tang Emperors and the newly added Li clan in Dunhuang, who claimed descent from Laozi (legendary founder of Taoism) and Li Guang (famous general of the Han Dynasty).
• Blood of the Suo Clan - for the newly added Suo clan in Dunhuang, who were famous as calligraphers and cultured people

also you can make the seven bloods with the others be like suo clan blood....no op no problem....although i make a suggestion....i will not tell you how to do your job

 

[cybrxkhan]

DUNHUANG IMMERSION PACK IS NOW AVAILABLE!
Steam Workshop Download | Github Manual Download
A Dunhuang Immersion Pack Guide is also available if you're interested in more detailed information, as well as a list of my research sources and further reading.​

Finally, after almost a year of work and delays, Dunhuang: Gateway of China is officially out! It adds in several new simple mechanics and flavor to Dunhuang and the surrounding region, as well as many new (mostly) historically accurate playable Chinese characters and families.

Features include the following:

• Vastly expanded character and title history, including more playable historical Chinese families in Dunhuang who have unique story events and bloodlines, such as the Cao, who claim descent from Cao Cao of Three Kingdoms fame. The new playable families are added and selectable via event at game-start for maximum compatiblity.
• Patronize and cooperate with various local ethnic communities in multicultural Dunhuang
• Patronize a new Mogao Cave in Dunhuang for the glory of Buddhism or your family
• New cultures:
  • Xiongnu and Di for the history files
  • Tuyuhun for the remnants of the Tuyuhun Kingdom
  • Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Mohe, Bai, and Yi, who may spawn via events
• Nadun Festival for Tuyuhun characters
• Nowruz Feast decision for Iranian or Mazdean characters and provinces
• Unique buildings for the Silk Road trade post in Dunhuang
• Several new narrative events about Asian history
• 30 generic flavor events about everyday life in Dunhuang
• Kingdom of Dunhuang formable via special decisions and events
• A whole slew of miscellaneous flavor such as: minor titles, new Chinese dynasty names, 15 Chinese themed music tracks, and more!

For those who took a look at the beta, the biggest change is probably the addition of several new historical and semi-historical characters, alongside various miscellaneous tweaks and bugfixes.

Spoiler: Dunhuang Screenshots

Please see the Steam workshop page for more screenshots.

Spoiler: Sources and Further Reading

The below is NOT a comprehensive list of all the sources I've used, but should cover a significant amount of the reading I did for this Immersion Pack. I also used Wikipedia (including English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese language Wikipedia) where needed, though I did so with discretion and caution.

Of all the sources, the one I recommend the most would be Susan Whitfield's Life ALong the SIlk Road. It is a fairly accessible and entertaining text for laymen and specialists alike, and takes a more "first person" POV of life along the Silk Road, including one chapter dedicated to the Dunhuang official Zhai Fengda, who is playable at the 936 CE startdate in this mod.

SCHOLARLY ARTICLES

• An Introduction to the Material Culture of Dunhuang Buddhism: Putting the Object in Its Place, Sarah E. Fraser
• Composite Manuscripts in Medieval China: The Case of Scroll P.3720 from Dunhuang, Imre Galambos
• Studies in Chinese Manuscripts: From the Warring States Period to the 20th Century, Imre Galambos
• Buddhist Litigants in Public Court: A Case Study of Legal Practices in Tibetan-ruled Dunhuang (786–848), Cuilan Liu
• Merit-Making or Financial Fraud? Litigating Buddhist Nuns in Early 10th Century Dunhuang, Cuilan Liu
• The Order of the Birds in Guiyi Dunhuang, Lewis Mayo
• Guiyijun and Buddhism at Dunhuang: A Year by Year Chronicle, Henrik H. Sørensen
• Perspectives on Buddhism in Dunhuang During the Tang and Five Dynasties Period, Henrik H. Sørensen
• Dialogue Among the Civilizations: the Origin of the Three Guardian Deities’ Images in Cave 285, Mogao Grottoes, Yuanlin Zhang

SCHOLARLY BOOKS

• Dunhuang Art: Through the Eyes of Duan Wenjie, Wenjie Duan (Alternate Site)
• The Dunhuang Grottoes and Global Education: Philosophical, Spiritual, Scientific, and Aesthetic Insights, Xu Di
• Surviving Nirvana: Death of the Buddha in Chinese Visual Culture, Sonya S. Lee
• Art, Religion, and Politics in Medieval China: The Dunhuang Cave of the Zhai Family, Qiang Ning
• Eighteen Lectures on Dunhuang, Xinjiang Rong
• Life Along the Silk Road, Second Edition, Susan Whitfield (Link to Amazon Purchase)

ONLINE WEBSITES/ARTICLES

• Dunhuang Studies: Chronology and History
• Dunhuang Timeline
• Notes on the History of Dunhuang

Spoiler: Interesting Playable/Unplayable Characters

Below is a run-down of the situation and interesting characters at each of the three early starting dates, to give an idea of what playthroughs might be possible:

769 CE

The Tibetans are advancing northwards into the Gansu region, but Tang authority hasn’t entirely eroded yet.

• Zhang Qianyi: A powerful Chinese official under the Tibetans, he serves them loyally - for now. In the future, once the right opportunity arises, he or his descendants might seek to restore Chinese rule to Dunhuang.
• Cao Shiyuan: The ruler of Yumen, under Zhang Qianyi. The Cao, despite their ambitions, understand that if Dunhuang is to be a powerful, independent state, they must focus on the Tibetans first. Thus, they serve the Zhang family capably for now.
• Li Dabin: The ruler of Anxi, who hails from the most ancient house of Li that gave rise to Laozi, Li Guang, and the Tang Emperors. With his friend and fellow official and father-in-law, Yin Tingjie, will he be able to ensure that the Dunhuang region remains free from Tibetan rule?

Other Interesting Characters

• An Yinfang: The wife of Zhang Qianyi, she hails from the An family of Dunhuang, who were heavily Sinicized Sogdians that intermarried with local Chinese elites. Her distant relative is Li Baoyu, born An Chongzhang, a loyal and talented Tang Dynasty general who fought against the An Lushan rebellion and later changed his name out of shame of coincidentally sharing the same last name as An Lushan.
• Fan Guozhong: A Dunhuang native who would lead one of the first major insurrections against Tibetan rule and be killed sometime in the early 9th century. He starts as a capable general, the Mayor of Shouchang under Zhang Qianyi.
• Li Lingwu: The older brother of Li Dabin and a renowned monk in Dunhuang. He starts as the Bhikkhu of the temple holding of Mogao under the Western Protectorate.
• Suo Tao: The ruler of the city Dunhuang proper, and a man proud of his family’s scholarly roots, who looks upon the Tibetan incursions with great disapproval.
• Yin Tingjie: Li Dabin’s friend and father-in-law, the Mayor of Guazhou.

867 CE

It’s been almost three decades since Zhang Yichao led a successful rebellion against the Tibetans, but as he grows older, he is increasingly unable to maintain the tense peace between the various scheming clans of Dunhuang.

• Zhang Yichao: The man himself who liberated Dunhuang from Tibetan rule, Zhang Yichao is now old and the rising tensions and ambitions between the clans of Dunhuang. For now, there is peace, thanks to marriage alliances with all of the major clans, and Zhang Yichao’s capable leadership, but as soon as Zhang Yichao dies, all hell might break loose.
• Cao Wancheng: One of Zhang Yichao’s top officials, he is the most powerful vassal of the realm, ruling Jiuquan. The Cao are ambitious like their supposed ancestor Cao Cao. His son, Cao Yijin, is but a toddler, but there are astrologers who say great things lie ahead for this bright child.
• Li Mingzhen: An old ally of Zhang Yichao, he was one of his officers during the liberation of Dunhuang and rules Yangguan. However, he and his sons, who hail from an old family claiming distant relations to the Tang Emperors, feel they are the rightful leaders of Dunhuang.
• Suo Xun: His family are another old clan of Dunhuang, having been around since the Han Dynasty. They are proud scholars, and seek to make Dunhuang a bastion of civilization - Suo Xun, who rules Anxi, is ambitious, and may be the first to attempt overthrowing the Zhang once Zhang Yichao dies.
• Yin Wentong: One of Zhang Yichao’s more loyal officials, he was a major aide of Zhang Yichao during the campaign against the Tibetans. He rules Yumen, and is the weakest of the major vassals.

Other Interesting Minor Characters

• Kang Tongxin: A Dunhuang official who hails from a Sinicized family of Sogdians that has intermarried with the Chinese clans.
• Wuzhen: A celebrated monk in Dunhuang who led a major embassy to the Tang court in Dunhuang on behalf of the Zhang regime. He is the Bhikkhu of the temple holding of Mogao at the game start. An erudite and learned man, he can easily serve Zhang Yichao as a chancellor/diplomat or court chaplain.
• Zhai Farong: A powerful official in Dunhuang, and grandfather of the future celebrated scholar and calendarist Zhai Fengda, he is Baron of the castle of Fulu under Cao Wancheng.
• Zhang Qiu: A famous literati and author in Dunhuang, not related to the ruling family, who is the Mayor of Suzhou under Cao Wancheng at game start. A skilled writer and author, he has a number of connections and is friends with Zhang Huaishen, Zhang Yichao’s nephew.
• Zhu Zaiqing: An important leader in the Buddhist lay community, he is the Mayor of Yueyaquan, under Zhang Yichao at the game start.

936 CE

After Zhang Yichao’s death, there was some chaos and a revolving door of usurpers and intrigue, but after years of turmoil Guiyi Circuit is firmly under the rule of the Cao clan.

• Cao Yuande: Without a strong leader like Zhang Yichao or Cao Yijin, this son of Cao Yijin has big shoes to fill - the threat of Uighurs to both east and west, as well as the nomads to the north. With China still in chaos, it is his duty to uphold Chinese civilization in this frontier of the west.
• Zhai Fengda: Though the Zhai are an old clan in the Dunhuang region, they’ve only recently gained increased influence. Zhai Fengda, who rules Yangguan, has gained acclaim and renown as an intelligent official and scholar, and perhaps he can use this to further the clan’s agenda in Dunhuang, or to improve the region’s culture or infrastructure.
• Li Ling: This once great clan are shadow of their former selves. Despite usurping leadership of the Guiyi Circuit for a while, they were spared - which is fortunate. Guiyi is in an even weaker, though stabler position than under Zhang Yichao’s rule. Will Li Ling seek to accomplish what Li Mingzhen and his sons could not, or will he not risk Dunhuang’s stability and instead work to serve the Cao regime loyally?

Other Interesting Minor Characters

• Shanyou: A monk-official under the Cao regime, he was sent on a diplomatic mission to Turfan in 935 CE. He starts as a Bhikkhu of the temple holding of Mogao at game start and would make a good Chancellor or Court Chaplain.
• Suo Ziqian: Despite being the first to usurp the heirs of Zhang Yichao, the Suo clan survived. Their current leader, Suo Ziqian, is the Baron of Yumenquan under Cao Yuande. He would later lead an important delegation to the Kingdom of Khotan in 956 CE, and would make a good Chancellor.
• Zhang Huaiqing: He is the leader of the remnants of the Zhang clan, son of the last Zhang ruler of Dunhuang, Zhang Chengfeng. Currently, he is an official, the mayor of Dunhuang under Cao Yuande. He has a weak claim on the Duchy of Guiyi, so might be a problem in the future, though he doesn’t seem particularly interested in seizing his rightful inheritance.
• Zhang Yingrun: Another surviving member of the Zhang family. He is a devout member of the local Buddhist community, famous for sponsoring a number of religious constructions and work on scripture.

Lastly, no promises on what I'll work on next. I really want to get one small Immersion Pack as a last huzzah for my CK2 modding career before I shift gears to CK3 modding. I do have a few ideas I'm debating between, so hopefully I'll show a preview once I get some work done.

hahaha yeah you remember...add at least one more to be like the hunting for the persian ones xD I Found the 2...(one from the li and one from the emperors, i thought they were different but anyway.) i never found the suo clan, so i need at least a name for the 769 start and i still waiting for the blood of Plethon gemistos in peloponisian pack...although i will wait...i know modding is hard (i tried a lot to fix my character in to the game and i dont know how to add bloodline)

edit: i found it

also you can make the seven bloods with the others be like suo clan blood....no op no problem....although i make a suggestion....i will not tell you how to do your job

I think I decided to scale back on the bloodlines for balance reasons, it wouldn't make sense to have every major family get one because it would kind of dillute the uniqueness of them. That said, in the code, I did leave the bloodline for the Yin family, though it's commented out.

 

[manble1234]

Can you please do an immersion pack on Western Africa next? the region feels almost entirely flavourless.

 

[Emperor5000]

DUNHUANG IMMERSION PACK IS NOW AVAILABLE!
Steam Workshop Download | Github Manual Download
A Dunhuang Immersion Pack Guide is also available if you're interested in more detailed information, as well as a list of my research sources and further reading.​

Finally, after almost a year of work and delays, Dunhuang: Gateway of China is officially out! It adds in several new simple mechanics and flavor to Dunhuang and the surrounding region, as well as many new (mostly) historically accurate playable Chinese characters and families.

Features include the following:

• Vastly expanded character and title history, including more playable historical Chinese families in Dunhuang who have unique story events and bloodlines, such as the Cao, who claim descent from Cao Cao of Three Kingdoms fame. The new playable families are added and selectable via event at game-start for maximum compatiblity.
• Patronize and cooperate with various local ethnic communities in multicultural Dunhuang
• Patronize a new Mogao Cave in Dunhuang for the glory of Buddhism or your family
• New cultures:
  • Xiongnu and Di for the history files
  • Tuyuhun for the remnants of the Tuyuhun Kingdom
  • Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Mohe, Bai, and Yi, who may spawn via events
• Nadun Festival for Tuyuhun characters
• Nowruz Feast decision for Iranian or Mazdean characters and provinces
• Unique buildings for the Silk Road trade post in Dunhuang
• Several new narrative events about Asian history
• 30 generic flavor events about everyday life in Dunhuang
• Kingdom of Dunhuang formable via special decisions and events
• A whole slew of miscellaneous flavor such as: minor titles, new Chinese dynasty names, 15 Chinese themed music tracks, and more!

For those who took a look at the beta, the biggest change is probably the addition of several new historical and semi-historical characters, alongside various miscellaneous tweaks and bugfixes.

Spoiler: Dunhuang Screenshots

Please see the Steam workshop page for more screenshots.

Spoiler: Sources and Further Reading

The below is NOT a comprehensive list of all the sources I've used, but should cover a significant amount of the reading I did for this Immersion Pack. I also used Wikipedia (including English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese language Wikipedia) where needed, though I did so with discretion and caution.

Of all the sources, the one I recommend the most would be Susan Whitfield's Life ALong the SIlk Road. It is a fairly accessible and entertaining text for laymen and specialists alike, and takes a more "first person" POV of life along the Silk Road, including one chapter dedicated to the Dunhuang official Zhai Fengda, who is playable at the 936 CE startdate in this mod.

SCHOLARLY ARTICLES

• An Introduction to the Material Culture of Dunhuang Buddhism: Putting the Object in Its Place, Sarah E. Fraser
• Composite Manuscripts in Medieval China: The Case of Scroll P.3720 from Dunhuang, Imre Galambos
• Studies in Chinese Manuscripts: From the Warring States Period to the 20th Century, Imre Galambos
• Buddhist Litigants in Public Court: A Case Study of Legal Practices in Tibetan-ruled Dunhuang (786–848), Cuilan Liu
• Merit-Making or Financial Fraud? Litigating Buddhist Nuns in Early 10th Century Dunhuang, Cuilan Liu
• The Order of the Birds in Guiyi Dunhuang, Lewis Mayo
• Guiyijun and Buddhism at Dunhuang: A Year by Year Chronicle, Henrik H. Sørensen
• Perspectives on Buddhism in Dunhuang During the Tang and Five Dynasties Period, Henrik H. Sørensen
• Dialogue Among the Civilizations: the Origin of the Three Guardian Deities’ Images in Cave 285, Mogao Grottoes, Yuanlin Zhang

SCHOLARLY BOOKS

• Dunhuang Art: Through the Eyes of Duan Wenjie, Wenjie Duan (Alternate Site)
• The Dunhuang Grottoes and Global Education: Philosophical, Spiritual, Scientific, and Aesthetic Insights, Xu Di
• Surviving Nirvana: Death of the Buddha in Chinese Visual Culture, Sonya S. Lee
• Art, Religion, and Politics in Medieval China: The Dunhuang Cave of the Zhai Family, Qiang Ning
• Eighteen Lectures on Dunhuang, Xinjiang Rong
• Life Along the Silk Road, Second Edition, Susan Whitfield (Link to Amazon Purchase)

ONLINE WEBSITES/ARTICLES

• Dunhuang Studies: Chronology and History
• Dunhuang Timeline
• Notes on the History of Dunhuang

Spoiler: Interesting Playable/Unplayable Characters

Below is a run-down of the situation and interesting characters at each of the three early starting dates, to give an idea of what playthroughs might be possible:

769 CE

The Tibetans are advancing northwards into the Gansu region, but Tang authority hasn’t entirely eroded yet.

• Zhang Qianyi: A powerful Chinese official under the Tibetans, he serves them loyally - for now. In the future, once the right opportunity arises, he or his descendants might seek to restore Chinese rule to Dunhuang.
• Cao Shiyuan: The ruler of Yumen, under Zhang Qianyi. The Cao, despite their ambitions, understand that if Dunhuang is to be a powerful, independent state, they must focus on the Tibetans first. Thus, they serve the Zhang family capably for now.
• Li Dabin: The ruler of Anxi, who hails from the most ancient house of Li that gave rise to Laozi, Li Guang, and the Tang Emperors. With his friend and fellow official and father-in-law, Yin Tingjie, will he be able to ensure that the Dunhuang region remains free from Tibetan rule?

Other Interesting Characters

• An Yinfang: The wife of Zhang Qianyi, she hails from the An family of Dunhuang, who were heavily Sinicized Sogdians that intermarried with local Chinese elites. Her distant relative is Li Baoyu, born An Chongzhang, a loyal and talented Tang Dynasty general who fought against the An Lushan rebellion and later changed his name out of shame of coincidentally sharing the same last name as An Lushan.
• Fan Guozhong: A Dunhuang native who would lead one of the first major insurrections against Tibetan rule and be killed sometime in the early 9th century. He starts as a capable general, the Mayor of Shouchang under Zhang Qianyi.
• Li Lingwu: The older brother of Li Dabin and a renowned monk in Dunhuang. He starts as the Bhikkhu of the temple holding of Mogao under the Western Protectorate.
• Suo Tao: The ruler of the city Dunhuang proper, and a man proud of his family’s scholarly roots, who looks upon the Tibetan incursions with great disapproval.
• Yin Tingjie: Li Dabin’s friend and father-in-law, the Mayor of Guazhou.

867 CE

It’s been almost three decades since Zhang Yichao led a successful rebellion against the Tibetans, but as he grows older, he is increasingly unable to maintain the tense peace between the various scheming clans of Dunhuang.

• Zhang Yichao: The man himself who liberated Dunhuang from Tibetan rule, Zhang Yichao is now old and the rising tensions and ambitions between the clans of Dunhuang. For now, there is peace, thanks to marriage alliances with all of the major clans, and Zhang Yichao’s capable leadership, but as soon as Zhang Yichao dies, all hell might break loose.
• Cao Wancheng: One of Zhang Yichao’s top officials, he is the most powerful vassal of the realm, ruling Jiuquan. The Cao are ambitious like their supposed ancestor Cao Cao. His son, Cao Yijin, is but a toddler, but there are astrologers who say great things lie ahead for this bright child.
• Li Mingzhen: An old ally of Zhang Yichao, he was one of his officers during the liberation of Dunhuang and rules Yangguan. However, he and his sons, who hail from an old family claiming distant relations to the Tang Emperors, feel they are the rightful leaders of Dunhuang.
• Suo Xun: His family are another old clan of Dunhuang, having been around since the Han Dynasty. They are proud scholars, and seek to make Dunhuang a bastion of civilization - Suo Xun, who rules Anxi, is ambitious, and may be the first to attempt overthrowing the Zhang once Zhang Yichao dies.
• Yin Wentong: One of Zhang Yichao’s more loyal officials, he was a major aide of Zhang Yichao during the campaign against the Tibetans. He rules Yumen, and is the weakest of the major vassals.

Other Interesting Minor Characters

• Kang Tongxin: A Dunhuang official who hails from a Sinicized family of Sogdians that has intermarried with the Chinese clans.
• Wuzhen: A celebrated monk in Dunhuang who led a major embassy to the Tang court in Dunhuang on behalf of the Zhang regime. He is the Bhikkhu of the temple holding of Mogao at the game start. An erudite and learned man, he can easily serve Zhang Yichao as a chancellor/diplomat or court chaplain.
• Zhai Farong: A powerful official in Dunhuang, and grandfather of the future celebrated scholar and calendarist Zhai Fengda, he is Baron of the castle of Fulu under Cao Wancheng.
• Zhang Qiu: A famous literati and author in Dunhuang, not related to the ruling family, who is the Mayor of Suzhou under Cao Wancheng at game start. A skilled writer and author, he has a number of connections and is friends with Zhang Huaishen, Zhang Yichao’s nephew.
• Zhu Zaiqing: An important leader in the Buddhist lay community, he is the Mayor of Yueyaquan, under Zhang Yichao at the game start.

936 CE

After Zhang Yichao’s death, there was some chaos and a revolving door of usurpers and intrigue, but after years of turmoil Guiyi Circuit is firmly under the rule of the Cao clan.

• Cao Yuande: Without a strong leader like Zhang Yichao or Cao Yijin, this son of Cao Yijin has big shoes to fill - the threat of Uighurs to both east and west, as well as the nomads to the north. With China still in chaos, it is his duty to uphold Chinese civilization in this frontier of the west.
• Zhai Fengda: Though the Zhai are an old clan in the Dunhuang region, they’ve only recently gained increased influence. Zhai Fengda, who rules Yangguan, has gained acclaim and renown as an intelligent official and scholar, and perhaps he can use this to further the clan’s agenda in Dunhuang, or to improve the region’s culture or infrastructure.
• Li Ling: This once great clan are shadow of their former selves. Despite usurping leadership of the Guiyi Circuit for a while, they were spared - which is fortunate. Guiyi is in an even weaker, though stabler position than under Zhang Yichao’s rule. Will Li Ling seek to accomplish what Li Mingzhen and his sons could not, or will he not risk Dunhuang’s stability and instead work to serve the Cao regime loyally?

Other Interesting Minor Characters

• Shanyou: A monk-official under the Cao regime, he was sent on a diplomatic mission to Turfan in 935 CE. He starts as a Bhikkhu of the temple holding of Mogao at game start and would make a good Chancellor or Court Chaplain.
• Suo Ziqian: Despite being the first to usurp the heirs of Zhang Yichao, the Suo clan survived. Their current leader, Suo Ziqian, is the Baron of Yumenquan under Cao Yuande. He would later lead an important delegation to the Kingdom of Khotan in 956 CE, and would make a good Chancellor.
• Zhang Huaiqing: He is the leader of the remnants of the Zhang clan, son of the last Zhang ruler of Dunhuang, Zhang Chengfeng. Currently, he is an official, the mayor of Dunhuang under Cao Yuande. He has a weak claim on the Duchy of Guiyi, so might be a problem in the future, though he doesn’t seem particularly interested in seizing his rightful inheritance.
• Zhang Yingrun: Another surviving member of the Zhang family. He is a devout member of the local Buddhist community, famous for sponsoring a number of religious constructions and work on scripture.

Lastly, no promises on what I'll work on next. I really want to get one small Immersion Pack as a last huzzah for my CK2 modding career before I shift gears to CK3 modding. I do have a few ideas I'm debating between, so hopefully I'll show a preview once I get some work done.










I think I decided to scale back on the bloodlines for balance reasons, it wouldn't make sense to have every major family get one because it would kind of dillute the uniqueness of them. That said, in the code, I did leave the bloodline for the Yin family, though it's commented out.

Anothe great work which is going to be a great addition to my collection (read with grievous voice xD)

 

[cybrxkhan]

Can you please do an immersion pack on Western Africa next? the region feels almost entirely flavourless.

West Africa was one of my first really big things I worked on back in the old VIET years ago, but I've no interest in rehashing that now especially when CK3 is around the corner - though I will definitely consider doing something for West Africa once I shift gears to CK3. That said, have you seen the African Religions Overhaul mod (Steam link here)? It splits up the African pagan religion into several new pagan religions and adds in a crapload of content to African pagans.

Anothe great work which is going to be a great addition to my collection (read with grievous voice xD)

Thank you!

 

[cybrxkhan]

PAMIR MOUNTAINS IMMERSION PACK PREVIEW​

Hello all! At first I was planning on a Socotra themed mod as my swansong for CK2 modding before I move to CK3, but I got burnt out doing that (though I may adapt some ideas from it to CK3 one day); thankfully, I got a flash of inspiration a week or two ago to work on a smaller and less ambitious mod themed around the Pamir mountain region of all things. This won't be anywhere near as meaty as the Dunhuang Pack (and it's honestly even more niche a setting), and is mechanically just a few nice gimmicks in my usual style, partly so I can actually get it out before CK3's release, but hopefully it'll still be a bit of fun. Anyhow, here's a preview of some of the Pamir Immersion Pack's features.

First, there will be at least three new cultures: Pamiri, Kashmiri, and Burusho. Pamiri and Kashmiri will be added to the map via a hidden start-up event as usual, with characters switching to these two cultures if appropriate. Burusho (or Hunza), representing speakers of Burushaski, a unique language with no known relation to any other language family, does not exist on the map at any start date. Instead, it appears via events that spawn courtiers (akin to Jewish in vanilla CK2, or East Asians in my Dunhuang pack). There are two possible events. One spawns a few normal courtiers, and one spawns a Burusho warrior with a military education:

Spoiler: Burusho Character Spawn

Next are mechanics related to a few new province modifiers. The province of Badakhshan has a special modifier representing the mines of Sar-i Sang, which historically provided the vast majority of lapis lazuli, a much coveted, blue-colored precious metal. (Btw, this was the first feature I wanted for this mod.)

Spoiler: Mines of Sar-i Sang

If you own Badakhshan, you'll have a decision to invest in improving the mine's infrastructure, which adds an extra modifier that nets you more cash for a limited time:

Spoiler: Lapis Lazuli Mine Investment

Meanwhile, the provinces of Vakhan and Gilgit each get a province modifier representing a network of defensive and communication watchposts along the Wakhan Corridor and the passes of the Karakoram Mountains respectively. These were important routes traversing some of the most rugged terrain of the Silk Road, and were previously built and maintained by various rulers, including the Tibetan Empire and Tang China. By default, they are in disrepair, giving very minor maluses that shouldn't be a huge issue per se but are there (with the modifier in Wakhan being slightly more severe).

Spoiler: Repairing the Wakhan Corridor Watchposts

These two provinces have a decision associated with it where you can set aside some funds to repair and maintain them for a period of time, which will replace the modifier with one granting bonuses to tax rate, levy reinforcement, and fort level; once that period of time is up, they'll revert back to the disrepair modifier. So, it might be wise to invest in these watchposts if you expect to get attacked in these provinces in the near future. (Actual bonuses/maluses for modifiers subject to change.)

Spoiler: Wakhan Watchposts Restored

There are a couple of other simple features that will likely make the cut that I'll go over in a later post, including minor improvements to character history, and a special decision, the Chinir Festival, for Pamiri culture characters. The Nowruz decision from the Dunhuang pack will also be added. If I have time and energy, I may add in a few other things too, but we'll see. Overall, it's been good practice for me to temper my ambitions (which is always a problem lol) as I am doing what the PI devs do where instead of overwhelming myself attempting to everything on the to-do list, I focus on implementing higher priority features, and will only work on cool but lower priority ones if I still have time/energy.

 

[cybrxkhan]

PAMIR MOUNTAINS IMMERSION PACK PREVIEW (Part 2)​

Hello again! This is the second preview for the Pamir Immersion Pack.

The main features are more or less finished at this point (since this pack is much lighter on content), so if you're interested you can download the beta version here, which should be stable. For now, I'll focus on testing and bugfixing, as well as adding in the generic flavor events and music accompanying the pack, and it should be good for release by next weekend if all is well.

Anyways, onto the features themselves. Again, much simpler overall compared to what I did for the previous Immersion Packs, but hopefully it'll be fun.

The Chinir Festival is a simple feast decision that can be held every five years by anyone who is of Pamiri culture, or has a Pamiri cultured province in their demesne. It is similar to the usual feast decisions I've done in the past. The Festival itself is celebrated IRL by some groups of Wakhi people, one of the major ethnicities that speak a Pamiri language, so I decided to use it as representative of the Pamiri as a whole since I was able to find some information about it. As a side note, I plan to include the Nowruz Festival decision that was in my Dunhuang pack in this one as well (no changes done so that the Dunhuang and Pamir packs won't clash if you run them together).

Spoiler: Chinir Festival

I've also decided to add a new province modifier, Gold Mines of Gilgit, to Gilgit. While not as important as places like West Africa, the region was famous for being a source of gold since ancient times. There's no decision associated with this one, but it will net a small boost to your economy.

Spoiler: Gold Mines

Next, I've made changes to the Patola Shahi dynasty that rules the Duchy of Pamir at the 769 start based on my research. A hidden event at game start will change the name of the ruler to the correct name of Vikrama (though he may have been ousted from power or dead by this time IRL). I've also added several of his ancestors, previous Patola Shahi kings, going back to the early 7th century. If you select the Patola Shahi King, you are also given the option of playing a fictitious Pamiri chieftain ruling over the county of Pamir at the 769 start. I did this mainly to represent the fragmented nature of this region, and to make the Patola Shahi king's starting position a little weaker. You can also choose to play as the chief of Skardu, a fictitious cousin at the 769 game start who represents the difference between the states of Great Balor and Lesser Balor, which were both ruled by the Patola Shahi. For maximum compatibility, you can choose to play these two characters via an event at game start (similarly to what I did with the Dunhuang pack) if you select the Patola Shahi king, to avoid messing with the history files.

Spoiler: Patola Shahi Intro Event

If you select the vanilla rulers of Badakhshan at the 769 or 867 starts, or Vakhan/Wakhan at the 867 start, you also have the option to play as new mod-added rulers in these provinces (added again via hidden in-game event for compatibility). In Badakhshan, these are local chieftains who I've given the family name of "Puteshan" - the term used in sources from the Sinosphere (such as that of the Korean monk and traveler Hyecho from the 8th century) to refer to this kingdom, so since we appear to lack sources discussing these kings' actual names, I've went with the next best thing which falls in line with what PI has done elsewhere for regions where some info is known about the rulers but not their names.

Spoiler: Puteshan Kings

In Vakhan/Wakhan, they are just fictitious descendants of the "Wakhanshah" dynasty at the 769 start. While the rulers would be likely real local chiefs, their names are lost to history as far as I know. Anyhow, the Puteshan and Wakhanshah starts are pretty difficult as they're Buddhist OPMs who answer to Muslim overlords, but at least you got the cool new province modifiers I mentioned in my previous post.

Lastly, for those who like to collect bloodlines, the ruler of Gilgit at the 867 start, Azur Jamshid, and his descendants get a special bloodline with a few minor bonuses. Azur Jamshid, who does appear in vanilla, is a mythological hero celebrated in the local legends. According to legend he was a Persian adventurer who defeated and killed the cannibal tyrant king Shri Badat and married the king's daughter (both of whom appear in the history files too).

Spoiler: Azur Jamshid

Anyhow, that should about cover it! As mentioned before this will be my last new mod for CK2 ever, and other than an update or two to VIET, I will be moving onto CK3. At the moment, my tentative plan for an equivalent of my Immersion Packs is one big mod, albeit segmented as if it were like a bunch of immersion packs combined - this will make updating it easier (not a problem with CK2 as it doesn't get patches anymore), but otherwise will be me jumping around random places like with my Immersion Packs. I already have tentative ideas on where to go explore for the first part of this CK3 mod - so we'll see what happens!

 

[cybrxkhan]

PAMIR IMMERSION PACK IS NOW AVAILABLE!
Steam Workshop Download | Github Manual Download
A Pamir Immersion Pack Guide is also available if you're interested in more detailed information.​

Pamir: Roof of the World has just been released. It includes several new simple mechanics, flavor, and history tweaks to the Pamir Mountain region, which is located at the crossroads of the Silk Road in modern-day eastern Afghanistan, northern Pakistan, and parts of Tajikistan. As mentioned before, I almost didn't do this but had a flash of inspiration a few weeks ago, and I was able to complete this just in time for CK3.

Features include the following:

• Expanded character, dynasty, and province history changes done via hidden event for maximum compatibility:
  • Revised family tree for the Patola Shahi
  • New semi-historical playable characters at the early start dates, such as the Puteshan Kings of Badakhshan
  • New bloodline for the hero of local folklore, Azur Jamshid
• New cultures, including Pamiri, Kashmiri, and Burusho (the latter of whom don’t appear on the map at game start, but can spawn in the courts of rulers of the Pamirs)
• Chinir Festival and Nowruz feast decisions for Iranian characters
• Profit from the lapis lazuli mines of Sar-i Sang and the gold mines of Gilgit
• Maintain the network of watchposts in Wakhan and the Karakoram Mountains
• Over 30 generic flavor events for the Pamir region
• 6 new music tracks for the Middle East and Central Asia

Please see the Steam workshop page for more screenshots.

This will be my last mod release for CK2 before I switch to CK3 (though I will release one last update to VIET next weekend), ending a 8 year period of my life. It all started - almost exactly 8 years ago, in fact - when I uploaded a mini-mod that tweaked trait stats on August 19, 2012; somehow I feel it fits my style to end with the Pamir Mountains, an obscure setting not too many people will care about, but one important to history and full of wonders nevertheless.

For those who are interested, my plans for CK3 will be to work on two mods. The VIET Events equivalent will be called Events About Simple Things (EAST), while the Immersion Pack equivalent will be tentatively called Assortment of Socio-Cultural Immersive Additions (ASIA) (because I love dumb puns). Unlike with these Immersion Packs, the CK3 equivalent will be kept together in one main mod (to make updating easier), but I will still try to keep the very focused, region to region approach I've done with my Immersion Packs. At the moment, I intend to work no two regions/Immersion Pack equivalents for the first release of the CK3, the island of Chios and another as of yet undetermined region or culture to showcase the mod's vision of focusing on random places all over the world. My hope is that I'll be able to work on and release these two mods within a month of CK3's release.

Anyways, again, thank you all for your support and encouragement all these years - I look forward to my final update to VIET next weekend, and then CK3 afterwards.

 

[Isewein]

Thank you for all the love you've put into those! Ideas & writing are stellar, and they really make underappreciated regions shine.

Just to note that in addition to Dunhuang, Pamir unfortunately also seems incompatible with SWMH - I'm having random pockets of Kashmiri culture show up anywhere across the world but in Kashmir with it enabled.

Likewise, although the Harranian pack seems to function well as is, it would be great if the mod could detect for SWMH (or any other submod adding Syriac / Assyrian culture) and make the Harranian culture that if it is installed rather than Arabic, considering that Syriac was Thabit's mother tongue according to records. Also, it should move the province of the Harranians to the actual province Harran which is present on the SWMH map.

EDIT: I've made a small compatch for the Harranian pack to work with SWMH. Basically all I did was link to the province & county of Harran (1238, c_Harran) rather than Edessa (699, c_Edessa) wherever applicable, and replaced Levantine Arabic as its culture with SWMH's more appropriate Assyrian while I was at it. Seems to work fine for me at first glance.