On the 13th August 2013, EU4 was released to the public - and with it a small little event pack called Purple Phoenix for a country whose popularity was almost uncanny even back then. Over the ten years, this popularity did not stop but rose further and further, and now it is one of the main three focus points of King of Kings. Welcome to todays Development Diary which is all about the one country you guys have been looking forward to the most: Byzantium. Hardly in need of any more introduction on the country, as every single patch of EU4 has at least one video tutorial dedicated to the remnant of the Roman Empire. So without further ado, let us jump into the content we can expect for Byzantium in 1.36. So first thing first: the setup of Byzantium. The province change has been somewhat spoiled already, but I will mention it here nonetheless to confirm it: yes, Mesambria is now part of Byzantium and it will have the Bulgarian core on it:
Another change is the adjustments on the stats of its heir, Konstantinos Palaiologos. Although the empire did eventually fall under his rule, it was not anything he could have prevented, and as such the stats he had were a bit unfair considering his experiences as the past Despot of Morea. He is now a 5/2/3! Speaking of Morea, the area of Morea now starts with +25% Local Autonomy to represent the kinsmen of the Byzantine Emperors ruling over this part of the empire. Another point of Byzantine adjustments is their ideas. While their +3 TotF and 3% Missionary Strength make them a strong religious country, the rest of their ideas are relatively underwhelming. As Byzantium is an end-game tag it felt kind of justified to balance their ideas a bit better out. Additionally, it is a nice reward for players who survive the early years. These are the new ideas (Ideas with a # at the start are the modifiers that used to be there pre-1.36): BYZ_ideas = { start = { advisor_cost = -0.10 improve_relation_modifier = 0.2 #tolerance_own = 3 } bonus = { tolerance_own = 3 #prestige = 1 } trigger = { tag = BYZ } free = yes repopulation_of_countryside = { global_trade_goods_size_modifier = 0.1 #merc_maintenance_modifier = -0.15 } byz_roman_empire = { core_creation = -0.25 #global_manpower_modifier = 0.1 #global_trade_goods_size_modifier = 0.05 } ecumenical_patriarch = { global_missionary_strength = 0.03 yearly_patriarch_authority = 0.003 #global_tax_modifier = 0.1 } byz_corpus_iuris_civilis = { #Replaces byz_admin_power for Purple Phoenix events reform_progress_growth = 0.2 #stability_cost_modifier = -0.1 } byz_protect_the_frontiers = { defensiveness = 0.15 #global_trade_power = 0.1 } byz_strategikon = { discipline = 0.05 } new_imperial_army = { global_manpower_modifier = 0.15 #global_missionary_strength = 0.03 } } With that out of the way, lets talk for a moment about the intentions for Byzantium. I mentioned in the Persia Development Diary that countries that receive content tend to become a lot easier than they used to be, hence Ardabil received explicitly nothing that could trivialize their early game. Byzantium is another candidate where we explicitly want it to be a fight for survival. Because of that, the Byzantines will now start with 4 privileges which are more curses than blessings to you:
Note: That privilege increases the starting opinion of the Papal State of you by 125. More to it later.
Note: The Morale Reduction is only present if you have King of Kings active as the mission tree will give you Land Morale modifiers over the course of the campaign to counteract this privilege.

All of the privileges with the exception of 'Reliance on Republics' can be removed through decisions. Both the starting privileges and the decisions are part of the 1.36 update. Additionally to the penalties, the privileges also cause certain events to happen to your country. Our first example is the Union of Churches. Roughly 3 months into the game you get greeted with the following event in regard to the union:
While revoking the privilege immediately would prevent the spawn of rebels further down the line, there is an argument to be made for keeping the privilege active as they can trigger the following event if you are in a defensive war against the Ottomans while having this privilege active:
I dont want to spoil this part as this should be rather experienced in your own playthrough. But a little teaser: the second option allows for a very different religious path for the Byzantines! Moving on, the 'Tax Exemption' privilege also fires an event that can be an early game boon with a long-term penalty.
Byzantium has been fitted with many early game events leading up to their eventual demise. While it would be lovely to showcase them all, we only have so much time. So here are a few:
Note: that event is firing for the Ottomans. The follow-up event is triggered for the Byzantines.


Also an event for the Ottomans in relation to the Byzantine content:
One final thing to mention to make the early game even more of a challenge - the starting reform for the Byzantines has been adjusted with a new penalty and a new mechanic (more to it later):

There is nothing more Roman than falling in the back of your countrymen in time of need for a chance to seize absolute power for yourself. Now that we have the events through, it is time to take a look at the new mission tree for the Byzantines for the upcoming DLC:
Note: with 55 missions in one playthrough, the Byzantine tree is the largest of the DLC. First a few words about the general theme of the mission tree before going into detail: there are vastly different ideas of what is to be expected of a tree for Byzantium (a look into your local Steam Workshop is a fast way to see what I mean). Some would like to see the addition of Hellenism and a whole path revolving around it, others want a mission tree that revolves around the big what if questions of a modernized Byzantium that no longer tries to forge its own destiny independently from the Roman legacy. While all of these ideas are great ones to explore, we have decided to focus on the one path which is generally the one accepted by the majority of the player base which is the ambition of restoring the Roman Empire. The goal was to keep the spirit of the Purple Phoenix mission tree and expand it with flavor so the reconquest of your empire feels like a bigger narrative than just good ol blobbing. The mission tree is split into six parts:

• A small defensive part with three missions revolving around reinforcing the Theodosian Walls and constructing the Hexamilion Wall
• A large conquest part starting from The Impending Doom
• A small trade part of the two missions Peloponnesian Renaissance and Monemvasian Merchants
• An internal infrastructure part starting from A Tarnished State and Promote the Emporoi
• A part about the military and administrative aspects of the Empire
• And finally the religious part

Note: the mending will be significantly more difficult though as you must ensure that 300 provinces in Europe are Orthodox and in Orthodox hands. Fortunately, many provinces are already Orthodox. They just need a Roman hand to free themselves from the heretics.

Main Features

• Make your own decisions: Nation building is completely flexible and the possibilities are endless.
  
• Use your Monarch Power: Experience the new system of monarch power where your choices are influenced by the caliber of the man or woman you have at the top and will direct the ebb and flow of gameplay.
  
• Experience history coming to life: The great personalities of the past are on hand to support you as you make your mark on thousands of historical events.
  
• Turn the world into your playground: Enjoy hundreds of years of gameplay in a lush topographical map complete with dynamic seasonal effects.
  
• Experience the all new trade system: The trade system adds a new dimension to the great trade empires of the period. Gain control of vital trade routes and make the wealth of the world flow to your coffers.
  
• Bring out your negotiating skills in a deeper diplomatic system: Use coalitions, royal marriages and support for rebels and explore the possibilities of the new unilateral opinion system.
  
• Engage in Cross-platform Multiplayer: Battle against your friends or try the co-operative multiplayer mode that allows several players to work together to control a single nation with up to 32 players. Featuring improved chat and new matchmaking servers.
  
• Create your own history & customize your game: Europa Universalis IV gives you the chance to customize and mod practically anything your heart may desire and uses Steam Workshop.

• Processor: Intel Core i3-2105 / AMD FX 4300Memory: 4 GB RAM
• Memory: 4 GB RAM
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 460 / AMD Radeon HD 5850Video Memory: 1 GB RAMIDIA GeForce 9600 or higher. 1024MB graphics memory requiredHard Drive:6 GB HD spaceOther Requirements:Broadband Internet connectionAdditional:GLSL 1.3. OpenGL 2.1. Controller support: 3-button mouse. keyboard and speakers. Internet Connection or LAN for multiplayer

• Processor: Intel Core i3 3240 / AMD FX 8120Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 560 TiVideo Memory: 1 GB RAMHard Drive:6 GB HD spaceOther Requirements:Broadband Internet connectionAdditional:GLSL 1.3. OpenGL 2.1. Controller support: 3-button mouse. keyboard and speakers. Internet Connection or LAN for multiplayer