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Praecepta Militaria - A Byzantine Army Rework

Praecepta Militaria is an alt-history rework of the the Byzantine army offering the player the opportunity to reshape its fortunes against the backdrop of chaos and ever-growing threats of the late feudal period and beyond.

This mod aims to address the distinct lack of flavor and meaningful options available to the player with respect to rebuilding the Byzantine military apparatus by introducing new government reforms, buildings, units, and events drawn from both the real history of the Byzantine Empire as well as some speculative historical fiction (i.e. competent 14th century rulers and generals). In some ways this makes the campaign start for Byzantium more grueling, but who doesn't like a challenge?

Note: While the changes and additions are meant to be modest to remain compatible with both vanilla gameplay and other mods, please note that some of the more reaching changes are currently in play-test and may need to be tweaked over time for balance. Most of the effort is focused on early gameplay (Age of Tradition -> Discovery eras), with more planned for later eras as time permits.

The general intent is to encourage the player to build up military infrastructure as a compliment to interacting with the estates to improve both size, quality, and composition of their armies as well as gaining control over the imperial territories. Vanilla gameplay gates a lot of the most meaningful options for later ages, long after its relevant for Byzantium's starting condition. This mod is should give players more to work for early in the game.



12/08/2025:

• Added Regulars: Age 1 archers, Age 2 crossbowmen, Age 2 footmen, Age 3 long spears (demi pikemen), Age 4 billhooks, and Age 6 Guard units.
  
• Split the advances and unlocks for regulars to make some units available to all Greek culture nations (Tagmata and Guard units are still Byzantium-specific.
  
• Added appropriate research tree unlocks.
  
• Added unique building; "Scholai Stratópedon" or Palatine Barracks.

• Appoint Generals to Regional Command: Appointing a Strategos now confers important bonuses to your war effort, but beware giving away too much power...
  
• Twilight of the Palaiologos: Early game event representing the state of the empire in the wake of the rule of Andronikos III (optional).
  
• Replacing most unique reforms require a combination of research advances and military building construction.

• Thema Headquarters (updated) - Now provides mildly useful bonuses to offset the crown power hit. Necessary to kick off the event chain to remove significant maluses from the country rather than something the player simply avoids until amories kick in.
  
• Kentrika - Upgrades to the thema HQ, unlocked via advancement (so its available if you take the vanilla thema reform event), pairs well with armories, kastrons, and strateiai to turn rural provinces into military districts.
  
• Kastrons - Small forts that straddle the line between castles and bailifs. Offer decent frontier defense, control, and manpower with several penalties (no zone-of-control).
  
• Despotates - Large, fortified administrative military administrative complexes. Upgrades the kastron in Age of Discovery.
  
• Limes - Minor walls, can only be built in rural locations. Recreate the Limes Danubia!
  
• Megasynores - Age 3 upgrade for limes, adds zone of control (like Repaired Great Wall building for Yuan)
  
• Strateiai - Soldier estates which can be built in rural areas to encourage population migration (necessary for reform event chains). Offers small attraction and food production bonuses while increasing peasant power.
  
• Logotheteion - Admin building for the local administrata, capacity upgrades over the ages.
  
• Pandidakterion - Capital-only building, state-supported university in Constantinople which offers decent army bonuses (required for early reform events).
  
• Burgi - Rural outposts that improve merchant power and offer minor control and unrest bonuses. Can only be built in locations with roads.
  
• Apothēkai - Military warehouses.
  
• Vassilika Kommerkia - Age 3 upgrade for apothēkai, imperial customs/warehouses crucial for state trade and revenue collection.
  
• Astikoí Stratónes - Urban barracks, manpower and unrest options for urban locations.
  
• Scholai Stratópedon - Palatine barracks, unique building that can only be built in the capital or in the provinces immediately adjacent (with road connections). Meant to represent the scholae barracks present near Constantinople.
  
• Fortified Cisterns - Population health bonuses and extra defensiveness for urban locations
  
• Imperial Arsenal - Fortified naval complex with extra bonuses when built int he capital (approximates the Kontoskalion before the harbor was drained).

• 12 new reforms
  
• 6 estate privileges.
  
• 2 updated reforms.
  
• Build military infrastructure buildings (and research) to trigger reform event. Make sure your stability and legitimacy don't drop too low...

• Over 30 unique units & levies.
  
• Unlock Greek Flamethrowers!

• Six new categories, nearly 40 new laws & legacies.
  
• Byzantine Legacy (WIP): Unlocked after completing the "Modern Imperial Army" reform as well as reaching the appropriate level of society value (quantity, quality, land, naval, offensive, defensive).
  
• Strategoi Privileges: How generals are deployed in administration, war, and domestic + foreign affairs. Change them to unlock assignable military governors!
  
• Officer Privilege: Represents the strata of the military the nation favors to show preference to in its officer corps. Available at start.
  
• Internal Security: Offers choices to militarize different aspects of the security apparatus
  
• Religious Warfare Laws: Perhaps it is time to reevaluate those monastic vows...
  
• Domestikos Laws: Reform the office of commander-in-chief. Prioritize administrative duties or empower the Megas Domestikos?

• Over 30 new advances.
  
• Want to get even with the beyliks pillaging your lands every war? Enable raiding and wrong-religion enslavement.
  
• Found military orders!
  
• Alternative starting advances for Age 1
  
• Variety of options up to Age 5

• Improve vanilla Byzantine reforms and advances.
  
• Longer event chains around particular regions, such as Anatolian and Balkan troops integrating into the army.
  
• encourage the AI to prioritize the new buildings as they are necessary to remove the many maluses introduced by the mod (not like Byzantium survives long anyway).

Metropolis&Megalopolis - Praecepta Militaria Compatch
Basileia Romaion Compatch - Praecepta Militaria Compatch


Not compatible with IRONMAN and ACHIEVEMENTS
*NOT save-game compatible (use at your own risk).

Thanks to 牛奶大魔王 for the Chinese Translation here

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