Legacy of Ashoka
What began as a personal mod project evolved into my attempt to overhaul and correctly depict Buddhism in Crusader Kings 3. As a practicing Buddhist, and big Paradox fan, I always noticed how Buddhism did not seem to have as much flavor or depth as other depicted religions. Therefore, this mod has historical accuracy, religious respect, and attention to gameplay in mind.
I hope this mod will help to dispel stereotypes and misconceptions about Buddhism in popular media, provide a unique immersion with Buddhist philosophy and culture, and above all, be enjoyable to play!
- Adds 8 new Buddhist faiths and changes doctrines, tenets, and more for existing faiths
- Adds 8 new Buddhist-exclusive tenets (and a bonus legitimacy tenet available for everyone!)
- All Buddhist faiths have a ‘Vinaya Lineage’ doctrine, which allows taking vows and other unique perks
- Creates new meditation decisions and event chains exclusively for Buddhists
- Buddhist meditations are no longer about stress only, and can even have side-effects
- Heavily corrects Buddhist localization text (no more praising ‘Siddhartha’ or referring to ‘the samsara’)
- Nangchos is divided into five faiths, three of which have Head of Faith titles, and all can be converted to by decision
- Adds events related to the decline and syncretism of Buddhism in South Asia
- Vajrayana no longer accepts crimes, although those who take the Tantric path may end up committing them…
Future Goals
- Chinese Buddhists earn lifestyle traits by aligning with various internal schools
- Celebrate Buddhist holidays like Vesak
- Expanded event chains for the decline of Buddhism in India
- Partake in a Dharmic Retreat activity
- More and more…
This is a beta release, so please report any bugs or issues so they can be corrected.
If you want to help contribute to this mod’s development, or have any recommendations or feedback at all, please reach out or comment below. This mod is a one-person project at the moment, but I would love to expand its scope if there is an appetite for it!
CompatibilityAny mod that alters religious_decisions.txt, core_tenets.txt, buddhism.txt, religion_buddhism_l_english.txt, and the character or province history files for India, eastern Persia, Tibet, and the Tarim Basin will conflict.
Credits• Even More Religious Icons by Ledabot – some of their Buddhist custom faith icons are used
• New Paper Map by LNSS – used for the screenshots depicted above
• shautora – modder of Paganism Plus who provided advice and encouragement
• The GS Discord – a Buddhist community who’ve inspired me to help clear up stereotypes about ethnic Buddhism with this mod
• The various articles, research papers, temple resources, religious commentaries, and others I used to fact-check many of the changes in this mod, and to be mindful (pun) of sectarianism, teachings forbidden for lay people, and historical realities of medieval Buddhism
