Elephants Avenged: Habitat & Extinction
In the vanilla game, War Elephants are a permanent, unchanging fixture of the map. In reality, relentless demand for ivory, military mounts, and agricultural expansion drove the Syrian elephants to total extinction centuries before game start, and North African elephants to extinction during the period covered by a timeline-extended game. Let’s also not forget the Roman use of elephants in gladiatorial games.
Elephants Avenged introduces a dynamic ecological system where your empire’s expansion has consequences. As your civilization grows, the habitats of these ancient giants are threatened, forcing you to choose between short-term economic development and the long-term survival of the species. However, for the right ruler, it’s never too late to reverse the trend…
Habitat Loss & Wildlife Conflict: High civilization levels, large local populations, and urbanization will now trigger habitat loss events. Over time, elephant trade goods may be permanently replaced by more "pragmatic" resources like Wood, Grain, or Spices, depending on the local terrain.
The Ivory Trade: When faced with problematic herds, rulers can choose to prioritize immediate economic gain by exploiting the herds for their ivory, bringing wealth to the treasury but accelerating the decline of the local elephant population.
Conservation vs. Exploitation: As a player, you are always given the choice to protect the herds at the cost of urban development, or pave over them for progress. For the AI, these choices are dynamically driven by their culture, religion, and current ruler traits (e.g., a Greedy or Arbitrary ruler will exploit the land, while Dharmic religions or Punic, or certain African cultures will naturally enact protections, while Rome and the successors of the Diadochi overexploited the herds).
Reestablishment Projects: Late-game events allow advanced empires to attempt the reintroduction of managed elephant herds to suitable lands in their former range provided you are willing to deal with the pushback from evicted local settlers. The Seleucids need their elephants, after all!
Full Invictus Integration: Built specifically to work as a submod of Imperator: Invictus, utilizing its high-quality event art, expanded trade goods, and historical scope.
Requires: Imperator: Invictus
Save Games: Safe to add mid-campaign.
Mod Compatibility: Compatible with map-changing mods like Invictus INR. However, it is likely incompatible with any mod that directly alters the name of the elephants trade good. AI behavior for elephant preservation in historically sustained regions and herds also will break if culture names or culture group names don’t match Invictus.
"For some of them, contrary to Pompey’s wish, were pitied by the people when, after being wounded and ceasing to fight, they walked about with their trunks raised toward heaven, lamenting so bitterly as to give rise to the report that they did so not by mere chance, but were crying out against the oaths in which they had trusted when they crossed over from Africa, and were calling upon Heaven to avenge them."
— Cassius Dio, Roman History, Book 39
