Vassals and Tributaries – Exalted Domination [3.3]

This mod aims to improve the Domination tradition so that it is an appealing option at any stage of the game and also adds several new vassal and tributary types that are more evocative and useful to an overlord. See screenshots for new tradition effects. All subject types now grant a small degree of influence, which can be put towards new planetary decisions meant to help empires with smaller territories or towards edicts that grant bonuses to your subject empires.

Upon gaining a vassal or tributary an overlord will be immediately prompted to choose a subject type with options based on their ethics. Empires of all ethics have the option to leave a subject as vanilla vassal or tributary. Protectorates that rise to become vassals will trigger the type selection at the beginning of the next month. You can use an edict to change a vassal’s type at the cost of influence.

Beneficiary: For empires that only want the best for their subjects. Beneficiaries receive a 50% reduction to the cost of their Overlord’s technology and are fully independent. Their ethics will shift to Xenophile and once a decade a random leader will defect to Overlord’s empire due to all the great things they hear.

Cultural Conservation: The subject is protected from outsiders but held back culturally and technologically by its Overlord. Its government becomes quite stable but suffers a large penalty to tradition and research development.

Dominion: The subject’s ruler is executed and a state religion is imposed where the Overlord’s current ruler is worshipped as a living god. The Dominion’s leader is the same as the Overlord’s, including level and traits, and changes to match the Overlord. The subject’s ethics shift to Authoritarian and Spiritualist, one of their civics is set to Imperial Cult.

Exarchate: The Overlord liberates its subject citizens, putting in protections for individual and religious rights. The subject’s ethics shift to Egalitarian and Spiritualist, and it actively advertises to other countries how benevolent its Overlord is.

House: The subject is remade as a noble house of its Overlord, who may place one of its admirals or governors as its new ruler. The subject’s ethics shift to Authoritarian and it finds itself in growing competition with other Houses of its parent empire.

Special Administrative Region: A SAR has a great degree of independence but is rendered tranquil through the Mostly Harmless civic (see below). AI empires of this type will gain a new personality that makes them deprioritize military fleets and offer trade deals at generous rates. Their ethics also shift to Pacifist.

Warden: A Warden empire exists to protect its overlord in times of war. Their ethics shift to Militarist, and their civics are replaced by Distinguished Admiralty and Stellar Guardian (see below). AI empires of this type will gain a new personality that makes them dedicate a large amount of their economy to fleets and to avoid entering into agreements that will distract their populace from war.

Xenoharvest: The subject empire is allowed to exist only so that its people may be claimed by its Overlord on a reoccuring basis. For research? Slavery? Food? They don’t want to know, but they hate their Overlord for it.

Pet: Kept alive only to amuse and increase their overlord’s prestige, pets neither maintain independence nor receive protection. Its dismal status grants its overlord greater Influence and Society Research.

Symbiont: This hive mind has been given a position of respect by its Overlord and is trusted to forge deep symbiotic relationships with the Overlord’s leaders so that both societies may evolve together.

Automated Assembler: This shackled AI is required to supply its Overlord with robotic workers and armies on a reoccuring basis. The robotic pop will appear on the Overlord’s capital planet and 2 army transports in the Overlord’s capital system.

Remote Archive: This AI has been adapted to record its Overlord’s ascendance. It enters into a research agreement with and once a year offers minor artifacts it has created or discovered as mementos to its Overlord.

Prefecture: Similar to vassals, this subject type renders the empire unable to form their own alliances or start wars and they can be integrated by the Overlord. They pay 20% of their monthly Food and Influence.

Satellite: These subjects are left independent, not even receiving protection from their Overlord if attacked. They enter into research agreements with their Overlord and pay 33% of their Research to them.

Signatory: A Signatory empire is prevented from forming alliances or starting wars with other empires, and in exchange is protected by their Overlord. They pay 10% of their monthly Consumer Goods, Exotic Gases, Rare Crystals, and Volatile Motes.

Thrall: For the Overlord that would prefer to never see their subjects again, Thralls are forbidden from expanding and receive no protection from their Overlord nor are they called upon in times of war. They pay 10% of their monthly Alloys and Unity.

AI Bonuses: AI empires that are subjugated by player empires will now keep the AI bonus based on the game difficulty.

Decisions and Edicts: The Domination traditions Executive Decisions and Privy Council unlock several new planetary decisions and empire edicts respectively. The edicts affect all subject empires, applying modifiers that simulate the bonuses AI empires receive at Captain difficulty but lose once they become a subject.

Diplomacy: Numerous changes have been made to how AI empires decide whether to accept subjugation peacefully. Empires that are significantly weaker actually have a chance of submitting. Subjugated empires have an opinion penalty rather than bonus towards their Overlord. This can be offset by using the subject edicts described above. Additionally, subjects are allowed to make and break commercial pacts.

Primitives: In vanilla Stellaris primitive empires that become spacefaring have been unintentionally handicapped since 2.2 as they do not start with alloys to build a starbase. Their starting resources have been significantly improved to make them more viable allies after technological enlightenment.

Ascension Perk: Shared Destiny This now allows you to demand vassalization or tribute from empires of Equivalent power rather than Superior. It also reduces the cost of subject edicts granted by the Domination tradition.

Civic: Feudal Realms: This grants a +100 diplomatic acceptance bonus for subjugation and unlocks all vassal and tributary types regardless of government ethics.

Civic: Mostly Harmless: This new Civic grants a +15% Trade Bonus, -15% Market Fee, +100% Trust Growth and -50% Border Friction in exchange for -50% Naval Capacity. Mostly for SPA vassals.

Civic: Stellar Guardian: This new Civic grants +100% Naval Capacity, +100% Defensive War Ship Build Speed, -50% Ship Build Cost and Ship Build Upkeep in exchange for -50% Unity, -50% Trade, and -75% Diplomatic Weight. Only for Warden vassals!

This mod tweaks the following and may conflict with other mods that do the same.

• Overwrites: subjects/00_subjects.txt, subjects/00_tributary.txt, and traditions/00_domination.txt
• Defines: Several related to vassalization
• Ascension Perk: ap_shared_destiny
• Civic: civic_feudal_realm
• Diplomatic Actions: Several 🙁
• Event: crisis.5000, primitive.16
• Opinion Modifier: opinion_is_subject