Best Mods For Victoria 3

Victoria 3 was released in October 2022 to broadly mixed reviews, with many decrying the significant changes to the warfare system and removal of features such as the Spheres of Influence mechanic. Though the developer would take much of the criticism to heart, releasing regular and often substantive updates to the game, the modding community has truly come through to attempt to make Victoria 3 what many feel it should have been on release.

From simple UI changes to deep and far-reaching system re-works, the modding community has been working tirelessly to give players the game they wanted from the start. Countless mods can be used to enhance the feel of Victora 3, and with so many to choose from, players are sure to find something that suits their needs.

Updated November 25, 2024 by Rhenn Taguiam: With the game’s free Update 1.8 “Masala Chai” coming alongside the Pivot of Empire expansion pack, fans of Victoria 3 can now set their sights on India as it paves the way through the Victorian era with mechanics reworks such as Discrimination and Political Movements as well as new features like Food Security and Harvest Conditions. As Victoria 3 stays strong with its regular updates, fans of the game may want to spice things up for their playthroughs with mods that can change the way they play.

These include a mod that adds a trackable statistic about inequality, an AI overhaul that improves gameplay, a rework that transforms certain nations into more power-hungry counterparts, and one that provides players with more challenging gameplay features “based on real data” stats.

1 Check Your Gini Coefficient

See The State Of Inequality For A More Immersive Experience

• Created by: Sena Lee
• Mod Link

It’s not all the time that a Mod has to do something remarkable to be considered extremely useful, especially in a game of a grander scale like Victoria 3 that focuses on simulating more nuanced parts of governance. With Check Your Gini Coefficient, players can improve their immersion into the game’s faction-heavy mechanics even further with a socioeconomic twist - this time from the very real Gini Coefficient or Gini Index, courtesy of Italian statistician Corrado Gini.

The Gini Coefficient is known as the best way of measuring any form of inequality across different kinds of distribution systems. Its context in Victoria 3 gameplay is its most popular use, that of measuring inequality in terms of wealth distribution. Ideally, the Gini Coefficient should be 0 to indicate perfect equality where everyone gets the same income. However, it’s more often than not the Gini Coefficient shows a higher-than-zero value, meaning someone to some extent is holding more power than others. While the Check Your Gini Coefficient Mod doesn’t affect the game in drastic ways, its existence as a measure of the perceived inequality among the player’s populace adds a layer of immersion that may motivate players to pursue it.

2 Historically Accurate Randomize Farming Yields

Simulate Real-Life Farming Models Of The Time

• Created by: captain5555555555
• Mod Link

Players who love Paradox Interactive’s slate of grand strategy games will appreciate the focus on population that Victoria 3 provides in its gameplay, as it’s a stark change of pace from the combat-heavy and big-picture-heavy nature of other titles like Hearts of Iron 4 and Europa Universalis. However, players looking for more of a challenge in their Victoria 3 runs may want to consider running a session with the Historically Accurate Randomize Farming Yields.

As the name suggests, the Historically Accurate Randomize Farming Yields makes slight adjustments to the Agricultural Throughput that nations encounter throughout the game. This mod provides a number that is more or less based on real historical data and changes the Throughput statistic every year in the background. The nature of the mod can add a significant challenge to players, especially for those who didn’t expect their nation to be affected by the Historically Accurate Randomize Farming Yields in wildly different ways. Players who want an extra challenge in finding ways of modifying their strategy for such a situation may appreciate the mod.

3 Rising Powers: An AI Overhaul

Adds An Extra Challenge With Smarter AI

• Created by: Prince_of_Persia
• Mod Link

Players trying to figure out which nations to play next in their Victoria 3 session might be discouraged from trying smaller nations or even slightly major powers due to the potential setbacks they might experience at the hands of stronger early-game rivals. However, players who want to see these smaller nations actually get a shot at becoming a Great Power should consider installing the Rising Powers: An AI Overhaul. This AI-focused mod focuses on unrecognized Major Powers which somehow always encounter difficulties attaining Great Power status. Thanks to this mod, the AI now implements a “Rising Power” strategy that encourages them to be more aggressive and do what it takes to get recognized.

Other strategies pursued by AI are reworked to be more functional, such as territorial expansion where other nations actively seek war to expand. In line with these are extra challenges for players to overcome, such as raising the Infamy Cost of Diplomacy plays and the Sway Cost of offering a subject War Goal. This pursuit of more functional AI opponents may transform Victoria 3 into a more exciting experience for fans.

4 Formable And Releasable Nations

Expand Victoria 3 Gameplay With New Nations

• Created by: Kikko
• Mod Link

Players who spent hundreds of hours in Victoria 3 might have their favorite nations and even have candidates for nations they wouldn’t even bother trying - perhaps because they’re too difficult to use, lacking in exciting events, or just not as “fun” to tinker with. This is what Formable and Releasable Nations tries to change, as the mod adds new formable and releasable nations - complete with their own flags and dynamically changing features - for players to use.

Such new nations in the mod are separated into different groups, such as entirely new nations (like Yuan, East Prussia), hegemonies (like the Roman Empire, Carthage, Imperial Federation), dual monarchies (like Illyria, Zapadoslavia, Alpine Republic), nations of yore (like Angevin Empire, Celtica), and even dynamic names for specific conditions (such as “Portugaliza” that only happens when Portugal owns Galicia). These new additions can add new layers of fun for Victoria 3 players, especially for those who want to explore different takes on their gameplay.

5 Know When To Fold 'Em

Speed Up Warfare

• Created by: Ferrous
• Mod Link

As with other grand strategy titles, wars in Victoria 3 can be a challenging endeavor - especially now that population groups and their interests have to be taken to heart. Players who want a more pleasant playthrough might be bewildered by more aggressive or persistent AI enemies, and this is something Know When To Fold ‘Em remedies.

Unlike other Victoria 3 mods, this upgrade is straightforward: parties will capitulate on a complete defeat. While this game was more useful at a time before the base game forced this upon AI, this mod was tweaked to have extra features as well. For instance, the mod now programs AI not to surrender when war can still benefit them. More importantly, the mod now forces players to capitulate on complete defeat as well - ensuring they don’t waste more time than usual on a losing battle.

6 Victoria Tweaks Mod

Lightweight Changes For An Enhanced Experience

• Created by: Doodlez, OPB
• Mod Link

While more seasoned Victoria 3 players may be looking for mods tailored to more specific circumstances, the Victoria Tweaks Mod is a collection of slight tweaks that, when combined, become a robust upgrade to the acclaimed grand strategy title.

Victoria Tweaks Mod has a mixture of major and minor features, with the former offering players the opportunity to transform their Victoria 3 experience. For instance, the mod has slightly changed AI behavior, Legitimacy Levels have different effects, population growth will closely match historical figures, and urban centers can quickly revitalize the economy. Meanwhile, significant changes include imperialist AI being programmed to both colonize other lands and fight other rivals for territory, and Great Powers being able to gain claims in Africa, Indonesia, and Oceania.

7 War Is Politics

Make Diplomatic Plays More Manageable

• Created by: CaelReader
• Mod Link

Players who want a more peaceful and passive gameplay style in their Victoria 3 experience aren’t always rewarded with how the game incentivizes expansion. While focusing on Diplomatic Plays remains a doable playthrough in the base experience, War Is Politics improves gameplay by tweaking the game mechanic.

Through this mod, actions such as aggressive warfare, affecting a subject’s autonomy, finding colonies, banning slavery, and even declaring independence now affect more varied population groups. Moreover, countries now get temporary buffs or penalties to their Legitimacy based on actions such as winning or losing wars, respectively, and even how they perform their Diplomatic Plays. Wars now impact the player’s Ruler popularity and the appeal to their Interest Groups.

8 Formables Inherit ALL Primary Cultures

Stack Cultures For Smoother Expansion

• Created by: SnowBear
• Mod Link

When players embark on a grand campaign in their Victoria 3 playthrough, it’s unsurprising for them to eventually unite and form larger countries such as the Holy Roman Empire or Ethiopia. However, as players may notice, using an unconventional nation to form such a larger union can result in unsavory circumstances. For instance, the French may be persecuted in the HRE even if France created it - all because the HRE has a predetermined Primary Culture.

This all changes with Formables Inherit ALL Primary Cultures, a mod that is as straightforward as its name. When activated, players who form larger nations will stack the Culture of the forming nation to that of the larger formable. This feature can encourage more players to jump between formables, especially if they want a Russian nesting doll-esque gameplay of forming one nation to the next. As the larger nation now contains all Primary Cultures of their forming nations, players may have a more diverse set of strategies to deal with various situations.

9 No Clouds

Remove Clouds For Better Quality

• Created by: Lord Lambert, Wagentzu
• Mod Link

One of the first mods to be released for Victoria 3, No Clouds does exactly what its title implies. Though aesthetically pleasing, it's true that the clouds sweeping over the game map can often get in the way of what the player is looking for.

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That's why, a mere three days after the game's release, one player took it upon themselves to remove them from the game. Although many far more substantive mods have been released since then, No Clouds remains one of the most subscribed mods on the Victoria 3 Steam Workshop.

10 Extra Topbar Info

Get More Insights From The Game

• Created by: Sulius
• Mod Link

Another of the earliest and most subscribed mods in the community, Extra Topbar Info is a simple yet effective UI mod that gives the players much more information along the top of the interface than they'd have otherwise.

Even just the simple addition of Prestige to the interface makes this mod worth downloading; however, stats such as Legitimacy and the nation's technology research rate are displayed as well. It's no wonder Extra Topbar Info has remained as well-regarded as it has since only a month after the original release.