Total War Shogun 2 has an insane amount of replayability, and that is increased by the DLC that Creative Assembly has released. However, the amount of content that can be released by one company, no matter how good it is, is completely overshadowed by mods the community makes. Both small and large mods can add a new facet to the game that give an entirely new experience.
15. Strongholds of the Samurai
This mod fixes a problem that many Total War games face, and that is seeing the same maps over and over after a long playthrough. On your first campaign in Shogun 2, they seem unique enough, but after a while the siege maps especially begin to look familiar.
To fix this, this mod adds 36 entirely new, historically accurate siege maps to the game. This will satisfy gamers seeking more variety in their game as well as those history nerds who have always wanted to play their final siege of Kyoto in an accurate recreation of the 1500s city.
Of course, as with any modded map, occasionally the scale and AI of Total War can’t keep up, but these problems are rare, and honestly, the fun tactics that can come with a new map design are worth it. Plus, the mod is compatible with Fall of the Samurai as well, and who doesn’t like gunning down their enemies from all sides in a chokepoint!
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1507085670
14. Hattori/Tokugawa Kisho Ninja Fix
Unique units are always part of the flavor in any Total War game, and this is especially true of Shogun 2 because of its relatively small roster. Because of this, it was especially disappointing to learn that both factions with unique Kisho Ninjas, the Tokugawa (the final victors of the Warring States Period) and the Hattori, were bugged.
Their Kisho Ninjas, honestly one of the more fun units in the game, didn’t just have the same stats as other factions’ ninjas, but worse stats. They had significantly less ammo than their non-unique counterparts, which left a bad taste in my mouth and honestly made me avoid both factions, regardless of their other abilities.
This mod, however, changes both units so they are buffed from the standard ninjas of the other factions, which makes playing both the Tokugawa and the Hattori significantly better. Plus, running armies with a bunch of Kisho Ninjas is challenging but great fun.
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1372560589
13. Updated Wako Units + Pirate Ports + Imperial/Black Ship
Adding versatility to every faction’s unit roster, this mod gives every faction the ability to build Pirate ports instead of the classic Nanban or military port.
Because not everyone wants a Nanban trade port (that pesky religious conversion), this mod adds some other options to development. If you want to go the full pirate route, then building the Pirate Port will give you access to the Wako ships that are normally AI restricted. Also, depending on where you build it you can get cool Wako pirate units, similar to the Mori DLC units. They’re generally in between an ashigaru and samurai in stats, and they can really help if you want to roleplay as a bloodthirsty samurai pirate warlord!
It also lets you recruit Imperial Trade Ships, a non-Christian restricted version of the Nanban Trade Ships, but if you prefer to play Christian clans (Otomo are my favorite) then a fully upgraded Nanban dock gives you access to recruiting the Black Ship, so you’ll still outgun everyone else on the high seas!
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2148316153
12. Veteran Sharpshooters and Light Infantry Rebalance – FotS
Unless the clan you have chosen in Fall of the Samurai has unique light infantry units, you will find that the regular Sharpshooters available don’t tend to stack up to the late game. By the time you’re fielding Shogunate or Imperial (or Republican if you’re a masochist) Infantry, any Sharpshooters you have start to feel like a waste of space in your army.
This mod fixes that by adding in Veteran Sharpshooters, basically the same in function as the vanilla Sharpshooters but with better stats and a higher cost. This lets anyone trying to live out Sharpe’s Rifles in Boshin War Japan have access to better units that won’t fall behind to the elite line infantry you can get later on. It also rebalances the unique light infantry that other factions have access to, so that they are still worth the time and can defeat the Veterans.
The mod also adds to one of my favorite parts of the game which is the foreign units. If you’ve built a foreign Trading District, you can recruit Prussian Jaegers, which function similarly to the Tosa Riflemen that the Tosa clan has access to. Overall, this mod adds a lot of utility to the light infantry side of the game, and it does so without sacrificing balance.
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1636632322
11. Better Veterans (+RotS and FotS)
One thing that always bothers me about Total War games is, no matter what, a low tier but veteran unit will always lose to a fresh but higher tier unit. However, if you think about it, a Yari Ashigaru unit that has been through dozens of battles will be way more effective than a Yari Samurai unit that was just formed. Obviously, too much realism makes for poor game balance, but this mod does a good job of tweaking the game just enough to make recruiting and upgrading armies a little more thought provoking.
Essentially, all this mod does is make each chevron a unit gains give more to each stat. That means that a rank nine Bow Ashigaru will shoot faster and fight better than most other units. This fundamentally changes the natural progression of the game, as maybe it’s worth it to keep that peasant unit because they’ve become so good, even if you have access to a higher tier.
Using this mod is even more fun in Fall of the Samurai because it feels even more thematic. Since units are more codified in the gunpowder era, a veteran Line Infantry unit becomes even more effective and interesting as opposed to merely a stepping stone on the way to getting elites. This mod is pretty balanced, but it does do some weird things, especially when using auto resolve. Occasionally, the AI will throw some max level Bow Samurai at you and even after they’re finished pin cushioning you, they’ll rush and cut through your shiny new Katana Samurai in melee combat. So, use with care.
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=925274301
10. Improved Siege Units
In vanilla Shogun 2, siege units are one of the biggest wastes of money and space in the game. They’re so inaccurate that they never hit even a stationary unit, aren’t even useful in a siege battle, and for all that they slow your army down on the campaign map. Artillery is godlike in Fall of the Samurai, but in the base game they are extremely disappointing.
This mod removes and reverses a lot of the reasons artillery doesn’t shine. It straight up buffs all artillery and siege units, such as the Fire Projecting Mangonel and the European Cannon, and makes them overall actually useful, but not overpowered. There’s now an actual reason to lug the burdensome siege units around, even if they do make you slower, because the accuracy and damage potential has been increase enough that they can actually hit something you’re aiming at.
It also buffs the Fire Rockets and Fire Bomb Throwers, which I always felt were somewhat useful to begin with, but this makes them even more better. Overall, it unlocks an entirely new part of the game that most players ignored because it was so useless. There should never be a unit so bad that there aren’t at least a few ways it can be used.
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2590897499
9. Valerboss’s Bayonet Mod
One of the things that would bother me about Fall of the Samurai is that even though bayonets had been used for centuries prior to the game’s events, none of the units, even the foreign ones, used them. When one thinks of the type of warfare that features prominently of FotS, such as the use of breech loading rifles and gatling guns, bayonets are also something that comes to mind.
With this mod, that problem is fixed. Now, all of the professional line infantry use bayonets and the accompanying spear animations that come with them. It makes a charge by line infantry even more impressive, as the Yari Samurai animations fit very well with the vibe of the battle in general.
Plus, it makes the foreign marine units look better than vanilla, as the one-handed sword animations they were given are extremely clunky and lame when compared to the fluid and cinematic spear animations they have now.
The only problem with the mod is that, although the animations look realistic and cool, the rifles the models use are just a little too short, and that sometimes comes through in specific animations. Worth it though.
Get this mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1417184295
8. Vanilla Supreme Mod
If you don’t want to download a bunch of small mods to fix the bugs and you’re after some challenge, realism, and utility, this mod encompasses many of the changes we’ve already discussed.
It is an overhaul mod, so if you’re relatively happy about where your game is at now, minus some bug fixes and buffs, then it won’t be too helpful. However, if you’re looking for something that will still fix those issues and at the same time adds some different dynamics to your campaign then this mod is definitely for you.
It tends to take a lot of the “gamey” aspects of vanilla and soften them to make them less frustrating or more realistic. Two of my favorite changes are to diplomacy and battle length.
For diplomacy, the mod changes it so that if you’re really close with a faction, say from vassalization or a strong, long-lasting alliance, then they might not turn on you because of the Realm Divide event. One of my biggest frustrations in vanilla Shogun 2 is the other clans, even ones I’ve been nothing but good to, decide they hate me because of an unavoidable event.
It also changes battles slightly so that they last a bit longer, which to me reflects both previous games in the series as well as reality. It gives you more time to maneuver, but punishes for your mistakes and rewards your successes, with cavalry flanking being even more deadly than in the base game.
Get the mod here: Vanilla Supreme Mod for Total War: Shogun 2 - Mod DB
7. 12 Turns Per Year – For Shogun 2 and RotS
One of my favorite additions that Fall of the Samurai added was more turns per year. Obviously, they had to do this because of the much shorter timeframe that the Boshin War actually occupied, but it makes you feel like you’re fighting an actual war as opposed to occupying decades of time.
This mod ports that over from FotS to both other campaigns, Rise of the Samurai and vanilla Shogun 2. On one hand, it makes the game last longer, so some purists might say it makes it too easy, but for a lot of players, Total War isn’t as much about the challenge as it is about immersion and fun. For those players, I really recommend this mod.
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=141938812
6. DarthMod
Most of the mods we’ve spoken about so far are small changes that affect the greater balance of the game and thus give a very new experience. This mod, however, is a massive overhaul mod that improves AI, fixes many bugs, and provides other changes that affect the entire campaign.
Since it is a mod pack, it also adds quite a few other mods to the game as well, mostly better textures for the various units. This affects the base Shogun 2 units as well as the Portuguese Tercos, who all look the same. It helps to stop them looking like clones.
Along with texture changes, this mod makes battles more difficult with changes in unit stats, making things like cav charges more deadly. This is also one of the most popular mods in Shogun 2, which means that it has an insane amount of compatibility with other mods, and a lot of mod developers make two versions of their mod to ensure people can use it with Darthmod.
Get the mod here: DarthMod: Shogun II - Mod DB
5. Portugal Mod Redux +
An updated version of the original mod, Portugal Mod Redux + adds an entirely new faction, in an entirely new start position. Taking inspiration from the Portuguese Tercos that the Otomo have access to, this mod extrapolates and creates a new roster for them.
One of the coolest things about this mod is that it encourages a different style of play than most of the other clans, especially the more traditional Buddhist clans. Because its an entirely European faction, it’s built to be used as a pike and shot army as opposed to a more common Shogun 2 army.
The original Shogun 2 clans are awesome, and I love using Bow Warrior Monks to destroy enemies from a distance in elegant flights of arrows, but there’s something fun about blasting units apart with Musketeers and arquebuses then letting them crash into my Aventuros’ pikes.
This version of the mod also changes the base game slightly, with changed unit sizes and a change to melee combat to make it last longer. Overall, this mod is tons of fun and worth a try.
Get the mod here: Portugal Mod Redux + for Total War: Shogun 2 - Mod DB
4. Endless Japan
This is a new version of another mod called Expanded Japan which added up to 97 new regions and 101 new factions to the game, as well as twenty-two new playable clans. This mod does a similar thing but adds on to it to make the game last forever instead of ending at the base game end date.
The latest version removes agents, a change that’s not for me but I’m sure a lot of players will enjoy, especially if they’re having an issue with a max level Ninja assassinating all their agents and generals.
There are quite a few versions of this mod, however, and one of them, Version 2.0, still has agents and returns some of the original aspects of the game, while at the same time making a more relaxed, long term playthrough an option. It has the same functionality of 12 Turns Per Year, but with a much larger package, such as 27 new factions and 23 new provinces.
Overall, this mod has a lot of customizability and adds plenty of new features to the game.
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2576956800
3. Shotguns and Shock Infantry
Developed by the same modder who made the Veteran Sharpshooters and Light Infantry Rebalance mod, this mod does a similar thing, which is to say that it adds a couple new unit types to FotS to liven up the game a bit. This mod has less basis in “reality” than the other one we talked about, but, as it says in the mod description, they add a lot of fun to the game.
The Shotgun Infantry are my favorite, as they use the same spreading mass destruction effect that the Donderbuss Cavalry from the Otomo DLC do, and they’re especially fun to use in a siege battle if you put them in the right place. They do unfortunately utilize the same model for the shotgun as matchlock units do, but that isn’t as bad unless you really care about “accuracy.”
The other units, Hand Mortars and Sappers, are fun as well, as you can never have too many explosions, but the shotguns are where my heart is.
Get the mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1637831608
2. Weierstrass Units for Vanilla
What I like about this mod is that all the units that are added feel like they make sense. None of them feel strange when compared to the base units that come from vanilla Shogun 2, and most of them fulfill a different function than a lot of the base troops.
Units like the Militia tier give you an even cheaper alternative to the original Ashigaru, and they fulfill the role of an expendable low tier unit to use as a buffer for your better, more expensive units, allowing you to roleplay as a devious villain if you wish.
This mod also adds even more variants to Warrior Monks, giving you the option to form an entire army out of them, so if you like fanatical highly trained warriors destroying your enemies, this mod is for you.
Get this mod here: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1878707871
1. Morning Sun
This mod, developed by the same modder as Endless Japan, adds an entirely new conflict to the game, the Imjin War of 1582. This war takes place after the events of the Shogun 2 campaign and involves the Japanese invading the Korean Peninsula.
To that end, this mod adds the Southeast of the Asian continent, and adds the Kingdom of Joseon (modern day Korea), Ming China, Mongols, and other factions, as well as an increased faction list for the Japanese clans. So, if you feel like playing out an alternate history, there’s plenty of opportunities for that.
The Asian mainland section of the map is huge, and the units available there are unique when compared to the original Shogun 2 roster, but they fit the conceit of the game so well I’m surprised this mod wasn’t something CA did themselves.
The mod is being updated even now, so there’s plenty of interest from the community and the developer. Overall, this DLC sized mod so completely changes the base game that its definitely worth a try.
Get this mod here: Download Morning Sun Version 3.3 (twcenter.net)
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