trigger · is_historical_focus_on

Hands-On Usage

is_historical_focus_on is commonly used to distinguish between "Historical Mode" and "Free Mode," allowing mods to provide different event triggers or branching restrictions when players select historical focus paths. For example, certain "alternate history" focuses or events can be allowed only in non-historical mode, preventing conflicts with historical routes.

# Allow an alternate history event to trigger only in non-historical mode
available = {
    NOT = { is_historical_focus_on = yes }
}

Synergy

• [has_game_rule](/wiki/trigger/has_game_rule): Game rules and historical mode often influence branching logic simultaneously. Combined use allows precise control over conditions under specific rule + historical mode combinations.
• [or](/wiki/trigger/or): When you need "historical mode enabled or other conditions met," wrap within an or block to avoid overly restrictive constraints.
• [not](/wiki/trigger/not): The most frequent partner. The vast majority of alternate/non-historical branches require NOT = { is_historical_focus_on = yes } for inverse logic.
• [has_dlc](/wiki/trigger/has_dlc): Some DLC content is meaningful only in specific game modes. Using it alongside historical mode checks enables dual-gating control.

Common Pitfalls

1. Reversing yes/no: Beginners sometimes want to limit behavior to "historical mode only" but write NOT = { is_historical_focus_on = yes }, inverting the logic. Always clarify that "historical enabled" corresponds to = yes, and "historical disabled" requires wrapping in NOT.
2. Assuming the state can be toggled via effects: is_historical_focus_on is read-only and cannot be forcibly switched during gameplay through any effect. Design approaches attempting this should instead use alternatives like set_global_flag to simulate replacement flags.