effect · add_offsite_building

Hands-On Usage

add_offsite_building is commonly used in mods to simulate scenarios where a nation possesses special facilities overseas or in enclaves, such as secretly granting a country nuclear reactors, radar stations, or other structures not directly bound to mainland states. A typical application is triggering the effect during national events or decisions to grant the player or AI nation a "behind-the-scenes" building bonus without needing to occupy specific provinces.

country_event = {
    id = my_mod.42
    title = my_mod.42.t
    desc = my_mod.42.d

    option = {
        name = my_mod.42.a
        add_offsite_building = {
            type = arms_factory
            level = 2
        }
    }
}

Synergy

• [has_built](/wiki/trigger/has_built) — Can be used to detect whether a nation already possesses a specific building (including offsite types), allowing you to decide whether to trigger add_offsite_building again and avoid duplicate stacking.
• [add_ideas](/wiki/effect/add_ideas) — Often paired together to grant national ideas alongside the effect, representing nation-level attribute bonuses from the building and forming a complete "facility activation" reward package.
• [add_political_power](/wiki/effect/add_political_power) — Used simultaneously in decisions or event options to grant political power, serving as the counterbalance to the "diplomatic/political cost" of constructing the offsite building, making choices more strategically engaging.
• [add_timed_idea](/wiki/effect/add_timed_idea) — If the offsite building's effect should be temporary, it can be paired with timed ideas to simulate scenarios like "temporary facility lease," giving the effect a natural expiration mechanism.

Common Pitfalls

1. Forgetting this is COUNTRY scope — Beginners often place add_offsite_building within STATE scope blocks (such as inside every_owned_state), causing script errors or the effect to fail. This command must be executed directly under country scope.
2. Confusing it with standard add_building_construction — add_offsite_building does not create physical building entities on any province's map nor does it go through the construction queue; it takes effect immediately. If your mod logic requires actual province-level buildings, use damage_building or construction commands instead, otherwise the effects are completely different.