Hands-On Usage
add_equipment_bonus is commonly used after tech breakthroughs, national spirit rewards, or special project completions to apply attribute bonuses to all equipment of the same type across the nation—for example, adding armor value to tanks or strike power to carrier aircraft as a persistent buff. The typical scenario is rewarding the player with an "equipment upgrade" effect upon completing a focus tree or event, without requiring actual new tech research.
# Add armor and soft attack bonuses to tank-class equipment after completing a focus
complete_national_focus = focus_tank_doctrine
country_event = {
id = my_mod.1
}
# Inside event option:
add_equipment_bonus = {
name = TANK_UPGRADE_BONUS # Corresponds to localisation key
prefix = MY_MOD_BONUS_PREFIX
bonus = {
medium_tank_chassis = {
armor_value = 2
soft_attack = 1
instant = yes
}
}
}
Synergy
[add_ideas](/wiki/effect/add_ideas): Typically paired with add_equipment_bonus—the former grants national spirits (providing research or production bonuses), the latter directly enhances existing equipment stats, together forming a complete "tech reward package."
[add_tech_bonus](/wiki/effect/add_tech_bonus): Within the same focus or event, use add_tech_bonus first to accelerate research on a specific tech line, then apply add_equipment_bonus to unlocked equipment for immediate stat increases, creating a dual "research + instant enhancement" effect.
[complete_special_project](/wiki/effect/complete_special_project): Upon special project completion, this effect is commonly invoked with project = FROM syntax, using the project name as the bonus display identifier with tight semantic binding.
[has_completed_focus](/wiki/trigger/has_completed_focus): As a prerequisite trigger, confirm the focus is completed before applying equipment bonuses via effect blocks, preventing duplicate grants.
Common Pitfalls
- Omitting the
instant field causes bonuses to fail: By default, bonuses apply only to newly created equipment variants. To make existing equipment in stockpiles benefit immediately, you must explicitly set instant = yes. Newcomers often assume all equipment values change instantly after adding the bonus, but testing reveals no change at all.
- Filling both
name and project causes conflicts: name (localization key) and project (special project scope) should be used exclusively as one bonus display source. If both are specified, which one the game actually uses depends on internal priority, potentially causing the bonus name shown in the UI to differ from expectations and making debugging difficult to pinpoint.