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Hello everyone! Today we're releasing Update 1.16.2.1, which brings a variety of tweaks, fixes, and balance changes. Most notably, this update introduces optional new difficulty levels (creatively named "Hard" and "Very Hard") that can be selected via game rules when starting a new campaign. This update should be fully compatible with existing 1.16.2 saves.
Check the changelog below for more information!

Update 1.16.2.1 Changelog
Game Content
Added a game rule to add Tibet as a Nomadic Region.
Due to the ruler setup of the area, many nomadic rulers will start with Bodpa culture but a Tuyuhun Nomadic Capital
Added Hard / Very Hard Difficulty game rule options
The philosophy behind these changes is to try and compensate for what the AI can't or shouldn’t be able to do as efficiently as a player. For example: the AI doesn’t change Vassal Contracts very often, intentionally use Abductions to win wars/gain loads of money, use Marriages to pull realms into losing wars en masse, or mass construct economic buildings before hiring MaA, to name a few. We’ve tried to keep most of these changes as invisible as possible, instead of showing ‘Very Hard’ as a modifier in various tooltips (although it happens in some places out of necessity).
Added the Hard difficulty which boosts AIs and changes some systemic behavior for players, aimed at providing a more challenging yet still balanced experience
While AI realms are buffed, generally the game should progress similarly to the Normal game
Changes for the AI:
Buying and maintaining MaA is significantly easier
Stress management is improved
Constructing buildings and holdings is somewhat easier (not too much, or the player would be able to abuse it for their own gain!)
Levies reinforce faster
Improving opinion is faster
Tyranny gain is reduced
Mercenary use is cheaper
Factions are slightly more lenient
Revoking titles and retracting vassals is easier
Activity costs are reduced
Court Position management is significantly cheaper
Agents are slightly more willing to join schemes vs. players
Recruiting guests is significantly cheaper
Amenities are significantly cheaper
CB prestige costs are cheaper, especially vs. players

Regular Mercenaries are more expensive
Factions are somewhat less lenient (depending on vassal opinion)
Revoking titles and retracting vassals is harder
More vassals are inclined to join tyranny wars started by players, primarily guided by opinion
Much less likely to randomly become a Conqueror
Heavier penalties to arranging marriages based on number of existing alliances, lesser bonuses from desires alliance, etc.
The player should be able to have one significant alliance, and one minor alliance. Gaining alliances at war will be almost impossible.
Marrying with the intent of getting highly skilled courtiers or wanderers to join your court is now much harder, especially if your candidate is not your close family member. This should make it much harder to, for example, gain a great general or several fantastic knights the day before you go to war.
Agents are slightly less willing to join schemes
Tyranny gain from unfair Vassal Contract changes is significantly increased (see changes to Vassal Contract scoring in the balance section to see why this change is significant!)
More resources are needed to reinforce armies for Adventurers & Nomads
Gold gain from ransoming is lowered
Religious heads are now less inclined to grant players gold
Added the Very Hard Difficulty which significantly boosts AIs, changes systemic behavior, and applies some penalties to players, aimed at providing a much more challenging experience
AI realms are going to be significantly more strong and stable, making the game progress differently
Changes for the AI
Everything from hard, but the bonuses are greater
AI Rulers gain extra advantage when leading their own armies
Changes for the Player
Everything from hard, but the penalties are greater
Hostile Scheme success chance starts at a much lower level
Knight efficiency is reduced
Added player only variants of the domain limit game rule
This allows you to add -1, -2, or -3 domain limit to players only, making it a good compliment to the regular difficulty game rule

Game Balance
High and Extortionate tax obligations are now valued higher; you will have to offer more concessions to increase taxes without inducing tyranny
Council Rights and Religious Protection is now scored extremely high; you will have to offer three concessions to get them
You can now propose 4 vassal contract changes at once (up from 3).
You are now allowed to propose a contract that is better for the Vassal than you as the Liege (necessary with the changes to Contract Option values)
AI lieges now desire higher taxes over higher levy contributions
AI vassals now dislike Scutage (you'll have to offer a concession)
AI vassals now desire March status, Castellan Status, and Palatinate status
Player Mongol Empires now get the Successor Khanate split during a Chaotic Succession.
Made it significantly harder to abduct rulers or their subjects if you're at war with them.
Similarly as with realm priests, you will no longer get gold when banishing byzantine bookkeepers.
Reduced the damage per prowess that knights get to 50, down from 100.
The automated armies companion now raises armies more aggressively.

Bugfixes
Fixed Adventurers only getting Criminal & Travel contracts in the Steppe
Made it possible for adventurers with the Take The Custom Where It Comes perk to recruit cultural Nomadic MaAs.
When the foreign merchant invited by the Summon Wealthy Visitors decision dies you will now get a toast.
Players and non-obedient vassals will now get turned into tributaries when their liege migrates.
Made the Life on the Saddle internal camp building upgrade accessible if you have a regiment of horse archers or heavy horse archers.
Fixed an issue where you could click on buildings through the side panels in the Domicile window.
Fixed out-of-sync on hotjoin due to outdated Domicile cache.
Players can no longer close the travel planning window when planning their next travel during the Fight Corruption adventurer contract.
Province graphics now refresh on game start even if just reloading a save.
Fixed a bug where Steppe counties wouldn't show which season they were in within the county view.
Fixed out-of-sync related to incorrect tax collector aptitude data when loading a save or starting a new game.
Fixed an issue where the UI for obediency would show if the person in question was loyal to someone at all - and not just the player.
Fixed an issue where the siege window would show the wrong holding in some cases.
Fixed an issue where the hostage window wouldn’t have a filter window available.
Fixed an issue where the initial character selection list wouldn’t sort until a new sort option was chosen.
Fixed a bug where the player could get soft-locked when committing suicide.
Fixed an issue where some mods uploaded to https://mods.paradoxplaza.com/ would not load correctly.

Interface
Tweaks and fixes for the Nomadic UI skin.
The Decision view has been optimized and should no longer slow down the game when open.
The Golden Lineage trait icon has been updated.

Animation
Reduced memory usage of map animals


As always, if you encounter any issues after today's update, please disable any mods and post a thread in the Bug Report board of our official forums. if the issue persists. We hope today's update improves your in-game experience!