@Mr Waffenchad - I definitely reduced it in some cases (such as when 2/3 of a vanilla viking unit had black hair), but the goal I tried to stick to with this reskin project was to just add to the vanilla appearances.

@pizzaman6
"I am keeping it fairly balanced with appearances, so there will still be dark haired and dark eyed Norse."

There needs to be a modder that is willing to just remove black hair completely from the Anglo-Saxons and Norse. If there were that many black haired Germanics back then, most modern Scandinavian, Continental and British Germanics would have black hair to in this day because black hair is a dominant gene.

@Zool
You're completely wrong. Black hair is not a European gene. Brown and Blonde hair is native to Europe and Northern Europe is purer then Southern Europe, even more back then than they are now.

I have an urgent question about modding, could you please give me some resources on how to mod TOB? Thank you so much, really appreciate.

as a general concept however; you'd be looking for only so many of such units,skirmishers,light infantry spear,swords,axes; fair skill,fair toughness,so up those stats abit more than levies ofc,more dark and red tones for hair,mixed appearance attire,Irish and Norse shields,etc,and should suffice well I would think.

Unfortunately I've no idea personally from my own studies over the years how any Norse-Irish/Irish-Norse would have identified themselves differently at the time via attire or sigil, and insofar as gear can only tell you that they used both; that being so in armorings and weapons,using what they had at hand gotten,given or gained from either people.

I think we may be certain that (1) they would have Certainly had the fire and courage of both peoples combined--lol those I know in my own family and others I have met,those I've known of historically certainly have,;) and so at that time no doubt would have had the great desire--and given the chance and arms with which to do so ofc, to prove themselves. (2) While they would have fought,again no doubt,and I believe with great fervor,for whom gave them the chance to do so,I also believe they would been as likely to identify themselves as who they themselves knew they were too. Points to consider in such I think.

For a time accepted for the most part by neither people,while the unfortunate more or less 'natural result' of their meeting or perhaps one might say,'residual' at the time in a sense (many of us may be termed to be 'Celtic/Gaelic-Norse' or the reverse ofc even today,) they lived a life of poverty generally usually on the outskirts of Dublin,the main settlements of the Danes, or out beyond in the countryside as bandits. The Irish ofc saw them as a problem and nuisance, the Danes as often as little more, Brian however in his wisdom saw them as a potential strength: and proved to be quite correct ultimately.
Even as he sought to and employed them into his forces we might take a look at how such might be seen and viewed/considered.

I have noted personally that CA either did not note,did not not attempt to,had not made preparations/or perhaps but 'scant' reference to,or simply set the 'time' of ToB before such as I would now mention,though to Brian Boru and many of his allies among them his famed Norwegian norse supporter (lol ;) most know little enough about that or said person,though his history and that of his sons factor greatly later into that of the isles between Ireland and Scotland,and in following generations is interwoven in Scotland's more still even as it links highly to Norway,and had all along,) said subject being the 'Norse-Irish'/'Irish-Norse'.

Some good points made gentlemen. Spectral noted ably about Guthrum's East Anglian's in a way that's actually covered rather well in Last Kingdom about his personality,actually in 2 ways really--yes,he could be rather deviously ruthless and yet too was curious about the culture he'd met and their religion,wished to learn more about each; and he sensed too that his success in the region's key relied on understanding them. Ultimately ofc he 'succumbed' to the latter allying himself with Aelfred and Wessex we know.
The points regarding Northumbria or if one prefers true 'Danelaw' region,well stated also; a very turbulent area indeed at the time certainly and one where we'd see as we do ofc in game Norse,Saxon and Gaelic influences--though we should see perhaps just bit more of a percentage of or perhaps 'technically', abit more 'trace' of 'yet' as in the north of that territory many of the people there were of that people.

Yeah, I wish they did a lot of things differently with this game lol. I actually was thinking like you at first with the East Anglian units, but it just didn’t make sense to change the character of the unit away from what CA set them up as. If you read the descriptions of both sets of unique units, it matches up with the appearances that CA gave them, so that’s why I kept to that.

Aye, that's fair - although you'd think CA would've done it the opposite way around considering how prominently Norse those north of the Humber were, given Jorvik and all that haha

The Northumbrian unique units are meant to by the game to be Saxons in Dane service, while the East Anglian unit is similar to all the other Danelaw units, in that it has a mix of Pagan Danes, and Christian soldiers. The untouched vanilla East Anglian unique units have 2/3 of the guys wearing Thor’s hammer necklaces.

East Anglia's unique units should be a little more English-looking than Northumbria's, since sources mostly seem to point to only one wave of Danish settlers there under Guthrum, as opposed to near constant Viking settlement in Northumbrian lands from 870 onwards to Swein Forkbeard's time, but otherwise this is a great mod!

I do think perhaps if there is work that might need some attention yet it might be in the areas of ship differences and in banners. Just a suggestion ofc.

If going for what the world at large would expect or perceive each of the involved people's looks to be then sure,go with it as is ofc, and I'd keep working on the attire,armorings and shield patterns as we've been seeing the artistry for as well as those have been very promising and representative of what they were like too. Overall I've been impressed.

lol in example,Magnusson is in my line and veins,yet my hair black,though my beard had both blood red and spun gold tones before it went silver and white. ;)

As a world historian,and incidentally as well,one of Celtic and of Scandinavian mixed ancestry as well,I can tell you for a fact that much like Rome had,the Norse culture too,and this too is well known of the Saxon invasion of England we should add here--much of the bloods/genetics of these peoples became greatly intermingled,thus too their traits ofc. Therefore no,it was no more uncommon to see as it is not today,dark haired Scandinavian people anymore than it is lighter haired 'Celtic' or 'English'/'British' with either light or dark.

@BattleB0rn1 but none with blonde hair, come on.

@Warriordude, there is, but making the portraits match would be a harder job, and ideally I want to do all the units which is going to take a long time still. I have the Saxons and the Welsh almost done though. For them I am actually making a lot of specific variants, so that I can give them unique shields for some of the more important factions. For example: Some Wessex soldiers have Wyvern shields, Cent soldiers horses, Powys soldiers have lions.

@BattleBOrn1, I am keeping it fairly balanced with appearances, so there will still be dark haired and dark eyed Norse.

just for the record alot of Norwegians are jet black hair with dark eye. its a myth that most nords are blonde.

Sounds great. i was wondering is there anyway to give Saxon Kings, Generals and Governors blonde Hair.

@Warriordude, I have a Saxon mod coming out soon that adds a little bit of blonde hair to them.

I like more diversity. I like your idea, my problem is the Vanilla Saxons, none have blonde hair, makes no sense whatsoever, no generals, Governors or kings have blonde hair. Saxons and Vikings are pretty much Nordics.