Like the other discussion and this one says in the title, my post is too large for a comment, so I'm putting it here.

I actually would recommend adding the ability to toggle the assistance portion of the Western Republic, via an option in mod-settings. Both for those who aren't the best with coding or the use of Cherry-picker, or those who want something to replace it.

I state all this as someone inexperienced and nervous about using Cherry-picker, and as someone who feels that potentially adding a separate ability to swap between would be a decent idea for an addition.

I know there's a section in the FAQ section stating about disabling stuff, but I feel it would be a good addition to add the ability to toggle between the assistance, or some other bonus to replace it without having to completely remove it.

For example the assistance could end badly if you'er running a colony with a huge amount of AOE attacking defenses, like auto-mortars or other such ranged explosive weapons. The assisting troops could be completely shredded by the mortars and such if they spawn in the exact same or even close-by the attacking forces, which happens essentially all the time if you're in, say, a modified map with one entry-point.

Anyway, that's just my two cents. I'm sure it's been said before, but if not I figured I'd say something about it. Other than that suggestion/explanation why, this mod is great. A lot of the additions of the bonuses and tech are useful to have, even if they may not fit the setting of higher-tech worlds and such.