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EU4 - Development Diary - 16th of February 2021

Hello everybody and welcome back to another EUIV dev diary and it has been a while for me!

Shortly before EUIV moved over to sunny Barcelona, I devoted some of my time to reworking Australia as I felt the current map of the continent was a bit lacking and very annoying to own what with all these little unconnected islands amidst the wasteland. On top of that, the continent being an entirely uncolonized block of nothing before colonialism seems a little inaccurate, given how lively the continent actually was before the Europeans arrived.

So, first thing to note is that Australia is now entirely connected through colonisable provinces, with the great Pilbara now connecting the north and west of Australia.
20210215172646_1.jpg

Another important rework comes in the form of the new states Australia now enjoys. What I wanted out of this is I wanted Australia to be on par with the other colonial regions in the game in terms of province count and strategic importance.
20210215170805_1.jpg

When shaping the states and provinces, I wanted to hit a nice balance between pre and post colonial Australian borders, so state borders are largely determined by colonial Australian state boundaries, while provinces are more determined by the distribution of Aboriginal peoples. All provinces also have both their Aboriginal and colonial names depending on who owns the province.
1613408346626.png

The Australian Gold Rush can now be yours, with Australian provinces enjoying a high chance of gold and some provinces in the south having a chance for gems, and a few key provinces able to produce coal.
20210215172855_1.jpg

Next, I’ll highlight some of the playable nations down under. Up north we have the Larrakia Federation composed of all of the top-end nations you see here, with Larrakia and Tiwi enjoying a unique set of national ideas. The Larrakia federation was responsible for much of pre-colonial Australia’s wealth through trade with the Makassarians. This trade also brought with it some Islamic influences, though the Aboriginal people of Australia never fully converted.
20210215170717_1.jpg

LAR_ideas = {
start = {
global_trade_power = 0.1
trade_efficiency = 0.1
}

bonus = {
global_ship_trade_power = 0.2
}

trigger = {
tag = LAR
}
free = yes #will be added at load.

LAR_makassar_trade = {
merchants = 1
global_foreign_trade_power = 0.1
}
LAR_federation = {
diplomatic_upkeep = 2
}
LAR_dreaming = {
global_autonomy = -0.05
}
LAR_dowed = {
legitimacy = 1
republican_tradition = 0.2
global_unrest = -1
}
LAR_ceremonial_scarring = {
shock_damage = 0.1
}
LAR_hospitality = {
diplomatic_reputation = 2
}
LAR_kenbi_land_claim = {
core_creation = -0.15
}
}

TIW_ideas = {
start = {
female_advisor_chance = 0.75
shock_damage_received = -0.2
}

bonus = {
leader_land_shock = 1
}

trigger = {
tag = TIW
}
free = yes

TIW_yiminga = {
may_recruit_female_generals = yes
global_manpower_modifier = 0.2
}
TIW_dreaming_totem = {
tolerance_own = 2
}
TIW_kulama = {
production_efficiency = 0.1
}
TIW_purrukapali = {
naval_tradition_from_battle = 0.5
}
TIW_marriage = {
heir_chance = 0.5
global_unrest = -1
}
TIW_isolationism = {
land_morale = 0.1
}
TIW_one_people = {
culture_conversion_cost = -0.25
}
}

Moving along down south we have the Eora people, the original inhabitants of the Sydney area.
EOR_ideas = {
start = {
diplomatic_reputation = 1
light_ship_power = 0.15
}

bonus = {
num_accepted_cultures = 2
}

trigger = {
tag = EOR
}
free = yes

EOR_lifestyle = {
naval_morale = 0.15
}
EOR_bands = {
state_maintenance_modifier = -0.25
}
EOR_enduring = {
religious_unity = 0.25
tolerance_heathen = 1
}
EOR_protect = {
manpower_recovery_speed = 0.1
global_sailors_modifier = 0.1
}
EOR_sacred = {
own_coast_naval_combat_bonus = 1
}
EOR_pemulwuy = {
land_morale = 0.15
}
EOR_berewaldal = {
merchants = 1
global_foreign_trade_power = 0.1
}
}

The Kaurna people, first inhabitants of Adelaide.
KAU_ideas = {
start = {
female_advisor_chance = 0.75
global_tax_modifier = 0.3
}

bonus = {
development_cost = -0.1
}

trigger = {
tag = KAU
}
free = yes

KAU_totemic_matriarchy = {
may_recruit_female_generals = yes
tolerance_own = 2
}
KAU_pangkarra = {
governing_capacity_modifier = 0.1
}
KAU_coastal_pangkarra = {
global_ship_trade_power = 0.2
}
KAU_redgum_shelters = {
build_cost = -0.15
}
KAU_communal_ownership = {
global_unrest = -2
}
KAU_old_tjilbruke = {
stability_cost_modifier = -0.1
reform_progress_growth = 0.15
}
KAU_south_australia_act = {
core_creation = -0.2
}
}

Palawa, first people of Tasmania.
PLW_ideas = {
start = {
stability_cost_modifier = -0.1
land_morale = 0.1
}

bonus = {
monarch_military_power = 1
}

trigger = {
tag = PLW
}
free = yes #will be added at load.

PLW_oyster = {
production_efficiency = 0.1
}
PLW_dual_identity = {
legitimacy = 1
num_accepted_cultures = 1
}
PLW_darwin = {
shock_damage = 0.2
}
PLW_parlevar = {
ae_impact = -0.15
}
PLW_writers = {
technology_cost = -0.1
}
PLW_survivors = {
fire_damage = 0.1
}
PLW_enduring = {
manpower_recovery_speed = 0.25
}
}

Kamilaroi, one of the most populated collective of Australian nations.
GMI_ideas = {
start = {
land_morale = 0.1
shock_damage = 0.1
}

bonus = {
land_forcelimit_modifier = 0.33
}

trigger = {
tag = GMI
}
free = yes #will be added at load.

GMI_sacred_caves = {
core_creation = -0.15
}
GMI_land_of_languages = {
num_accepted_cultures = 2
}
GMI_fertile_soils = {
development_cost = -0.1
}
GMI_dhulu = {
diplomats = 1
envoy_travel_time = -0.25
}
GMI_matrilineal_lineage = {
legitimacy = 1
republican_tradition = 0.2
female_advisor_chance = 0.5
}
GMI_familial_law = {
global_autonomy = -0.05
}
GMI_red_kangaroo = {
global_unrest = -2
}
}

I would have loved to have made ideas for all nations in Australia, but alas time was not on my side there so if you do not have unique ideas, you will get the shared Aboriginal Ideas.
generic_aboriginal_ideas = {
start = {
tolerance_own = 1
stability_cost_modifier = -0.1
}

bonus = {
shock_damage = 0.1
}

trigger = {
culture_group = aboriginal_australian
}
free = yes

aborig_art = {
prestige = 1
}
aborig_fire_stick_farming = {
development_cost = -0.1
}
aborig_walkabout = {
movement_speed = 0.1
}
aborig_outback = {
land_attrition = -0.1
}
aborig_sacred = {
global_tax_modifier = 0.1
}
aborig_dreamtime = {
religious_unity = 0.2
}
aborig_music = {
improve_relation_modifier = 0.2
}
}

But Aboriginal culture is not a single monolithic entity, so it has been divided into its own group. If we were being entirely accurate about this, almost all provinces in Australia would be their own culture, so some generalization has been done for gameplay purposes.
20210215173636_1.jpg

On top of all these new nations, the Aboriginal Australians also have access to the new Alcheringa religion! Most commonly known to colonizers as “Dreamtime”, Alcheringa refers to the vast distinct religions found among the Australian population. Though each people usually have their own distinct faith, most Australian faiths have a concept of “Dreamtime” or “The Dreaming”, a time of myth and legend that simultaneously occurred in the distant past and continues to occur around us every day.
20210215173412_1.jpg

Every Aboriginal people has their own pantheon of gods and “Dreaming Stories”. Alcheringa uses a system similar to the Fetishist cult system, with new stories becoming unlocked via missions.

These missions vary in what you must do, from defeating enemies in battle, to building an oceangoing vessel for the first time, to turning the Makassar trade on its head and dominating trade in the Moluccas.

The Aboriginals also enjoy all new unit models.
image (21).png


That’s all for this week, hope you all enjoy my last hurrah of EUIV content.
 
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As an Aussie this is sick as! I am wondering though what group "Mianjin" is supposed to represent though - Mianjin as far as I'm aware is the Turrbal word for the Brisbane area rather than a people in its own right. Maybe "Turrbal" or "Jagera" would be a more appropriate tag name fitting with the rest of the Aboriginal tags.

On a similar note, perhaps it might be worth blobbing the Wurundjeri tag to Kulin, the alliance of Wurundjeri and four other peoples inhabiting the area which the current Wurundjeri tag occupies? That being said from what I recall from my time in Melbourne Wurundjeri might be a more recognised term so there's that angle.
 
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it might be worth blobbing the Wurundjeri tag to Kulin, the alliance of Wurundjeri and four other peoples inhabiting the area which the current Wurundjeri tag occupies? That being said from what I recall from my time in Melbourne Wurundjeri might be a more recognised term so there's that angle.
Oh aye, I am aware of the Kulin Alliance and they do exist in the history files, but they don't exist in 1444 as that is quite a while before the alliance came to exist.

Glad you like the content and I hope I've done Australia some justice!
 
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Well you don't have to conquer or colonize it if you don't want to.
Thats a silly answer.

Its about two things.

1. In game balance, specifically the balance between ideas. The more native tags there are the weaker exploration and especially expansion ideas become as there is less need to even colonize countries when you can simply conquer it from natives. At least colonizers pose some form of challenge when you try to take their colony, but conquering natives is mostly just busywork.
It also devalues a entire game system and makes the game less diverse when conquest becomes the solution to everything and you do not need colonization much anymore.
And it makes "colonizing" much faster which is already ahistorically fast in EU4 which makes later settler techs useless.

2. Historical accuracy. That natives were conquered and incorporated into colonies happened a few times, mainly in central and south america by the Spanish, more often than not the natives were displaced entirely and did not become part of colonies (Australia, North America). So that you can simply conquer natives in those regions instead of having to colonize does not reflect how expansion in those regions worked.

Edit: That could be solved if, apart from the central and south american high cultures, you could not annex natives directly, but the conquered territory would turn into a colony with some initial population. Conquering would still provide a boost but dedicated colonizers would still have an advantage because of colony growth and you can't just simply conquer natives until a colonial nation forms without actually colonizing something.
 
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Thats a silly answer.

Its about two things.

1. In game balance, specifically the balance between ideas. The more native tags there are the weaker exploration and especially expansion ideas become as there is less need to even colonize countries when you can simply conquer it from natives. At least colonizers pose some form of challenge when you try to take their colony, but conquering natives is mostly just busywork.
It also devalues a entire game system and makes the game less diverse when conquest becomes the solution to everything and you do not need colonization much anymore.
It also makes "colonizing" much faster which is already ahistorically fast in EU4 which makes later settler techs useless.

2. Historical accuracy. That natives were conquered and incorporated into colonies happened a few times, mainly in central and south america by the Spanish, more often than not the natives were displaced entirely and did not become part of colonies (Australie, North America). So that you can simply conquer natives in those regions instead of having to colonize does not reflect how expansion in those regions worked.
Wondering if you could charter trade company of a multi province aborigine tag
 
So North America and Australia are getting massive reworks?
Meanwhile, in South America...

The anglo bias here is truly appalling, you guys cannot even pretend otherwise at this point.
If you read through the posts one of the HoI4 content designers made this in his free time.
 
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Great content! Looking forward to playing it.

Are there gonna be any holy site for the aboriginals? I think that would be nice flavor, for the new religion
 
So North America and Australia are getting massive reworks?
Meanwhile, in South America...

The anglo bias here is truly appalling, you guys cannot even pretend otherwise at this point.
South and Central America got major reworks in El Dorado (2015) and have been playable and enjoyable since - meanwhile Australia can't really even be classified as a rework since before this it was empty and largely untouched since EU3
 
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Glad to see you will never see Australia colonized propery again! Just like Mexico - addition of new tags + nerfing colonizers + braindead AI means that AI will just be unable to establish and keep colonies there...
 
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Glad to see you will never see Australia colonized propery again! Just like Mexico - addition of new tags + nerfing colonizers + braindead AI means that AI will just be unable to establish and keep colonies there...
Considering how late colonisation of Australia was, this might be for the best
South and Central America got major reworks in El Dorado (2015) and have been playable and enjoyable since - meanwhile Australia can't really even be classified as a rework since before this it was empty and largely untouched since EU3
Are you pulling someone's leg?
 
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Also - who tf wrote those ideas? Some of them are Prussia level! It's just a bunch of mindlessly thrown modifiers to OPM's that did absolutely nothing in history in terms of conquest, trade, civilization, culture compared to Europe, India, China, Japan or even North and South America! And yet - here you go +20% shock damage, -15 AE, -20 core creation, +2 relations! WHAT??? EU since departure of DDRJake is just rollercoaster going only down and it will crash some day.
The AI won't outperform even with this ideas, and the player should be attracted to play new tags.
 
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Also - who tf wrote those ideas? Some of them are Prussia level! It's just a bunch of mindlessly thrown modifiers to OPM's that did absolutely nothing in history in terms of conquest, trade, civilization, culture compared to Europe, India, China, Japan or even North and South America! And yet - here you go +20% shock damage, -15 AE, -20 core creation, +2 relations! WHAT??? EU since departure of DDRJake is just rollercoaster going only down and it will crash some day.

Yeah the ideas are "a bit" whacky.
What did they do to get more military ideas than most european nations? And had aborigines really that much of a navy to justify +15% naval morale, costal combat bonus (basically a free wooden wall), sailor growth and light ship power? What light ships did they use?

Don't forget there will also be a religion bonus and you can bet it will also include more mil stuff.
 
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The AI won't outperform even with this ideas, and the player should be attracted to play new tags.
I disagree with the concept that national ideas should exist to lure or reward the player.

I believe they should exist to allow the tag to perform similarily to their real life counterpart in similar situations, and facilitate a tag to achieve its historical outcomes, by the means they historically did.


With that said, I don't mean that only nations with a long curriculum of wars, battles and conquest deserve military bonuses.
Even the tiniest opm who never won a war or posed a threat to anyone could deserve powerful military bonus IF they have historical examples of performing very well against their technologically equivalent peers (by consistently winning battles outnumbered and losing only due to insurmountable numerical and/or economic inferiority).
 
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South and Central America got major reworks in El Dorado (2015) and have been playable and enjoyable since - meanwhile Australia can't really even be classified as a rework since before this it was empty and largely untouched since EU3
South America is playable and enjoyable only if you know nothing about the region lol. Province design and density is awful (how come there are no Andes and Patagonian wastelands!) and the trade node setup makes no sense history-wise, not to mention the lack of many, many tags that could be added for better depth.

That being said, personally I welcome the addition of new tags and general flavor in Oceania, I don't see it as an either/or situation. I just hope SA gets some love as well in the future.
 
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If Aboriginal AI outperforms a fully realized British Empire, I will cackle maniacally as my -20% shock damage has manage to fell an Empire.
 
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the trade nodes make no sense history-wise, not to mention the lack of many, many tags that could be added for better depth.

If they didnt make sense history wise but did gameplay wise, it'd be one thing. However, currently they just make SA the worst continent in the game, and you literally cant get Incan gold as Ming or Japan (Or any of the new tags showcased in this DD, for that matter) because the bizarre way the tradeflow is set up, and how it works in relation to the treasure fleet mechanic. Its effectively non functional for hundreds of tags.
 
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If Aboriginal AI outperforms a fully realized British Empire, I will cackle maniacally as my -20% shock damage has manage to fell an Empire.
So you disagree that ideas should have a relation to the actual achievments of a country?
What military campaigns did the Palawa perform for all those military ideas? What kind of navy did the Eora have for 15% navy morale and light ship power?
 
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I disagree with the concept that ideas should exist to lure the player.

I believe they should exist to allow the tag to perform similarily to their real life counterpart in similar situations, and facilitate a tag to achieve its historical outcomes.
AI prefers to get tech rather than ideas even when massively behind on institutions for some reason
 
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