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EU4 - Development Diary - 31st of July 2018

Good day and welcome to another Dev Diary for Europa Universalis IV. As July rolls to a close, Paradox HQ slowly sees its manpower trickle back in from Summer merriment and return to creating games. At this rate, who knows, we may be able to announce Dharma's release date in the not-too-distant future, as I have been not so subtly asked about many a time.

But what are we looking at today? We've covered almost all of the new mechanics for Dharma already, we'll finish it off today by talking about what we've done to make Centers of Trade more interesting.

Ever since EU4's release, Centers of Trade have been a constant flat bonus to a province. They can make otherwise uninviting land fairly desirable for conquest to drive up your trade power in a node for as long as you can hold the land. It works fairly well, but has lacked a depth to it that we're looking to change.

BNG COT.png


Firstly, and this goes for everyone who updates to the 1.26 Mughals version, Centers of Trade, both inland and coastal, will have 3 different levels, allowing them to affect their province, the owner and the lands around them. These are:

(coastal)
  • Staple Port:
    • + 5 trade power,
  • Entrepot:
    • +10 trade power, -5% dev cost, +10% institution spread
  • World Port:
    • +25 trade power, +0.25 Naval Tradition, +30% institution spread
    • For whole Area: -10% dev cost, +100% Sailors, +1 Building Slot
(inland)
  • Emporium:
    • +5 Trade Power
  • Market Town:
    • +10 Trade Power, -5% dev cost
  • World Trade Center:
    • +25 trade power, +30% institution spread
    • For Whole Area: -10% Dev Cost, +33% Manpower, +1 Building Slot
Our goal here is to bring a lot more variance to the Centers of Trade around the world, such that Genoa brings a bit more to the table than Barcelona, or Gujarati Khambhat feels far more of a thriving and tantalising target than Thana. Staple ports and Emporiums will bring only modest trade power bonuses. Entrepots and Market Towns are similar to how all old Centers of Trade used to be, while World Ports and World Trade Centers not only bring benefit the provinces dearly, but also benefit the area around them and offer the owner a way to gain Naval Tradition. Note that Centers of Trade do not consume buildings slots.

With this, the Trade Center levels across the world have been crafted to model the world's situation and, with the scaling of their effects, has allowed us to add considerably more Centers of Trade than we have been at liberty to do before.

Europe:
Euro COT.png


India:

Indian COT.png



In addition to this, Dharma owners will see the levels of Centers of Trade fluctuate both through their own actions, and those of the nations around them. Centers of Trade in either States or Trade Companies can be upgraded for a cost of 200 Ducats to level 2, and 1000 ducats to level 3. The number of Level 3 Centers of Trade a nation can have is capped by the number of available Merchants that nation has, so a globe-spanning trade nation will be able to hold many of them if they so desire, while a less trade focused conqueror will have to be more picky.

Be wary however, since a Center of Trade will be downgraded by 1 level, either from 3 to 2 or 2 to 1 upon a change of owner, even through peaceful methods like diplomatic integration. Trade and traders will thrive in peaceful lands of certainty. You are also able to downgrade your own Centers of Trade if you are at peace, at a cost of 10 prestige.

That's our lot for today, we'll be back next week, rounding up on the National Ideas that we have not yet covered.

CLARIFICATION: if you don't own Dharma it gets locked to it's level. You do not lose any level when province owner switches. - Groogy
 
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(coastal)
  • Staple Port:
    • + 5 trade power,
  • Entrepot:
    • +10 trade power, -5% dev cost, +10% institution spread
  • World Port:
    • +25 trade power, +0.25 Naval Tradition, +30% institution spread
    • For whole Area: -10% dev cost, +100% Sailors, +1 Building Slot
(inland)
  • Emporium:
    • +5 Trade Power
  • Market Town:
    • +10 Trade Power, -5% dev cost
  • World Trade Center:
    • +25 trade power, +30% institution spread
    • For Whole Area: -10% Dev Cost, +33% Manpower, +1 Building Slot

@DDRJake man hello. I only play this game because my little brother likes your accent ok. Look man MERCHANT REPUBLIC NEED PERMANENT GOVERNMENT MODIFIER OF 20% TRADE EFFICIENCY AND MAYBE SOME PROVINCIAL TRADE POWER. Thanks man. Paradox are lucky to have you on their team.you are doing a great job. Please man MR need buff really. (Capital letters for importance not shouting)


Thanks.
 
Instead of upgrading and downgrading centres of trade with money, why not have it linked to how much trade flows through it? Also have maybe have it linked to prosperity and devastation?
 
I think 200 and 1000 ducats are a no brainer to come by by nations like Aragon, Castille, France or Englan as soon as 1450. So it feels like you're gonna have them built up quite early on. Doesn't feel very rewarding...It should depend on some variable or fundamental that may take time and also monarch points. I would make the much more expensivein money as well. Because 5 or 10 may not seem much, but once you start pilling modifiers (burghers, edicts, merchantilism, coastal, etc) that 5-10 may easily become 20-30 trade power. It should be harder I don't know.
 
How many world ports / world trade centres can there be in the world, really? Wouldn't it make sense to restrict this to one per trade node or even per continent/ super region? At least give a special CB that permits to force another country to downgrade its world port / world centre.
 
I expect every CoT in the game will be level3 after a while except some of what you own. Minors will dump their cash to upgrade them and suck even more trade out of nodes while having nothing to invest. Constantly declaring war on minors to rob them of their cash will be best source of money. Unless they really optimise it well. Developers need to make sure minors do not get more cash than they already do. There should be a minimum province limit to uprade CoTs.
 
I expect every CoT in the game will be level3 after a while except some of what you own. Minors will dump their cash to upgrade them and suck even more trade out of nodes while having nothing to invest. Constantly declaring war on minors to rob them of their cash will be best source of money. Unless they really optimise it well. Developers need to make sure minors do not get more cash than they already do. There should be a minimum province limit to uprade CoTs.
The point it to allow you to play tall. If fact in this era it is often the countries who were "peaceful" and focused on trade who flourished. Like the dutch and the British, both had relatively peaceful times to thank for their later leaps into power.
 
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How many world ports / world trade centres can there be in the world, really? Wouldn't it make sense to restrict this to one per trade node or even per continent/ super region? At least give a special CB that permits to force another country to downgrade its world port / world centre.

I like this idea. But then Worldtrade centers would have to require something more than just spending 1000 ducates or otherwise the first one to spend it wins and the rest are screwd and can't do anything about it.

But I think the idea of a peace offer to downgrade a world trade center after a trade war (trade conflict its already in, I dont see why theres need for another CB) would be much appriciated.
 
That happened in RL.
Did it though? Thinking about Britain (and their empire) specifically I can only think of London that could legitimately have been called a "world port". Even if you could make a case for any others I very much doubt there's something like the 15 or so that would be possible in the game that you could name.
 
Did it though? Thinking about Britain (and their empire) specifically I can only think of London that could legitimately have been called a "world port". Even if you could make a case for any others I very much doubt there's something like the 15 or so that would be possible in the game that you could name.
I don't know if it's in this era but wasn't Liverpool sort of a big port too? Also the British navy operated out of Portsmouth.
 
I don't know if it's in this era but wasn't Liverpool sort of a big port too? Also the British navy operated out of Portsmouth.

Liverpool only became a major port in 18th century and later. Not sure when in 18th century but probably in the middle or late. I should note that capital of the province it is in changed to "Liverpool" in late 18th century according to the province history file. Can't remember which province it is in now owing to changes in province map with last DLC but it may be the one where it started with city of Chester as province capital, as it was before the map changes.

That being said, I think the CoT/potential CoT setup is rather too fixed throughout the game's timeframe. For example, there is no way to make the New York a CoT because it has an estuary modifier and no natural harbor modifier from which it can transform into a CoT via an event, which is absurd considering its excellent location. Neither will we see Liverpool become a CoT as well, as it look like there is an inland CoT now next to it according to the screenshot attached to the dev diary here unless we get an event that transfers the CoT somehow.

It look like Bristol now will be a new CoT which is a good thing considering the important role that Bristol merchants played in the trade and, I also believe, in colonization.
 
England's got many trade centers added (5!) meanwhile lower countries got only 1 added. This change is too highly favored towards the English. A big concern is that this is all in the richest trade node in the game. This all makes it really unbalanced for the dutch who will the see their trade income siphoned by the english. I'm kinda troubled it does not reflect the economical power the lower countries had in the timeframe. An especially regarding the golden ages of Brussels, Antwerpen and Rotterdam.

not sure why Contentin is up there (maybe to spread out centers of trade?) but I suggest it should be replaced with Middelburg (Zeeland) instead. That the dutch get 2 trade centers would only be fair because it deserves to compete with the English and don't forget that the netherlands was a vast trade empire. Giving Portugal 2 trade centers but Netherlands only one is unjustified. I think Middelburg should be on there considering Middelburg became after Amsterdam the most important center for the Dutch East Company. Something that should not be forgotten https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middelburg

Brussels:

Besides then we have Brussels which was also significant to be awarded a trade center. And there are several good reasons for this

1) in the 15th, 16th and 17th century Brabant was the main economical power in the lower countries. This era is often dubbed the Brabantian expansion ( https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brabantse_expansie ) Brabant during this era prospered in art, literature and commerce. Likewise the Brabant dominance in the region in 1444 could be better represented in the game.
2) Brussels for centuries long was the capital of the Habsburg Netherlands (that includes both Spanish and Austrian period) and the Burgundian Netherlands
3) the Grande Place of Brussels is considered world UNESCO heritage, surrounded by its opulent guildhalls it historically had a REALLY BIG importance in the cloth industry in the lower countries
as shown here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Place#Rise_in_importance


after all, this is a suggestion. I myself don't live in Brussels or Middelburg, but I want to make sure that the history of both cities should not be ignored. On another note, I love that there will be new levels of trade centers!
 
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Trade power doesn't change the amount of money available, only the ratio of who can move it around or collect it. The same amount of money will still be floating around... minus the cost for upgrading the CoT's

Not sure I agree. Wouldn't the overall money floating around increase due to building of manufactories, workshops, boosts to production by increasing development, etc at the end of the game? Wouldn't it make logical sense to then make grabbing additional slice of this money more costly in the end of the game than in the beginning?
 
Liverpool only became a major port in 18th century and later. Not sure when in 18th century but probably in the middle or late. I should note that capital of the province it is in changed to "Liverpool" in late 18th century according to the province history file. Can't remember which province it is in now owing to changes in province map with last DLC but it may be the one where it started with city of Chester as province capital, as it was before the map changes.
Well London wasn't a world port before the 18th century either.
That being said, I think the CoT/potential CoT setup is rather too fixed throughout the game's timeframe. For example, there is no way to make the New York a CoT because it has an estuary modifier and no natural harbor modifier from which it can transform into a CoT via an event, which is absurd considering its excellent location. Neither will we see Liverpool become a CoT as well, as it look like there is an inland CoT now next to it according to the screenshot attached to the dev diary here unless we get an event that transfers the CoT somehow.
Both estuaries and natural harbours should be the 0 tier of CoT.
 
Not sure I agree. Wouldn't the overall money floating around increase due to building of manufactories, workshops, boosts to production by increasing development, etc at the end of the game? Wouldn't it make logical sense to then make grabbing additional slice of this money more costly in the end of the game than in the beginning?

This already happens. Changing the percentage of that each nation grabs doesn't make a direct impact on that.