HOI4 Dev Diary - Beta Batch Update III

[sekelsenmat]

I started a new game in historical/ironman and it is november 39 and Germany just finished the Molotov focus. So ww2 will probably start like in Feb 1940 .... I wonder why? Maybe because the SCW isn't finished yet?

Or I just got unlucky and the AI made something wierd?

I was really counting on it to start in Sep/Oct so that the germans can leave the SCW, their CAS is killing me.

This also ruins my planned date for the Winter War.

 

[podcat]

I really don't like the idea of removing the ability to create collaboration governments from neutral countries and I can't imagine what the justification for removing that is.

We're changing that next time we update the beta to allow players but limit ai

That sums it up very vell. Bought LaR last week. While spying could be nice a nice feature, they made it a pain to play. On the normal way you only get 2 Spies after buiding your agency for 7 months and a 3rd one with recuiting the advisor. Thats nothing. All missions need at least 2 Spies and take ages. But to do missions, you need to build up your intel about your target first, which also takes ages. If you do a mission with your only 2 spies the intel goes down because nobody is doing intel mission and you have to restart doing intel before you can do another mission.
If one of your two spies got captured you can reload the game, because rescuing needs again ages (build up intel, prepare mission, do mission. While its a nice feature, its so unfair balanced and simply boring and repetative using it.

@podcat: Why can't we easily get one spy after every 5th upgrade not only one spy after the 5th upgrade?

Its to control balance of the syste. if you had 4+ spies the amount of spam attacks can get real nasty ruining MP, or SP if we dont limit AIs artificially. Remeber you can get 3 agents with the illusive gentleman and then keep one on network upkeep while the other 2 run an operation. After that you need to go spymaster as part of a faction

 

[withche.07]

@podcat I saw you added Elyesa Bazna as intel advisor (Illusive Gentleman) in Turkey with latest BETA patch. I think its better you replace him with Ahmet Esat Tomruk (nickname: Kemal the Englishman). He was retired and experienced spy of WWI, good candidate to be advisor. Government even assigned him retirement salary later on.
Elyesa Bazna was active spy. I think he can be added to both Germans and Turkey cause he was double agent. Please fix his nationality (was Turkish) Also you can add his nickname Cicero.

Quick update: I see Illusive Gentleman slot is added for new update, I personally think Ahmet Esat Tomruk (Kemal the Englishman) should be advisor for Turkey.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmet_Esat_Tomruk

Ahmet Esat Tomruk (1892 - 14 February 1966) was a Turkish spy better known as "İngiliz Kemal" [Kemal, the Englishman] in Turkey. Tomruk was born in 1892 in Istanbul. At the age of five, his father Mehmet Reşit Bey had died, and he continued living with his mother Sıdıka Hanım and his uncle Sezai Bey. Sezai Bey enrolled him in Galatasaray High School where he studied. In his school years he practiced Italian, Greek, English and French by exchanging letters with his foreign friends. During the First World War he worked for the Special Organization of the Ottoman Empire. In the Turkish Independence War he was received by Mustafa Kemal and was ordered to infiltrate an encampment of the Greek Army. Tomruk was featured in the 1952 film "İngiliz Kemal Lawrense Karşı", and the 1968 "Ingiliz Kemal".

He was the most known former operative in that age. It doesn't make sense to make him operative (as he was retired) but it makes sense to use his experience as officer to help coordination of operatives. I suggest him to be added with his nickname İngiliz Kemal or Kemal the Englishman.
His portraits:
View attachment 557937
View attachment 557940
Added him to advisor list in my main post.

You can also add logo and name for Turkish intel agency.

Turkish Intelligence Agency should be named Millî Emniyet Hizmeti (MEH or MAH)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Security_Service_(Turkey)
These are logos MAH used. I think last one (with crescent) should be added in game.
View attachment 557968

Elyesa Bazna NOT Elaysa Bazna, also.
https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/foru...ed-and-nationality-should-be-updated.1363885/

 

[podcat]

@shultays
Thanks for fixing it!

Sadly it is still not completely fixed : somehow the modifier does not work for the last resource item on the list (00_resources.txt). I've done many tests, whatever resource is put as last one, the modifier doesn't apply at all on it!
As workaround I added a "dummy" resource in my mod, but it is not ellegant and I hate when the error log tell me something is wrong ^^

Still minor issues on the modifiers :
- appears in green in the trade view (should be in red like resources needed by equipment production)
- still no localisation for the modifier (and for the state one)

But overall, this is a great addition. Will be awesome when fully operational

shultays fixed some more issues with it after the beta was published and should be in next update

 

[guprad]

shultays fixed some more issues with it after the beta was published and should be in next update

Any fix for Spain getting all cores on mainland Spain after SCW ends? I'm fairly sure that you're supposed to lose cores on states you did not start out with and gradually re-core them.

 

[Balesir]

Its to control balance of the syste. if you had 4+ spies the amount of spam attacks can get real nasty ruining MP, or SP if we dont limit AIs artificially. Remeber you can get 3 agents with the illusive gentleman and then keep one on network upkeep while the other 2 run an operation. After that you need to go spymaster as part of a faction

I can see this for the focus bunnies making hay, but it's a real pain to play a balanced portfolio against more than one country; you can't keep tabs on the collaboration-puppets that spawn and get to any sort of decent intel level on the majors. One positive step might be to have the "added options and intel" operations need only one agent, while requiring more (2, 3 or even more) for really tough/disruptive operations (sabotage, coup, etc.). In the real war, there was a routine level - and quite a high level - of intel maintained on all the opposing powers, but commando raids, resistance sabotage and assassinations were much more sporadic. Building up to get results should be useful in itself (for intel and such), but should take time before the "trophy" operations can happen. The system has plenty to like, but the baseline network/daring operation split needs work if concerns about spam bunnies aren't going to spoil it by nerfdom.

Edit: scratch the "alter agents per mission" idea - they are mostly* OK as is, but... Let allies share network strength. Not the other aspects of the agency - not operatives, infiltrations (tokens?) or cipher breaks etc. - just the network strength in an area. Make them additive for those in a faction (as if the same nation was building a wider network, so that both building in the exact same area is just like having two agents of a single agency building a network, but building to cover more of the enemy country is helpful to build on nearby allied networks). This would make it possible for the Spy Master to carry out no more simultaneous operations (no extra operatives "under one roof"), but would allow more area in which those operations could be carried out (wherever a faction member has a sufficiently strong network). It would also boost base intel level for all faction members against all enemies without doubling up on a specific target one (and require them to run operations to infiltrate and break ciphers to get more than the base).

*: maybe the "infiltrate civ/army/navy/air force" should be just one agent, though.

 

[j4l]

Its to control balance of the syste. if you had 4+ spies the amount of spam attacks can get real nasty ruining MP, or SP if we dont limit AIs artificially. Remeber you can get 3 agents with the illusive gentleman and then keep one on network upkeep while the other 2 run an operation. After that you need to go spymaster as part of a faction

Thx for the answer. I fully understand that argument, but now there is only one way to play the spy game. Get the illusive gentleman or forget spying at all. What about lowering the amount of needed spies for the harmless infiltrate missions to 1 or what about implementing some cooldown on spies after doing missions for a country (has to going undercover for some time) which decreases a bit with spy level?

What me concerns more is the low progress in complaince in annexed countries. It takes 8 years to get to 100% on civil oversight and peace time. This is very long and there is no way to boost it afterwards. I think the bonus for annexing with a claim of 5% is far to low and should be 15% or 20% or there should be a base compliance level of 20%. Furthermore if would help a lot to have an advisor who has a bonus on complaine gain e.g. the backstubber. Since you still lose half of the factories by annexing through war and gaining of the remaining factories through compliance is not rounded (i did a bug report on this) annexing is so much nerfed with the new compliance system that it's barley usefull atm.

 

[Áurum]

Thx for the answer. I fully understand that argument, but now there is only one way to play the spy game. Get the illusive gentleman or forget spying at all. What about lowering the amount of needed spies for the harmless infiltrate missions to 1 or what about implementing some cooldown on spies after doing missions for a country (has to going undercover for some time) which decreases a bit with spy level?

What me concerns more is the low progress in complaince in annexed countries. It takes 8 years to get to 100% on civil oversight and peace time. This is very long and there is no way to boost it afterwards. I think the bonus for annexing with a claim of 5% is far to low and should be 15% or 20% or that should be a base compliance level of 20%. Furthermore if would help a lot to have an advisor who has a bonus on complaine gain e.g. the backstubber. Since you still lose half of the factories by annexing through war and gaining of the remaining factories through compliance is not rounded (i did a bug report on this) annexing is so much nerfed with the new compliance system that it's barley usefull atm.

We are in a point where we need more advisor slots. Or actual ministers like mods do.

 

[kimidf]

I think that Germany should gain a spirit after making the Czechoslovakian destination approach that would give a small reduction in the cost of producing armored and motorized elements due to the importance that Czech industry had in that regard.

 

[FLUX2226]

Its to control balance of the syste. if you had 4+ spies the amount of spam attacks can get real nasty ruining MP, or SP if we dont limit AIs artificially. Remeber you can get 3 agents with the illusive gentleman and then keep one on network upkeep while the other 2 run an operation. After that you need to go spymaster as part of a faction

Some missions require 3 agents, which means you will lose your network if you do these. So not really worth it. 4 spies is the minimum number required to run every mission properly (still only 1 at a time and you need to give up one advisor slot), if this was achievable for everyone and not just the spy masters, it would make espionage feel a lot less limiting.

 

[kimidf]

I think it is due to change the portrait of the Raj when it becomes a domain and put Lord Louis Mountbatten as his portrait since he was the last British governor in that place

After India and Pakistan achieved their independence, both states should have portraits of historical and non-generic leaders such as Nehru in India and Muhammad Ali Jinnah pakistan

 

[Balesir]

Some missions require 3 agents, which means you will lose your network if you do these. So not really worth it. 4 spies is the minimum number required to run every mission properly (still only 1 at a time and you need to give up one advisor slot), if this was achievable for everyone and not just the spy masters, it would make espionage feel a lot less limitating.

If you have the "faction members share network strength" that I suggest above, faction members would be able to do this by using an ally's network - though getting AI allies to help usefully might need some sort of coordination system. That would leave the issue of single countries, for those who like playing minors outside factions. Maybe allow these a "spy master" option, and give the spy master a minimum of 1 additional operative (bringing them to four with the minister)?

 

[Mr.Grizzly]

I think that Germany should gain a spirit after making the Czechoslovakian destination approach that would give a small reduction in the cost of producing armored and motorized elements due to the importance that Czech industry had in that regard.

They get the Czech industry and their equipment, usually including lots of tanks, don't think a NS is required to make tanks cheaper, especially since Germany can already spam them out, notably Medium Tank I, before anyone else, except the Soviets

 

[kimidf]

I think historical collaborative governments should be implemented such as the British Middle East Mandate (covering Palestine, Jordan and Israel) the Polish Generalgouvernement , Procterate of Bohemia and Moravia, Empire of Vietnam, Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China or Autonomous Government of the Free City Danzig,
French Equatorial Africa (Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Gabon and Central African Republic),
French West Africa (Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Benin, Guinea, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Mali and Togo) and Greater Lebanon (Syria and Lebanon)

 

[kimidf]

I think some requirements should also be modified for the Germans to take the Sudeten and Anchluss approaches. And that it was indispensible to be able to make these approaches a certain infiltration in both Austria and Czechoslovakia and clandestinely promote these events and give the issue some truth and make it more active as in reality through missions that exist or a new specifies this purpose

I also believe that a network already created should be maintained for a certain time even if there was no spy in the territory or they were on a mission.

 

[Gutted Gandhi]

I completely agree with you. The freedom to change conscription laws while being a dominion is much needed.

Also the Alternate focus tree for Raj is not at all enjoyable. Its too short and you can never change ideology without a civil war

 

[Caudi]

It should have one already, Have you constructed an agency?

In 1.9.1 the netherlands have an illusive gentlemen. I could swear that they didn't in 1.9.0, because I was frustrated that with the non-aligned path (with no faction) I was stuck with 2 spies. Thank you for answering.
Btw, is it inteded that the Monarchist path can not go down towards 'The Forth Ally'? Because despite the visuals in the focus tree you can not take 'The Singapur Conferences' if you did 'Oranje Boven'.