Jak's Game Guide: An EU4 Tutorial

[Bullfilter]

If you go to the Subjects screen and click on whatever row your subject is in, there are different interactions listed. It's the same place where you tell your vassal to be siege-focused, supportive, etc.

Ah, will have to check that out. So far in various wars my subjects pitched in and I just let them do what they did, without being aware of that screen.

Our colonies will be our main power base. Although France does colonize, they take the idea group later than the Iberians (and us). If we get enough of an economy going, we'll be able to challenge France (or that's the hope anyway).

Strategy:

1. Build a colonial empire to grow our economy
2. Use our new wealth and power to find allies to challenge France/England
3. Attack one or both of them at some date in the future once we're strong enough.

I’ve actually essentially been trying to do something similar with Frisia, but the French out-colonised me in North America, forcing me to look for other more far flung opportunities and scaring me off from attacking them (and they keep winning the wars they’ve been in). Maybe I should use my 11k ducat war chest to hire mercs and go after them the next time they’re heavily committed!

 

[Hootieleece]

I wouldn't call Austria easy. They are strong because of their position within the HRE, but France, the Ottomans, or the PLC are stronger than you. Plus, being Emperor requires lots of management as you try to pass the different HRE Reforms and such. So Austria can be strong but it isn't a beginner-friendly nation.

I have played Austria before, but it was a long time ago, (pre-1.30 and especially in the early patches) when the game was less railroaded. It is 1480 in that game and Franco-Ottoman Alliance event has created menace to my position. PLC has imploded and my PU Bohemia received half of Poland from Hungary and Ladislas Posthumous died before he unified the Austrian and Hungarian Thrones.

But I am very interested in this Brittany AAR because it is showing me that EUIV can be a bit of a sandbox even with the mission trees railroading things a bit more than I like.

 

[jak7139]

I’ve actually essentially been trying to do something similar with Frisia, but the French out-colonised me in North America

Yeah. You have to race the AI for space in the New World. If you don't go quickly, especially as not one of the stronger powers, you'll lose out.

You'll see how that all works out over the next few decades.

But I am very interested in this Brittany AAR because it is showing me that EUIV can be a bit of a sandbox even with the mission trees railroading things a bit more than I like.

Thanks! I think Brittany's lack of a fully unique mission tree helps here. We'll just have to find our own path instead of one designed by Paradox

 

[jak7139]

CHAPTER ELEVEN: Admin Tech Five, Alliances, & Prince Pierre
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(February 1461-August 1464)​

Our admin advisor dies in February, but we decide to replace this one. We need amin points more than we need mil points, and hopefully, our new Treasurer (+10% National Tax Modifier) will partially pay for himself.

In July more Irish rebels rise up, this time in Offaly and in Limerick. As we’re dealing with both of those, we hear about a war between Venice and Hungary and how mercenaries have become key in that conflict.

​

As we defeat the last of the rebels in October, Saxony’s king dies, ending our marriage with them. Finally, I can do something I’ve wanted to do ever since we got Kildare as a vassal. You may have noticed we’ve been over the relations-limit this whole time (our 4 allies+1 vassal). We’ve been paying an extra diplo point for this privilege, but I want to keep our other allies. Why does Saxony get kicked to the curb? And why did we keep them this long? Well, I’ll show you.

Despite their extra strength in their subject Thuringia, Saxony is currently the weakest out of all our allies. Thuringia’s independence is being supported by not one, not two, but three other countries: Brandenburg, Brunswick, and Wurzburg. Aside from the obvious risk of war at any moment should Thuringia revolt, there’s also the fact that, even if they don’t declare independence, they are dragging Saxony down. Disloyal subjects don’t help their overlord during wars.

Now, why didn’t we cancel our alliance earlier? Because we had both an alliance and a marriage with Saxony. We can break alliances easily. All it costs is a 5-year truce. But breaking a marriage costs one stability (unless we finish Diplomatic Ideas). And I’m sure you know how precious our admin points have been these past few years. So, I paid the 1 diplo a month to keep Saxony as an ally as long as we had a marriage. Now our marriage is over, and so is our alliance.

1462 comes around and France turns their guarantee of Scotland into a full-fledged alliance. Then, in July our last 2 cores finish (Ulster and Mann) and we State those provinces as well. Stating Mann will actually lose us money, but if the autonomy goes down and Prosperity (something I haven’t talked about yet) builds up, it should be fine.

After that, in August, we finish selling knowledge to Switzerland. The next richest country willing to accept our services is the Palatinate. They’ll pay us 0.41 ducats each month for the duration.

We also get an event about a devout preacher within our lands. We choose to send him to Rome, giving us 10 Papal Influence and allowing us to pick our first Catholic bonus. Most of these bonuses are useful in some form, but today we choose the extra tax income. And maybe we’ll even get enough money during its 20-year duration to use the decreased construction cost.

It’s October and our income is 7.11 gross and 1.66 net with a defunded army. We improve our relations with the Papal States some more to get more Papal Influence.

Now, in February and March of 1463, I have a side-by-side comparison to show you. Our income goes from 7.14 to…7.15! Yeah, I know, not a lot. But this is the effect of our slowly decreasing autonomy. Even while at peace we are growing stronger.

We have 22 favors with Burgundy, a perfect point to spend some. Instead of trading favors for money though, I decide to take some manpower instead (1,044), since the rebellions have bled us. We use the money-interaction on the Pope, giving us 26 more gold.

In April, Burgundy becomes the 5th-ranked Great Power. Good for us! But then, in June…bad news…

​

Prince Pierre is sick, gravely sick. We could spend 17 ducats on a 50/50 chance of saving him. But money is so tight right now. And Pierre isn’t that great of an heir. We decide to pray, but it does little to help the prince. We are now heirless, but maybe the duke can think of something. We already have as many marriages as we can without going over the relations-limit again (Burgundy and Kildare. Switzerland is a republic and the Papacy is a theocracy, no hope from either of them). The only thing we can do is wait.

​

When looking around the world in July, I notice that Sweden is heavily occupied by Pretender Rebels. This could free them from the union with Denmark peacefully (if you consider a rebellion peaceful). We’ll see what comes of this later.

There is a reason Denmark is not dealing with Sweden. They’re a bit distracted. Denmark is allied with the Teutons, so is fighting Poland and Danzig.

​

In February of ’64, we finally pay down the last of our Corruption. This was taking up a bit of our income to pay off, but it was necessary. As I mentioned in Chapter Six, Corruption is anathema, and we should never take it unless we are seriously desperate.

Also in March, our truce with Provence ends. We can’t attack them, and they don’t have any more land I particularly want anyway. I leave them be.

We can also take admin tech 5. This unlocks our first idea group slot, which will of course be Exploration. We also get an ahead-of-time bonus for now being current with technology.

​

The same month, Hungary’s woes continue. Bohemia declares on them, and Cilli and Albania don’t defend them. Hungary has also been at war with the Ottomans during this time, due to a Turkish attack on Albania. The Venetian war is still ongoing.

​

In July, we seize land and summon the diet again. I don’t sell any titles since our economy is on the up, and we don’t need the money for anything yet. This time, we choose to help the Bourgeoisie in developing Arvor. I don’t complete it instantly because we want to fill out our idea group, but we have 20 years before the Bourgeoisie will get upset.

​

Apparently after the diet, our duke was hosting a banquet. This is one of those events based on our ruler’s traits. Since our ruler has Loose Lips, he tends to gossip. In this case, the gossip gives us a small relations-boost with England, but that does nothing to overcome their hatred.

​

In August, at another party, Francois meets 2 interesting people, a noble lady and a distinguished gentleman. Unfortunately, the lady won’t give us a good replacement heir for Pierre. So, we talk to the man instead. We hire our new cheaper advisor immediately.

​

 

[Rensslaer]

@jak7139 it's always a nail biter when you lose the heir. What happens in EU IV if someone else inherits you? Did the player keep going with the new fellow? Or is that not allowed to happen?

Otherwise, a nice stable period of growth, rest and recovery.

Renss

 

[filcat]

We are now heirless, but maybe the duke can think of something. We already have as many marriages as we can without going over the relations-limit again (Burgundy and Kildare. Switzerland is a republic and the Papacy is a theocracy, no hope from either of them). The only thing we can do is wait.

Briefly mentioned about this issue recently, but would like to reiterate that here again.
It is advantageous to save some of the available targets for such situations, for the reason is:

Going to war helps the process of waiting for the heir when playing with monarchy tags, no matter the tag-religion, but especially useful for tags with pu-mechanics.

When pu-alert drops-down, meaning no heir and the player will fall under a pu (and a possible succession war between two rivals else interested tags), going to war eradicates that chance (as the alert is turned off), apparently lowers the chance of the ruler death, and increases the potential heir events. Not an official info, no definition is available, pure player experience (so, heavy confirmation bias), but the game runs as such. Had averted countless pu-madness back in the day by going to war while the ruler is over seventy with no heir.

 

[Midnite Duke]

Could you fall into a PU under Burgundy? Then the Burgundian inheritance fires and chaos emerges. Thank you for the update.

 

[HistoryDude]

Hopefully that formal alliance between France and Scotland ends up fighting many wars with England... and not with you.

Are the Italian Wars currently limited to Venice and Hungary, or have any other Italian states joined (on either side)? What territory is officially in dispute?

 

[Bullfilter]

Then, in July our last 2 cores finish (Ulster and Mann) and we state those provinces as well.

I’ve probably asked this question (or something similar) before here or elsewhere that’s been answered before, but: as a rule, do you think it’s usually worth stating provinces as soon as it’s an option even if only say 1 out of 4 in the state held, low income province? What broad rule of thumb do you use?

We are now heirless, but maybe the duke can think of something.

Moments like this make having a republic seem a bit simpler!

Hungary has also been at war with the Ottomans during this time

Uh oh, danger Will Robinson, danger! How likely is it Otto will become the monster that devours the world, because there may be little modest Brittany can do to avert that for the foreseeable future?

In this case, the gossip gives us a small relations-boost with England

Haha, I guess this is the opposite of cheesed off - cheesed on?

 

[Chac1]

Good to see the latest installment of this guide/AAR.

And on to my usually different tangent...

When looking around the world in July, I notice that Sweden is heavily occupied by Pretender Rebels. This could free them from the union with Denmark peacefully (if you consider a rebellion peaceful). We’ll see what comes of this later.

There is a reason Denmark is not dealing with Sweden. They’re a bit distracted. Denmark is allied with the Teutons, so is fighting Poland and Danzig.

I always perk up when I see the Danes getting involved, even if it is many years after the time period I usually write about. I see your Danes have a nice slice of Russia to rule too!

 

[jak7139]

@jak7139 it's always a nail biter when you lose the heir. What happens in EU IV if someone else inherits you? Did the player keep going with the new fellow? Or is that not allowed to happen?

If your ruler dies without an heir, one of three things can happen:

• If you have no marriages, a random noble from your country will found a new dynasty
• If you have a marriage with another nation, you will get a ruler of their dynasty or
• You will fall under a union with that nation

EU4 is a game about countries, not rulers. So, really, your ruler doesn't matter except for getting unions and for their stats.

Otherwise, a nice stable period of growth, rest and recovery.

And that will continue for a while yet.

Briefly mentioned about this issue recently, but would like to reiterate that here again.
It is advantageous to save some of the available targets for such situations, for the reason is:

Going to war helps the process of waiting for the heir when playing with monarchy tags, no matter the tag-religion, but especially useful for tags with pu-mechanics.

When pu-alert drops-down, meaning no heir and the player will fall under a pu (and a possible succession war between two rivals else interested tags), going to war eradicates that chance (as the alert is turned off), apparently lowers the chance of the ruler death, and increases the potential heir events. Not an official info, no definition is available, pure player experience (so, heavy confirmation bias), but the game runs as such. Had averted countless pu-madness back in the day by going to war while the ruler is over seventy with no heir.

I know about being at war preventing unions. In this case, we don't have any easy targets to do this with, but I felt we needed the land more than possibly preventing a union or dynasty change.

Could you fall into a PU under Burgundy? Then the Burgundian inheritance fires and chaos emerges. Thank you for the update.

We could. One of my hopes for this early stage was that we would get the inheritance. We'll see how that plays out.

Hopefully that formal alliance between France and Scotland ends up fighting many wars with England... and not with you.

Hopefully! Although, due to England's naval dominance, they usually rush down Scotland, separate peace them, and take land from them in such cases.

Are the Italian Wars currently limited to Venice and Hungary, or have any other Italian states joined (on either side)? What territory is officially in dispute?

It's just Venice vs. Hungary. No other Italians are involved. A screenshot I left out of the last chapter:

I’ve probably asked this question (or something similar) before here or elsewhere that’s been answered before, but: as a rule, do you think it’s usually worth stating provinces as soon as it’s an option even if only say 1 out of 4 in the state held, low income province? What broad rule of thumb do you use?

It's worth stating everything if you either don't have problems with Governing Capacity or don't plan on turning any of those provinces into a Trade Company. The extra income, lowered autonomy, and increased Reform Progress growth is all worth it.

Even if you're low on admin points, you can just leave the provinces half-stated and core them later whenever you have time.

Moments like this make having a republic seem a bit simpler!

Republics are definitely simpler! Funnily enough, before Absolutism was introduced as a mechanic, I think most players would've considered republics to be the best/strongest government type in the game.

You don't have to deal with the Stability loss on monarch death, you have no RNG with your ruler stats (allowing you to focus your point generation every election-cycle as needed), and you don't have the potential risk of falling under a union.

Uh oh, danger Will Robinson, danger! How likely is it Otto will become the monster that devours the world, because there may be little modest Brittany can do to avert that for the foreseeable future?

We can't do anything directly no. But Russia is doing really well this game, more well than I've seen in a long time. Even though the Ottomans are big, they are still an AI. So they won't devour the world, especially once they run out of Mission Tree claims.

There's also Persia and the other Middle East powers as well.

Haha, I guess this is the opposite of cheesed off - cheesed on?

Good to see the latest installment of this guide/AAR.

And I'm glad to have your and everyone's readership!

I always perk up when I see the Danes getting involved, even if it is many years after the time period I usually write about. I see your Danes have a nice slice of Russia to rule too!

They do have a good piece of Russia. But the Polish war is not going well for them. They really shouldn't have gotten involved in it.

 

[jak7139]

CHAPTER TWELVE: World Wars & New Tech
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(August 1464-December 1467)​

In October a few months later, we get an event saying that a cousin of ours is doing a great job ruling. I notice the text “subject state” in the event and look at Kildare. I didn’t realize they were our same dynasty. This lowers their Liberty Desire a little bit, keeping them loyal. Unfortunately, we can't steal their 5/5/5 heir.

Our deal with the Palatinate ends in November. Next on the list is Liege (0.42 gold).

It is December 7th, 1464, and something important happens. Well, not really…We get the same event regarding the peasants that we did at the start of the game. I just thought it was strange we got the same event 20 years and a month later. Spooky. Just like last time, we choose to pay the peasants off.

That same month, I get an alert that we can take our first Exploration Idea and gain some Innovativeness for it. If you remember the last time I brought this up (Chapters Four & Five), we can wait a while before deciding what to do. I use that tactic again here.

This does, however, bode really well for our nation. Why?

When taking Innovativeness from a technology/idea, the timer only starts ticking down when a nation has already taken it. Meaning we can judge, since the timer still has a year left, that we are not that far behind the 2 other countries likely to take Exploration ideas this early into the game. Those countries being Castille and Portugal.

I look at the Iberians and find exactly what I expect. Both have selected Exploration, but only Portugal has picked the first slot (Castille actually hasn't selected Exploration yet, but they will whenever they reach tech 5). Despite our no-CB war and all the admin points we spent coring Ireland, we are still right on time in the rush for the New World.

I’m so excited by this development, that I reverse course on my previous decision to wait a year for Innovativeness. This was a minor mistake, but I was too happy at the time to care.

We can now recruit an explorer or a conquistador if we want, but we don’t yet. There are other ways to do that for free later.

At the start of the new year, 6,000 separatists in Mann revolt. But, expecting this, I kept our army and transports nearby in Dublin and fully maintained. The rebellion doesn’t even last a month.

However, in February, our nobility take the opportunity to rise up as well. They are a lot stronger (11,000 men). I start shipping everything over to Penn-ar-Bed. On the 9th of April, we attack. Despite their slightly larger army, the rebels have no general. We take an even number of casualties, but the rebellion is crushed.

In the middle of the battle, Venice and Hungary end their war. Things aren’t looking good for the Magyars.

​

In June our Knowledge Sharing agreement once again ends. The only nation who will accept our services now is our vassal Kildare. They’ll pay us 0.10 gold per month.

I also take this moment to look around the world.

The pretender revolt in Sweden is over. The Kalmar union has lost Stockholm’s support. Sweden is still embroiled in the conflict with Poland and Danzig, but they are no longer under the Danish crown. Sweden enters an alliance with England sometime later.

In September the Danish-Polish war ends. Albania is also annexed by the Ottomans. Two months later, the tiny HRE minor of Cilli declares on the remains of Croatia. Serbia also takes the opportunity in December to pounce on Hungary. And, the same month, abandoned by their Scandinavian allies, the Teutonic Order cedes land to both Poland and Danzig. Before 1465 is out, one last war is started, the War of Saxon Succession!

Time continues on. Lithuania and Poland’s alliance breaks down in April. In June, Bohemia takes a large bite out of the Hungarian pie. And…we get a brand-new heir!

​

Say hello everyone to Prince Francois! A 4/6/5!

This joyous news is tempered somewhat by the fact that an affair between Duchess-Consort Neassa and our Treasurer is revealed. I’ve learned my lesson from before. We can't trust the Pope to help. We lose 10 prestige and move on.

​

Also, since we are making money, I decide to hire a military advisor again. We choose the level 1 Master Recruiter (+10% national manpower modifier) because he’s the most useful out of the given options. More forcelimit won’t help since I’m not hiring any more troops right now, and we can’t afford a level 2.

In October we get 60 military power and some opinion with France from a nice event. This gives us enough points to take military tech 6. Since we’re behind-time on it, we don’t delay.

Techs 4,5,6, and 7 are all very key early-game boosts to our military. If you’ll remember back to Chapter Nine, we discussed unit pips. Tech 6 does not give us any new units, but it does give us some Military Tactics, increased Combat Width, and Infantry Fire and Shock (also a building, but we don’t have enough money).

Back in Chapter Nine, I mentioned that the effectiveness of our units’ pips in a battle is increased by our units’ Fire/Shock values. The increased Fire and Shock we got here for our infantry has buffed their pips.

The Military Tactics we got from this tech is also very important. While all the different stats for units and armies are useful, Tactics is the most important one by far. You never want to be fighting someone who has an advantage in Tactics over you.

Tactics are important because they reduce the amount of damage your army takes in battle. And with how damage is calculated by the game, being behind in a Tactics tech severely weakens your army. This is why European armies can so easily beat Native armies early in the game, even if outnumbered heavily. The difference is in the Tactics.

Combat Width (CW) is self-explanatory if you’ve played other Paradox games. But if EU4 is your first game, CW affects the number of units each side can have on the field at the same time. If you have a 20,000-strong army, but the CW is only 12, only 12,000 of your men can actually fight.

The other 8,000 will still be in the battle, just “in reserve” as the game calls it. Those reserve units will trickle in as your original frontline takes damage and retreats. While reserve units don’t take strength damage, they do take morale damage.

These reservists could’ve provided your army with morale later in the battle by marching in as reinforcements. But instead, they are just stuck in the battle, not participating, and sucking up your morale. Having more than a couple units over the CW (to replace your frontline) is a significant waste.

A few days after taking the tech, we lose 10 more prestige from an event. These hits to our prestige hurt, but they’re better than losing monarch points. In November, we get some loyalty with the Bourgeoisie and some Trade Efficiency from an event.

Apparently, nothing of note happened for the rest of 1466 because the next screenshot I have is all the way in August 1467. Duke Francois, having shepherded us for many years…

Spoiler: Duke Francois' Fate...

Gains a new trait! What? You thought I was going to say he died? No. I will spoil that our duke is surprisingly long-lived. He’s still going up to where I’ve played when writing this (1482).

Anyway, he is now Silver Tongued. The Improve Relations this gives us affects how fast our AE decays. Higher is better. We don’t have much AE left since we’ve been at peace for a while, but it helps, nonetheless.

​

Later in August, Cilli pays the price for their ambitious landgrab. Croatia has turned the tables and annexed their former foe. Then, in September, the Hungarian decapitation continues. This time it is Poland going in (the Serbian invasion is also still ongoing).

Finally, before the end of December, we see two new wars and one peace. Thuringia beats Brunswick, affirming their union over Saxony and taking the entirety of Brunswick too! Austria then invades Croatia, citing the restoration of Cilli as their casus-belli. And the Ottomans continues to dominate the Balkans, declaring war against Serbia.

​

 

[Midnite Duke]

I used to think that mercantilism was king, but I see you taking 60 military points. How big is mercantilism? What happens when revolters win (to AI)? Do nobles form a new country or replace leadership? Do separatists rejoin the old country or form new country? Thank you for the information.

Does silver-tongue make getting allies easier?

 

[Rensslaer]

Wow! Hungary getting gobbled up, and Bohemia and Thursday growing.

Makes a more interesting central Europe, to be sure.

How much do you feel this will affect you? You had Saxony as an ally, but no longer. Will you care what happens there, before the 1500s?

Rensslaer

 

[Bullfilter]

Say hello everyone to Prince Francois! A 4/6/5!

Hope he survives to inherit.

Having more than a couple units over the CW (to replace your frontline) is a significant waste.

Useful nugget of info I hadn’t really picked up on (or fully appreciated).

Later in August, Cilli pays the price for their ambitious landgrab. Croatia has turned the tables and annexed their former foe.

You should never gamble more than you’re prepared to lose …

Austria then invades Croatia, citing the restoration of Cilli as their casus-belli.

… unless you have a protector out there willing to step in to bail you out, I suppose!

And the Ottomans continues to dominate the Balkans, declaring war against Serbia.

Hmm, they seem to be getting set to blob Central Europe.

 

[HistoryDude]

Poor Hungary. Is Venice done annexing Croatian land?

If only the subjects of Brittany would realize that Breton rule is better than the alternatives - English, Scottish, or even French rule...

 

[jak7139]

I used to think that mercantilism was king, but I see you taking 60 military points. How big is mercantilism?

Mercantilism is nice, but we needed the mil points more as we were behind on tech. I don't want to fall behind and give the French or English any ideas.

As for what Mercantilism does, the main thing is that it increases the Trade Power your provinces generate (TP is what determines your share in a node). It also gives a small amount of Burgher (Bourgeoisie in our case) loyalty. And it makes our colonies more disloyal the higher it is.

What happens when revolters win (to AI)? Do nobles form a new country or replace leadership?

What happens when a revolt wins depends on what kind of rebel they are. Noble rebels just raise Autonomy and I think increase Estate influence if they win.

Do separatists rejoin the old country or form new country? Thank you for the information.

If their old country still exists they will rejoin it. If not, they'll reform it.

Does silver-tongue make getting allies easier?

No. The Improved Relations that the trait gives us makes AE decay faster and also lets our diplomats increase relations faster in other countries.

Diplomatic Reputation is the one that makes the AI more likely to accept deals like alliances.

Wow! Hungary getting gobbled up, and Bohemia and Thursday growing.

Makes a more interesting central Europe, to be sure.

How much do you feel this will affect you? You had Saxony as an ally, but no longer. Will you care what happens there, before the 1500s?

We're so far away that I don't really care about over there. It might even be a good thing. Anything to potentially distract France or Spain (since both have the potential to go into Italy, coming into conflict with Venice/Ottomans).

Hope he survives to inherit.

You should never gamble more than you’re prepared to lose …

Agreed on both points.

… unless you have a protector out there willing to step in to bail you out, I suppose!

We'll see the fate of Croatia/Cilli next time!

Hmm, they seem to be getting set to blob Central Europe.

Yes, as per usual. At least Poland and Russia seem to be doing all right.

Useful nugget of info I hadn’t really picked up on (or fully appreciated).

EU4 has a lot of important info that is strangely hidden (the price of adding features hodgepodge to a ten-year-old game). Learning about the importance of some of this stuff just comes with experience.

Poor Hungary. Is Venice done annexing Croatian land?

Venice's AI will try and take as much as it can get before the Ottomans grab it all.

If only the subjects of Brittany would realize that Breton rule is better than the alternatives - English, Scottish, or even French rule...

If only...

 

[Hootieleece]

So, the Regency period will be a time of consolidation and a stabilization? with some more exploration and colonization.

 

[Legosim]

Fun AAR so far! I've been playing this game for years and I never realized that the back-line units also take a morale hit. Woops!

 

[jak7139]

CHAPTER THIRTEEN: Talking about Ages & Splendor
|-|
(December 1467-April 1470)​

When February arrives, Serbia makes peace with Hungary, regaining Belgrade and some other provinces. This doesn’t look like it will save them from the Turks though.

​

In April our agreement with Kildare ends. The well has run dry on people willing to buy the Renaissance from us. That’s a source of income gone. Shucks!

The 1st of May is a historic day. Castille and Aragon unite their thrones. While the two countries are still separate, it is only a matter of time until we see a united Spain. That’s not good for us as a potential colonial rival. We’ll have to see what we can do.

​

Ulster revolts in June, but our armies are on it. As we move out, Austria takes Cilli from Croatia. Obviously, this is for Cilli’s “protection” and Austria had no other motives in doing this. That same July, portions of Transylvania are transferred from Hungary to Poland.

Our Treasurer, despite his affair with Neassa, is a good bureaucrat. We get some nice boosts to our prestige, admin power, and Reform Progress from an event in December. The other option was to help boost our military, gaining 100 mil points, 10 Army Tradition, and 10 Navy Tradition. I chose the administrative option since we’re ahead on mil tech, but behind on admin tech.

​

Meanwhile, our army stands in Dublin, ready to engage the Ulsterites. But I stay my hand for a few months. The people of Dublin are also uppity. But if I stand in the province for a few months, their unrest will subside. In March of 1469, we finally attack. Glad that’s finally dealt with.

In May we are finally able to take our first Ability. And now I need to explain all about Ages, Abilities, and Splendor. Ready? Here we go!

We are currently in the Age of Discovery. Each Age has specific optional objectives associated with it to guide your nation. For every objective you complete, you increase the rate at which you gain Splendor. Splendor can be spent on certain bonuses for your nation that only apply during that specific Age. Each perk costs 800 Splendor and we now have enough to buy an Ability.

Since we’ve completed two of the tasks of this Age, we gain +5 Splendor a month (+1 base, +2 for each objective). We’ve embraced the Renaissance and have it in all of our provinces and we’ve humiliated our (former) rival Provence. If we complete at least three of the objectives in an Age, we can enter a once-per-game Golden Era and get some nice bonuses for 50 years.

Right now, we can pick from eight Abilities to buy. There are also country-specific Abilities for nations during each Age, but those don’t matter to us.

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Each of the Abilities during this Age is useful. But they are also all situational. What are our options:

• An edict for less unrest in our provinces: This could be useful, but we’d have to turn it on to use it. And money is tight right now.
• Less AE: This would’ve been nice when we were conquering Ireland. But our European conquests are over for now.
• Claims Bordering Claims: Probably the strongest bonus out of the bunch. Allows us to claim not just bordering provinces, as normal, but also any provinces which border our claims. Then we can fabricate claims from those new claims, then claims from those claims. You get the point. Best paired with Espionage ideas.
• Free War Taxes: War Taxes. A button on the economy screen that gives us cheaper armies, forts, and navies while at war. It normally costs 1 mil point a month. We’re not at war, so this isn’t needed.
• Increased cav to inf ratio: Increases the amount of cavalry we can have in our armies without suffering penalties to our Military Tactics. We don’t have the money for more cav anyway. A moot point.
• Better Colonies: every time we complete a colony, the province gets +1 Development in each category. Great for colonizers, which we plan to be.
• Capital Terrain Bonus: If our armies fight in any province that has the same terrain as our capital, we get +1 to our dice rolls. A very good bonus. But again, we’re not at war.

So, what do we pick? We take the bonus towards our colonies. We’re going to use colonization as our primary means of growth (at least until we can beat the Europeans). This is the best choice for us given the circumstances.

Spoiler: Hindsight

In hindsight, Claims Bordering Claims might’ve been really useful for our colonial ventures. We could’ve fabricated a chain of CBs from France all the way down to North Africa, then gained some more Colonial Range that way. I unfortunately didn’t think of this at the time.

In August we seize land again. We don’t sell any titles or complete our current diet at this time. After that, we get 50 mil power from an event. The cheaper advisor would’ve also been nice, but we don’t have the income to support him.

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Perhaps I also chose the direct mil points because the new advisor was a supposed “friend” of Consort Neassa. I’m not falling for that again.

In October we can take admin tech 6. This gives us some more buildings we can’t build, but at least we get the bonus for being ahead-of-time. This also unlocks a decision for us, giving us some minor bonuses to taxes and missionaries. If you read the flavor text, this decision isn’t as nice. But we’ll just ignore that.

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We also use this opportunity to get 29 ducats from the Pope by spending some of our favors.

It is April, 1470. Our nation is at peace. Unrest in our provinces is low. Our diplomatic position is secure. I’ll leave you now with a look at our economy. See you all later!

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