Dark Side of the Moon
Other Fandoms => Video Games => Topic started by: Arch-Magos Winter on April 02, 2014, 12:19:50 AM
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So with a DLC to Paradox's newest Grand Strategy game almost out (in a few months I'm hoping) and having just gotten Conquest of Paradise, I have an itch to do an actual After Action report. So, for everyone on DSM I'm going to give you a favor, and start an entirely new game and play nearly 400 years worth of alternate history, from 1444 to 1821, where I'm writing this story through my actions in game (And providing you all with screenshots to follow along). So, which nation do you want me to start with?
What about the mighty Muscovy, the Grand Duchy posed to make the massive nation of Russia, if only it can defeat its most powerful rival, the Republic of Novogrod? Perhaps plucky little Portugal, the trading power of the Iberian Peninsula with ambitions in Africa and possibly the New World? Maybe Jolly Olde England, who's continental ambitions are challenged from the beginning of the game, yet has the potential to become the mightiest colonial power the world has ever known? Why not Sweden, the nation who's struggle for independence will be bitterly contested against the rest of the Kalamar Union, but with victory may in fact carve an empire from the petty struggles of the Baltic States?
Or maybe none of these options appeal to you, and there is some other nation who's struggles through history you might want me to record?
Voting will end in two weeks, so pick fast!
EDIT:
http://www.eu4wiki.com/ (http://www.eu4wiki.com/)
A link for a list of nations, possibilities with which to torment me.
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PORTUGAL STRONK
TUGA POWER
VAI E GANHA, PORTUGAAAAAALL!
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NO.
SWEDES. FIX BAYONETS, THEN CUT THOSE FUCKERS DOWN.
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Poland of course. I cannot go against my Origin.
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Go Prussia, motherfucker! Kick everyone's asses just like the Seven Years' War!
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Having very nearly formed Germany by the 1550's in my Brandenburg playthrough already, I'm vetoing that one because I've already got an idea of how to do it.
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Second idea of mine is to do Christian Japan.
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Second idea of mine is to do Christian Japan.
Yes, Christianize Japan! Any sect will do.
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>Catholic Japan
...Oh man, you guys REALLY want me to have a challenge don't you?
EDIT:
For that matter, which Clan should I start as?
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Oda clan, just because Oda was that kind of atheist who promoted Christianity over Buddhism oddly. Must have been like that because of guns. He was also the first Japanese of importance, I think, to wear Western clothes and own a black slave.
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I could have sworn it was the Otomo who actually really embraced Christianity.
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Oda had his share too. Again, he was atheist, so he did it out of pragmatism because Christianity had much more to offer than Buddhism and Shintoism. But he would have more in mind a religiously plural society to not have any religion too strong. I bet one of reasons why he is demonized in Japanese popular culture is that he burned more than few Buddhist shrines and monasteries that opposed his policies.
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I could have sworn it was the Otomo who actually really embraced Christianity.
It's Oda, man. It's him! He accepted Christianity and knows how to do his shit (read: how to win wars.), so you play as him!
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You guys do know that I'm going with a 1444 start. I'll see what sort of starting position Oda is in because an AAR of "I got murdered by the AI twenty years in" isn't fun for either of us.
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Can you actually prevent Nobunaga getting murdered?
BTW, in my EU2 copy, I modified Japanese events to award you for taking the hard route of tolerating Christians.
When Xavier arrives, you advance to Muslim techgroup. When Hideyoshi Edict event comes up, you can switch to Orthodox tech group bz tolerating Christians, but Kyushu converts. Then when Tokugawa Edict comes up, you get choice to convert to Counter Reformed, and have Kanto and Shikoku converted for free, switching to Latin group at the cost of huge rebellions, you can continue to tolerate Christians while staying Confucian and Orthodox tech group or switch back to Muslim tech group by persecuting them which ultimately switches you back to Chinese tech group with Sakoku policy event.
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IIRC you can't, there's an event to kill him.
I'll try to avoid this if possible.
Edit: Also why you shouldn't let me play Poland.
(http://i.imgur.com/V5EFCLU.jpg)
You can always mod it to make his survival feasible.
>Implying I can into modding
If I could I would have given East Frisia it's proper flag and proper national ideas based around being pirates and fighting 25 of the HRE princes at once... and winning. Including Austria. As one small county.
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You can always mod it to make his survival feasible.
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I think Japan would definitely be interesting as a choice.
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Can EU4 be still modded through a notepad?
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Can EU4 be still modded through a notepad?
No idea. I'd have to ask the Paradox forums.
I think Japan would definitely be interesting as a choice.
Three for Japan already. There's also an achievement for uniting Japan. Unless Sweden, Portugal, or England get their act together we'll be doing a SHAMEFRUL DISPRAY
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I think Japan would definitely be interesting as a choice.
Three for Japan already. There's also an achievement for uniting Japan. Unless Sweden, Portugal, or England get their act together we'll be doing a SHAMEFRUL DISPRAY
I presume that, once Japan is united, you can go on from there to try to conquer everything else....
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Hopping on the Japan (http://i.somethingawful.com/forumsystem/emoticons/emot-bandwagon.gif). Let's do this thing!
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http://www.eu4wiki.com/Japan#Daimyo_.26_Shogunate (http://www.eu4wiki.com/Japan#Daimyo_.26_Shogunate)
As you can see, Oda is not available at the start.
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Meanwhile, I'll retry my EU2 Nippon campaign because I overwrote the save file by accident with China save file. I reached 1680 and owned Primorsk and Alaska already, and had whole Japan christianized. But now that I know what I should expect, I can do it even better on my second try.
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I think Japan would definitely be interesting as a choice.
Three for Japan already. There's also an achievement for uniting Japan. Unless Sweden, Portugal, or England get their act together we'll be doing a SHAMEFRUL DISPRAY
I presume that, once Japan is united, you can go on from there to try to conquer everything else....
Having looked at the things required for unification along with a test game I ran over the last 3 hours, I feel rather confident I could in time unify Japan - though it'd be far far easier to start as the Shogunate.
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Nah, the Shogun seems way too simple, you gotta start as a Daimyo :P
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Right. I'm going to have to strategize, as my test game showed what happens when you get roughly half of Japan, and it isn't pretty.
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I'm just going to say that strategy is for pussies, as after a few false starts, I just managed to seriously fucking kick some ass.
The writeup will be sooner or later.
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So, who are you actually playing as?
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Judging by the majority vote, probably Japan. Can't say for sure of course, but it's probably Japan.
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Nah, it's one of the Japanese Daimyos, not Japan itself. I'm just not sure which one he picked.
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You'll find out soon enough.
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So, having recieved the challenge I did, I made several different starts as different Daimyo's of the time - Takada, Hosakwa, Otomo... but here's the clan I decided on - Uesugi.
The Uesugi clan is an interesting choice historically speaking; they survived the Sengoku period along with the Muromachi, though at the time of EUIV's start, they technically weren't in charge of the lands they governed, and weren't until five years after the start of the game. While provincial governors in the Kanto region of Japan, they were still under the rule of the Deputy of the Shogun, before an execution of a family member at his hands lead to them kicking him out and practically strong arming the Shogun into making them the clan in charge of Kanto.
However, this is not the original timeline. On November 11 of 1444... the Uesugi rose up and overthrew the head of Kanto, installing a new one on the throne... with the permission of the Shogun of course. The new Daimyo - Noritada Uesugi - was an able man, with very good stats and still in his twenties at the time, and most importantly, an Uesugi. The stage was set for the Uesugi to rise.
(http://i.imgur.com/C16NXLo.jpg)
This is Japan in the last months of 1444. In the last moments of peace the Islands will see for decades to come, as the clans begin to wage wars within the realm of the Shogunate itself. The Uesugi are in a very delicate starting position, and one that is surrounded by enemies. The Shogun holds their rightful province of Musashi, and views them as loyal subjects on one hand while denying them their claims on the other. His tax collectors ravage the coffers of the clan, reducing our income to a sliver of that of the others.
(http://i.imgur.com/URnCDnG.jpg)
To the north, two hostile powers border us as well - the Date clan clings stubbornly to their cold lands, looking enviously at the holdings of the Uesugi, while the Shiba wish to expand their foothold in the northern lands. Both will need to be crushed before the foolish Shogun can be overthrown. The men of those lands, and the coin they provide will be vital to maintaining the economy of the clan lands.
(http://i.imgur.com/Pnku6PM.jpgp)
However, to the south, is where the clan's expansion shall focus at first. Why? The Takeda are weak at the start, and have no allies, but control the most vital of resources that will allow us to fund our armies - Gold. Gold in EUIV is a double edged sword, as it provides a very solid amount of income at the price of rampant inflation if it consists of too much of your income. It'll be the way to make sure we can actually fund the massive armies we need to keep the Shogunate from destroying our lands, when we get too large. The Takeda simply cannot be allowed to remain independant - with their massive income, they can overcome the forcelimit of troops without too much trouble. So, I send an alliance offer to the Imagawa, recieve an answer, and then attack them.
The Takeda ally with the Date just before hand, but they'll do nothing to impact the war as the combined Uesugi and Imagawa forces crush the Takada armies and then lay siege to their lands. Within a year, the war is over.
(http://i.imgur.com/N0qJHVq.jpg)
This was run with no claim or cause, so I took a stability hit, and when I got a claim on the Date's only province, we had a truce. Normally, there'd be a -5 to stability as I had a truce, but I was already at -2 because of that earlier war. The bottom limit is -3, so why not?
(http://i.imgur.com/LPpuIjc.jpg)
It's a short war which completes me a mission, and now the Uesugi have five provinces. We are easily the power in northern Japan, but no where near strong enough to challenge the Shogun's massive armies.
(http://i.imgur.com/r5faXdg.jpg)
A nice event fires. I'll take that extra military tech thanks.
(http://i.imgur.com/7lDkuUm.jpg)
I forgot to take screenshots of a war I was dragged into by my allies, but the result was about as good as it could be considering I lost my entire army to a massive stack. The Shiba clan was forced to cede the last of the northern provinces to the Uesugi in a peace deal, along with Etchu. Our rule of the Home Island's northern half cannot be contested.
(http://i.imgur.com/XDNNFJu.jpg)
The Imagawa served their purpose. After insulting the mighty Uesugi, they deserve their fate. However, more important that achieving a stranglehold on the most of the island, is upgrading my Military Tech to 3. Let me explain a bit why this is so important.
The Chinese tech group starts at Level 2 in all techs, while Western Europe and Eastern Europe (and the Ottomans) all start at tech 3. The tech cost for the Chinese group is also absurdly high, and the first couple of tech groups give frankly amazing benefits needed in the long run. But the early levels of military power will be vital. Why? It all has to do with the Japanese traditions verses the Daimyo ones. The Daimyo traditions are based on government type, which provides a nice bonus to your military - +10% to Infantry Combat Abilty and to Morale - while not providing much else. The Japanese traditions on the other hand, grant +15% discipline. Even with the morale boost provided by the Daimyo group, one to one, your troops will lose badly to the Shogun's at tech level 2. Your morale isn't high enough to soak that extra damage that discipline provides. However, the jump from tech level 2 to 3 gives an awesome boost, when combined with those you have. Suddenly, I was rolling in 3.5 or so Morale compared to my opponents 2.3 morale. Even with inferior numbers, this would allow me to out endure any of my foes on Japan, no matter their numbers, with a decent general, with close to even numbers
The rapid expansion I'd undertaken in just a decade though, had worn down my manpower and raised my Aggressive Expansion rating to god damn insane levels, over -200 to opinions of my clan. I needed time to build myself up more to be capable of actually fighting the Shogun. It'd happen soon, I could promise you that. I also released the Date as an independent Vassal, to give me that extra time I needed before the Shogun would declare war to annex me.
(http://i.imgur.com/BUVaOiv.jpg)
This event helped out a lot.
(http://i.imgur.com/tyvoJ1y.jpg)
This one didn't, especially after a major war to destroy the Shiba clan to raise my Force Limit to a point that I could support an army capable of fighting the Shogun. Then, the event I'd been dreading happened. The Shogun declared war on me to annex the realm of Uesugi. It was a bloody conflict, with the entirety of Japan dragged in against my armies. Thousands of lives were lost in the first disastrous engagement of the war, and I nearly bankrupted myself recruiting mercenaries to replenish my army to the point of being able to take on the Shogun with my massive doomstack. Sadly I forgot to take screenshots of these engagements, primarily because I wasn't expecting this fight until about a decade later in game. But it was rather short, after my first defeat. The Shogun's armies foolishly split up to siege my provinces, and my large stack wiped out each one in turn before starting to be used to seige the provinces the Shogun held. If he lost all his lands, he'd be forced to the negotiating table.
(http://i.imgur.com/0mcBSLd.jpg)
By 1465 and into the early months of 1466, there was no question who would win this conflict with the shogun. He'd taken on the mighty armies of the Uesugi clan personally, and been defeated by a peasant soldier elevated to general after one fo the Uesugi's many wars in the conflicts earlier. It was just a matter of time before the walls of Kyoto itself fell to the clan who were destined to become the true rulers of Japan. The Shogun himself was dragged before the Emperor by the Uesugi diamyo, who held a sword to above the Shogun's neck as he signed the treaties that would end the war, a tanto in his left hand. There was no doubt that he had shamed his family name, honor, and legacy.
(http://i.imgur.com/Pyrgagk.jpg)
The terms were simple - the Shogunate would cede all its lands to the Uesugi. A humiliating defeat, especially to an opponent who had no where near the numbers of men the Shogun rallied to his banner.
(http://i.imgur.com/q9eVYlb.jpg)
There was no other option for the Shogun, but to commit ritual suicide. Uesugi Noritada, Daimyo of the Uesugi lands and clan, had volunteered to be the man to hold the sword above his head, and grant him that last honor during the rite of seppuku, as the Emperor looked on. As soon as the inking was finished, seppuku was performed, and the Shogun's lifeless corpse was bleeding on the tatami mats of the throneroom. Kneeling in the blood of his former enemy, Noritada was granted the title of Shogun by the Emperor, performing one of the most miraculous rises to power in Japanese history. It had taken 21 years of nearly endless warfare, bloodshed, and luck, but his ambition was granted. From now on, the Uesugi clan would be the rulers of the Japanese Isles. Every daimyo was forced to kneel before their new ruler, and the Uesugi Shogunate was now the undisputed ruler of all of Japan.
A new era had begun. And it would be just as bloody as the last.
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Wow, that didn't take long. 21 years is certainly a hell of a lot less than reality, anyway.... I guess the AI being dumb and splitting its army so you could kill it helped rather a lot, it sounds like you might well have lost otherwise.
Anyway, where do you intend to go from here? I assume Korea and probably China, also presumably Hokkaido and possibly north from there.
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Wow, that didn't take long. 21 years is certainly a hell of a lot less than reality, anyway....
Anyway, where do you intend to go from here? I assume Korea and probably China, also presumably Hokkaido and possibly north from there.
That's actually a horrible idea, attacking either of them - they've both rivaled me and they're pretty damn strong army wise. I don't have the manpower to take on either of them. Manchu is a far better target for expansion. I'm planning on colonizing a line across the northern part of Siberia to make sure that I'll end up bordering Russia, so I can westernize off of them if possible.
For that matter, the Spice Islands are all so so vulnerable...
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Hmm, well, I wasn't overly sure what the map layout was. I'm surprised Korea isn't a viable option, though, it certainly was in reality.
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Hmm, well, I wasn't overly sure what the map layout was. I'm surprised Korea isn't a viable option, though, it certainly was in reality.
I'll post a screencap of the map situation sooner or later. But to sum up, I'm the biggest blob on Japan right now, and I released one hell of a big one to help absorb some of the others.
Korea has two edges over me - Military technology, one of their ideas which gives a discount on tech levels, and the Defensive Idea group. I'm planning on taking Offensive/Quantity/Quality later on to help with this (And raise my base discipline to 140%, meaning that Korea's +25% Morale can go suck a dick) and allow myself to overwhelm both Ming and Korea through numbers and troop power, but I'll hopefully catch up in time. Korea's first idea group grant's them a bonus to tech.
Manchu however is the logical route to expand into - give me the force limit boosts to help take on Ming and Korea's alliance if it comes to it, lets me gain power in the Bejing Trade Node, and gives me a way to lock Korea and Ming away from the easier source of Westernization, Russia. Plus, if I vassalize them, I've got Cores out the Wazoo to reclaim from Ming and Korea. And the superior armies to take them on with.
As is though there's a few directions to expand in which make sense - The Spice Islands will allow me to eventually come in contact with the Portugese or Spanish ahead of schedule, and with that, the chance to Westernize before the massive Russian Blob reaches my Doorstep in a few centuries. From the Spice Islands I can expand across the Pacific as well, gaining loads of trade goods and a route to the America's - Imagine the surprise of the Spanish when they discover Japanese California! South East Asia also has a very tempting target in several of the smaller nations there, and would be a jumping ground into India and from there to Africa, from where on I can circumnavigate it and reach Europe.
A few other things that could seriously impact my development would be Ming deciding that I'm worth giving a shit about - they have huge troop limits and a much larger navy than I do. I have that discipline boost but that won't be enough when facing the Ming manpower wise.
A few more things to note are that I'm lagging behind in tech because of all the conquering I did - coring provinces costs monarch power, and so does negotiating peace deals and hiring generals. This is why Westernization will be so important for me.
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I too managed to unify a Kingdom within 20 years. Namely the Kingdom of Sicily by the Norman dynasty of Hautevilles, as southwards as Malta. Lands that belonged to Sicilian are very wealthy indeed, and I have two options: either use Malta to invade Libia or start reunification of Italy. Given that HRE is in shambles, I decided to focus on the latter, and I liberated already Spoleto and Ancona. As for my neighbor, the Pope, I do not touch him because excommunication is a bitch. I maintain proper relations, and when there is no Muslims to convert left on Sicily (one city already converted), I plan to invade aforementioned Libia to gain more piety from conversions and please the Pope so he is not alarmed by the growing Italian Kingdom.
Meanwhile, I had skirmish with Byzantium which eyed my Greek counties at the tip of peninsula, and it ended with a white peace. When I unify Italy and have more time left, I will perhaps try to recreate Roman Empire.
But on topic, I did expand into lands north to Manchu in my EU2 playthrough. But I left Manchu and Korea to China, since they have cores on them, and they behave aggressively towards any of their owner. Even though I switched to Latin tech group (through a costly event which I modified), 40000 of soldiers vs several 100000 stacks will get their ass kicked. But there is plenty room to expand peacefully into Primorsk and Kamchatka thanks to three conquistadors I can get throughout 150 years. The goal is to deny Russians as many provinces as possible between 1600 to 1750. Once I convert to Victoria, I can have lots of timber and coal for my industry, and gobble up China piece by piece as long as they are uncivilized.
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For my vote for the next target, I'd probably say whoever will leave us pretty strong and relatively casualty free taking them down, so when we aim for bigger fish, we're ready much much sooner. :) ...Otherwise I don't have much to say really. XD Blame that on my brain being fried due to sleep deprivation sorts of things.
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Well, if I want to solidify my position, I need to take over the Ryuku islands. I think it's in one of China's trade nodes.
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For my vote for the next target, I'd probably say whoever will leave us pretty strong and relatively casualty free taking them down, so when we aim for bigger fish, we're ready much much sooner. :) ...Otherwise I don't have much to say really. XD Blame that on my brain being fried due to sleep deprivation sorts of things.
Yeah, honestly my knowledge of 14th Century Far Eastern Geography isn't so great, so I don't really know what there is to conquer. I just knew that Japan had a few cracks at taking Korea over the years, so that seemed like a viable target. I am guessing that Hokkaido is a likely target at some point (as well as some of the islands to the North), but I'm not sure if that is really a priority right now.
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For my vote for the next target, I'd probably say whoever will leave us pretty strong and relatively casualty free taking them down, so when we aim for bigger fish, we're ready much much sooner. :) ...Otherwise I don't have much to say really. XD Blame that on my brain being fried due to sleep deprivation sorts of things.
Yeah, honestly my knowledge of 14th Century Far Eastern Geography isn't so great, so I don't really know what there is to conquer. I just knew that Japan had a few cracks at taking Korea over the years, so that seemed like a viable target. I am guessing that Hokkaido is a likely target at some point (as well as some of the islands to the North), but I'm not sure if that is really a priority right now.
Currently, they're held by the Ainu peoples - the Japanese haven't started taking them over in true yet. This is why the exploration ideas is useful - it allows me to colonize the northern island, giving me a staging area to attack Manchuria and expand into Siberia.
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Hmm, so you can't invade without exploring it first?
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Hmm, so you can't invade without exploring it first?
No, but Exploration will allow me to build a Pacific Empire.
The Exploration idea group is expressly focused on Colonization (Same with the expansion, though the expansion group is more economic focused) and the first couple ideas are crucial for the long term of Japan - first, a colonist. This allows you to get the northern Islands colonized. The next is the most crucial though - it allows you to recruit explorers.
If you're wondering "Why should I care about explorers?" - they allow you to go into Terra Incognita, and explore the world. It's how I'll get to meet up with the Westerners. And then learn all their shit and kill the koreans once I westernize.
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I am now in the year 1500.
This is going to start getting interesting soon.
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I remember times when exploration ideas were not thing, but you had to rely either on historical explorer and conquistadors or either go full naval or obscurant slider to get three from the random number god, never to be sure when you get them. Thus I think EU4 is more fair in this regard.
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I remember times when exploration ideas were not thing, but you had to rely either on historical explorer and conquistadors or either go full naval or obscurant slider to get three from the random number god, never to be sure when you get them. Thus I think EU4 is more fair in this regard.
It is more fair by far, as it allows any nation with ports or the potential to get ports to start colonizing.
The final idea also now gives +50% to your Naval Forcelimits. It pretty much means that any colonial power will have the ability to field a navy large enough to compete trade-wise (Light ships help with trade power in a trade zone. No more micromanaging merchants!) and with numbers, navy wise, even with say, Spain. Portugal is a great example of this, as the Naval ideas are one they'll want to pick up as well, just for trade boosts. Suddenly you've got enormous trade navy that can zerg rush most undeveloped navies into submission. Great Britain is another example of this - their national ideas are geared towards making your navy the best the world will ever see. You might not be able to field the army that Russia might, but you'll still win any colonial conflict due to being able to put your troops anywhere and prevent the enemy from doing the same. I experienced this first hand during a war with France.
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I reckon that as Sicilia/Neapol/Italy/whatever my Kingdom of Sicily is ported to in EU2 I won't get historical conquistadors/explorers, so I might have to consider expanding to North Africa at this stage, to secure good colonizing location for Ricky. Libya is the closest, so I might get to convert it to Catholicism or even Italian culture if 400 years are enough. Then Tunis or Egypt, whichever more ripe for conquering.
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(http://cloud-2.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437309922116/96ADEDB7CA32AFB67FBBBB82652D26EC06089518/)
The rise of the Uesugi to the seat of the Shogunate had not gone unwatched or unnoticed by foreign powers - some of which had ambitions of conquest on the isles. The new Shogun of course, responded to these threats by recruiting several of the brightest minds in construction of fortifications to help one man's ambitious, and successful plans to reenforce his home province's defences. The new Shogun also faced a rather nasty illness. His health had been in decline for years, drained by 20 years of warfare. Noritada Uesugi had accomplished the goals of nearly any ambitious daiymo after an unexpected and well managed fast rise to power. During one of the many feudal wars, after finally throwing his decision behind protecting the independence of a first cousin, he retired to his chambers. His servants found him dead the next morning, having passed in his sleep.
On June 20th, 1472, his son, Uesugi Norihito ascended to the title of Shogun, embroiled in a war with two of the three remaining Japanese Daimyos.
The Yamana possessed lands that the clan desired, while the Shiamazu were getting far too ambitious for their own good. The Hosokawa were also not on the best terms with the Shogun, his fathers rapid expansion angering them beyond the point of reasonable discourse. The same could be said of the Shimazu and Yamana - the new Shogun could easily be said to be the most hated man in Japan! The new Shogun however, was one of the most masterful tactician, administrator, and diplomat the island had seen in years (He was a 5/5/4. And the best ruler I've had. God bless you random number god for him.)
(http://cloud-4.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437309922883/0623FBF2340A5943E4F0637EF8AC406A613BA728/)
His own son, while not as able, was still a handy administrator.
(http://cloud-3.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437309923507/84D0A2511D6BCC46985E5870A92D8ECD49FD8091/1024x576.resizedimage)
The Shogun's plan was quite simple - reclaim the Uesugi's rightful land from the Yamana and force the Shimazu to relinquish their control of the Ouchi and Otomo clans - and force those clans to obey only the Shogun.
(http://cloud-3.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437309928129/AFB057D1FC5225791EF005D0458EF60688501897/)
Time wound down. 13 years into the new shogun's reign, several important new advancements in the future of the Japanese people occurred. First of all, the Ouchi and Otomo clans were quickly becoming the strongest Daimyo's on the island, as the Otomo scavenged the lands of the Shimazu into their domain, and the Ouchi reclaimed the province of Awa from the Hosokawa. The Yamana were reduced to a single small province, and the Shogun was soon planning to war with them to claim the last bit of their lands. But most important of all, was the absorbing of the Date into the Shogun's realm, and with it a small group of traders who petitioned the Shogun with a plan to give him a claim on even more land, and dispose of the ronin that were becoming all too common in this time of peace: Send them to the northern islands.
With this first colonist, I gained a massive advantage over the Ming and Korean's. I could start expanding without warfare and incurring Aggressive Expansion, or through the random chance of personal union. My first target was the southern parts of Hokkado. The island was an important starting point to colonizing the Kuril's and Siberia. Each province added would also increase my base tax and manpower, along with providing trade power in the Nippon Node. Colonization would also add prestiege to my state - needed after my first heir died, and another, much worse (0/1/3) was coming in. Oh, and while the Shogun was reaching his fifties, he was only 3. A regency was coming along.
Sadly, Norihiro would never see his grand ambitions for a unified Japan come to pass - but he'd begun the process, as the Hosokawa clan was finally absorbed into the Ouchi. The stubborn Yamana were forcefully absorbed into the Shogun's lands. The Emperor was a very personal friend, almost in his 60th year. A daughter of his had been Norihiro's wife, and the new heir had been her last gift to the aging Shogun. Finally, surrounded by family and friends, Uesugi Norihiro, second of the Uesugi Shogunate, passed away after 18 years of successful rule. His legacy was left in the restoration of the Imperial Fleet, long neglected by former shoguns, and his system of armories established throughout the land, to allow the faster recruiting of men in any emergency the Shogunate might face, along with several of the most beautiful temples the Isles would ever see - including one dedicated to his first son, who died after an honor duel. Thus began the four year Regency.
(http://cloud-2.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437368777123/2C33D4DC3602DB7ED00DD1A6B54E1A82A7C9D1C6/)
Tomohito Uesugi was never expected to become shogun - instead having been trained to be a general, with the Regency council (headed by the Emperor) being more intent on securing their own power and lining their own pockets. The Otomo and Ouchi clans were embroiled in another conflict, with the Ouchi eventually crushing and absorbing the Otomo, the Boy-Shogun rose to his throne. And he had one ambition - unite all of Japan, like his father had begun to.
(http://cloud-2.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437368889744/B22E248F0FD0DF6ACD3374EAB77E44D1F2D66D3B/)
A magnificent temple was also finally completed, the last of those Shogun Norihito commissioned - and one of his own design.
(http://cloud-4.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437368890543/B70B53D4BB3DF8455B8A1C143D58BE9A0ADC405B/)
Marrying a granddaughter of the Emperor, Tomohito soon produced an heir. Rumors said he was a savant, an imbicile incapable of ruling a large country - and in a way they were right. He was a rather socially gullible and in general, incapable of conducting a proper conversation - but put him behind a numbers sheet or at the head of an army, and he was better than any other man alive in the known world.
(http://cloud-3.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437368891574/AA70409768A8CA74B0ABC8C727D05386894D639F/)
(http://cloud-2.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437368892577/0AE4850D5CC8CB6215EF6E133A49225E7C951307/)
The Shogun's first four years in power were relatively uneventful, as diplomats and bureaucrats worked on the task of absorbing the Ouchi clan into the Shogunate. He focused more on exploring the Seas around Japan, discovering and mapping out several new island chains that the Japanese people, would likely in time claim as their own. The military was also refunctoned, the old style of mass longbows fading out towards new, more effective tactics. Offense would always be Japan's friend.
Then, six years into the Shogun's reign, four events happened that would rewrite the history of Japan within the span of 8 days, later known as the 8 days of Tomohito's Fortune- first, the Ouchi clan finally accepted their integration into the realm of the Shogun. Second, the emperor's heir apparent died, tragically, in a hunting accident. Third, the Emperor's other sons were disqualified through multiple factors - several had been involved in a plot to kill the Shogun and establish an Ouchi Shogunate instead, and summarily executed. His illegitimate sons were uninterested in family affairs, having been forced to take oaths not to seek to claim their rightful due through blood - leaving no heir aside from the possibility of the current Shogun, and even then he only had an average claim. Fourth, on May 8, 1500, the Emperor passed away.
Nearly immediately, panic broke out among many of the courtiers, the whole system of Japan threatening to come crashing down. There was no alternative to what many of the Kyoto nobles considered the end of days - the Samurai clans overthrowing the emperor - though Tomohito had no such ideas. Instead, he discarded the title of Shogun, sat upon the imperial throne, and prounounced an end to the shogunate - no more would any military ruler be allowed to have the power the Daimyo's had. No more, would the Daimyo's be allowed to war amongst themselves. The Emperor would demand the fealty of all the daimyo, and if they did not submit, his armies, the largest in all Japan, would bring ruin to their lands.
There was no resisting.
The Sengoku Period, marked by 56 years of intercine warfare between the Shogun and his Daimyo, came to an abrupt halt overnight, as only one clan and warlord was left standing. The Uesugi had united Japan under the seal of both their clan and the Imperial Chrysanthemum. The start of a new age for Japan and the Orient had began. The neighboring states of Korea and Ming looked with serious concern at the rising sun to the east. Manchu, an old enemy was desperately trying to repair ties with the islands. The Emperor of Ryuku, the Okinawan island chain, ordered his navy doubled, for fear of twin swallows around a rising sun on the horizon.
(http://cloud-3.steampowered.com/ugc/794065437368896297/CE263966D32E17CEFA538A33C801D3C1571A1D6C/)
It was time for Japan to become the power it was destined to.
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Is the "emperor dying tragically and you inheriting the throne" thing actually in the game, or did you just make that up as part of the flavour text?
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Is the "emperor dying tragically and you inheriting the throne" thing actually in the game, or did you just make that up as part of the flavour text?
Flavor, uniting Japan switches your gov to Fuedal Monarchy. And makes you Emperor.
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To commemorate both the fourth season of Game of Thrones and the second run of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure anime I reinstalled GoT mod to CK2, this time with Essos and Dothraki expansions, and created Joestar dynasty through ruler designer who are Lords of Ninestars, one size demesne of the Kingdom of Vale in 7999 (the series is set at the end of 83th century and the beginning of 84th century, so that is the distant past). My ruler is strong, but kind and trusting man whose flaw is his 0 Intrigue score, but his Diplomacy and Martial are over 20, and Learning and Stewardship are mid tier. He serves as the Master of Laws for his High Lord of Wickenden. He has loving wife and so far an only daughter Joanna, though the marriage is still young and may produce more children.
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So if you think what I accomplished was rather impressive (which it isn't), check out this guy, DDRJake - the only confirmed player to legitly have conquered the world as Ryuku (Okinawa) in both EUIV and EUIII. He also for shits and giggles with the help of another player drew the flag of Denmark on Europe in an EUIII multiplayer game. Then somehow blockaded the entire world. Here's his Ryuku playthrough:
http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showthread.php?709144-The-Three-Mountains-A-Ryukyu-AAR (http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showthread.php?709144-The-Three-Mountains-A-Ryukyu-AAR)
Basically this dude is EU Jesus in my book, because of how he pulled it off with his dark fucking exploit magic. And he's been doing EUIV streams and playlists of his shit on youtube. I have heard the voice of god, and he commands a horde of aztecs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fmy29QBk6CE&list=PLm0MDLKuRDrlxeEEUdKmibGjLq3YlW8n1 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fmy29QBk6CE&list=PLm0MDLKuRDrlxeEEUdKmibGjLq3YlW8n1)
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Things that suck - EUIV games where you realize you are fucked 200 years in and there's no way to solve that.
I ended up facing a coalition of about five nations that all wanted my face in, fell into a personal union, and Russia is getting hyper aggressive in the region. Such a state of affairs is going to allow me to enjoy the game for a long time, simply due to my inability to do anything on the actual face of Asia. Fucking Ming.
Still, as games go this is one of my more impressive ones, considering I was actually able to survive till about 1600 before all hell broke loose on me.
Once again. MOTHERFUCKING MING.
EDIT:
I've also got a load of screenshots of the peaceful and nonthreatening rise of japan (Which included massacaring thousands of natives and koreans) but I really don't feel like typing up all this shit for a story with such a bad bad ending.
I guess I'll either restart, or you can see me try another nation out. One of the problems I ran into with Japan was that I had to sit around and wait a lot. Not very interesting to type up at all.
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Eh, so what is your final position here? Where do you currently stand?
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It isn't an insolveable position - but it's one that will be a grind and unfun to play for me, because I don't want to have Ming declaring wars on me every fucking five years. Enormous manpower compared to me and they're always allied with Korea which then bolsters their armies further. Oh, and then to top that off they always are able to field a larger navy than I can.
As for my final position, it wasn't horrible, but I'd lost ground, and I knew that Ming would start swallowing the Orait horde increasing their already enormous manpower to hilariously fucking OP levels. I also fucked up a bit on my ideas - I probably shouldn't have gone for Exploration as soon as I did. Offensive would have paid off far far better against the Koreans, Manchurians, and Ming at the same time due to the manpower bonus.
I had several siberian provinces, most of the east indies, and the entirety of Japan under my control.
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Pissing off Ming was bad idea as back as in EU2. I maintained good relations with them even when Christian. As long as I did that and did not own any of their cores, I was safe.
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Right, redid the thread - new poll up top. Lets see how badly you guys can fuck me here.
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An Irish minor. Prepare for that pure, wholesome girl England making sweet, sweet love to you and annexing you if you make even a one mistake.
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Hmm, I'm not sure. I think trying Japan again might be amusing, to see if you can do any better, but I also like the idea of you playing a Native American tribe.
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And if you succeeds at unifying Eire, try to NTR Bretons, Scots, Welsh and Cornish away from their Saxon and Frankish overlords.
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Well, the Scots don't start as part of England, and I think the Bretons tend to end up as part of France pretty fast. The Welsh and Cornish work, though.
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Yeah, but England and France usually get strong enough to absorb them.
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Well, England will probably get Scotland eventually, yeah, but it's usually not quick, especially since Scotland tends to have French support.
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Scotland usually gets wrecked early, very early, depending on if England gets the War of the Roses and Lollard Heretics events or not. I've seen a one province minor Scotland by the 1500's.
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Can you keep French culture in EU4 if you win the Hundred Years War? in EU2, if you cut off France from the sea and maintained that state to 1453, you got to keep French culture for the rest of the game. Then you could gain later on gaelic culture, so potentially you could rule Ireland, Great Britain and France as territories with compatible culture. Pretty broken, methinks.
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I haven't played around much with the culture, but EUIV's culture things work like this -
- You have a Culture Group, to which you belong
- All cultures in that group can be considered accepted, and any culture in any group cna be considered accepted if you are the primary nation of that culture group (France for the French culture group)
- Cultures outside of your culture group can be considered accepted based on the amount of provinces you have cored with that culture, and their base tax
So you can keep French culture, but this isn't the best option. For that matter, if you win the 100 Years War as England, I THINK you enter into a personal union with France. After 50 years, you can integrate France, which should give you all their culture's as accepted if you're lucky.
I don't think Irish can be an accepted Culture for England/Great Britain.
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But you can probably convert culture after set amount of time in EU3/EU4, so you can make Eire English in culture. That is one of advantages of EU3 of 4 over 2. In 2, you could only convert cultures via events, or by keeping colonial city outside your continent for 30 years if it did not reach population of 5000, so you could NTR colonies and convert them.
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But you can probably convert culture after set amount of time in EU3/EU4, so you can make Eire English in culture. That is one of advantages of EU3 of 4 over 2. In 2, you could only convert cultures via events, or by keeping colonial city outside your continent for 30 years if it did not reach population of 5000, so you could NTR colonies and convert them.
You can actually convert culture in 4 as well - after you core a province, you can spend diplomatic monarch points to change the culture. Its' the only way you'll ever get rid of the chance of nationalist revolts sometimes, and will kill the cores of certain countries.
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I know, that is why I said it is EU3 and EU4 where you can convert cultures.
In EU2, nationalist revolt risk faded automatically after 30 years, and core provinces did not have that issue regardless of the culture.
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OK, I'm going to go for the Native Americans, because I think it'll be really interesting to see you try to survive and to fight off Western colonists.
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We need one more vote to settle this.
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My vote hath spoken.
BORK BORK
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Sweden is OP, hue.
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I do not know how to play this game
Do not think so highly of me
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Are me and Magos only people who actually know how to play it?
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Yeah, I think so.
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I highly recommend you actually do buy this game when it goes on sale in the summer. It's a fantastic strategy game, with deceptively simple gameplay hiding a much much more intricate framework.
On the surface, it might look like all I'm doing is moving armies around, but in reality I'm doing far far more than that - there's an entire mechanic based around your army and how many men you can afford to have in it, along with the risk of running low on manpower during a series of conflicts. There's a very complex trade system (OK, not that complex, but if you don't know what you're doing you will fuck up with it) a diplomatic menu I've barely scratched the surface of, and a multitude of nations that I haven't even touched.
For forty dollars, this game gives a load of content.
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Eh, how are you playing it if it's not being sold yet?
And, yeah, I have considered getting it and giving it a go.
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On sale as in 'It's cheaper'. That sort of sale.
Otherwise, for 40 bucks this is one hell of an enjoyable time if you like painting maps.
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I bought boxed Victoria 2 with all DLCs for an equivalent of 5 bucks, so in some countries it's even cheaper than on Steam.
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On sale as in 'It's cheaper'. That sort of sale.
Otherwise, for 40 bucks this is one hell of an enjoyable time if you like painting maps.
Ah, OK.
Well, if I was bothered enough by the cost to wait until summer, I'd just torrent it anyway....
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On sale as in 'It's cheaper'. That sort of sale.
Otherwise, for 40 bucks this is one hell of an enjoyable time if you like painting maps.
Ah, OK.
Well, if I was bothered enough by the cost to wait until summer, I'd just torrent it anyway....
Don't pirate Paradox games. The dev's are fucking awesome dudes, and they really sell their games for relatively cheap.
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Yeah, I guess, but if I'm not going to otherwise buy it then I see no massive issue with pirating it. It's not like I'm costing them anything, and if I like a game I pirate I will usually buy it at some point unless it's made by dicks or has stupid DRM.
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Buy at least vanilla without DLCs, it's friggin good game and Paradox cares about fanbase. DLCs are not free, but they add much in comparison to many other game developers.
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Buy at least vanilla without DLCs, it's friggin good game and Paradox cares about fanbase. DLCs are not free, but they add much in comparison to many other game developers.
Exactly - they don't do take down claims of people putting videos of their games on Youtube. Or posting the soundtracks. They're pretty chill dudes.
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Only developers more chill than them are CD Project Red to my personal knowledge.