Europa Universalis IV announced

[JonasSalk]

Yeah, there's only a Steam version now, which means I actually have to buy my own copy this time.

[garbon]

My only guess would be that it is a truly "play any minors" game.

Like all EU games since EU2.

I would wager a lot of people who will end up buying EU4 won't have a long history with the series. After all, there are new teens everyday.

[garbon]

"Peter Ebessen reunites the Eastern Empire in like 50 years"

yeah I don't get why they think this is a good way to advertise a HISTORICAL game.

So is a World Conquest with the Ryu-Kyus Islands, which PE is famously notorious for in EU3 to the point that Paradox made an achievement out of it.

You are complaining about a AAR from a guy who knows both the game mechanics and AI cycles so well that he can tweak his play and exploit them to his advantage in the minute detail, and even him admitted that he came close to be defeated (and destroyed) by the Ottomans. He got the lucky draw from the RNG (and a lifeline with his alliance with the Mamelukes), he could have very well have the other side and get in an unwinnable situation within 10 years.

With the average player, Byzantium is nigh-on condemned to be absorbed by the Ottomans.

Of course, one would wonder why they wouldn't just have the AAR feature typical play.

[Valmy]

Of course, one would wonder why they wouldn't just have the AAR feature typical play.

Well they probably will but that is not why you have PE do an AAR.  People expect, if not demand, this sort of thing from him.

[DGuller]

I prefer honest AARs, where PE tries his best to break the game, rather than misleading AARs.  I remember one Vicky 2 beta AAR where Brazil was attacking everyone around them without rhyme or reason, provoking a BB war which it obviously lost.  Ergo, AI was really improved in Vicky 2.

[garbon]

Of course, one would wonder why they wouldn't just have the AAR feature typical play.

Well they probably will but that is not why you have PE do an AAR.  People expect, if not demand, this sort of thing from him.

I expect an AAR that I'm not going to read.

[Zanza]

Meh. I'll be on a business trip next week so I will only be able to play it one week after everybody else.

[JonasSalk]

So according to Quill18's video, the Mamluks have a unique form of government and are no longer a tribal whateverocracy. I think that may make them viable as a second Muslim power for MP games in addition to the Ottomans. They start off with Egypt and the Levant, which is a fairly wealthy region and provides decent manpower for startup, plus a major trade zone (Alexandria). I think if they went on to conquer Arabia proper plus expanded into North Africa, they could definitely challenge the Ottomans and eventually the Sportuguese for control of northwest Africa. The only major trouble would be the technology negatives mid-game, which would require them to have some sort of contact with a Western country.

[garbon]

The only major trouble would be the technology negatives mid-game, which would require them to have some sort of contact with a Western country.

Yeah but doesn't seem like it'd be that hard for them to get a western neighboring province. Main thing would be remaining viable in the short term past Westernization.

[JonasSalk]

I dunno how they'd get a Western-border province unless they met up with Spain or Portugal somewhere in the Maghreb, or got invaded and had some of their territory forcibly taken by a Western power.

[garbon]

Italy?

[JonasSalk]

If they conquered Sicily or Naples, I suppose. I imagine that in an MP game that would lead to a rather large Western crusade against them ASAP.

[ulmont]

So according to Quill18's video, the Mamluks have a unique form of government and are no longer a tribal whateverocracy. I think that may make them viable as a second Muslim power for MP games in addition to the Ottomans.

The Mamelukes
This state controls Egypt and Syria at the start of the game, but was historically conquered by the Ottomans in the 16th century. They are Sunni and has an Iqta government. The Mamelukes sit on the main tradenodes directing trade from India and China to Europe.

They start with +25% Trade Steering, and +10% Cavalry Power.
Red Sea Trade: +5% Trade Power & +10% Trade Range.
Monument to Greatness: +1 Yearly Prestige
Purchase of Mamelukes: +20% Manpower Recovery.
Army Reform: +5% Discipline
Reformed Fellah System: +20% Production Efficiency
Reformed Succession: -20% Stability Costs
Monopoly Ports: +10% Trade Efficiency
When fully powered up, The Mamelukes get +25% Trade Income, turning them into a country with a big trade focus together with a strong military.
...
Iqta
+33% Vassal Income
+100% Chance of new Heir

http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showthread.php?687712-Europa-Universalis-IV-Developer-diary-30-Four-more-countries-and-even-more..

Bonus Detail: Westernization

Experienced players are now thinking about how to goose the Ottomans so they can remain a dominant military and technological power. As you know, the Western tech group gains knowledge faster than others, and as the Ottomans do not belong to it they will eventually trail them.

In the original version of Europa Universalis III, you could sometimes get a random event (if the stars aligned) and you could upgrade into a better technology group. With later expansions this was transformed into a set of complex decisions and events that worked fine for the power user that understood all the consequences, but had severe drawbacks for new users and the AI. Westernization should be an option, but it should also be a clear statement of policy, not something you stumble or exploit your way into.

In Europa Universalis IV, Westernization is a completely defined feature, integrated in the technology system. If you don't belong to the Western technology group, you will now always see whether you have the chance to "level up".

To start the westernization process, you need to have a neighbor of the Western tech group that is a fair number of levels ahead of you in technology, and you also need to have +3 stability. When you start the process, your stability drops to -3 and all your monarch power is wiped. You have switched to the western technology group, but you paid a heavy price for undoing centuries of tradition.

Then, each month, your progress towards being fully Western goes either forward or backwards. It can never go below 1%, but when you reach 100% you end the process, and get western units as well. So how does the progress work? Well, every month, your current stability is added to the progress. And there are fun events giving you -1 stability or hurting you somewhere else. Westernization should not be a decision taken lightly, especially for large empires. Your nobles and people will often resist and you may need to slow down your progress from time to time to avoid larger pains.

And yes, as a New World nation you can switch directly to western once the Europeans show up, but you have a fair amount of catching up to do anyway.

http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showthread.php?677489-Europa-Universalis-IV-Development-Diary-24-The-Heir-of-Rome

[Tamas]

thing is though, regarding MP, no matter how many players you have (below 30 or so) you will always have at least a couple on the edges who can rape assorted AI nations with impunity. Unless that enforce peace thing stops it now. We will see.

[Drakken]

thing is though, regarding MP, no matter how many players you have (below 30 or so) you will always have at least a couple on the edges who can rape assorted AI nations with impunity. Unless that enforce peace thing stops it now. We will see.

Well it's one of the perks of being a great power in EU4, if I take what PE wrote in his blog, and in any MP all great powers will most probably be players. So either the player on the edge settles for a smaller peace before a month, or his ass gets stomped.

Because of that, I highly suspect there will be house rules preventing Enforce Peace within a month, because it's not fun when you are a very minor power to be told "don't expand or I smash you" by a neighboring great power player. Everyone wants to be a contender in a MP game.