Victoria 3

[Solmyr]

I recommend a bunch of soundtrack mods to get into the mood while playing:

Sounds of the Centuries: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3493390182
Romantic Music: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2890995527
Victoria II: Songs of the Civil War: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2979093868
German Marching Music: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3520419672
Civilization Industrial Era Music Pack: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3472557637

[Syt]

I tried some music mods, but some had bad recording quality or had unbalanced volume. Not to mention events interrupting the music all the time (even if you turn off event sounds; though you can theoretically switch the "can be interrupted" flag in the text files that have the soundtrack tracks to "no", but not exactly ideal). I've taken to listening to classical music (and/or the Vicky soundtracks) on Spotify instead.

Another beta patch. Only one item, but it addresses maybe the most annoying remaining bug from this patch:

https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/threads/victoria-3-opt-in-beta-1-9-8-updated-july-22nd.1851538/

Fixed "Transfer Subject" and "Liberate Subjects" wargoals not being enforced when the overlord capitulates (as opposed to accepting a peace offer, or giving in before war breaks out)

[Syt]

Been doing a US run, with the aim of becoming a capitalist run oligarchy with no workers rights.

I found it surprisingly easy to create a trading Power Bloc that includes Central America (sans Mexico), Haiti, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay and Peru (Bolivia became my protectorate when Peru asked for my help in their struggle for independence, Cuba/PR I transferred from Spain, and Haiti became my protectorate when I aided them against France). Also added Dai Nam to my trade bloc, finished the Oregon journal entry and bought Alaska. And it's only 1861. Also been working on getting rid of slavery without civil war (disempowering southern planters, getting institutions/laws that lower radicalism). Haven't run into any real cash flow issues so far, despite running low to almost minimal taxes. Though legitimacy of the ruling Whig Party is perpetually low because it includes so many interested disparate groups. Stupid two party system. I'm friendly with Britain (Allies, but I have no declared interests in India to avoid getting pulled into that nonsense) and France.

Seemed a tad easy so far.

[Norgy]

The United States is a dreamy good starting country, I found. If you can do an early Civil War, it's a walk in the park. Of course, there is some RNG there too. I had only two states rebelling in 1849, but for the reconstruction journal entry to be successful (it wasn't), 12-13 states had to be reincorporated. 

Mexico backing down and just giving you the primary war goal is beyond annoying as well. IT IS MANIFEST DESTINY, SANTA ANA, NOT PIECEMEAL DESTINY!

The US has the potential to have a GDP curve that always goes upwards, and that European immigration is a huge boost.

In my last unmodded run with the US, it just got boring as my laissez-fairy economy just couldn't stop growing. But it also exposed my two weak points in Victoria 3.
1. Army. I seem to always forget to recruit a decent sized army. By 1880, as a GP, you should probably have 200 brigades plus.
2. Treaties. I don't understand them.

[Syt]

With Mexico I made them ALL primary wargoals. I also started the diplomatic play over a state (Texas) that no other GP had declared interest in (unlike, say, California, which has a chance of bringing in Russia and Britain - I feel if you expand wargoals it should take into account interests over every wargoal, not just the first one ).

[Norgy]

Britain. 

The source of all Vic3 pain.

Even reading through all the subjects' siding against you is daunting. "British Senegal sides with Spain".

Russia's one bazillion brigades aren't so bad, as they are tech "sliced banana". But the British Empire will always do you in, no lube, no mercy.

[Syt]

I was lucky with France vs Haiti yesterday. We were even in troop strength, they had a bigger navy, and some better tech. They tried landing in Virginia (which failed), and I parked enough troops on the island to deter invasion there. The only wargoal on our side was "revoke claim", so we only needed sit it out without having to go on the offensive anywhere.

[Norgy]

The only hope, usually, is that the AI is poor at managing its fronts. Invading Austria in Küstenland was a relief for my Sardinia-Pukemountain. They had like 80 percent advantage on the land front in the north.

[The Minsky Moment]

In my last unmodded run with the US, it just got boring as my laissez-fairy economy just couldn't stop growing. But it also exposed my two weak points in Victoria 3.
1. Army. I seem to always forget to recruit a decent sized army. By 1880, as a GP, you should probably have 200 brigades plus.
2. Treaties. I don't understand them.

US really exposes the deficiencies of the political model.

Before 1900 the US army never went over 50K except during the major wars.  Before the Civil War it was always below 30K except during the Mexico war. The game tries to model this through the National militia law BUT it's usually easy to pass professional army.  Moreover, National militia allows 5000 soldiers per state and the US has lots of states.

Professional army is easy to pass because its easy to get the "Armed Forces" in government even though no political interest group of that kind existed in the 19th century US.  There is no way such a law ever could have passed in the 19th century. 

On opening, Henry Clay is the leader of the Intelligentsia, which is hilarious on many levels. Most notably there was no American intelligentsia during this period as a relevant political or social force.  When a sort of embryonic intelligentsia started to emerge at the end of the century, it was hardly a progressive force but rather associated with craniometry, eugenics, and crude laissez faire economics.  That didn't really change until the FDR era.

The latest patch indirectly nerfs the intelligentsia generally - which is probably warranted - by decreasing university employment levels.  But in my latest game so far that seems to have wrecked the Republican Party, because (rather comically again) the intelligentsia is the core interest group for the GOP.

I get that the interest group model of politics works pretty well as a game mechanic through its interaction with legislation.  In game stakes are low for the US because US starting laws are already pretty good in Vic 3 terms. So it probably doesn't matter that the model just flat doesn't work as a model for US 19th century politics.  It just crushes immersion a bit.

The Civil War is also a cakewalk. Again, I assume the priority is to make sure the AI US wins more than it loses, and thus it is easy for the player.  But it should be possible to make it longer and more costly. I.e. the South should have an early leadership/qualitative advantage that makes it harder for the North to win offensive battles. There is also zero logistical challenge to quickly occupying deep into the South. It shouldn't be possible to occupy the interior of the South beyond the Mississippi and a few ports without rebuilding railroads and the South should be able to raid rail lines left unprotected.  This is not possible given the current state of the front system which is unlikely to change.

[Norgy]

The most serious issue with logistics is Russia.

420 brigades mobilised? With no issue? HAVE YOU EVEN READ THE NEWS, DEVS? IT IS NOT POSSIBLE IN 2025, LET ALONE IN 1850.