Europa Universalis V confirmed

[crazy canuck]

 

[Syt]

Which is annoying because most players don't play mp. I don't have stats, but I know

Especially in EU5. If we started a Languish game playing a few hours a week, CC and I will be in nursing homes and have Alzheimer's by the time we're finished 😂

Bold of you to assume that the game would finish and not be quietly abandoned within a month.

[crazy canuck]

  

[Norgy]

I'm up for MP.

[Norgy]

I am not going to say that this game is TEH BEST EVAH.

It is, however, so loaded with potential, once you get a bit of a feeling of the mechanisms under the hood.
I do think some of the mechanisms, like how to colonise and explore are wildly underexplained. I needed to search how to send an explorer. And they are expensive. 

To some extent, I agree with those who'd like a later start date, at least as a possibility. Those first 50 years are more of a chore than fun, unless you play as someone capable of warfare. Then it is quite entertaining.

I haven't raised a levy since, well, the late 1460s? Mostly because they'd just be fodder for Mamluk cavalry.

There is weirdness. Quite a lot of it. Like ordering a sea transport and finding your ship stuck in the same sea zone and troops perishing by the day. The limited role of fleets, except for giving you naval presence and transportation, also belies the importance sea power held during the period. I'd like that to be somewhat more important.
Now, could someone please tell me how to build a colony? 

[crazy canuck]

Gaining sea zone control is critically important if your nation has a sizeable coastline or offshore possessions. It is the main/only? reason for building and maintaining a sizeable fleet.

Colonization is a click and forget sort of exercise since the process takes so long - at each stage of the progression you will get a popup that tells you what to do next.  My advice is don't think about doing it until you have a lot of resources to devote to the endeavour, or it will just take too long.

[Syt]

Roadmap:

Update 1.2 - Echinades:

We wrote about the mechanics changes during three Tinto Talks during April, and the changes touch your cities, your armies, your cabinets, and, perhaps most importantly, the eternally chaotic Holy Roman Empire.

The big economic addition is Urban Rights, legal privileges you grant to towns and cities to shape their economic identity. Towns get one slot, cities get two, and capitals get a bonus.

There's a solid regional flavor here: German cities get Magdeburg or Nuremberg Rights, Iberian ones get Fueros, Scandinavian ports get Fishing or Bergslag privileges. Most rights strip on conquest, so freshly taken cities don't just hand you their economic legacy.

The new Trade Orders system lets you set import/export directives and let the AI handle routing, cheapest sources, and best markets, automatically. Priority order matters when capacity is tight, and unprofitable orders just keep retrying rather than disappearing.

On the military side, infantry and cavalry now have a proper light/heavy split. Light infantry moves faster and acts first, but deals less damage and takes extra morale hits. Heavy infantry is slower, penalty-free, and the only type that can garrison forts. Cavalry follows the same logic, light horse is blazingly fast with great flanking but fragile; heavy cavalry is sturdier and more of a specialist pick as gunpowder takes over. A new Siege Raider stance is built for vassal armies: siege everything, avoid field battles, run when caught.

The HRE gets a real facelift. The Diet UI is now tabbed (Overview, Members, Treasury), and voting is actually readable; tooltips show projected outcomes before you call a vote. The new Imperial Armory building gives Emperors a real military tool, funneling local manpower to imperial forces or providing direct recruitment on home territory.

The terrain system got a thoughtful pass too: your capital's terrain type now reduces the proximity penalty for that same terrain by 20%, and mountain cultures like Scotland, Switzerland, and Nepal have dedicated advances for it. Terrain penalties are now multiplicative, so they stay meaningful even when you stack infrastructure bonuses.

Characters are a bit more interesting now, with health traits representing their physical wellbeing (or lack thereof). Commanders can receive serious injuries in bloody battles. They can also gain cabinet traits which allows you to specialise your cabinet beyond simply going for the best ability score.

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Update 1.3 Pavia:

This update delivers a sweeping set of changes to Europa Universalis V across systems ranging from economy to diplomacy to military. The Great Power system has been redesigned around area dominance rather than a score formula, with a new Regional Power tier sitting between being a minor nation and full Great Power status. Estates have their own culture and religion independent of the crown, and estate interactions have been expanded with eight new emergency options letting players trade long-term goodwill for immediate wartime relief. Reformation spread will be handled by the Movement system rather than a manual script loop, making it more organic and historically grounded. In 1.3, Rebel factions can be negotiated with directly before they revolt, and fort loyalty during rebellions will depend on local conditions rather than being automatic.

On the economic side, profit margins for production buildings in 1.3 have been significantly cut, making them genuine investment decisions rather than passive money printers. A new establishment mechanic means newly built production buildings ramp up slowly based on local literacy, disadvantaged by late arrivals against historically rooted industries. Price elasticity has been introduced so that expensive goods genuinely suppress demand, allowing regional trade imbalances to persist and giving trade routes lasting purpose. Mills have been overhauled to be cheaper, faster to build in cities, and more competitive in the late game. Ten historical regions have gained static production bonuses reflecting their real-world economic legacies, from Flemish cloth to Venetian glass.

The naval balance pass gives heavy ships meaningful penalties in enclosed seas and straits, making galleys a genuine strategic choice for Mediterranean-focused empires. Military orders have been capped on sponsors and tightened on passive income to prevent them from outgrowing their patron kingdoms. Roughly thirty cost modifiers have been converted to efficiency modifiers with diminishing returns to curb runaway min-maxing. Several new automation tools have been added, including split cabinet controls, per-building auto-expand flags, and fine-grained automated diplomacy toggles. Rounding out the 1.3 update, Government Bonds, Imperial Circles, Independent Operations for armies, and a Creditworthiness system each add new strategic depth to their respective domains.
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Update 1.4 - Río Salado:

The focus of this update is a pair of transformative core features: a deeper sense of national aspiration and far-reaching journeys of discovery.

A new system for Ambitions will allow you to articulate your nation's long-term goals to the world, creating dynamic rivalries and diplomatic tension as other powers react and contest your path to greatness.

With Expeditions, we are adding immersive narrative depth by allowing named characters to undertake monumental journeys, complete with unique event chains and consequential outcomes that will shape your nation's history.

The Dynastic experience will be receiving a significant injection of depth, providing new tools for securing alliances, arranging successions, and managing shared power arrangements that will enrich the political landscape.

We also plan to introduce more surgical options for Economic Warfare, giving players fine-grained control to pressure rivals or strengthen allies through focused trade policy. Camels will make an appearance as trade goods, alongside Camelry levies. Catholicism will receive a pass to make Cardinals more interesting, and we will rework the Crusade system.

The features are designed to harmonise with Across the Pillars, our first Chronicle Pack, which is releasing around the same time. It will explore the narrative that unfolds between Castile, Morocco, and Granada, while adding plenty of exciting content for them in the early game.
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Update 1.5 - Orléans:

While the DLC is planned around France and the Western European state of the 15th–16th century, there are quite a few mechanics we aim to address in this update. More mechanics for the building-based countries, like Trade Companies and State Banks. Pop needs will be split into life needs, everyday needs, and luxury needs, which have different consequences.

Estates will generate self-serving spending requests that give them a distinct economic identity, and estates under enemy occupation during wartime will become significantly harder to manage. Peace-making is something we plan to rework into a more bilateral negotiation where both sides put demands on the table, funded by their own warscore, so wars end with both parties gaining something rather than one side simply dictating terms.

Subject relationships are planned to gain a contract layer where overlords and subjects can negotiate individual clauses covering loyalty, building rights, and war obligations, making vassal management feel more like genuine statecraft.

Christianity as a whole will get a rework, allowing more natural schisms and mendings along theological lines.

These themes are with our second chronicle pack, Auld Alliance, which will also release around this time. It will be focused on content and gameplay for France and Scotland, and in particular, the Hundred Years' War.
_______

Update 1.6 and Beyond:

Beyond these updates, we have further plans for new Bookmarks, better Horde gameplay, and more...

We're excited to bring these features to life, and we mean that, because none of this happens without you. Please continue to give us the feedback and suggestions as you have been doing, so we can continue to expand this ambitious game into something even better!

The Voyage is just getting started. Thank you for being a part of it, and remember...
Be Ambitious!