Mo & Other Peeps ramble about Europa Universalis IV
So, I like EU4, and at least one other person does, thus it warrants a thread.
This is largely gonna be me half-liveblogging my games though.
Currently I'm playing a 1444 start Netherlands game by way of The Kingdom of Burgundy. Here's a quick recap, plus some interesting points of historical divergence:
Dukes of Burgundy before game start (all historical)
This is largely gonna be me half-liveblogging my games though.
Currently I'm playing a 1444 start Netherlands game by way of The Kingdom of Burgundy. Here's a quick recap, plus some interesting points of historical divergence:
- as Burgundy, we begun with a strong rivalry with France and designs on a number of Dutch-cultured one province minor states (OPMs) within the Holy Roman Empire. This led, in the first thirty or so years of the campaign a number of wars against the Holy Roman Empire and then-emperor Austria specifically.
- These wars eventually gave us enough land to be able to form the Netherlands (although we wouldn't actually do so for some time as this requires Level 10 Administrative tech, but never mind that)
- After the initial wars, we've largely pursued a path of peace. Taking alliances of convinience with now-gone Scotland, Great Britain, Brunswick, Brittany, and Naples. Eventually, we were able to repair the long rift between ourselves and France and under King Phillippe V, the Kingdom of Burgundy officially became The Kingdom of The Netherlands, its lower, mostly French provinces ceded to France.
- Recently, with the weak Jobst II of Brandenburg elected Holy Roman Emperor, the Dutch provinces that were formerly part of the HRE officially withdrew from it, severely hurting Jobst's authority in the process.
- Since then we've built up a massive colonial empire, and have a deadlock on most of the Caribbean (our closest competitor is Spain who controls a lot of the mainland but little of the more wealthy islands) as well as South Africa, West Africa, and Mexico, the latter two through conquest, as such we now have a number of Colonial Territories
- New Burgundy: The oldest, located in south america, and by far the most independent of the Dutch Colonies. Has a strong rivalry with the Portugese state of Brazil. Gorvernor: Thomas Coen (Administrative Candidate)
- The King Willem Islands: The Caribbean states, consisting of Phillippesborg (St. Lucia), its capitol Dirk Shenck Island (Martinique), Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica, as well as the claimed but uninhabited Island of St. Thomas. Governor: Pieter Avertzen (Military Candidate)
- Azteekland: As the name implies, Azteekland is a territory consisting largely of the conquered lands of the Aztec people, who remain independent only on the colony's fringes. Azteekland takes an extremely aggressive policy toward foreign colonies and native states alike, and has the largest army of any Dutch colony, able to call on an impressive 12,000 men. Governor: Jan Tasman (Military Candidate, 2nd term)
- Rochebaron: Settled largely by the now minority Burgundians, Rochebaron (named after its founder) is a young colony in northern South America. Rochebaron has been plagued by administrative problems since its inception, as well as frequent clashes with the other colonies. Governor: Vincent Daendels (Administrative Candidate, 2nd term)
- Greater Oyo: Consisting of lands annexed from a handful of small African states, Greater Oyo initially existed solely as a means to funnel gold and ivory to The Netherlands. Over time, and with the birth of Hollandia Colony (see below) it has become a more independent nation, although governorship tends to stay within the wealthy van Egmont family, Greater Oyo also administers Seppeland, a small colony in North Africa that is the oldest still-occupied Dutch colony. Governor: Willem van Egmont (Military Candidate, 3rd term)
- Hollandia: The youngest of the Dutch colonies, Hollandia was established in Africa primarily as a stepping stone to the east, but when deposits of gold and ivory were found, colonists flocked (including the Calvinist minority), as such, Hollandia is one of the most diverse colonies, and is prone to internal strife. Governor: Zacharias van Huchtenbroek (Diplomat Candidate)
- In addition to these, Holland has three other subject nations.
- The Zapotec: The Zapotec, perhaps wishing to avoid the fate of their Aztec enemies, or simply seeing a good opportunity, pledged their loyalty to King Willem I in the 1550s, and have remained a loosely-controlled puppet state of the Netherlands ever since. The Zapotec recieve protection from both the Aztecs and Maya in exchange for a cut of their tax collections. Ruler: (High Elder?) Jituh Jituh.
- The Kingdom of the Kongo: The Kongolese offered King Phillippe V loyalty in exchange for protection from Mali, who they saw as a threat. Since then, The Kongo has been christianized through the efforts of a number of Dutch missionaries, which has led to the curious effect of citizens of The Kongo being more devout Catholics than the Dutch. Ruler: King Miketo Bongo (sometimes referred to as "King Micheal", but this is a mistranslation).
- The Duchy of Bar: Unlike the other protectorates listed here, Bar is a European state. A former Burgundian land that had been ceded to France, The British forced France to grant Bar its independence as part of a peace deal in a harsh punitive war that also saw them retake English Normandy. With nowhere else to really turn to, The Duke of Bar pledged his loyalty to King Willem II.
Dukes of Burgundy before game start (all historical)
- Philippe II
- Jean II
Kings of Burgundy (at game start, Phillippe historical, all subsequent rulers fictional. Dutch localizations displayed after the slash)
- Philippe III / Philip III
- Interregnum (regency for Charles)
- Charles / Karel
- Philippe IV / Philip IV
- Jean III / Jan III
- Louis-Joseph / Loudewijk-Seppe
As Kings of The Netherlands (de Bourgogne dynasty)
- Philip V
- Willem I
- Willem II
- Loudewijk I
- Isaac
As Stadtholders of the Dutch Republic
- Isaac de Bourgogne
- Willem III van Egmont
- Willem IV van Wijngaarden
- Paul Brandt
- Loudewijk van Egmont
as Kings of The Netherlands (van Brabant dynasty, by popular proclomation)
- Loudewijk II
- Maurits I (Morris Phillippe de Valois-Bourgogne)
maps forthcoming for those who care about my ramblin'
edit: have I ever mentioned how much I hate Vanilla?
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Divided into Stuff Related To Us and Stuff Not Related to Us
Stuff Related to Us:
The King Willem Islands
Azteekland
Rochebaron
New Burgundy
Hollandia
Greater Oyo
Developing colonies in North America
Kongo
Zapotec
Bar
and finally, The Netherlands Proper
which brings us to Stuff Not Related To Us. Note the 150ish-year-early Kingdom of Great Britian under Queen Anne Lancaster, and the Denmark that owns all of Scandinavia, a much more long-lasting variation on The Kalmar Union.
The Weakened Holy Roman Empire since a long string of weak-handed Emperors were elected, the HRE has been effectively powerless to stop incursions by larger states (the yellow-striped markings indicate territories that are considered to be part of the empire but are occupied by foreign powers, also note the removal of all Dutch provinces from the empire). Jobst II of Brandenburg is the current emperor, and is an atrocious administrator, having largely been elected due to lack of suitable opposition. The electorate seems to currently favor either King Karl von Wettin of regional power Saxony or Prince Georg of the tiny Principality of Ansbach. It's unlikely either would be a particularly strong Emperor, and increased support has been found for finding an emperor outside the Empire's borders, as The Palatinate has continually backed Poland as emperor in the past several elections.
Prior Holy Roman Emperors:
The war does not last long, in a mere two years roughly 90% of Mayan lands are annexed by the Dutch, and integrated into Azteekland. Loudewijk does not live to see the fruits of his conquest, as both he and his right hand man the conquistador Herman van Bran die of malaria on the boat trip back to Amsterdam.
Loudewijk never officially appointed a successor, but it's clear that the 8 year old son that bears his name is unfit to rule, and unwilling to appoint a regency council unless absolutely necessary, Parliament crowns his brother Isaac as King of the Netherlands.
Isaac's reign is dominated by others. Never expected to be a king, Isaac is charming and a brilliant strategist, but lacks a comprehensive knowledge of proper governing, and as such tends to delegate. It is no surprise then that a mere year into his reign, the developing Dutch colonies along the north american east coast are released from royal possession and conglomerated into the Ban van Delaware*, and governorship is transferred to a member of the Bronkhorst sugar merchant family. Isaac lacks strong opinions on foreign policy, and generally lets his colonial governors war with whomever they wish so long as The Netherlands proper are not threatened, this leads to an annexation of the Lenape Nation a few years later.
Isaac does however, have strong opinions on religious matters. A rare pan-Christian in an age where Catholic, Lutheran, and Calvinist nations are known to war for no other reason than their religious differences, Isaac officially issues a Royal Edict of Religious Tolerance. Providing protection to religious minorities within the Dutch Empire. The loss of some hardline Catholic nobles and a strongly worded letter from Pope Paul II aside, this is widely seen as a wise move.
Religious map of Europe.
*lit "Territory of Delaware"
Said vassalage provides the governors of The Ban van Delaware--and more importantly conquistadors Johan van Bronkhorst and Frans van Voorst--an excuse to engage the Chickasaw, who control a sprawling but heavily decentralized domain in North America, which is most importantly to the conquistadors, filled with rich fur fortunes and more fertile land for sugar and cotton plantations. Meanwhile, to the north, the Pequot lands of Connecticut are integrated into the Ban van Delaware, and become the site of uprisings for years to come.
Peace is made with the Chickasaw in 1589, dividing their lands up into a patchwork of Ban van Delaware, Lenape, and Dutch-administrated provinces. The Lenape's allies the Iroqouis feel slighted, but are powerless to do anything about it. This peace deal also gives The Ban van Delaware an extensive border with the Spanish colonial territory of Florida, providing a future proving ground for further conflicts.
Much of this occured without Isaac's direct knowledge or even consent, as his mind was occupied with something else entirely.
Adopt a republican form of government, one that gives representation to the colonies, or lose the colonial states entirely.
Isaac is unwilling to simply abandon the throne, so negotiations begin, and drag on for nearly a year. Eventually, a model of government is formed that somewhat resembles the Holy Roman Empire's. From now on, starting with Isaac's death, the ruler of the Netherlands--referred to in the new constitution as a Stadtholder--is to be elected from one of a number of offices within the nation. Some of these offices are hereditary principalities--like the Duchy of Holland, the former royal demense--others are elected, like the governorships of the various colonies. This is the birth of The Dutch Republic, which is formally declared on The Fifth of September, 1589. Isaac is permitted to retain the office of Stadtholder and to use the Royal Title until his death, but there is no guarantee that his nephew Loudewijk will succeed the throne.
Under the new constitution, the colonial states are elevated to the status of independent states that simply remain in federation with The Netherlands. This gives the colonies--and thus, wealthy merchant families--a roughly equal influence on national policy as the nobles.
Initially intended to be a representative office for the people, the position of Stadtholder has largely been passed around between members of the three wealthiest Dutch families--the van Egmonts, the van Wijngaardens, and the Brandts--for the past century. Embroiled in a long, largely pointless war against the Holy Roman Empire, the peasants of The Netherlands revolted, and established the popular Duke Loudewijk IX of Brabant as King in Holland, in direct opposition to Stadtholder Loudewijk van Wijngaarden. A scant year later, on what would've been the 90th anniversery of the republic, Loudewijk van Brabant and his brilliant commander Daniel Spiegel defeat the republican forces at the Battle of Zeeland, officially reinstating the monarchy.
Loudewijk is married matrilinearly to the sister of the heir to The Kingdom of France, and two years after he takes the throne, Maurice de Valois is born, and becomes heir to The Netherlands.
Spiegel, for his part, spends most of the remainder of his life putting down revolts throghout the Low Countries.
Dutch colonialism remains, though in a much reduced fashion. Most nations are now focusing their colonial efforts on Oceania, and the prevailing trend, rather than folding these territories into self governing Bans as has been done in the past, to simply make them crown colonies.
Elsewhere in the world, The Holy Roman Empire has turned to an outside power--mighty Scandinavia--as Emperor. The past three emperors have also been the rulers of this pan-nordic nation, and as Scandinavia has just annexed fully half of its biggest competition--the principality of Saxony--it seems unlikely that there is much to stop this continued outside dominance of the German Empire.
The Ottoman Empire is collapsing in a less subtle fashion. Continued assaults by Hungary, and the increasingly territory-minded Republic of Venice have left the Sultanate a shell of its former self. Combined with weak rulers from the Algerian Zayyanid-dynasty, the future looks bleak for the Islamic Rome, as Sultan Ahmed is content to cower in his palace in Constantinople while the rest of his dying empire burns, like the last Byzantines before him.
(The other Jane)
EU4 itself works on a Linux but it's one of the more expensive non-AAA games on Steam.
Free though, that's a stretch.
Also why do you post blocks of binary after every comment
(The other Jane)
idk if it's on my end or yours but that's what I see whenever you post anything.
(The other Jane)