Unifying Scandinavia

[acidsun]

Hello, guys

Which is the fastest and/or easiest way to unify Scandinavia? Through Denmark inheritances and integrations as the Kalmar Union or through Sweden with brute force and annexation?

In a single player game I'd normally get any and just do it, relogging in case of any critical mistakes. However I've signed up for a multiplayer game with one of these two and so I'll be in a certain hurry to get closer in strenght to the other players who are great powers.

Thank you in advance

[Nostra]

Danemark by far

[Edlar89]

Denmark as long as you keep the PUs from the start.

I did it as Sweden and it takes a while and results in high infamy.

[acidsun]

Thank you both!

Is there anyway to avoid insults? In my experiments Sweden spams it hardly until we have -100 relations, and of course, insults are more efficient and easy than gifts.

Also, concerning the Integrate option, which I've never used before: Is it like Demand Annexation? Do I have to wait another 50 years to Integrate another country after Integrating the first? Is it always Very Unlikely or less that the other country will accept?

[Nerga]

Denmark is the fastest because you can inherit them, or integrate. The trick is to get the missions to take land from the Teutonic Order until you can support a military bigger than Sweden (Should be easy to do if the AI didn't mint 1000%). After you have taken a few provinces you should be able to get a larger army than sweden and then just wait for inherit. If you are lucky you won't get the Danish trade mission, as that essentially forces you to go to war with Hansa or Novgorod, which you are pretty weak to pull off initially.

[acidsun]

Thanks, Nerga.

Besides Teutonic Order, any other path of expansion?

[HelloGoodSir]

The whole Baltic is yours to take. Novgorod has a center of trade. Make sure to take advantage of Sweden's army so keep them fighting for you. Once you form Scandinavia colonizing the New World is easy.

[Kaazmodan]

The whole Baltic is yours to take. Novgorod has a center of trade. Make sure to take advantage of Sweden's army so keep them fighting for you. Once you form Scandinavia colonizing the New World is easy.

I usually go by Teutonic Order and then Pommerania. The reasons for this, is that TEU is a natural enemy, that can match you more or less evenly early on, but is destroyed after the loss of Danzig and a province or two more (the destruction of their start navy, is also a pretty good thing). Then I go on to Pommerania, since they are weak enough to take pretty much outright, and adds a decent boost. Annexation of Holstein is of course a good start... After that, Denmark is more or less in good shape to take on the Hansa/Novgorod, even if they bring a few friends into the fight. Stay away from Poland the first few years, as they start of powerful compared to Denmark, but will get in big trouble within the first few decades anyway, as they are pretty much between a rock and a hard place.

[Chronicler]

You guys, Sweden can force PUs as well you know >_>.

[G0dak]

Denmark, unless you get really unlucky. For example, my second king died young without an heir, leaving me with a Regency Council that's unable to declare wars necessary to restore personal unions. So, now it'll have taken upwards of 100 years to form Scandinavia. I have everything but Stockholm (owned by OPM Sweden, my vassal who I am about to annex and core on). So, yeah, if it's possible you want to keep those unions. You want to keep them hard.

[Slym]

You guys, Sweden can force PUs as well you know >_>.

But not until they get out of the one they're already in.

This is meant to be speedy, so starting off with it and keeping it is a quicker than getting out of it, making a new one with both of them, then inheriting.

[Nerga]

Thank you both!

Is there anyway to avoid insults? In my experiments Sweden spams it hardly until we have -100 relations, and of course, insults are more efficient and easy than gifts.

Also, concerning the Integrate option, which I've never used before: Is it like Demand Annexation? Do I have to wait another 50 years to Integrate another country after Integrating the first? Is it always Very Unlikely or less that the other country will accept?

When the Senior member of a PU you will take insults unless you have a larger army, or if you are in war. Denmark can not field a larger army than Sweden, so you need to expand a bit to be able to support a larger army. Being in constant war for the first 20 or so years as Denmark is imo the best strategy, because after a few provinces you should have a strong economy. The difference between integrate and inheriting is that integrating costs infamy, and you do not get cores. Inheriting will give you cores if both in hre or same culture.

Taking Tuetonic order and Novgorod are easiest, especially with Sweden+Norway helping you. I usually try not to take on HRE countries early because Bohemia can be a real menace until you get stronger. If you take Unam Sanctum for your first NI you can take Novgorod provinces for 2bb a piece, which is a good deal. 2 Wars you should be able to take Novgorod, which is a solid province. 1st war to take surrounding provinces, 2nd war to take the capital. For Teutonic Order I like to do Reconquest CB on them and take Gotland and Danzig. Gotland is a terrible province, but you have a core there, and 4 bb is worth Danzig, this also cripples TO. You also get missions to take Osel, Estland etc. So just whittle down on them as you go. In 5.2 estonia/latvia aren't in the HRE anymore, just Riga which is great.

After you form Scandinavia and have some of Russia/ Baltic the world is your oyster. You have good access to colonizing the Americas because of Iceland, and a big coast so you can field a large army. Your provinces are pretty poor, but you are still stronger than most countries in the region at this point. Plus with sound toll your CoT (wherever you take it or make it) should be really strong from all of the fur and iron. So if you do go the route of colonizing the new world, you will have a really strong trading game. I like to take Novgorod, and then make one in Manhattan (if natives don't make one somewhere). That way I can expand out into Russia and the GH, while also colonizing America. Making my great Northern Empire! If you vassalize a few minors in the HRE, you can also go become the Emperor, and form the HRE also.

[Pacius Ferox]

Just some words of warning: Scandinavia has an ugly flag and also the culture is more Dane/Norwegian than Swedish. Not that it's a big deal but when I unified Scandinavia as a Swede I was somewhat disappointed with rulers taking now non-Swedish names. I don't have Heir to the Throne, maybe it's a different convention there. Just want to recommend Scandinavia as Danish/Norwegian business, Sweden has it more natural mission to control the Baltic Sea. Use Danes.

Sorta OT: Scandinavia as a concept is just about as cool as Czechoslovakia.

[Chronicler]

Just some words of warning: Scandinavia has an ugly flag and also the culture is more Dane/Norwegian than Swedish. Not that it's a big deal but when I unified Scandinavia as a Swede I was somewhat disappointed with rulers taking now non-Swedish names. I don't have Heir to the Throne, maybe it's a different convention there. Just want to recommend Scandinavia as Danish/Norwegian business, Sweden has it more natural mission to control the Baltic Sea. Use Danes.

Sorta OT: Scandinavia as a concept is just about as cool as Czechoslovakia.

Yeah, like when I formed HRE as England - Lancaster

New ruler: Maximilian Lancaster and a lot of other german names >_>

[jdrou]

Not that it's a big deal but when I unified Scandinavia as a Swede I was somewhat disappointed with rulers taking now non-Swedish names. I don't have Heir to the Throne, maybe it's a different convention there. Just want to recommend Scandinavia as Danish/Norwegian business, Sweden has it more natural mission to control the Baltic Sea. Use Danes.

In HttT and DW the first names are still tied to the country tag so if SCA has mostly Danish names that will still be the case; the dynasty names are culture-based though so you can get mixtures like what Chronicler posted.