Question about how EU3 relates to other Paradox strategy games

[venividivicious]

I noticed in a few threads people mentioning using save games from other titles with the EU3 game.

I'm very intrigued by this so can someone fill me in on what games can interact with EU3 please??

(side note: Only Paradox strategy game i've played is EU3 so feel free to recommend/compare it to other Paradox strategy games)

[grommile]

The obvious first note is that you need to get a third-party tool to do it. (You can find links to some of these projects in the Modding forum, which you can get access to by registering your base game.)

The current games to either side of EU3 on the timeline are Crusader Kings II and Victoria 2.

[venividivicious]

Cool, thanks for the info. again Grommile. (Is the 3rd party tool perfectly above board with Paradox?)

I saw something about Vicky>Hearts of Iron, is it possible to start a game in CK2, bring that game into EU3, that game into Victoria 2 and then finally into HoI3??

[venividivicious]

I noticed on Wikipedia that CK2, EU3, Victoria 2 and Hearts of Iron 3 all use the same game engine ant that the time frames of each individual game roughly add up.

So is it difficult to go from one of these games onto the other carrying over save data from the previous title??

Sounds like something I gotta attempt to do, endless hours of SP and MP fun to be had!!

[gela1212]

Cool, thanks for the info. again Grommile. (Is the 3rd party tool perfectly above board with Paradox?)

I saw something about Vicky>Hearts of Iron, is it possible to start a game in CK2, bring that game into EU3, that game into Victoria 2 and then finally into HoI3??

CK2 -> EU3 is pretty much a no go (unless you want it to seem very clumsy and messy) the massive amount of things that would become tags in CK2 just doesn't work, unless you convert only completely independent realms, which still doesn't work horribly well. For the other games, I can't exactly say.

[grommile]

It's worth noting that it takes extremely self-restricted play to start in one paradox game in SP and reach the end with the world in a suitable state for picking up the same country in the next.

[gela1212]

It's worth noting that it takes extremely self-restricted play to start in one paradox game in SP and reach the end with the world in a suitable state for picking up the same country in the next.

Unless you're me and you're absolutely atrocious at three of four Paradox games, and instead of learning you just load up EU3 again every time you fail.

[venividivicious]

CK2 -> EU3 is pretty much a no go (unless you want it to seem very clumsy and messy) the massive amount of things that would become tags in CK2 just doesn't work, unless you convert only completely independent realms, which still doesn't work horribly well. For the other games, I can't exactly say.

Okay, seems to make sense. What would these tags be btw?

It's worth noting that it takes extremely self-restricted play to start in one paradox game in SP and reach the end with the world in a suitable state for picking up the same country in the next.

Seems to be the best way of doing that would be to have more than 2 players maybe, 2 vs 2 for example, but i'm geussing making sure everyone has the same mod files/save games could be problematic?

[brifbates]

Seems to be the best way of doing that would be to have more than 2 players maybe, 2 vs 2 for example, but i'm geussing making sure everyone has the same mod files/save games could be problematic?

This is much more problematic at the later stages since CK naturally limits your opportunity to wreck the entire world due to the small area it includes. Also, unless the latest patches/DLC have changed things, keeping a large empire together is significantly more problematic than in original CK.

[venividivicious]

This is much more problematic at the later stages since CK naturally limits your opportunity to wreck the entire world due to the small area it includes. Also, unless the latest patches/DLC have changed things, keeping a large empire together is significantly more problematic than in original CK.

When you say wreck the entire world do you mean a WC?

[gela1212]

2 vs 2 for example

I've been wanting to do team play for awhile, but everyone wants to do FFA campaign and still end up with one nation pretty much winning.

[venividivicious]

Well i've only registered my EU3 game now and i'm not sure what version of the game that you're playing but if you're looking to set up a 2 vs 2 game i'm willing to participate. Only issue would be what time(s) in the week and all that.

[magritte2]

CK2 -> EU3 is pretty much a no go (unless you want it to seem very clumsy and messy) the massive amount of things that would become tags in CK2 just doesn't work, unless you convert only completely independent realms, which still doesn't work horribly well. For the other games, I can't exactly say.

Going from CK2 to EU3 isn't that bad. There is a converter which produces a playable game now, and another project underway. Some countries will have strange inappropriate names and which vassal relationships are preserved is a little haphazard, but it works. There is one for EU3 -> V2 as well, which you can make a mod that actually carries over all the EU3 name tags. I believe there's a project for V2 -> HOI3, but I don't know anything about it.

Grommile is correct that most players tend to go on such an expansionist run in CK2 that the resulting EU3 game isn't very challenging, but you can always play a different country and be amused to see what the A.I. does with your monstrous Irish Empire.

[venividivicious]

Maintaining a challenge throughout 2 games would be tough enough, throughout 4 games would be very difficult. I suppose the hardest difficulty in every game wouldn't cut it, would including other human players be the only solution??

How did you know i'd be picking Ireland magritte??! (I'm geussing the avatar?)

[gela1212]

Some countries will have strange inappropriate names and which vassal relationships are preserved is a little haphazard,

That's what I meant by clumsy and messy. :P

[venividivicious]

If that's the only hiccup then it doesn't sound too bad, I mean starting a game in Crusader Kings 2 and finishing it in Hearts of Iron 3 would be awesome and quite a long game.

[jdrou]

Playing across multiple titles seems most suited for MP where you can have a real balance of power keeping one player from dominating the world. In SP people tend to get bored by halfway through EU3 because it becomes too easy and starting with an already dominant country imported from CK/CK2 would only make that worse.

[Gwyn ap Nud]

Honestly, the converters work best if you then go through the save-game and manually edit things to be in the state you want them too. And even then, a lot of the events won't make any sense.

[venividivicious]

Playing across multiple titles seems most suited for MP where you can have a real balance of power keeping one player from dominating the world. In SP people tend to get bored by halfway through EU3 because it becomes too easy and starting with an already dominant country imported from CK/CK2 would only make that worse.

Would make for a very good MP i'd say. I agree that it mightn't be enough of a challenge for SP.

Honestly, the converters work best if you then go through the save-game and manually edit things to be in the state you want them too. And even then, a lot of the events won't make any sense.

Are you referring to when you set advisors to historical when starting an EU3 game?

[gela1212]

Would make for a very good MP i'd say. I agree that it mightn't be enough of a challenge for SP.

I'd play a campaign with you if you want. Just PM me and we can set up a day & time that works for both of us.