Welcome to another development diary about Europa Universalis IV. This time we talk about something that will be in the next major patch we do.

One of the parts of the game that has not changed much since eu1 is the concept of technology groups and technological development around the world. We’ve added concepts like westernising, and tweaked that one, but in the end Europe has a huge advantage from day 1, and lots of fun gameplay options are limited the further away you are.

So this is what will happen in 1.18, when it is released this autumn..

A nation’s technology group no longer affect technology research.

There is now a concept called Institutions, which will affect your technology research. There are seven different institutions that appear over the game, and if you don’t get them to spread into your country and then get embraced by your government, your technology costs will slowly rise.

Each institution will appear in a province fullfilling certain factors, and then slowly spread around the world. The nation owning that province will gain prestige and monarch power.

Every year the penalty for not having embraced an institution will grow by 1%, so there is a gradual process.

When an institution has spread to at least 10% of your development, you can embrace it in your government, removing the penalty permanently, and also giving a bonus to your nation. The cost to embrace depends on the amount of development in your nation without the institution.

All institutions spread over borders (including 1 seazone away), if relations are positive, and the spread is based on development in the province getting it. There are also lots of other factors related to the spread.

So which are the the seven institutions then?

Feudalism
This is present from the start in almost all the world, except among the hordes, new world and sub-saharan africa. It will slowly spread into neighboring lands, but it is not quick.
Bonus: Gives 1 extra free leader.
Penalty: 50%


Renaissance
This appears in Italy after 1450, in either a capital or a 20+ development province. It will spread quickly through high development in europe, particularly through italy, but can only spread into provinces that have feudalism already.
Bonus: 5% Cheaper Development & 5% Cheaper Buildings
Penalty: 20%


Colonialism
Appears after 1500 in a port province in Europe, who’s owner has the Quest of the New World idea, and have discovered the new world. And will spread very quickly through any port in countries with colonies.
Bonus: +10% Provincial Trade Power
Penalty: 20%


Printing Press
This arrives after 1550, most likely in germany, but can happen in any protestant or reformed province. It will spread quickly in Protestant and Reformed territory, but also into capitals with dip tech 15.
Bonus: 5& Cheaper Stability
Penalty: 20%


Global Trade
This arrives after 1600, in a center of trade in the highest value trade node, and will spread quicker into provinces with trade buildings.
Bonus: +1 Merchant
Penalty: 20%

Manufactories
This arrives after 1650 in a province with 30 development and a manufactory, and will spread quicker into provinces with manufactories.
Bonus: +10% Goods Produced
Penalty: 20%

Enlightenment
Arrives after 1700 in a province that either is a seat of a parliament, or is a province in europe owned by a monarch with at least 5 in all stats. Universities & Parliament Seats spread this institution.
Bonus: 25% Cheaper Culture Conversion
Penalty: 30%
​

What does this mean?


The progress of Europe is not guaranteed, but most importantly, a nation in Asia or Africa is no longer crippled from day 1, and forced to avoid spending power on ideas and development.

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We’re constantly tweaking the spread factors, but here are some screenshots from mid 18th century in a hands-off game from this morning.

This is the institutions mapmode, where green are provinces that have all the enabled institutions, and yellow are don’t have them all.

And here is the technology mapmode, of the same game.

Some other aspects that has changed include the following
- New World Native Reforming will give you all institutions that the one you reform from has.
- Trade Companies are available to all technology groups.
- Lots and lots of triggers on western techgroups have been changed to check for specific relevant institutions.

 

[mmun]

there is no westernisation

Alternatively, this is westernisation.

 

[Deathlysouls]

This looks incredibly promising. I'm not 100% sold on some of the specifics and the numbers, but I'm sure you'll be fine-tuning everything between now and release. The general idea is great and I'm very much looking forward to playing this.

One question: What's going to happen to the achievements that require westernisation (Turning the Tide, No Trail of Tears, Sun God)?

Im assuming this just means you have to gain all institutions instead which is basically the same as being fully westernized

 

[Deathlysouls]

I suspect that England rivalled France, as it usually does. England doesn't have many neighbors.

Perhaps the "friendly" requirement can be removed? I don't really know why it's a thing, anyway.

I think the "friendly" modifier is there to signify that when countries are friendly with each other they tend to share more and feed off each other which is represented in faster spreading of institutions.

 

[DeWiseman]

Nice idea.

 

[Chief of Staff]

​

Why? In Italy, the printing press was used widely quite early, and Italy is was as Catholic as it gets. This is just more of the discriminatory rhetoric that Catholics were against all progress. Also, why does the printing press arrive in 1550? It was developed in 1440 and had spread throughout most of Europe by 1500. It was very influential in the Renaissance, and the Reformation may not have happened as it did without this invention.

Overall I don't like this change. While I agree that technology groups and westernization did need to be changed, this change looks like it will result in a much less historically accurate world most often. EU IV continues to move away from history to become a sandbox game loosely based on some historical events.

To add further to your first point, Johannes Gutenberg, widely recognized as first European to use moveable printing and printing press, was a Catholic and even more importantly, he lived and died in Mainz, the seat of the Catholic Archbishop who was also an elector in the Holy Roman Empire.

 

[Crosswire]

What happens in a CK2 conversion game where Catholicism is no longer around, for example if the Orthodox faith mends the schism? Does that mean the Printing Press institution can no longer appear as the Reformation only happens if Catholicism is still around.

 

[Praetorian44]

are we looking at the same picture?

I don't know are we? Because I'm looking at the technology map and the countries farthest ahead are the Austria, Hungary, the Balkan countries, Venice, Tunis, and Korea. Eastern Europe with the exception of Muscovy seems to better in tech than Western Europe. England and Scotland are on par with most of the Asian countries. There are countries in Africa that are on par with Europe. There are only a few countries in the entire world that are actually far behind in tech. So I'll ask again, are we looking at the same screenshot? Because I'm not seeing something that represents the historical situation of the 18th century at all.

To add further to your first point, Johannes Gutenberg, widely recognized as first European to use moveable printing and printing press, was a Catholic and even more importantly, he lived and died in Mainz, the seat of the Catholic Archbishop who was also an elector in the Holy Roman Empire.

Very good points

 

[Darkath]

They are green and yellow different colors for non-colorblind people.
They'll probably change it if you post it on the Suggestion Forum, this happen before when they added the Native American religions their colors were indistinguishable for the colorblind and they requested a change so Paradox fixed it and used colors that colorblind individuals could identify.

The red orange yellow green gradient is terrible for most color blind people. Even this is giving me difficulty while i have a very light deuteranopia;

Red to blue gradient works for most of the color blind people and is as explicit as red to green in western culture.

 

[LegacyCWAL]

The bit about where Printing Press starts out could use a bit of clarification. I blame English for being a terrible language

Personally, I initially read the part as meaning, "it will probably start in Germany regardless of the province's religion, but it can also happen in Protestant/Reformed non-German provinces". But until Paradox says something, we won't know for sure.

 

[bbqftw]

I don't know are we? Because I'm looking at the technology map and the countries farthest ahead are the Austria, Hungary, the Balkan countries, Venice, Tunis, and Korea. Eastern Europe with the exception of Muscovy seems to better in tech than Western Europe. England and Scotland are on par with most of the Asian countries. There are countries in Africa that are on par with Europe. There are only a few countries in the entire world that are actually far behind in tech. So I'll ask again, are we looking at the same screenshot? Because I'm not seeing something that represents the historical situation of the 18th century at all.


Very good points

sounds like a situation that could be plausible if England gets dumpstered, I don't see anything wrong with that

 

[Demetrios]

Shouldn't China / Ming have printing press? They were the ones who invented them...several hundred years before the Europeans.

*points to my post exactly seven posts above the one quoted*

Again, as per the developers, in posts in this very thread, this isn't the invention of the printing press, but the spread of literacy and exchange of ideas that began a few decades after the printing press was developed in Europe, and which didn't happen historically in China despite the existence of printing there.

 

[circadianwolf]

I think the issue with the printing press should not be its historical invention, but rather that it was the popular spread of the printing press in Europe that allowed anti-Catholic reform movements - which had existed in various forms for centuries - to actually take hold as a major social movement in the form of the Reformation. In other words, the printing press "institution" should increase the spread of Protestantism/Reformed (indeed, increase your chances of getting the initial COT) rather than vice versa. Causation is reversed in the current implementation.

 

[Praetorian44]

sounds like a situation that could be plausible if England gets dumpstered, I don't see anything wrong with that

Yes I don't see anything wrong with England being way behind in tech in a particular game where they have major issues. But I'm not just seeing one or two historical inaccuracies, which would be perfectly fine considering that the game becomes alternative history once you press play. What I'm seeing is an entire world where the tech levels are off, or at least an excessive amount of issues with it. I listed a multitude of issues with the tech levels in that screenshot, you can't just point to one and then reason how that one thing is plausible. You must look at the whole picture, where you'll see a world that looks nothing like history and doesn't seem even close to plausible.

This is really just a difference in philosophy. I, like many other players, would like to see a world that actually somewhat resembles history most of the time. Many other players would prefer a more sandbox world, and that's fine. It's a difference in philosophy and how we want EU IV to be. I'm simply stating that I really don't like that EU IV continues to move further into the sandbox philosophy, as I expect historical grand strategy games from Paradox. I would really hesitate to call EU IV a historical strategy game, as it increasingly resembles fantasy now IMO.

 

[Raven45]

This is a very interesting.. yet also confusing addition to the game. I have several questions related to this change:

1) In the technology screenshot, it appears that Britain has worse technology than India and Japan, as well as the rest of Europe. Isn't this a little absurd, historically speaking? Wouldn't this also have implications for gameplay that create strange outcomes?

2) Is there any way, other than taking specific idea groups or shifting to Protestant (like Protestants need more buffs), for a player to encourage the new institutions to spawn in their lands? For example, can I fund artists (through events or decisions) as Florence to encourage the Renaissance to spawn in Florence instead of Milan? Would having specific advisers increase the chances of some of the institutions spawning? Having an artist with the Renaissance, or a Trader with the Global Trade institution?

3) Lastly, why does the printing press spawn in Protestant/Reformed territory? To my knowledge, it was the printing press that helped spread Protestantism, not the other way around. Perhaps we could (FINALLY) get a rework of the Reformation? It would make sense to have the printing press spawn somewhere in the HRE, then have Protestant/Reformed religion spread faster into provinces with the Printing Press institution. Perhaps even limit CoRs to only provinces/nations with the printing press.

Thank you for taking the time to read my questions and other player's questions. This is why Paradox has so many loyal fans willing to buy each new DLC.

 

[Arcaian]

This is a very interesting.. yet also confusing addition to the game. I have several questions related to this change:

1) In the technology screenshot, it appears that Britain has worse technology than India and Japan, as well as the rest of Europe. Isn't this a little absurd, historically speaking? Wouldn't this also have implications for gameplay that create strange outcomes?

2) Is there any way, other than taking specific idea groups or shifting to Protestant (like Protestants need more buffs), for a player to encourage the new institutions to spawn in their lands? For example, can I fund artists (through events or decisions) as Florence to encourage the Renaissance to spawn in Florence instead of Milan? Would having specific advisers increase the chances of some of the institutions spawning? Having an artist with the Renaissance, or a Trader with the Global Trade institution?

3) Lastly, why does the printing press spawn in Protestant/Reformed territory? To my knowledge, it was the printing press that helped spread Protestantism, not the other way around. Perhaps we could (FINALLY) get a rework of the Reformation? It would make sense to have the printing press spawn somewhere in the HRE, then have Protestant/Reformed religion spread faster into provinces with the Printing Press institution. Perhaps even limit CoRs to only provinces/nations with the printing press.

Thank you for taking the time to read my questions and other player's questions. This is why Paradox has so many loyal fans willing to buy each new DLC.

1: Britain indeed does have worse - we're assuming it's because they're rivals with France, and the game has turned out that there aren't many friendly countries it can spread from. England in 1444 wasn't always going to be a super-power and the driver of the industrial revolution, it is possible that England would be as much of a backwater as other countries in Europe turned out to be (also remember that it's a binary map being shown, either you have all of them or none. England could have 5/6, and China 1/6, and it'd show the same thing).

 

[SignedName]

Does trade increase the speed of institutions spreading? Can institutions spread across trade routes?

 

[NoUsernamesHere]

This is definitely a marked improvement over the horrid tech system in the current iteration of the game; however, there are some issues that I can immediately spot:

1. Institutions should be flavored differently for each tech group, even if only the text is changed. Why would china need to adopt the institution of printing when it has already done so before the earliest start date? The number of institutions and their role in gameplay should remain consistent between tech groups, for gameplay purposes.

2. Some of these decisions are pretty bad. Feudalism is the worst; the spread of feudalism and feudalism itself, as an institution, can't really be said to have ever stimulated any form of technological progress. Of course, feudalism shouldn't be seen as a progression from other forms of government, either.

 

[Freudia]

Yes I don't see anything wrong with England being way behind in tech in a particular game where they have major issues. But I'm not just seeing one or two historical inaccuracies, which would be perfectly fine considering that the game becomes alternative history once you press play. What I'm seeing is an entire world where the tech levels are off, or at least an excessive amount of issues with it. I listed a multitude of issues with the tech levels in that screenshot, you can't just point to one and then reason how that one thing is plausible. You must look at the whole picture, where you'll see a world that looks nothing like history and doesn't seem even close to plausible.

This is really just a difference in philosophy. I, like many other players, would like to see a world that actually somewhat resembles history most of the time. Many other players would prefer a more sandbox world, and that's fine. It's a difference in philosophy and how we want EU IV to be. I'm simply stating that I really don't like that EU IV continues to move further into the sandbox philosophy, as I expect historical grand strategy games from Paradox. I would really hesitate to call EU IV a historical strategy game, as it increasingly resembles fantasy now IMO.

Honestly, we only got a screenshot from one game. It's hard to say if that's the norm or not based on our known sample size (one).

 

[ValhallArchitect]

I guess colonizing means you "import" your insititution to the new world, so it can spread accross the ocean ?
How does that apply with the tech levels ? Are they removed, do they spread similarly or do they remain as they are - adm/mil/dip costs ?
Would be good to have a tech spread like in CK2, as some of those institiutions were also an tech advancement (take printing press, which was historically much earlier, it was linked to the reform movement as people began to understand the Bibile by themselves and asked the Church not to keep on their corruption... It was not only linked to a tech level, but to social, military and economic changes which happened during this age

 

[Surimi]

This sounds like a vastly superior system.

2. Some of these decisions are pretty bad. Feudalism is the worst; the spread of feudalism and feudalism itself, as an institution, can't really be said to have ever stimulated any form of technological progress. Of course, feudalism shouldn't be seen as a progression from other forms of government, either.

I don't think the point is that feudalism drives technological progress, but rather that many things which did drive technological progress proceed out of feudalism. "Feudalism" (in the general sense of a medieval social order) made the rich extremely rich (the rich being the nobility and the church) which meant they could afford to do things like build massive cathedrals (which required skilled craftsmen to build them) or spend their entire lives reading books. In societies where the boundary between nobility and the people they ruled was less pronounced, people couldn't usually afford to build massive cathedrals, for example, so you never develop a permanent class of people capable of doing so.