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Good morning, everyone! This week we’re going back to Southeast Asia to talk about some extra content that we’re making for some of the tags.

Philippines.jpg


Starting with the Philippines, we have decided to focus on two specific tags instead of giving them all some generic missions. First, we have Tondo. Tondo is located in the island of Luzon, in the northern part of the archipelago. Philippine political organization consisted of a type of “city-states” called barangays, which formed groups of families ruled by a datu. Bigger barangays, as Tondo in this case, would integrate several smaller barangays governed by a paramount datu, whose title would vary in each region (lakan in the case of Tondo). This grand barangay was an important center of trade in all Nusantara, since the presence of Chinese migration resulted in Tondo becoming the main center of Chinese goods, trading all across Southeast Asia.

Tondo.jpg


Some highlights from this mission tree include:
  • Growing Strong will reward the existence of level 2 forts in provinces Tondo, Laguna and Mindoro with +25% Defensiveness in each of them.
  • The Queen’s Channel is a reference to the channel that serves as a natural frontier with Manila, in the Pasig River delta. It was not only an important source of water for said barangay, but also its main opportunity of trading. Gaining control over it will give Tondo a huge +50 Trade Power in the Philippines trade node.
  • Both Befriend Majapahit and Abandon the Dragon refer to the importance of democratic relations in Tondo’s polity. The Majapahit Empire was a powerful ally of the Tondo people, so regaining their trust will result in some extra Diplomatic Power and +1 Diplomatic Reputation. At the start of the game, Tondo is a tributary of the Ming dynasty, so dissolving this union will grant Tondo Legitimacy, Administrative Power and some claims in the coast of China.

Next up, we have Madyas. After the Chola invasion of Srivijaya in the beginning of the 11th century, a group of dissident datus from Borneo and Sumatra fled their land and sought refuge in the Visayas islands, where they encountered the native population and, according to the legend, made a trade treaty with the Ati hero Marikudo and his wife, rightfully purchasing the land in Panay. Madyas thus became another grand barangay in the archipelago, with a special focus on maritime trade and warfare.

Madyas.jpg


Some highlights from this mission tree include:
  • All the Ships of Aklan is a reference to the province of Aklan, seat of the first capital of the polity and center of the Confederation mentioned in the Book of Maragtas that we’ll address later. Because of the naval importance we have mentioned before, having an admiral, more than 8 galleys and building to the 90% of the naval Force Limit will be rewarded with a +5% Morale of Navies, -5% Heavy Ship Cost and -10% Light Ship Cost as our first mission.
  • Going Back Home implies the preparation for the return to their original land. Permanent claims on Borneo will be granted after making a show of force by owning at least 10 provinces in the Philippines.
  • The Book of Maragtas is the legendary book that gives an account of the history of the Madyas people and their arrival from Borneo. Owning the northern part of the island will result in 100 Diplomatic Power, 100 Administrative Power, 100 Military Power and +1 Stability.

In addition to these two mission trees, we have prepared 6 unique missions shared by both Tondo and Madyas in slot 2, regarding the conquest of all the archipelago. These missions will require the player to conquer the inhabited land of each of the three main regions: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, thus granting some morale bonuses and the possibility of immediately conquering unoccupied land in each of these areas, as long as there are two regiments present in each province.

Philippines missions.jpg


Moving on, we have Palembang, one of the pirate nations that can be formed very early on in the game, so we wanted to reflect a bit of the pirate’s life in our missions too! But historically, Palembang was also one of the oldest cities in all Nusantara, once the capital of the powerful Srivijaya empire and main controller of all the maritime trade routes in Southeast Asia. A balance between this major historical moment and the more “modern” piracy was therefore necessary, all of it leading to the restoration of this ancient and powerful realm.

Plb map.jpg
Palembang.png


Some highlights from this mission tree include:
  • Where the Water Leaks is a reference to one possible etymological explanation for the name of this tag, always associated with water. This mission will require the player to build to 100% Naval Force Limit and will grant permanent claims on the Siak and Jambi controlled provinces, thus starting the recovery of their lost land.
  • Orang Laut, Arrival of the Dragonships and Pirate Kings all have the same objective of gaining the best possible allies to continue with the expansion plan. Having the state privilege Orang Laut Privileges and some owned provinces in the northern part will boost your Navy Tradition; dragonships were powerful ships of Chinese origin that will reward your conquests and maximum Navy Force Limit with a Ship Cost reduction and another boost to your Ship Combat Ability (all of them for both light and heavy ships); and having 2 powerful admirals and 4 more provinces in the East will allow access to the admiral Chen (3/3/4/3), a legendary Chinese pirate that ruled over Palembang.
  • Both King Under the Mountain and King’s Court in the second slot focus on the ancient splendor of the Srivijaya Empire, whose Shailendra dynasty came from the neighboring island of Java. Owning some provinces in said location will reduce National Unrest and add a general with 50 Tradition, as well as granting the final cores that will lead to our culminating mission.
  • Restore Srivijaya will require the player to own all of the Sumatra and Java islands, former possessions of the thalassocracy. With the recovered glory of the Empire, Palembang will be rewarded with a permanent Stability Cost Modifier of -10%, +1 Stability and more Diplomatic, Administrative and Military Power.
That’s all for today! Thank you for reading and have a nice week :)
 
Why do I have the strong suspicion that the use of 'that's all for today' instead of 'see you next year' indicates some early Christmas gift/announcement heading our way?
Probably because it was originally intended for last week, although the thread is not sticked, which is weird (I think it was for a brief moment when it was released), but that may just be a mistake.
 
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@skingrado This all looks sweet! Since it's going to be forever between now and the next dev diary, though, could we get a sneak peek at whatever's going down in Australia? We've been waiting to see what that new color on the religious mapmode is forever!

Either way, I hope you have a lovely break <3
 
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I see "development diary" between quotation marks. Immediately I thought: oh no, not again something empty. Happy to see you managed to make one!
Are the modifiers gained from the mission trees permanent or temporary? Personally, I dislike granting permanent modifier boosts with events, as there are already so many sources of permanent modifiers, making balancing them out difficult. Of course, granting the modifier for 15 years is also not good, that's too short. But how about granting a modifier for like 50 years?
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Lol! The quotation marks have been removed XD
For me, it's the opposite. I never get excited about a temporary modifier. Permanent modifiers are the only ones I really look forward to in a mission tree. Maybe it can be a little OP at times, but it's so fun to build up to one and the feeling of getting the permanent buff after all your hard work is so, so sweet.
 
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So to get permanent modifiers to heavy and light ships you need to build galleys? Makes sense.

I wonder how many of those nations end up rivaling Britain and the Dutch with their navy thanks to the bonus they get from missions in addition to their NIs.
 
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Because you ention thalassocacy will there be any changes to the "proclaim thalassocracy" desicion? By the time you can take it you are already uncontested worldpower and most likely number 1 great power while the reward of it isnt especially rewarding.
This. The requirements for that decision have always bugged me.
 
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So to get permanent modifiers to heavy and light ships you need to build galleys? Makes sense.

I wonder how many of those nations end up rivaling Britain and the Dutch with their navy thanks to the bonus they get from missions in addition to their NIs.
It'll be a blast to contest the grand armadas of Europe with them, for sure.
 
For me, it's the opposite. I never get excited about a temporary modifier. Permanent modifiers are the only ones I really look forward to in a mission tree. Maybe it can be a little OP at times, but it's so fun to build up to one and the feeling of getting the permanent buff after all your hard work is so, so sweet.

I more than agree. I guess i am not the only one that delays taking the reward of a mission for decades or centuries if it is a temporary modifier that will be more useful later.
 
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I have to say, I don't understand the decision to focus on two specific tags. A shared focus tree would give the player more options. The power of EU4 is, that you can play many different nations, and a shared focus tree is a good balance between "some flavor" and the capacity available. (Although I must say, I don't think that it takes tree weeks to script these minor focus trees.)
 
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Because you ention thalassocacy will there be any changes to the "proclaim thalassocracy" desicion? By the time you can take it you are already uncontested worldpower and most likely number 1 great power while the reward of it isnt especially rewarding.
The decision itself feels a bit superfluous now with the hegemon system.
 
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I have to say, I don't understand the decision to focus on two specific tags. A shared focus tree would give the player more options. The power of EU4 is, that you can play many different nations, and a shared focus tree is a good balance between "some flavor" and the capacity available. (Although I must say, I don't think that it takes tree weeks to script these minor focus trees.)

I too would have liked a few shared missions, maybe even a shared philippine tag with a few additional missions. Although i like that madyas, as a rare non european republic gets mission i would also have liked missions for cebu to set you on a path to restore the chola empire/ form nusantra and name it chola empire. I somehow find it appealing to start as a tiny remnant and restore the former glory of an empire.
 
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Good news for these two nations. But that's only 2 out of 8. Butuan, Pangasinan, Cebu, Sulu, Maynila and Maguindanao having nothing at all, will desperately stay dead countries in comparison.

- Cebu, or Sugbo (which is probably a better name), follows pretty much the same story as its neighbor in Madyas. So I don't understand the total absence of love here, especially since they have a related achievement to unlock.
- Same goes for the Sultanate of Sulu which reached its peak in the 19th century, owning Palawan and northeastern Borneo.

I don't know more about the history of the other 4, but these two at least deserved something, and probably a shared mission tree for all of them. Also, the archipelago wasn't that empty politically wise...

It's better than not to do anything and this new stuff is a good addition, but again, some blanks are incomprehensible.
 
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Just wondering if i understand things right. One of the palembang missions requires a „state privilige“ called orang laut. Pirates dont have estates. So is it referring to a state edict, do pirates get acces to estates, or are state (not estate) privileges something new?
Nice catch. Maybe the long-awaited factions rework is coming at last?
 
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Fill your naval force limit and you'll get ship cost reduction... and it doesn't even really work for maintenance, since at least 8 of the ships have to be galleys, which don't get a discount. An odd mission. (Unless the bonus is permanent, which basically makes it a national idea)

I also hate the idea of building 3 forts in Philippines. They are just not needed there, a navy can protect it from invasions better than forts... and Laguna literally borders Tondo. It feels like such a waste to spend money on the fortifications to access the next mission. To be perfectly honest I think it might be not worth completing and leaving the 50 trade power unclaimed (at least until mid game, where you probably own +95% of Philippines trade node anyway). If you add 5 missions and 2 of them aren't worth getting, it's quite a huge reduction in content.
Also isn't Majapahit supposed to fall most of the games? Should there really be a mission about befriending them?
 
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