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EU4 Development Diary - 2nd of February 2021

Welcome everyone to another development diary for Europa Universalis IV. This time it's yet another short one, written by me, talking about some new mechanics.

First of all, we are changing the Plutocratic Government Reform. For those that do not recall what it is, it's a reform available to countries in either of the indian, muslim, chinese or east-african technology groups. Previously it gave a merchant and affected the influence of some estates.

In 1.31 it will become far more powerful, as it will also get all the benefits and drawbacks of a merchant republic, including trade posts & trade leagues. This will make it possible to create a powerfully focused trading nation in the east.
eu4_19.png

Secondly, as you may have noticed in the previous screenshot, this reform also unlocks something called “draft transports”. This is an ability that comes with the next expansion, and allows you to quickly get transports at a cost that may be beneficial to you if you are a smaller nation.

Drafted Transports will begin construction in as many ports as needed, just like building a template, and the amount of transports you get depends on your naval force limits.

Drafted Transports take half the time of a normal transport to build.

Drafted Transports cost a fraction of your income instead of a fixed amount, so it is not really beneficial to large empires, but it is a great way to quickly and cheaply get a new transport fleet when playing a lesser naval power that can not afford keeping it around all the time.

eu4_20.png

Next week, we’ll be back, talking about a new feature that may either be unprecedented or something really really lasting.
 
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In 1.31 it will become far more powerful, as it will also get all the benefits and drawbacks of a merchant republic, including trade posts & trade leagues. This will make it possible to create a powerfully focused trading nation in the east.

You mean, nerfed it into the ground by removing the massive set of buffs you can get from simply managing your Estates correctly?
Like, yeah, Trading Ports are nice, but granting monopolies alone will advance trade hegemony more.
 
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but it is a great way to quickly and cheaply get a new transport fleet when playing a lesser naval power that can not afford keeping it around all the time.
Maybe as an alternative (inspired by some other posts): would it be possible to repurpose your existing navy for some price instead of drafting a new one? I'm no history scholar, but from what I can recall from books I read (or maybe I just imagined it) it was not unusual for trade vessels to be commissioned by the navy in times of war, for instance to transport troops or to serve as war vessels.

I suppose that what I'm actually suggesting would be to add a new action specifically to light ships to transform them into something else (and to transform them back afterwards, if they survive whatever situation you're using them for). Remove their trade power and make them penalised version of galleys (some more cannons, no inland sea bonus, ...) and transports (I'd say a lower troop capacity, if that's at all possible, and/or higher attrition) to incentivise keeping actual war ships and transports around if you use them often. Make it cost money (and sailors) and reduce their condition (to 1%, or 50%) after swapping to keep it from being instantaneous. This would allow smaller nations (and larger nations, I suppose) to keep a larger trade fleet in times of peace, which can be converted into (decent) war and transport ships in times of need, relatively quickly --- not too quickly, but quicker than building new ones.

In any case, I welcome the changes you've made! I'm looking forward to next week; keep up the good work! :)
 
I have over 3000 hours in the game but never had a problem to get some transports, it was allways okay for me to build them the old fashioned way. That was really not a problem I was ever thinking off tbh. Seems like a mechanic I will never use but is bloating the game even more.

Other than pilling up useless, tedious and micro intensive mechanics on an already bloated game they should try to connect the allready existing mechanics to improve gaming experience. Changing edicts in a big empire is a micro nightmare for example.
We had draft ships in the old estate interface for heavies iirc,
 
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This DD is just a bad joke.
I'm sure they would value your criticism if it you were to put in the effort to be constructive.
 
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Anyone deciphered what this is about?

First it's a feature. Yeah!

Then... Are they going to fix the "continue to play" button for ironman campaign? That's not really new, but it would be fun.
Something they have been saying for every upcoming week, only to give us a DD quickly winged on the side and plastered on the forumminutes before wrapping up the day.
Apparently no one read the final sentence of the DD. I'm looking forward to next week, maybe it will be the beginning of the end for support for eu4.
As long as they can sell you their “map tweaks
and tag” rearrangements at DLC prices, most definitely not. Sprinkle a new button here and there n call it an awesome feature. Oh and take a 1+ year to produce it and then go silent for a few months since it’ll be bug fest and shit storm time until the next “grand announcement” a la Pdox
 
Short, but sweet. I like the "Draft Transports" idea, and hope it can be expanded to other factions as well. In fact, I'm somewhat in favor of those who propose ditching transports as a seperate unit and finding some other way to manage embarkation and sea movement.