I had never tried Sweden before, but a game as Denmark had showed me that Sweden had some strong points. Let's try it with very hard difficulty, AI aggressiv.
At the start of a 1617 scenario, Sweden controls what is actual Sweden save Skane in the South and the Gotland island in the Baltic see, modern Finland, Intergermanland (where St Petersburg will be created later) and Estonia.
We have a weapon manufactory and a naval equipement manufactory, as well as a COT in our capital. Some province are well fortified (level 3), most have average fortifications or small one and one semi-deserted province up north hasn’t any walls…
We’ve got over 1000 Kronen at start, two merchants, no diplomat, no colonist.
However, we know all the Northern Atlantic ocean, the coasts of the Americas, Africa (East and West), India and the western part of the East Indies. However, if we have sea maps, the lands remain mostly terra incognita.
We have three armies, one with De la Gardie, and something like 30k inf, 10k cav and 50 guns…
Just to warn you before starting to write what happened, I went to 1720 with only one war, so it won’t a battling AAR…
With two neighbours, big and bad and not loving me (Russia and Denmark), I feel a bit lonely. With my first diplomats, I succeed in arranging a Royal marriage with Russia. As for Denmark, the oppressors of the Swedes (they own Gotland, which is a Swedish home province), I shall not make them believe I fear them. I have a permanent CB against them, I guess it will be used some day.
On the economic level, I quickly gain a monopoly in my COT and build strong positions in neighbouring COTS (Holstein, Danzig, Volgorod, Holland). However, after a while Poland refuses trade and I lose all merchants in Danzug in a few months. This gives me a CB against Poland, but well, it’s big, it’s nasty, so let’s forget it.
My alliance at start is with the Hansa but it doesn’t last long as our relations are not so good. During the first 50 years, I gang up with anyone who accepts me, France for some years, Spain after, England once… In the last fifty years however, we have build a solid alliance with Austria, Saxonny and Hannover, with which relations are all excellent, to the point of making Hannover a Swedish vassal.
My strategy was to live in peace and get rich. In time, over a century, Sweden constructed full infrastructures in all its provinces, got them fortified at their maximum, build a fine arts academy, three breweries, two weapon manufactories and two naval equipment manufactories.
But the fact is that Sweden has loads of leaders, and good ones at that. So when Gustavus Adolph arrives, with stats I have never seen before in any games, I just cannot say, no I want to be in peace. Offer makes demand, and such a leader needs war. The problem is that the Danish-Russian alliance is strong, Prussia is allied at this time with England, and five other minors, Poland is a bit big… It leaves the Hansa, alone, no alliance, little fortifications, a ridiculous army…
OK, this is bad, they had done nothing against me, it was unprovoked attack but it was just too good and Gustavus was just to great. Never before had I seen provinces fall so rapidly with so few men (25k inf, 5k cav, 30 cannons). This walk-over ended with the full annexation of the Hansa, bringing new wealth (5 rich provinces and a COT in Holstein).
That was the Swedish war. (Our Austrian allies years later brought us into war against Turkey but Sweden did absolutely nothing during it except giving financial help to Austria (Sweden paid the 250 Schilling they had to give Turkey for peace).
But with gold and colonist, and some identified but unoccupied islands here and there, Sweden managed to become a middle colonial power helped by a conquistador (event).
By 1720, Sweden has Guadeloupe, Martinique, Barbados, St Martin (sugar islands in the Caribbean, three of them now with breweries), 4 cities in what is today’s North Brasil, 9 trade posts along Africa’s west coast and a colony in Mahe, a nice island in the Indian Ocean. There are still unoccupied areas on the American East coast, so the next Swedish move will be in that direction.
Now, Sweden has a yearly budget of nearly 300 Kronen, and gets 25 per month for a total income of 600 per year. We have build armies (75k inf, 10k cav and 60 cannons in Europe pllus some colonial troops) but still needs an effort for the navy.
It might be that the end of the century will be less peaceful. With a strong alliance in Central Europe, war against Denmark, or Poland seems possible, or against Prussia (it has got Brandenburg but lost two provinces to Poland). In any case, I will try to teach the Danes a lesson. No more Danelaw in Scandinavia, that's our goal.
At the start of a 1617 scenario, Sweden controls what is actual Sweden save Skane in the South and the Gotland island in the Baltic see, modern Finland, Intergermanland (where St Petersburg will be created later) and Estonia.
We have a weapon manufactory and a naval equipement manufactory, as well as a COT in our capital. Some province are well fortified (level 3), most have average fortifications or small one and one semi-deserted province up north hasn’t any walls…
We’ve got over 1000 Kronen at start, two merchants, no diplomat, no colonist.
However, we know all the Northern Atlantic ocean, the coasts of the Americas, Africa (East and West), India and the western part of the East Indies. However, if we have sea maps, the lands remain mostly terra incognita.
We have three armies, one with De la Gardie, and something like 30k inf, 10k cav and 50 guns…
Just to warn you before starting to write what happened, I went to 1720 with only one war, so it won’t a battling AAR…
With two neighbours, big and bad and not loving me (Russia and Denmark), I feel a bit lonely. With my first diplomats, I succeed in arranging a Royal marriage with Russia. As for Denmark, the oppressors of the Swedes (they own Gotland, which is a Swedish home province), I shall not make them believe I fear them. I have a permanent CB against them, I guess it will be used some day.
On the economic level, I quickly gain a monopoly in my COT and build strong positions in neighbouring COTS (Holstein, Danzig, Volgorod, Holland). However, after a while Poland refuses trade and I lose all merchants in Danzug in a few months. This gives me a CB against Poland, but well, it’s big, it’s nasty, so let’s forget it.
My alliance at start is with the Hansa but it doesn’t last long as our relations are not so good. During the first 50 years, I gang up with anyone who accepts me, France for some years, Spain after, England once… In the last fifty years however, we have build a solid alliance with Austria, Saxonny and Hannover, with which relations are all excellent, to the point of making Hannover a Swedish vassal.
My strategy was to live in peace and get rich. In time, over a century, Sweden constructed full infrastructures in all its provinces, got them fortified at their maximum, build a fine arts academy, three breweries, two weapon manufactories and two naval equipment manufactories.
But the fact is that Sweden has loads of leaders, and good ones at that. So when Gustavus Adolph arrives, with stats I have never seen before in any games, I just cannot say, no I want to be in peace. Offer makes demand, and such a leader needs war. The problem is that the Danish-Russian alliance is strong, Prussia is allied at this time with England, and five other minors, Poland is a bit big… It leaves the Hansa, alone, no alliance, little fortifications, a ridiculous army…
OK, this is bad, they had done nothing against me, it was unprovoked attack but it was just too good and Gustavus was just to great. Never before had I seen provinces fall so rapidly with so few men (25k inf, 5k cav, 30 cannons). This walk-over ended with the full annexation of the Hansa, bringing new wealth (5 rich provinces and a COT in Holstein).
That was the Swedish war. (Our Austrian allies years later brought us into war against Turkey but Sweden did absolutely nothing during it except giving financial help to Austria (Sweden paid the 250 Schilling they had to give Turkey for peace).
But with gold and colonist, and some identified but unoccupied islands here and there, Sweden managed to become a middle colonial power helped by a conquistador (event).
By 1720, Sweden has Guadeloupe, Martinique, Barbados, St Martin (sugar islands in the Caribbean, three of them now with breweries), 4 cities in what is today’s North Brasil, 9 trade posts along Africa’s west coast and a colony in Mahe, a nice island in the Indian Ocean. There are still unoccupied areas on the American East coast, so the next Swedish move will be in that direction.
Now, Sweden has a yearly budget of nearly 300 Kronen, and gets 25 per month for a total income of 600 per year. We have build armies (75k inf, 10k cav and 60 cannons in Europe pllus some colonial troops) but still needs an effort for the navy.
It might be that the end of the century will be less peaceful. With a strong alliance in Central Europe, war against Denmark, or Poland seems possible, or against Prussia (it has got Brandenburg but lost two provinces to Poland). In any case, I will try to teach the Danes a lesson. No more Danelaw in Scandinavia, that's our goal.
Although I don't blame you for wanting to use Gustavus Adolphus. Maybe that would have been a good time to go after Skane?
