Best countries to vassal-feed

[Frungy78]

Thought I'd make a list of countries that are good to vassal feed, mostly depending on them taking religious ideas (if you want them to convert stuff for you) or NOT taking aristocratic ideas (to avoid the increased costs). The order of ideas taken isn't set in stone, but is roughly correct.

Takes religious as first idea-
Asia:
Ainu
Garjat
Hedjaz
Iraq
Kara Del
Kashmir
Najd
Nepal
Nogai
Orissa
Perm
Sarig Yogir
Shammar
Tibet
U-Tsang
Vijayanagar
Yarkand

Africa:
Ajuuraan
Mzab (great for North Africa converters)
Warsangali

Europe:
Albania
Bremen
Cologne
Corfu
Crete
Epirus
Frankfurt
Galicia
Livonian Order
Luneberg
Magdeburg
Mainz
Mantua
Montenegro
Munster (HRE)
Naxos
Teutonic Order
The Knights

These countries take aristocracy first (kill ASAP)
Baglana
Hadoti
Nagaur
Norway
Marwar
Mewar

These countries take aristocracy second
All Irish minors, and Ireland
Cornwall
Northumberland
Wales
Rewa Kentha
Jaisalmer
Jangladesh

These countires take aristocracy third
Denmark

Have other core creation maluses:
The Caucuses (all of them)
The Berbers (all of them, including Mzab)
Dai Viet
Wallachia
Central India and Rajput nations
Brittany
Holstein
Bohemia
Moldavia
Afghanistan

 

[Clownie]

Honourable mention for Qasim, being accessible for western Europeans as a huge horde vassal blob and taking ideas to reform 6th or 7th (I don't remember)?

 

[Outrider]

Any idea which of these nations also take Administrative for core cost reduction? That's the real combo you want so they can core and convert the oodles of BT that you give to them.

 

[Zelius]

I think Norway actually takes Aristocracy 2nd now, after unlocking 1 or 2 ideas in Trade or something.

 

[birincikalite]

Great job. What about also mentioning about tolerance vassals? Either via built in tolerance or by taking humanism. Also -unrest is another bonus. Perm is great for this. Got tolerance+religious, giving less rebellions during conversion.

 

[Suzaku]

You're also forgetting Byzantium is a Europe that takes religious ideas first. Also has a plenty of cores to return and possible rebels to add more provinces.

 

[Jephery]

A list of Humanist tags, preferably with tolerance bonuses in the NIs, would be nice too. There are times where I want to vassal feed an area that is not going to be reasonable to be converted by the AI (high BT provinces like Northern India and the Chinese coast), and I don't want to stomp rebels for decades.

Humanist AI doesn't do conversions, so if you do want them to convert stuff, they should be avoided, which is another good reason to list them.

 

[Ungerargh]

Timurids are admin / religious, and are fantastic for feeding all eastern mongol cultures (from Uzbek all the way to khalka). Perm is great, as is najd (they tend to like the diploma defense policy, though). Too bad none of the Chinese / Indochinese nations take religious.

 

[Frungy78]

Countries that take humanism:
1st idea-
Lithuania (big though)
Bahmanis (also get +3 tol to heathens)
Buryatia
Mughals (if you release them from Timurids, I assume)
Mongolia
Oirat

2nd idea-
Poland (big though, and take aristocracy 7th)
Jianzhou (and they take admin first)

3rd idea-
Venice
Bengal
Malwa

 

[birincikalite]

Ottomans take it too.

 

[Rinsukaze]

I usually go for vassal feed nations that are appealing to me, or that are useful as buffer for their location.

In the HRE is useful to vassal feed East Frisia, but it's due to that they are outside the HRE, so you can eat electors without caring about the Emperor wrath.

 

[TheGrouch91]

Dishonourable mention to all the countries that take aristocratic AND have innate increased coring cost. Or to those that take diplo + defense and freaking ALWAYS enact diplo defense act to absolutely annoy the crap out of you.

Big Mewar blob kept me out of India for decades last playthrough. That 150% coring cost is no joke.

 

[RadRussian]

OP, where did you get it from?
Is there a list of nations who take exploration?

 

[1nf3ct3d]

go to: steam-steamapps-common-eu4-eu4-common then there is a folder called countries, in it is every countries and what ideas they take (they used to take it in that order but not anymore)

 

[ahyangyi]

Mewar and Marwar have +50% core-creation cost as traditions, and they take Aristocracy as their first ideagroup. They are surely among the most annoying nations in the game

 

[TheMeInTeam]

Countries that take humanism:
1st idea-
Lithuania (big though)
Bahmanis (also get +3 tol to heathens)
Buryatia
Mughals (if you release them from Timurids, I assume)
Mongolia
Oirat

2nd idea-
Poland (big though, and take aristocracy 7th)
Jianzhou (and they take admin first)

3rd idea-
Venice
Bengal
Malwa

They're later in the game, but client states all take humanism, administrative, and have a -10% core cost NI. By the time you can make them they'll have those. They don't have innate tolerance though. Still, the combination of humanist, their -2 unrest NI, and giving them a monarch (AI sucks with republics) that starts with 100 legitimacy means they'll never have initial tolerance below 50%. If you're an Abrahamic faith they'll even convert decently because most of what you give them will be accepted culture due to humanist (they do actually convert).

Josh127 made an excel sheet of the historical ideas from that file. You should check it out. Religious/humanist are the best to know but sometimes you're interested in other things they take too.

Oirat and Mongolia are tremendous to feed due to humanist + not taking reform NI + horde ideas, so they have -25% core cost and their rebels are a joke. Mughals might just be the best in the game to feed. They're Muslim tech so anybody can release them as a vassal. They have 100% unity in heathen territory without exception which is huge, and they have -25% core cost NI plus decent military NI but will tend to lag in miltech a bit. Still, the fact that you can give them nothing but heathen lands as any faith in the game and they'll have 100% unity (due to their NI + humanism, they'd have 100% even with only heretic land lol).