So I usually play European countries, but am looking to expand my horizons. What is your favorite non European starts and what kind of objectives do you usually try to accomplish while playing them?
Best Non European Starts
- Thread starter SaxonWarchief
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Timurids, Manchu, Kongo, Ethiopia, Inca, Vjaja have all been countries I've enjoyed.
Marwar, Bengal, and Vijayanagar in India are super rich and have a pretty good military.
Ayutthaya is a rich and unquestioned power of Indochina.
Majapahit is to control Java and in a good position for colonizing the Indian and Pacific ocean.
Ethiopia is powerful and close to gold mines as is Kilwa
Never tried Kongo but it should be pretty easy to steamroll the entire area.
Mamluks are versatile and fun but have a challenging ottoman war in the first couple decades.
Ayutthaya is a rich and unquestioned power of Indochina.
Majapahit is to control Java and in a good position for colonizing the Indian and Pacific ocean.
Ethiopia is powerful and close to gold mines as is Kilwa
Never tried Kongo but it should be pretty easy to steamroll the entire area.
Mamluks are versatile and fun but have a challenging ottoman war in the first couple decades.
Qara Qoyunlu and going coptic makes for a fun campaign from my expriences
Mamluks and Timurids are very strong, too
For all of the above, you'll need to find a way to kill or handle the ottomans though
In India there are Delhi, Vijayanagar, Bahmanis, Malwa, Bengal, Jaunpur and Gujarat who can all easily dominate India and build a very strong powerbase there
For Indochina/Malaya Ayuthaya is undoubtably the strongest, but needs to change its trade capital to Malacca later. Personally I find the Malayan Sultanates Malacca or Pasai to be more fun, though
Manchu also makes for a good campaign, especially with Mandate of Heaven
Mamluks and Timurids are very strong, too
For all of the above, you'll need to find a way to kill or handle the ottomans though
In India there are Delhi, Vijayanagar, Bahmanis, Malwa, Bengal, Jaunpur and Gujarat who can all easily dominate India and build a very strong powerbase there
For Indochina/Malaya Ayuthaya is undoubtably the strongest, but needs to change its trade capital to Malacca later. Personally I find the Malayan Sultanates Malacca or Pasai to be more fun, though
Manchu also makes for a good campaign, especially with Mandate of Heaven
Pagarruyung, Dai Viet, Gondwana have been my most enjoyable games in Asia to date.
Kongo, Mali, Mutapa and Ethiopia for Africa.
Kongo, Mali, Mutapa and Ethiopia for Africa.
Ryukyu 
But honestly, ROTW is usually more fun than plain old Europe anyway. Surprised Japan hasn't been mentioned yet, it would definitely be my first pick outside Europe.
As for goals, well, world conquest? Most ROTW positions allow you to expand as fast as you can core without worrying too much about AE, the most limiting factor being how well you can handle the early institutions. Becoming Emperor of China is also a decent goal if playing in the east, but actually being the emperor requires some set-up/understanding of tributaries/mandate.
But honestly, ROTW is usually more fun than plain old Europe anyway. Surprised Japan hasn't been mentioned yet, it would definitely be my first pick outside Europe.
As for goals, well, world conquest? Most ROTW positions allow you to expand as fast as you can core without worrying too much about AE, the most limiting factor being how well you can handle the early institutions. Becoming Emperor of China is also a decent goal if playing in the east, but actually being the emperor requires some set-up/understanding of tributaries/mandate.
I've always had a lot of fun playing Japan, but I haven't tried it since Mandate of Heaven came out.
Oh, you should. It is infinitely better now that it works properly, and taking down Ming is a fantastic challenge after uniting the island.
I really like the Bahmanis. God-tier starting ruler means it's possible to force-spawn the Renaissance, soothing teal map colour and rich location.
I'll have to try it for my next game. Right now I'm playing an English game and having tons of fun.
Mali and Ethiopia are probably my favorite African starts. Going for the Mali achievement and becoming a colonial power was a blast, and Ethiopia has the potential to explode if you can take Egypt from the Mamluks before the Ottomans do thanks to how powerful Coptic can be.
For American nations, I tend to prefer Inti nations over the others, as it's IMO much easier to reform (just be willing to deal with a whole heck of a lot of revolts.) But I really want to go back to Aztec an try to get Sunset Invasion at one point.
I haven't played much Asia or India though, so can't comment there, I do plan on trying a Daimyo pretty soon since I picked up MoH in the Halloween sale.
Finally, any of the Horde nations are a blast once they start to click for you.
For American nations, I tend to prefer Inti nations over the others, as it's IMO much easier to reform (just be willing to deal with a whole heck of a lot of revolts.) But I really want to go back to Aztec an try to get Sunset Invasion at one point.
I haven't played much Asia or India though, so can't comment there, I do plan on trying a Daimyo pretty soon since I picked up MoH in the Halloween sale.
Finally, any of the Horde nations are a blast once they start to click for you.
I like Kutai/Majapahit into released Australia to get early hindu republic, very strong government type IMO
For blobbing, Timurids have the most interesting and potentially powerful start. They expand the fastest out of any country if managed well, much faster than the Ottomans or other hordes. Manchu is also fun for blobbing and has a bit more flavor but runs into AE problems later on.
If a Colonial game's your style, and you like taking minor powers to major ones, Ternate/Tidore are actually pretty interesting. Had a lot of fun with my last game as them.
My most enjoyable campaigns have been in Africa: Mali, Morocco, Kongo, Kuba, Mamluks...
Western Europe stresses me out a little, like an EU4 version of noblesse oblige... RotW is more freeform IMO, and I like that.
Western Europe stresses me out a little, like an EU4 version of noblesse oblige... RotW is more freeform IMO, and I like that.
All the countries in the south-eastern part of Africa are very good for a colonial/trade/slow-build-up game because there is so much gold and ivory there, the Zanzibar trade node is very strong (you can feed Indonesian trade into it and if you dominate the Cape node too, nobody can take away your money) and all the big powers are far away from you and are unlikely to attack you. I'd recommend Kilwa if you want a strong starting position and something like Sofala (it has a great map colour) if you want a bigger challenge.
West Africa is one of the poorest regions in the game, but at least there are 3 gold mines and several of the countries have good military ideas. The region is relatively isolated, but not that small, which means that regional domination is never far away, but you still have to work for it. Mali and Songhai are the easiest countries here, but there are many interesting tags such as Air, Zazzau, etc.
West Africa is one of the poorest regions in the game, but at least there are 3 gold mines and several of the countries have good military ideas. The region is relatively isolated, but not that small, which means that regional domination is never far away, but you still have to work for it. Mali and Songhai are the easiest countries here, but there are many interesting tags such as Air, Zazzau, etc.
Another vote for Bahmanis.
I nearly always stay in Europe, but had a recent game as a colonizing Bahmanis and it was a blast.
I nearly always stay in Europe, but had a recent game as a colonizing Bahmanis and it was a blast.
Don't forget that if they take Dehli they can reform into the mighty Mughals, an unquestionably powerful humanist nation with permaclaims on India