Casus Belli

[Zed McJack]

I started new game with Brandenburg and it is going pretty OK.
I am expanding slowly, but I think I am lacking knowledge on getting Casus Belli. If I don't have CB I'll get stab hit when I DOW from -1 to -3.

Except for getting CB by some random events I don't have clue how to successfully get a CB on a certain countries.

Usually I try to Issue a Warrning to a country I'd like to conquer or to Garantee Independence of a country which could be its target.

Anyone have better know-how on this topic? I tried googling site but I got only a dozen of links and with no real help. It's sucks that such a great forum does'nt have search option and I dont believe it's not posible to implement something to help us in our search.

 

[CatKnight]

We had a search option, but Paradox found (I believe) it was eating too much server memory. You weren't here when the server would time out every 2-3 minutes because of how many users are here.

Getting a casus belli: Well, sometimes you just have to suck up the stab hit, honestly. There is no reliable, guaranteed way to get one. Personally I find EU2 to be a very....opportunistic game: Keep watching your own diplomacy list (who you've vassalized, etc.) to see who you have a CB on. It continually changes. One important clue is you usually get a CB on someone who's just annexed another country, and that's going to happen a lot in Germany initially as the minors get chewed up.

Another point is that you get a CB on any country that owns a province you have a shield on. For Brandenberg that's probably none....but the reverse is also true. If you can get one of THEIR cores, they're far more likely to want to fight you.

There are events, of course. You found the part about warning them. Sometimes continually insulting them makes them pick a fight with you as well.

If you have others in your alliance, sometimes they'll start fights as well. That saves you requiring a CB...no one's going to blame you for helping a friend. (Unless you have a RM or some such with your new enemy, but that's another story.)

It's dicey, and there's no guaranteed method. As I said, personally I find EU2 very opportunistic. Further, with Brandenberg so small to start a stab hit isn't such a big deal...you'll have it back in a few months.

 

[Underhand]

I started new game with Brandenburg and it is going pretty OK.
I am expanding slowly, but I think I am lacking knowledge on getting Casus Belli. If I don't have CB I'll get stab hit when I DOW from -1 to -3.

Far more important than the stab hit is the fact that DoWing without CB nets you 4BB, while DoWing with CB gets you 1BB. Badboy (BB) points increase your stab cost and chances of having a civil war, make relations with other countries drop more quickly and make other countries more likely to DoW you. Minimising your BB is very important in this game.

There are several reliable methods of obtaining a CB on a country. You can offer them a loan for one month's duration. They will refuse to pay it back, giving you a CB on them. 80 ducats is generally enough for them to accept, but richer target countries require larger loans.

Another method is to ally with your target, DoW (or be DoWed by) a country they do not know exists and invite them to the war. If they haven't discovered the capital of the country you DoWed, they will dishonour. They will also dishonour if you conclude the war before inviting them. This is not usually possible, as there is a two-month window to invite your allies. When they dishonour your alliance, you will get a CB on them.

If you can make a royal marriage with your target you can claim their throne. This costs a fair amount of money and gives you -2 stab (-1 for claiming their throne, -1 for breaking the RM when you DoW, assuming it hasn't expired), but gets you a CB.

Later in the game (when CoT owners have the ability to issue embargoes) you can 'spam' their CoTs by sending six merchants in a day. This will often cause them to embargo you, giving you a CB.

 

[unmerged(45766)]

No guarantee indeed, but many possibilities. And a CB's main benefit is not in decreasing the stabhit (or negating it completely) but in reducing the BB cost from 4 to 1.

If the targeted country owns a province with a CoT, and it has trade tech high enough, you can flood its CoT until it embargoes you. This gives you a CB.

If you have a Royal Marriage, you may Claim their Throne. This gives a CB, but with a -1 stabhit, and an additional -1 stabhit when you DoW because you have to break the RM ; thus, it's better to be close to the end of the RM.

Warnings sent to the target and Guarantees of Independence given to likely targets of your target may also result in a CB if your target DoWs another country, but it's far from being automatic.

Often, when a country annexes another country you get a CB on the annexer, but it's not automatic and sometimes you don't get a CB ; so it's useful to be on the lookout, just in case. As CatKnight says, EU2's a game of opportunities.

Another possibility still is to ally with them, crash your relations with them, and DoW someone else, preferably someone they have good relations with or someone they don't know (ie don't have maps of its capital). This has the additional benefit, if you joined their alliance, of separating them from their allies.

Still more possibilities : when a province secedes to another country because of being rebel-controlled for four years, you get a CB on the receiving country. Better have a core on the seceding province, because you don't lose BB for secessions, but you'd get some for conquering the province back. But before letting rebels take control of a province of your's for such a long time, be sure only your target will get your province and the rebels won't declare independent instead of seceding.

Earlier, you could easily offer loans to countries, that they gladly accepted. Gladly accepted indeed, but often didn't pay back, and this gives you a CB. Nowadays, the AI is much more reluctant to loan offers, but you might make them accept with 1% interests and modest sums when they need it.


As I said, many possibilities.

 

[Underhand]

Earlier, you could easily offer loans to countries, that they gladly accepted. Gladly accepted indeed, but often didn't pay back, and this gives you a CB. Nowadays, the AI is much more reluctant to loan offers, but you might make them accept with 1% interests and modest sums when they need it.

Loans-for-CBs still work, but nobody seems to believe me I use them regularly on patch 1.09. I have yet to fully understand why they sometimes work during the first year of play (I thought they couldn't, but playing AGCEEP China I have gotten Japan and Chagatai Khanate to accept loans in 1419), and I'm not certain what governs the minimum loan a country will accept (I think it's their monthly income), but I do know they will accept appropriate loans. Incidentally, my loans always come with a 10% interest tag. It doesn't seem to stop the AI accepting.

 

[Zed McJack]

thank you all guys for answering this Casus Belli problem.

As you pointed out stability hit is minor part in DOW-ing another country without CB, badboy is a real problem.

Anyway I still wonder how such important thing didn't find a topic here or in EU2 Wiki.

and now the World is mine :rofl:

 

[unmerged(45766)]

Loans-for-CBs still work, but nobody seems to believe me

Maybe because nobody gets them to work consistently, even when doing as you do.

Earlier, acceptance was nearly automatic. Now, as I said, it's much more difficult to make an AI accept a loan, except under some circumstances. Interests at 10% never work in my experience, you get much better success rate (better 'tough not very high) with 1%.

 

[SeedSnatcher]

You could also try getting them to declare war on you, and then take their provinces at reduced BB cost.

 

[Underhand]

Maybe because nobody gets them to work consistently, even when doing as you do.

They work fairly consistently for me, and even if the AI refuses all I have lost is a diplomat. I can either wait until the next calendar year to try again or try something else.

Earlier, acceptance was nearly automatic. Now, as I said, it's much more difficult to make an AI accept a loan, except under some circumstances. Interests at 10% never work in my experience, you get much better success rate (better 'tough not very high) with 1%.

As I said, 10% interest can work. I'll take your word on it being easier under old patches. My first game was in 1.07, IIRC.

You could also try getting them to declare war on you, and then take their provinces at reduced BB cost.

Difficult to arrange, sometimes. An alternative method is to ally a one-province minor on your target's border, then DoW your target. Ensure that the minor loses and is FAed by the target (by, for example, forcing them to retreat from battles by retreating yourself). Once they have annexed your ally the target will be considered the attacking side in the war with you.