Someday in HoI4 in a future patch or DLC, it would be nice to see every nation receive its own national focus tree and unique set of political aims and goals.
Starting one nation at a time, I'd like to make some drafts for minor nations for discussion and as a suggestion to the developers. Starting with the one I am most familiar with: Poland; I present.
Poland: Diplomatic Focus Tree Section - [Click this Link to See a More Updated Version, MAJOR Changes]
Achieving its independence from Russia, Germany, and Austria Hungary after WW1, Poland's early history was fraught with many wars through which it steadily grew in territory under the leadership of Józef Piłsudski. Piłsudski's primary obsession was the obliteration of the Russian Empire. To ensure independence, Piłsudski envisioned the Intermarium. The Intermarium was to be a grand collection of Eastern European countries stretching from the Baltics to the Mediterranean united in a federation akin to the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth of old with Poland as its most dominant member.
Such ambitions proved to be fanciful and overwhelmingly difficult to achieve. Lithuania, fearful of losing its ethnic identity, opposed any integration with Poland. Further stoking tensions was the issue of the city of Vilnius/Wilno. Poland saw Vilnius/Wilno as a major cultural center of Polish history whereas Lithuania saw the city as its historical capital. A failed coup attempt by Poland in Lithuania would lead to hostilities with Lithuania posturing on the side of the Soviet Union during the Polish-Soviet war in the early 1920s. Tensions would once again boil over in the HoI4 timeframe with Poland threatening Lithuania if it did not remove Vilnius/Wilno as its capital in its constitution.
Hungary and Romania were on very friendly terms with Poland; however, border tensions between the two nations proved insurmountable to overcome in forming a unified federation. Relations with Latvia were good and would prove to be solidly in Poland's orbit. Czechoslavkia, however, came on cold terms with Poland. Constant border conflicts and competing claims vied for control over resource and industry rich border territories. In the timeframe of HoI4, Poland contemplated giving up most of its claims in return for some land and a Polish guarantee of Czechoslovakia against German aggression. Events would move too fast, however, and the country was annexed before any such plans could be made. Poland simply took over some land with the partitioning of the Sudetenland.
With the Intermarium project seemingly dead, a recently deceased Piłsudski and his successors adopted a policy of maintaining a geopolitical balance by making friendly gestures to various large neighbors to try and stay neutral and independent. Poland primarily anticipated and was anxious about a future war with the soviet Union. The looming of WW2 would eventually force Poland to choose and take sides, throwing its fate in with the allies.
In the above diplomatic tree. you the player have the choice of continuing Piłsudski's dream still held by some members of the government. Many sacrifices have to be made to convince neighbors to join in your Intermarium project. Moreover, you are in a tough race against time as the allies, axis, and cominterm all posture for members within their own faction. Should you succeed, perhaps a weaker Soviet Union could present an opportunity for expansion or perhaps your Intermarium could solidify itself in the upcoming cold war.
Alternatively, you could play a historical Poland that does not invest a large part of its effort into diplomacy. Instead, you can opt for balanced neutrality playing one side's offers against another or simply join another faction and let someone else dictate the political landscape for you if necessary. Survival is important.
Mechanically, I would envision selecting "Active Diplomacy" as a focus would cause a malus to political power gain. This choice would take away from points that could be otherwise used to develop your ministers and nation internally as a result of this heavy diplomatic effort. The diplomatic pivot focuses simply boost your relations with one faction and malus the others. They are not mutually exclusive so you can simply juggle them to stay neutral if you wish. The Czechoslovakian war would simply result in one country gaining/losing industry at the expense of the other since the border changes are too minor to represent.
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Poland: Industry Focus Tree Section - [Explanation of new changes here]
At the time HoI4 takes place, Poland is blessed with a very strong aviation and high-tech industry comparatively to other regional powers. Poland was capable of producing its own equipment designs on par with major nations. The PZL.37 Łoś was the most advanced tactical bomber in service in the world in 1939. Poland boasted a full metal airforce of fully modernized planes. Its aviation industry even began to export military aircraft to other nations. Poland would transition from licensing foreign tank models to producing its own homegrown designs. The kb ppanc wz. 35 anti-tank rifle was far ahead of its time. Polish cryptologists, who were instrumental in winning the early 1920s Polish-Soviet war, would also prove effective at breaking the German ENIGMA machine codes as well as Soviet ciphers.
Despite these advantages, Poland sorely suffered from a lack of raw industrial output relative to its size. Only the western portions of Poland were industrialized. Further holding development back was poor infrastructure. Only 7% of all roads in Poland were paved. Very few automobiles existed. Poland was especially hit hard by the Great Depression as well. The government launched a four-year plan of infrastructure development and industrialization. The government took national control of many major industries and plants to direct the means of production. From there, as the player, you will have to decide whether to focus on improving Poland's infrastructure and resource extraction (steel in particular) or to take a historical route and focus on industrializing the central eastern portion of the country to increase raw factory output.
Western Industrial Focus is good if you want resources for more expensive equipment. Eastern Industrialization is good for mobilizing a large army. As a final note, nukes are only available as a joint project if the Intermarium is formed and contains a sufficient number of nations. Otherwise you have to rely on the nuclear umbrella of the allies or axis should you join them instead.
-----------------------------------
Poland: Military Focus Tree Section - [Click this link to see more Updated Version Minor Changes]
Polish leadership anticipated a future war with the Soviet Union. Primary fortification and military efforts were focused on protecting the eastern border. With the eventual looming threat of a war against Germany, Polish leadership was faced with a tough choice. The Polish army could fortify and defend at the county's borders or defend along the very wide Vistula river as urged by French military advisers. The historical decision taken was to defend at the borders since the majority of the Polish population and its main industrial centers were located west of the Vistula. Polish leadership also feared that the allies would seek a peace deal if fighting stalled along the Vistula and cede western Polish territory. You, the player, can choose to take the opposite plan.
Exuberant from its victory in the Polish Soviet War of the early 1920s, the Polish army was resistant to reforming and reisisted any motorization and mechanization attempts. A motorization donation drive was attempted but failed. The Polish army instead envisioned large sections of cavalry acting as a mobile element. Cavalry fought dismounted primarily as a defensive tool to plug gaps in friendly lines formed by enemy spearheads. They were NOT utilized or seen as a breakthrough tool. A heavy focus on cavalry led to 10% of the Polish army being comprised of cavalry. The cavalry formed an elite mobile reserve. Additional experiments were conducted with integrating large bicycle and cavalry elements within infantry divisions as mobile defensive elements
The Polish navy was a very tiny force of a few cruisers, destroyers, and submarines mostly kept for purposes of national pride. The city of Danzig was an open city and while its facilities were accessible by the Polish government, pro-German sentiment lead Polish leadership to instead construct their own port facilities in the Polish corridor in the city of Gdynia. Polish naval plans were often lofty and overambitious. Some vessels were commissioned as a result of public funding. As time went on, the Polish command would give up on forming a competitive surface fleet in a theoretical war against Russia and instead switch primarily to a submarine fleet with a focus on harassment in the baltic sea against Germany.
Some notes on the Mechanics: Civilian Automobile Donation Drive and Public Funding Drive are just filler techs that improve infrastructure slightly. They serve as filler to make it difficult for Poland to pursue these avenues. The cavalry branch will be the mainstay of most playthroughs. Mobile Reserves could give a defensive bonus to cavalry units. Integrated Cavalry could give a combined arms bonus to cavalry and infantry mixed divisions.
Edit: Other posters have suggested a strong historical precedent for the plausible acquisition of French Madagascar that was cut short by the invasion in 39, which I have added as seen below. Madagascar was a significant source of rubber at the time and could work well with the motorization sub-tree.
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I'm open to criticism or suggestions on this. Here is the complete and most updated national focus tree below modified according to suggestions by other posters and additional research.
Latest Additions:
As a comparison:
Starting one nation at a time, I'd like to make some drafts for minor nations for discussion and as a suggestion to the developers. Starting with the one I am most familiar with: Poland; I present.
Poland: Diplomatic Focus Tree Section - [Click this Link to See a More Updated Version, MAJOR Changes]
Achieving its independence from Russia, Germany, and Austria Hungary after WW1, Poland's early history was fraught with many wars through which it steadily grew in territory under the leadership of Józef Piłsudski. Piłsudski's primary obsession was the obliteration of the Russian Empire. To ensure independence, Piłsudski envisioned the Intermarium. The Intermarium was to be a grand collection of Eastern European countries stretching from the Baltics to the Mediterranean united in a federation akin to the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth of old with Poland as its most dominant member.
Such ambitions proved to be fanciful and overwhelmingly difficult to achieve. Lithuania, fearful of losing its ethnic identity, opposed any integration with Poland. Further stoking tensions was the issue of the city of Vilnius/Wilno. Poland saw Vilnius/Wilno as a major cultural center of Polish history whereas Lithuania saw the city as its historical capital. A failed coup attempt by Poland in Lithuania would lead to hostilities with Lithuania posturing on the side of the Soviet Union during the Polish-Soviet war in the early 1920s. Tensions would once again boil over in the HoI4 timeframe with Poland threatening Lithuania if it did not remove Vilnius/Wilno as its capital in its constitution.
Hungary and Romania were on very friendly terms with Poland; however, border tensions between the two nations proved insurmountable to overcome in forming a unified federation. Relations with Latvia were good and would prove to be solidly in Poland's orbit. Czechoslavkia, however, came on cold terms with Poland. Constant border conflicts and competing claims vied for control over resource and industry rich border territories. In the timeframe of HoI4, Poland contemplated giving up most of its claims in return for some land and a Polish guarantee of Czechoslovakia against German aggression. Events would move too fast, however, and the country was annexed before any such plans could be made. Poland simply took over some land with the partitioning of the Sudetenland.
With the Intermarium project seemingly dead, a recently deceased Piłsudski and his successors adopted a policy of maintaining a geopolitical balance by making friendly gestures to various large neighbors to try and stay neutral and independent. Poland primarily anticipated and was anxious about a future war with the soviet Union. The looming of WW2 would eventually force Poland to choose and take sides, throwing its fate in with the allies.
In the above diplomatic tree. you the player have the choice of continuing Piłsudski's dream still held by some members of the government. Many sacrifices have to be made to convince neighbors to join in your Intermarium project. Moreover, you are in a tough race against time as the allies, axis, and cominterm all posture for members within their own faction. Should you succeed, perhaps a weaker Soviet Union could present an opportunity for expansion or perhaps your Intermarium could solidify itself in the upcoming cold war.
Alternatively, you could play a historical Poland that does not invest a large part of its effort into diplomacy. Instead, you can opt for balanced neutrality playing one side's offers against another or simply join another faction and let someone else dictate the political landscape for you if necessary. Survival is important.
Mechanically, I would envision selecting "Active Diplomacy" as a focus would cause a malus to political power gain. This choice would take away from points that could be otherwise used to develop your ministers and nation internally as a result of this heavy diplomatic effort. The diplomatic pivot focuses simply boost your relations with one faction and malus the others. They are not mutually exclusive so you can simply juggle them to stay neutral if you wish. The Czechoslovakian war would simply result in one country gaining/losing industry at the expense of the other since the border changes are too minor to represent.
-----------------------------------
Poland: Industry Focus Tree Section - [Explanation of new changes here]
At the time HoI4 takes place, Poland is blessed with a very strong aviation and high-tech industry comparatively to other regional powers. Poland was capable of producing its own equipment designs on par with major nations. The PZL.37 Łoś was the most advanced tactical bomber in service in the world in 1939. Poland boasted a full metal airforce of fully modernized planes. Its aviation industry even began to export military aircraft to other nations. Poland would transition from licensing foreign tank models to producing its own homegrown designs. The kb ppanc wz. 35 anti-tank rifle was far ahead of its time. Polish cryptologists, who were instrumental in winning the early 1920s Polish-Soviet war, would also prove effective at breaking the German ENIGMA machine codes as well as Soviet ciphers.
Despite these advantages, Poland sorely suffered from a lack of raw industrial output relative to its size. Only the western portions of Poland were industrialized. Further holding development back was poor infrastructure. Only 7% of all roads in Poland were paved. Very few automobiles existed. Poland was especially hit hard by the Great Depression as well. The government launched a four-year plan of infrastructure development and industrialization. The government took national control of many major industries and plants to direct the means of production. From there, as the player, you will have to decide whether to focus on improving Poland's infrastructure and resource extraction (steel in particular) or to take a historical route and focus on industrializing the central eastern portion of the country to increase raw factory output.
Western Industrial Focus is good if you want resources for more expensive equipment. Eastern Industrialization is good for mobilizing a large army. As a final note, nukes are only available as a joint project if the Intermarium is formed and contains a sufficient number of nations. Otherwise you have to rely on the nuclear umbrella of the allies or axis should you join them instead.
-----------------------------------
Poland: Military Focus Tree Section - [Click this link to see more Updated Version Minor Changes]
Polish leadership anticipated a future war with the Soviet Union. Primary fortification and military efforts were focused on protecting the eastern border. With the eventual looming threat of a war against Germany, Polish leadership was faced with a tough choice. The Polish army could fortify and defend at the county's borders or defend along the very wide Vistula river as urged by French military advisers. The historical decision taken was to defend at the borders since the majority of the Polish population and its main industrial centers were located west of the Vistula. Polish leadership also feared that the allies would seek a peace deal if fighting stalled along the Vistula and cede western Polish territory. You, the player, can choose to take the opposite plan.
Exuberant from its victory in the Polish Soviet War of the early 1920s, the Polish army was resistant to reforming and reisisted any motorization and mechanization attempts. A motorization donation drive was attempted but failed. The Polish army instead envisioned large sections of cavalry acting as a mobile element. Cavalry fought dismounted primarily as a defensive tool to plug gaps in friendly lines formed by enemy spearheads. They were NOT utilized or seen as a breakthrough tool. A heavy focus on cavalry led to 10% of the Polish army being comprised of cavalry. The cavalry formed an elite mobile reserve. Additional experiments were conducted with integrating large bicycle and cavalry elements within infantry divisions as mobile defensive elements
The Polish navy was a very tiny force of a few cruisers, destroyers, and submarines mostly kept for purposes of national pride. The city of Danzig was an open city and while its facilities were accessible by the Polish government, pro-German sentiment lead Polish leadership to instead construct their own port facilities in the Polish corridor in the city of Gdynia. Polish naval plans were often lofty and overambitious. Some vessels were commissioned as a result of public funding. As time went on, the Polish command would give up on forming a competitive surface fleet in a theoretical war against Russia and instead switch primarily to a submarine fleet with a focus on harassment in the baltic sea against Germany.
Some notes on the Mechanics: Civilian Automobile Donation Drive and Public Funding Drive are just filler techs that improve infrastructure slightly. They serve as filler to make it difficult for Poland to pursue these avenues. The cavalry branch will be the mainstay of most playthroughs. Mobile Reserves could give a defensive bonus to cavalry units. Integrated Cavalry could give a combined arms bonus to cavalry and infantry mixed divisions.
Edit: Other posters have suggested a strong historical precedent for the plausible acquisition of French Madagascar that was cut short by the invasion in 39, which I have added as seen below. Madagascar was a significant source of rubber at the time and could work well with the motorization sub-tree.
-------
I'm open to criticism or suggestions on this. Here is the complete and most updated national focus tree below modified according to suggestions by other posters and additional research.
Latest Additions:
- Renamed the rest of the generic sounding focuses
- Added aviation incentive to German branch. This acts as the fighter focus found in most other nations' focus trees. Good historical basis.
- Made Colonial tree slightly longer
- For informational purposes, historical foci are now marked with green lines. Useful for coding the AI.
- Made it look visually pretty, just because.
As a comparison:
- This Polish tree has 90 Foci
- The UK tree has 75 Foci
- Given Poland's geographical position at the crossroads of all major powers, the diplomatic tree is large and has many parallel front-loaded choices, but they tend to be less deep.
Last edited:
- 99
- 14
- 10
