Diplo bottleneck

[HydroAC]

I have a diplo bottleneck and I'm wondering if I've overlooked anything.

It is 1648 and I've had Absolutism maxed for a while and taken the 5% Absolutism Age admin efficiency perk along with Administrative ideas. Coring costs are now a fraction of what they were.

The problem is that I'm spending much more diplo than admin when I take land, resulting in a chronic diplo deficit. I've focused on diplo, level 5 diplo advisor, taken diplo from estates - it isn't enough. Even with my Golden Age (that ends in 1659) reducing Power costs, I'm 2 diplo techs behind.

I am fortunate to have PUs on Austria, Poland, Bohemia, Naples and now Brandenburg along with vassals Portugal (colonizing for me) and Armagnac (who is consuming France for me). Being 3 over my diplo slots is hurting. Worse, even though I'll get Influence finished shortly (another diplo sink) but I'm looking at a huge integrating diplo cost even with Vassal Integration Act.

I've been more careful to get claims on high-development provinces, and then only take those during wars along with a few low-development provinces. This helps, but my expansion has slowed down considerably. Recently claims have taken much longer as my targets put up countermeasures. Unfortunately a spymaster advisor is not available.

Besides halting my expansion for a while while I integrate PUs/vassals, is there anything else I can consider?

 

[Kergan]

Finishing Influence helps a lot for this, since its finisher reduces diplo costs related to unjustified demands by half. You could have saved hundreds of diplo points by taking it earlier in your play through. Assuming you're playing Austria, it probably should have been in your first 4 idea groups.

The Religious CB also helps to get rid of unjustified demands, but you're too late in the game for that - you'll get the Imperialism and Nationalism CBs in ~40 years, so there's very little point in taking it at this point if you haven't got it already.

On the policy end, Defensive/Influence gives an extra diplo slot for 1 mil point/month. And Administrative/Influence gives an extra -20% integration cost reduction for 1 admin point/month (on top of the integration cost reduction from Influence and the core cost reduction from Administrative and administrative efficiency).

(For completeness, Expansion has an extra Diplo slot but it's definitely not an idea group worth taking.)

 

[Ketilsen]

Being 3 over my diplo slots is hurting.

Well there's yer problem right there. Integrate/annex some of those guys, or maybe even release them.

 

[HydroAC]

I'm playing as Spain and have taken advantage of the Austrians spreading the Hapsburg dynasty all over Europe - Savoy (already integrated), Poland, Bohemia, etc. I spread the Hapsburgs to Burgundy. When a target of opportunity comes up it seems foolish to decline claiming a throne. Well, quite a few targets came up before I finished Influence.

As Spain I ended up with Exploration, Expansion, Quantity, Admin and now Influence which I'll finish shortly. In retrospect Expansion was probably not a good Idea group since Spain gets a free colonist and a 25% settler bump as part of our national ideas. I'll remember that and prioritize Influence instead of Expansion next time I play Castile/Spain.

I also decided to ally and RM Lithuania to prevent them from being consumed by the Russians and Ottomans (the Ottomans are consuming Hungary right now - sorry Hungary, no Big Brother for you). Plus Lithuania is big and Catholic and they are a decent dynasty spread target. I RMed Russia since they had an old heirless ruler, but they got an heir so my hopes were dashed. My ruler is 62 so that RM will end soon, so it was worth the shot.

Thanks for the tip on using policies to increase diplo slots. I looked up Defensive and it looks like I also need Diplomatic to get Diplo Defense Act for the extra diplo slot. That would be very handy as a pair to RM spam with Diplomatic. So I'll prioritize Diplomatic and Defensive ideas next.

 

[Kryogeneva]

Just some novelty/niche ideas to consider:
1. booting your ruler early for a chance to inherit PUs.
2. have all of the provinces adjacent to PU's/Vassels marked as Desired Territory so you can feed them for 0 dip(they tend to lay claims all at once, so dont be surprised if a vassel suddenly gets 5+ claims when 10 years prior he seemed to refuse to claim anything).
3. you don't NEED to be conquering right now. It helps, but the main thrust of your conquering comes with diplo-tech 23, which is slated to arrive around 1700. A large majority of land can be taken during the last 120 years, easily, often with 20-40 years to spare.
4. become HRE. +1 diplomatic relations
5. (this is just some hope) pray for Successful Diplomats event, +1 diplomatic relations
6. unless Brandenburg is huge, the land that he gets is usually pretty low development, and can safely be released from PU with little-to-no-cost to conquering speed. Seize land and then ditch him.
7. "Show Strength" from Rival CB for 100/100/100 monarch points. Your only rival is probably Ottomans or France or GB, but if you can't take land, this might still be a good way to spend your time.
8. take land that borders a nation with Steppe provinces for chance to fire Cossack Aggression event which may grant Border Friction CB. -not sure if all nations get Cossacks estate for owning steppes; Russia does
9. catholic? See if the curia controller has declared a Crusade. You may be able to use the resulting Holy Way CB. Or become curia controller and call your own Crusade.
10. ^ excommunicated neighbors?

Hopefully one of those ideas is usable

 

[HydroAC]

Oooh! Love the ideas!

1. I have zero chance to inherit any of my PUs except for Bohemia, where I have 1.3% chance. The PUs are all pretty big and I need to improve my Reputation (influence has helped here) and get much bigger. I can also get the Pope to Send Papal Ligate for a nice +1 Rep. Maybe do Send Papal Ligate and then boot my old ruler for a new, fresh one and keep my fingers crossed for an inheritance?
2. I have marked adjacent territory for my loyal minions to get claims on, and they do. But when I transfer the occupation to the vassal and do a peace deal I get stuck with the diplo cost. Am I doing something wrong? I've been feeding a vassal Armagnac land from France and it has been rather costly for my diplo.
3. good point. It just seems wrong to have my army sitting around Drilling and nibbling high-development land in Indonesia when I get a few claims...
4. Not sure I want to be Emperor of the HRE since it is a real mess. The Protestants won the religious war, so they will not like the fact that Spain is Catholic. All HRE reforms have been revoked. And I have both Austria and Bohemia as a PU, and as I recall this gives me a big negative to be Emperor. I could integrate Austria and move my capital, though, to get the Emperor perks.
6. My PU Burgundy is big with 400 development. Due to their long-time alliance with me they never lost land to France. Burgundy was a Great Power before I PUed them. I really don't want to release them since they are just smaller than my PU Poland and almost twice as big as my PUs Austria and Bohemia.
7. I was not aware there was a Show Strength for Rival CB - that has promise! Very good idea since admin and especially diplo MPs are gold right now. The Ottos are my only valid rival. My army is 2x the Ottos, my Professionalism and Tradition are much higher, and I have ample Manpower (they have low manpower and lots of mercs). Add this to a Holy War and all of my PUs and vassals it should be a stomp if I position it right.
10. As to being the Papal Controller, the game hates me. I pump lots of Papal Influence into being Papal Controller and in all my games as Spain and Austria I have been Controller exactly once, and that lasted for a year or two. So I haven't had the chance to excommunicate anyone, and less so now that the Protestants won and there are fewer Catholics that I may want to beat up on.
10. That said, I really like the idea of Holy War when I go beat up on my rival the Ottomans. I've had one war with them so far to secure key areas of Egypt, but there have been easier targets that are key to securing trade routes and the spice islands and India. That and Show Strength CB sounds like the ticket to keep me occupied while I work through my diplo problems...

 

[Kergan]

As I understood Crusade target and excommunication are now only for the first two ages - you can no longer do these papal interactions in the age of absolutism.

 

[HydroAC]

Kergan - just checked the EU4Wiki and you are right. No Crusades may called by the Papal Controller with the Age of Absolutism.

I can call a Holy War for a 15% manpower bump with 50 papal influence, though. That is not as good as crusade bonuses, but I don't 'have to be Papal Controller and it could be useful for sieging the Ottoman's Level 6 forts that he built or captured in former Hungarian territory. I'm saving 100 Papal Influence for the stability improvement when my king dies (he's 64, so it will be soon), but that sounds like a good use of Papal Influence if I can afford it.

I just checked and the Ottos are busy sieging Hungary and The Papal States. His death stack is sitting in the mountains in Austria doing nothing and almost certainly getting killed by attrition - and he has only 6K manpower (!!) and HALF of his army is mercs (96K mercs of 208K army). Sounds like an opportunity.

ADMIRALS - finish your upgrades on the fleet. GENERALS - stop your Drilling. We're going to smash some Ottoman heathens to save the Pope and our Catholic brothers in Hungary from Ottoman heathen aggression! Oh, and Baden - for allying yourself to the hated Ottomans you lands will be annexed by Burgundy.

Now for Tunis - if you thought your little alliance with the Ottomans would save you from Spanish wrath for having pillaged our coastlines for the last 150 years, then you are in for a rude awakening. Your puny remaining coastline will be given to Naples.

 

[bbqftw]

Even with my Golden Age (that ends in 1659) reducing Power costs, I'm 2 diplo techs behind.

Don't worry about it.

 

[HydroAC]

Isn't there a tech penalty if you let one category get too far behind? Of course, the farther the tech is behind the greater the discount.

 

[rinehime]

Isn't there a tech penalty if you let one category get too far behind? Of course, the farther the tech is behind the greater the discount.

No penalty, only an increase in corruption, which can always be offset by ducats.

 

[HydroAC]

Well, I've got plenty of ducats! 21 merchants will do that.

The Ottomans were just Humiliated in a Show of Strength - first time I've ever done that. I cost me 100K manpower due to seiging Lvl 6 forts, but it yielded 100/100/100 MPs so that was a good deal.

Now back to small wars and vassal integration. Just got a Rival of Rival mission, so that plus Papal Legate should bump my Reputation nicely for the integration.

 

[Kryogeneva]

Glad there was a way forward

Edit: also, I think there might be a bug right now with diplo costs for vassal claims. I haven't played much in CoC since the HRE is still very broken. Waiting on this to get fixed.