We have threads about the large changes made to expansion in 1.4, however the point of this thread is to highlight the fastest, most reliable, and most cost efficient approaches to expansion in various portions of the world as of patch 1.4. I will do my best to update this thread as ideas are presented in it, in an effort to aid everyone adjustment (including my own) to the new rules and mechanics. First of all, some basics:
1. Cede --> Core: The oldest method. Currently the only modifiers I am aware of are 25% claim and 25% administrative ideas discount, adding up to a max 50%. This is the fallback method of expanding, when there exists no alternatives.
2. Vassal --> Annex: The patch restricted this approach, but did not eliminate it. You can't vassal someone in a tech group that is 50% slower than yours (or more), those instead become protectorates. You also can't diplovassal someone with more than 30 base tax. Vassals no longer buy provinces as readily as before; they must want to conquer it or have core/claim on it, so plan accordingly.
3. Colonize --> Core: Still viable if you're OPM and move capitol, are willing to create a colony nation, or only intend to get a foothold with a few provinces.
Regions + Strategies:
- New World: If you are a tribe, you want to colonize and vassal feed as much as possible. If you're a large western power, you likely want a huge colony here for the trade power (screw over the Western Europe node); if your stranglehold is large enough you can collect all the value before it gets there. If you're an OPM you can consider moving your capitol here for more land; the discount of core creation on "heathen primitives" will make it barely more cost to core than self-sustaining colonies. Finally, if you're Inca/Aztec/etc you want to grow by vassaling any non-tribal guys, possibly after feeding them.
- Africa: African nations will behave like Incan/Aztec; you want to centralize power ASAP to yourself and get enough money to expand more with ADM 4. Pre-feed future vassals until they're just under 100% war score. Colonial nations will look to treat this area similarly to the new world: colony for trade power or move capitol depending on one's own size. Somewhat interestingly, the Nomad group is unique among the old-world groups in that they can vassal these guys, so it might be well-worth a steppe horde visit to Africa considering that Nomads start at tech level 3 across the board, and can just store diplo power while waiting for ADM 4.
- Europe: No colonizing if expanding within this zone! This area holds some really high tax provinces, so admin ideas are appealing. IMO, however, you're either a world power and can tangle with the combination coring cost + select vassals or you expand somewhere else. This was and remains one of the harder places to make rapid gains without lucky PUs or something.
- Middle East: Aside from the enormous Ottomans which need to be broken up with releasing nations often, many provinces in this region are inexpensive enough that you can core them with the cost reductions. Pre-feeding a select vassal or two can help.
- India/China/SEA: If you are Ottoman, Eastern, or Middle Eastern, you can still vassal this area, and the large number of claims, empire growth/changing hands will allow you to feed vassals traditionally more than other areas. Otherwise, this area is likely better suited to protectorates or a colony. If trying to paint the map, this area is mostly an "annex" area for establish western mega empires, though try to snake a muslim group vassal in as far as possible at first.
- Russia: The protectorate rules make the Nomads problematic to vassal, so they're going to be annexed unless you're Muslim.
Some general strategies:
1. Fabricate claims often, so you have more claims and reduce the burden of ADM. The gimped vassal feeding will free up diplomat availability; use that would-be annex time on fabricating all kinds of claims.
2. Administrative ideas are going to be more common now IMO. The combination of money influx from expanding (IE more viable mercs) and need for more old-school coring will merit taking this somewhat early. At least it has decent events, too.
3. If at all possible, feed war targets to ~100% war score (a bit less) so that the vassals you do take give you more bang for the investment.
4. If you're not abusing colonies to the max enough to merit taking exploration, you want diplomatic and expansion ideas, which will help you annex smaller vassals more rapidly and will allow you to have more vassals.
1. Cede --> Core: The oldest method. Currently the only modifiers I am aware of are 25% claim and 25% administrative ideas discount, adding up to a max 50%. This is the fallback method of expanding, when there exists no alternatives.
2. Vassal --> Annex: The patch restricted this approach, but did not eliminate it. You can't vassal someone in a tech group that is 50% slower than yours (or more), those instead become protectorates. You also can't diplovassal someone with more than 30 base tax. Vassals no longer buy provinces as readily as before; they must want to conquer it or have core/claim on it, so plan accordingly.
3. Colonize --> Core: Still viable if you're OPM and move capitol, are willing to create a colony nation, or only intend to get a foothold with a few provinces.
Regions + Strategies:
- New World: If you are a tribe, you want to colonize and vassal feed as much as possible. If you're a large western power, you likely want a huge colony here for the trade power (screw over the Western Europe node); if your stranglehold is large enough you can collect all the value before it gets there. If you're an OPM you can consider moving your capitol here for more land; the discount of core creation on "heathen primitives" will make it barely more cost to core than self-sustaining colonies. Finally, if you're Inca/Aztec/etc you want to grow by vassaling any non-tribal guys, possibly after feeding them.
- Africa: African nations will behave like Incan/Aztec; you want to centralize power ASAP to yourself and get enough money to expand more with ADM 4. Pre-feed future vassals until they're just under 100% war score. Colonial nations will look to treat this area similarly to the new world: colony for trade power or move capitol depending on one's own size. Somewhat interestingly, the Nomad group is unique among the old-world groups in that they can vassal these guys, so it might be well-worth a steppe horde visit to Africa considering that Nomads start at tech level 3 across the board, and can just store diplo power while waiting for ADM 4.
- Europe: No colonizing if expanding within this zone! This area holds some really high tax provinces, so admin ideas are appealing. IMO, however, you're either a world power and can tangle with the combination coring cost + select vassals or you expand somewhere else. This was and remains one of the harder places to make rapid gains without lucky PUs or something.
- Middle East: Aside from the enormous Ottomans which need to be broken up with releasing nations often, many provinces in this region are inexpensive enough that you can core them with the cost reductions. Pre-feeding a select vassal or two can help.
- India/China/SEA: If you are Ottoman, Eastern, or Middle Eastern, you can still vassal this area, and the large number of claims, empire growth/changing hands will allow you to feed vassals traditionally more than other areas. Otherwise, this area is likely better suited to protectorates or a colony. If trying to paint the map, this area is mostly an "annex" area for establish western mega empires, though try to snake a muslim group vassal in as far as possible at first.
- Russia: The protectorate rules make the Nomads problematic to vassal, so they're going to be annexed unless you're Muslim.
Some general strategies:
1. Fabricate claims often, so you have more claims and reduce the burden of ADM. The gimped vassal feeding will free up diplomat availability; use that would-be annex time on fabricating all kinds of claims.
2. Administrative ideas are going to be more common now IMO. The combination of money influx from expanding (IE more viable mercs) and need for more old-school coring will merit taking this somewhat early. At least it has decent events, too.
3. If at all possible, feed war targets to ~100% war score (a bit less) so that the vassals you do take give you more bang for the investment.
4. If you're not abusing colonies to the max enough to merit taking exploration, you want diplomatic and expansion ideas, which will help you annex smaller vassals more rapidly and will allow you to have more vassals.