A quick game of playing tall in West Africa.
I gave myself a bunch of restrictions for this run. I only took one state per war, and I never took land from co-belligerents. I also never had more states than I could support (so no territories), I didn't develop for institutions, and I didn't have any colonists until my last idea group (at tech 29). I didn't even reform my government until the 1790s.
I had no long-term allies, save for Zazzau, who I turned on and annexed in a series of wars during the eighteenth century. The Ottomans ended the game with more than 3000 development, but they weren't my friend - we were rivals. Hence me spending 72 ducats per month on forts.
And here's a gif showing the expansion. I was hoping that the restrictions would make my growth feel more realistic, and I think it paid off. None of those gamey strategies like encircling enemies or snaking for Europe for institutions. Was fun.