One of (if not the) weakest part of EUIV is the complete lack of internal politics- there really isn't much to do in peacetime. This during a period that spans the Renaissance and Enlightenment and contains everyone from Suleiman to the Sun King to Napoleon and Gustav Adolf.
I would take a page from Medieval II. Take a look at this:
Medieval II is Turn Based on the campaign, but is first and foremost centered on real time battles. It is nearly eight years old.
Why does EUIV not have a family tree again?
I've heard several people voice the opinion that the game could benefit from dynastic politics. The most common counter to this is that this game isn't CKII. It isn't. But that doesn't mean it should ignore dynastic politics. More importantly just because the focus is on the nation doesn't mean it should ignore the people in charge. How can you talk about this period in history without at least mentioning some of the big players? Try to think about the American Revolution while reducing Washington et al to a name and a number. It's impossible or feels unreal.
First and foremost, the family tree would allow proper royal marriages and succession crises/personal unions. We have, at minimum, the Iberian Wedding, the Burgundian Inheritance, the Italian Wars, the War of the Roses, and Brandenburg-Prussia, not to mention the War of the Spanish Succession, all within this period- all of them far more in line with CK2's dynastic system than Eu4's complete inattention/abstraction. The accession first of the Hapsburg and then the Bourbons to Spain also stand as a tectonic geopolitical event.
The rulers need portraits. It may seem a small thing, but it would go a long way to making them seem more human. Even the advisers have portraits, the king should get his too.
Second, the rulers should have traits, like Medieval 2. Is the king brave, a genius, a zealot? Does he hate the French? Is he a dwarf? Medieval 2's system was a lot simpler than CK2, but it still counted for a lot- inheritance, personality changes, life events- and the traits mattered, even if it was just a small boost/penalty to tax income or something. More importantly, they added to immersion, made you feel that the king wasn't just a name with a few numbers.
The Ancillaries (the grail in the picture) could be where the advisers go. I suggest expanding the adviser slots to five, maybe allowing all of them/the last two to be drawn from any/all pools, and/or perhaps the family tree. Being able to fill your court with a bunch of admin advisers (for instance) would be a simple yet dynamic way to add to peacetime decision making. It could localize differently per government type- council for feudal monarchies, cabinet for constitutional monarchies/republics, favorites for absolute kings, etc. The advisers would also have an affiliated faction, whether determined by the adviser type or simply at random. Then you could have events tying them to their factions- if you remove a noble adviser, you could get a stack of noble rebels or some legitimacy loss. The clergy could demand one of your advisers resign because he's a protestant or sympathetic to protestants etc.
The adding or removal of advisers would also potentially be more than just a button click-Absolute monarchs could choose more or less at will, but a constitutional monarch might have to deal with "parliament" e.g. either take this adviser or suffer a stability/legitimacy penalty, and removing him could cause problems as well. If the advisers are cleared with each monarch (seems like a good idea) then this would also add a "feel" to administration changes- advisers could be a bit cheaper to hire, or perhaps rehiring the old adviser (or keeping him on) could be done at a discount. The point being that there needs to be some semblance of government along with monarchs that aren't just numbers- the accession of a new king meant a shift in policy at home and abroad and this should be reflected in game.
I would take a page from Medieval II. Take a look at this:
Medieval II is Turn Based on the campaign, but is first and foremost centered on real time battles. It is nearly eight years old.
Why does EUIV not have a family tree again?
I've heard several people voice the opinion that the game could benefit from dynastic politics. The most common counter to this is that this game isn't CKII. It isn't. But that doesn't mean it should ignore dynastic politics. More importantly just because the focus is on the nation doesn't mean it should ignore the people in charge. How can you talk about this period in history without at least mentioning some of the big players? Try to think about the American Revolution while reducing Washington et al to a name and a number. It's impossible or feels unreal.
First and foremost, the family tree would allow proper royal marriages and succession crises/personal unions. We have, at minimum, the Iberian Wedding, the Burgundian Inheritance, the Italian Wars, the War of the Roses, and Brandenburg-Prussia, not to mention the War of the Spanish Succession, all within this period- all of them far more in line with CK2's dynastic system than Eu4's complete inattention/abstraction. The accession first of the Hapsburg and then the Bourbons to Spain also stand as a tectonic geopolitical event.
The rulers need portraits. It may seem a small thing, but it would go a long way to making them seem more human. Even the advisers have portraits, the king should get his too.
Second, the rulers should have traits, like Medieval 2. Is the king brave, a genius, a zealot? Does he hate the French? Is he a dwarf? Medieval 2's system was a lot simpler than CK2, but it still counted for a lot- inheritance, personality changes, life events- and the traits mattered, even if it was just a small boost/penalty to tax income or something. More importantly, they added to immersion, made you feel that the king wasn't just a name with a few numbers.
The Ancillaries (the grail in the picture) could be where the advisers go. I suggest expanding the adviser slots to five, maybe allowing all of them/the last two to be drawn from any/all pools, and/or perhaps the family tree. Being able to fill your court with a bunch of admin advisers (for instance) would be a simple yet dynamic way to add to peacetime decision making. It could localize differently per government type- council for feudal monarchies, cabinet for constitutional monarchies/republics, favorites for absolute kings, etc. The advisers would also have an affiliated faction, whether determined by the adviser type or simply at random. Then you could have events tying them to their factions- if you remove a noble adviser, you could get a stack of noble rebels or some legitimacy loss. The clergy could demand one of your advisers resign because he's a protestant or sympathetic to protestants etc.
The adding or removal of advisers would also potentially be more than just a button click-Absolute monarchs could choose more or less at will, but a constitutional monarch might have to deal with "parliament" e.g. either take this adviser or suffer a stability/legitimacy penalty, and removing him could cause problems as well. If the advisers are cleared with each monarch (seems like a good idea) then this would also add a "feel" to administration changes- advisers could be a bit cheaper to hire, or perhaps rehiring the old adviser (or keeping him on) could be done at a discount. The point being that there needs to be some semblance of government along with monarchs that aren't just numbers- the accession of a new king meant a shift in policy at home and abroad and this should be reflected in game.
