Russian westernization

[unmerged(177849)]

If you're big enough, you can Westernize fairly easily during the ToT because it will not happen as long as you are in positive stab (at least +1). This relies on having enough provinces to get back enough ADM from buildings on the first day. Just don't advance ADM techs unless you're at 999 or your king is kind of old.

I may try that. I should be big enough; fairly big right now (around 1520 now), and 5 vassals ready to be annexed, 2 of them quite large (Ukraine especially). Though I'm holding off on annexing my three Horde vassals for the time being.

If I had to do it again, I would have managed my tech to westernize early, but it doesn't sound like I've gimped myself too badly by failing to do so.

 

[unmerged(177849)]

Hijacking my own thread, here is a minor point but annoying, not a bug exactly but I can't believe it is working as intended. Alliance and RM with Trebazoid (sp?). Hadn't gotten relations high enough to vassalize when I went to war. They dishonored the alliance ... and now, I can't ally with them again because my opinion of them is too low! Not their opinion of me, but mine of them. And there seems to be no way to fix this, except for time, perhaps a LONG time. So I am stuck with a nation that takes up one of my diplo slots that I can't annex. Very annoying. I could break the RM, but I don't want to take the stab hit.

 

[Xara]

5.On westernizing, fire all advisors and hire a level 3 ADM advisor (+3 ADM and he should give you at least 1 positive stab event). You can also do the trick with building ADM buildings in all your provinces and after westernizing, undoing the action to get that ADM back and reach 900 sooner (to go to 0 stab immediately - don't do it before to avoid losing stab to bad events).

You don't want to fire all your advisors, or the event that makes a random advisor leave your service will always kick the +3 admin guy out.

 

[panionios]

I may try that. I should be big enough; fairly big right now (around 1520 now), and 5 vassals ready to be annexed, 2 of them quite large (Ukraine especially). Though I'm holding off on annexing my three Horde vassals for the time being.

If I had to do it again, I would have managed my tech to westernize early, but it doesn't sound like I've gimped myself too badly by failing to do so.

You need +2 stab to avoid ToT, not +1.

You don't want to fire all your advisors, or the event that makes a random advisor leave your service will always kick the +3 admin guy out.

If you can afford them, obviously keep them, but usually I can't afford them.

 

[durvas]

# Time of Troubles
country_event = {
id = flavor_rus.1101
title = "flavor_rus.EVTNAME1101"
desc = "flavor_rus.EVTDESC1101"
picture = ANGRY_MOB_eventPicture

trigger = {
NOT = { has_country_flag = time_of_troubles_ended }
NOT = { has_country_flag = time_of_troubles }
NOT = { has_country_flag = RUS_had_event_1101 }
is_year = 1550
NOT = { is_year = 1650 }
OR = {
AND = {
tag = MOS
NOT = { exists = RUS }
}
tag = RUS
}
NOT = { stability = 0 }
}

In a thread a while ago, someone said it was +2 but they had changed it to just positive stability, but I'm not sure what the NOT = { stability = 0 } means.

 

[Novacat]

In a thread a while ago, someone said it was +2 but they had changed it to just positive stability, but I'm not sure what the NOT = { stability = 0 } means.

It means you have to be negative stability.

 

[grommile]

In a thread a while ago, someone said it was +2 but they had changed it to just positive stability, but I'm not sure what the NOT = { stability = 0 } means.

That means "stability is not zero or greater" i.e. that the event is only triggered at negative stability.

 

[unmerged(177849)]

So I keep going back and forth in my plans as the thread develops. I had pretty much given up on early westernization, and started advancing my tech again , then realized that maybe I could westernize during the ToT and am thinking about going back to delaying my tech. Probably a consistent strategy would be better. Oh, well. At this point I'm only 2 techs behind my most advanced adjacent western nation (Denmark, which has been stuck on 27 for what seems like forever; 1523. I'm at 10/6/9)), so maybe I should just stick with delaying westernization. Especially since I need my military tech to advance to continue my wars of conquest.

Another question - someone in another thread suggested taking an army east to annex & release Manchu and colonize from both directions. I assume that would require exploration rather than expansion to deal efficiently with the fog of war? And when would such a move become viable? Admin tech level 14 at the earliest I guess, since I'll need a second settler.

Finally, not sure if this can be answered without more detailed information about my game, but I'm unsure about strategy regarding my vassals. I am in the process of annexing one. Three are Moslem, and I intend to hold off on annexing them for now. With one slot taken up by Trebazoid (ugh), that leaves one vassal - a huge Ukraine (12 provinces). Can't decide whether to absorb that now or wait, hoping to feed it some more provinces.

 

[unmerged(177849)]

Oh also, how to I get a core in the far east to do the "colonize from both directions" strat? I guess I should ask in the original thread where it was suggested.

 

[pgroves]

I've just hit the Westernise button as Novgorod and all my leaders seem to be getting dismissed (not dying), is this normal or a bug? I purchased a bunch of generals and admirals just before westernising to use up unspent DIP and MIL points :-(

 

[Valynor]

I've just hit the Westernise button as Novgorod and all my leaders seem to be getting dismissed (not dying), is this normal or a bug? I purchased a bunch of generals and admirals just before westernising to use up unspent DIP and MIL points :-(

I think you can't pay the upkeep in MP.

 

[pgroves]

I think you can't pay the upkeep in MP.

Ah yes, that's probably it - I still kept my last general (free upkeep) and ruler general

 

[-Malovane-]

Oh also, how to I get a core in the far east to do the "colonize from both directions" strat? I guess I should ask in the original thread where it was suggested.

If you have expansion, you can (depending upon how large they are at the moment), annex Manchu in one fell swoop, then release as a vassal. Once you do this, you ask them for fleet basing rights, then start colonizing the Eastern coast from there. This can radically reduce the time needed to colonize. With a lucky +6 diplo ruler early, I was able to get enough colonists early enough (through expansion and exploration) to colonize the entirety of the Eastern expanse by about 1550, and was already in the process of colonizing the Americas (annex and release Aztec).

If you want to be sneaky about it, you can sell Manchu your colonies (after recalling your colonist of course) - which can potentially net you an accepted culture. However, if you are planning further Eastward expansion (and you should if you picked up both expansion and exploration - which I recommend), you'll need those colonies to quickly build cogs for the journey. Until you build a land bridge between the Pacific and your prime land, those ships will take a long time to produce (overseas penalty) - so make that connection a priority.