Which nation would be good to start as?

[ThatRabidPotato]

I already understands the basics and some advanced stuff, I would guess my problem would be with managing AE and Monarch Points/Mana, I plan on playing a Daimyo, Holland or Muscovy as my first game beause I feel they wont be boring games and will teach me the things I want to know.

If you feel you might have trouble managing your MPs I wouldn't recommend Muscovy or anywhere in Asia. Institutions take forever to spread out there, and you'll forever be behind on tech. Holland is a great start in so many ways but you have to be very careful about your AE (you can trigger a coalition by taking a single province at the wrong time), and you have to be very careful about your alliances in the early and mid game until you've consolidated your control over the Low Countries and Western Germany.
I would seriously recommend an easier start than those for your first game. The EU4 learning curve is massively steep for beginners and you look like you're underestimating it.

I had around 350 hours in CK2 before I played EU for the first time. That won't help you, trust me.

 

[Sparticulous]

Ottoman for the conquest aspects. Castille for doing the colonial game. Muscovy for Eastern expansión and learning the power of attrition. Ming for going tall. Vijaynagara for india is fun. Chizmu for inca is also good.

 

[Piotrzeci]

Portugal is known to be the easiest country and the best fot beginners.

 

[BaronNoir]

For Asia, Dai Viet and Korea offer rather interesting gameplay (I would say ''Japan'', but starts can be messy with Japan)

For the Americas, Cusco/Incas are both signficantly easier than the Aztecs/Mayas while giving a whole new sense to the expression turning the tables.

For Africa, Ethiopia can was fun (probably hellish now with the buffed Mamluks, but easier with nerfed Ottomans)

For people that presumably enjoy too being tied up and whipped, there is Kamchatka.

 

[petertju]

Portugal is known to be the easiest country and the best fot beginners.

Maybe only when you have watched streams. People I helped beginning want to focus on the militarily game and for that, Portugal is pretty shitty. They can only attack Spain, which is a very bad idea, or the Berbers, which is also not that nice. Furthermore, Portugal has no defensive depth and nowhere to run.

Portugal is a good beginner country, but not to learn the military game.

 

[Shinkuro Yukinari]

For the Americas, Cusco/Incas are both signficantly easier than the Aztecs/Mayas while giving a whole new sense to the expression turning the tables.

Mayas are by far the easiest. Aztecs make you suffer with vassal breaking and Doom, Incas lead to Civil War

 

[BaronNoir]

While it's a matter of personal preference, you don't need to recore all the time as Inca, you get by mere conquering the Empire status, which make your cultural union even more powerful.

 

[Shinkuro Yukinari]

While it's a matter of personal preference, you don't need to recore all the time as Inca, you get by mere conquering the Empire status, which make your cultural union even more powerful.

The problem is in the Civil War crippling you. Yes, Mayas have to reconquer stuff, but you already have an advantage from the first reform, since Aztecs have each other to deal with. And let's be real here, Admin is not a problem when you don't even bother getting techs after you enact all reforms because you overpower everyone else and the Europeans will get you almost up to speed

EDIT: Also, Cusco has to deal with a lot more countries and alliances. No route of expansion is easy

 

[qwertzuiop]

If you feel you might have trouble managing your MPs I wouldn't recommend Muscovy or anywhere in Asia. Institutions take forever to spread out there, and you'll forever be behind on tech.

I don't think institutions are a big problem for Muscovy. Renaissance and Printing Press get the "European X development capital" modifier which means that they are going to spread on their own, Colonialism can be tricky if it spawns in Iberia but if it does spawn in England then you can get it fairly quickly.

It is not the best place to get institutions quickly but it's not worse than other places in Northern and Eastern Europe.

The real issue for Muscovy or anyone else in the Russian region is what happens if the Ottomans appear on your border with 200k units, also you are fairly isolated diplomatically at the start of the game. Apart from that Muscovy is one of the strongest powers that exist.

 

[IrishGirl]

I don't think institutions are a big problem for Muscovy. Renaissance and Printing Press get the "European X development capital" modifier which means that they are going to spread on their own, Colonialism can be tricky if it spawns in Iberia but if it does spawn in England then you can get it fairly quickly.

It is not the best place to get institutions quickly but it's not worse than other places in Northern and Eastern Europe.

The real issue for Muscovy or anyone else in the Russian region is what happens if the Ottomans appear on your border with 200k units, also you are fairly isolated diplomatically at the start of the game. Apart from that Muscovy is one of the strongest powers that exist.

Agreed, this was the biggest issue in my game - you get a front row seat on the Ottoman expansion. Or even Ming for that matter (depending on which direction you grow and how fast - but with the nerf Ming may be less of a threat - I don't know, having not tried it yet).

Monarch points were not even a problem in my two games with Muscovy. You start with a good ruler and I got a steady stream of average or better rulers. It's not like Castile where sometimes it feels like every third ruler is a 2/2/2 or lower. Any disadvantage can be relatively easily overcome.

Again, everything else aside, I'd pick a country you want to play and take our opinions as just that: opinions.

I didn't do that. When I started playing EU4 I was told - quite forcibly - that I needed to play the Ottomans because that's what everyone plays to learn the game. So I did that. I played the Ottomans and I hated the experience so much that I've never played them since. (It didn't help that the person who was trying to teach me was a bit of an ass about it.) It just made the game miserable and I stopped playing. When I came back, I picked another country - one I wanted to play - and I figured it out.

Sure, the game has a learning curve. But it's not like trying to learn Mandarin or develop a cure for cancer. It's a game. You play it, do something wrong, read the Wiki and figure it out. I have confidence in the OP.

 

[Incompetent]

Generic recommendation: pick a country in a part of Europe, Africa or Asia you find interesting that starts with 100+ development (so you have some margin for error), take it easy on your first game (i.e. don't try to expand at maximum speed), and see how you like it.

For a more specific recommendation, I'd say France is the most well-rounded 'EU4 tutorial' country. It's not a trivial start, and you can definitely get in trouble if your diplomacy is really bad, but it's a big and strong enough country that you can make a few mistakes and still come out on top. France also has quite a lot of historical events and so on to get you used to that part of the game. The early war against England triggered by event is a classic tutorial war in relatively controlled circumstances. (As a beginner, don't try to 100% it, just defeat England on the continent and take a couple of provinces.)

Ottomans have the strongest start for pure blobbing, but I don't recommend them as a tutorial country because they can teach you bad habits when it comes to diplomacy. By contrast, if you can start well as France, the same general approach will serve you well with most other major powers.

 

[Kelbysaurus]

portugal is a good starter pick not much threat and a easy colonial empire to found

 

[SirAgatho]

I'd go with Aragon. Peaty much everything the game has to offer from day one. Good position for diplomacy, expansion and colonisation. Less powerful start than Castilia (and I'd advise not accepting that specific event when it shoots), so you'll have a bit of challenge and have to weight your decisions according to surroundings.

 

[gia257]

Maybe only when you have watched streams. People I helped beginning want to focus on the militarily game and for that, Portugal is pretty shitty. They can only attack Spain, which is a very bad idea, or the Berbers, which is also not that nice. Furthermore, Portugal has no defensive depth and nowhere to run.

Portugal is a good beginner country, but not to learn the military game.

you go to war with america africa and asia actually, your goal is to get all the TCs, you just dont war your neighbor spain (unless you do..., ally france instead of castille for that)

 

[hermithill]

EU2, EU3, EU4: Castile has always been my first choice. Good position, good flexibility, not to difficult, you can war, colonize, learn diplomacy, you have interesting missions, events and so on.

 

[petertju]

you go to war with america africa and asia actually, your goal is to get all the TCs, you just dont war your neighbor spain (unless you do..., ally france instead of castille for that)

That does sound logical for you and me But I have played the game enough to know that and I assume you also have. But for a beginner that might not be that logic.

I got my gf to play the game a bit. We started an MP together: Easy start, she was Castille, I was France to protect and help her. I started colonizing America and her first response 'America is also in the game????' xD

Since then I'm careful with recommending a colonizer for beginners.

 

[Shinkuro Yukinari]

EU2, EU3, EU4: Castile has always been my first choice. Good position, good flexibility, not to difficult, you can war, colonize, learn diplomacy, you have interesting missions, events and so on.

Castille/Spain is for pansies

 

[hermithill]

Castille/Spain is for pansies

I used to like the colonization game, for the "discovery" aspect. Not anymore, CN have ruined the discovery.

 

[Shinkuro Yukinari]

I used to like the colonization game, for the "discovery" aspect. Not anymore, CN have ruined the discovery.

Have you tried Random New World?

 

[hermithill]

Have you tried Random New World?

Yes, but that's the same thing, provinces do not belong to you but to your CN, and I do not have the same feeling - in particular, I don't care about the trade goods that I get now (discover that was a part of the enjoyment of discovery: will I get this juicy tobacco or sugar or just grain?).