Your most liked and disliked AI countries

[qwertzuiop]

Hi,

so this is a topic about your most liked and disliked AI countries. Are there any countries that always end up annoying or threatening you if played by the AI? Or maybe there are some countries which always end up as a useful ally or which assist you in another way? This thread is purely based on your experiences in your own games and on the actions of the AI. It doesn't matter what's your favourite country to play as or whose history you find interesting.

I'll go ahead with some of my candidates:

I like Genoa because they have helped me westernize so often. In fact, I have never used the strategy to take exploration and create a colony near a Western colony. Either I was already close to Western countries (e.g. as Morocco), westernized by decision (as Russia) or westernized via Genoa's Crimean provinces/cores. I've lost count how often I did that. Thank you Genoa for existing.

I dislike the PLC because they always end up so strong and freely expand their "common wealth" into the Steppes. Please. Just stop.

I also dislike the Timurids because they usually don't collapse fast enough when I would profit from it. They often become very weak regardless due to huge debts and low technology. In this case they get conquered by just about everyone sharing a border with them and I'm often not fast enough to make big gains. In general they are just strange, there is no other country that switches from being a threat to being an absolute joke in the same way.

 

[TheMeInTeam]

Like:

England - Navy for hire, rarely annoys me.
PLC - Typical ally against Ottomans but can also be easy land because they don't progress well at first, if I'm in the area.
Sweden - High quality military that tends to stay out of the way, similar to PLC is easy to gank early or ally late as needed.

Hate:

Ottomans - These toolbags will ally Ming, Bahmanis/Delhi, Yarkand, Bohemia, Spain, and Muscovy to grief you from across the world, and they're annoying to fight early too.
Ming - If you are a horde or a European major, you don't understand. If you play in Indochina and get rivaled by a current-to-western miltech Ming with nearly triple your active standing army you probably do understand (how you are eligible as a rival? As atwix says, they're probably on Wiz weed ). Bonus points for allying Ottomans in that situation. Ming is usually first-up to take over the "luck" bonuses if you kill a lucky nation (or play as one) too. As Novgorod, I killed Muscovy and sure enough:



Winner of France/Spain - Barely matters which of these clowns takes the region, they become giant colonizers now, tend to fish out obnoxious alliances in the current borked format, and love to stall wars you're winning.

Former hate:

Muscovy/Russia. In earlier patches when attrition meant something, Russia would clump its units into attrition eating death stacks and could easily wipe you unless you did the same, on provinces with long travel times. With a CB that meant "screw you ROTW" being their typical first choice and a non-lucky Poland (so no offset), they could be a serious nuisance to a large percentage of tags. Nowadays, attrition is a complete joke, fort change means you don't have to siege much of anything with some CBs and they tend to avoid both expansion and religious, tanking their unity and choking on PLC after throwing away manpower on hordes/rebels, so they don't have their old presence.

 

[SignedName]

Most liked: France.

Least liked: France.

 

[CDFW]

Like:

England: for same reason as TheMeInTeam, also because playing as a new world native they tend to be the least aggressive and easiest to beat on land.
Portugal: Same reason as england, except portugal doesnt have as many troops.
Kazakh: Whenever I expand into central asia I always use these guys as a vassal since they have cores on half of central asia. Means I dont have to deal with revolting sunni provinces with 30 years of separatism in those massive provinces.

Hate:

Spain: These guys will dow you at any opportunity and are always hyper aggressive. I know France is bad, but spain is just as bad if not worse for just attacking anything that moves overseas.
PLC formed from Poland: I heard you liked blobbing and +15% morale. These guys are the spain of eastern europe, if it borders them they want it.
India: If afghanistan is the graveyard of empires for other people, then india is the graveyard of my empires. Even a small indian state punches way above its weight due to the high development, plus all the rajput and central indian traditions make conquering it hell on earth.

 

[Jorlaan]

Most liked: England because I love when the AI allies with them, I know its a largely useless ally!

Least liked: PLC because in EVERY GAME they get huge, powerful and are nigh unbeatable, also usually allied with France which is also likely huge. Like in my current Ottoman gamw where a huge PLC is allied to a France that controls all of Iberia except Portugal and 2 provinces from Aragon.

 

[IceTytanFang]

Love/Hate Relationship with France. If I'm playing in Europe, France tends to be great adversary that's always fun to struggle with. If I'm outside Europe, France always tends to end up as my ally (if I play in the New World, they're by guardian against Spain, in Asia, guardian against Russia).

Hate:
Prussia/ Brandenburg. Those bastards can wield half the troops yet still make me struggle against them.
Austria: When they're HREmperor, I can almost never expand in the HRE.
Spain: Bastards usually end up allying with my enemies for some reason.
Ming if they don't collapse: MeInTeam already explained

Don't really have any nation I love consistently, at least not at the top of my head. Maybe the Native American states because they're always little moneybags to steal from

 

[Viperswhip]

Easy, France and the Ottos, because they have so darned many forts and don't have to pay for them, but also get overly great generals, and are lucky nations, so AE means nothing to them, just arghh.

Now, I hate fighting Muscovy, but everyone does, because of attrition, but I don't hate Muscovy. France and the Ottos are just too broken, but thanks to the AI foibles they need to be that way to be any real threat.

I love Castile, Byz and Gelre.

Edit, and I mean that, I root for them even in observer mode, which is 50ish% of my playtime these days.

 

[raikaria]

Most liked: Brandenburg - Unless I'm specifically trying to rile them, they always seem willing to be on good terms or even an alliance with me. Often they are at least the enemy of my enemy. Pretty much every other country I've considered an enemy outside of needing to take down for an objective before. Brandenburg... never seems to manage being a pain.

Most hated: Ottomans. They always succeed, are hilariously overpowered for most of the game [Free +5% Disc to cement their early expansion; stupidly good NI's; tons of free cores to gobble up; start with a young god king and general; Anatolian Units are the best units for a lot of the game... Low Piety from eating other Sunnis + Anatolian tech group = can keep up with Europe], and paint the map green. People moan about the PLC but I've had games where the Ottomans eat the entire thing.

The Turks have no danger. Especially after Qara/Timurids got wrecked in non-flat land; which basically the entire region they exist in is. [Before the failure condition for Ottomans was having Qara/Timmies DoW early while they're in another war; usually Mamluks or Europe; but Qara/Timmies hate high ground now.] I've managed to get them in a war with the PLC; Hungary and myself [Serbia] while they were attacking the Mamulks. THE TURKS STILL WON [Although some of this can be blamed on AI allies derping like mad.]

Also; they seem to go out of their way to screw you over. Seriously; why would the Sunni Ottomans ever; ever ally 3 province Catholic Parma in Northern Italy? Because you're playing Savoy and trying to become Italy and Parma happens to hold one of the provinces you need. And screw you human player I'm the Ottomans. That's why. Also they kept that alliance for nearly 300 years. One of the rare times I was annoying Brandenburg on purpose? They ally the Ottomans. Why would a North-German state ally the Turks? Because screw you that's why.

Maybe part of this is also I play Ironman a lot and Turks are lucky.

 

[Dakka]

Love: Theodoro. I like to ensure their survival and it always warms my heart whenever they blob into Crimea. He is my little purple grape <3

Hate: France. He eats Iberia every game it seems and I am tired of having to deal with super France every Europe game. This is amplified by my appreciation of Spanish history and I like to see AI Spain once and a while but it never seems to happen anymore

 

[sesn]

Like:

• PLC: They make a great ally and only expand into eastern Europe. If you're TO, Brandenburg, Muscovy, Hungary etc. it's easy enough to strike them down early.
• France: I you're a bit away from them, they make a nice ally. Also they tend to be the "End Boss" of Europe with I actually like since it makes mid-game interesting and not that much of a mindless blob-fest.
• Byzantium: it's exiting to see them survive. And most of the time, their cores give you a good way to take some power base from the Ottomans.

Hate:

• Sweden: They are mostly irrelevant to European Alliance systems since they rarely make an impact. But they rival you the very instant you do something on the Baltic and annoy the hell out of you with their strait, super soldiers and winter if you actually have to fight them, without offering nice territory to take.
• Bohemia: They are in this weird semi-state between a HRE-minor and a major power. They have the potential to be really annoying in the HRE. Also, the Lowlands look stupid in brown.
• Ming: Their troops are not particularly hard to beat if you do not play something little/rotw obsessed but it's always such a draged out war.
• Berber states and Caucasians: You know why.

 

[abedfo]

Like:

• Byzantium: Long time player with them; love their history and love to reverse the decline.
• Teutonic Order: Had a few great games with them fighting of PLC, Bohemia, Sweden. Had to develop them tall to stand a chance.
• The Palatinate: The first nation i ever played on a EU(3) game.

Dislike:

• The Ottomans: No matter who you are or where you play you will have to put up with their OP expansionism and ridiculous alliance webs. Must be removed.
• Venice: Always seem to declare war on you when you are at your weakest! Happy to siege your island clay whilst their navy sail around with impunity, often allied to Genoa to double their effective annoyance
• Bahmanis: Everytime you play in India or later come to invade as a European, you will find a huge Bahmanis allied to a huge Bengal and an equally huge Delhi (sometimes throw Ottoblob into it). This unpalatable tripartite alliance will happily stomp you to dust, whilst all their Sunni and Shia mates exonerate them from annexing all that Hindu land. (just bitter because they smashed my beautiful little Ceylon campaign ).
  
  

 

[GrandeCommodore]

not sure which nation I like the most but I hate france the most.

I was doing well BTFOing them and spain in the new world (was trying to do custom nation idea guy in an RNW.) since the kept colonising next to me, claiming my provinces and it resulted in me stealing their colonies. Then suddenly, spain started colonising next to me. Thought it was odd and checked out spain...

France had PU'd it.

Wasn't too fussed, I could handle the lot of them quite swiftly with a large doom stack fleet and troops on each area I owned mowing their forces down. Then suddenly portugal put up an embargo on me. they hadn't declared me as a rival...

France had PU'd them as well.

Game over man. France had control of every colonial nation in the new world pretty much and thanks to PUing portugal, a naval base and army in every section of the world.

 

[abedfo]

I've managed to get them in a war with the PLC; Hungary and myself [Serbia] while they were attacking the Mamulks. THE TURKS STILL WON [Although some of this can be blamed on AI allies derping like mad.]

I feel your exact pain brother.

 

[firecage]

Like:
Theodoro
Byzantium
Trebizond
Circassia

Hate:
Austria
France
Aragon
Ottomans
Venice

 

[zecronas]

This is quite subjective, but the most enjoyable countries so far, which aren't many are: France, when they like you it is like calling your bigger brother calling in a fight against a small Münster for example. Also Sweden is a nice ally and your vassals, when they aren't wining about their LD.....
England, maybe in the next patch they finally get a crossing to have a fighting chance against BBB, but when they are allied to another AI they are easily to beat.
The countries I hate:
Ming, already mentioned why.
France, if it isn't your ally and it has bordered provinces........
Ottomans: if you don't focus on your navy they will make you aware of it that it is important to have one.

 

[jebates]

Like:
Anachronistic small states (BYZ, Theodoro, Karelia, Semien, etc.)
Usually doomed nations (Persia, Indian Hindu states, Ethiopia)
Most HRE states
Jan Mayen (Bear has landed! I repeat, Bear has landed!)

Hate:
Anybody with +coring cost
PLC (That LIT development!)
Nations that go crazy culture converting (You're ruining my immersion, Bohemia!)

 

[qwertzuiop]

Most liked: Brandenburg - Unless I'm specifically trying to rile them, they always seem willing to be on good terms or even an alliance with me. Often they are at least the enemy of my enemy. Pretty much every other country I've considered an enemy outside of needing to take down for an objective before. Brandenburg... never seems to manage being a pain.

That's true, I've made similar experiences in my games. Brandenburg never seem to be aggressive and I even remember some not-so-fortunate HRE games in which they were my only friend. They also get bonus points for randomly falling under a PU with me once when I played as Muscovy.

By the way I'd also like to add East Frisia to the list of AI countries I like because just like Genoa, they are always there to help. They always offer me a route to migrate into the HRE if I wish to do so.

As far as the Ottomans are concerned, I need to mention that I certainly hate them if I'm playing one of their neighbours. Especially as they don't just like to conquer stuff, but they also like to throw around warnings just because they can. But I haven't seen them expand out of their "usual expansion area" as often as the PLC.

Like:

• PLC: They make a great ally and only expand into eastern Europe. If you're TO, Brandenburg, Muscovy, Hungary etc. it's easy enough to strike them down early.

To be fair, maybe I've been playing in the Russian region, Central Asia and Persia more often than most other players because what you're saying makes a lot of sense. As a Western European nation, I probably wouldn't bother with the PLC too much because whenever Western Europeans want to expand outside of their own area, they usually go to America, try to destroy the Ottomans or go for India either via the Cape or Egypt. In this case the PLC may indeed end up as the biggest existing power which you don't want to kill and which isn't trying to harm you, unless you're going for an outright world conquest or they randomly rival you, I guess.

So let me say it like this: if you're playing a country west of the PLC, they are usually not a big threat. If not... better dismantle them while you can. If you cannot do this because you are too far away... oh well.

 

[bbqftw]

Like:

Poland - please integrate Lithuania ASAP, I like having free 400 dev vassals.
Muscovy - Novgorod is the dream vassal tag, ADM first, -1 unrest NI, plutocratic 2nd is solid as well

Hate:

France/Ottomans - if you leave them be, they will go out of control, and they have annoying tendency to rival-break-alliance at the worst possible times. Useful beatstick but use with caution
Italian minors - spreading cancer cores (often unkillable, if Siena / Mantua get a good start) over the Italian region every day, and one of the worst offenders of freefort level 4-8 spam

 

[Number 7]

like:
Brandenburg - i seem to only fight them quite rarely, and if you vassalise them they are a fun march, its like owning an attack dog that only knows how to kill.

finland - fun march

hate:

Bohemia. that damn increase to core cost creation means if i'm nearby them i usually go for the throat ASAP. i don't know if its still a thing, but brandenburg and nations nearby could get a PU with them fairly quickly and i usually abused it to make sure i had them integrated before they unlocked it.

Delhi, they coalitioned me because i got too close to india as Qing, i still havent forgiven them

poland - i play a lot of games in eastern europe or china and usually butt heads with poland just because they are the closest major power. like if i'm muscovy, i want that lithuanian land before PLC starts blobbing and its quite an uphill fight

 

[Johan]

France.

love if friend.

insane burning HATRED otherwise.