Europa Universalis IV News

Hello everybody! Welcome to today’s Developer Diary!

My name is Arnau, I am an Internal QA Tester working at Tinto. And I'm here with Pintu to bring you this week's Dev Diary where we will focus on one of our favorite topics, the new Achievements that will accompany 1.35.

The idea we have about achievements is to try to give a new inspiration or goal to our beloved players. Some of them are to provide additional depth and difficulty of the campaign and others are paths that will diverge from your normal gameplay experience. We have tried to give a little bit of everything in these new achievements and we hope you will enjoy them.
With the focus of Domination being on some of the major powers of the time it was a bit more difficult than usual to find suitable Achievements, since a lot of these nations are already covered with a fair share of Achievements.
So here is the list of the achievements we at Tinto came up with for the 1.35 Patch.

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From Frankfurt to the Andes

Starting as Frankfurt, form Jerusalem, and then form the Inca while owning Mallorca.

Let’s start with a small history Lesson for this one. There once was a small group of people in the Imperial City of Frankfurt. After being kicked out of the City because of rebellious behavior they did find asylum on the Balearic Islands where they quickly established themselves as Pirates to live in true freedom. This newfound Freedom brough to a variety of new shores, but one place inspired them more than anything, the Holy City of Jerusalem. From there they spread their beliefs to the New World, where they gave refuge to expelled People from all over the world. With these people, and some inspiration found while looking into the wisdom of the Sun, they swiftly drafted a new plan to ensure their everlasting legacy. And so the Inti State of Jerusalem was born.
What? That sounds like a fantasy story to you? You better brush up on your history lessons then!
Jokes aside, this Achievement was born out of the Grandest LAN last year and the participants from our Studio might have joined a Cult in the process and this is the payment that is expected from us now.

Mehmet's Ambition

Starting as The Ottomans, own or have Core Eyalets own all the provinces required to form the Roman Empire before 1500.

Do you want to prove to everyone who is the true Successor of the Roman Empire? Make the Conqueror proud by establishing yourself as the true Roman Emperor Sultan.


Triple the Rome

As Russia, be the Emperor of China and the HRE.

You might ask yourself what there is to aim for as a mighty emperor. Obviously a second emperor title! Or two…


No Country for Old Tercios

As Spain have Reformed Tercios, 33 Tercio Units, and control 3 Great Power capitals at the same time.

Gonzalo, get the pike! It’s time to show them how to manage this. I think a third of the World should be ours.


All Blue

As Portugal, all Europe is owned by you or blue European countries that exist in 1444.

All the good things in life are blue. The sky, the sea and even Portugal. Live out your dream to find the All Blue! On your Journey you will find people who share the same Dream.


Stardust Crusaders

As Japan have the Land of the Christian Sun reform while Palestine and Cairo are Christian.

"Oh, you're approaching me? Instead of running away, you're coming straight to me?”


Copium Wars

Starting and playing as Ming, own the Britain region.

Don’t worry, they are just here to teach you about Tea.


Brentry

Starting as England, form the Angevin Kingdom and enact all the Acts of Crown parliamentary issues.

Guess who's back. And now with an even fresher color, new ideas and the desire to take it all around. Assert your claim to the french throne and guide Europe to your Dream of a true union.


The Reapers

Starting as Aragon, be a Peasant Republic and have Madrid and Paris owned by any Peasant Republic.

We are peaceful people who want to bring you freedom. What, you don't want to embrace our system? Well, we have other tools to make you see reason.

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So, that’s all for today! Since we are close to release this Dev Diary is a rather short one, since there is not much left to cover for this Updates Cycle.
In next week's Dev Diary we will talk about the Changelog for the coming 1.35 Update. We hope you are as excited as we are for the Release of the 1.35 Patch and Domination in just two weeks from now.

Oh and last but not least...
Don't worry achievement hunters we

Greetings!

Over the last few months we've been communicating Domination's features through a series of regular dev diaries. Considering the diversity of content being bundled up into this DLC, and in the interest of being more concise, we've summarized and assembled into this infographic new features included in EU4: Domination.



And for those wishing to revisit each DD for Domination and for the 1.35 update, here they are in in chronological order:

• Roadmap to 1.35 (13/12/2022)
• 
  
• Unit pips rebalance (20/12/2022)
• 
  
• China (17/01/2023)
• Ottomans (24/01/2023)
• Japan (31/01/2023)
• Russia (7/02/2023)
• France (14/02/2023)
• Spain (21/02/2023)
• Great Britain (28/02/2023)
• All Blue (Portugal, Prussia, Korea updates) (7/03/2023) (also: naval special units, government reforms, estate privileges)
  
• Government Mechanics + Free Content (14/03/2023)
• 
  
• Balance Changes and Usermodding Additions (21/03/2023)
• 
  
• Domination Art and Unit Models (28/03/2023)

(I've marked with an asterisk DDs which cover the free content involved in the 1.35 update, but please note that some entries cover both paid + free content - so take care when reading to delineate the two!)

The last few months have been incredibly busy for the art team, and our artists have created a staggering amount of work, with around 600 brand new 2D assets including event pictures, government reforms, and missions to support the content that was added for Domination and the 1.35 patch.

Here’s some of our favourite examples:










But it’s not only 2D, as always we present a new unit pack that will be part of the Domination expansion.

We found that pretty much every major power is already outfitted with at least one unit pack, so we had to look elsewhere. We settled on the French appanages and revolters in the West (sure to interact with great powers such as France and England) and various Asian minors in the East (to oppose the great powers of China and Japan).

As always we go through quite a lengthy research and concept process before we even open up the 3D software. There’s so much information out there and it’s important to really grab the essence of what makes a certain culture or era unique.



France itself is pretty well-covered with unit packs, but fortunately the one thing that the French had in abundance was a broad range of different fashions and uniforms.

Veterans from the days of the pre-order bonus might already notice that some of these units cross-over with the Hundred Years War Unit Pack. If you have that DLC active, the Burgundy tag (for example) will continue to use the original Hundred Years War unit for Tier 1 before switching to the new Burgundian units for 2, 3, and 4. Other Burgundian-culture countries (such as Lorraine) will use all 4 tiers of the new Domination units regardless.



The Walloon units are used by countries like Liège and Hainaut, as well as their Flemish cousins. Their Tier 1 is based heavily on artefacts from the Gravensteen Museum in Ghent, including the very distinctive helmet. As Wallonia was ruled by Spain for much of this era, we drew inspiration from units under Spanish control for the Tier 2 and Tier 3. Their third tier specifically is based on grenadiers of the Walloon Guards, a unit raised in Spanish service during the early 1700. Their final unit is based on Belgian flanquers of the Netherlands infantry, who fought with distinction in the Battle of Waterloo.



The Burgundian units are used by countries in Eastern France, such as Burgundy, Lorraine, and a handful of other minors. We went with a closed sallet for the Tier 1 helmet to complement the heavy armour. The blackened steel cuirass and cocked hat of the Tier 2 is archetypical of cavalier officers in this era, and of course we had to use a ruff, which I think is criminally underused in EU4. The next tiers are based on elite grenadiers of the French army, complete with bearskin bonnets. Finally we have a unit based on the Old Guard, the most prestigious veterans of the Napoleonic Grande Armée.



The Northern French units are used by countries like Orleans and Champagne (as well as Normandy and Brittany, if you don’t have the Rule Britannia DLC). This kettle helmet with a neck bevor was a good match, and we liked the hybrid brigandine with cuirass visually. Dragoon hats are severely underused in EU4, so we went with a soft cap to avoid rehashing the old tricorn once again.



The southern French cultures use these units. The cloth orle on the helmet was adopted by crusaders to cool down hot armour in the Holy Land, and its usage was brought back to Europe, especially in warmer climates of the mediterranean. We enjoyed making more use of the dragoon aesthetic, even using the hussar jacket and impressive bearskin for the final tier.



The Ainu are close neighbours of the Japanese daimyos, and the indigenous people of the northern Hokkaido island. Their impressive beards and bold patterned clothing makes them stand out, and as hardy outdoorsmen they are keen users of natural materials, with wooden quivers, straw hats, and even salmon leather shoes. However, in later eras they adopt some technical advantages from their Asian neighbours, such as lacquered jingasa helmets and Tanegashima muskets.



The Filipino units are used by the many small countries that start in modern day Philippines. Of course in reality the Philippines was a highly diverse land, and so we chose different elements from across the archipelago. Hidden inside wooden sheaths, they have fearsome Visayan Binagon blades. The moro armour and salakot hat are also interesting historical elements that we included. The final tier is reminiscent of the Filipino soldiers in Spanish service towards the end of the EU4 era, and their straw hats are a nod to the iconic republican soldiers who fought for independence towards the end of the 19th century.

We were fortunate enough to have a Filipino colleague who helped us with these designs:

Hello! Ryan here, aka @ransomyu on the forums (don't bother looking, I'm just a lurker) and as Paradox' first (I think?) Filipino hire, I was delighted to be asked to consult on these Filipino units. My first Paradox game was CK2 but I fell in love with EU4 when I realized you could take one of the precolonial Philippine polities and essentially rewrite history by ensuring the islands were never colonized by European powers. Doing so with these newly designed units will make it a little bit more exciting!

As previously mentioned, the Philippine archipelago is a rich tapestry of different cultures, languages, and traditions. For example I have Kapampangan and Tagalog roots, but was essentially raised in (Imperial) Manila. So when I helped do the research on what units could represent the entirety of the Archipelago, I defaulted to suggesting what was most popular in the national imagination and mythology. So for example while Lapu-Lapu is Bisaya, he is the stand in for Filipino anticolonial aspirations, and features heavily in any media that aims to depict precolonial Philippines.

I hope that any Filipinos that play EU4 will be super pumped to try out the new DLC and join me in my quest to insert as much Filipino flavored content into Paradox games as humanly possible!

The Bai culture revolters, such as the Kingdom of Dali, receive their own units too. Their Tier 1 is equipped with a Guandao polearm and they wear an intricate and highly-detailed leather armour. The later units have inspirations from both Tibetan and Chinese cultures, and white dress synonymous with Bai traditional clothing.



The many cultures of south of China also receive their own unit pack to contrast with the Ming units. Their Tier 1 armor is early Ming dynasty Song-style armour, with curious interlocking scales. The armor was often adorned with intricate engravings and embellishments, making it both functional and aesthetically pleasing. The conical helmet used by Tier 3 is in fact also a form of armour.

And finally, behold the 1.35 loading screen: Mehmed II of the Ottomans, pictured as his bombards tear down the Theodosian Walls and his Janissaries storm Constantinople in 1453.



That’s all from me, let us know what you think of everything! Next week we will show the achievements we have created for this update, see you!

They say that no plan survives first contact with the enemy, but you’re different. You have the foresight to lay out a centuries long scheme to humble your enemies and write your own legend. The greatest empires in history are yours to command in Europa Universalis IV: Domination, a new expansion coming April 18, 2023.

In this add-on to Paradox Interactive’s flagship historical grand strategy game, you will experience new historical flavor and decisions for many of EU4’s most popular and powerful nations. New mission trees, historical government reforms, estate challenges and units add greater variety and, sometimes, tough choices as you must pick a path in a branching mission, entirely closing off some possible rewards.

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Europa Universalis IV: Domination includes new national mission trees and features for:

• The Ottoman Empire: A revised conquest tree with new rewards for pushing Ottoman dominance, including expansion through the new Eyalet system, and new internal changes, such as the new Janissary estate, the new Ottoman Decadence mechanic, and the ‘Ottoman Power Struggle’ disaster.
  
• China: Different mission trees for the Han Ming and invader empires like the Qing. Choose between expansion and Inward Perfection, and counter the power of the Eunuchs to build a more stable empire.
  
• Japan: Unite Japan as you deal with the power of the Shogun and the independent Daimyos. Choose to open the country to foreign influence or keep it isolated, while deciding upon different paths of expansion and reform.
  
• Russia: Free your country of the Tatar Yoke, and transform it into a Great Empire. Choose the path of Peter’s reforms to modernize the state, so your mission tree as well as your mechanics will change and evolve as the game progresses. Use the power of Cossacks and Streltsy to expand your Empire to East and West.
  
• Spain: Expanded mission trees for Castile and Aragon, with different paths to form Spain, a new mechanic available for the new ‘System of Councils’ government, and decisions about the Army and Navy to get the mighty Tercios and Spanish Armada.
  
• France: Fight the end of the Hundred Years War, centralize France into an absolute monarchy while dealing with the Wars of Religion, expand into Italy and the Holy Roman Empire, and lead the Revolution through an expanded mission tree.
  
• Great Britain: Separate paths for either a British Empire or an Angevin Britain, as well as a deeper internal gameplay, with unique features for the English Parliament and changes to the English Civil War disaster.
  
• Minor nations: Mission changes, new government mechanics and expanded flavor for Prussia, Portugal and Korea.
  

Domination also includes new art and music alongside a rich menu of new historical detail, adding more flavorful estates, reforms, special units and events to the leading powers. It will also be accompanied by a major update, free for all Europa Universalis IV players.

Those who pre-order Domination will receive a bonus music pack, March of Power, with six new tracks to enjoy as accompaniment to your conquests

Europa Universalis IV: Domination will be available on 18 April 2023 for a suggested retail price of $19.99/£16.75/€19.99.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2223660/Europa_Universalis_IV_Domination/