Hearts of Iron IV News

Hello! My name is MordredViking (Gareth), and I’m joined in this Dev Diary by D3vil (Jonathan). We previously talked about Belgium and now it’s time to talk about Congo! I’ll start talking about a specific part of the focus tree which relies on close Belgian cooperation, then Jonathan will take over and cover the rest of the branches.

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Why Congo though? I know there was some surprise at their inclusion in this expansion, but there is a good reason for it. Namely, they contributed a lot more to the Second World War than you likely realize, plus they were of course intrinsically linked together with Belgium. It was their gold and diamonds which kept the Belgian Government in Exile solvent, meaning that they did not need any donations or loans from the other Allied nations. Congolese soldiers fought in the Force Publique together with other Allied troops against the Italians in Ethiopia. Congolese rubber production was expanded following the fall of South East Asia to Japan, and other raw materials were heavily developed for the war effort, particularly copper and cobalt.

Plus, of course Congo’s Uranium was vital to the Manhattan Project, as Congo had at the time the largest known Uranium deposit in the world.

Now, I am well aware of the elephant in the room. Belgium’s relationship with Congo has not always been benign, and there was a period where horrible atrocities occurred, particularly under King Leopold II (King Leopold III’s grandfather). While the situation in Congo during the Second World War had significantly improved from those dark days, things were by no means perfect. I would remind you however, that this is a war game, focusing on the war and as such we are most interested in Congo’s contribution to the conflict at large.

Now, with that said, let’s get stuck in!

Behold! The Congo Focus Tree in all its glory!

And now for some reason, I’m going to show you a part of the Belgian Focus Tree.

The fog has been lifted, and you can finally see some of those focuses look a little… different.

[h3]Colonial Branch[/h3]
You might notice that they share a rather large part in common, well this is the joint Colonial Branch that both countries share. There are parts which only one country can do (denoted by the singular flags) and there are parts which either country can do (denoted by both flags, side by side). As one country completes a focus in this section, it will also be completed for the other, with both nations getting something from it.

Belgium must complete Monetary Reconstruction from their Industrial branch, and then Congo Investments and ideally Societe Generale de Belgique to gain access. Congo meanwhile, must do Belgian Congo and then Heart of Africa.

So how does all this work? Well let’s give you some examples.

The bunting flags beneath the focus show who can do what

Everyone gets something, regardless of who completes it

Both countries have modifiers that these will generally improve. For Belgium it’s Colonial Returns. For Congo its the Model Colony.

Societe Generale de Belgique : Completed by Belgium. Improves Congo’s Model Colony with better construction while also improving Belgium’s Colonial Returns with some Political Power Gain.

The Heart of Africa : Completed by Congo. Improves Model Colony with Research Speed for Congo, and gives +75 Political Power to Belgium.

Bakwanga Mine : Completed by either Belgium or Congo. Gives Congo a Civilian Factory (and slot), while improving Belgium’s trade resources per factory.

Generally, the single-nation focuses will give a bigger bonus to that country (and in some rare cases, gives nothing to the other, or can actually cost them something), whereas the focuses either can complete will boost both. Some focuses also function like a “gate” meaning one country needs to complete a focus before the other can progress down a mini branch.

These are the central line of focuses which split the branch into tiers.

The Colonial Branch is also split up into tiers, denoted by the central three (well, technically four) focuses.

The Belgian Congo : Only accessible to Congo, and only Congo will benefit from these. Something of an introduction to the branch as a whole, and solid early-game boosts.

The Heart of Africa : Tier 1, contains most of the resource improvements, as both countries work to kick-start Congo’s economy.

Regional Specialization : Tier 2, requires 6 focuses in the Heart of Africa tier. More advanced resources are here, as well as increasingly technical areas.

Congo’s Place in the World : Tier 3, requires 14 focuses from across Heart of Africa and Regional Specialization. This determines Congo’s future direction and their relationship with Belgium.

Broadly the Colonial Branch is also divided left against right. On the left we have the focuses regarding the extraction of raw resources. These generally will increase Congo’s autonomy. On the right are the more developmental focuses, and these will generally decrease Congo’s autonomy.

How Congo feels about Belgium will determine their future options

So why does autonomy matter? Congo’s autonomy when Congo’s Place in the World is completed will determine their future as a colony, and as a nation.

Congo Free State: Belgium annexes Congo.
Overseas Department of Belgium: Congo remains a puppet of Belgium.
Dominion of Congo: Congo becomes a Dominion, much like Canada or Australia with Britain.
Republic of Congo: Congo declares independence from Belgium. It is possible to achieve this peacefully, but it will be up to Belgium on whether they deem it important (or possible!) to fight to keep it.

When a choice is made here then that status is locked, so note which of these can be completed by Belgium and / or Congo! Of course, if Belgium is no longer the Overlord, then this whole Colonial Branch will be locked. Congo lost its main investor.

Historically, after the war Belgium was able to recover the most quickly of all the European nations, and this was in large part because of how wealthy Congo had made them (plus their gold reserves were intact). This became known as the Belgian Miracle.

Therefore, if Belgium is able to invoke the Congo Free State, Overseas Department or Dominion of Congo, plus Engine of the Economy from their own tree, then they can do the “Belgian Miracle” focus which comes with a massive industrial bonus.

[h3]Colonial Mini Branches[/h3]
Let’s go into a little more detail about what you can actually get out of the Colonial branch!

Belgium’s “Overlord” branch.

This is Belgium’s Overlord branch, the first two giving access to the wider shared branch, however the latter part generally takes things from Congo, without recompense. These will have pretty large boosts for Belgium, but come at a high cost in autonomy.

The Katanga region, in southern Congo is especially resource rich

Congo is very resource rich, and can bring a wealth of benefits. These range from growing the mining companies of CCCI and Forminiere, prospecting for gold or diamonds, and eventually, expanding the Shinkolobwe mine for more Uranium.

Belgium however, must also bear in mind rising autonomy should it invest in this area too heavily though! Similarly, if Congo is on a path to Independence then it might want to sacrifice some of their mineral wealth… for the greater good (the greater good).

Speaking of Uranium, if Belgium is able to complete the Uranium Development Trust, then this will confer a bonus to Nuclear Special Projects for ALL members of their faction! Congo too can tap into this more sneakily, and smuggle Uranium to any other Major Power to give them that bonus too, for a price. Even if they’re at war.

These focus more on the non-mineral related activities within Congo, including rubber production

There’s more to the Congo than mining, for one there is major potential for rubber cultivation as well as widespread agriculture. The sheer size of Congo is also a factor here, and you can invest in various forms of infrastructure to better utilize the vast interior. The Belgian Devaluation line contains autonomy reducing systems, while French Congo and Colonial Ambitions provide an outlet towards further African expansion.

The Force Publique was the militarized police force, significantly expanded during the First World War and critical in the war against German Africa

The Force Publique section is initially locked so that only Belgium can access it, however should Congo find itself at war, then it too can begin completing it.

Initially this section is about improving the Force Publique, increasing the manpower available, giving them bonuses to fighting in the Congo proper, and some hefty jungle warfare buffs. Later, you can modernize it into the Army of the Congo.

Congo can nab this talented officer from the Belgians!

It was said of Raoul van Overstraeten that, “he is likely one of the most talented officers in the Belgian military, the problem is that he himself knows it”. It’s unlikely (but possible) that Belgium will want to bring him back into service, however he served with distinction in the Congo during the First World War so may be more amenable to serve in Africa once more.

Anyway, that’s all from me on the shared part of the tree! I now hand over to D3vil (Jonathan) for more of the Congo-centric part of the tree. I warn you in advance he has added a lot of kings! Like seriously, there are a tonne.

[h3]The Unique Branches[/h3]
Hello again, it’s me D3vil here to bring you some more interesting things regarding the Congolese content. So to start off with the unique Congolese focuses are divided into a few separated parts, namely: “The Invisible Roof”, “Governor General Pierre Ryckmans”, “Congolese National Movements”, “Our Overlord’s War”, “The ANC” and the “Post-Independence Political” branches. Also don’t worry, it may not look like anything now, but a path may appear below the focus “Assemble a Regency Council” once someone has been chosen to take the throne.

The Branches in question!

In order to give you a better idea of how the country starts off, so that I can better explain the unique tree, I’ll show you their country screen and their starting national spirits.

The new country select screen for the Belgian Congo, with a TL:DR for the historical context

Their Starting National Spirits

First of all, there is a small sub branch for ridding yourself of the “Invisible Roof” national spirit, costing of these three focuses. They can only be taken once you have become independent, through whichever means it may be.

The Invisible Roof focuses

But to move on to some of the more interesting branches, let’s start off with the ones I usually call the “pre-independence political branches”, as in the ones that start with the focuses “Governor General Pierre Ryckmans”, “Found the Congolese National Movement” and “National Committee for Liberation”.


The left-most focuses are to do with strengthening the colonial regime,while the ones to the right deal with achieving independence, one of them peacefully, the other through a war of independence

Some focuses in the Pierre Ryckmans branch

If you wish for independence, one way would be to grow your democracy support and gain independence score to peacefully liberate yourself, while the other would be through war. The choice is yours, and breaking away peacefully will more than likely put you on a path towards democracy, but should you choose violence, well then the political climate may change drastically…

Some focuses in the “Push for Independence” branches

There is a branch available to you if you are still together with Belgium, and they happen to find themselves at war, perhaps by the Germans invading them to get around the Maginot. Should this occur, the Congo will be able to gain strong timed bonuses that will help it rearm and prepare to aid its allies in the new Great War.

The “Our Overlord’s War” branch and some of its focuses

The armed forces of the Congo can’t stay a colonial gendarmerie forever, and as such, either after gaining independence, or after finishing the Force Publique branch in the Joint focus tree, the “Armée Nationale Congolaise” branch will unlock, allowing for professionalization of your armed forces.

The ANC branch and some of its focuses

After becoming independent, there are a few different paths you can take. One requires you to have 40% or more democracy support, one the same but for communism, and the third requires less than 40% for either political party.

The Post-independence political branches

First, before we show off individual branches and focuses, it might be time to show what advisors are available to the Congo.

Congolese Advisors

First off we have the democratic branch. This one focuses mainly on being able to quickly rid yourself of your administrative maluses, and industrialize as soon as possible. It does also contain the opportunity for a bit of expansion, and as the Congo has a new “generic” formable nation available to it, they have the ability to core some places no matter which path they choose.

The United States of Latin Africa

Some focuses in the democratic branch

In the communist branch you have two main choices, similar to what you can do in Ethiopia. One is to use wargoals and limited wars to liberate nations, eventually leading up to forming the African union, with the other one about spreading the revolution throughout the continent, potentially also joining the Comintern. With the Congo also being able to use the formerly purely Ethiopian “African Union” mechanics, these decisions have been changed to be cheaper for both countries, and have had parts of their functionality revised.

Some focuses in the communist branches

Now for something a bit more unusual. In the case that the country cannot unite behind one school of thought, a council of ministers can be put together to convene with a sole goal in mind. To end the political chaos, and select a ruler who can take the nation in a better direction. They will attempt to select a ruler from one of many regional monarchs in and around the Congo, in an event chain similar to the Polish royal election events. A focus branch will then appear, depending on who you decide on in the events.

I will give you a sneak peek at two of the branches, and leave the rest of them for you to discover. I will however leave you with the portraits and names of the awesome-looking monarchs you can elect for now.

Two of the available monarchist branches

The Monarchs available to the Congo

That has been all for now however! If you have any questions, Mordred and I will do our best to answer what we can. Be sure to tune in next week, when Paradox_Danne and ManoDeZombi will show you all about the new and improved German alt-history routes. See you then!


Make sure to check out the Expansion Pass Here:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3152810/Hearts_of_Iron_IV_Expansion_Pass_1

We’re going to be talking about a nation that was invaded in both World Wars, and were present and fighting until the end in both, despite being either partly, or wholly occupied for the majority of those conflicts. Their people were very much on the front lines, and the landscape remains scarred by the wars even to this day.

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Hello! My name is Mordred Viking, though some of you may know me as Gareth. I am a Content Designer on Hearts of Iron IV, and I very much wanted to see this nation given more content in the game because they contributed so much, but are often so little known.

As such, I’d like to present the real story of the plucky underdog: Belgium.

Behold! The Belgian Focus Tree! Plus a weird blurry bit in the middle. I wonder what that could be?

I had a couple of goals starting out with the design of Belgium. Firstly, I wanted to give them a chance to actually hold out. Secondly, if this failed, I wanted them to be fun to play in exile. Thirdly, I wanted to showcase the close relationship between Belgium and Congo. As is always the case in these diaries, please bear in mind that all you are about to see is a work in progress.

[h3]Overview[/h3]
Right! So with those goals in mind, let’s start taking a closer look at what all this actually means.

Paul van Zeeland is the Prime Minister at the start of the game.
You can see from his fancy top hat, that he is clearly a very trustworthy fellow!

At the start of the game, Belgium finds itself in an interesting position. The memory of the Great War is still very much in mind, their economy still recovering from its impact and the countryside still scarred by the many trenches meandering through the fields of Flanders. In order to avoid a second Great War, the Belgians embarked on a policy of neutrality, much like the Dutch and Swiss. They even canceled their alliances with Britain and France, something which took both those nations by surprise as they had fought to protect Belgium previously.

The Chasseur Ardennais give Belgium some unique fighting options in terrain other nations would find too rugged.

The political landscape wasn’t much better, corruption plagued the government of Prime Minister Paul van Zeeland, causing a furor which was whipped up by the fascists under Leon Degrelle who demanded an investigation- we’ll talk more about this later! Complicating all this, Belgium is of course a nation of twin cultures, the French speaking Wallons and the Dutch speaking Flemish. To reflect all this, they have the above starting National Spirits.

Which to tackle first? Security or corruption?

Despite increasingly hostile rhetoric from neighbouring Germany, the Belgian government historically refused to sanction further military spending needed to bring state forces and defenses up to scratch without the promise of a declaration of neutrality from the crown, so that they could avoid being drawn into what they saw as other people’s wars. Simultaneously, Fascist agitation against the widespread government corruption can cause the Democratic government to resign, triggering political manoeuvring which can ultimately lead to any of the ideologies rising to power.

[h3]Military and Industry[/h3]
Following the declaration that Belgium is “Independent, Neutral and Loyal”, you gain access to the defensive branch

The so-called Defensive branch is about, well, defending. When hostilities seem inevitable, Belgium would be wise to invest some time and resources into these. The Redoubt of Antwerp line will see the rise of impressive fortifications, while Belgian Gates and the Iron Wall act as force multipliers and improve the effectiveness of these defenses. The latter part of the branch provides additional defensive options, including the radical decision to really tap into Belgium’s position as one of the Low Countries, and saturate their enemies with more than just bullets.

The Belgians boast a number of powerful MIOs, particularly small arms producer FN Herstal who partnered closely with Browning (and would later go on to buy them).

Belgium’s army was surprisingly potent, having been able to muster 600,000 troops before the German invasion, with decent officers and well developed industrial support providing high quality equipment particularly in terms of infantry equipment and artillery. I’ve also chosen to tap a little into their WW1 penchant with armored cars to give them that option, and they can eventually overcome the Scars of WW1 and turn those experiences into their strength.

On the other side, education was important to the Belgian military, and high level courses in a wide range of different subjects were offered through the Royal Military Academy. Historically, Belgian integration into the British SAS met with excellent results, particularly in France… where being able to speak French was a real advantage... Quelle surprise? This combined with the Chasseur Ardennais modifiers, means that the Belgian Special Forces can indeed bring something powerful and unique to the battlefield.

For such an industrial nation, the Belgian industrial branch is curiously small…
I wonder why? Could there be another facet to this?

Although the economic situation facing Belgium at the start is quite poor, the scaling potential is quite impressive, with numerous ways to quickly get new factories up and running, and then to make those as efficient as possible. Historically, Belgian industry was in an interesting position, with companies having a very progressive attitude towards their employees, including the introduction of a 40 hour work week and paid vacations.

The cornerstone of Belgian industrial might was Cockerill, a company that suffered through the First World War, and continued manufacturing machines and ships throughout the interwar period and into the Second World War. Historically, they survived the conflict, maintaining high levels of employment manufacturing pig iron and trains rather than weapons for the occupiers. This gets to the heart of Belgian production at the time, trains, which were the primary export in the run up to war.

The Belgians were real innovators in the air, unfortunately their aeronautical industry never really took off in time.

Despite a good showing in the First World War, the Belgian Air Force was woefully under developed at the onset of the Second World War. The majority of Belgian aircraft in 1940 were old foreign planes, and despite a very brave attempt, the Belgians recorded only one German aircraft downed.

However, they did have some good home-grown design talent, particularly Alfred Renard who was a pioneer in the development of all-metal aircraft, and Nicholas Florine, the father of twin-rotor helicopters. Who knows what they could have achieved had that domestic industry been allowed to flourish.

The Belgians had a huge and flourishing port in Antwerp, not to mention overseas colonial possessions, so surely they had a mighty navy to protect it all?

The Navy in 1936 was… well, there wasn’t one. Despite being granted ships from Germany in the Treaty of Versailles, the Belgians disbanded their entire fleet in 1927 as a cost saving measure. This means that you have to start from scratch in order to develop a fleet at all. This focus branch therefore is all about doing just that. Thankfully, the Belgians are not without resources and capacity, with Antwerp particularly being capable of quickly bringing naval production online.

This highlights another facet of the Belgian game we’ve not yet touched on, their excellent capacity for diplomacy. Through having the right people in Government and developing Antwerp, Belgium can enjoy a significant advantage when buying resources on the world market, spending fewer civilian factories for each trade.

The Port of Antwerp can really help your trade

[h3]Political Introduction[/h3]
Behold! Politics!

Now that we’ve talked about the industrial and military facets important to any Belgian game, let’s talk about the political sphere, the Democratic resistance, Fascist rise or Communist tough-decisions. Finally, the Monarchy was a real power within Belgium and can be involved in all branches, although just what role they will play remains to be seen - and of particular concern to the people of Belgium is precisely where the King’s loyalties lie.

Step one. Stamp on van Zeeland’s hat.

As we mentioned earlier, rife corruption is the first political hurdle to be overcome. In order to begin tackling those horrible corruption modifiers, Paul van Zeeland’s government will have to resign. This will call an immediate election, with two outcomes. Historically, the Emile Vandervelde’s Labour Party won the most votes, but did not have enough to form a majority government. Therefore they allied with Zeeland’s Catholic Bloc to get the numbers needed, and the Government of National Unity was formed with our main man, and master survivor, Paul van Zeeland at its head.

The other option is for Vandervelde to form his own minority government. While this will cause some instability, it will lead towards a left wing- possibly Communist path. We’ll talk about that in a bit.

Going back to the first option, unfortunately Paul van Zeeland is himself a ticking time bomb, and his luck can hold out only so long. The Fascist Leon Degrelle intensifies the corruption investigations, and reveals that, shock horror, Paul van Zeeland himself is implicated! This leads in time to the fall of the Government of National Unity.

“Don’t make me choose!” - King Leopold III probably.

King Leopold III himself steps and mounts a royal intervention, declaring for either the democratic Paul-Émile Janson, or acknowledging Degrelle’s work tackling the corruption inherent in the system and swearing Degrelle in as the new Prime Minister.

[h3]Historical Branch[/h3]
The Historical branch is short and sweet, and it was definitely not an intentional design decision to give more time to spend on certain other parts of the focus tree. Nope, definitely nothing so nefarious.

The Historical branch focuses on stabilizing Belgium following all the chaos that has dogged the democratic side.

The first step is implementing Henri de Man’s economic policies (historically, he was the Minister of the Economy), in the amazingly named “Plan de Man” which helps relieve some of the pressure from “Economic Downturn”. This in turn leads to the Economic Recovery, though it does require the Dyle Plan. What is the Dyle Plan you ask? Well, it was the result of Belgium’s declarations of neutrality and breaking of their alliances with Britain and France.

Despite this public neutrality, Belgium was under no illusions about Germany’s intentions and maintained secret back channel negotiations with the Allied nations. The Dyle Plan was a military strategy where Belgium would resist invasion to the Dyle River line, allowing French and British troops time to arrive and assist in the defense, much like in the First World War. In game-terms, this increases the likelihood that Allied forces will actually come and help Belgium, rather than leave them to their fate.

Unfortunately, the Economic Recovery was something of an illusion, and Janson didn’t survive as Prime Minister, this time being toppled by Paul-Henri Spaak who is quite possibly the most important Belgian politician ever.

Seriously, look this guy up, he was quite impressive. He was Prime Minister of Belgium several times, first President of the United Nations (and sponsored the entry of the Soviets Union into the UN, ensuring there was a platform for the two Cold War rivals to talk), President of the European Coal and Steel Community (forerunner to the European Union), and finally General Secretary of NATO.

This leadership was first tested with the Adriaan Martens Crisis, where a Flemish Nationalist, WW1 German Collaborator and Fascist was appointed to the Royal College of Surgeons. Historically, Spaak did not survive this crisis, leading to his resignation and the arrival of Hubert Pierlot to the office of Prime Minister, although here you have the option to pay the political price and keep Spaak around, allowing you to call the Council of Europe, and form the European Union. Pierlot was the historical wartime leader of Belgium during the Second World War, and fled with his Foreign Minister (Spaak), Economic Minister (Gutt) and Minister of Colonies (Vleeschauwer) to London and formed the Belgian Government in Exile.

Now it is possible to just… not capitulate, in which case Pierlot can reverse the Belgian Neutrality and join a faction. If however, the worst should happen and Germany (or whomever) does successfully invade…

[h3]The King Surrenders[/h3]
Remember that I had a couple of goals starting out with the design of Belgium: I wanted them to be fun to play in exile - therefore there is a reason to keep playing if this happens!

I won’t spoil the circumstances around just how this happens! You’ll have to play it to find out.

(We’re still waiting for La Dame Blanche icon art!)

The worst has happened, and Belgium has capitulated. Some of that blame will, rightfully or wrongly, fall on the King’s shoulders. Just how he is treated by the government in exile will determine whether he falls by the wayside, or becomes a figure around whom to rally resistance.

The historical path was to declare the King unfit to reign, and centralize resistance efforts around the Government in Exile in London. This path is all about gaining support from allies, and using the resources in Congo to fight back and reclaim Belgium.

The Prisoner King is a very plausible alternative path, and the real Exiles agonized about how best to mount the resistance. In this scenario, the King plays on his status as a prisoner in his own nation, using his influence to solidify Belgian resistance and begin a monarchist resurgence.

[h3]Fascist Branches[/h3]
The rising power of the Fascists in Belgium have a lot of options open to them.

(We’re still waiting for Strength and Brotherhood icon art!)

Once Degrelle has been invited to take power as Prime Minister, he will need to make a choice between which Fascist group to support and empower. Degrelle will remain in power regardless of your choice here, this is because I absolutely cannot imagine him giving up that position once he’s got it, plus it was the King making *him* the Prime Minister, not the Fascists. They are still a minority in the country. As such, the decision here is not an indication of which faction is in power, but rather whose ambitions Degrelle is supporting.

There were two major factions at the time (and a whole myriad of smaller ones), and each has a broad set of goals they want to achieve but it can loosely be considered as follows:

• The Rexists are the “Fascist Nationalist” path - Build up Belgium itself
  
• The VNV are the “Fascist Expansionist” path - Make a bigger Belgium
  
• The middle shared path - Things both sides can do
  

The Rexists believed mostly in a strong Belgium and worked with many different groups to this end. They were the primary collaborator with Germany during the war, so in this branch they are very Germany-aligned (early designs even had them become a puppet!), and have the most to gain from an alliance with Fascist Germany. The main thing blocking this tall approach is internal Fascist support, so Degrelle will need to work at consolidating his grip on power within Belgium.

The VNV (Vlaamsch Nationaal Verbond) were historically Flemish nationalists, and didn’t want much to do with the Walloons. However, I really didn’t want to add yet another civil war, nor did I want to break up an already small country (because a player’s first action would be just to unite it again). As such I thought they’d be most about embiggening Belgium, uniting with their Dutch speaking brethren to the north, and invoking the old ideas of Burgundy. If they’re feeling super bold, they can go after France proper in a bid to recreate the old Roman province of Belgica, including the ability to core a number of French states which comprised Belgica historically.

The shared focus tree allows Fascist Belgium to do a number of things, including a peaceful union with Luxembourg, abandoning neutrality early in order to join factions or attack other nations, plus it gives them a number of tools to consolidate power and enhance the power of the state.

[h3]The Constitutional Crisis Branch - Turtle Belgium[/h3]
What If Belgium held out? This is the branch to find out!

So Degrelle has come to power, but Hubert Pierlot, fearing what this would mean for the democratic traditions of the country, invokes Parliament’s own protections, declaring the King temporarily unable to reign before the monarch can sign the royal assent locking Degrelle in. This renders the appointment void, and Pierlot calls for a snap election. This will lead to King Leopold’s abdication, and Charles, Count of Flanders’ appointment as Royal Regent (Leopold’s brother).

For those questioning the realism of this, something similar actually happened in Belgium in 1990. King Baudouin didn’t want to sign a bill into law for personal religious belief reasons, so had himself declared temporarily unfit to reign, meaning Parliament could bypass royal assent.

The election is then between the Liberals, led by Pierlot and the Socialists, led by… you guessed it, Spaak! This gives Belgium a choice to gain Allied protections or go for another option- the Soviets. Internally, they build build build, combining defenses in this branch with the defensive branch will lead to some truly massive fortifications.

Belgian Maginot

Better than Maginot

Mobile Maginot!

[h3]Socialist/Communist Belgium[/h3]
Belgian Socialists had some interesting opinions on Spain and Congo.

Going down the other path after that initial election, choosing the Vandervelde Minority sets Belgium on the path of Socialism. At the time, there was very little actual support for Communism, with even the trade unions being quite weak. This was because, as mentioned earlier, many large companies were already very socially aware and progressive for their time. As such, in game Belgium will generally remain Democratic in this branch, though there are ways of going Communist further down.

Therefore this branch is less about radical shifts in policy, and more about their diplomatic outlook. Belgium has the potential to provide significant support for the Spanish Republicans (something that Vandervelde historically pushed hard for). Similarly, Socialist attitudes in Congo were quite paternalistic, providing a strange combination of imperialism with socialist values. Finally, Socialist Belgium can send peacekeeping forces (volunteers) without turning their back on neutrality.

Ultimately, lines in the sand must be drawn, and Socialist Belgium can turn to the Soviets (with “Raise the Red Flag” flipping them Communist for gameplay reasons), or form the European Union.

[h3]Advisors, Commanders and other Bits and Bobs[/h3]
Belgium has a broad set of skills at their disposal

Belgium has a good number of advisors, with a wide range of different abilities. Of note are:

Paul Henri Spaak, who can increase the amount of raw materials per civilian factory in trade. Did I mention he was kinda cool?

Edgar Sengier, who realized the importance of Uranium to atomic research, and so shipped the Belgian Uranium supplies to America before Germany could take them. He was also critical in reopening Uranium mining in Congo. It was his foresight that basically made the Manhattan Project even feasible. He boosts the speed of Nuclear Special Projects.

Walthere Dewe, leader of the Belgian resistance in WW1. Anticipating the German invasion, he went back into hiding just before the outset of WW2 to rebuild his networks, and led the resistance AGAIN. In-game he [REDACTED].

Dieudonné Saive, the principal designer at FN Herstal, and who collaborated closely with Browning. He increases factory output, research speed and MIO funds gain.

I know this was a weapon of the 1950s, but hear me out!

While we’re on the topic of Saive, there is one slightly controversial topic that I just know will come up, so let's address it. I’ve chosen to include the FN FAL as the final tier of Belgian Small Arms. So why is this weapon, widely adopted in the 1950s by NATO forces, in a WW2 game? I sincerely believe that had Belgium not capitulated, then between Saive’s exceptional weapon design capabilities, his very close collaboration with John Browning and access to the German Sturmgewehr 44 that Belgium would have developed their own assault rifle in the latter years of the war.

As it was, the first prototype of this weapon was delivered in 1947 and it went into regular service in 1953. Ideally I’d have included this as a 1943-44 weapon, but as this is the final weapon tech in our tree this is where it had to go. After all, isn’t half the fun of these games the “what-if” scenarios?

The Chasseurs Ardennais rocked the iconic green berets, although they were worn longer on the side.

Belgium was fortunate in generally having a competent officer class. While many of the generals here will not be available from the start, there is a good selection of skills available. Despite this, Belgium starts with no Field Marshals, and while a couple of the above would make good candidates in the interim, they can recruit the two below later.

Make the right choices and King Leopold III can also take the field!

Now, Belgium didn’t have a navy during WW2, and therefore I could find no admirals… but wait! The unknown designer before me who had added a couple of Belgians to vanilla had included an admiral. At first I thought he was just randomly generated, but no. Turns out he was the chap responsible for rebuilding Belgium’s entire fleet post-war, so he’s in!

If you get him a navy, he will lead it for you!

I know many of you will be curious about the Belgian units, well here we are!

Belgian Soldier (left), Chasseur Ardennais (right)

[h3]Music[/h3]
Before I sign off, there was one last thing I wanted to cover, and that’s audio. We have a super talented team who handles this, but it was the one area of development that I had never really collaborated with.

Therefore when we were told that each country would have 2 new music tracks added, I had zero idea about how to approach this. We had a sit down with the audio directors and composers who we’d work with, and they laid out the process. We then needed to find several reference pieces to give the general “sound”, as well as include the emotions we wanted the tracks to evoke.

Belgian Wartime Track : Proud, Stubborn, Defensive
Belgian Peacetime Track : Trepidation, Uncertainty, Loss

This was the general premise I provided for the peacetime track

I’ve got to say they absolutely nailed those notes, and I am super, super excited for you to hear these tracks when you play Belgium in Götterdämmerung!

[h3]Final Notes[/h3]
That’s all we have for you for Belgium!

I can’t wait to see you all give it a try when we release, and I eagerly await the stories from your playthroughs!

Next time…

See you on the 4th of November!



Make sure to check out the Expansion Pass Here:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3152810/Hearts_of_Iron_IV_Expansion_Pass_1

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Hi, Thomas here talking about game mechanics again. I work as Design Manager and Design Lead on Hearts of Iron. Today we are looking at another of the new features that comes with Götterdämmerung, namely Raids. The normal caveats apply, everything you see here is subject to change, especially visual details as some are awaiting final art touches at the time of writing, and other things, such as balancing and tweaking are ongoing. But you probably know the drill by now.

The Raids feature allows you to plan and execute targeted strikes on enemy installations, or perform unique missions of various kinds. Whereas strategic bombing targets enemy industry and infrastructure in a general way, Raids are pinpoint strikes against very specific targets that usually require months of preparation. Targets can vary, but the general goal of a raid is to inflict strategic damage to your opponent that will hamper their war machine for an extended period of time.

Perhaps one of the most important functions of the Raids is that you can use them to target enemy experimental facilities in order to disrupt their special projects. Once you know the location of a facility, you can start planning a raid to damage it, and inflict a setback to the ongoing project there. A successful strike not only damages the facility, slowing research down until repaired, but can also damage equipment etc. and set the progress back by weeks or even months.

The feature also allows you to replicate things such as Operation Chastise, more commonly known as the Dambusters Raid. You can develop the Barnes Wallis' bouncing bomb, and then target an enemy dam with one of your raids. A successful strike not only knocks the hydroelectric power plant out, it also floods the region, hindering enemy troop movement.

Or, if you want to take that concept even further, you can try to blow up the canal locks in the Panama Canal, to stop enemy ships crossing from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. But you will probably need a very long range bomber for that - unless you start in Central America of course…

Let's take a look at how to work with the Raids:

[h3]Setting up a raid[/h3]
The main interaction point for the Raids feature is the map. You see potential targets on the map and when you hover them you get more details about them.

When you click the target icon, you start setting up a raid against that target. Some targets might have more than one viable Raid type, in which case you first decide what top target with this particular raid. What do you want to strike, the Reichstag, or the experimental nuclear facility in Potsdam? (Just an example, right. Germany does not start with a secret nuclear lab, Promise!)

Deciding on a target for a Raid in Northern Germany

After having selected your target, you need to find a unit to perform the Raid, be it paratroopers, an air wing, or whatever is required by the Raid. You can do this from the map as well, or you can select from a list of units that is displayed at this stage. Various factors affect how good a unit is at executing a Raid, but the most important one is usually how experienced it is. The more experience, the better the chances of getting a really good result. But again, other things apply as well.

Time to choose the airwing

The last thing you need to select is from where to launch the Raid. If it is an air wing you need to pick an airfield within range of the target. Once you have made these choices, the selected team is ready to start preparing for the Raid.

Let’s launch from a safe place

[h3]Assembling and preparing[/h3]
You can’t launch the Raid immediately. The unit must travel to the starting location if not already there. Usually there are other requirements as well. It might require extra equipment of some kind. (Common examples being convoys, transport planes, infantry equipment, or even nuclear bombs…)

Once everything is in place, the unit can start preparing. Equipping the right type of bombs, undergoing special training, and so on. The amount of time needed depends on the Raid type.

Once preparation is complete, you can launch the Raid whenever you choose to - as long as the launch criteria are met. What does that mean? Well, some raids can be prepared in peace time for example, but can’t be launched unless a war is ongoing.

It’s going to take some time, but hopefully it will be worth it

But what if I don’t want to sit and monitor whether a Raid is ready to be launched? First of all, you get an alert when a Raid finishes preparation, so you don’t really have to monitor it that closely. Second, if you feel that it is not necessary to time it exactly you can select auto launch instead. When you do that you get the option to only launch when your chance of a successful Raid is at least at a certain level.

[h3]Launching and Success[/h3]
As said above, the Raid can be launched either manually or automatically. Or if you prefer, you can launch all prepared raids at the same time with the press of a single (red) button.

Once launched you will see a 3d model travel to the target, executing its orders. And when it strikes you get a report of the outcome.

Getting there

A Raid will not automatically be successful. There are a number of factors that come into play when executing a Raid. Some depend on the unit itself (experience for example), others on specific conditions, such as for example air superiority, and others again on what the enemy does and how they have set up their defenses. You see a general indication of your chances on the Raids display, and when you hover the display you get a more detailed breakdown in the tooltip. As a defender you do various things to decrease the chances of a successful Raid. If it is an air strike you can add Anti Air and you can try to gain air superiority, for example.

Our chances aren’t super high, maybe time to do something about it

There is one further lever you can pull. By increasing the risk taking of the unit you can increase the chance, but if they don’t succeed they run a higher risk of taking severe losses. And vice versa, you can lower the risk taking, and thereby minimizing the risk for a disastrous outcome, but also somewhat lowering the chance of a very positive outcome.

It worked flawlessly

[h3]Cost[/h3]
Starting a Raid is a bit of an investment. Especially in time, as the unit involved will be unavailable for quite some time. In addition, additional equipment is sometimes needed, forcing you to have it in your stockpile. Finally, there is a Command Power cost to Raids, lowering your max cap while preparing and executing.

We’ve allocated 25 to this, but we still have plenty to go

[h3]Filtering[/h3]
Together with the map mode selection ui, you have a new section with raid filters. This allows you to hide and display your raid targets and raids depending on your preferences. If you are only interested in displaying Air Raid targets for example, you can hide other categories. Or if you want to hide them all in the Land/Sea/Air map mode, you can do so, and only access them through the raids map mode.

[h3]Types of raids [/h3]
There are a few different types of Raids to choose from in Götterdämmerung, some of which I will talk a bit about below:

As mentioned in the beginning, you can for example do a strike against an enemy experimental facility - much like the historical Raids on Penemünde. This will, if successful, cause damage to the facility; making it slower, and you can set the actual project work back by a number of weeks or even months, buying you more time to defeat your enemies.

If you do the Bouncing Bomb special project first, you can strike an enemy Dam. Dams are a new building that we have added. They apply state level bonuses, and thus are useful for boosting your industry, but of course they can be a bit of a liability if your enemy comes up with a way of destroying them. You can’t build Dams per se, instead you get a few starting ones, and then certain countries can get more through their focus trees where appropriate.

Additionally, if you have developed the bouncing bomb, you can do lock strikes. There are two major locks represented in the game, Panama and Kiel. Blowing up one of these will stop naval traffic through the canals. And no, there are no locks or anything you can blow up in Suez… Sorry… It’s just a flat stretch of water through sand…

Raids can be used as counters to enemy super weapons as well. If your enemy develops the V3 mega gun project, you can use your earthshaker bombs to target and destroy them.

Another thing you can do is to try to strike at your enemy’s resources. For example, you can try to target the Ploiești oil fields, as was done by the USA in Operation Tidal Wave. A successful strike here will lower the oil output from Romania for quite some time, thus hampering the German (and Romanian) war machine.

Hampering the German access to oil

A somewhat different type of Raid are the nuclear strikes. Yes, nuclear strikes are now planned in advance and you need to designate a unit to drop the bomb, you no longer just press a button in the state and province view. The nuclear raids work very similarly to other raids, with one major exception. Instead of having one or more set targets, the UI lets you select any province when planning a nuclear strike - as long as they can be reached. You can plan strikes against neutral countries, but you can’t launch unless at war, and you cannot target your allies - they wouldn’t be your allies if you could, right?

In addition to the initial destruction caused by nuclear bombs, they also now have some lingering effects, making them a bit more devastating than they used to be for the country getting nukes dropped on them

Selecting a place to bomb

[h3]Custom Raids[/h3]
Not all Raids are available to everyone. In order to make raids even more flavourful, we have also added a few custom raids; such as the German Eben Emael raid where Germany had spent a vast amount of money and resources on preparing for a combined paratrooper and glider attack on the Belgian border fortress - having their soldiers train on every step of the attack beforehand. Or as the UK, you can replicate the British bombing of Berlin during the early stages of the war (this was, and is in game, mainly a morale booster). We have also included some of the more odd but rather flavourful Raids, such as Operation Jericho where the UK tried to free French resistance fighters by blowing up a prison using Mosquito fighter bombers.

Chinese Bombers enroute to Japan - but wait what are they dropping?

That's all for this Developer diary, we hope you enjoyed it. Stay tuned, more Götterdämmerung content will be arriving on Wednesday where we will be talking about Belgium and neutrality. Surely Belgium can manage to stay out of the war this time…


Make sure to check out the Expansion Pass Here:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3152810/Hearts_of_Iron_IV_Expansion_Pass_1