Aggressive Expansion advice

[volbound1700]

So I am playing a game as Prussia now and moving towards uniting Germany to get that achievement. It is 1650s right now. I keep getting slowed down by AE. In fact, in general, that seems to be my greatest challenge in all of my EU games.

I do have some built-in advantages that would scare away Coalitions. I have a PU over a very strong France and Alliances with Denmark, Muscovy, Bavaria, and the Ottomans. No one in the HRE is worth a ♥♥♥♥ and I control a large chunk of Northern Germany (I just recently took Brunswick/Hanover. I also own Hamburg, all of what was once Teutonic Knights, Pomerania, Madgeburg, Stettin, etc.).

As stated, only think that keeps killing me in is the AE hits to claim lands. Would leaving the HRE help anyone? The current HRE Emperor is a very weak Bohemia. Austria is the only HRE state worth anything and they are weak as well.

Is there any in-game built-in Mechanism to reduce AE quicker line in Imperator Rome?

I still have a good shot to get the Form Germany objective. The biggest challenge will be Munich. I am within a stone's throw of all of the other required objectives to get Germany. However, Munich is still pretty far South of me. (Technically, I am allied with them for now but I was once a big ally of Bavaria as well).

I have tried vassalizing and doing other tactics to reduce AE in the past if that answers questions. Keep in mind that if I get too many vassals, that could hurt my France PU. Loyalty is at 27% right now with France. I forced them to go Protestant earlier lol and took that hit for a while.

[Server Jester]

Use Diplomats to increase relations which will make AE decay faster
You can go into the diplomatic options in the menu where you can choose to build units, click on the dove tab, and put a diplomat (or diplomats if you wish) on "Outraged Countries" which will auto send a diplomat to countries with high ae to improve relations until the ae is lowered to a better point, then the diplomat will auto move onto another country with high ae

[volbound1700]

Originally posted by PunishedMuskovy:

Use Diplomats to increase relations which will make AE decay faster
You can go into the diplomatic options in the menu where you can choose to build units, click on the dove tab, and put a diplomat (or diplomats if you wish) on "Outraged Countries" which will auto send a diplomat to countries with high ae to improve relations until the ae is lowered to a better point, then the diplomat will auto move onto another country with high ae

Thanks for advice on auto. I have improved some of the countries back to Green but it still shows in their relationship a -48 for AE even though they like me.

It is kind of annoying because I have to sit here and twiddle my thumbs waiting on AE to go down. I didn't know about Diplomatic Options so that helps.

Thank you for post.

I know HRE has higher AE so would leaving the HRE help resolve some of that? I have been debating leaving it. At some point, it is going to get to where I am more powerful than the rest of the HRE combined, especially with France as a PU. I am by FAR the strongest member currently. Fighting the Emperor would NOT be hard for me.

[Server Jester]

Originally posted by volbound1700:

Originally posted by PunishedMuskovy:

Use Diplomats to increase relations which will make AE decay faster
You can go into the diplomatic options in the menu where you can choose to build units, click on the dove tab, and put a diplomat (or diplomats if you wish) on "Outraged Countries" which will auto send a diplomat to countries with high ae to improve relations until the ae is lowered to a better point, then the diplomat will auto move onto another country with high ae

Thanks for advice on auto. I have improved some of the countries back to Green but it still shows in their relationship a -48 for AE even though they like me.

It is kind of annoying because I have to sit here and twiddle my thumbs waiting on AE to go down. I didn't know about Diplomatic Options so that helps.

Thank you for post.

I know HRE has higher AE so would leaving the HRE help resolve some of that? I have been debating leaving it. At some point, it is going to get to where I am more powerful than the rest of the HRE combined, especially with France as a PU. I am by FAR the strongest member currently. Fighting the Emperor would NOT be hard for me.

I dont think leaving the HRE would help with AE
However, perhaps leaving the HRE then dismantling the HRE in a war could lessen AE in the German region, you definitely seem like youre in a position where you can easily dismantle the HRE

[volbound1700]

Originally posted by PunishedMuskovy:

Originally posted by volbound1700:

Thanks for advice on auto. I have improved some of the countries back to Green but it still shows in their relationship a -48 for AE even though they like me.

It is kind of annoying because I have to sit here and twiddle my thumbs waiting on AE to go down. I didn't know about Diplomatic Options so that helps.

Thank you for post.

I know HRE has higher AE so would leaving the HRE help resolve some of that? I have been debating leaving it. At some point, it is going to get to where I am more powerful than the rest of the HRE combined, especially with France as a PU. I am by FAR the strongest member currently. Fighting the Emperor would NOT be hard for me.

I dont think leaving the HRE would help with AE
However, perhaps leaving the HRE then dismantling the HRE in a war could lessen AE in the German region, you definitely seem like youre in a position where you can easily dismantle the HRE

Yeah, I have dismantled HRE before as England. Issue is getting all of the Electors into a single war with you or Allying them. No CB wars would only drive up the AE.

I want to go after Saxony next. I need Dresden for the Form Germany. Then I need Hesse (it has a different name) and Frankfurt. I am close to all of them.

I will say dismantling the HRE would allow easier vassalation of nations and I might could get Munich by vassalizing and then assimilating.

[AC Denton]

Originally posted by PunishedMuskovy:

Use Diplomats to increase relations which will make AE decay faster

This is not a thing. Their opinion of you does not decrease AE faster.

Naturally, make sure you have Espionage Ideas for the -20 AE impact.
Ally the biggest factions, they will come to your aid if anyone wants to declare a coalition war against you.
Force vassalising has less impact than taking the provinces outright, useful to do that on countries you can as they'll fight for you over the course of the 10 years before you annex them.
Ally the emperor to avoid them demanding unlawful territory back (if you are the Emperor then you want to not be Emperor as the Emperor cannot form Germany).
The emperor will also not defend any country you attack unless you attack in the HRE if you have a conquest CB, with the exception of countries the Emperor is directly allied with.
Double check but I think feeding your vassals provinces instead of taking them yourself results in less AE.
Probably not super relevant for you but AE is less impactful across continents, e.g. taking provinces in Asia won't anger the Europeans as much, it's something like a -20 AE difference (great for Aragon, jumping between invading Africa and Europe whenever one gets too much AE).
Also don't necessarily worry about coalition wars, e.g. is the largest powers in the potential coalition gonna have a truce with you? Then you'll fine as they won't attack, you have time to let AE drop. Also if they do declare was and you beat them back, take more territory and they can't do much as they'll have a truce, just watch the AE.

Other than that, it's a waiting game. Keeps anyone from expanding too quick.

[volbound1700]

Emperor won't ally my. That ship sailed when I went Protestant. Bohemia is currently Emperor and they suck. Hungary just stomped them in a war. It has usually been Austria. I may just need to bite the bullet and do a Coalition War eventually.

One area that is helping me is the Protestant countries tend to be easy to get to like me again and I have a lot of Germany protestant now.

[Marquoz]

Originally posted by AC Denton:

Originally posted by PunishedMuskovy:

Use Diplomats to increase relations which will make AE decay faster

This is not a thing. Their opinion of you does not decrease AE faster.

This is true. But high opinion will prevent them from joining a coalition against you, so the use of diplomats is still critical. The Diplomatic idea group is one of the three must-haves if you're going to majorly blob--more diplomats, a better Improve Relations modifier, lower war score cost, and so on are great. The other two must-haves are Administration and Influence.

[Server Jester]

Originally posted by AC Denton:

Originally posted by PunishedMuskovy:

Use Diplomats to increase relations which will make AE decay faster

This is not a thing. Their opinion of you does not decrease AE faster.

from the wiki: Opinion will be reduced by the aggressive expansion penalty. The negative modifier will decay by a base of +2 per year, further increased by bonuses to improve relations.
I confused improving relations with improve relations modifier
So for OP, try and grab a Improve Relations advisor to make AE decay faster
Im guessing you already took Influence ideas
edit: Influence doesnt have Improve Relations modifier, Diplomatic does

[volbound1700]

Originally posted by Marquoz:

Originally posted by AC Denton:

This is not a thing. Their opinion of you does not decrease AE faster.

This is true. But high opinion will prevent them from joining a coalition against you, so the use of diplomats is still critical. The Diplomatic idea group is one of the three must-haves if you're going to majorly blob--more diplomats, a better Improve Relations modifier, lower war score cost, and so on are great. The other two must-haves are Administration and Influence.

I have diplomatic ideas :).

My Ally situation has been pointed out. I probably would kill any of these coalitions. That is why they haven't formed yet. Still, I don't want my AE scaring off Allies. However, I think I could afford to be a little more aggressive. I took a few provinces recently such as Hanover and Brunswick despite the fact the game said 20 or so nations (all tiny) would try to Coalition against me. Nothing happened and some of those nations are already back to Green on relations.

[volbound1700]

Originally posted by PunishedMuskovy:

Originally posted by AC Denton:

This is not a thing. Their opinion of you does not decrease AE faster.

from the wiki: Opinion will be reduced by the aggressive expansion penalty. The negative modifier will decay by a base of +2 per year, further increased by bonuses to improve relations.
I confused improving relations with improve relations modifier
So for OP, try and grab a Improve Relations advisor to make AE decay faster
Im guessing you already took Influence ideas
edit: Influence doesnt have Improve Relations modifier, Diplomatic does

I have both Diplomacy and Influence ideas.

[Totally Innocent Chatbot]

Another way to keep coalitions from firing is to keep warring everyone around you in small groups so they always have truces with you, but those truces all expire at different times. Nobody can join a coalition against you if they have a truce with you, so if you just keep rotating truces and immediately declare war on any major nations when your truce with them expires, you can keep expanding very rapidly without needing to worry about everybody coalitioning you at once. You don't have to take land in every one of those wars, of course; you can get quite a long truce just by breaking alliances and demanding various monetary gains without generating any AE.

And if a coaltion does start forming, it's often better to attack them directly before they get too large. Any new people who start joining after the war starts get sent to a separate coalition rather than joining the current one, and you also don't get the -40 reasons for peace from "Coaltion War" if you declare the war yourself.

[volbound1700]

Well I beat the snot out of 1 Coalition but the other formed so fast I literally could not pause to start a war with it. Now basically the entire HRE is in a Coalition against me but they are afraid to fight because my Allies might be stronger.

I have PU over France and Vassalage of Hesse (that is new)
I am allied with the Ottomans, Russia, Denmark, and Bavaria. That is a hard Alliance for them to beat.

I can't declare because my Allies would not follow but they won't declare.

This is where the game gets BORING as ♥♥♥♥. I understand why you have AE mechanic in Paradox games (this is not just an EU4 problem) but it really holds up the game sometime. Not fun to just sit and wait. I have a pathway to Form Germany but hard to get anywhere right now with a Coalition or many countries have -140 relations whip me lol.

I did take Dresden, Lubbock, and several other provinces in my last war.

[Medicles]

Do you also have Humanist ideas? Together with Diplomatic, the policy, an advisor and high prestige you should be able to reach up to +5 in AE decay.

[anonymous]

[wrong and dumb opinion retracted]

[grotaclas]

Originally posted by Perpetual:

I believe in earlier versions you'd get half as much AE if you let the AI offer up a peace deal, rather than you initiating it. They'd offer you a lot less compared to your warscore, but for what they DO offer, you'd get less AE. There doesn't seem to be a consensus whether its real or not

I don't think that this ever existed. I think people think that accepting an AI offer gave less AE, because previous versions only showed the "base AE" in the peace deal text. The base AE doesn't include the AE increases/decreases which are specific for the country with whom you get the AE. But the coalition warning and the numbers on the left side of the peace deal show the highest AE which you get with any country. That number is usually much higher because countries which share a religion with the conquered country get +50% AE and countries which have the same primary culture as the conquered provinces also get +50% AE.
And even when accepting an AI peace offer, you would generate this higher number even though it was not displayed in the text(but neither was it displayed in the text when you did the peace deal).

Originally posted by Perpetual:

but I'm sure in the past I've been able to Restore Union against France as England, and by letting the AI offer the deal, get by with 35-40 AE to neighbors. Now in the current patch its more like 70 AE for Burgundy

I just tested the surrender of main war and forcing the union on France in that war only generated 43 AE with Burgundy. If you got a higher AE now than in previous versions it is probably because of different circumstances. For example if you wait till France integrated his vassals or conquered provinces you will get more AE because of their higher dev. And if you have more prestige you will get less AE (up to -10%) and the english mission "War of the roses" gives -10% AE for 15 years.