Hello everyone!

As we mentioned not too long ago, we’ll be bringing you several patches over the coming weeks and months. Here is our first batch of patch notes.

Operation HEAD, 1.16.1, Checksum 48b7

• Increased the artillery required for elephantry
  -reduced its base soft attack by 20%
  -reduced breakthrough by 20%
  -reduced manpower requirement by 10%
  -increased supply consumption by 25%
  
• India
  -Train Robberies now reduce railway/hub/infra by 2% (was 3%) for each railway focus completed
  -Train Robberies now reduce weekly stability by 0.1% (was 0.3%)
  
  • Iran: The Immortal Legion now has a much larger starting template
    
  • India: The national spirit “Anti-Imperialist Zeal” now gives 8% defense bonus against the USA (up from 0.8%)
  
  
  Gameplay
  • Added an event chain for Syria and Lebanon that allows them to side with Vichy/Free France or declare independence when Paris falls
    
  • Added additional animation variants for elephantry
    
  • Generic elephantry now uses the generic infantry model
    
  • Iraq: More models can be selected for artillery and anti-tank battalions in the division designer
    
  • India: Added better tooltip to train robberies
    
  • India: Famine now only requires you to lose a starting Indian State (excluding Aden) with 30 days to retake it
    
  • India: Improved Famine description
    
  • India: The focus “Threaten the Princes” now gives 10% communist support
  
  
  Modding
  • Added "count" functionality for all any_object triggers. It will evaluate true if at least "count" items fulfill the child triggers. The count field will support scoped variables
  
  
  Bugfixes
  • India: The Mughal Influence state modifier will now be removed if no longer owned by the Mughal Empire or India
    
  • India: The Mughal Uprising now changes the name of political parties rather than keeping the Indian ones
    
  • India: The British Raj no longer loses certain spirits after separating from the East India Company or Princely Breakaway States
    
  • India: "Parkash Singh"s trait "Brave" is no longer missing a title and description
    
  • India: The "Conquer Afghanistan" focus no longer attempts to give a special forces doctrine discount when you do not have AAT
    
  • India: The "Frontier Corps" focus no longer gives a special forces doctrine reward if you are missing AAT
    
  • India: The "Nothing Personal" focus will now bypass if unavailable
    
  • India: Forward Bloc now removes the occupation law No Garrison until independence is achieved through the focus Give Me Blood And I Will Grant You Freedom
    
  • India: The game rule to make India go down the historical path will no longer block achievements
    
  • India: Independence unrest events no longer continue to appear after declaring independence in India's fascist path
    
  • India: East India Railways will no longer bypass automatically when GoE is missing
    
  • India: The Ahadi Division template given by The Mughal Uprising can now be edited
    
  • India: Famine should now longer trigger if a country spawns in the affected area
    
  • India: The ruling party of the Mughal Empire and British Raj are no longer flipped (Mughals getting GB and RAJ getting Mughal Court) after starting the civil war
    
  • India: Aden no longer gets returned to the Raj after the Mughal Uprising if it was previously handed over to the United Kingdom
    
  • India: Fixed a bug where a blank EIC focus was appearing in the focus tree upon formation
    
  • India: Numerous national focuses have been updated with filter tags
    
  • India: The focus Royal Indian Navy Mutiny no longer requires independence
    
  • India: Fixed a broken bypass condition for the focus Pledge for the Allies
    
  • Iraq: Nuri As Said no longer has a placeholder portrait when missing GOE
    
  • Iraq: The event from Propose Syrian Unification no longer gives the wrong war goal
    
  • Iraq: Restoration of Hejaz focus now grants cores on the targeted states, instead of claims
    
  • Iran/Soviet Union: Fixed a bug in which the Soviets could not puppet Iran if they chose to justify without the focus
    
  • Iran: Join allies focuses can now be appropriately bypassed
    
  • Iran: Changed the Memphis Initiative to include any state in the Middle East
    
  • Iran: Fixed a bug where Iran started with Treaty of Saadabad in 1939, where it should not have
    
  • Iran: Fixed a bug where Opposition to the Shah decisions still appeared after a peaceful takeover
    
  • Iran: Allowed Organize Protests or Establish Local Opposition Groups to be bypassed if any of the focuses starting a civil war are taken
    
  • Iran: Jafar Kavian and Ghulam Yahya Daneshian are now gated behind the Communist focus branch
    
  • Iran: Fixed a bug where the Islamic Revolution leader would not become country leader if a civil war was started in the "Strengthen Iranian Parliament" focus
    
  • Iran: Fixed issue with two national spirits disappearing when communist civil war starts
    
  • Afghanistan: The "Graveyard of Empires" focus now works correctly if you have the Quami national spirit
    
  • United Kingdom: Puppets breaking away from the UK when it goes fascist/communist should now function correctly
    
  • Arabia: Can no longer be formed by Kurdistan
    
  • Arabia: Now correctly gains cores on new states
  
  
  Localization Bugfixes
  • Issues with technical text being displayed in Russian localization should now be resolved
    
  • The East India Company Investment Schemes window is now functional when playing with Russian localization
    
  • Typo: Masshad -> Mashhad
    
  • India: Fixed a typo in the description of the Risk of Famine national spirit, where "loses" is misspelled as "looses"
    
  • India: The Sideline the Conflict focus tooltip no longer displays a bugged name
    
  • India: Several technology bonuses now have a name
  
  
  Art Bugfixes
  • Fixed minor issue with Elephant animations
    
  • Various 2D Icons updated
    
  • Missing elephantry icons added
    
  • Changed animation_blend_time to zero between the animation stages for Elephantry
  
  
  Technical Bugfixes
  • Fixed a bug where production was not recalculated when taking decisions. This fixes instances of bugs such as MEFO bills failing to update when they should
    
  • Fixed a OOS due to portrait generation when host and client have different DLC configurations
    
  • Fix a Windows CTD on startup when some specific utf-8 characters are in the installation path
    
  • Fixed buffer overflow when rendering 2D elements
  
  And lastly, here’s an updated roadmap
  

Greetings all,

At the risk of stating the obvious, the release of Graveyard of Empires has not gone the way we wanted. Today, I want to post a mini-retrospective that explains some of what happened leading up to the release, and how we plan on acting on the results of that and on subsequent feedback and reception moving forwards.

One of the most important parts of the pre-release process we perform in Studio Gold is the Go/No-Go meeting. This is where each discipline; QA, Tech, Design, Marketing, Business et al, present their perspective on the state of the game and expectations on the likely reception thereof. We do this so we’re all on the same page, and so we can jointly arrive at a consensus on whether to launch or not. In GoE’s case, while we identified some areas of uncertainty mostly relating to dev diary feedback, we agreed that there was nothing out of the ordinary here, and that a release at this stage was acceptable. I don’t want to diminish my role here or throw anyone under the bus: as Game Director I can overrule in either direction, and I did not - I did not see what I should have seen.

Collectively, and personally, we were quite clearly wrong. As an organization we were unaware of the issues present in this release, and this represents a serious need for some inward thinking on how we arrived at this decision, and how we reorganize ourselves to prevent it occurring again. I have few answers for you right now as we’re focusing on the short-term goals for putting Graveyard of Empires right, but we have no intention of sweeping this under the rug.

From a long term perspective, this is now the second release of a Country pack which has performed worse than expected. Review score is actually a surprisingly difficult metric to evaluate. It is better to think of it as a snapshot that, on balance, gives us an idea of how much of the community considers everything surrounding a release to be a net positive or negative. This can include price, quality, scope, overall opinion of a company, and many other things. What we tend to do is aggregate the key sentiments of negative and positive reviews and work out, on balance, where the main points for and against are. The two main negatives on Trial of Allegiance were, in first place the regional price adjustments in two specific markets, followed by scope. It’s a bit early to say for Graveyard of Empires, but first impressions are content direction & quality (as we’ve acknowledged), followed by scope.

Both regional pricing and content quality are things that I would hope are relevant only to the individual releases here. They’re localized. Scope, on the other hand, represents a clearer area where we need to offer more on a fundamental level. Scope in this context, is the nature of what we’re offering: focus trees, mechanics, 3d models; the whole package. Content-only releases are popular with some HoI fans, but on balance are not enough to resonate with the majority of the community. Once again, I don’t have an answer yet here, but we’re aware of it, and will be evaluating how to make these releases more exciting to more people.

And finally, in the short term, I want to address our plans for Graveyard of Empires. Beginning this week, we have a series of patches and updates planned for GoE as well as for the base game in order to both fix and improve content that you found lacking. I sincerely appreciate all those who have reached out with constructive suggestions. We have all hands on this endeavour right now.

/Arheo

Timeline:

• 12th March - Patch (Operation HEAD)
  
• 20th March - Patch (Operation KNEE)
  
• Late March - War Effort (Operation SHOULDER)
  
• April - Updates & Changes to GoE content

As we approach the end of our developer content, we stand at the precipice for Graveyard of Empires. Fresh opportunities await players from the lands along the Euphrates, to the Gulf of Bengal, and we are delighted to see how you will experience these new challenges!

To kickstart your journey, be sure to continue reading for the full release notes, the Release Trailer, as well as our Steam Sale that’s starting right now!



Grab Graveyard of Empires below (Note that if you have already purchased the Expansion Pass 1, Graveyard of Empires will already be included with it)

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3152790/Country_Pack__Hearts_of_Iron_IV_Graveyard_of_Empires/

If you missed the release notes or changelog we posted yesterday, you can check it out here

If you missed any of our developer diaries or spotlight videos and want to catch up on all the new features in this expansion, you can find everything you need at the bullet points below:

• The Complete List of Developer Diaries
  
• Country Showcases Playlist

As always, you’ll be able to roll back your game to previous versions. The rollback option will become available shortly after the DLC release, so if you don’t see it right away, please be patient.

If you’re unsure how to roll back your game, you can find a helpful guide here.

There are some issues we know about; we’ve detailed them in this post, and are working on resolving them.

Accompanying the release of Graveyard of Empires, we will also be running a sale! So if you want to grab something you're missing alongside this release, you can get up to 70-75% off on select purchases.

If the sale isn't currently live for you, it should be live within 30 minutes to an hour of this post going up!

Hearts of Iron IV - 70% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Starter Edition - 70% off

Hearts of Iron IV: Arms Against Tyranny 20% off
Hearts of Iron IV: By Blood Alone 30% off
Hearts of Iron IV: No Step Back 30% off
Hearts of Iron IV: La Résistance 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Man the Guns 50% off

Hearts of Iron IV: Battle for the Bosporus 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Trial of Allegiance 20% off

Hearts of Iron IV: Songs of the Eastern Front 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Eastern Front Planes 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Allied Speeches Pack 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Radio Pack 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Sabaton Soundtrack 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Sabaton Soundtrack Vol. 2 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Allied Armor 50% off
Hearts of Iron IV: Axis Armor 50% off


That's all! We hope you enjoy the expansion!

Hi everyone,

with a mere one day to go before the release of Graveyard of Empires, it is tradition that we provide you with the Release Notes. The usual disclaimer applies; this list is comprehensive, but not necessarily complete. Any items we add will be placed in a separate spoiler underneath the main list. (Checksum isn’t final yet and will be added before Release.)

• Added focus tree for Iran
  
• Added focus tree for Iraq
  
• Added focus tree for Afghanistan
  
• Expanded focus tree for the British Raj
  
• Added numerous 3D models for Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Raj
  
• Added 8 new music tracks
  
• Added Voiceovers for Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Raj

• British Burma now exists from game start as a British subject
  
• Mandatory Palestine now exists from game start as a British subject
  
• Jordan now exists from game start as a British subject
  
• Kuwait now exists from game start as a British subject
  
• Lebanon now exists from game start as a French subject
  
• Syria now exists from game start as a French subject
  
• Added new tactics and modifiers for city combat
  
• Added Burma namelist and oob
  
• Removed Prince Henry as leader for Palestine

• Siam now joins the Co-Prosperity sphere on historical
  
• Added a port in Phuket
  
• Added a supply hub in Hat Yai
  
• Siam starts with army of Siam spirit
  
• Extra shared slots don't get removed when flipping state owners anymore
  
• Added railway line to Archangelsk
  
• Added some resources in Pakistan area (Peshawar 3 Steel, Baluchistan States 3 Oil)
  
• Updated Siams AI to produce more units and streamline production
  
• Increased Siams building slots

• Reliability and Torpedo upgrades no longer overlap for Torpedo Cruisers

• has_artillery_ratio, has_cavalry_ratio and has_unit_type triggers now also consider support units

• Fixed a Crash To Desktop (CTD) when loading games with prepared raids
  
• Daily Army, Air and Naval XP gain can no longer be negative
  
• Prevent a rare Out Of Sync (OOS) related to operative mission names when using different languages
  
• Swedish national spirit "Hungersköld" is no longer removed too early
  
• The Netherlands can once again Placate the Germans through their Gateway of Europe Decision
  
• Without Götterdammerung, there can be only one Fascist Advisor in Belgium
  
• Fixed an issue where Germany's Operation Panzerfaust would result in Hungary getting puppeted and having their war reset, resulting in teleported divisions
  
• Dutch East Indies no longer starts with only 10% democratic support
  
• "Expansion Pass 1: Supporter Pack" is no longer included in save game compatibility checks
  
• Fixed a rare random OOS in AI truck production
  
• Fixed rare Out of Sync in character name generation
  
• Fixed UI Crash when reordering items in lists

• AI is now more performant when upgrading equipment
  
• Weather updates are now more efficiently parallelized
  
• AI plans naval invasion in parallel (drastically reduced spikes on multi-core CPUs)
  
• Refactored a number of decision systems to improve performance
  
• Optimized AI diplomacy calculations
  
• Optimized how reinforcements are computed
  
• AI is now more performant when selecting which doctrines to upgrade
  
• MIO attributes are now computed faster across the board
  
• Naval supremacy is now better parallelized

Hello and welcome to the art Dev Diary for Graveyard of Empires!

I’m marblemadness, one of the artists responsible for bringing you the art content that will be present in the expansion and unless specified the “speaker” in this dev diary. There was a lot of positive reception for Götterdämmerung, so following up on that is a challenge. But we’ve greased our elbows and dug deep into the sand to excavate the best art we could find, so I really hope you enjoy what we have to show!

Focuses! The bread and butter of the HoI4 experience. Here are some selections from this DLC.


Persian focus Icons


British Raj focus Icons


Afghan focus Icons


Iraq focus Icons

A Dev Diary would not be complete without a selection of the various country Leaders!


Persian Portraits


British Raj Portraits


Afghan Portraits


Iraq Portraits

This is the Loading Screen for GoE, as graciously created by CremeGene


Hello everyone! It’s me again bringing you a closer look at the 3D models for this DLC!
To truly appreciate the artistry behind these models, I have gathered some definition images for us to examine. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the models at this level of fidelity so let’s not waste any more time!

Let’s start with an up-close and personal look at the soldiers who will be risking their lives this time around!



It can be very dangerous to tread these lands on foot. One way to get the upper hand on the battlefield is to get your hands on a tank. Here are some tanks that will be available for each nation:


The big tank to the right is apparently called the flying elephant, but I don’t think it will be flying anytime soon.

You won’t be able to survive by only dominating the battlefields with your tanks and soldiers. They will be easy pickings unless you have some competent airplanes to achieve air supremacy
as well!



Even when there is a fierce battle happening it can be hard to not stop and appreciate the rich history and architecture that can be seen around the globe. In addition to previously added landmarks, you will now be able to see the Hagia Sophia, Sa'dabad Complex and Taj Mahal as well!


Before we finish off with a look at the achievements, I would like to address the elephant in the room by addressing.. Well.. the elephant in the room! Horses and camels are great, but there is no greater ally than this gentle giant:


And to round everything up, we have the achievements. Enjoy!


Graveyard of Empires
As Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq or the Raj, control all of the other three nations' starting provinces.



This achievement is dedicated to the brave soldiers of...
As Afghanistan, capitulate the Soviet Union



I have the high ground
As Afghanistan, control all Himalayan states



Pesky Greeks
As Iran, become the owner of all Greek core states



The Sands of Time
As Iran, own the entire Middle East



The Legacy of Cyrus the Great
As Iran, become the owner of former Achaemenid Empire's states



From Tehran with Love
As Iran, guarantee Poland's independence and ensure it does not capitulate by 1945



Cradle of Civilization
As Iraq, build the maximum infrastructure level in all core states and achieve 100% stability



It's Just Good Business
As the East India Company, own Suez and Panama



Media Mughal
As the Mughal Empire, complete Agency Upgrade Psychological Warfare, become Spy Master and have at least 8 operatives



Oh, how the turntables
As India puppet the UK with Churchill as it's leader



I'm just passing by
Own a state on each continent while being at peace



That's SIkh!
As Khalistan, control all of the starting Raj states



Oil Sheiks
As Iraq, have 500 oil production



Revenge for 1925
As Iraq, form the Hashemite Arab Federation and defeat Saudi Arabia



Avenging the Sack of Baghdad
As Iraq, control the capital of Mongolia



I shall either find a way or make one
Control Rome and have an elephant unit in the state.



Savior of the holy lands
As Afghanistan, become the owner of Palestine and Mecca


And this brings us to the end of the art Dev Diary! We really hope you’ve liked the content that has been presented so far and wish you the best of luck leading the new countries to a prosperous future!




If you haven't already, check out the Expansion pass by clicking here, or the picture above!

Generals! It’s Synth here, good to see you again! I hope you’re ready for our latest report in Graveyard of Empires! Last time we explored the historical events that took place in Iran during World War 2, as well as the potential alt history that lay within a strong Iranian Empire. This time, we take a look at what the opposition had to say in regards to the Pahlavi Dynasty. Buckle up soldiers, we’re going to be exploring the Democratic, Communist and Fascist paths and see what kind of alternate history awaits us.

From what we saw in history, Iran maintained its monarchy all the way through to the 1970s, but as with all nations, it was never a cut and dry case. In the 20th century, ideology took a forefront in modern politics, and Iran was no stranger to concepts such as communism and fascism. Today, we are going to explore a few what if scenarios, in which the Shah was faced with a strong enough opposition to change the trajectory of Iran on the world stage. Without further ado, let’s hop right in!

(A disclaimer: there may be some placeholder art for the time being)



Is being a King of Kings not your cup of tea? Well, we have a wide selection of ideology for you!


Taking power is not so simple. You must build your opposition first.

Before we dive into any specific branch, you must first establish your national front. Doing so will unlock a decision in which you can decide where to place your ‘headquarters’ should a civil war break out (And let me be real with you folks, it probably will). This will make that state your capital when you decide to go to war with the Shah, giving you a good foothold for your new government.

This will allow you to then take some more decisions through the next focuses, which will help you to lower support for the Shah and establish opposition groups in various states that will join you on the onset of a civil war.

From this point, you must then decide which ideology you want to use to spearhead Iran into the future.


I love democracy, I love the Republic…

Have you heard the tale of Mohammad Mosaddegh? He was a prominent Iranian politician, author and lawyer. To this day, he remains one of the most popular figures in Iranian history. In the context of Graveyard of Empires, Mosaddegh is the man who will spearhead our democratic movement in Iran.
As the democratic Iranian player, you will have the choice of either restoring and maintaining constitutional limits on the Shah, allowing him to serve as a figurehead, or instead work towards a republic, which will inevitably result in the Shah’s deposition. Whilst forcing an abdication will result in a civil war no matter what, if you are able to garner enough democratic support, you should be able to avoid conflict and quietly become a full democracy if you instead decide to enforce a constitutional monarchy.


I’m sure the Shah won’t mind…


Oh yeah, he probably will mind…

At this point, you are now a democracy, and it is time to open up free elections and decide who you want to lead your nation. You will have three options, each with their own perks: Mohammad Mosaddegh, Mohammad Ali Foroughi, and Abol Ghasem Kashani.

If you choose to follow a constitutional monarchy, there will also be an option to strengthen the power of the Islamic clergy, and generally reject overt westernization. This won’t result in a take over, but it will ensure that religion will continue to have a place within your new government.


It always comes down to oil, doesn’t it?

There are two ways in which foreign policy can go when playing democratic Iran. One will take you down a path of anti-colonialist movements in the middle east (which I will touch on after the communist branch, as both ideologies can take this), and joining up with the Allies. The latter will allow you to secure Iraq and Afghanistan to have a better control over the region and ensure that the middle east remains democratic. Like I said, I will discuss international solidarity a bit later, but first let’s take a look at the communist branch of Iran!


Red, as far as the eye can see

The Tudeh party was an Iranian communist party that had considerable influence in their early years of operation, including playing an important role alongside Mosaddegh in the attempts to nationalize the Anglo-Iranian oil company. Following the occupation of Iran, however, they became very pro-Soviet, which we have reflected here in the tree. The other option is to follow the Iran Party, which was not as far left as the Tudeh were, but also played their role as part of the backbone of the ‘National Front’. Even though their membership never exceeded the several hundreds, they remain a potential route to take in your efforts to bring the communist revolution to Iran!
In order to proceed down this path, it is crucial that you reach out to the Kurdish and Azerbaijani separatists, promising them independence once you have taken power. Once you carry out your revolution, you will have a certain amount of time to deliver on your promise of independence or they will try and take it from you by force!


Plans must be laid following your revolution

Following your rise to power, it is time to make some decisions on what to do. Given the proximity towards the Soviet Union, regardless of whether or not you align with them directly, you will be working closely with them. After working on restructuring your industry and making changes to your country, the path of the Iranian communist tree becomes a lot more focused on building a military and engaging in foreign policy.


That’s a lot of collaboration…

In order to keep up with the military behemoth of your communist neighbor, the latter part of this branch focuses on collaborating with them in order to strengthen your military technology. This should help the Iranian communist player prepare for any threats to their new ideology.

On the flip side, we can finally talk about international solidarity!


It’s time to de-colonize!

This little sub-branch is shared by the communist and democratic tree, and will give you the opportunity to cause a little chaos in the region. For many years, European powers have held colonial dominance in the Middle East, and now it is time to disrupt their great game and expel them from these lands. Don’t get it entirely twisted, however. There are gains to be made here, after all, if these lands are under your “protection”, then they won’t be in the hands of the great empires either.

These focuses will give you an opportunity to de-stabilize your immediate neighbors and solidify a sense of control in the region. Afterwards, you can encourage resistance in the border lands and eventually stake your own claims around the Persian gulf, replacing the external imperial powers with your own hegemony.


The path to Iranian Fascism

Historically, the hyper-nationalist party SUMKA was not formed until the 1950s, under the leadership of Davud Monshizadeh and was directly inspired and reflective of the leadership of Germany during World War 2. In the context of our branch here, they will be formed early and will be the main party leading this new fascist Iran.

First we begin by uniting those with nationalist sentiments and collate them into forming SUMKA. Whilst this brings a hit to stability, it will start to tick favor to be more in line with fascism.


March of the shocktroopers

By organizing shocktrooper marches, more of the military will join your side when your coup begins, meaning you can overwhelm the Shah with numbers, ultimately leading to an easier grab for power. However, there is also the option to sway the elite in Iran to your side. When the war is over and you have secured power, it will give you an opportunity to select a new Shah who will be more sympathetic to your cause, relegating him to nothing more than a figurehead.

With that under way, it is time to take your stand.


An empire fractured…


Expanding outwards

After a brutal civil war, it is time to rebuild your nation into something more befitting of a hyper-nationalist and fascist regime. You can enforce secularism, which will cause a dip in support, stability and research for a while, but will ultimately allow you to spearhead new technologies through a research slot. You may also establish your own secret peace to maintain order in your new nation.

Eventually though, you will need to make a choice. Will you side with the nationalists in Germany? align yourself with the Japanese Empire? Or go your own way and develop your own fascist bloc? Either one of these will allow the Iranian player to begin intervening in their neighbors business, staking claims on Turkey, Iraq and Afghanistan, before eventually turning your gaze towards the pesky communists to the north.


Germany or Iran? Who will bring the New World Order?

After forming Greater Iran, you have a few choices ahead of you. Sow discourse in the Middle East, by flaring tensions between the Arab nations and turning them against each other. Turn your gaze to India and deal with the fracturing of Imperial power in the region. But ultimately, there is one final boss to deal with…

There can only be one fascist superpower in the world, and if you have your way, it will not be Germany.

And that, Generals, brings me to our conclusion. With this Dev Diary, we have finished all the country specific spotlights, with Iran bringing them to a close. As you can see, we have given you a myriad of options to play with when it comes to this absolutely fascinating country. Whether you defend yourself against aggressive invaders; build an empire founded on national pride; or bring Iran into a new age of democratic, fascist or communist ideologies, there is something for everyone.

I truly hope you all enjoy playing these four nations when they release with Graveyard of Empires, as we had a blast making this content for you and exploring an often forgotten part of the world. So much happened here during World War 2, and we are delighted to shine a spotlight on it!

As always, have a great day, have fun, and I’ll see you all later!

-Synth




If you haven't already, check out the Expansion pass by clicking here, or the picture above!

Greetings all,

Before we venture into the country content today, I want to take a brief moment to discuss the reactions to last week’s development diary. For those who didn’t follow the situation, it would be fair to say that some of the material we presented elicited strong negative reactions from parts of the community. This is not unusual, in fact I’d go so far as to say that it’s one of the reasons we have dev diaries in the first place. Well intentioned feedback is a good thing. We won’t always agree on what the best directions are for a game, but I think we’ve repeatedly shown that airing content early in dev diaries can be a source of positive change for the content within.

However.

It would also be fair to say that for the last couple of releases, dev diaries have happened much later in the development process than they used to. This makes it harder for us to make certain, more significant changes based on the feedback we get. I am not happy with this. We will make changes.

With all of the above said we do still use dev diaries as a medium for change, and we’ve taken on board the community’s thoughts around the Silk Road Empire path, and will be altering this to fit a more historically inspired vision. You can find details of this below the text for the upcoming Afghanistan content, and then we’ll continue with the upcoming Iraq content.

As a final note however, there is an unpleasant undercurrent to some of the reactions we’ve received this week. A minority of players have resorted to threats, harassment, and organized personal attacks far outside what I would consider appropriate or acceptable online behaviour, in order to compel us to make changes to the game. As a rule, we do not respond to demands that are accompanied by harassment or threats. Instead, as displayed above, it is constructive feedback that is most likely to result in changes.

Arheo

---

Hi there! Here are two of our new focus trees arriving in Graveyard of Empires.

Explore historical and alternative paths as your nation grapples with unstable politics, external pressures, and a rugged landscape.
Or perhaps you prefer to shape the fate of the Hashemite monarchy, navigate military conspiracies, and determine whether Iraq will bow to foreign interests or carve out its own destiny.

First we have one of the most intriguing and overlooked nations of Hearts of Iron IV: Afghanistan.
Known as the "Graveyard of Empires," Afghanistan sits at the crossroads of Asia, surrounded by powerful neighbors with competing interests. In Graveyard of Empires, Afghanistan gets a brand-new focus tree that offers players an array of historical and alternative paths, all while grappling with the nation's unique challenges: unstable politics, external pressures, and a rugged landscape that's as much an obstacle as it is a defense. Let’s dive into what makes this mountainous nation tick!


If you choose to keep Afghanistan on its historical trajectory, your goal is to maintain neutrality while avoiding the unwanted attention of both the British Raj and the Soviet Union. It’s not an easy task—both neighbors see Afghanistan as a key piece in their great game of influence.


The historical path focuses on threading the needle diplomatically. You’ll work to modernize the state just enough to strengthen it without alarming the Soviets or British into intervening. Build up a defensive military, negotiate trade agreements, and play the long game. Survive the war intact, and you might just emerge as a stronger, more united Afghanistan ready to step onto the post-war stage. However, this branch also has options to depart from the historical trajectory by strengthening the young King Zahir Shah at the expense of his power hungry uncles.


This enables Afghanistan to move towards parliamentary democracy, or even a republic. Depending on choices made throughout this path, the establishment of a republic can allow Afghanistan to gain cores on more territory or transform into a new nation such as Pashtunistan. You may have also noticed the end focus called ‘Sinkiang Intervention’ which will allow alt-history Afghanistan to declare war and puppet Sinkiang. This is intended to be a follow on from the 1933 Afghan interventions in the region.


Afghanistan’s industrial branch is a delicate balancing act. On one hand, you have the rising middle class and reformers who demand modernization—factories, railroads, and a central government capable of governing effectively. On the other hand, the rural elite and tribal leaders expect the status quo to remain, fiercely opposing any changes that threaten their power or traditions.


As new universities are established (giving the player extra tech slots), their graduates will expect jobs. Otherwise they will turn to alternative ideologies in the form of a ticking national spirit, boosting parties opposed to the current government.


Failure to accommodate the needs of the graduates or the rural population can escalate even further, especially if Afghanistan has taken industrial aid from the Soviet Union.

To succeed, you’ll need to navigate these conflicting interests carefully. Alienate the traditionalists, and you risk plunging the nation into civil unrest. Ignore the reformers, and the country’s economy will stagnate, leaving you ill-prepared for the challenges of the modern world. Striking the right balance will be key to building a strong, stable Afghanistan capable of weathering the storms of the 20th century.


On the opposite end of the spectrum lies the Communist path. Here, Afghanistan leans into its proximity to the Soviet Union and stages a workers’ revolution to overthrow the monarchy. With Soviet backing, you’ll focus on restructuring the nation into a socialist state, collectivizing agriculture, and using Soviet expertise to industrialize rapidly.

A successful Communist Afghanistan can join the Comintern, spreading revolution across South Asia. As a reward for securing your central Asia for the communist cause, Afghanistan can take control of Soviet states in central Asia and form a new communist state in the mountainous region.


What if Afghanistan didn’t settle for neutrality? What if Amanullah Khan, the reformist monarch who was overthrown in 1929, returned to power with a vengeance? In this path, you’ll work to restore Amanullah’s throne, rally the country around his vision of modernity, and take Afghanistan in a radical new direction.


In order to restore Khan to the throne, players will have to rally support from those opposed to the current regime and potentially sway Germany into supporting you. When the time is right, Khan will need to use his support to violently overthrow the government in a civil war.


But modernization comes at a cost. To industrialize the nation, you’ll need to crush traditionalist opposition and whip the economy into shape. Amanullah’s reforms will bring social upheaval, from building factories in the cities to empowering women and expanding education—an effort that will alienate the rural elite and test the patience of the clergy.

Once industrialized and militarized, Afghanistan can align itself with the Axis, contributing to their war effort and expanding its influence in Central Asia at the expense of the Soviet Union or push South and dominate the Indian sub-continent.

Afghanistan’s military tree offers two distinct paths. Will you maintain the traditional levy-based army that draws upon local tribes and their age-old knowledge of guerrilla warfare? Or will you modernize, creating a professional standing army equipped with artillery, tanks, and aircraft?


The levy path excels at defensive warfare and is perfect for players who want to hold out against more powerful foes in Afghanistan’s rugged terrain without reliance on an industrial economy. Meanwhile, the professional army path allows for a more offensive playstyle, but modernization requires major investment in infrastructure, industry, and training. Both paths have their advantages, and choosing the right one will depend on the challenges you face.

Afghanistan might not be the biggest player on the world stage, but its unique challenges and opportunities make it a fascinating nation to lead in Hearts of Iron IV. Whether you choose to maintain its neutrality, dive into reformist authoritarianism, or embrace radical socialism, Afghanistan offers a fresh and engaging experience for players who enjoy navigating the complexities of geopolitics and internal strife.

We have implemented some changes to the Raj’s alt-history branches following feedback in the previous developer diary. So let’s take a quick detour from Afghanistan to see what’s changed.


As you can see, the Mughal branch has changed structure somewhat. After breaking away from the Raj in a war of independence, you will start off as a lonesome Princely State. After this you choose who you want to rule your new state. This will include an option to promote the historical heir of the Timurid Empire, Mirza Khurshid Jah Bahadur. Furthermore, we’ve also enforced stricter rules for who can be leader to only include non-hindu princes.


Then we have two paths you can take in this branch, embracing Mughal heritage and becoming a new Mughal Empire and striving to unite the Indian Sub-Continent under your rule (as we discussed last week), or striking north and west in the form of a resurrected Timurid empire.


The Timurid path allows you to move the capital into Afghanistan and promotes the expansion into former Timurid territory in central Asia, Iran, Turkey and Iraq. Included in this path is an option to expand the silk road across your conquered territory by establishing new railway lines towards your capital.


Next up, we set our sights on a nation caught in the whirlwind of great power politics, a land rich in oil but plagued by instability—Iraq. With the Graveyard of Empires Country Pack, Iraq receives a new and dynamic focus tree that allows players to shape the fate of the Hashemite monarchy, navigate the shadows of military conspiracies, and determine whether Iraq will bow to foreign interests or carve out its own destiny.


Will you secure Britain’s favor and build a Hashemite empire? Will you break free from imperial control and forge a regional alliance? Or will you embrace radical nationalism and set the Arab world aflame? The choice is yours. Let’s dive in!

Iraq's Hashemite monarchy exists in a precarious position. Installed by the British in the aftermath of the First World War, it must balance between maintaining legitimacy at home and keeping the favor of its foreign patrons. Walking this tightrope offers both risks and rewards.


If you choose to cozy up to London, you’ll gain economic and military support in exchange for certain… “adjustments” to your sovereignty. Gradual territorial concessions and agreements on oil will ensure a steady flow of British investment, arming and industrializing Iraq under the watchful eyes of the Empire.


However, this road does not have to end in subservience. With careful diplomacy and statecraft, Iraq can leverage British support to expand Hashemite rule, either through the creation of a Hashemite Federation that unites Iraq and Transjordan, or by pursuing an even more ambitious vision—the restoration of the Hashemite Caliphate, using British backing to lay claim to leadership of the Islamic world.


Of course, the longer British troops remain in Iraq, the more resentment will fester among the people. Can you keep the monarchy secure, or will the streets of Baghdad boil over with nationalist fury?

For those who see Iraq’s reliance on Britain as a chain rather than an opportunity, there is another path—the military coup of General Bakr Sidqi. Historically Iraq’s first modern military dictator, Sidqi represents a new direction for the country.


By backing his coup, you can turn Iraq into an independent and militarized power, rejecting foreign interference in favor of forging an alliance with Turkey and Iran—the two other regional powers wary of British and Soviet ambitions. Together, these nations can stand united against imperialist forces, ensuring their survival in a world dominated by global giants.


This path requires careful diplomacy and a willingness to challenge British influence while avoiding outright war until you are ready. If played correctly, Iraq can become the dominant force in the Middle East without being anyone’s pawn.

Then again, why stop at simply kicking out the British when you can set the entire Arab world on fire?

By supporting the Golden Square, a group of radical officers inspired by fascism and Arab nationalism, you can overthrow the Hashemite monarchy and transform Iraq into the spearhead of a new Pan-Arab movement. Historically, this coup led Iraq into a short-lived war with Britain, but with the right moves, you can turn it into something much greater.


By throwing your lot in with the Axis, you can rally the Arab world against imperialist powers, using German support to launch military campaigns aimed at unifying the Middle East under Iraqi rule. With enough ambition (and firepower), you could redraw the map entirely, casting aside the artificial borders left behind by the colonial powers.

However, the enemies you make along the way will not take this lightly. Can you survive the wrath of the British, the Turks, and the Persians long enough to build a truly united Arab state?

Regardless of which path you take, one thing remains true—Iraq sits atop one of the most valuable resources in the world.

The oil fields of Iraq can be exploited to fund rapid industrialization, equipping your armies and fueling economic expansion. However, how you wield this wealth depends on your political situation.


British-aligned Iraq will see much of its oil wealth siphoned off in exchange for industrial and military aid. A militarized independent Iraq will need to develop its own petroleum industry, relying on domestic initiatives to fuel its growth.Meanwhile fascist Iraq aligned with the Axis can use oil as leverage, trading with Germany and Italy to secure weapons and infrastructure.
Oil is both a blessing and a curse—manage it well, and you will have the means to build a modern nation. Fail, and Iraq could become an imperialist puppet once more.

The defining factor in Iraq’s fate will be how you handle your relationship with the British. Every path—monarchist, militarist, nationalist—hinges on whether you cooperate with London, cautiously distance yourself, or declare open war.

Tolerate the British, and you can leverage their support for Iraq’s modernization.
Resist them diplomatically, and you may carve out an independent position without bloodshed.
Defy them completely, and you had better be ready to fight. An enraged Britain has the means to crush Iraq if provoked too soon so timing is everything.

Iraq is a nation brimming with potential and danger. Sandwiched between great powers, blessed with vast oil reserves, and divided between competing political movements, it is a country poised for either greatness or destruction.

Whether you choose to guide the Hashemites to glory, back a military dictatorship, or forge a radical Arab empire, Graveyard of Empires offers players the chance to rewrite Iraq’s fate.

Which path will you take? Will you play the loyal subject, the cunning strategist, or the revolutionary firebrand? Let us know in the comments below!

Until next time—may your oil flow freely, and your enemies tremble before you!




If you haven't already, check out the Expansion pass by clicking here, or the picture above!

Toot


And Welcome, this week we'll be taking a looking at the Alt History paths for the RAJ, so without further ado..

If you go down the League Against Gandhist, and proceed down the Forward Bloc plan you will end up with Subhas Chandra Bose as its leader. This is a more militant stance towards the British, with the end goal of leading a war of independence.

The War against the British will start when you complete Give Me Blood And I Will Give You Freedom, and which states join you in the civil war will be determined by how big the resistance is.


The idea is that you are using the resistance system to agitate the local population against British rule, flipping the resistance system on its head. The higher resistance is at the start of the civil war, the more people will join you.

This can be increased in two ways: you can promote resistance in a certain state.


But you can also undo your own cores to further boost resistance.


These will be re-cored once the independence war starts

If you know your history, this will trigger the British government to try and arrest Bose. You can make him leave India for a time, and he will begin his famous journey avoiding arrest.


Should you for some reason not let him go on the run, he will start the civil war imprisoned, and you can free him by controlling the British aligned India's capital. In this case he ended up in Karachi


When you go to the war for independence the UK will enter against you as well, but with some tricks you can make it simpler. For example you can infiltrate the closest English possessions and try to take control.


You can also do what Bose did historically, and ally with the Japanese. They will then try and help you out, joining your side when the time is right.


This picture below is what an actual war might look like


I have also gained control of a lot of close ports, which I plan to use for my Japanese naval bombers gained from a previous focus to take potshots at convoys.


When you successfully capitulate UK-aligned Raj you get the option of white-peacing out, so that you don't need to be stuck in an endless war.


After having kicked out the English you are now free to decide between keeping Bose, or changing leaders to Vinayak Savarkar.


The Hindutva branch focuses on forming Akhand Bharat, or Greater India. It is an expansionist route where you try to take control of all key states, with a tiered formable.

How it works is that you target a country and instantly gain cores on all those required states. You will not be able to continue claiming more countries until you control every state that you previously claimed.


For example when I claim Burma I get cores on them instantly, but I cannot continue on my quest until I control all Burmese states.

To help with this, Sarvakar has attack bonus on cores that he claims, can justify quicker, but most importantly you are able to build up your Hindu militarism as a spirit via focuses.


Once all is said and done you can finally form Akhand Bharat


This gives him a nice trait, but also reduces Agrarian society by about 1/3 instantly.


If you want to, you can also keep Bose as leader.


Here you seek to extend India's security zones, eventually (probably) coming into conflict with China.


Ever the pragmatist, you can also seek aid from the USSR, and model some of your economy on theirs.


You also get to decide how to rule your country, either under a more militaristic authoritarian style, or under a guided democracy, where you still retain control over the country, but there is a semblance of elections. At the end your goal is to liberate the subjects from British rule.


Going back a bit, if you go to the right (sorry!), you can find the communist path. Historically the communist movement was suppressed by the British, so they were forced to remain in the shadows.


On this path you are stacking your cabinet with communists, trying to get enough support for communism, and kicking off a Royal Navy Mutany (inspiration) which eventually escalates into you taking control over India.


This doesn't result in a direct confrontation with the UK, but it does lead to religious people leaving India, creating a more powerful Pakistan as they consider it to be more stable. Britain will also start funneling economic aid to Pakistan, trying to counter increasing Communist influence in the area. Pakistan on this path serves as a tertiary antagonist whom you eventually want to take out.


At first you enter a truce with Pakistan, but you can eventually annex it, coring the subcontinent at once.


If successful, Pakistan might have acquired more industry from the British, indirectly strengthening you.

You can also mold your 5 year plan, in a similar way to the USSR, or lean more towards an Indian form of socialism.


Taking a step back, at the start of the game the Raj now starts with the Great Depression, similar to other TfV trees like Australia and Canada. This is removed quite early on in the Industrial tree going down the Independence path, but you also have a mutually exclusive choice to make, to deal with the depression immediately.


This means tying the price of the rupee to the sterling, which drastically reduces the negative effects of the depression, causing the Raj to turn volatile due to monetary chaos.


Here, you can look to the future. Realizing that the price controls eventually will fail, you can lobby the British parliament to sell off parts of India to private investors, to reduce government spending on trying to stabilize the continent.


You are no longer playing as a country, but as a company.


This comes with some unique gameplay mechanics. How do you like them taxes?!


You are beholden to the tax office since you are, well, a corporation. As such you need to pay income tax. At the end of every fiscal year (starting when you complete the EIC focus), you get slotted into a tax bracket (⬆️).

For example I have one civilian factory, which means that I get slotted into the first tax bracket, and I get to pay 0% taxes. Should I go up to 9 civilian factories, I will need to pay 15% taxes during the next fiscal year. (this is as consumer goods).

As you might see, having more civilian factories might be a detriment. For example, if the end of the fiscal year is coming around, and I have 30 civilian factories, It might be better for me to remove 1 factory and get slotted with 30% consumer goods, than 60%. There are different ways of using these civilian factories, so pay close attention, because we are going to commit tax fraud. (by the way, only controlled civilian factories in states count for this, so not traded, offsite civilian, factories from subjects, mils or dockyards)


So, how can we basically commit tax fraud? Well first off, every fiscal year you can pay dividends to investors if you want to. This will remove certain civilian factories for a boost for the entire year. So you are basically paying investors dividends, which means they invest more for the next year.


You can also use civilian factories to outright buy land. This is cheaper for the Indian subcontinent than say, a state in the USSR. It is also how you eventually will gain control over the states you "lost" at the start of the game diplomatically.


When you gain enough control you also get focuses to boost puppets, meaning they give you way more industry.


Later on in the tree you can shuffle your factories into your puppets as well, meaning you can funnel away some of your factories.


And then buy back the land for yourself if you'd like.


Later on in the tree you will also be able to reduce the amount of taxes paid by expanding tax loopholes.


And also increase the tax brackets, meaning you can stay in the same (low) tax bracket for longer


When you buy enough of the RAJ, you can annex the rest, effectively seizing control over the subcontinent, with the end goal of finally becoming fully independent from London.

Here you can either crush your Anathema, the Communists, or go after your old overlords, the British. You can also now core owned states with a massive influx of civilian industries, locked behind compliance. This is cheaper in Indian core states, which is how you eventually regain all your cores.


To the left of the tree you can form your own private military, where your volunteers get civilian factories for fighting in foreign wars.


To protect your interests and trade routes, you can also focus on building a flagship by gathering different prerequisites



At long last, we end with the restoration of the Mughal Empire. As with the EIC path, it begins with price controls going wrong, but instead of looking to the future, you look for stability in the past.

You achieve this by stirring discontent in the Northern parts of Pakistan.


You then break away, far from Delhi where authorities can't really get to you. Subsequently you get to choose a Peacock prince for your new empire, with any of the princes included in the DLC.



This is also the path where you get the new unique unit, the elephantry, an evolution of the camelry and cavalry.


This path is much more conquest focused, with choices between expanding into the Indian sub-continent or north into Afghanistan, the Wakhan corridor and onwards to Mongolia


You can also gain help from the princes to reclaim the sub-continent from the British


When you declare war against the Loyalist Raj they will rise up with you, as your puppets.


They will then join your court as advisors


One optional thing in this path is rebuilding a new Silk Road by connecting your country to the road that ran from Asia to Europe. This is a tiered formable that goes up to Sinkiang from Afghanistan, into China through the Warlords, and then into Europe from either Iran-Turkey or through the USSR, or the Sea route into Venice.


When you complete all the tiered formable decisions, you become the Silk Road Empire


This is an example of all the core states gained once fully completed.

I will leave it here, but finally I'd like to especially once again give a shoutout to Aveebee and pdx_lily who have helped immensely. I'd also like to give a shoutout to the art team juggling my art requests, and to the QA team, especially IterumLuna for managing everything.

Thank you all, and see you in the graveyard!
Toot

Namaste, As-Salamu-Alaykum, Subh bakhair and Sat Sri Akal. Today we will look at the historical and shared military branches for the British Raj. I will use India and the Raj interchangeably to denote the subcontinent, and as always everything is under development and might change. Also a special thanks to avebee and pdx_lily which has provided invaluable help during the development of the Raj.

In 1936 the Indian subcontinent was still under British rule and had been, in some form or other, for almost 2 centuries, either during the times of the East India Company, or directly by the crown.

In World War I the Raj fought as part of the British army against the Central Powers and afterwards the independence movement was rapidly picking up steam, no longer content to be ruled from London.

Demands by leaders such as Nehru, Gandhi and Jinnah were met in part by aloofness and part in indignation, while the population at large remained impoverished. At the outbreak of World War II India was once again called to fight in a country far away from home, amassing the biggest volunteer army in history of 2.5 million soldiers.

However this was not without controversy, as local leaders weren't consulted and even imprisoned. Some went as far as siding with the Axis, notably Subhas Chandra Bose to achieve independence, down the line helping the Japanese invade Burma and India itself, before being stopped at Imphal.

As World War II came to an end the British could no longer keep control over the Raj due to mounting pressure from abroad, as well as from within. In 1947 India and Pakistan gained independence by partitioning the subcontinent, with Bangladesh gaining independence in 1971.

Princely States were historically local leaders of India that were a quasi-independent entity separated from direct British rule, but still under British control as a form of subsidiary alliance. As long as they supported the crown they could rule over their states.

In Hearts of Iron IV this is represented as high-compliance, non-core territory at the start of the game. Meaning that the Raj will now start with uncored territories, with ways to core it later.

We toyed with having the princes as puppets right from the start, but it leads to some funky interactions with subjects having subjects, and I don't think that everyone would like to be forced into having puppets as part of the main branch. However the princes can appear on the map at a later date.

The princes represented are: Mysore, Madras States, Kolhapur and Deccan States, Hyderabad, Central States, Rajputana, Western Indian States, Sindh, Balochistan, North-Western Frontier Provinces, Kashmir, Sikkim and Manipur. With Khalistan being releasable as well.


The Raj also controls a bit of Aden, as they did historically before handing it over to the British.


In the historical path you will have special ways to deal with the princes via the two special garrison laws



Burma was officially transferred from the Raj to British control in 1937, but effectively it began with the 1935 Burma Act. In game this results in Burma being a colony of the UK instead of being occupied by the Raj.

That 1935 act notwithstanding, Burma is ethnically and culturally a bit different from the rest of India, so we believe that it makes sense to have them as a separate country. It also has mechanical implications which results in a Raj player not being able to, as easily, fortify the Siamese/Japanese front, thus having both countries having to rely more on their natural defenses instead.

The independence branch is also the historical branch, where you try to build an independence movement to eventually break away from the British.

While there are positive elements of British rule they serve as an antagonistic force, as being attached to their yoke depresses your growth somewhat. A key tenet of the independence branch from the start was that the player unlocks India's latent industrial capabilities as they gain more independence. So as you grow the movement you also gain more industrial capabilities.

This takes another approach compared to the old focus tree where you would use the Increase autonomy focus to break free. I went under the assumption that most players do not like being a subject in general since it reduces player agency, and that you would most of the time default to breaking free, come Hell or high water. In this new tree it becomes more about in which order you build your independence movement and what industrial capabilities you gain with less need for using continuous focuses.


As you build up your independence movement you will also get the side effect of spillover resistance. It is not easy controlling such a large group of people with different views and interests, and violence can spill over.

Here are some more concrete examples of how focuses can add to the players road to independence

Before becoming independent you will have to choose between keeping India united, which means that you will not have to partition India into Pakistan or Bangladesh. While initially strong, keeping a united India means you will have to appease the religious minorities, leading to a moderate long term suppression of compliance, meaning it will be a bit harder to core states later on.


The two nation theory, which is the historical outcome, leads to the partition of the Raj into India and Pakistan. Some princely states will also rise up and become independent.


Here you can either pressure them to join you, or attack them directly if you so desire. You can pressure individual states, which means you now can get something like the Kashmir split. If there's no decisive victor between Pakistan and India in regards to pressure versus a princely state they will remain independent.

Should you decide to start hostilities with Pakistan make sure to finish quickly, or your old overlords can step in.

While you lose land in this path, you can become a Hegemon of the subcontinent, gaining you a big bonus if you gain a large advantage over your Pakistani rival, either via tech or industrial output.


Historically, the AI will not go for independence until after '47, but the player certainly can. Doing so will unlock the last bit of industrial focus. Here you can either decide to continue as a free nation with the allies, or remain neutral, trying to act in your own self interest by sending volunteers across the world.


Here you will finally be able to core all territories that previously were controlled by the princes via the India Indivisible focus. This part of the focus also is meant to supercharge India's industry, moving from a suppressed nation economically to being able to play catch up with other industrialized nations.


Let’s look at some of the shared army branches now. These are generally available for all paths.
Beginning here you get to choose how to model your doctrine, either leaning into the UK and their doctrine, or modelling after one of the other big majors, gaining unique themed bonuses.


The Raj's extensive railway network also has its own sub-branch, where the more focuses you complete the faster you can build things like supply hubs, railways and infrastructure.


More to the right features the different Ordinance factories for the Raj, which not only adds extra factories, but each Ordinance factory unlocks extra traits for the MIO as well. When you get to the end of the path you'll get an upgraded MIO policy as a reward.


Additionally there is an assortment of military focuses that deal with improving the general technology of the Raj. Particularly the Raj will have focuses that make their forces more adept in mountainous terrain, both for tanks, artillery and infantry.


Agrarian society is still here, same as before with some additional maluses. There are a few ways to deal with it now


When you first complete Local recruitment offices the malus will start to gradually ebb away. This can be shortened eventually by completing additional focuses.


If you are in a hurry though you can complete additional focuses to instantly reduce the negative effects


In the end you can unlock a decision to fully remove the Agrarian Society against a large cost of political power.



The Bengal Famine was a devastating event where food became unavailable for a large majority of people due to several external shocks to a fragile food system. This now happens under certain conditions. When Burma loses a state and is in a faction with the Raj, when the Raj loses a state that it controls at game start, or after a certain date in history.

It will start in a certain state, after a series of escalating events. They are now both a state modifier and a country modifier. The country modifier scales how bad it is depending on how many state modifiers there are. For example in this scenario the famine started in Bengal and has spread out of control to three adjacent states.


In addition to causing havoc in the state it also causes chaos on a country level


As a result I have deployed several emergency measures to try and prevent the spread, such as asking for international aid, shutting down black markets and deploying emergency healthcare.

I should have also prepared better. Some focuses in the trees will also reduce the risk of the famine spreading.


The preventative measures act as a "shield", both preventing the spread of famine and also reducing the time it takes for the famine to abate.


I will leave it here, but if you have any questions about a specific focus or feature, feel free to ask!





If you haven't already, check out the Expansion pass by clicking here, or the picture above!

Generals, long time no see...


https://store.steampowered.com/app/3152790/Country_Pack__Hearts_of_Iron_IV_Graveyard_of_Empires/
(Note that the currently shown price is for the full expansion pass, as Graveyard of Empires is not out yet!)

Today we’re really excited to introduce you all to our latest country pack, Graveyard of Empires. Over the coming weeks, we will have a number of developer diaries showcasing the latest countries receiving new or updated focus trees. We will also have a number of streams so you can really get to grips with what to expect of all the latest content and we shall also be doing an AMA with the developer team.

Have a look at what’s coming:


To give you a quick overview of what to expect in this country pack, let’s start by taking a high-level view of each country.

The Raj is the jewel of the British Empire, rich and strategically vital. However, a growing independence movement threatens to disrupt the war effort and dissolve the empire. A large focus tree emphasising the struggle of Indian Independence offers many alternate historical paths, including not just the revival of the East India Company as a corporate nation, but also the possibility of freedom for the Princely States, and the formation of Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Iran is a potential great power, hemmed in by the imperial pressure of the Soviet Union and the British Empire. A significant new focus tree will allow you to resist the imperial incursions that historically weakened Iran, as well as offering potential for a new and modern Persian Empire.

Take control of this British client state and try to chart your own path, choosing to side against your overlord. Manage the many competing ethnic and religious factions in Iraq and develop the strategically important oil fields.

Historically known as the Graveyard of Empires, isolated from the wider war, Afghanistan offers many alternate paths. Continue the historical path of neutrality and isolation, or choose the road of rapid industrialization and building a new power in the mountains of Central Asia.

While, at this point, some of this Diary is still in draft mode and has images like this…


I do want to quote marblemadness, one of our marvelous artists: “…we’ve greased our elbows and dug deep into the sand to excavate the best art we could find, so I really hope you enjoy what we have to show!”

And leave you with a nice teaser..


With this Expansion Pass we’re trying something a bit new. They are our way of both giving you a roadmap for the content that’ll be arriving over the next few releases, and letting you sign up to get that content at a 20% discount.

Expansion Pass 1 includes

• Instant unlock of three new 3D tank models and a music track
  
• The Götterdämmerung expansion (Released Nov 14th 2024) - $24.99/£21.99/€24.99​
  
• The Graveyard of Empires country pack (March 4 2025) - $14.99/£12.79/€14.99​
  
• Prototype Vehicles unit pack (Q3 2025) - $6.99/£5.89/€6.99​