EU2: Annexation

[Zkribbler]

I'm playing my first Grand Scenario. I'm China and am currently trying to annex Japan. I note that everytime I try...and am rejected ... my relationship with Japan drops 30 points. Which leads to the following question:

Does annexation work with a certain percentage. That is, does every attempt I make have a, say 10% chance of succeeding. Or do my chances to succeed depend upon some kind of moving average?

If the former is true, then I should make as many attempts as possible. If the latter, then I should not make many attempts because failures bring down the moving average. Rather, I should let the moving average max out before proposing annexation.

What do I do?

[Nikolai]

Are they your vassals? Or are you trying to annex them in war? If they are your vassals, you have to wait at least 10 year(preferably more, at least 15 or best, 30 years) before you can annex them. Your chance of success is determined by your monarch's diplomatic skills, your target's monarch's diplomatic skill(if you have higher number, the chances are much higher), the number of years of vassalization and the strenght/hugeness of your country versus your target.

If you are in a war with them, you have to reduce them to one province in a war, before you take them completely out in the next one. You might get a refusal from them if they have allies that still is waging war against you.

[Zkribbler]

Opps. I meant inviting them to be my vassals. I'm still at that first stage.

Yes, we have a royal marriage and a military alliance.

[Nikolai]

First, just so you know it, you can't annex them, only vassalize them, if you don't have a landborder with them. The rule about diplomatic skill still applies, so does the size of your nation versus the target. I have experienced that if you have more than just good relations(witch has to be at least 190 btw) and a RM, such as military access and trade agreement, your chance seem to be bigger. Apart from these requirements, it's just a little portion luck that determines your chances.

[Zkribbler]

Thanks, I'll keep trying.

BTW, I do have a landborder with Nippon. Early in the game, we kicked Mongolia and Korea's butts, and Japan now controls the peninsula and a couple of other costal provinces.

If anyone cares, things are getting a bit dicey right now. Five S.E. Asian nations declared war on Nippon, and I joined in to make it 5 to 2. Then four Indian nations declared war on me, making it 9 to 2.

Nippon has taken one province & I've taken two, but my-oh-my what a slaughter of valient troops.

[Nikolai]

What year are you in? Just so you know it: If you haven't entered the 17th century, you are in for some though times soon.

[Zkribbler]

1501.

What?? Things are gonna get worse??

[Nikolai]

Yes, much worse...

[Methril]

bwa ha ha ha ha ha!!!

In EU1 (which is what I have) its near impossible to play China (its pagan, so no technology advancement, and its armies stay very primitive)

[Dinner]

You need to be much more powerful then Japan because Japan has a supply center.Also the size of your army has an effect on whither they accept or not as does how long you've been allied plus you ned a +200 relationship (or close to it).

[Zkribbler]

That explains a lot, thanks.

Back when Nippon & I were long-time buds, its army was pretty large...about the same as mine. It's shrunk a lot since the beginning of our S.E. Asia wars, but I haven't been keeping the relationship up in the 200 range because almost all my money has been going into building new troops to feed into the meatgrinder there in S.E. Asia.

(The good news is that I just overran Cambodia which was the leader of the coalition again me. I took over its three outer provinces and vassalized its capital.)

[Janbalk]

You don't need to have it at 200 all the time, it is just advisable to have it ther before trying to annex.

[Heresson]

It's quite easy to convince one to become a vassal. I had problems only with states that I earlier had numberous wars with and reduced to one or two provinces.
But I don't recall any succesfull invitation to become a part of my state.

[Nikolai]

I understand it so that you have problems annexing states, Heresson? You do know that the longer you wait, the higher chances of success you have? You should wait at least 15 years, if not 30!

[Heresson]

Sometimes they are my vassals for even longer. Like 300 years...