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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.
Colonial Branch
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.
Colonial Mini Branches
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.
The Unique Branches
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
