CONQUEST casus belli

Last checked/updated for patch 1.28

TO FIX:
1) add icons

2) add pics to illustrate subjects claims

3) Taking provinces from enemy’s allies (claimed but? co-belligerent)?

Summary

war goal:	conquer the province you have a CLAIM on
AE:	100% (0.75 per 1 development)
province warscore cost:	100%
provinces not in war goal:	unjustified demands cost (3 DIP per development)
release subjects:	unjustified demands cost (3 DIP per development)

Conquest CB is a basic casus belli, available right from the start. This will be your default and probably most used CB in early- and mid-game (until IMPERIALISM CB comes up around 1685).

In order to use it effectively you’ll have to accept to pay some unjustified demands penalty, which make this CB a serious DIP points drainer.

Wargoal

When declaring war you chose one province that will be the “target” of the war. After you occupy this province, you will get positive ticking score up to +25%. Obviously, you should make your wargoal a province that is an easy picking (close to your border and without a fort).

Claims and permanent claims

If you want to use the Conquest CB, you need to have your diplomat fabricate a CLAIM on your enemy’s province.

You may only fabricate claims on provinces you’re bordering with or a province across a single sea zone. This requirement is very limiting. Reasonably, due to geography and time you will be able to produce max 3-4 claims to use in a single war against an enemy and you will often end up frustrated not being able to create a claim on the important province you desire (for example TRADE CENTER). Fabricating claims along the coastline is especially troublesome.

Many MISSIONS reward you with PERMANENT CLAIMS on provinces or even whole areas – these are more potent than standard CLAIMS and obviously may as well be used to wage CONQUEST war.

Unjustified demands

In a peace deal, you may take any provinces, but taking provinces that were not claimed, cost DIP points (3 DIP per 1 development) – these are UNJUSTIFIED DEMANDS. This makes up a significant part of expansion cost – in the early game each war won with 100% warscore will net you roughly 50 development, so the unjustified demands penalty may go as high as 150 DIP.

Transfer occupation to your subject (vassal-feeding)

Whenever you’re about to take a province you have a claim on from enemy, bear in mind that you can always decide to have your subject occupy it and conquer it instead of you. This may be beneficial if you can’t afford to spend ADM points. Of course, in exchange, you will have to pay DIP points later, when annexing the subject. This way, you effectively expand via your subjects. This is a viable strategy called VASSAL-FEEDING, pretty much obligatory when aiming for serious conquests.

Since patch 1.28 the “transfer occupation” feature is no longer DLC-locked and available for all players, previously it was only included in ART OF WAR.

Art of War DLC makes it even better

With ART OF WAR you may also use the CLAIMs owned by your subjects, which may significantly improve the number of provinces you may conquer in a war without suffering extra DIPLO cost. Examples are always best illustration, say you’re Poland, both Brandenburg and Pomerania are your vassals.

When using your subjects’ CLAIMs as CB, you can have them conquer their claimed provinces PLUS take any provinces you had your own claims on: for yourself or for any of your subjects

If you use Brandenburg’s claims to attack Saxony – in the peace deal you can force the enemy to cede the provinces Brandenburg has claimed – for Brandenburg.

In addition to that, you can also take the provinces you fabricated your own claims on – either for yourself or for Brandenburg or for Pomerania (using transfer occupation feature) also without paying UNJUSTIFIED DEMANDS penalty

There are some drawbacks though:

1. You can’t take for yourself the provinces your subject claimed:

If you want to grab the provinces Brandenburg has claimed for yourself – you have to pay UNJUSTIFIED DEMANDS penalty

2. You can’t use CLAIMs from multiple subjects in one war:

If your other subject – Pomerania – also happens to have claims on some other provinces of your war enemy – Saxony – this doesn’t matter and you can’t use them. If you want to capture province with those claims – you have to pay UNJUSTIFIED DEMANDS penalty

3. You can’t use your subjects’ CLAIMs if you set your own CLAIM as cassus belli:

If you use your own claims as CB to attack Saxony – unfortunately, the claims any of your subjects have doesn’t matter, and you can’t use them. You may take for yourself or for any of your subjects (using “transfer occupation” feature) provinces you have a claim on, free of cost. But for the provinces claimed by your subjects or for any other provinces – you have to pay UNJUSTIFIED DEMANDS penalty

As you see, it makes a crucial difference whose claim is selected in war declaration, even only within the scope of CONQUEST CB.

To sum it up, it’s best to wage war using your subjects’ CLAIMs and simultaneously use your own CLAIMs in the same war. This way you expand directly and via vassal-feeding. Fabricate your own claims especially on the provinces you’re willing to conquer yourself directly.

Synergies

It’s worth mentioning that ESPIONAGE idea synergizes very well with CONQUEST CB:

100% faster claim fabrication (from 150% spy network construction speed/75% claims cost) (1^st + 5^th idea)
ability to fabricate claims for subjects (5^th idea)

Everything that reduces UNJUSTIFIED DEMANDS penalty is also a boon, mainly:

-50% from full INFLUENCE idea
-33% for provinces taken from a RIVAL
-10% from DESPOTIC MONARCHY / respective GOVERNMENT REFORM