Florence

Primary culture

Tuscan (Latin)

Capital province

Firenze (116)

Government

Oligarchic Republic

State religion

Catholic

Technology group

Western

Tuscan ideas

Traditions:

−10% Development cost

+2 Yearly papal influence

Birthplace of the Renaissance

−5% Technology cost

−5% Idea cost

Condottieri

−15% Mercenary maintenance

Tuscan Banking

−0.5 Interest per annum

Patron of the Arts

+1 Yearly prestige

Porto Franco

+15% Trade efficiency

Administrative reforms

+10% Production efficiency

Territorial Ambition

+25% National manpower modifier

Ambition:

+5% Discipline

Florence is a nation in central Italy that is a part of the Tuscan culture. It is one of the nations that can form Tuscany and Italy, and one of the most likely to do so. It has Catholic as its starting religion.

Events[edit]

Main article: Tuscan events

Florence shares many events with Tuscany.

Decisions[edit]

Form Tuscany

Not since the days of the Margraviate of Tuscany has a single power controlled as much of the the Tuscan lands as we do. Let us adopt a new title to better reflect our new standing among the states of Italy.


Potential requirements The country: is not the Holy Roman Empire. is not the Papal State. is not Italy. is not Tuscany. has Tuscan as primary culture. is not a colonial nation. has not enacted this decision before. If AI-controlled: is not a custom nation. was not a former colonial nation. has at least 3 cities.	Allow Tuscany does not exist. The country has an administrative technology of at least 10. is not a subject nation. is not a nomad nation. is not at war. owns and has core on: Arezzo (2978). Firenze (116). Pisa (115). owns and has cores on either Siena (117) or Lucca (2980).

Effects The country: changes to Tuscany. gets the modifier “Increased Centralization” for 20 years with the following effects: −0.05 monthly autonomy change, +1 national unrest. gets permanent claims on all provinces with Tuscan culture that it does not own. gains 25 prestige. (hidden) gets the event “The Emperor Condemns Tuscany's Elevation” within 50 days. If Tuscany: is a republic then it changes its government to feudal monarchy. is not a custom nation and does not have Tuscan ideas then it gets the event ‘New Traditions & Ambitions’.

Form Italian Nation

As the heart of the Renaissance, our nation is blossoming culturally. We have just entered the beginning of what looks like a prolonged artistic rebellion, especially in the field of architecture and literature. The cultural evolution is not aiding our country in maintaining peace within our borders however. Our country is continuously stricken by foreign states seeking power and territorial gain.


Potential requirements Italy does not exist. The country: is not the Holy Roman Empire or the Papal State has a primary culture in the Latin culture group. is not a colonial nation. has not yet enacted this decision. If the country is AI-controlled then it: can not be a former colonial nation. must own at least 15 cities. can not be a custom nation.	Allow The country: has an administrative technology of at least level 10. is not a subject nation other than a tributary state. is not at war. owns its core provinces: Genoa (101), Milan (104), Modena (106), Verona (108), Mantua (109), Firenze (116), Siena (117), Roma (118), Ancona (119).

Effects The country: becomes Italy. moves its capital to Roma (118). gets a permanent claim on every province of Italy (region) that it does not own. gains 25 prestige. If the country: is a member of the Holy Roman Empire but not the emperor or an elector then all its provinces are removed from the HRE. the emperor gets the event ‘Italy breaks out of the Empire’. the emperor gets the opinion modifier “Left the Holy Roman Empire” towards Italy, worth −150 with a yearly decay of 1. is a duchy then Italy becomes a kingdom. does not have custom ideas then Italy gets the event ‘New Traditions & Ambitions’.

Strategy[edit]

Government type[edit]

Florence starts as Oligarchic Republic , this means that the player will be able to decide, on ruler death which government form choose. Choosing Monarchy grant the possibility to royal marriage; while this can be used to get alliances with great powers early on can also be good to get personal unions either with Savoy or Naples (once free) to speed up expansion in Italy region. The preferred way to form a monarchy is by event to form Tuscany (Feudal Monarchy) or to decrease the Republican Tradition, form a Republican Dictatorship, and then let it become a monarchy on ruler's death. The player can also choose to increase the nobility estate's influence to over 80%, then allow the aristocratic coup to happen. Though this will cause the trade income to drop, but in exchange the Noble Republic government type gives troops a moral boost. Since nobility influence is over the limit the player can uses benefits to increase its military power. The benefits of having an over sized and strong military outweighs the drop in trade income and allows Florence to expand early in the game.

Otherwise, keep a republican form can make the distribution of monarch power much more fluid and dynamic, adapting to the needs of the moment.

Tuscany and Italy[edit]

As an Italian Minor, the early game is not easy, and it can be wise to wait for Europe's geopolitical situation to stabilize before setting rivals. Fabricate claims on Lucca and Siena early on. They tend to join trade leagues under either Genoa or Venice. Milan can be the perfect ally against them if they are not rivals with Austria (an alliance with the emperor will usually forestall the "Unlawful Territory" demand). If Naples becomes independent later on, it can be a great ally against The Papal State.

Florence's mid-game goal is usually to form Tuscany and then Italy. In order to form Tuscany, Florence must own its starting province plus Siena or Lucca. Vassalizing and diplo-annexing them is not advisable as it requires too much time. After Tuscany is formed and the Shadow Kingdom event has fired, the player can expand to form Italy. Since Italian land gives a large amount of aggressive expansion from high development, it can be a good idea to establish a foothold in North Africa, usually Tunis, and expand there while European aggressive expansion cools down. Depending on the alliance situation after the Shadow Kingdom event, it can be good to ally nations that are rivals with Austria but don't really want provinces in Italy. France is often the right choice; other options could include Castile, Aragon, or Hungary.

Florence/Tuscany is in the unique position of being able to strike at all the provinces needed to form Italy. Being a monarchy allows a player to form personal unions, especially over Savoy or Naples, as well as royal marriages to secure alliances with strong powers early on. The diplomatic strategy requires the early adoption of the influence and diplomatic idea groups, which means sacrificing any real chance to colonize.

Colonization[edit]

Colonization can be choosen both early or late in the game. A good strategy could be push through egypt to gain access to Red Sea and so colonize Asia and Indochina, and push through Australia. But that could be done in the other way, pushing through Morocco. That could be more difficult because of the Iberian monarchies reconquesta. It could be good for the player to conquest north africa after Shadow Kingdom, and get stronger with the help of colonies to then form Italy. If the player decides to do so trade from Asia may be pulled from Gulf of Aden to Venice and from Africa may be pulled across the Sahara to Tunis and on to Genoa. Once got a strong nation, later in the game, the player could choose to take over other nation's colonial nations to better expand its colonial domain.

Development[edit]

Florence is one of the strongest nations if a player is looking to play "tall". Florence starts as part of the HRE and the italian provinces mostly consist out of farmland. Florence has access to the Genoa trade note and multiple centers of trade nearby. Another bonus is that the Renaissance is guaranteed to spawn in Italy. If you gain control over that province the player will acquire the birthplace of Renaissance modifier, lowering development by an extra 5%. Being a Oligarchic Republic means that the player can exchange Republican Tradition to gain a good amount of monarch points.