Taungu

Primary culture

Burmese (Burman)

Capital province

Toungoo (585)

Government

Mandala System

State religion

Theravada

Technology group

Chinese

Burmese ideas

Traditions:

+10% National tax modifier

+1 Land leader maneuver

Mandala System

+25% National manpower modifier

Elephant Warfare

+20% Cavalry combat ability

Nat Worship

+20% Religious unity

Chakravartin

+0.5 Yearly army tradition

The Hluttaw

−2 National unrest

Organized Military Campaigns

−10% Land attrition

Bayingyi

−20% Infantry cost

Ambition:

−15% Core-creation cost

Taungu is a one province minor in Indochina. It is the primary nation of the Burmese culture and the only country in 1444 that has it as primary culture. It borders and is a tributary of Ava to the North, Mong Pai to the North-East, Lan Na to the East, Pegu to the South and Prome to the West.

Historically it unified most of modern Burma, conquered or made subject of much of the rest of Indochina, and became a major regional power.

Strategy[edit]

Taungu's mission tree allows for very rapid conquest of the entire Indochina area. The major obstacle is getting a good start. Taungu starts as a landlocked OPM tributary of Ava, surrounded by a lot of two and three-province nations, most of which are also tributaries of Ava. These will inevitably form a tight set of alliance webs, possibly even with the nearby major nations of Bengal, Ayutthaya, Khmer and Lan Xang. Luckily, since most countries in Burma are tributaries of Ava, the Ming and their desire for tributaries won't be an issue most of the early game.

Taungu has a weak trade node in Burma, which has one outflow to the very strong Bengal trade node. Until the Bengal area is secured as part of Taungu's mission-based expansion, you might struggle for money. The mid-level development of Burma's provinces means a good tax-base, but the low trade income will be felt, especially since Taungu starts landlocked.

Early Game[edit]

The start of Taungu's mission tree requires you to conquer Prome, a neighbouring OPM. The other branch requires the conquest of the entire Lower Burma area, which is initially held by Pegu. The other neighbouring targets are Lan Na and Mong Pai, as well as the overlord Ava. Attacking Ava should be delayed until after most of its tributaries have been conquered. Depending on the starting attitudes, early war against any of these targets (except Ava) can range from easy to nigh impossible. A good way of starting is to ally the rivals/neighbours of your neighbours, and calling them into war, promising land. Whether to actually give them land depends on which countries you are allied to and which you are attacking - with the exception of Pegu and Prome, you'll eventually get permanent claims on the entire region, giving you CBs on almost everyone. Not giving away land means you'll take a trust hit from everyone and prevent you from promising land to allies for a long time, while giving it away means making a future enemy stronger, not making yourself stronger, and sometimes causing issues with military access and coring opportunities.