Surviving As Austria: Strategies For Victory In Hearts Of Iron Iv

Surviving as Austria in Hearts of Iron IV is a challenge, as Germany is on your border and will attempt to annex you. You have until around 1937-1938 to prepare, and even then, it seems there is no way to survive a war with Germany. However, there are some tricks and strategies you can use to prolong your survival and even maintain your independence. One strategy is to go fascist and join the Axis. Germany won't declare war on an ally, even if the event text suggests otherwise. Another strategy is to join the Axis, then declare war on Hungary. Germany will kick you out of the Axis if you refuse the annexation, but since you're at war with Hungary, Germany will invite you back in. After defeating Hungary, you can stay in the Axis but decline a call to arms when Germany invades Poland, going to war with the Allies. By 1940, Germany's claim on Austria appears to expire, so you can leave the Axis without consequence.

Join the Axis and refuse to cede sovereignty

To survive as Austria in Hearts of Iron IV, you can try joining the Axis and refusing to cede sovereignty. Here's a strategy guide with 4 to 6 paragraphs as requested:

Pre-Game Setup:

Firstly, ensure you have the Death or Dishonor DLC enabled, as this provides unique national focus trees for Austria and other nations. Start the game as Austria on a difficulty below Normal, as surviving as Austria can be challenging for new players.

Early Game:

In the early game, your primary goal is to strengthen Austria and form the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Focus on the industry branch of the focus tree to get as many military factories as possible. You can also research and build forts in mountainous regions, which will provide a strong defensive advantage.

Joining the Axis:

To join the Axis, you will need to switch to a fascist government. This can be done through various in-game events and decisions. Once fascist, ask to join the Axis, and Germany will accept. However, they will also request to annex you, which you must refuse. Germany will then kick you out of the Axis but, if you are at war with a nation that Germany is also fighting, they will invite you back into the Axis.

Refusing to Cede Sovereignty:

When Germany requests to annex you, refuse their offer. As mentioned earlier, Germany will kick you out of the Axis but will invite you back if you are at war with a mutual enemy. This strategy buys you time and delays Germany's annexation attempts until at least February 1940. During this time, focus on strengthening your position, such as by forming the Austro-Hungarian Empire and improving your military.

Dealing with Germany:

Even after refusing Germany's annexation attempts, they will still maintain a war goal against you until February 1940. You can use this time to strengthen your position and prepare for conflict. If you can hold out until Germany is engaged in other wars, such as with the Allies or the Soviet Union, you may be able to negotiate a peace deal or even defeat them.

Tips:

• It is beneficial to go to war with nations that Germany is also fighting, as this increases the chance of being invited back into the Axis.
• Consider forming alliances or joining factions with nations that can support you against Germany, such as Italy or Japan.
• Focus on building a large number of infantry divisions to defend your borders.
• Take advantage of mountainous regions in Austria for defensive purposes.
• Joining the Allies or Comintern can speed up Germany's defeat, but be cautious as this may lead to other powerful enemies.

Fortify borders and build infantry divisions

To fortify your borders as Austria, you should focus on building forts in a way that minimizes your frontline with Germany and makes use of the river and mountains. Try to keep the frontline with the Germans as small as possible so you can stack forts as high as possible. You really want to take advantage of the terrain bonuses that mountains provide.

In terms of infantry divisions, you should make a lot of weaker divisions instead of trying to get ideal stats. This tends to make the AI hesitant to attack your lines. Focus on creating infantry divisions with high HP, Armor, and Soft Attack. Adding support artillery and an engineer to your support companies will make this division very effective at holding ground. Deploy these anywhere you'll want to constantly protect, such as ports.

You should also make sure to have 10/20 width mountain infantry with engineering corps and a fallback line where you placed your forts.

Ally with Italy or Japan

If you decide to remain fascist as Austria, you can ally with Italy or Japan. However, allying with Japan is less rewarding. You have until around 1937-1938 to prepare for the German invasion. During this time, focus on the industry branch of the focus tree, getting as many military factories as possible.

If you go fascist and ask to join the Axis, Germany will accept you into the faction. However, if you refuse their annexation request, they will kick you out of the Axis and declare war on you. To avoid this, you can be at war with another nation that Germany is also at war with. If you refuse the request, Germany will kick you out of the Axis, but because you share a common enemy and are both fascist, they will invite you to join the Axis again.

Germany maintains a war goal against you until February 1940, but if you can strengthen your position, perhaps by forming Austria-Hungary, they are likely to look elsewhere.

Exploit game mechanics to avoid German invasion

As Austria, you have until around 1937-1938 to prepare for the German invasion. Here are some strategies to exploit game mechanics to avoid German invasion in Hearts of Iron IV:

Industrial and Political Focus

Focus on the industry branch of the focus tree to get as many military factories as possible. Then, focus on the political branch. Going democratic or communist is ideal so you can join a major faction when the Germans invade. You can also remain fascist and ally with Italy or Japan, though this is less rewarding.

Defensive Strategy

Make a lot of weaker infantry divisions instead of trying to get ideal stats. This tends to make the AI hesitant to attack your lines. When the Germans attack, hold out in the mountains. If you are not playing ironman, save before the Germans press for Anschluss. Once you make your defensive line, you can wait until the German AI overwhelms itself. Joining the Allies or Comintern will speed this up.

Joining the Axis

If you go fascist and ask to join the Axis, Germany will accept you into the faction. However, this alone will not save you because if you refuse their annexation request, Germany will kick you from the Axis and declare war on you. The way around this is to be at war with another nation that Germany is also at war with. If you refuse the request, Germany will still kick you from the Axis, but because you both have a common enemy and are both fascist, they will send you an invite to join the Axis right after kicking you. You can also refuse the annexation and then immediately ask to join the Axis, which will cause Germany to cancel the annexation and invite you to the Axis.

Fortify Border

Fortify your border with Germany by building forts and levelling up your infantry divisions with artillery and engineers. Hold two provinces to avoid getting rushed down and losing units.

Invade Hungary

Invade Hungary and build forts so Germany has to go through Austria and Hungary.

Form Austria-Hungary

To form Austria-Hungary, you must control all of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, northern Yugoslavia, and western Romania. This can be achieved through a combination of force and diplomacy. One player suggests that you can forcefully annex Austria and offer protection to Czechoslovakia, but Romania may decline your demands, as it did in their playthrough. Germany may then start justifying taking the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia, which can lead to Germany overrunning your border if it is unfortified.

Another player suggests that you can avoid Germany's attempt to annex you by going fascist and asking to join the Axis. Germany will accept you into the faction, but if you refuse their annexation request, they will kick you from the Axis and declare war. To get around this, you can be at war with another nation that Germany is also at war with. If you refuse the request, Germany will still kick you from the Axis, but because you share a common enemy and are both fascist, they will invite you to join the Axis again.

You can also try to get Italy or Japan as allies, although allying with Japan is less rewarding. You can also try to join a major faction when Germany invades.

Frequently asked questions