Quote Originally Posted by easytarget View Post
Yep, figured that one out. The new challenge, keeping the peasants happy and down on the farm instead of revolting. Modernization on the shogunate side means I'm stuck wasting units in back provinces much more than I'm accustom to, which of course has recurring costs associated with it I didn't have to deal with in the first two iterations of the game.

Still having a blast figuring it out. Got to say, still don't have a handle on economics either, I'm basically just upgrading stuff to see what happens, same with ports. But that's half the fun.
What i found as the most effective way, at least during my time playing, is to bring your taxes down as you go higher in modernization. You may look at that and think; "But Veho! If my taxes are down my income is down and I will make no money!", Don't fret though. You will, I guarantee it, make considerably more through your trade ports. I found a ratio of 5 trade for every military to be the best for income and protection. It makes having a massive fleet your most vital aspect. I always found myself with 3-4 defending fleets as well as 6-7 patrolling fleets during war times. The major drawback to this tactic is that you will notice massive drops in income per port hit. You can support several large navies with many ports so constantly keeps your protected.

As for maintaining a land presence you only need maybe 1 or 2 half stacks patrolling the homelands with 1 or 2 full stacks for the attack. After a few wars those stacks will be vetted to a point that you will not worry about much.