Developer Corner & Open Beta: Energy #2

Welcome back! Following the tremendous feedback we received last week, we’ve implemented several key adjustments. While we are still debating the final release, we have decided to launch this as an open beta so you can test it firsthand.

Here are the primary changes introduced since our last developer diary:

• Power Plants now occupy dedicated state slots instead of competing for shared factory space.
• You can now construct up to 3 upgrade levels of power plants within a single state.
• New research technologies have been added, allowing you to extract significantly more energy from your plants.
• Oil now influences overall energy generation. Our design philosophy remains firm: oil fuels your military divisions, while coal powers your heavy industry.
• Implemented a brand-new bonus rewarding nations that maintain spare energy capacity.
• Added two new MIO policies that either decrease or increase the power consumption of associated production lines.

Let’s examine the situation in Germany during early 1940:

Germany is generating substantial wattage through its power plants, supplemented effectively by local dams. As illustrated, they have successfully researched “Hydrogen-Cooled Generators,” boosting their total energy output by 10%.

Their total demand sits at 897.5 energy, which is 100% satisfied. They generate 1,130.3 out of a potential 1,130.3 energy, leaving no direct headroom—yet generation surpasses raw demand due to excess capacity bonuses! This grants them a comfortable 100% spare capacity modifier. The required threshold scales with your total factory count, making it much easier for nations to achieve surplus capacity during the early game.

Looking at the production tab with collapsed entries, we can easily track how energy expenditures are distributed. Aviation consumes the lion’s share, followed closely by armored vehicle manufacturing and small arms assembly.

What happens if we activate one of the new MIO policies? While this increases our power requirements, it grants powerful production efficiency gains that rival standard assembly line optimizers.

Naturally, this makes the MP 38 production line notably more energy-intensive.​

Furthermore, power plants are now highly vulnerable to strategic bombing campaigns, making enemy industrial sectors a more lucrative target than ever before. However, if targeted nations maintain adequate spare energy capacity, their infrastructure will recover and repair faster than previously possible.

The New Technology Tree

The Role of Oil

We know many players want the ability to burn raw oil directly for power generation—something entirely possible through mods. After considerable internal debate regarding the vanilla experience, we decided against it to prevent unnecessary confusion for newer players. As mentioned previously, oil belongs on the frontline powering your military, while coal drives your factories. That said, active oil fields now synergize directly with power plants, granting regional generation bonuses due to local natural resources.

Oil deposits now provide a +30 energy bonus

Core Design Intentions

Our ultimate goal is to make energy feel like a tangible, physical resource that is produced and consumed logically across your empire. Smaller nations should still feel viable, though they may need to focus on strategic specialization rather than wide expansion. Competing with global superpowers in cutting-edge military hardware remains appropriately difficult; it is now a matter of deliberate investment and prioritization rather than unchecked scaling. For smaller nations—such as Hungary—transitioning to a War Economy now requires careful pre-investment into national power infrastructure.

Please note that this Open Beta build currently lacks localized translations and final artwork assets. Jump into the game, share your After Action Reports (AARs), and let us know your thoughts regarding balance and mechanics!

Patch Notes

Energy Rework

• Implemented a national power pool: demand is driven by production line draw, while supply comes from factories and power plants. The resulting supply-to-demand ratio directly applies factory efficiency buffs and debuffs.
• Introduced Power Plants as upgradeable state infrastructure. Output dynamically scales based on regional terrain, oil access, and local dams.
• Naval dockyards, civilian factories, and military factories now independently generate baseline power.
• Dams now play a critical role in energy production, complete with reclassified dam categories and newly added massive structures.
• Maintaining surplus power grants a productivity bonus, and regional oil fields actively enhance power plant output.
• Coal reserves are now consumed strictly on an as-needed basis.
• Production lines feature dedicated energy costs, complete with detailed tooltip breakdowns separated by category (air, naval, land).
• Added comprehensive power generation and consumption modifiers while deprecating legacy energy structures.
• MIOs now feature energy draw statistics, paired with new Electrified Assembly and Power Rationing policies.
• Added dedicated research technologies tied to power generation.
• Industrial focus branches across most national trees now reward power plant construction.
• Configured 1936 and 1939 historical starting power infrastructure setups globally.
• The top bar power indicator, energy shortages alerts, and tooltips now interface directly with the new power pool, displaying output per source, plant locations, coal consumption, and maximum capacity.
• Technology and trade interfaces now fully support coal and oil resource consumption mechanics.
• The AI has been taught to construct power plants autonomously based on demand.
• Known Issue: Final custom artwork for various new interface icons is temporarily missing.

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