Victoria 3: Best Starting Nations [Top 8]

Victoria 3 has tons of nations for you to choose from. Click on any location on the map, and there will be a new nation waiting for you to choose it. With that many options, it becomes harder to consider which one to begin with. So we have come up with our list of 8 Best Starting Nations for players of Victoria 3. It will have some interesting choices for you.

Let’s first check out each of the Victoria 3 Best Starting Nations in comparison to each other:

Sweden

One of the early nations that you can play in the game is the nation of Sweden. Sweden in itself is the best nation for starting, and there are several reasons why. First off, the game itself believes that it is one of the best nations for starters. The developers have added the nation to its tutorial of ‘Learn to game’.

The game begins with Finland losing to the Russian empire and Sweden making a union with Norway. Now, you’ll have a slow start in your journey. But later on, as you progress through the game, you’ll unlock a powerful navy. With that, you’ll get to take over the germanic states. Try to colonize them.

Or, you can completely ignore the rest of Europe and progress to make your nation great internally. That is possible thanks to the huge deposits of iron and coal. Not only that, Sweden has tons of Lumber to fulfill your nation’s needs. By the time you’re a powerful nation, you can look towards crippling Russia and take some states from it.

Sweden, in itself, is a Minor power that sits at the 17th rank. Even with a €5.01M GDP, there won’t be much going on. You’ll have to utilize your 2.79M population to make your nation a great nation.

Belgium

Another great contender for the best-starting nations is none other than Belgium. It is another nation that the developers added in their ‘Learn to Game’ Tutorial. The nation is in a good strategic position.

Even though Belgium is relatively small, with only two states, it goes in your favor. You won’t have to do much and work with keeping things relatively simple for you. Even though Belgium is a small nation, you’ll be richer than other nations of that size and will be relatively advanced in industries.

Once you’ve made enough progress, you will have two options. You can either start conquering the Germanic states, or you can start colonizing the African states. The choice will be yours. If you feel threatened by any of your neighbors, you can easily ask for British protection.

All in all, Belgium is a good starting nation for new players to the game. It teaches you all of the basics of how to run a nation without giving you larger problems that you might face with other nations.

Belgium will be at 16th rank, right before Sweden, which is quite high for such a small state. It has a GDP of €6.30M and a population of 4.07M. You’ll be prone to attacks from your neighbors, so have your armies ready for anything that comes.

United States Of America

For the players who believe that they can have world dominion, if they have the right tools, then the United States of America would be their go-to nation. You’ll be away from all the fights happening in Europe, so you’ll have more than enough time to prosper as a great nation.

If you want to conquer, you can start small by conquering the decentralized states and then move on to other nations. Make your ties strong with Texas, or just conquer it, and through it, conquer Mexico.

From there onwards, the world will be your canvas. As a powerful nation, you can move on to conquer unconquered Africa and make it your subject. You’ll have a great opportunity to take over the world. You’ll find good allies in Europe that will be more than willing to take your side.

In the beginning, the United States will be at 6th Rank. It has €29.6M GDP with a constantly increasing population of 15.7M. In the United States of America, you won’t have any shortage of arable land or anything. All in all The United Nations of America in Victoria 3 can easily be considered the Best Starting Nation.

Japanese Shogunate

Japanese Shogunate or Japan is an interesting nation to play as. The country is governed by Shogunate which has kept the country backward compared to other nations in the world. Even though the country ranks 15th, it has made no such progress toward industrialization.

If you’re the type of player who wants to sit back and relax, then Japan is the one for you. There won’t be any pressure to colonize or expand your country. Surprisingly Japan is rich in resources that you can use to industrialize your country. Your goal would be to make it a powerhouse on its own as you progress through the game.

Or, if you want, once you’ve gotten rid of the Shogunate, you can make progress toward colonizing other nations. Start with industrializing your nation. As you progress through history, there will come Journal entries that focus on taking power from the Shogunate and giving it back to the people. With that, you’ll get to have an introduction to trade too. So it is a fun journey for people who want to learn how to change governments and whatnot.

The ever-so-backward nation of the Japanese Shogunate or Japan is still powerful. It is in the 15th Rank. The GDP is relatively strong, with €14.8M. It has a high population of 31.1M, so you will have all the labor to turn your country into a powerhouse.

Brazil

If you want to play the power role in the South American continent, then Brazil would be your best bet. In smaller powers that are fighting for their recognition, Brazil stands strong. You’ll have to strengthen your economy further and then use that strength to muster a powerful army. With Brazil, your goal would be to take over South America.

Apart from that, you’ll mostly be away from the threat of other powerful nations. That will give you more than enough time to strengthen yourself internally. Once you’re done with that, you can move on to conquering other nations and adding them to your dominion or just make them your subject.

Still, you should remember that you as a nation should always be ready if any of the world powers decide to take over you. Make a strong army, as it would not only help you conquer the region but also will ensure that you have enough strength if other nations decide to take over you. Overall, your gameplay with brazil should be prosperous.

Amongst the nations of South America, Brazil is the best one there. It ranks 18th in a world filled with countries that have tons of colonies. It has a good GPD of €7.14M. Your goal is to utilize that and control the whole of South America. Brazil has a population of 4.64M population in the beginning.

Kingdom Of Two Sicilies

One of the underrated nations in Victoria 3 that are the best for starting players is the Kingdom of Two Sicily. Two Sicilies is in a great strategic position. It is right in the middle of the Mediterranean, meaning you’ll have access to all of the nations. In the beginning, your first goal would be to form Italy, and from there, world dominion.

It won’t take you long to become one of the world powers. But remember, if you become a threat to other powers of Europe, they will always be ready to attack you. So your move will be to have powerful armies or a navy to fight them. That Navy will help you at every point in the game.

The Kingdom of Two Sicilies seems like an average country. But in reality, it is a powerful nation. It ranks as the 11th-best nation in the world. The GDP is quite high at €7.30M for a population of 7.03M. You can utilize the high GPD and high population to make Italy great again.

Cape Colony

One of the interesting nations in the game is Cape Colony. Now Cape Colony itself isn’t powerful as it is governed by its overlord, Great Britain. But it gives you a good advantage over other nations of Africa.

If you don’t want to go through all that diplomatic stuff, you can straight up use the British as your ally. That way, you’ll be building an economy in another economy. Once you have made a good foothold here, you can start moving North toward Africa. That way, you’ll be making your dominion over other nations as you progress up. And if things go south, you’ll always have Great Britain as your backup.

Cape Colony doesn’t have anything to show off as a nation. It is in the 33rd Rank. The Cape Colony has a low GDP of €577K, which doesn’t seem good, but it’s one of the highest in the region. You can utilize your 793K population to conquer Africa.

Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire is an interesting nation in Victoria 3. An empire that once was the biggest threat to Europe is now taking its last breaths. You’ll have to take it back to its former glory through several considerable decisions.

Once you have completed the Journal Entries, only then will you be able to counter the might of Russia and Austria. You’ll have a limited time of 19 years to get yourself back on track. In that time, you’ll have to fulfill at least four of the seven harsh Journal entries or tasks.

Now, the tasks seem hard, but once you get the hang of it, there will be no power capable of stopping you. Or if you lose, then Greece will gain power over you and turn the once great Ottoman empire into Bazyntinium.

The Sick Man of Europe isn’t really sick. it has a strong GDP of €15.3M with a high population of 19.5M. The Ottoman Empire has the 9th Rank. It goes on to show that with a little bit of care, the Ottoman Empire can truly shine.

What Nations To Consider

As we’ve already mentioned, there is no shortage of great nations for you to choose from. Hover your cursor over any point, and chances are you’ll find a different nation there. With that many choices, it becomes hard to know which one is the best for you.

A nation might have a great history for you to visit, but then again, you’ll have to face harsh opponents. Otherwise, one nation would be peaceful, but it won’t allow you to make any considerable progress in the world. So for our list, we look at a few factors in each of the nations. If these factors in a nation in Victoria 3 seem fulfilling, then we consider it the Best Starting nation. So, here are they;

Strength

First off, we need to know the nation’s Strength. Now the nation doesn’t have to have the highest relative strength in the region. But if it is a formidable nation with enough powerful neighboring allies, you will have the potential to colonize other nations as you move on.

Regional Power

If it is a powerful nation, then you’ll have a much easier time asserting your dominance over other nations. You’ll have the ability to colonize other nations right out of the gate. Meaning that you won’t have to start developing powerful armies to conquer other nations.

A fine example of that would be the USA. The USA begins with a powerful army. You can use that army first to take over the nations on the American continent. Then, you can move over to Africa or even to Europe if you feel like it.

Unique Journal Enteires

Now, remember, each nation has its own unique Journal Entries. The Journal Entries of each country carry out their own story. For example, if you follow the Journal Entries of Japan, then it will take you through the journey of removing the Shogunate of Japan. It will also make Japan one of the biggest industries in the world. What it means is that the Journal Entries of each nation take you through the journey.

Starting Plays

If you’re looking for nations that have a huge impact right after the game starts, then your category of the best nation might change. A nation that has formidable forces to make advancements against other nations. A great example would be Brazil. Although it is not a great power, considering the fact that there aren’t that many opponents, you’ll have an easier power taking over other nations.

Now, remember, each of the nations that we mentioned is some of the best-starting nations that a new Victoria 3 player can choose. These nations are unique in their traits which makes the gameplay of these nations quite interesting. With that we reach the end of our Victoria 3 Best Starting Nation Guide!