Countries

Countries are the acting entities of Hearts of Iron 4. Each is controlled by a player or by AI and pursues its own National Focus tree during a game as well as choosing various political Ideas, engaging in Diplomacy, Construction, Research, Production, and the command of its military Units.

Each country belongs to one of four political Ideologies, which can change over a game, though there are in most cases no ways to increase the Non-Aligned ideology without modding.

Majors and unique focus trees

Countries in HOI4 are either major countries or minor countries, regardless of changes in size or strength during a game. In a war, once all AI-controlled majors on a side are defeated, that war is over regardless of how many minor countries remain. Major powers refer to ones with the highest number of factories, (within top 7 or 70% of the average of the top 7, or countries at war that fulfilled at least one of these criteria when they entered that war), or the leader of a faction.

The major countries in 1936 are as follows:

Each major has a unique National Focus tree by default. Some minors have unique focus trees unlocked if a certain DLC is owned:

Poland: United and Ready DLC unlocks a focus tree for Poland

Together for Victory unlocks focus trees for New Zealand, South Africa,  Dominion of Canada,  Australia, and the British Raj.

Death or Dishonor unlocks focus trees for  Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Kingdom of Romania, and Yugoslavia.

Waking the Tiger unlocks focus trees for China, Manchukuo, and  Communist China, as well as a shared one by the Chinese warlords (Yunnan, Sinkiang, Guangxi, Shanxi, and Xibei San Ma). It also further expands focus trees for Germany and Japan.

Man the Guns unlocks focus trees for Mexico and the Netherlands. It also further expands focus trees for the United Kingdom and the United States.

All other minor countries currently use the generic national focus tree.