Japan's spike in warfare comes at an inopportune time imo. You go steel, everyone else goes chivalry and gets their castles up. Then you have to get physics for trebuchets and have to build Dojos before building units. Dealing with hit and run knights with the less mobile samurai really pushes Japan toward zealotry, which by granting full xp to units, also synergises well with Dojos. So the idea is to focus on a warmongering religion.
Early game
Authority is an obvious choice, for the production and later the ability to buy GGs. I think progress could do equally well. With latest changes to pottery and stonehenge, getting to construction, military theory for goddess of protection takes forever, so more science helps. On the way to expertise you get +2p in every city, and expertise itself should shave at least 2 or 3 turns off walls in every city. When Japan eventually goes on a conquest spree, there is +3 science in every city through fraternity. Equality helps in maintaining some decent happiness at least in the other annexed capitals. But more importantly it makes reformation easier. With a lot of cities with walls, founding a religion with Hero worship and orders should be doable. The extra production towards military units from Hero worship helps for defensive play until steel. With 6 cities with walls and barracks and a few orders enhancing to zealotry should be possible around Steel.
Mid game
Rush one Dojo in the city with order, spam an army, and war. Build only progress boosted buildings and faith buy units. Reformation should be possible once you take a couple cities. To the glory of god would be my pick here instead of otherwise solid choices like defender of the faith or crusader spirit because of not going authority.
In medieval, conquering a 15 pop city returns around 600 GG|GA points on city conquest with hero worship. Through pure combat, 2GG points on melee defence, ranged combat, 5GG points on melee attack and double that for samurai equates to around a 100 encounters with samurai, possibly more with ranged shots from bows and siege. Ideally only the first or the second city in a war would be bloody.
My inital options were a mix of imperialism into regimental tradition and free thought into rationalism but given the yields from hero worship, I'm thinking of passing on imperialism, especially with to the glory of god, and start rationalism with enlightenment for stabilising happiness.
Late game
I'm torn between starting autocracy with military industrial complex, to make up for not taking imperialism or lebensraum for some pure mayhem. Maybe faith buy writers and go both? Though at this point it depends a lot on game state I guess.
Early game
Authority is an obvious choice, for the production and later the ability to buy GGs. I think progress could do equally well. With latest changes to pottery and stonehenge, getting to construction, military theory for goddess of protection takes forever, so more science helps. On the way to expertise you get +2p in every city, and expertise itself should shave at least 2 or 3 turns off walls in every city. When Japan eventually goes on a conquest spree, there is +3 science in every city through fraternity. Equality helps in maintaining some decent happiness at least in the other annexed capitals. But more importantly it makes reformation easier. With a lot of cities with walls, founding a religion with Hero worship and orders should be doable. The extra production towards military units from Hero worship helps for defensive play until steel. With 6 cities with walls and barracks and a few orders enhancing to zealotry should be possible around Steel.
Mid game
Rush one Dojo in the city with order, spam an army, and war. Build only progress boosted buildings and faith buy units. Reformation should be possible once you take a couple cities. To the glory of god would be my pick here instead of otherwise solid choices like defender of the faith or crusader spirit because of not going authority.
In medieval, conquering a 15 pop city returns around 600 GG|GA points on city conquest with hero worship. Through pure combat, 2GG points on melee defence, ranged combat, 5GG points on melee attack and double that for samurai equates to around a 100 encounters with samurai, possibly more with ranged shots from bows and siege. Ideally only the first or the second city in a war would be bloody.
My inital options were a mix of imperialism into regimental tradition and free thought into rationalism but given the yields from hero worship, I'm thinking of passing on imperialism, especially with to the glory of god, and start rationalism with enlightenment for stabilising happiness.
Late game
I'm torn between starting autocracy with military industrial complex, to make up for not taking imperialism or lebensraum for some pure mayhem. Maybe faith buy writers and go both? Though at this point it depends a lot on game state I guess.
Spoiler Shinto :
