While playing Victoria 3, your country’s political makeup will push against the direction you want to lead it in. You can only do a few things against the will of the people (or the ruling elite in some cases) because butting heads with them can only deteriorate the nation further and possibly lead to collapse and revolution. To push legislation and shape the country, you need to elect certain laws, which in turn depend on the interest groups that make up your government. Following from there, they determine how much legitimacy your government has, which is an often neglected but vital parameter to the success of your reign. In this guide, we will explain what contributes to your government’s legitimacy in Victoria 3 and how to solve issues if it begins to spiral downwards.
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What is government legitimacy in Victoria 3?
The legitimacy of your government is determined by the interest groups or parties that are part of the government assembly, as opposed by those in the opposition, and the government type that your country subscribes to. The main factor determining legitimacy is the Clout factor of parties or groups in the government. This can be problematic if you’re trying to pass a specific law that clashes with the government running your country, such as passing Laissez-Faire with Rural Folk in power or swapping to Monarchy with Trade Unions as part of your government.
The impact of which interest groups have to be included in the government also depends on your government type. For example, the more autocratic your government, the more important it is to have the interest group that your ruler is a member of in the government, while more democratic countries can get away with excluding them from time to time.
The size of your government impacts legitimacy too. This one’s simple, the bigger the government, the less legitimacy it will have. This number can be mitigated through social tech research and the eventual formation of parties that can include more interest groups under one umbrella.
How to increase government legitimacy in Victoria 3
With all of that explained, it might seem like forming your government is a jigsaw puzzle, which is true in many ways. You can try and mix and match until you find the perfect composition for what you have in mind, especially if there’s a certain law that you’re looking to pass. But for the sake of convenience, you can follow a checklist to see what impacts your legitimacy and solve the problem before it escalates.
- If your country is more autocratic, make sure to include the ruler’s interest group in the government. It can add between 30-50 to your legitimacy alone.
- Include the interest groups with the most Clout in your government.
- Don’t include everyone. Most governments can support 2-3 interest groups at most before penalties start setting in.
- Reforming your government too often will lower legitimacy and increase radicalization. Only do it every few years. Remember that you can test out future changes without pressing ‘Confirm’ and then pressing ‘Reset’ to maintain what you started with.
- If you want to push for a certain interest group, you can Bolster them for a few months or years to increase their Clout. Then you can reform the government to install them without lowering legitimacy.
- The popularity of your ruler plays a part in the government’s legitimacy, but unfortunately, there is not much you can do about that outside of random events. If that’s an issue, try to play around it as much as you can.
By following the simple steps above, you will be able to get your country and government back to stable legitimacy. From there, you can plan your next move and use that stability as a stepping stone for an even firmer grip on your country.
